Issues Tearing Our Nation's Fabric The Center for Reclaiming America

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Sex Education
Chapter Twenty–One

A recent letter to the editor of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram expressed the anger and disappointment of a mother whose trust had been violated. Her son, who believes in abstinence and is not sexually active, was asked by his high school sex education teacher to write an essay about what he would do if he were caught having sex with his girlfriend by the girl’s parents. The very nature of the question, the mother complained, not only implies, but condones this type of behavior. Later, in an assignment dealing with "family life," the boy was told to imagine he was having an affair, then asked to explain how he would deal with it at home.

The mother explained that she was not a prude—she works in the arts community. But she was understandably upset that her teenage son’s "sex education" class was not teaching him sexual responsibility, examining the consequences of premature sexual activity, or the risks of pregnancy and disease. Instead, it was teaching him that a promiscuous lifestyle is okay as long as you know how to deal with it.

Sadly, this troubled mother is not alone. All across America young people are being indoctrinated by sexually liberal teachers, pro-sexuality textbooks filled with data, misleading information, and even lurid photos and illustrations that virtually guarantee that students will be exposed to risky behaviors. As a consequence, this country is undergoing an epidemic of sexual experimentation among children as young as 10 and 12 years of age. The implications are disastrous for the future well-being of the nation.

Studies from the National Institutes of Health indicate that nearly 8,000 young people lose their virginity each day in America. It is estimated that one in five teenage girls will have at least one baby by age twenty, and the same number will have an abortion by age twenty. As recently as 1960, just 5 percent of births were to unmarried women; by 1991 the number had risen to 30 percent of all births. In some inner-city neighborhoods, out-of-wedlock childbirth accounts for 80 percent of all births. At the current rate, according to a study by Harvard researchers, by the year 2000, 40 percent of all American births will be to unmarried mothers; and 80 percent of all births to minorities will be out-of-wedlock.

A study cited in The New York Times reported that 75 percent of all teenage girls have had sex during their teenage years, 61 percent have had more than one partner, and 15 percent have had four or more partners. In order to be sure their findings were not skewed by factors unique to dense urban populations, another survey was conducted of 1,300 high school students in 16 schools in suburban New York state. The pollsters found that 57 percent of teens lost their virginity in high school, a third of them engaged in sex at least once a month, and the average age for the first sexual experience was age 16.9.

Naming the Culprit

If American teens are dealing with dangerous behaviors which can lead to a high incidence of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), out-of-wedlock pregnancies, abortions, and other problems, parents should try to find out the identity of the culprit. What is going on? The answer is clear. Public schools, under orders from the federal government, the Department of Education, Planned Parenthood, and other promoters of liberal sex education curricula are creating the environment that introduces young people to sexual activity and encourages them to experiment.

The two-million member National Education Association (NEA) endorses sex education programs that promote birth control and homosexuality. The Sex Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS) published a set of goals for sex education which promotes abortion, young people living together before marriage, and homosexuality as equal alternatives to traditional heterosexual marriage. Ironically, according to SIECUS’s own literature, 54 percent of sexually active teens say they wish they had waited until marriage before having sex; and 84 percent of sexually active co-eds at Emory University said that what they really want is help in knowing how to say no to sexual pressures from dates and peers. But that is not what sex education provides.

Mary Calderone, co-founder of SIECUS and former medical director of Planned Parenthood, has stated that the goal of sex education is to indoctrinate society "very broadly and deeply with awareness of the vital importance of infant and childhood sexuality." The current president of SIECUS, Debra Haffner, once proposed what she called a "national petting project," in which children as young as six and seven years of age would be taught to strip and masturbate each other and engage in "outercourse" (sexual penetration without orgasm) as a way to protect against intercourse. This was, in fact, the same proposal made later by Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders. It aroused so much controversy, she was forced to resign her cabinet post.

Even though it is clear that a vast majority of parents do not want their children exposed to such radical ideas, the pressures to expand sex education programs in the schools is tremendous; and sex-education proponents commonly employ tactics to marginalize and demonize parents who resist the agenda of the sex establishment. Such coercion is not limited to the public schools; more and more pressure is being applied to private and Christian schools to adopt these sex education curricula, as well.

Back to Moral Foundations

The main thing lacking in today’s sex education classes is a moral component which makes clear the implications of adultery, infidelity, sexual indulgence outside of marriage, homosexuality, and out-of-wedlock childbirth; but this is the main element the pushers of sex education refuse to allow. Basing their assumptions on the fraudulent and dangerously flawed studies of Alfred Kinsey, who kicked off the "sexual revolution" back in the ’50s and ’60s, sex education proponents argue that sex should be a life-long experience, suitable for children and adults alike, and that traditional moral teachings about the role of sex are inhibiting and needlessly repressive.

