24
S E S S I O N 9 Weeds in Human Formation
S E S S I O N 9Weeds in Human
Formation
Weeds in the Field• “While men were sleeping, his enemy came
and sowed weeds among the wheat” (Matthew 13:25).
• “It is legitimate and even necessary to ask whether [the socioeconomic system of the West] is not the work of another ideology of evil, more subtle and hidden, perhaps, intent upon exploiting human rights themselves against man and against the family” (St. John Paul II, Memory and Identity, p. 11).
The Four Types of Formation
Human FormationThe material body is now
subject to decay and death.
Intellectual FormationDarkened intellect struggles
to perceive the truth.
Pastoral FormationRelationships are wounded by tension and domination.
Moral FormationWeakened will struggles to
embrace its true good.
Formationof the
Human Person
We saw that human formation was based upon experience, especially the experience of
communion with another person.
An attack upon human formation will necessarily attack this experience of communion.
20
60
80
1800 190018751850 18250
Ru
ral
Pop
ula
tion
(Perc
en
t of
Tota
l)
1925
Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau, “Historical Statistics of the United States: Colonial Times to 1970,” Part 1, Series A 57-72, pp. 11-12.Statistical Abstract of the United States, Various Years
40
1975 1950 2000
100
Current
Industrial Revolution: Father out of Home
94 9285
73
60
46
36
2621 19
2
6
8
1800 190018751850 18250
Tota
l F
ert
ilit
y R
ate
(Ch
ild
ren
per
Wom
an
)
1925
Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau, “Historical Statistics of the United States: Colonial Times to 1970,” Part 1, Series A 57-72, pp. 11-12.Statistical Abstract of the United States, Various Years
4
1975 1950 2000 Current
Fertility: A Changed Reality7.04 6.6
4 5.80
4.76
3.77 2.8
4
3.09
1.77
2.06
1.89
Source: Statistical Abstract of the US., Vital Statistics of the US.
1960 Current0
10
20
30
50
40
Perc
en
tag
e I
lleg
itim
ate
Bir
ths
The Missing Father
Source: Statistical Abstract of the U.S.
1960 Current0
6
12
18
24
Perc
en
tag
e o
f C
on
cep
tion
s A
bort
ed
1960 Current0
10
20
30
40
Marr
iag
es
En
din
g i
n
Div
orc
e (
%)
Source: The Religious Factor,” (Lenkski, G., 1961). “The Number, Timing and Durantion of Marriages and Divorce: 1996,” U.S. Census Bureau.
<1
~22
5.3
40.7
~14
~40Abortions Illegitimate Births Divorce
20
60
80
1950 19901980197019600W
om
en
wit
h C
hil
dre
n u
nd
er
18
(Perc
en
tag
e i
n W
ork
forc
e)
2000
Source: U.S Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.Cohany, R., et al., “Trends in Labor Force Participation of Married Mothers of Infants,” Monthly Labor Review, February 2007, extrapolated from Chart 1.
40
Current
2010
Information Age: Mothers out of Home
~20~24
~40
56.6
66.7
72.9
71.3
70.5
The Use of Time and the Life of Children
Men Women
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, “American Time Use Survey, Combined Years 2007-2011,” Table A-7.
Personal Care8.59
Household1.34
Shopping0.34
Leisure/Sports3.68
Travel1.41
Misc.1.69
Work6.07
Children0.88
Personal Care8.96
Household1.95Shopping
0.55
Leisure/Sports2.91
Travel1.35
Misc.1.73
Work5.27
Children1.28
The basis for human formation with our children is the time they spend with us. We give them about
one hour a day.
Don’t be surprised that many are struggling.
0.2
0.8
5 monthsSeparate0
Sali
vary
Cort
isol
(μg
/dl)
AdaptHome
0.4
0.6
Source: Ahnert, L., et al., “Transition to Child Care: Associations with Infant-Mother Attachment, Infant Negative Emotion, and Cortisol Elevations,” Child Development, May/June 2004, v. 75, No. 3, pp. 639—650.
The Stress of Infants
0.29
0.41
0.63
0.43
• “It is not good for man to be alone” (Genesis 2:18).
• In the wild, animals are given the “death sentence” when they are separated from the pack.
• Study of 70 fifteen month old infants introduced to childcare.
• After 5 months, stress hormone levels are approximately 50% above baseline.
• “The onset of nonparental care poses a stressful challenge for toddlers.”
Calo
rie I
nta
ke
Sources: Epel, E., et al., “Stress may add bite to appetite in women: a laboratory study of stress-induced cortisol and eating behavior,” Psychoneuroendocrinology, 2001.Ogden, C., et al., “Prevalence of Childhood and Adult Obesity in the United States, 2011-2012,” JAMA, February 26, 2014, v. 311, No. 8, Table 3, p. 810.
Control Stress
160
175
190
205
220
Over Weight Obes
e
Ove
rweig
ht
an
d O
bese
C
hil
dre
n(P
erc
en
t of
6-1
1 Y
ear
Old
s)
0
5
10
15
20
Stress and a Major Issue for Children• Parent’s #1 health concern for their
children is the child’s weight.• Stress and cortisol reactivity is
related to eating behavior and weight gain.
• Obesity is a leading cause of diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
• Stress is also related to lower immune system function, memory loss and Alzheimer’s.
176.7
216.3 16.
5
17.7
Eating is just one means of handling stress. There are others – some good and some not!
16
22
Women14
Tim
e S
pen
t in
C
ivic
/Reli
gio
us
(Min
ute
s/D
ay)
Men15-19
18
20
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, “American Time Use Survey – 2012 Results,” Table 3.
Stress and Positive Coping Mechanisms• Religion and prayer: 15-19 year
olds spend 16.2 minutes/day in all civic and religious activities combined.
