BEWARE! Even Theology Class Isn't Sacred Anymore
by Irene Slovak
If I were to write an article on pornography, I would find it unpleasant at best; yet much less difficult than the one that I am writing now. At least, pornography is more easily recognized for what it is, even by moral degenerates. But when a book has a pretty cover, is authored by a Catholic Brother, printed by a Catholic press and handed to a 15-year-old student in a Catholic school, you just don't expect to be confronted with the problem. Perhaps pornography is too nice a word because what is being taught in a class called Freshman Theology at Saint Pius X High School in Houston, Texas, is much more insidious. It's assault is upon faith and conscience. A young person may have occasion to see a forbidden word or picture and may even have a weakness in this direction but knows full well that he or she is doing something wrong. The "new" approach is to assault the young teen with information, assure them there is no need for such things as guilt-feelings, and tell them that whatever they decide to do is their own moral choice.
Such is the approach taken by the textbook A Search for Meaning in Love, Sex & Marriage, by Hugo L. Hurst, CFX, printed by St. Mary's College Press of Winona, Minnesota. It is this book which is used by Sister Dorothy Schmidt, a Dominican at St. Pius X and teacher of this class called Freshman Theology.
When I received a copy of this textbook I immediately turned to the bibliography to see what kind of source material the author used in writing the book. The bibliography was very enlightening and the book itself remains true to the sources from which it was derived. It is worth noting that the author has put an asterisk beside those books in the bibliography which he recommends for more in-depth reading but equates all of them as "good" books.
It would be impossible to list the books here so I will try to give a capsule review using both the bibliography and the textbook to show how closely they parallel each other on each topic.
Much of the source material is from SIECUS which stands for Sex Information and Education Council of the United States, founded in 1964 by Lester Kirkendall. Mr. Kirkendall (whose books are used also for reference material) has stated: "Sex Education is thus clearly tied in a socially significant way to family planning and population limitation and policy." SIECUS has become the major source of all sex education material in this country and I feel safe in saying that you will find at least some of it in every public school in this country. In the world of SIECUS sex is something to be experienced, enjoyed and not be encumbered by guilt or consequences such as a pregnancy. It is a "how to" in which the only immorality is morality!
I have limited this review to six major topics, mainly because they are the most controversial and the ones in which the Church has been most emphatic in its teachings. You will see that at St. Pius X High School this is no longer the case.
On pre-marital sex the source material and recommended reading is Ira L. Reiss, Premarital Sexual Standards, Siecus Guide No. 5:
"The choice of a premarital sexual standard is a personal moral choice, and no amount of facts or trends can 'prove' scientifically that one ought to choose a particular standard . . . Our religious institution also stresses autonomy of choice as does our political system."
The textbook says:
"The fact is that the choice of a pre-marital sexual standard is a personal moral choice, and many people choose to reserve sexual intercourse for marriage."
It does give the Church's position on this, but nowhere does it say that it is sinful. It asks the student a lot of questions and puts them into several situations, but never leads them to a sound moral decision. It ends with:
"These are hard questions that need serious consideration."
On masturbation the source material includes and recommends Warren R. Johnson, Masturbation, SIECUS Study Guide No. 3, a book presenting affirmative arguments for the practice.
Also recommended is Evelyn Duvall, Love and the Facts of Life, in which she states:
"Psychologists agree that the greatest danger involved in masturbation is that of feeling guilty or ashamed."
The textbook states directly from SIECUS:
"Medical opinion in generally agreed today that masturbation, no matter how frequently it is practiced produced none of the harmful effects about which physicians warned in the past. The physical effects of masturbation are not significantly different from the physical effects of any other sexual activity."
The textbook goes on to say that it is morally wrong but most times only slightly sinful. Basically is it related to the student as "selfish sex", lacking a partner.
On homosexuality the source material and recommended reading is Isadore Rubin, Homosexuality, SIECUS Study Guide No.2. In this guide he implies that the major problem is not the practices themselves but the "punitive" attitudes of both parents and the community.
The textbook directly quotes SIECUS as the guide for preventive efforts that need to be used. The preventive efforts which SIECUS lists are:
1) creating a climate of opinion that will allow homosexuality to be openly discussed.
2) providing for adequate sex education for parents and children so the homosexual can understand himself better and the community can free itself of its punitive attitude toward all sexuality.
3) family counseling.
