When
we think about peer pressure, we might think about our adolescence years and
remember Mom always asking if we'd jump off of a bridge just because everybody
else was doing it. But adults experience peer pressure, too. It may not be as direct
or intentional as the kind of peer pressure teenagers experience, but peer
pressure in adulthood can be every bit as harmful.
If
you've adopted values, beliefs, goals or hobbies based on what others in your
peer group believe or do, you've experienced peer pressure, whether positive or
negative.
Maybe
you drink to excess on the weekends even though you don't enjoy it, because
that's what your friends do or you work a lot of overtime to afford the kind of
lifestyle of your siblings or friend, even though it’s a lifestyle that doesn't
really excite you. Negative peer
pressure leads us to behave in ways that contradict our true values.
On
the other hand, maybe you quit smoking because your non-smoking friends were
supportive, or maybe you returned to Church because so many of your peer group were
excited about their parish life. Positive
peer pressure leads us to make choices consistent with our inherent values.[1]
“Blessed the man who follows not the counsel of the wicked nor
walks in the way of sinners, nor sits in the company of the insolent” (Ps 1:1). My parent used to tell me, be your own
person, be careful who you hang around.
St. John of the Cross is a saint because his life was a heroic effort to live up to his name: “of the Cross.” The folly of the cross came to full
realization in time. “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his
cross, and follow me” (Mark
8:34) is the story of John’s life. The Paschal Mystery—through death to
life—strongly marks John as reformer, mystic-poet, and theologian-priest. What if we would let Jesus be the source of
the peer pressure we succumb too? We are
called to be a source of positive peer pressure. Instigators of Joy, Love, Peace & Hope in
an often struggling world.
[1]
Sylvia Brafman Mental Health Center Blog, “How To Deal With Peer Pressure as an
Adult” http://www.mentalhealthcenter.org/how-to-deal-with-peer-pressure-as-an-adult/
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