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What is chastity?
Chastity is a virtue just like honesty, and like honesty, chastity is a virtue that one must practice at all stages of life.
Chastity means having control over one’s appetites, particularly one’s sexual appetites. Chastity is about who we are
as persons and how we present ourselves to others. It’s about recognizing that every person was created for his or
her own sake, not for another person’s pleasure. The person who lives a chaste life recognizes his or her sexuality is
a powerful gift from God and therefore must be cherished and protected.
Chastity is a virtue just like honesty, and like honesty, chastity is a virtue that one must practice at all stages of life.
Chastity means having control over one’s appetites, particularly one’s sexual appetites. Chastity is about who we are
as persons and how we present ourselves to others. It’s about recognizing that every person was created for his or
her own sake, not for another person’s pleasure. The person who lives a chaste life recognizes his or her sexuality is
a powerful gift from God and therefore must be cherished and protected.
Why is it important?
When used properly, our sexuality is a powerful force for good, but when used improperly it can cause much
heartache and pain. Practicing the virtue of chastity helps us treat ourselves and others with respect. This in turn
encourages those around us to treat us with respect. Chastity helps us truly love others, which is what Jesus
commanded in John 13:34: “As I have loved you, so you also should love one another.”
When used properly, our sexuality is a powerful force for good, but when used improperly it can cause much
heartache and pain. Practicing the virtue of chastity helps us treat ourselves and others with respect. This in turn
encourages those around us to treat us with respect. Chastity helps us truly love others, which is what Jesus
commanded in John 13:34: “As I have loved you, so you also should love one another.”
Why does family-centered chastity education work?
The following is from the “Sisters of Charity Report,” available on the Family Honor, Inc.’s Research page.
The following is from the “Sisters of Charity Report,” available on the Family Honor, Inc.’s Research page.
Both Family Honor Gulf Coast and Family Honor, Inc. are 501(c)(3) non-profit Catholic organizations.
To read a brief report from the Family Research Council about the influence parents have on teen sex, visit Family
Honor South Carolina’s Research page, and click on “Parents & Teen Sex” on the sidebar.
Honor South Carolina’s Research page, and click on “Parents & Teen Sex” on the sidebar.
Family Honor programs are designed to help parents become more proficient, more confident and more
effective as the sexuality educators of their children. An important premise of the programs is that sexuality is
more than just reproductive capacity. In fact, for the young people participating in the Family Honor program,
learning about and valuing their fertility is regarded as positive and integral to who they will become as men and
women. The intended net effect would be the internalizing of this viewpoint and a subsequent reduction of the
inappropriate use of their sexual powers. All of this is viewed as a significant long term undertaking. By long
term, the program envisions years of influence rather than a few weeks that adolescents might receive in a
Health class at school. This long term influence can best be delivered by parents -- not only because they are a
constant source of influence over that long time span, but because they are the most credible and compelling
source of influence under the proper circumstances.
effective as the sexuality educators of their children. An important premise of the programs is that sexuality is
more than just reproductive capacity. In fact, for the young people participating in the Family Honor program,
learning about and valuing their fertility is regarded as positive and integral to who they will become as men and
women. The intended net effect would be the internalizing of this viewpoint and a subsequent reduction of the
inappropriate use of their sexual powers. All of this is viewed as a significant long term undertaking. By long
term, the program envisions years of influence rather than a few weeks that adolescents might receive in a
Health class at school. This long term influence can best be delivered by parents -- not only because they are a
constant source of influence over that long time span, but because they are the most credible and compelling
source of influence under the proper circumstances.
