Vatican Blasts Sex Education Program In New York

By Alessandro Speciale
Religion News Service

VATICAN CITY (RNS) The Vatican took a swipe at new sex education classes in New York City schools on Wednesday (Aug. 31), saying teaching middle school students how to use a condom is "useless, and even harmful."

The front-page editorial of the Vatican's official newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano, criticized all mandatory sex ed classes in public schools but was aimed particularly at New York's new program, which has been opposed heavily by Archbishop Timothy Dolan.

The editorial criticized governments' "magical trust in the effectiveness of sex education." Citing longtime sex ed programs in
Britain, the paper said "boys and girls continue to have early sexual intercourse without any kind of protection, and the number of pregnancies and abortions among adolescents has multiplied."

Governments would rather "ignore" the problem than address the underlying issue of the "failed utopia of the sexual revolution and subsequent breakdown of ... the family," the paper said.

And whenever the church opposes such programs, it is labeled "an obscurantist force" and accused of cruelty for its "indifference to the consequences" of unwanted pregnancies and disease, the paper said.

The Vatican paper touted Italy where, despite the absence of sex ed from school curricula, teenage pregnancies and STDs remain low. The newspaper cited Italy's "loving vigilance of parents over their children":

"Kids are not left to themselves with a box of contraceptives as the only defense against their passions and mistakes."

Comments

[whollylovtrinity]

03:16 AM on 10/05/2011

There has been a HISTory on CREATOREarth. The days-- most of the daze with passionlessLOVE, have never been specieshuman create'd , nor constructed or numbered from the
start-beguine-biginning... constructive criticism would be constructive, not destructive-- (read LOVing-- Not opposition to SPIRITUALETERNALVALUS .
'Tis LOVE -not ersatz, impersonation, counterfeit that is the dynamic /|\ U-turn / in
Self- determination --with LOVE --as the energy source (not the antithesis. There have been, or was, those who were unable to confirm OR deny -- [ BORN of the SPIRIT- VALUS =LOVE ]
--the life of their very own LOV. The Earth best-seller as an entity Theme opens an opening in The GOODNEWS of JESUS ; -according to Matthew ; Chapter 7 ; _2 GaTes_.

[juna]

09:31 PM on 09/10/2011

The ultimate arrogance: infallibility.

[US American]

02:23 PM on 09/09/2011

So disease and unwanted pregnancies are bad but condoms are worse?

Who still listens to this nonsense?

[edensaunt]

11:39 AM on 09/07/2011

How much suffering could Mother Theresa have prevented by holding the preaching and handing out condoms instead, I wonder.

[Daniel Baron]

04:49 PM on 09/07/2011

Good point.

[mercury613]

11:45 PM on 09/08/2011

Mother Teresa had no interest in easing suffering.

[juna]

09:20 PM on 09/06/2011

Unbelievable. The Vatican still considers itself the world's arbiter on sex. No shame, no regret, really, when it comes to their own priests. If they hadn't been caught, they would never have been stopped by the Vatican. Maybe their priests would benefit from a little sex education, and a little moral and ethical education too.

[moflard]

03:52 PM on 09/07/2011

And considering how much abuse went on, for how long and all over the planet I have to assume that many of those priests DID use condoms.

[ChrisDWard]

03:09 AM on 09/08/2011

No humility whatsoever. You'd think they'd lay low for awhile at least.

[JonW]

07:58 PM on 09/06/2011

Would be nice if you cleaned up your own house, padre! Your"house's" record not so good in
this particular area.

[way2sunny]

07:40 PM on 09/06/2011

I can't think of an opinion on sex education that I value less than that of the Catholic church.

[DeTex]

07:47 PM on 09/06/2011

I still LOL about John Oliver's comment on TDS about the difference between "could" and "should" in the context of the so called "Ground Zero Mosque".

"Just because you COULD build a Catholic Church next to playground, SHOULD you?"

[andrc657]

07:30 PM on 09/06/2011

The Vatican should have signs hung in every Catholic institution that say: END ABORTION, IF YOU DO NOT WANT A CHILD ABSTAIN FROM SEX OR USE A CONDOM.

[thebigbike]

07:07 PM on 09/06/2011

as if...
as IF

AS IF! the catholic church and its head have any moral authority whatsoever after the hideous obscene failures to protect children instead protecting rapists.

I have no doubt there are a great many individuals calling themselves catholic who do deserve to be listened to on moral questions. but sorry ratzi, you already lost us.

[SDLee]

05:24 PM on 09/06/2011

I'm sick of organized religion, churches, and priests sabotaging and otherwise interfering with enlightened state and local policies. Of course it's beneficial to teach the purpose and value of using condoms; only a superstitious and immoral value system would degrade it.

[R Davis]

04:03 PM on 09/06/2011

More children are concieved in ignorance rather than an informed decision to have a baby. Better to give the kids the information rather than having illegitemate kids burdening the family.

We've all heard stories of a 12 year old pregnancy. A 14 year old pregnancy is so common it wouldn't even make the news.

I really don't think my neighborhood has anything in common, nor would my neighbors desire to have anything in common, with an Italian neighborhood.

[Jay Skins]

03:42 PM on 09/06/2011

Interesting. The RCC sure has a rager for all things concerning sex. It really takes a set of brass ones to be in their position considering they were caught with their pants down with regard to their predatory priests. One would think that sort of scandal would have the RCC clench up a bit, but instead they are thrusting their point with even more vigor.

I'm concerned at their continued attempt to penetrate into secular society; expecting school boards to just bend over and take whatever the RCC spews forth. One should know that religion and politics makes strange bedfellows and that having one diddle with the other can make both impotent.

I agree that the RCC should just butt out and keep their hands off of secular education. They've offered and we've said No. And no means no. I'm not willing to swallow that which they try to jam down our throats. I encourage us all to stand firm against this type of coercion. Kneeling before their demands will likely result in much worse than just egg on our faces.

[Lisha Mckoy]

11:43 AM on 09/07/2011

Jay Skins... Brilliant, insightful comments chock full of hilarious innuendo! You could have a big future in comedy!

[Toutlaguerre]

03:39 PM on 09/07/2011

Jay Skins u're a Genius!

[silvester1]

01:37 PM on 09/06/2011

The Vatican: "useless, and even harmful."

[R Davis]

04:05 PM on 09/06/2011

Interesting the Vatican used to run brothels because men who could pay to have their needs met were less likely to rape. Now, they've changed their minds.

[paulwl]

08:43 AM on 09/06/2011

Duh, better than how 'somebody' (silence and cover-ups!)have taught Priests how to use penis's on little boys butts! When will they just die-off or just go away?

[CharlesCT]

02:01 AM on 09/06/2011

What is the difference with this statement and one that Bachman shoots off? Or one that Perry's prayer session had for that matter?

[ChrisDWard]

03:15 AM on 09/08/2011

Nothing. It's totally presumptuous for the RCC to consider itself a "moral authority" in this area and it's wholly inappropriate for any religious beliefs to be comingled with government or rammed down secular society's throat.