Children Aren't Optional

Self-Sacrifice vs. Self-Fulfillment

The fertility rate in the United States is declining. According to the Centers for Disease Control, the average American woman will have 1.76 children during her lifetime.

To put that in perspective, that's lower than the largely secular Western European countries of France, Norway, and Sweden. It's only 10 percent higher than China, with its history of forced abortions and the "one-child," now "two-child" policy.

The decline in fertility has become so serious that even outlets like the New York Times have started to ask what's behind this decline. In fact, the Times recently ran an article entitled "Americans are having fewer babies....