A Term paper

On

Premarital sex
I. Introduction

The premarital sex is an act that is practiced excessively in the world today, the sad part is not
only adults commits such an act but also teenagers. Premarital sex is an action that causes one's
emotional, social, spiritual and physical being to become corrupted. This term paper can serve as
a reminder for us to remember the importance of virginity and the sacred of marriage. We need
to stop premarital sex because it can lead to worse problems such as abortion, unwanted
pregnancy, STD, etc…

Premarital sex is generally defined as sex before marriage, but the definition raises various
questions. Does it mean sex before marriage to a particular partner, for example, or sex before
marriage to anyone? In the case of individuals who never marry or couples who are legally
barred from marriage, is any sexual activity in which they may be involved regarded as
premarital?

Premarital sex can ruin one’s life, there are many regretful effects that can widespread and alter
one's life forever. The emotional results of premarital sex can lead to psychological damage. This
includes confusion that can cause one to question his own self-worth. A person may also become
depressed and regretful. Premarital sex cannot be easily forgotten and it can haunt a person
forever. Virginity is a gift from God and once it is given away, it can never be returned. The
realization of this fact alone can bring emotional damage. Sex before marriage can also cause
social problems, once the news about this spread out, gossiping and judging cannot be avoided,
This can ruin a person's reputation and cause others to loose respect for that person. Other
prominent disadvantages of premarital sex, are those that affect the physical body. Pregnancy is
an unfavorable, physical consequence of sex before marriage. Internet statistics show that ten
percent of all fifteen to nineteen year old females become pregnant each year, it can cause
abortion because of unwanted pregnancy which is another social problem that we face today. It
can also lead to a disease which is Sexually transmitted diseases (STD). Approximately three
million cases of STD's are reported among teens every year. Becoming pregnant before marriage
and contracting sexually transmitted diseases are disturbing to the physical well-being of a
person.
It will come as no surprise to many filipinos are engage in sex before marriage - and this is true
of members of all religions as well as for agnostics and humanists. Drawing from the biblical
admonition to regard the body as a "temple" that is a sacred place where worship could, quite
literally, be internalized, the new church was health-focused. The question is Christians who
wish to be true to the teachings of their church should not engage in sex before marriage. The
question is why are Church so strongly against it? Premarital sex involves any kind of sexual
contact prior to entering into a legal marriage relationship. There are a number of reasons why
Scripture and traditional Christianity oppose this. God designed sex to be enjoyed within a
committed marital relationship. To remove it from that context is to pervert its use and severely
limit its enjoyment. Sexual contact involves a level of intimacy not experienced in any other
human relationship. When God brought Adam and Eve together in marriage, He established the
“one flesh” relationship. Genesis 2:24 tells us that a man will leave his family, join to his wife,
and become “one flesh” with her. This idea is carried through in the New Testament as well; we
see it in Jesus’ words in both Matthew 19:5 and Mark 10:7. Paul elaborates on that idea in 1
Corinthians 6:12-20, in his discussion of God’s lordship over our bodies as well as our souls. He
says that when a man has sex with a prostitute, they have become “one body” (verse 16). It’s
clear that the sexual relationship, no matter the context, is special. There is a level of
vulnerability one experiences in a sexual relationship that should only occur within a committed,
trusting, marital union.

There are, in general, two contexts for premarital sex. There is the “we love each other and are
committed to each other, but just don’t want to wait to be married” sexual relationship, and
there’s “casual sex.” The former is often rationalized with the idea that the couple will surely
marry, so there’s no sin in engaging in marital relations now. However, this shows impatience
and disrespect to oneself, as well as to the other person. It removes the special nature of the
relationship from its proper framework, which will erode the idea that there’s a framework at all.
If we accept this behavior, it’s not long before we’ll regard any extra-marital sex as acceptable.
To tell our prospective mate that they’re worth waiting for strengthens the relationship and
increases the commitment level.
Casual sex is rampant in many societies. There is, in truth, no such thing as “casual” sex, because
of the depth of intimacy involved in the sexual relationship. An analogy is instructive here. If we
take a sticky note and attach it to a piece of paper, it will adhere. If we remove it, it will leave
behind a small amount of residue; the longer it remains, the more residue is left. If we take that
note and stick it to several places repeatedly, it will leave residue everywhere we stick it, and it
will eventually lose its ability to adhere to anything. This is much like what happens to us when
we engage in “casual” sex. Each time we leave a sexual relationship, we leave a part of ourselves
behind. The longer the relationship has gone on, the more we leave behind, and the more we lose
of ourselves. As we go from partner to partner, we continue to lose a tiny bit of ourselves each
time, and eventually we may lose our ability to form a lasting sexual relationship at all. The
sexual relationship is so strong and so intimate that we cannot enter into it casually, no matter
how easy it might seem.

