Catholic Ragemonkey

Fear and Loathing in Kingfisher
For a few years now I have rested secure in my spot as an associate pastor or as the Pastor of a parish which did NOT have a school. But now I am Pastor where there is a school. I love it and I love what a school adds to the life of the parish. However, a day appears to be on the horizon which I have long dreaded. It is a day I loved mocking other Pastors about. But the light of this day appears to now be breaking into my foggy, still dawn. You guessed it! It is the day when Father gets to talk to an older class about what we sheepishly call the "facts of life".

The drama of young teenage lives, of crushes, of so-called dating, and of spurned teen love seems to be making its ripple effect in our little pond, much like a gigantic boulder thrown into an otherwise still pool.

Don't get me wrong. It is not that I am totally uncomfortable speaking to kids about sexual love. I can do that (if I have to!). However, I want to do this well and I don't in any way want to impart a version of "sex education" that could best be called the "Parts is Parts Approach". In other words, I want to provide something for the kids that helps them understand what is going on in their lives now, but which also helps them see the beauty and meaning of sexuality. The problem is I am not sure how to approach this; how to avoid the caveat of the presentation being simply what you might get at a generic health fair.

I guess I express these feelings in the hopes that some reader may know of a good, sound, and faith-based program or booklet which might help me come up with some good ideas about how to go about presenting this important topic to the kids (7th and 8th graders).

I don't envy Fr. Tharp's presentation on the Spanish Inquisition. I hope to avoid a practicum on the Inquisition in mine!