As a parent there is naturally a certain amount of answering the sins of the children upon our own heads if we do not teach them what is right. The challenge is to keep in perspective when they choose wrong because they have not been sufficiently taught vs when they choose wrong even when they have been properly taught. And this is “choose” wrong, as in deliberately doing something they know to be wrong when it has some real importance as opposed to making a mistake—legitimately forgetting, miscalculating, not being sufficiently informed—or goofing around when they believe that doing that wrong thing in that way or at the time doesn’t risk anything of significance.
Parents can mistakenly feel answerable for the sins of their children even after their children have been sufficiently instructed on those particular sins. They can also mistakenly try to release themselves from responsibility saying that their child(ren) do it should know better already even though they have not sufficiently taught them the right from wrong relative to the sins their children are committing. (I know that I am more likely to err in the latter direction than in the former direction.)
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