Well, almost everyone, and that’s not an exaggeration. A new study, published by USA Today, interviewed about 40,000 people and they found that 95% had sex before marriage. That’s 19 out of 20.
The study is being used by some to attack government-funded abstinence programs. One expert says that these face an “extremely high hurdle. … Is it really feasible to make it normative behavior to have everyone wait until they’re married to have sex?”
I think there are some things that need to be considered in light of this:
1. To what degree should the government be involved in promoting abstinence? Does anyone think that the government can make a compelling enough case for abstinence to have success in teaching it (and thus to justify the expenditure)?
2. How should churches (and Christian schools) address this issue? How aggressively should they be teaching it, at what ages, and how frequently? What should the primary motivation(s) be to encourage abstinence?
I encourage any readers who are youth leaders (in any shape) to think about their approach carefully. If 95% are doing it, a large percentage of those are Christians, and that means the church is losing the battle for sexual holiness before marriage. And probably not doing much better after.
Todd, excellent note. I have been confronted with this issue specifically with kids in my youth group (both at the last church and the present church). I appreciate the reminder and the sobering reality of how rampant statistics are increasing – even among the Christian community. We have a youth retreat soon and this will be incorporated in the messages.
Thanks for the note,
Geoff
as a youth leader I don’t think it is the government’s authority to preach this, or necessarily my primary job. Obviously, I still do preach the whole counsel of God, and that includes purity and proper relationships. But I think not nearly enough is being done on the family level. Too many parents think that I replace them in giving their child wise instruction.
And it isn’t just about talking to your kids about it, but being parents who act like parents and not just friends. its about laying down rules for your child to abide by in relationships. You don’t want them to just abide by the rules for obedience sake, but preach to them the fact that their lives are to be living sacrifices for God, which means living in a holy manner. Too many parents just let their kids go anywhere and do anything and foolishly trust them to do what’s right in the wrong situation.
and a side note: if the government would stop an abstinence program because 95% are having sex before marriage, isn’t this a totally wrong approach. If 95% of kids said they drank too much, should we stop AA meetings or public service announcements. Shouldn’t 95% mean that the message gets louder. And not just for a moral standpoint, but for a health one, which is a better thing for the government to be concerned with.
Tim – good thoughts. In response to your last paragraph, I think that a rationale needs to be clear if the government is going to throw even more money at this. Is the government against pre-marital sex because the Bible says so, because of STDs, or because of psychological health? I think different people have different reasons and that may be one of the reasons that the campaign has not succeeded.