Puberty rituals

 Puberty rituals recognize the transition of young boys to young men. They happen under the supervision of adult men in a way that creates trust and passes on life knowledge. In American society the Catholic Church and the Boy Scouts have been institutions in which elements of a “puberty ritual” could exist. But we’ve seen how this potentially healthy transition to adulthood became destructive.

The New York Times reports that the average age for young boys’ first experience with pornography is just below 14 years. This when education for a healthy sexual life is spotty at best.

Teens who want them have access to guns. They become killers. Crime becomes a habit. Hazing and drunken parties become rites of passage. Alcohol, smoking and drugs become the signs of manhood chosen by too many young men. Parents are no longer trusted guides to adulthood but rather obstructions to personal freedom.

This is the way contemporary America manages a boyhood-to-manhood transition that fails so many young men.