Values, virtues, and your daughter’s date

I’ve been a parent for a long time now, and I have heard many, many parents — in real life, in print, and on television — talk about their ultimate hopes for their children: “I just want my child to be happy.” “I want my child to be successful.” “I want my child to have a good education, a good job and good relationships.”

I never hear: “I want my child to be virtuous.”

Virtuous?

Who talks about virtue anymore?

Well, outside of the Church, not many. (Okay, let’s be honest, even most Catholics today don’t talk about virtue.) In general, talk of being virtuous has been replaced by talk of having “values” — even though virtues and values are not synonymous.

Here’s how I see it. Continue reading

Image: Catholic Lane

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