Outraged, and Rightly So

People in Helena, Montana (as well as all around the country) are outraged at a proposed health and sex-ed curriculum that the district wants to implement into the public school system.  The curriculum is a Kindergarten-12th Grade program, teaching children various information on both health and sexuality.  The outrage comes, most specifically, from the topics on sex, sexual orientation, sex positions, intercourse and so on.  (Do a Google search of the topic and you will get plenty of articles, video, opinions and information.)  Here’s a brief 0:45 second video depicting what the children will learn at various ages along the way.

If you can’t view the video, click HERE.

The outrage that I have is against the logic of the school board, superintendent and the, so-called, professionals that wrote this curriculum over the past two years.  They believe that you need to teach kids about sex so that they can make more informed decisions about it – yes, that includes 5-year old kindergarteners.  What faulty logic!  This is similar  to the faulty argument (typically about third-world countries in Africa) that HIV-AIDS will decrease with the distribution of condoms.  Or the faulty argument that abortions will decrease with more-effective (oxymoron) birth control.  One way to prevent adolescent sexual behavior (and to get rid of HIV and abortion, and so on) is not to mask it, or try to skirt the issue.  The truth is that abstinence must be taught, as opposed to shunned.  Just because someone hasn’t had sex before marriage doesn’t mean that they’re any less human than anyone who has.  The truth of sexuality must be taught, embraced, lived and then we’ll start to see the changes. 

In one report I saw, the reporter mentioned that high schoolers will view and discuss “erotic art”.  WHAT?!  They’re going to give children pornography and water it down by calling it art.  Absolutely disgusting.  They have no idea how detrimental this curriculum will be if implemented.  And why do 10-year olds need to know about sexual positions?

The proper logic is to teach children about the sanctity of human sexuality and to do it in the home.  This means that the education is up to the parents, to not only teach verbally, but to live out, through chastity, the proper, intended and ordered gift of the marital act.  Sex-ed can’t be about depravity, about making sex ‘dirty’ or about preventing adolescents from knowing about sex… but too much info will destroy their innocence and distort their understanding.  Sex-ed in the model proposed by the Helena School District lacks truth and will only continue to distort the proper orientation of sex in the world.  Sex is reserved for a married man and his wife; any other definition of human sexuality is disordered.

I’ve heard other stories about kindergarten sex-ed programs in public schools teaching about homosexual sex, but never in this much detail.  It’s quite disturbing and unnerving.  If you live in Helena, please speak up and do something about this.  If you don’t, but still care to see changes for good take place, check out the local curriculum in your neighborhood’s public schools – you might be surprised what you find.

TrueMan up!

Back to Campus

With most schools starting recently (or soon), I thought it would be good to address some issues about how a TrueMan behaves on campus.  A college campus, as we all know, can be a hostile place for an ardent follower of Christ.  It can be a treacherous minefield of explosive situations, abusive and vulgar language, uncomfortable environments and disagreements with unbelievers.  In order to deal with these difficult issues, here are a couple suggestions.

• Be yourself.  If you love and serve God, don’t be ashamed of it.  Live it out, your witness will come through – people will want what you have.
• Don’t give in to negative peer pressure.  Negative peer pressure is stupid… Real friends don’t force you into bad situations and surely don’t lead you into sin.  We call these people “nasty friends”.  If you’ve got ’em, get rid of ’em.  Don’t ruin your life holding on to people who are ruining theirs.
• If you are struggling, and think that you’ve got it bad or that you’re really suffering for the increase of the Kingdom, read about St Paul in 2 Corinthians 11/12.  That’s some good perspective, huh?!
• There’s a big difference between being a strong Catholic man who stands for something good as compared to a “culturally manly” guy who wants the “glamorous” lifestyle of money, power, women and stuff.  College campus life increases these bad desires exponentially.
• Many women on your college campus won’t understand the chivalry you extend to them.  Do it anyway, with charity and a smile.  Be a radical change on your campus.
• Being a Man of God doesn’t mean you can’t have anything to drink, or that you can’t go to any parties.  It means that you put yourself in good situations, that point you towards heaven and you act in moderation and with prudence.  Remember, Jesus hung out with sinners, but not when they were sinning.
• Strive for excellence in all things.  Start by being sober and chaste.  If you conquer these two areas, you’re well on your way.
• As much as it seems untrue, women don’t want to marry the dirtball, drunkard, C-minus-student types.  They want a gentleman, a man who’s going to provide for them, a man who loves them and shows their love by respecting them and by being self-sacrificing.  They want a man who is going to be a great dad and a hard worker.  There’s nothing wrong with stacking the deck on this topic!  Put all the cards in your favor from the get-go!

