Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Catholic
We Might All Try Respecting Each Other

We Might All Try Respecting Each Other

Last updated on: October 4, 2018 at 3:27 am by Mary Pezzulo

We Might All Try Respecting Each Other 2018-10-04T03:27:08-04:00 Mary Pezzulo

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

There’s an odd political cartoon going the rounds on facebook. No, I’m not talking about the tasteless cartoon lampooning Justice Kavanaugh’s daughter; I’m not even going to touch that with a ten-foot pole, except to say I don’t approve of it. I’m talking about another one.

This one depicts a teenage boy and girl in a lumpy-looking pink car at night, on a road that has helpfully been marked as “Lover’s Lane.” The caption says “Teen angst in the era of #metoo.” The boy’s thought bubble says “Wait– what am I doing here? This could come back to haunt me in 30 years when I’m up for a big position.” The girl’s thought bubble says “What’s he waiting for? Doesn’t he like me? …What’s wrong with boys these days?”

I can’t read the signature so I can’t tell you who drew the original cartoon; I will edit here to include the cartoonist’s name if I find out.

My friend Elisa, who has two teenagers of her own, had her own take on the cartoon. “Ah, the thing all parents of teens worry about: will they be too inhibited when they go off parking with their high school sweethearts?”

And I’ve got to echo that. Rosie is only seven, so I can’t speak from experience. But in nine or ten years when I expect she’ll be going on dates, I can certainly imagine myself sitting at home fretting until she gets back. I can imagine myself fretting about all kinds of things. Will she remember her seat belt or will she fly through the windshield? Will she remember her sweater or will she die of pneumonia? Will her date remember she’s gluten-free or will he take her to Olive Garden? Will they pick up a lone hitchhiker with a sharp hook for a right hand and become characters in an urban myth? What if the car catches fire? But I can’t imagine fretting about THAT.

I can’t imagine being concerned that, when they pull their pink car up to a scenic overlook labeled “Lovers Lane” in the dead of night, they’ll feel too inhibited to get physical.

Quite the contrary, in fact.

It doesn’t really help that “Lovers Lane” is an actual street in Steubenville, up behind the sporting goods store and the gastroenterologist. They taught the Montessori catechism classes on Lovers Lane, a couple years ago; perhaps they still do. Rosie didn’t have the patience for Montessori when she was four and I have no patience full stop. I read about Montessori and thought it sounded wonderful, but after five minutes helping Rosie behave in the Atrium I’d had my fill. There’s something way, way too precious for a cynical fart like me about being forced to call a room an “atrium” that isn’t architecturally an atrium, calling toys “works” and going through an obsessively long set of detailed steps for every simple task. Not to mention, I just can’t get behind a teacher who will not project her voice loud enough to be heard by her students. That is, if the adult person in a Montessori classroom is even called a teacher. There might be another name she quietly insists on being called, like “Facilitator” or “Life Model Decoy.” This is no reflection whatsoever on the Montessori method. It’s only a reflection on my irascibility. Those lessons were beloved by by most of the people who took them. In any case, if my daughter ended up with her date in a pink jalopy on Lover’s Lane after dark, I hope they’d remember to fold the liturgical cloths after they finished ironing them with the miniature iron, and to push the miniature chairs back into the table by lifting with two hands instead of scraping on the floor.

I cannot imagine ever thinking to worry that a teenage boy would be too concerned about his career to get handsy with my daughter.

I would expect him not to get handsy with my daughter.

preferential option for non-violence

Previous Post

September 30, 2018

For a Moment, Joy

Next Post

October 5, 2018 Because It Was Right, Because It Is Right

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category abortion Abuse Advent America American Christianity angel angels Annunciation Appalachia apparition apparition chaser apparition chasers apparition culture art art review babies baby baby Jesus Bad Lip Reading bad statue contest bath beauty Bible story blog blogkeeping blood book review Brandon Sanderson breastfeeding bus Catholic catholic conspiracy alarmism Catholic Oppositional Disorder Charismatic Renewal Charlie the Cat chastity Christ Christian idenitity Christianity and Judaism Chronic Illness clean clothing COD piece comedy compassion conscience conspiracy theory conversion cop-on-black violence Crucifixion cry of the poor culture Daesh Daily Saints death death penalty devotional diaconate diaper diapers dirty disability Donald Trump Dorothy Day dream drugs Eastern Catholicism Eastern Christianity education election election update Elsewhere on Patheos empathy environment Fear feminism film review fish flashback fluffy buns food Franciscan University of Steubenville Friendship Room fun Gabriel gardening gospel hair-splitting Heaven hell heresy Hillary Clinton history Holly the Witch Holy Spirit holy war Homeschooling homosexuality horror human dignity humor Icon idol immigrants infection inter-religious dialogue Interpretation of Scripture Islam Jesus Jihad Joseph joy laity and lay vocations lamb dinner laundry lent lgbtq literature love manners Mary Medicine and Science Meditation mercy mess milk misogyny Missouri monasticism monster motherhood mourn with those mourn movies movis music mystery nature neurodiversity New Pro-Life Movement news nonsense nostalgia O antiphons obituary objectification Ohio Valley Ordinary Time ordination Ordo Amoris parable paradox Passover peanut butter personal beliefs pets philosophy Planet Charismatic poetry politics polls poop Pope Francis Pope Leo power in the Church prayer prayer request prayers preferential option for non-violence president presidential election priest primary private revelation pro-life prophecy Public face of Catholicism Pure Flix Q and A race racism random rape rape. sexuality reader's request Reckoners refugee religious trauma ressurrection Right to life Saints saints and celebrations same-sex same-sex marriage satire scandal secular feasts seder Seven Joys Seven Last Words sex sexual ethics sexuality silencing six months skid row slavery social justice Speculative fiction spiritual abuse spoon stain story suffering suffrage suffragette Sunday Gospel temple Tenebrae Responsories Terror the exorcist The Friendship Room The New Pro-Life Movement Things I Learned on the Internet tin cup traffic true story tv review Uncategorized USCCB vice and temptation violence Virtue virtue and vice war Way of the Cross whimsy whole life women's ordination work of mercy Year A

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What four things does the Pale Horse in Revelations bring upon the earth?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Silence, fire, blood, and pestilence Storms, earthquakes, floods, and darkness Wrath, power, redemption, and judgment Sword, famine, plague, and wild beasts