On May 18, I began a 7-part series, offering some thougts about how to teach the Catholic faith to “Generation Me” (those born in the 70s through the 90s; Generation Me, Jean Twenge, M.D.).Click on the following to read:

Part One: The Decline of Social Rules

Part Two: Excessive Individualism

Part Three: You Can Be Anything You Want

Part Four: The Age of Anxiety

Part Five: The Attitude of “Yeah, Right…No Point in Trying”

Part Six: Sex – “Generation Crude”

Today, we address another unique characteristic of Generation Me: the “equality revolution.”

The Equality Revolution – In terms of minorities, women, and gays, Gen Me is very tolerant and inclusive. That’s how they’ve been taught since their infancy. The whole idea of these groups struggling for acceptance is foreign to Gen Me. Gay relationships are no big deal. Women are considered equals and men and women Gen Me-ers more easily share roles when it comes to housework, etc. Girls have been just as involved in sports as boys throughout their lifetime. They don’t understand what all the fuss is about when it comes to Gays.

How Catechists Should Respond: This sense of equality is a good thing and is a strength of Gen Me that needs to be affirmed. At the same time, because Gen Me is growing up in a significantly more pluralistic society than previous generations, the danger of relativism is very real. In other words, Gen Me-ers are very quick to assume that we are all equal and that there are no differences between various groups of people. While this is good in terms of showing respect for all people, it can also cloud one’s approach to the practice of a particular faith tradition. Assuming that we are all the same can lead one to abandon one’s unique faith tradition. Gen Me is quick to assume that “we all pray to the same God” so “why bother with all of these external differences?”

The truth is that the key to unity is a recognition of diversity. In terms of ecumenical dialogue, progress is not made by ignoring our differences but by better understanding our own unique tradition so as to more intelligently dialogue with those of other traditions. In terms of morality, Pope Benedict XVI has warned against the dangers of moral relativism or the idea that moral principles have no objective standards.

Gen Me often considers adherence to a creed of essential truths as fundamentalism and therefore intolerant. They are prone to see belief as the cause of differences and conflict. As a result, unbelief is becoming popular. It is no surprise then that Gen Me is being lured by a “new atheism” (hence, the popularity of books such as God: The Failed Hypothesis – How Science Shows That God Does Not Exist by Victor J. Stenger; The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins; God is Not Great: The Case Against Religion by Christopher Hitchens; and Letter to a Christian Nation and The End of Faith by Sam Harris)

Bottom Line: Pope Benedict XVI has said very clearly that the antidote for relativism is faith which is belief in revealed truth. We can help Gen Me to overcome the temptation of relativism by helping them to recognize that, not only is there truth, but that we can understand this truth. To believe in truth, as revealed by God, is not to be equated with intolerance. Jesus tells us that he is truth (“I am the way, the truth, and the life.” John 14:6). Truth, therefore, is found in relationship with Jesus, who reveals to us the face of God. To combat relativism and the “new atheism,” we need to embrace the call to engage in a “new evangelization,” inviting those we teach to a relationship with a loving and merciful God, revealed to us in Jesus Christ.
 

On May 18, I began a 7-part series, offering some thougts about how to teach the Catholic faith to “Generation Me” (those born in the 70s through the 90s; Generation Me, Jean Twenge, M.D.).

Click on the following to read:

Part One: The Decline of Social Rules

Part Two: Excessive Individualism

Part Three: You Can Be Anything You Want

Part Four: The Age of Anxiety

Part Five: The Attitude of “Yeah, Right…No Point in Trying”

Today, we address another unique characteristic of Generation Me: “Generation Crude” – the author’s (Jean Twenge) description of Gen Me’s attitude toward sex compared to earlier generations.

Sex: Generation Crude – Because Gen Me is putting off marriage, they are seeking ways to avoid painful breakups that come with relationships while not “missing out” on the experience of sex. The result is “hooking up” which is having sex with someone you have no expectation of seeing or talking to again. Another is “friends with benefits” in which friends engage in sex strictly for the physical enjoyment. Gen Me-ers believe that sex takes practice and their attitude toward sex is very casual and relaxed. They have been exposed to extra-marital sex on TV for their entire lives and find it perfectly acceptable.

