{"id":9520,"date":"2012-01-17T07:19:09","date_gmt":"2012-01-17T13:19:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.austincnm.com\/?p=9520"},"modified":"2012-01-21T23:39:56","modified_gmt":"2012-01-22T05:39:56","slug":"sexuality-its-a-slow-fade","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2012\/01\/sexuality-its-a-slow-fade\/","title":{"rendered":"Sexuality\u2014It\u2019s a Slow Fade"},"content":{"rendered":"

I see it every day and I\u2019m pretty sure you do, too.\u00a0 The sexualization of men and women, teenagers and young boys and girls is everywhere.\u00a0 The billboard on the highway.\u00a0 The front window of a store.\u00a0 Magazine ads.\u00a0 Television commercials.\u00a0 Mailers in my mailbox.\u00a0 And, it\u2019s all over the internet.\u00a0 We can\u2019t get away from it, but how do we prepare our children to battle such a sexualized culture?<\/p>\n

Recently, I participated in a Bible study based on the book, \u201cThe Five Conversations You Must Have with Your Son.\u201d\u00a0 A few years earlier, I took part in the same study for girls.\u00a0 It was enlightening and empowering, yet it touched on the heavy responsibility we have as parents to form our children.\u00a0 That is no light cross.\u00a0 The Catholic church has an amazing resource in Theology of the Body (TOB).\u00a0 Until a few months ago, I thought it was only geared toward college-aged students and beyond.\u00a0 TOB\u00a0 just launched middle school and high school curriculums<\/a>. Hallelujah! \u00a0I\u2019ve previewed the program and it is an incredible resource.<\/p>\n

This weekend\u2019s reading at Mass was timely (isn\u2019t it always?):<\/p>\n

\u201cAvoid immorality.\u00a0 Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the immoral person sins against his own body.\u00a0 Do you not know that your body is a temple of the holy Spirit<\/strong> within you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own<\/strong>?\u00a0 For you have been purchased at a price<\/strong>.\u00a0 Therefore glorify God in your body<\/strong>.\u201d -1 Corinthians 6:18-20.<\/em><\/p>\n

[emphasis is mine]<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>This verse captures all that we believe about pro-life, sexuality, the covenant of marriage and the sanctification of the body, doesn\u2019t it?\u00a0 It is powerful.\u00a0 It is a reminder that our bodies, our LIVES, are a gift from God.\u00a0 How do you treat such a precious gift?\u00a0 Do you abuse it, flaunt it, fill it with drugs and alcohol or overexpose it?<\/p>\n

Quite honestly, I think the degradation of soul and the absence of self-worth comes in smaller doses.\u00a0 I think it\u2019s a skirt cut a little too short that gets more attention than we imagined, but we relish in the attention.\u00a0 I think it\u2019s a lunch meeting with a co-worker of the opposite sex where we share a moment of intimacy that should be saved for our spouse.\u00a0 As the song from Christian group, Casting Crowns, says: \u201cIt\u2019s a slow fade when you give yourself away.\u00a0 It\u2019s a slow fade when black and white turn to gray.\u201d<\/p>\n

It is a slow fade, indeed.\u00a0 In difficult situations, I find myself at an impasse.\u00a0 Do I avoid the situation, diminish my involvement or eliminate the situation all together?<\/p>\n

AVOID IT.<\/strong>\u00a0 A good high school friend of mine makes it a practice to never have a meeting with someone of the opposite sex unless someone else is present.\u00a0 He is a strong Christian, yet he never wants there to be an invitation to sin.<\/p>\n

DIMINISH YOUR INVOLVEMENT.\u00a0<\/strong> Too many times, we find ourselves in an unexpected situation that tests our morality.\u00a0 In those moments, I usually send a pleading flare up to God that goes along the lines of, \u201cWhy did you put me HERE?!\u201d I\u2019m always hopeful God will encourage me to zip my lips (typically the more powerful witness).\u00a0 There are times, though, He leads me to say something I wouldn\u2019t normally be brave enough to utter.<\/p>\n

ELIMINATE IT.<\/strong>\u00a0 A Dominican sister once shared with her young female students that wearing clothing with writing across certain parts of the body (backside and chest) invites males to sin.\u00a0 She countered their argument that it was just an \u201cinnocent\u201d piece of clothing with, \u201cDo you want to be the instrument that invites someone to sin?\u201d<\/p>\n

Being chaste in a secular world is a test of faith.\u00a0 I\u2019m hoping, praying<\/em>, that the lives we lead and the lessons we teach our children will allow them to see God\u2019s greatest sacrifice and glorify His works\u2014always.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I see it every day and I\u2019m pretty sure you do, too.\u00a0 The sexualization of men and women, teenagers and young boys and girls is everywhere.\u00a0 The billboard on the highway.\u00a0 The front window of a store.\u00a0 Magazine ads.\u00a0 Television commercials.\u00a0 Mailers in my mailbox.\u00a0 And, it\u2019s all over the internet.\u00a0 We can\u2019t get away… [Read More]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":34,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false},"categories":[4,90],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-9520","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-blog","7":"category-faith-blog","8":"entry","9":"has-post-thumbnail"},"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":38066,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2013\/02\/how-to-support-sb-521-put-sexual-education-back-into-parents-hands\/","url_meta":{"origin":9520,"position":0},"title":"How to Support SB 521: Put Sexual Education Back into Parents\u2019 Hands","author":"Martina","date":"February 27, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"UPDATE The House hearing for HB 1057 will be on Tuesday, April 2 at 2:00 p.m. or upon adjournment of the House. This means it could be later than 2 pm. The hearing could go late in the evening. \u00a0 After reading an article about new senate bill 521, the\u00a0Texas\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blog"","block_context":{"text":"Blog","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/category\/acnm\/blog\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1923,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2011\/06\/1923\/","url_meta":{"origin":9520,"position":1},"title":"Have You Prayed For Your Future Son Or Daughter-In-Law Today?","author":"Jason Elizondo","date":"June 3, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Today's post was inspired by a pair of very unlikely sources. 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