Fr John O'Keefe sent me this reflection a few days ago and it struck me as interesting although I wondered where the word "adultism" came from. I emailed him back to ask if he had coined the expression but he replied that he'd picked it up somewhere else but wasn't sure now. He thinks Matthew Fox may have been his original source. Has anyone else heard the expression before and what are your thoughts on what John writes here? …Brian Coyne (Editor)

Something worth pondering...

The great denial of the Christmas message in the world today is undoubtedly the sin of ADULTISM. Adultism is part of the selfishness and greed that so pervades the modern world, and it is only when the evil of Adultism has been confronted that we can properly understand the Christmas message.

ADULTISM is the fashioning of society today for the convenience of adults, while the good of children (and ultimately of humanity) doesn't matter.

ADULTISM is also the making of this world of ours a place which is fashioned for the rich and powerful, while the poor and the weak and the powerless, and those who promote social justice, are considered to be of very little account.

ADULTISM is rampant in the world today. These are some examples of it:

• The obvious example is Abortion, which is commonly sought for the convenience of adults, while human life at its most vulnerable is destroyed.
• Surrogate parenthood is also an example of Adultism. Surrogacy is never entered into with the good of children in mind, but simply as a way of making some adults feel good about themselves.
• It is Adultism when married people build their homes and make sure every conceivable comfort is in place before they have children. Children are really just more possessions to be added after everything else is there.
• It is Adultism for parents to put off having children until their late thirties and forties, when there is much greater risk to the health of a child. And when the child becomes a teenager, its parents are so far removed from that stage of their lives that they have little hope of bridging the age barrier between themselves and their child.
• It is Adultism when both parents work, whether it is a necessity or not, while their children are deprived of their parents' attention, and often neglected.
• It is Adultism when parents neglect the spiritual side of their children's growth. Because of adultism, we adults have taken away faith, hope and love from so many of our children.
• It is Adultism for parents to say that the children can make up their own mind about joining a church, or even practising any religion.
• It is Adultism which is the cause of the homelessness of so many children; which is the cause of so much violence in language and behaviour, and of so much juvenile crime.
• It is Adultism when white society imposes its standards, its culture, and even its religions, on aboriginal people, and on Refugees.
• It is Adultism that is the cause of so much of the unemployment among our children.
• It is Adultism that is behind wars of all kinds. War is a game played by adult men, politicians and generals, while the suffering is done mainly by women and children.
• It is Adultism when politicians appeal to peoples' greed as a way of attracting votes at election time.
• It is Adultism when politicians try to exploit the fears of people in their efforts to win votes.

There is practically no limit to the examples of the Adultism which is so prevalent in our world. It has made our children, and often enough women as well, victims of all the greed and selfishness of the adult world.

In the church, too, there is far too much Adultism.

• It is Adultism to put a male face on God, as we do in our terminology at least
• It is Adultism when the power people in the church, who are men, declare what are objective moral norms for others, without consulting the lay people, and especially in ignoring the experience of women.
• It is Adultism to treat ordinary people as children who should listen and do as they are told, and believe what they are told without question.
• It is Adultism to excommunicate those who are divorced and remarried.

ALL OF US NEED TO CONFRONT THE PROBLEM OF ADULTISM IN OUR OWN LIVES, IF WE ARE TO HEAR THE MESSAGE OF CHRISTMAS.

What are your thoughts on John's commentary?
You can contribute to the discussion in our forum.

©2007 John O'Keefe

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