Young Catholics are turning the tide
SIR – I am writing in response to your cover story, “Class Struggle” (September 20). I believe that the somewhat evasive response of the Catholic Education Service to new guidelines for Relationships and Sex Education is compatible with a long-term reluctance by the Church to teach about vocation, anthropology and the role of human sexuality.
In the decades following Vatican II, and particularly after the publication of Humanae Vitae, a distinction was drawn between “life” issues and “social justice” issues. The perils of indiscriminate sexual experimentation and a contraceptive mentality were sidestepped. In an increasingly competitive and individualistic culture, marriage or celibacy were downplayed as generators of social capital, and vocation was reduced to the pursuit of certain careers. Ultimately, respect for creation and gender equality became disconnected from fidelity to one’s body and lifelong commitments.
