Forming Our Youth: Modesty

A final reminder that tickets are still available for our capstone presentation in the Marriage-Building Speaker Series on May 18th featuring Mrs. Kimberly Hahn!  Cost is only $10 per person with advance registration online or in the parish office.  Register online now!

Tickets will also be available at the door for $15 per person

Don't Forget about these Related Events at SJE:

Wednesday, 15th: Mom & Tot small group study featuring DVD presentations by Kimberly Hahn.  > Read More & Register

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Forming Our Youth:
a Marriage-Building Parish Building Block

We must form young people in the beliefs and virtues necessary for healthy relationships. > Read more about this building block

As part of the Marriage Building Parish initiative, the Catholic Family Institute, with permission from Four Court Press LTD, will feature excerpts from Mr. Isaac’s book each month in the bulletin and on this blog.


Character Building: A Guide for Parents and Teachers by David Isaacs

In his book, Mr. Isaacs explores twenty-four virtues we should develop to have more “self-mastery and better serve others,” abilities we all hope our children will have.  Recognizing that the example we set leaves a more lasting impression on our children than the words we say, each chapter includes a description of a virtue and a series of questions that help assess how well you are living that virtue and how well you are helping to develop the virtue in children/students.

This month's featured virtue is Modesty.

Modest people recognize the value of their own privacy and respect that of others. Individual privacy relates to the uniqueness of each human person as a composite of body, soul and emotions. Respect for one’s privacy can be seen in the home, one’s dress and one’s language.

• The home should provide physical and emotional space for each member of the family to express her/his true intimate self and to share that intimate self appropriately with the other members of the family and trusted friends.
• Modesty in dress means that our body is available to no one but ourselves and that we have no desire to share it with everybody giving us the ability to share it with only one person in particular, our spouse, or nobody at all if called to a religious vocation.
• Modesty in language means speaking of intimate matters and personal problems in the appropriate circumstances to the right person at the right time and protecting from the curiosity of others the feelings, sentiments and states of mind that make up one’s spiritual and emotional life.

Answer the following questions and discuss your reflections with a spouse/friend.

Am I modest?

• Do I understand that sometimes I should keep things to do with my intimate self private and that sometimes I should share it with others? When I share these things with others, is it because I am looking for help or I think I may be able to help them?
• Do I dress according to the rules of modesty and consider whether my clothing and my demeanor will provoke members of the opposite sex?
• Do I try to be careful about the language I use in order not to be vulgar or crude or offend God?

Do I Teach Others to Be Modest?

• Do I insist that children respect other peoples privacy by knocking on doors before entering and not walking around the house without clothes on?
• Do I help the children understand the importance of not prying into other people’s privacy and encourage them to dress and behave themselves in a modest manner?
• Do I give my children age-appropriate information about their bodies and sex framed in the context of God’s plan for marital love and them personally and in accordance with the moral/sexual teachings of the Church?

Please share your thoughts and comments.