Sex educators claim to present data in a "value neutral" way; but their efforts to be amoral as Probe Ministries analyst Kerby Anderson points out, make their material not just amoral, but immoral. "Human sexuality," says Anderson, "must be related to moral values. Young people need information about sex, but it must be placed in a moral context." The pathologies and the damning statistics of the sexual revolution make the case very well that the number one problem for today’s teens is not lack of "sex education," but lack of moral instruction about the risks of premature sexual experimentation.

The Bible teaches that chastity and self-control are virtues to be sought after. The Seventh Commandment, "Thou shalt not commit adultery," teaches that sex outside of marriage is specifically forbidden. Contrary to modern teaching, human beings are a higher order of being than the animals, and we are held to a much higher standard of behavior. Solomon taught chastity with the colorful expression, "Drink water from your own cistern" (Proverbs 5:15), meaning that only married couples are to taste the pleasures of sensual experience.

Paul writes that we are to "flee sexual immorality" (1 Corinthians 6:18). He offers a strict teaching about chastity that should seize the attention not just of Christians, but of others, as well:

For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God; that no one should take advantage of and defraud his brother in this matter, because the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also forewarned you and testified. For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness. Therefore he who rejects this does not reject man, but God, who has also given us His Holy Spirit (1 Thessalonians 4:3-8).

There is no clearer condemnation of sexual experimentation and the "sex education" curricula that condone it. Today’s liberal policies that promote the "safe sex" notions of contraceptives, condoms, abortions, and other methods of dealing with sexual sin are not teaching children responsibility. Instead, they defraud innocent children and introduce them to lusts that lead to life-long disappointment and heartache by teaching them that morality is not the issue, but that only their natural passions and personal desires need to be considered.

What You Can Do

Unfortunately, there is no one-size-fits-all solution to this problem. But there are several things you can do. First, let your voice be heard. Write your elected officials and let them know how you feel. Call the Capitol switchboard in Washington, D.C., when important legislation is pending (1-800-972-3524). Stay informed by keeping up with magazines and newsletters that deal with these issues; and put your money to work, supporting individuals and organizations who are fighting for responsible reforms regarding sex education in the schools.

If you can put your own children or grandchildren into private schools, by all means, do so. If you cannot, find out how you can either prevent your child from being exposed to the materials commonly used in sex education classes, or begin a program of "de-briefing" your kids, comparing notes each day on what they’re hearing in class and what the Bible has to say about it. Share with them the better way of understanding God’s plan for sex within marriage. Above all, let your kids know how you feel, so when peer pressure pushes them in the wrong direction, they will know you’re behind them.

There are several successful "Abstinence-Based Programs" that teach children to wait until marriage. A program from Teen-Aid, called "Sexuality, Commitment, and Family," has been shown to reduce teen pregnancy and teach children wholesome values. "Project Taking Charge," used in Chicago schools, and "Sex Respect: The Option of True Sexual Freedom," have also worked, even in tough inner-city neighborhoods, where promiscuity and peer pressure are often hardest to resist.

Be wary of programs, though, that claim to be "abstinence-based." Trading on the success rates of the truly abstinence-based programs, some liberal programs use terms such as "abstinence," "abstinence-plus," or "comprehensive" to disguise the fact that abstinence is only mentioned briefly, and in passing, as one possible alternative. Unless parents review the materials for themselves and determine the true character of what is being taught, they should not assume the curricula is appropriate. Try to find a large group of parents who will review the material with you, and if it is deemed inappropriate, be sure to let your local school board know.

Finally, be sure to compare notes with Christian friends, church groups, and ministries who have experience in this area. Cover your kids with prayer, and talk to them about these things. The most common reason children give for indulging in sexual experimentation is so they will feel loved. Dads, talk to your sons, and especially your daughters, and let them know they are loved. Moms, share those quiet moments, and let your kids confide in you. With your love and your assurances of concern about their well-being, they’re much more likely to walk the straight and narrow way.

You can contact these organizations:

Josh McDowell Ministries
P.O. Box 337
Wheaton, Illinois 60189
(800) 222-5674

Teen-Aid, Inc.
723 E. Jackson St.
Spokane, Washington 99207
(800) 357-2868

For further reading:

Stanton L. Jones and Brenda B. Jones. How and When to Tell Your Kids About Sex. Colorado Springs: NavPress, 1993.
Judith A. Reisman and Edward W. Eichel. Kinsey, Sex and Fraud. Lafayette, Louisiana: Huntington House, 1990.

World Wide Web:

True Love Waits: http://www.jerichosystems.com/tlw/tlw.html

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Copyright 1997, Coral Ridge Ministries. All rights reserved.