Bible notes parents are still liable for children age 20 y/o and below – Int’l Televangelist

MANILA, Philippines – The Holy Scriptures state that it is an injustice to hold a child criminally liable at a tender age of 9 years old, according to international televangelist Bro. Eliseo Soriano.
Brother Eli said, the God of the Bible allows a person to make his or her own decision in life only when he or she reaches the age of puberty.
“(In) First Corinthians chapter 7 verse 36, ang pag-aasawa (getting married) is one of the major decisions na maaaring gawin ng tao (that a person can make). Ibinigay ng Dios iyon sa katamtamang gulang, (God allows it at a proper age)” Brother Eli, the overall servant of the Members, Church of God Intenational (MCGI) explained.
“Kung titingnan natin sa Ingles (If we read it in English): “If she passed the flower of her age”. Kapag lampas ng (when he or she reaches the) age of puberty ang ‘flower of her age’. Ini-a-allow na ng Dios na magdesisyon ang isang tao, pinapayagan na ang magulang na ang kaniyang anak magdesisyon sa kaniyang sarili, (God allows a person to decide, a parent lets the child make his or her own decisions),” he added.
Brother Eli noted that even science supports the belief that a person develops his or her skills in decision making only at the age of 20 years old.
“There’s now incontrovertible evidence that the brain continues to develop throughout the adolescence. Some regions of the brain including parts responsible for decision-making and impulse control are not fully mature “until at least the age of 20”, Professor Nicholas Mackintosh once said, an experimental psychologist and Professor Emeritus at the University of Cambridge.

Brother Eli noted that in the Bible, when a child commits a crime, it is most likely because of external factors such as the surrounding circumstances, environment, culture or religion.
Therefore, it is not right to hold a nine-year-old child criminally liable for his actions.
“Kung magbabatay tayo sa may ari ng ating being, iyong nakakaalam ng ating mga kaisipan, mga emosyon natin – para sa Dios – ang bata (If we ask the Owner of our being, the One who reads our mind, our emotions – for God) 20 years old below cannot be held fully liable. I’m saying he or she cannot be held fully liable of his or her sins. Inabswelto nga ng Dios, (God absolved him)” Brother Eli explained.
“Alam kasi ng Dios ang kanilang circumstances, (God knows their circumstances) because of the way their parents are bringing them up. Maaaring may pagkukulang sa parte ng kanilang mga magulang. (There might be shortcomings on the part of the parents). Kaya hindi iniatang sa bata, (that’s why a crime is not blamed on a child) 20 years and below. Binigyan ang bata sa Kaniyang salita ng karapatang mag-decide sa kaniyang sarili (A child is given the freewill to decide only) if he or she passed the flower of her age, according to the bible,” he added.
Instead, the parents of the child who committed a crime are the ones who should be punished because it is their responsibility to guide and mold their children to develop into better persons.
“Para atangan natin ang siyam na taong bata, tawagin nang kriminal anong malay natin na iyon ay (For us to punish a nine-year-old child criminally, call him a criminal, we don’t know it might be) insinuated by the culture, by the environment, by some other people. Hindi ang bata ang dapat managot duon. Dapat ang papanagutin siguro, iyong mga kasama ng bata, mga magulang na di nagtuturo sa kanilang mga anak, walang disiplina, (It’s not the child who must be held liable for that. The persons who should be held criminally liable are the ones who surrounds him – the parents who do not discipline or teach their children,)” the International televangelist noted.
“Kasi ang anak, ang bata nasa total discipline ng magulang. (A child is under the total discipline of the parents) Chapter 22 verse 6 of the book of Proverbs (it says): “Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old, he will not depart from it. Turuan mo ang bata sa daan na dapat niyang lakaran.” Kaya ang bata, nasa pangangalaga ng magulang, (Train up a child in the way he should go. A child should be under the care of the parents).” Brother Eli concluded. – Marje Pelayo (with reports from Rosalie Coz)
— Leslie Longboen | UNTV News and Rescue