The Decline of Chastity, Moral Vocabulary and Aristotle

Danny Frost, a Family Life professor at BYU, offers a unique perspective on Paragraph 8 of the Family Proclamation by applying his background in philosophy and politics. Paragraph 8 warns us that the disintegration of chastity and family will bring calamities on our societies and nations. Danny discusses current views of sexuality (5:10), the recent movements on sexual consent (7:32), and what our children are learning about sexuality (14:30). “Our culture provides us with a way of looking out at the world… Kids get this from lots of different directions. On TV there’s a glamorization of a hedonistic and rebellious lifestyle. Specifically with respect to sex, while there is an emphasis on consent and some information about safe sex, there’s a strong emphasis on ‘you do you’ and ‘whatever feels good to you.’ That’s a recipe for confusion and heartache in many ways.”

Danny also explores hard questions such as: Is there a way back from the decay of chastity in our current society? (20:15)  How do we teach our children to be compassionate with people who live differently than we do without normalizing that behavior? (37:20) Do we vote for policies that encourage agency or for policies that reflect our moral beliefs? (43:26)

“The best we can do is try to see and follow the truth--live the truth as best we can. Perhaps we won’t influence very many people… perhaps none. But it’s still the case that living the truth is the best thing we can do. History has ups and downs--there have been dark times in the past and there will be dark times in the future. But the call that God extends to us always is to live the truth in all circumstances.”

To learn more, visit TheFamilyProclamation.org