---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Celibacy used to offend family-values…"
description: "\"Celibacy used to offend family-values conservatism; now it offends equally against the opposite spirit.\" — Ross Douthat"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ce/ross-douthat-2949_against_celibacy-used-to-offend-family-values-co_1272333.png"
---

#  Celibacy used to offend family-values conservatism; now it…

![“Celibacy used to offend family-values conservatism; now it offends equally against the opposite spirit.” quote by Ross Douthat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ce/ross-douthat-2949_against_celibacy-used-to-offend-family-values-co_1272333.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ce/ross-douthat-2949_against_celibacy-used-to-offend-family-values-co_1272333.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ce/ross-douthat-2949_against_celibacy-used-to-offend-family-values-co_1272333.png)

> “Celibacy used to offend family-values conservatism; now it offends equally against the opposite spirit.”

[Ross Douthat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-douthat/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Traditional family values once condemned celibacy, now both sides criticize it for opposing their ideals.

**In simple terms:** Celibacy is now a target for both conservative and progressive critiques.

Key Takeaway

Recognize how moral standards shift over time.

Themes

cultural change morality identity politics

Mood

reflective critical

Type

analytical commentary

When to use this quote

- family debates
- public policy discussions
- media commentary

Key Concepts

social norms political polarization

Questions to Reflect On

- How do societal values influence personal choices?
- Can criticism be constructive?

A Different Perspective

Critiques may overlook personal autonomy.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Celibacy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/celibacy/) [Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/)

## Related quotes

> [“To preserve our absolute categories or ideals at the expense of human lives offends equally against the principles of science and of history; it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaiah-berlin/to-preserve-our-absolute-categories-or-ideals-at-the-expense-of-human/)

[Isaiah Berlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaiah-berlin/)

> [“It is one of the easiest achievements in life to offend your family when your family want to get rid of you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/it-is-one-of-the-easiest-achievements-in-life-to-offend-your-family/)

[Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/)

> [That clerical celibacy doesn't guarantee asceticism is obvious, any more than attending Mass guarantees prayerfulness (trust me on that one). But it preserves the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-douthat/that-clerical-celibacy-doesn-t-guarantee-asceticism-is-obvious-any/)

[Ross Douthat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-douthat/)

> [“...it is poverty only which makes celibacy contemptible to a generous public! A single woman, with a very narrow income, must be a ridiculous,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/it-is-poverty-only-which-makes-celibacy-contemptible-to-a-generous/)

[Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/)

> [“Fr. Benedict Groeschel says it in his uniquely northern New Jersey way: “Celibacy means that we belong exclusively to the Lord, from our brain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-m-dolan-cardinal/fr-benedict-groeschel-says-it-in-his-uniquely-northern-new-jersey-way/)

Timothy M Dolan Cardinal

> [In the name of celibacy, sex has been repressed for centuries and you have become just full of sexuality. Rather than transcending it you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/in-the-name-of-celibacy-sex-has-been-repressed-for-centuries-and-you/)

[Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/)

> [“It is better to lock up your heart with a merciless padlock, than to fall in love with someone who doesn't know what they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/it-is-better-to-lock-up-your-heart-with-a-merciless-padlock-than-to/)

[Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/)

> [“Not just the celibacy thing but because he has God’s ear, a line on the mysteries. That’s impressive to girls.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-elkin/not-just-the-celibacy-thing-but-because-he-has-god-s-ear-a-line-on/)

[Stanley Elkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-elkin/)

> [It is impossible to believe that the same God who permitted His own son to die a bachelor regards celibacy as an actual sin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/it-is-impossible-to-believe-that-the-same-god-who-permitted-his-own/)

[H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/)

> [Yes, hypothetically, western Catholicism could revise the theme of celibacy. ... But for the moment, I am in favor of maintaining celibacy, with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/yes-hypothetically-western-catholicism-could-revise-the-theme-of/)

[Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/)

> [“Sheel (the highest state of conduct in worldly interaction) is where not even an iota of a wrong intent arises within.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/sheel-the-highest-state-of-conduct-in-worldly-interaction-is-where/)

[Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/)

> [“Masturbation is not the happiest form of sexuality, but the most advisable for him who wants to be alone and think. I detect the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/masturbation-is-not-the-happiest-form-of-sexuality-but-the-most/)

[Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/)

> [Celibacy is the worst form of self-abuse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-de-vries/celibacy-is-the-worst-form-of-self-abuse/)

