Teenage pregnancy — How to help your children act responsibly?
In cases in which very young people become parents the inevitable question arises: what can be done to help them assume their responsibilities and not feel they are wasting their lives?
With all the difficulties that may be faced by teenagers and their families (health complications, changes in study plans, discrimination, and the need to “grow up” faster than their friends, for example), many parents feel divided between protecting their children from suffering at any cost and teaching them that their actions have consequences—and in this case for the lives of other people (including for those as yet unborn).
Bearing in mind the spiritual consequences of induced abortions, as explained by the Religion of God, of the Christ, and of the Holy Spirit1, we invite you to reflect on the subject at hand, because we understand that the unborn child is an individual who is distinct from its mother and unique from the moment of its conception, a concept reinforced by embryologists.
In the article For Life, by writer Paiva Netto, we find reference to this topic made by Dr. Alice Teixeira Ferreira, a professor in the Biophysics Department of the Federal University of São Paulo/Paulista Medical School (UNIFESP/EPM):
“In order not to say it is outdated, embryologists in 2005 stated that not only does the life of the human being originate with fertilization but that, from the molecular point of view, the first division of the zygote defines our destiny.”
Therefore a human being deserves to live and must have its rights protected (as provided for in the Brazilian federal constitution and in so many other documents concerning the promotion of human rights all over the world). Read below an interview on this topic with the Minister-Preacher of the Divine Religion Paula Suelí:
Wouldn’t it be better to resort to abortion considering the immaturity of the parents?
Preacher: It’s important that we understand that if the child is in the woman’s womb, in addition to being the result of the choices of its parents (even though they are very young), it has received divine authorization to reincarnate. Even though it may not be the ideal moment to get pregnant (and this needs to be considered before, not after the conception), there is more than one life at stake here: that of the baby. That being said, from this moment on the questions should be different: How are we going to protect this child in such a way that it has its rights protected, including the right to be loved and accepted? How are we going to guarantee a structure for these teenagers, help them with family planning and with fulfilling their mission and in how to deal with their sexuality in a responsible way?
READ MORE:
+ The Serious Spiritual Consequences of Induced Abortion
+ Why was I born into my family?
In practice what we see is that as the teenager is still not ready, particularly psychologically, the child will often be a kind of “son/daughter” of the grandmother, grandfather, aunts and uncles, and other people who, not by chance, are part of this new family that is being formed (they have direct responsibilities for the child who is being born, which do not substitute the responsibilities of the parents, but complement them). Therefore, abortion is not the solution, because it will not cut the spiritual ties that make the two teenagers the parents of that child. What’s more, abortion is such an extreme aggression against the baby who will prematurely leave the physical body that the baby will feel wounded and abandoned by its family.
Does this mean that teenage pregnancy is a pregnancy like any other?
Preacher: Absolutely not. In fact, we cannot forget that even from a legal viewpoint (in some countries, like in Brazil), sexual relations before 14 or 16 are considered to be sexual abuse, because such teenagers have no discernment as to what is happening. Because of everything that happens during adolescence, with the new emotions, desires, and pressures they face, their parents need to watch over them. Pregnancy in this scenario is just one of the aspects. How many sexually transmitted diseases are contracted by these adolescents still very early on that they are going to have to deal with for the rest of their lives?!
So when we talk about pregnancy we have to think about sexuality first. We have to bear in mind questions like: “Am I talking to my children so they know they should not give in to pressure from society? Am I telling them that they have their own pace, as an eternal spirit to live their mission on Earth2?” Sexuality is just one of the aspects of our life. Even though it’s very important, it’s not the main aspect of our identity or the expression of our love and affection for someone.
Teenagers have to know that there are many ways of feeling fulfilled spiritually, affectionately, and emotionally. They have to have the right to discover and develop their talents, investigate their spiritual identity, know their own emotions, and establish and strengthen friendships as well as family, professional, and community ties.
That’s why the main discussion here must be about the complete development of the teenager, and this includes thinking of the meaning of sexuality. To have a relationship of this kind it’s necessary for there to be maturity, since a sexual relationship involves manipulating the energy of creation, which is something extremely powerful, sacred, and that requires great responsibility. The couple needs to understand, first and foremost, that sex is a bond of the Soul and it can result in the reincarnation of a Spirit (even if they use all contraceptive methods).
That is why it’s necessary to deal with the topic of sexuality in the family very carefully. But how? Brother Paiva Netto, the President-Preacher of the Religion of the Third Millennium, explains this in his literary essay, O Evangelho do Sexo [The Gospel of Sex], p. 30:
“Nowadays, Love is confused with sex. Sex is good, but without Love it is like a stench, or worse, the threat of a transmittable venereal disease. Whoever is in love does not seek distraction elsewhere, putting the person who trusts in him or her at a risk. That is why it is urgent to integrate Sex and Love, Love and marriage.”
So it’s necessary to be mature in order to understand one’s own feelings and limits and respect the time of one’s own heart and Soul.
Having coped with social pressures and those in their own relationship, are adolescents ready to say: “I don’t want it now” or “I’m not ready?” Are we talking about this at home? Do they feel insecure thinking they may destroy the relationship if they refuse to have sex? Do they know how to deal with the feeling that all their friends have already had sexual relations except them (which is not necessarily true)? We need to bring up these reflections at home, teaching them that sex is sacred, and that above all, it is a spiritual matter that connects two souls in the fulfillment of their mission on Earth. Teenagers want to be respected, which is why we need to talk openly to them.
READ MORE:
+ The Serious Spiritual Consequences of Induced Abortion
+ Why was I born into my family?
Send your doubts and comments on this and other topics to the Religion of God, of the Christ, and of the Holy Spirit. Let the Ecumenical Spirituality be part of your life! If this content does you good, share it! It may touch the heart of many other people too.
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1 Religion of God, of the Christ, and of the Holy Spirit — also called the Religion of the Third Millennium, and the Religion of Universal Love. This is the Ecumenical Religion of Brazil and abroad.
2 Spiritual agenda — The Religion of Universal Love teaches that no one is born on Earth without a purpose to their existence. The Heavenly Educator Himself, Jesus, gave us His example: “For I have come down from Heaven not to do my will but to do the will of Him who sent me” (The Gospel according to John 6:38). Therefore, each one of us, before we are reincarnated on Earth, assumes in the spiritual world—our homeland of origin—a set of commitments, situations, and challenges that make up our Spiritual Agenda.
