Preaching Abstinence-Until-Marriage: Effective or Naive?

Preaching

Abstinence-Until-Marriage

Effective or Naive?

What Does This Mean?

• Students are expected to refrain from performing any sexual acts. or having any sex-related materials, which Belmont faculty believe can lead to or promote sexual activity.
• This includes condoms.

• Students living in the dorms are expected to abide by visitation rules and guidlines.

• Students living in the apartments are held to an honor code.

• “Obscene” materials such as sexual magazines are not allowed.

• The University forbids students from possessing means of practicing safe sex such as condoms.

Teenage Sexuality

• On average, people in the United States become sexually active around the age of 15 or 16.

• According to the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, America has the highest rate of teen pregnancies and abortions amongst all of the first world nations.

• In the United States, nearly one-third of the female population will become pregnant before they are 25.

• By the time students reach college, nearly 90% of college-age kids are sexually active.

Abstinence-Only Education

• Instructs adolescents to abstain from sex until marriage.

• Encourages students to make virginity pledges.

• Does not teach about the use of condoms and other contraceptives or their effectiveness.

• Of the students who went through abstinence-only education, 88% of the virginity pledges admitted to having pre-marital sex.

• Virginity pledges have proven notorious for not using contraceptives if/when they become sexually active.

• Effectiveness can vary by religious preferences.

Comprehensive Sex Education

• Advocates abstinence as the only 100% efficient strategy of preventing unwanted pregnancy and STDs.

• Informs students about the use of condoms and contraceptives in order promote safe sex practices.

• Proven to delay and reduce the frequency of sexual activity.

• Increase the use of condoms and other contraceptives for those who choose to be sexually active

• Proven to be more effective than an abstinence-only curriculum.

• 1 in 4 college students have an STD or will contract one during their years at school.
• 50% of people will contract an STD
• People ages 15 to 24 account for at least half of the 19 million sexually transmitted infections which occur each year.

Only 54% of students admitted to using condoms during vaginal intercourse

• Results of a USA Today study conducted in 2004 showed that both pledges and non-pledges share the same rates of STD contractions.

• Receiving accurate information on contraception options, uses and effectiveness does not enhance the likelihood of someone participating in sexual activities.

• There is a population of students on Belmont’s campus whose personal beliefs do not match those of the university’s code of conduct. These students may not personally feel allegiance to religious guidelines which comply with the sex policy and thus, it can be more difficult for them to adhere to the policy.

• Belmont’s policy to save sex until marriage completely disregards the university’s gay and lesbian population.

• The policy also fails to address students who have already become sexually active.

The Solution

Though Belmont University’s stance on saving sex until marriage is admirable, combining abstinence-only education with a safer-sex message is much more applicable to college-age students.

In addition to advocating abstinence, Belmont University should allow condoms and other methods of practicing safe sex in order to help protect the health and well-being of the students.

Belmont University

In this regard, the school’s policy is putting its students’ health at risk.

• Belmont University—a private Christian college—wishes to uphold moral Christian values by administering an abstinence-until-marriage policy over its students.

Belmont's Sexual Misconduct Policy

• The Belmont Community upholds high moral standards in regard to responsibly expressed sexual behavior, creating a climate of mutual respect. Acts that demean the dignity and beauty of human sexuality conflict with the university’s moral standards of responsibility whether the acts occur on or off campus. Belmont University believes that sexual behavior outside of marriage conflicts with our Christian commitments and students choosing to engage in such behavior violate the university’s Code of Conduct and its Community Commitment to Self-Control

(cc) photo by medhead on Flickr

This equals about 900,000 pregnant teens a year.

To Be Considered

Effectiveness

Condoms Should Be Allowed

Presentation By:

Katie Garrett

Preventative Measures