March 13, 2013 – Catechism 2196 – 2200

This is about the commandment that children should honor their parents. But it adds in there that this should be extended, not in exactly the same way, but in some respects, to employees honoring their boss, and citizens honoring their government officials. That last one makes me wonder about the obligation going the other direction. What is the parent supposed to, or is commanded to, provide back to the child. There is not commandment about what parents give to children. Being a parent now (and still typing that and thinking that feels a bit surreal), what is the responsibility of a parent, where is the command. It is the most important job I will ever have, to instruct, to guide, to love, to punish. But is there a time when parents lose the right to be honored?

In my profession I see parents, almost on a weekly basis, lose their legal parental rights. No one can change that they are the biological parents, but circumstances and usually choses made by the parents mean that they are no longer mom and dad. Do they still deserve to be honored by their children. I see the answer being yes because they brought them into the world and that will always be a reason of honor. I also see the answer no because they are not fulfilling that role in any real sense.

That brings me to the actions of our government officials. We are called to honor them in a special way because of who they are and what they represent. But when they do not fulfill that role, I think we can put them in the category of parents that have lost their parental rights. You may be obligated to honor them because they have a title but honoring them in any true way as a child is supposed to honor a genuinely loving and nurturing parent is out of the question.