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Tuesday, July 24th, 2012

Evangelicals Struggle to Address Premarital Sex and Abortion

Author:     DAVID SESSIONS
Source:     The Daily Beast
Publication Date:     Jul 13, 2012 4:45 AM EDT
Link: Evangelicals Struggle to Address Premarital Sex and Abortion
Stephan:   This is a very interesting essay, about a subject that receives far too little attention. In my opinion it constitutes a significant trend. Just as the financial programs of the Right have failed so it positions on abstinence, and its no abortion rigidity are also be shown as the failures they are in the real world. (see Social Values, Social Outcomes, http://www.explorejournal.com/article/S1550-8307%2811%2900346-6/fulltext and The Rise of American Theocracy, and the Implications for Science and Healthcase, http://www.explorejournal.com/article/S1550-8307%2811%2900106-6/fulltext.) It is creating an existential crisis in the Right, as this essay describes, and that is an important trend.

Their theological line against premarital sex is falling on the deaf ears of young believers, some of whom get pregnant and have abortions, thanks to their ignorance about contraception. Now, evangelicals are debating whether churches can embrace contraception as a backup plan.

It’s no secret that evangelicals have a big problem on their hands when it comes to young people and sex. The facts are staggering: despite almost universal affirmation that premarital sex is a sin, 80 percent of unmarried evangelicals (PDF) are having it, and 30 percent of those who accidentally get pregnant get an abortion, according to one survey. U.S. states where abstinence is emphasized over contraception in school sex ed-almost all in the heavily evangelical South-have teen birth rates as high as double (PDF) those of states with a comprehensive curriculum. Though an overwhelming majority believe premarital sex is wrong, white evangelicals are sexually active at a younger age than any demographic besides African-Americans, and are one of the least likely groups to use contraception.

The fact that true love isn’t waiting has concerned evangelicals for years, but the issue is gaining new attention because such a significant number of Christians’ unplanned pregnancies end in abortion. The scramble to […]

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