To Steal or NOT to Steal

Finally someone has put into writing an article about something I feel is almost an epidemic among our youth... that is music piracy... its not so much that I'm a strong advocate for musicians but I am convinced that youth today need direction in this area because of the fact that it flies in the face of what we as Christians leaders claim to hold and want to pass along to our students, Honesty, Accountability and TRUTH.
Thank you Kerry for this article and the permission to post.

“A serious moral issue lies beneath the surface, waiting to fester into a widespread epidemic.”

By Kerry Courchaine

Most of the arguments related to the choices in music made by teens
pertain to the beat, the artist, the lyrics, or all of the above. But, few
question how teens obtain the music. A serious moral issue lies beneath the surface, waiting to fester into a widespread epidemic.
A survey by the Barna Group1 revealed that 86% of teenagers believe
that music piracy, including copying a CD for a friend, is either
morally acceptable or is a non issue. Even more disturbing, only
10% of Christian teens believe music piracy is morally wrong.
Church-wide, born-again believers are just as likely as non-believers
to engage in music piracy. Teens receive a clear message concerning
the ethics of copying CDs or downloading unauthorized music.
However, the majority of their information, their morality, and
their habits come from their peers, not from parents, teachers, pastors, or other people in a position of moral authority.
A popular saying is “from little acorns do mighty oaks grow”. The
failure of teens to comprehend the moral dilemma of music piracy may
progress towards failures of even greater magnitude. These moral
failures, left unchecked, will likely cause greater problems when teens
reach adulthood. How they conduct business, how they conduct friendships, and how they conduct their marriages will be affected by the moral lessons teenagers learn in their early, formative years.
Discipleship leaders position themselves to guide their teens through
the moral crossroads the teens face. Music is only one area in their
lives for which they must make a moral decision. Unfortunately, they
do not see music piracy as a moral issue. This is likely because no one
has shared this issue with them. By survey, only 48% of teens have
ever heard anyone discuss the morality of music copying and
downloading. This is proof that leaders are only doing half the job.
Addressing music piracy now may prevent future moral dilemmas
from ever forming.

1www.barna.org

[Kerry Courchaine is the Word of

Life missionary in NE Atlanta, GA.

Use with permission