Parents: teach chastity as your child goes off to college

This is the time of year when parents pack help their kids to pack up for college. Tears are shed by some as kids will live away from home, and a variety of social media posts are made by parents about their beloved child going off to college. It is a time of reflection and a time of “so-longs.” But what about the virtue of chastity? Amidst the beautifully decorated college dorm room and all the worries, do not forget to teach your late teen the value of chastity.

Why is chastity important especially to young adults

Never has there been a time of such rampant immodesty amongst the young. Social media posts featuring scantily clad young women and men are commonplace. For those who do not wish to see photos such as these, it is difficult to avoid when ones one extended family and/or friends make these types of posts for all to view. Chastity is a virtue. It is a protection for the young and all to be aware of the presentation of themselves to the world in terms of modesty in clothing and in demeanor, especially in a visual sense. Chasity protects the soul against sin in terms of the temptations which face so many in terms of their personal dignity and the protection against vice. College should be a time of learning and discovery and not of forgetting all of the lessons of the past in the name of “fun” and selfish desires.

The parents’ role

Parents have a role in teaching children from an early age the value of guarding themselves against anything that would compromise the virtues. Again, chastity is one of those virtues, and it important for young people. When parents prepare high school seniors for college, there are various aspects which need to come together to prepare both physically, mentally, and emotionally. Sadly, parents forget that spirituality must not be neglected. It is a precious gift to guard during the college years so that mistakes and bad roads may be avoided.

Parents have the job of teaching late teens and young adults the value of chastity, modesty, and saving oneself for marriage and/or another vocation. Heartaches will be avoided when parents take the time to not only pack up the van with all the goods for college but also a nice long talk about sticking with one’s faith and avoiding sin and promiscuity.

Prayer

Nothing will be accomplished without prayer. Parents must be good role models too, as nothing can be done in this regard without the Holy Spirit and without the guidance of our faith. Let us pray for all young people going off to college to see the value of our Catholic faith, prayer, and living a live of true virtue beginning at a youthful age any throughout one’s life.