Alice Grayson’s Review of the Sex Education Program

The New Creation Series
Published by Sex-Ed Publisher, W.C. Brown & Company

The sexual explicitness of The New Creation Series (New Creation) and companion text is criticized by Human Life International (HLI). HLI states that “venereal stimulation is the essence of New Creation.” [1] Instead of educating the young in chastity, New Creation is an introduction to sex. H.L.I.’s critique exposes the desacralization and demystifying effect of New Creation:

Venereal terms to be learned and their meaning memorized. Pictures and sketches, examples and illustrations, physiological details — preoccupied with sexual activity — are the staple diet of New Creation.” [2]

Group discussion generated by these terms can only lead to a degenerate conversation of the most intimate nature about the private lives of students, teachers, and families. However, other objectionable material in New Creation should not be overlooked. Below are some New Creation sample excerpts along with commentary from Human Life International. Excerpts from New Creation are in boldface.

Sample — Masturbation Excused

Every known argument, often from nominally Catholic sources, is summarized by New Creation to weaken the Church’s teaching on autoeroticism.

New Creation:

Questions have been raised about whether masturbation is a grave matter, and pastoral theologians stress that, while masturbation is sinful in principle, extenuating circumstances may minimize or completely eradicate personal guilt. They apply this especially to adolescents. Masturbation may be symptomatic of a more serious disorder, including a personality dysfunction in some instances. Attention should be placed less on the act than on the causes for the act.

As a result, in teaching this subject, teachers are told where to place the stress.

New Creation

Emphasis should be on causes, in so far as those may be symptomatic of more profound problems, rather then on direct repression of the phenomenon.

Thus, “repression of the phenomenon” becomes a substitute for sexual self-control. Since “repression” is psychologically harmful, auto-eroticism is actually, although not verbally, condoned. [3]

Sample — Argumentation to deny male/female vocation/complementarity — feminist agenda

From little on, some boys are trained to do the new kinds of work that replace hunting, and they grow up thinking it is “natural” for them to be the leaders and to work outside the home. Some girls are trained to become mothers and homemakers, thinking that is what is “natural” for girls, and not realizing that is all many primitive women had time for in their short lives.

So, thousands of years later, there are some very stereotyped ideas about what is “natural” for men and women. But progress is being made. People are beginning to see the injustices being done to women. Sexual stereotypes inherited from past ages are being challenged. Unjust laws of discrimination against women are being changed.

There is true progress being made in rooting out these practices and laws, but much more has still to be done before women are actually treated equally and are given the same opportunities as men. [4]

Sample — Moral subjectivism

The advisers and authors of New Creation are quite aware of the teaching of the Catholic Church on sins against chastity. And they are careful to refer to this teaching, even quoting from Church documents and referring to magisterial sources. But they do two things that finally leave the moral decision up to the teacher, parent or student.

Along with the Church’s teaching, they provide teachers and students with the “Non-Church Position” on sexual morality. They are careful to label the Catholic teaching as “official” or “considered seriously sinful in principle” or “considered sinful as such” or “classic ideas” or as “the Church’s position.”

Author’s Comment

There is a clever skewing of the language throughout New Creation. When Church teaching is quoted, contrary opinions cleverly sway the student in the other direction. Student are led to believe that Church teaching is not reasonable, compassionate or the truth. Adults know that nothing could be farther from the truth, God being the Source of all truth. Children, however, are still malleable.

Parents want children to revere the Teaching Church, as wise and pastoral. Unless parents take the time to study the total text of New Creation, or sit-in on class discussions, they will not know how their children’s values are being restructured and the children themselves manipulated.

In today’s society, with two parents working, many parents are not able to do this kind of examination of curricula. Most often they blindly trust the educational system — in this case — the Catholic educational system. Most regrettably New Creation is a creation that no one but the devil should trust.

Footnotes
1 Human Life International, A Catholic Analysis of The New Creation Series on Sex Ed, 1991, p. 5
2 Ibid., p. 6
3 Ibid., p. 7
4 Ibid., pages 13 & 14