We have concluded our seventh monthly CANA Parents meeting, which took place in Abidjan! CANA Parents is a school for parents—a year-long program of training, sharing, and prayer—held in a warm and welcoming atmosphere to help strengthen and deepen family relationships.
In Côte d’Ivoire, this program is being implemented across the four ecclesiastical provinces with the active participation of 112 parents. The program in the ecclesiastical province of Abidjan is in its seventh session, which took place with the participation of 26 parents. The topic discussed was “Daring to Talk About Tenderness and Sexuality.”
Indeed, in a society where children are exposed at an increasingly early age to digital content, social media, and sometimes contradictory messages about the body, love, and sexuality, this theme helped create a space for sincere and compassionate dialogue about the educational role of parents.
The session began by focusing on tenderness, which constitutes a child’s first language. Through listening, attention, simple gestures, encouraging words, and affection, parents help build a child’s inner security, self-esteem, confidence, and emotional balance. The session then emphasized the need to clearly distinguish between tenderness and sexuality.
Following the session, small group discussions allowed parents to realize that this topic was not sufficiently addressed in their children’s upbringing, and even less so in their communication with their children.
According to the parents, the practical exercises they were given will help them discuss this sensitive issue with their children, enabling them to live more openly, honestly, and lovingly with their children. In addition, the parents recognized the importance of providing spiritual guidance to their children during adolescence, which is a critical period of growth and maturation.
