I recently spent 4 full days completing ""Having Life to the Full course with the Catholic Education Office. I enjoyed this course and found it very interesting to learn more on the Catholic take on some fairly delicate topics. One of the things that resonated with me was the way the Catholic Church has recently become more "modern" Pope Francis has been pivotal in leading the church in to becoming more a much more accepting place. The church has become far more accepting of people in same sex relationships. While the Catholic church still will not marry couples in same sex relationships, they are welcomed into the church and they are celebrated. The church has also greatly relaxed it’s thoughts on divorce and receiving communion if you are divorced. I think this is a giant leap for the Catholic Church in times where our numbers of attendees on Sunday mornings are rapidly dwindling. Here’s hoping these more modern attitudes will bring back some people who previously felt shunned?
We covered a lot about the issues we as teachers are up against when we teach sexuality in school. Here is an example of how one of those many issues might be addressed.
We covered a lot about the issues we as teachers are up against when we teach sexuality in school. Here is an example of how one of those many issues might be addressed.
A parent rings you to complain that sexuality education should not be part of the Health curriculum in a Catholic School. How do you respond?
Sexuality is a component of the New Zealand Curriculum which legally we have to cover. We teach sexuality in a very positive way while all the time being acutely aware of the age and stage of the children we teach. We teach to the highest ideal while maintaining a profound dignity and respect for each other’s differences.
Sexuality education is also about developing young people’s skills so that they make informed choices about their behavior, and feel confident and competent about acting on these choices. We want our students in Catholic Schools to have the Catholic perspective on these teachings.
Sexuality is a gift from God, God lives in us and becomes present to others through us. “Sexuality is an all-encompassing energy inside us. In one sense, it is identifiable with the principle of life itself. It is the drive for love, communion, community, friendship, family, affection, wholeness, consummation, creativity, self-perpetuation, immortality, joy, delight, humour and self-transcendence.” - Rolheiser, Ronald (1999)
John 4:8-16 says in the Bible that “ he who does not know love does not know God, for God is love.”
God loves us so much that he sent us his only son so that we might live through him.
John goes on to say that if God loved us so much to send his son, then we ought to love one another.
If we love each other then God’s love has been perfected and he is abiding in us. By confessing our faith, God aides in us and we in Him. God is love and he who abides in love, abides in God and God in him.
In St Paul’s letters to the Corinthians, he talks of love being patient, kind, not being boastful or keeping a record of wrongs.
This verse describes the characteristics of true love. These qualities can certainly be found in the person of Jesus Christ, and they can be found in all truly loving relationships. The problem with trying to “find” love in our dating lives, is that too often we don't look for these characteristics. Rather we look at physical appearance, popularity, or wealth. These are not the qualities that God looks at and neither should we.
Sexuality is a beautiful, good , extremely powerful, sacred energy , given us by God. We are embodied souls with sexual needs and identities, that God wanted this, and that this is good.
Effective sexuality education also provides young people with an opportunity to explore how it involves emotions, respect for one self and other people and their feelings, decisions and bodies. It gives an insight into what the positive qualities of relationships are. It is important that they understand how bullying, stereotyping, abuse and exploitation can negatively influence relationships.