How Catechists Should Respond: What Gen Me will NOT listen to is a blanket condemnation of their sexual attitudes. They will simply dismiss this as being “out of step” and “out of touch” with reality. Gen Me does not need to hear the Church preaching about how sex is wrong, but about what a marvelous, wonderful gift it is and how that gift must be respected and protected. Gen Me needs to hear the Church talking about how God does not “look the other way” when his creatures have sex. God is not embarrassed about sex. God “invented” sex! God gave it to us as a gift. Gen Me needs to hear that Catholics consider sex between a husband and wife to be an encounter with divinity…it is a sacrament through which the divine is encountered in the same way that we encounter God in all the sacraments. We encourage frequent reception of the Eucharist. Gen Me should hear the Church encouraging married couples to have frequent sex!

Gen Me is not shy when it comes to talking about sex. They need to see and hear from married Catholic couples talking with ease and comfort about sex. They need to hear us teach that sexual expression involves the whole person: mind, body, spirit, and soul, and that we only fool ourselves when we approach it as something purely physical. A good place to look for language to talk about the Catholic understanding of sexuality is the writings of Pope John Paul II on the Theology of the Body.

Bottom Line: We have our work cut out for us on this one. Because of the Priest sex abuse crisis, the Church has lost a great deal of credibility when it comes to speaking about sex. That’s why I believe firmly that we married lay people need to talk more about this wonderful gift in our lives. Sex is a part of our vocation…it is part of our calling. It is our encounter with the divine. We need to help Gen Me hear God calling them to this vocation and to this wonderful gift.
 

Pardon me if I don’t blog for a couple of days…this weekend is my daughter’s high school graduation!  I’ll be back on May 29.

On May 18, I began a 7-part series, offering some thougts about how to teach the Catholic faith to “Generation Me” (those born in the 70s through the 90s; Generation Me, Jean Twenge, M.D.).

Click on the following to read:

Part One: The Decline of Social Rules

Part Two: Excessive Individualism

Part Three: You Can Be Anything You Want

Part Four: The Age of Anxiety

Today, we address another unique characteristic of Generation Me: the attitude of “Yeah, right. No point in trying.”

Yeah, Right…No Point in Trying – Gen Me has so much exposure to events and circumstances (cable news, 24/7) that seem so far out of their control that their response is often, “why bother?” They have a pervasive cynicism that serves to protect their self-esteem. They have little sense of control and feel very little use for protesting and voting. They tend to blame others and make excuses in order to protect their self-esteem. The victim mentality is prevalent in Gen Me. As a whole, the prophetic charism is lacking as they see little possibility of bringing about change on a large-scale basis.

How Catechists Should Respond: Working for a better world is not about control but is about doing the will of God, even when it seems futile. Author Stephen Covey talks about “principle-centered” leadership, emphasizing that “Real character development begins with the humble recognition that we are not in charge, that principles ultimately govern.” Catholic Social Teaching provides us with principles for living in harmony with our world and with one another, not in order to control, but in order to live as God wants us to live. Briefly, here are seven principles of Catholic Social Teaching as outlined by the U.S. bishops:

Life and Dignity of the Human Person
We are called to ask whether our actions as a society respect or threaten the life and dignity of the human person.

Call to Family, Community, and Participation
As the central social institution of our society the family must be supported and strengthened.

Rights and Responsibilities
The only way to protect human dignity and to live in a healthy community is for each of us to accept our responsibility to protect those rights in our own interactions.

Option for the Poor and Vulnerable
We are called to defend and promote the dignity of those who are poor and vulnerable and meet their immediate material needs.

The Dignity of Work and the Rights of Workers
The basic rights of workers must be respected: the right to productive work, to fair wages, to private property, to organize and join unions, and to pursue economic opportunity.

Solidarity
Because God is our Father, we are all brothers and sisters with the responsibility to care for one another.

Care for God’s Creation
God is the creator of all people and all things and he wants us to enjoy his creation. The responsibility to care for all God has made is a requirement of our faith. 

Bottom Line: We can help Gen Me to overcome the temptation to “not bother” by helping them to see the importance of living a principle-centered life. In the movie , Saint Thomas More explains to his daughter the importance of holding on to principles: “when a man takes an oath, Meg, he’s holding his own self in his hands like water. And if he opens his fingers then, he needn’t hope to find himself again.” Living according to principles is not a matter of control but is a matter of character. For a generation motivated by success, this type of thinking is very challenging. It is a completely radical approach to motivation.

Personally, I find this type of thinking best exemplified in my own experience by the late Fr. Larry Craig who worked in prison ministry for many years. When asked how many lives he turned around, Fr. Larry said, “Let’s see…15 years, about 5000 inmates I’ve worked with….I’d say six.” When I asked him what motivated him to keep going when he had such a low “success” rate, he replied, “I do it because it’s the right thing to do. Jesus said, ‘When I was in prison, you visited me.’”

Now, THAT’S principle-centered!