"For the most part parents in families have failed to hand down our sacred traditions. They brag about using artificial means of birth control. Look around you in your churches. How many families have more than three or more children? Very few. How many do you see involved in invalid marriages are marching up to receive communion? Look at the way the laity dress when they come to Mass. The signs are there for people who come to Sunday Eucharist to come modestly attired and still they come in haltars, tanktops and short shorts.----They have ignored the teaching of the Church proclaimed by many good priests throughout this nation. How many families gather with their children for an evening meal and then say the Rosary together every night. Most of our children don't even know the Rosary and many of the parents don't either."
This is all true, every word but it isn't just the parents...many states have usurped parental authority in education to the degree that the current generation never knew it was theirs to begin with and I can see in my own parish how the DRE does the same. I had to go to the Director of Religious Education in my Archdiocese just to get our parental rights to teach the faith to our children in our home as part of their Catholic Homeschool curricula. And then the DRE wouldn't let me use my choice of books even though they were approved by the NCCB...so I told her my daughter(turned 9 last month) was using the CCC(and she is.) Unfortunately the crisis in the Church is tied into the education machinery too.
I send my kids to a non-denominational Christian school along with many other Catholic parents because many Catholic schools don't support the teachings of the Catholic Church, particularly with regards to NFP and sex education as a whole. In addition, Scripture is not a major part of a Catholic's education anymore. I think that is very, very sad.
Fortunately, we belong to a good parish that has a great religious education program that incorporates Scripture into the teaching of the Catholic faith in a seemless and age-appropriate way. To me, my kids are getting the best of both worlds: a solid Catholic education through CCD, weekly Mass, and prayer at home AND a general Christian education with a thorough use of the Scriptures as well as a firm ABSTINENCE ONLY sex education program. (My kids aren't old enough for sex education -- second and kindergarden, but if they went to public school they would probably know about sex and condoms already.)
Anyway, my point is that there are problems all around, but they are not everywhere. There are some excellent Catholic schools and universities that are faithful to the doctrine; there are many families who strongly support their children in their faith. Some parents don't, and that is sad.
We need to work to better catechize the laity, through love and charity and honesty. And most important, holding fast to the CCC, which is firmly based in Scripture.
God bless.