[Peter De Vries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-de-vries/)

> [“This worldly life is very difficult. Mother-in-law comes, mother of the mother-in-law comes, sister of mother-in-law comes, aunt of mother-in-law comes. How many mother-in-laws…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/this-worldly-life-is-very-difficult-mother-in-law-comes-mother-of-the/)

[Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/)

> [“I will tell you this only once. Homosexuals have been among the best warriors in our history, the berserkers of last resort. They were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/i-will-tell-you-this-only-once-homosexuals-have-been-among-the-best/)

[Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/)

## More by Ross Douthat

> [Human beings seek community, and permanent openness is hard to sustain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-douthat/human-beings-seek-community-and-permanent-openness-is-hard-to-sustain/)

[Ross Douthat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-douthat/)

> [The American intelligentsia has been pretty secular for a long time. There have always been figures like Oprah Winfrey, let's put it that way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-douthat/the-american-intelligentsia-has-been-pretty-secular-for-a-long-time/)

[Ross Douthat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-douthat/)

> [On the evidence we have, the meritocratic ideal ends up being just as undemocratic as the old emphasis on inheritance and tradition, and it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-douthat/on-the-evidence-we-have-the-meritocratic-ideal-ends-up-being-just-as/)

[Ross Douthat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-douthat/)

> [“The physical vanity of the diet-and-exercise obsessive is recast as the pursuit of a kind of ritual purity, hedged about with taboos and guilt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-douthat/the-physical-vanity-of-the-diet-and-exercise-obsessive-is-recast-as/)

[Ross Douthat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-douthat/)

> [There were times at Harvard when I actually longed to hang out with a few more Trotskyists, rather than yet another set of future…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-douthat/there-were-times-at-harvard-when-i-actually-longed-to-hang-out-with-a/)

[Ross Douthat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-douthat/)

> [Many things about American life, that even secular people consider good, have flowed from the presence of a robust, resilient institutional Christianity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-douthat/many-things-about-american-life-that-even-secular-people-consider/)

[Ross Douthat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-douthat/)

> [“What he felt during his Spanish encounter with left-wing anti-Christianity was similar to his reactions to the anti-Christianity of the right. The "novelty and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-douthat/what-he-felt-during-his-spanish-encounter-with-left-wing-anti/)

[Ross Douthat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-douthat/)

> [“In an age of stagnant or declining birthrates, too, these communities’ willingness to heed the admonition to be fruitful and multiply has led to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-douthat/in-an-age-of-stagnant-or-declining-birthrates-too-these-communities/)

[Ross Douthat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-douthat/)

> [America's problem isn't too much religion or too little of it. It's bad religion: the slow-motion collapse of traditional Christianity and the rise of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-douthat/america-s-problem-isn-t-too-much-religion-or-too-little-of-it-it-s/)

[Ross Douthat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-douthat/)

> [I do think you can see, throughout American history, this temptation, and it's both a liberal and a conservative temptation, to take a healthy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-douthat/i-do-think-you-can-see-throughout-american-history-this-temptation/)

[Ross Douthat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-douthat/)

> [Where conservative Catholics have the power to resist what seem like false ideas or disastrous innovations they must do so.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-douthat/where-conservative-catholics-have-the-power-to-resist-what-seem-like/)

[Ross Douthat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-douthat/)

> [It is not white nationalism to believe that countries like the United States would be better off with more babies. That belief can be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-douthat/it-is-not-white-nationalism-to-believe-that-countries-like-the-united/)

[Ross Douthat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-douthat/)

> [Most people want the convenience of the Internet far more than they want the private spaces that older forms of communication protected.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-douthat/most-people-want-the-convenience-of-the-internet-far-more-than-they/)

[Ross Douthat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-douthat/)

> [If you live under a system that claims to have high ideals but seems ineradicably opposed to your own people's flourishing, the desire for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-douthat/if-you-live-under-a-system-that-claims-to-have-high-ideals-but-seems/)

[Ross Douthat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-douthat/)

> [Our crisis of the house divided was a Christian civil war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-douthat/our-crisis-of-the-house-divided-was-a-christian-civil-war/)

[Ross Douthat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-douthat/)

[Explore all 144 Ross Douthat quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-douthat/)

## More Against quotes

> [I love casting against type and doing things you wouldn't expect, because I think you get more interesting performances that way. Hollywood loves to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-s-goyer/i-love-casting-against-type-and-doing-things-you-wouldn-t-expect/)

