The Church recognizes and acknowledges that parents are the primary educators of their children in matters of faith and morals. Because of the sexual content of the material, it is important for parents to understand the context in which sexuality is being presented. Again, parents are the first and primary educators of their children, especially in teaching the virtues of truth, faith, hope and love in their relationships with God and others. (See Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 1632; Vatican II’s Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World , Gaudium et Spes, n. 49; and the Pontifical Council for the Family document The Truth and Meaning of Human Sexuality: Guidelines for Education within the Family). We want to encourage parents to engage their children in meaningful conversation regarding the curriculum as it pertains to their lives.
TheTheology of the Bodyrefers to the series of 129 lectures given by Pope John Paul II during his Wednesday audiences in Rome between September 1979 and November 1984. These addresses were later compiled and published as a single work entitled The Theology of the Body According to John Paul II (now called Male and Female He Created Them). The Theology of the Body covers such topics as the bodily dimension of the human person, the nature of human sexuality, the human need for communion, and the nature of marriage.
The Theology of the Body is an articulation of the faith that is intended to enrich the lives of all people. Commentator Emily Stimpson describes it in this way: “The Theology of the Body is more than an exposition of the Church’s teachings on human sexuality. It is, in fact, the Catholic sacramental worldview, understood, structured, and articulated for a culture plagued by a diseased understanding of man. When properly understood and truly lived, that worldview has the power to transform the way men and women understand their bodies and their souls, their masculinity and femininity, their vocation in this life, and their destiny in the next” (Franciscan Way, Autumn 2007).
An additional reason why this information is offered to you is because so many Catholic parents have asked for help in talking to their kids about sex. They see their kids being inundated with advertising, music, and television programs that shout out the message, “There’s something wrong with you if you don't have sex.” Parents want the best for their kids—good health, quality education, and, in most cases, the hope of meeting the right spouse and sharing a lifelong marriage with children of their own. Even if their children are not called to the vocation of marriage but to a religious vocation, parents want them to have a proper understanding of the awesome gift of human sexuality. You are the first and best educators of your children. Yes, it is hard to find the right words to talk with your kids about sex, but it is not impossible. Your kids need you. Be there for them. The information contained here will help. But the most important part of the conversation is you. Don’t be afraid to start the conversation—and remember to keep it going. Christ has promised that “the truth shall set you free” (John 8:32).
For a summary geared for adults of Pope John Paul II's Theology of the Body Click Here.