• Exercise: Only 28.7% of high school students get 60 minutes of physical activity daily.
• Nature: Children spend approximately 47 minutes/day outside. Parents spent approximately 89 minutes/day.
16.2
18.0
21.0
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System, 2011.”JCB Kids, “Fresh Air Campaign Survey,” 2013.
Stress and Negative Coping Mechanisms• Substance abuse:
• Alcohol – 79.0%• Marijuana – 48.9%• Cocaine – 8.5%• Prescription Drugs – 25.6%
• Sexual Intercourse – 63.1%
• Media Consumption:• Total – 10:45 per day.• TV – 4:29 per day.• Music – 2:31/day.• Computer – 1:29/day.• Video games – 1:13/day.
Source: Generation M2: Media in the Lives of 8 to 18 Year Olds,” Kaiser Family Foundation, 2010.
20
80
Prescription
Cocaine0
Hig
h S
chool
Sen
iors
(Perc
en
t eve
r T
ried
)
MarijuanaAlcohol
40
60
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System, 2011.”.
79.0
48.9
8.5
25.6
Substance Abuse: The Brain and the Future
• Substances of abuse act upon the brain’s reward circuitry including the ventral tegmental area (VTA), nucleus accumbens and limbic system.
• Reward system habituates to substance and is unable to attain a reward in absence of substance.
• Exposure during pregnancy and stress during adolescence increases the probability of addiction.
• Epigenetic factors modify gene expression increasing the probability of impact on future generations.
Source: Robison, A., et al., “Transcriptional and epigenetic mechanisms of addiction,” Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 12, November 2011.
The Story of an American Legend:
Mickey Mantle
Mickey Mantle• 1931: Born on October 20 to “Mutt” and Lovell Mantle.
• 1948: Discovered by Tom Greenwade of NY Yankees.
• 1951 – 1969: NY Yankees Major Leagues.
• Leads Yankees to 12 World Series (7 wins).
• Wins the Triple Crown (1956)
• World Series Records: HR (18), RBIs (40), Runs (42), Walks (43), extra base hits (26), total bases (123).
• Tied for most “walk-off” home runs – 13.
• MVP 3 Times: 1956, 1957, and 1962.
• All-Star 16 times in 18 year career.
• Inducted into Hall of Fame in 1st year of eligibility (1974).
• Selected to “All Century Team” – 1999.
Source: Leavy, J., “The Last Boy: Mickey Mantle and the End of America’s Childhood,” Harper Perennial, New York, 2010.
Mickey Mantle: An Unmatched Talent
• Casey Stengel: “He has it in his body to be great.”
• Joe DiMaggio: “This is the next great ballplayer.”
• Originally given #6: Babe Ruth (#3); Lou Gehrig (#4); Joe DiMaggio (#5). (Switches to #7 to handle pressure.)
• Whitey Herzog: “Nobody could play baseball better than Mickey Mantle played it in 1956 – fastest man in the league, strongest man in the league, switch-hitter, he could play the heck out of center field. Nobody had the charisma; nobody looked as good in a uniform as Mickey Mantle did.”
• Inventor of the “tape measure home run”: Hit homeruns out of stadiums in Detroit and Cleveland. Hit the façade at Yankee Stadium twice.
Source: Leavy, J., “The Last Boy: Mickey Mantle and the End of America’s Childhood,” Harper Perennial, New York, 2010.
The Home Run Derby: Mantle vs. Mays
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 230
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
Mickey Mantle
Willie Mays
536
660
Car
eer
Hom
e R
uns
Seasons in Majors
Mickey Mantle: Unfilled Potential• “When dad died of Hodgkin’s disease at age 39, I was devastated, and that’s
when I started drinking. I guess alcohol helped me escape the pain of losing him.”
• “With Bill and me, drinking was a competitive thing. We’d see who could drink the other under the table … today I can admit that all the drinking shortened my career. When I retired … I was 37.”
• “Casey [Stengel] had said when I came up, ‘This guy’s going to be better than Joe DiMaggio and Babe Ruth.’ It didn’t happen. I never fulfilled what my dad had wanted, and I should have. God gave me a great body to play with, and I didn’t take care of it.”
• “It would have been hard to look him in the eye and say, ‘Dad, I’m an alcoholic.’ I don’t think I could have done it. I would feel like I’d let him down. I don’t know how you get over that; I can’t hit a home run for him anymore.”
Source: Mantle, M. and Lieber, J., “Time in a Bottle,” Time Magazine, April 18, 1994.
Mickey Mantle: The Legacy of a Father
• “He always led me to believe that his dad was an alcoholic” (Greer Johnson).
• “Mutt took us both to a local drive-in like thing and got beer for Mickey when he was underage” (Nick Ferguson).
• “I loved my father, although I couldn’t tell him that, just like he couldn’t tell me.”
• “[My sons] all drank too much because of me. We don’t have normal father-son relationships. When they were growing up, I was playing baseball, and after I retired I was too busy traveling around being Mickey Mantle. We never played catch in the backyard. But when they were old enough to drink, we became drinking buddies.”
• All four sons and wife become alcoholics.
• “Maybe I can truly be a role model now.” Dies at 63.
Source: Leavy, J., “The Last Boy: Mickey Mantle and the End of America’s Childhood,” Harper Perennial, New York, 2010.Mantle, M. and Lieber, J., “Time in a Bottle,” Time Magazine, April 18, 1994.
Weeds in the heart of a father are very dangerous. They bear their fruit in our children
and our children’s children.
Next WeekWeeds in Intellectual Formation
Small Group DiscussionStarter Questions
1. What do you need to turn away from to give more time to your wife and children?
2. What vice do you need to pull from the soil of your heart before it impacts your children?