As the reader can see, the only preventive efforts here are directed at those who find homosexuality to be completely unacceptable form of behaviour. This section of the textbook goes on to evoke sympathy from the student toward the homosexual "who has not been well accepted by society," and proceeds to list demands which the homosexuals are making upon society including the right to marry, adopt children, display their affection openly, be portrayed realistically on TV, etc. Quoting from the textbook it ends, saying:
"It seems unlikely that all of these demands will ever be accepted by society, but the fact that some of them are already accepted means there is a changing attitude toward the problem of homosexuality. "
No where in this section does the textbook give the Church's teaching nor does it ever indicate that homosexuality is wrong or sinful.
On birth control there is much source material but most prominent is Sidney C. Callaghan's Beyond Birth Control: The Christian Experience of Sex, which is also recommended reading. This book is a clear-cut defense of mechanical birth control. Mrs. Callaghan is also a known dissenter of Humanae Vitae.
In the textbook lip service is given to Humanae Vitae, but it is always followed by the author's own opinion which clearly dissents from this encyclical. In this particular section of the book, the student is told what the Church's position is, then that the position is not infallible. The student is then confronted with a Catholic couple evaluating their financial situation, size and ages of their children, their own health, and the student is brought to this conclusion:
"Having done all this the couple would be in a position to decide if because of some particular circumstances of their family life they would be morally right in not acting in accord with the Pope's teaching at a particular time. They would have arrived at their decision on the basis of a tested conscience. "
The student is then led through the labyrinth of the contraceptive world. The information is detailed in artificial methods, not detailed on natural methods, and quite detailed on unnatural methods—including sodomy!
It is well to remember that this is being taught to 14- and 15-year-olds.
On abortion it is noteworthy that not one book put out by a pro-life source is listed. The book Love & Sexuality: A Christian Approach by Mary Perkins Ryan and John Julian is used, and this book resorts to the argument that contraception is a "brake" on abortion. They do not condemn abortion and quibble over when the fetus can be called human, leaving the impression abortion can sometimes be lawful. It can also be said that many of the authors in the bibliography take a pro-abortion view—if not in the book listed, then in others they have written.
The textbook gives the Church's teaching, then asks the question "Is direct abortion always direct killing or murder?" It also asks the question of the student "When does life begin?" and answers this question with "We just don't know when the human person begins to exist as a human person after impregnation." It goes on to say that "for Catholics, abortion can never be a means for birth control." What conclusion does this leave with the student except it is forbidden to them but is alright for everyone else. It's the old "don't force your morality on anyone else" mentality.
Of course, what marriage book today would be complete without a chapter on divorce. This book is no exception. It comes under the heading of "Contemporary America" and covers separation, annulment and, finally, divorce. In here as elsewhere in this book, the Church's position is given but then is ignored or questioned by such statements as "Some advocate such practices as allowing persons who are now living in an invalid marriage to receive the sacraments. In the past the couple were considered as living in sin and were denied the sacraments. Today, however, advocates suggest if the couple in an invalid marriage are leading virtuous married lives and there is no scandal involved, they should be able to receive the sacraments." It admits that the Vatican has not approved this practice.
At the end of the year, because of the controversy, the principal of St. Pius X High School gave out a questionnaire to the students in the Freshman Theology Class. The copy of the test that I have has been filled out by one of the young students who, somehow—probably due to her good parents—has kept her Faith. When asked whether the course helped her to realize what is right and what is wrong in matters concerning sex and marriage as the Church teaches it, she answered NO! When asked whether the teacher presented the Church's teaching in matters such as pre-marital sex, birth control, divorce, abortion, etc., she answered "I thought she could have been more strong. It made me feel like the Church would do what you want to do. She never said it was a sin to do this."
She never said it was a sin. The book never says any of it is a sin. The bibliography never says any of it is a sin.
The children know it is a sin—at least they do before they get into the hands of Sister Dorothy Schmidt.
In Chapter 17, Saint Luke, Our Lord says: "It is impossible that scandals should not come; but woe to him through whom they come! It were better for him if a millstone were hung about his neck and he were thrown into the sea than that he should cause one of these little ones to sin."
If anyone is searching for a lucrative business might I suggest that making millstones might prove to be a most worthwhile business.
Mrs. Slovak is a member of many pro-life and pro-family associations. She is a former staff member of a Congressman from Texas. Currently, Mrs. Slovak is circulation manager for THE ANGELUS.
FOR EDITORIAL COMMENT on this article, please refer to this month's Sacrilege Column.
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