All in all, college is a great time for a young man.  Live it up.  Enjoy it.  In all things, be focused on Christ, live virtue and especially, live joy.

Man up!

7 Days of Virtue; Day 4 – Temperance

Think of virtues like your muscles.  You work your muscles out so that they can perform for you when needed.  Virtue is the same way.  You practice, work on the virtue and then, when the time comes, the virtue is there and ready.

Day 4 of the 7 Day Journey through the Virtues: DAY 4 – TEMPERANCE.

Temperance moderates our attraction to pleasure.  This can be any form of pleasure… physical, emotional, sexual, mental, spiritual, etc.  There is an opposing vice that we should stay away from… insensibility (the complete rejection of any pleasure).  Pleasure, in and of itself, is not bad, as long as it is ordered and moderated.  There are three major vices that go along with temperance that we all deal with, in one way or another; it is NOT manly to indulge in these sins!

1. Gluttony – inordinate consumption of food and/or drink.  If they need a fork lift to come get you from the booth to your car, you ate too much.  We are incredibly guilty of this in America with our portion sizes.  A way to fight gluttony is by fasting.
2. Drunkenness – hinders our reason.  Drinking to excess means that we are willingly depriving ourselves of our reason (St. Thomas Aquinas).  A HUGE problem in our culture.  Men, drunkenness is not manly.  Being able to stop after 1 or 2 drinks is manly and it doesn’t just mean you do this when you are driving.  This is at home, at a party, with a DD, where ever.  Losing all ability to think, function, act and control yourself is cowardly.  Be a man, put the drink down.
3. Lust – is destructive and causes harm.  Sex, like fire, is a good thing  – in context.  If a fire gets out of control, it destroys.  If it is used how it is intended, it gives off warmth and can be used to cook.  Sex is the same way… if we make the choice to be chaste, we are ordering our sexuality in the way that God intended.  Don’t be fooled by society, lust is destructive.  Everyone’s NOT doing it – there are those of use who strive for it who are living chaste lives, even in our marriages.  St. Thomas Aquinas said: “A man who gives into his lust has weaknesses.  From this weakness means that he will give into his passions.  He is not free to love.”  Are you weak?  Be virtuous, control your sexuality, don’t let it control you.

Temperance guides us so that we do not fall into these sins.  Being temperate means that we know when enough is enough, too much or sinful.

Man up!

Chastity, A Life Choice

On Sunday, I was asked to address a group of high school guys at the Colorado Springs Chastity Rally.  The young men were very attentive and seemed very receptive to the words of my message.  As I spoke to these 14-18 year olds, I was hit that men over 18 need to hear this message just as much.  Living a life of chastity is a choice and it is a call for all of us, whether we’re single, dating, married or a priest.  In a marriage, a man must remain chaste… be careful not to confuse this with celibate, they are not the same thing.  Living chastity means that we are living out our sexuality in the way that God intended.  If you don’t know if you’re living a chaste life, I highly recommend diving into books that talk about this.  My recommendations include “Theology of the Body for Beginners” and “The Good News About Sex and Marriage”.  Both books are written by Christopher West.  If you’ve read these books and are looking for more, you can always read the documents that these books come from, “Theology of the Body” by Pope John Paul II.

Living a chaste life is fulfilling.  It’s not easy, but it’s fulfilling.  The world is telling us that in order to be cool, hip and a real man, we must be having a ton of sex with every woman we come into contact with.  This is NOT what God intended for us.  You have the power to choose.  You can choose a life of emptiness, moving from one night stand to one night stand.  Or, you can choose a life of fulfillment, by giving yourself as a free gift to your wife in the sacred act of marital love.  In my mind, there’s no question which one is better.

Man up!

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