[David S. Goyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-s-goyer/)

> [I think I am against stereotype. Generally, Asian guys are more quiet - they study and have a good work ethic. Generally, I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-lee/i-think-i-am-against-stereotype-generally-asian-guys-are-more-quiet/)

[Bobby Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-lee/)

> [I'm not against gay people. I have a relative who is also gay. We can't help it if they were born that way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manny-pacquiao/i-m-not-against-gay-people-i-have-a-relative-who-is-also-gay-we-can-t/)

[Manny Pacquiao](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manny-pacquiao/)

> [It's going to be used in the last days to get people to come against Christ, and that's the issue: they come against the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-lahaye/it-s-going-to-be-used-in-the-last-days-to-get-people-to-come-against/)

[Tim LaHaye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-lahaye/)

> [We do not know which irresponsible Israeli prime minister will take office and decide to use nuclear weapons in the struggle against neighboring Arab…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mordechai-vanunu/we-do-not-know-which-irresponsible-israeli-prime-minister-will-take/)

[Mordechai Vanunu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mordechai-vanunu/)

> [In France they spend six months training policemen, then they give them a gun and put them on the streets, and I don't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mathieu-kassovitz/in-france-they-spend-six-months-training-policemen-then-they-give/)

[Mathieu Kassovitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mathieu-kassovitz/)

> [France has not only built a bureaucratic barrier against American culture, it has constructed a notorious intellectual case against it as well. The French…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-cowen/france-has-not-only-built-a-bureaucratic-barrier-against-american/)

[Tyler Cowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-cowen/)

> [My problems are sort of more on a nuisance level. I can't stand scratchy clothes, I've got to have soft kinds of cotton against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/temple-grandin/my-problems-are-sort-of-more-on-a-nuisance-level-i-can-t-stand/)

[Temple Grandin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/temple-grandin/)

> [I don't have any regrets or hold any grudge against anyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cooper-kupp/i-don-t-have-any-regrets-or-hold-any-grudge-against-anyone/)

[Cooper Kupp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cooper-kupp/)

> [Ronaldo will always score against everyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giorgio-chiellini/ronaldo-will-always-score-against-everyone/)

[Giorgio Chiellini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giorgio-chiellini/)

> [Well, just that there would be somebody in the office and the voters - it was more or less an understanding in the entire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-breyer/well-just-that-there-would-be-somebody-in-the-office-and-the-voters/)

[Stephen Breyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-breyer/)

> [The Constitution is very clear on the - on the declaration of war or reacting to international crimes - crimes against nations. It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-pitts/the-constitution-is-very-clear-on-the-on-the-declaration-of-war-or/)

Joe Pitts

> [It goes way, way back when we were under Sweden's rule. We always think they are better than us. We played against them so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saku-koivu/it-goes-way-way-back-when-we-were-under-sweden-s-rule-we-always-think/)

[Saku Koivu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saku-koivu/)

> [I'm against unanswerable concentrations of power, whether that be government or private industry or religious figures - anybody who is not accountable to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-suarez/i-m-against-unanswerable-concentrations-of-power-whether-that-be/)

[Daniel Suarez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-suarez/)

> [I'm an Indian and I shall not do anything that goes against my ethos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherlyn-chopra/i-m-an-indian-and-i-shall-not-do-anything-that-goes-against-my-ethos/)

[Sherlyn Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherlyn-chopra/)

Browse all 2,190 Against quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Celibacy used to offend family-values conservatism; now it offends equally against the opposite spirit.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Ross Douthat"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-douthat/celibacy-used-to-offend-family-values-conservatism-now-it-offends/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Against"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-douthat/celibacy-used-to-offend-family-values-conservatism-now-it-offends/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ce/ross-douthat-2949_against_celibacy-used-to-offend-family-values-co_1272333.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ce/ross-douthat-2949_against_celibacy-used-to-offend-family-values-co_1272333.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ce/ross-douthat-2949_against_celibacy-used-to-offend-family-values-co_1272333.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Celibacy used to offend family-values conservatism; now it offends equally against the opposite spirit.” — Ross Douthat",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Ross Douthat",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-douthat/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Celibacy used to offend family-values conservatism;...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-douthat/celibacy-used-to-offend-family-values-conservatism-now-it-offends/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-douthat/celibacy-used-to-offend-family-values-conservatism-now-it-offends/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```