II. Body

Sexual imagery is everywhere. One cannot turn on the TV, thumb through the pages of a
magazine, pass by a billboard or listen to the radio without being bombarded with some type of
sexual innuendo. As a result of the growing liberated view on sexuality which began over 40
years ago with the sexual revolution, many people today consider the practice of premarital sex
to be normal, harmless behavior. (Finer, 2007) While saving sex until marriage may seem
outdated, premarital sex can bring negative emotional and physical effects into a marriage
relationship which creates a greater risk for divorce.
Current statistics suggest that the divorce rate hovers around 50 percent. One 1996 study
released by the United State Census Bureau states that “The number of divorced people more
than quadrupled, from 4.3 million in 1970 to 18.3 million in 1996” (Saluter & Lugail, 1996, p.
1). While reasons for divorce are as diverse as the number of marriages that dissolve, this
particular statistic suggests that there is a high cost to the liberated sexual attitude ushered in
since the 1960s. People may have been promised a better understanding of themselves as sexual
beings through the shift, but, instead they were blinded to the psychological risks involved.
Understanding the emotional hazards of premarital sex begins by acknowledging two innate
needs of every human: a loving connection with others which includes physical touch and
affection (Cox, 2001); and a “desire to be known, to love and be loved” (Williams, 2002, p. 2).
These desires equate to the need for true intimacy. In an ideal committed relationship two
people share communication, consideration, affection and trust which creates a deep, meaningful
link that forges genuine intimacy. Often, people use sex to fulfill these connections without
considering that they are confusing sexual expression with love (Cox, 2001).

In 1993, according to the Family Research Council commissioned a poll of 1,000 adults and
found that "the people most apt to report that they are very satisfied with their current sex life are
marrieds who strongly believe sex outside of marriage is wrong." In fact, "72 percent of the
members of this group report being very satisfied with their sex life." This figure is "roughly 31
percentage points higher than the level registered by singles who have no or only some objection
to sex outside of marriage and 13 percentage points higher than the level registered by marrieds
who do not strongly object to sex outside of marriage"

In 1992, according to a Wisconsin study, more than 13,000 adults found that couples who had
cohabited prior to marriage reported greater marital conflict.

According to a 2001 UNICEF survey, in 10 out of 12 developed nations with available data,
more than two-thirds of young people have had sexual intercourse while still in their teens. In
Denmark, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Norway, the United Kingdom and the United States, the
proportion is over 80%. In Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States, approximately
25% of 15-year-olds and 50% of 17-year-olds have had sex.[4] In a 2005 Kaiser Family
Foundation study of US teenagers, 29% of teens reported feeling pressure to have sex, 33% of
sexually active teens reported "being in a relationship where they felt things were moving too
fast sexually", and 24% had "done something sexual they didn’t really want to do".[5] Several
polls have indicated peer pressure as a factor in encouraging both girls and boys to have sex
The Bible does not forbid premarital sex.
According to Brow, Robert Adultery: An Exploration of Love and Marriage. JLP Digital
Publications, Odessa Ont., 1993, There is no passage of the Bible that references premarital sex
as a sin against God. The association between sin and premarital sex is a new Christian idea. The
only possible reference to premarital sex being a sin in the Bible is in the New Testament. This
premise although, is generally dismissed by theologians because the Greek word pornei, or
sexual immorality is commonly incorrectly translated into the English word fornication.

In Biblical times women were the owned property of a man. Men ruled over women and their
children. Women had very few, if any, rights, and men often bought women from their families
or at an auction, usually at age twelve and a half. The fathers owned the women (daughters,
wives, concubines, handmaidens, servants etc.) and if you wanted to have intercourse with one of
his properties, then you had to ask his permission.

If a father sold a daughter, he would get more money for her if she was a virgin. Non-virgins
were less expensive to buy. If a man purchased a daughter at a virgin price, and she was not, or
she did not bleed during intercourse, then he could return her to her father and get his money
back.

Most marriages were arranged for financial reasons. Many couples never even met until the day
of the marriage. On the day of marriage the proposed husband would give a dowry, or monetary
compensation, to the father of a bride. The price of the dowry was different from woman to
woman, was determined by the father, and was based on the woman’s beauty, ability to bear
children, strength, household skills, and status as a virgin.

In the Old Testament, many verses that people cite for being against premarital sex are actual
verses against stealing another man’s property.

In Exodus 22:16 - 17, “If a man seduces a virgin who is not engaged, and lies with her, he must
pay the bride-price for her, and she will be his wife. If her father absolutely refuses to give her to
him, he shall pay money equal to the bride-price for virgins.” According to this, the only reason
any wrong was done is because the father of the woman lost money when the man and the
woman consented to having premarital sex without her father’s knowledge. This passage showed
that through premarital sex, the man is actually stealing from the woman’s father, the difference
in value between her as a virgin and her as a non-virgin. It does not show that premarital sex is
wrong.

In Deuteronomy 22:28 - 29 it says, “If a man finds a girl who is a virgin, who is not engaged, and
seizes her and lies with her and they are discovered, then the man who lay with her shall give to
the girl’s father fifty shekels of silver, and she shall become his wife because he has violated her;
he cannot divorce her all his days.” This shows that forced premarital sex, or rape is also
stealing, but unlike the book of exodus, this trespass provides a punishment, as the male rapist
not only stole from the woman herself but from the woman’s father as well.

Another example of premarital sex in the Old Testament is given in Deuteronomy 21:10. This is
a case in which a man takes a woman captive and then if he wants to make her his wife he must
follow the conditions it sets forth, and then have intercourse with her. Then, if she is found to be
desirable he has the option of marrying her or sending her away. This passage not only possibly
condones premarital sex, but maybe even divorce as well.

Even the 10 Commandments don’t forbid premarital sex. Most Christians would classify
premarital sex under the seventh commandment, “Thou shall not commit adultery,” but adultery
is defined as: voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and a person who is not
their spouse. If neither persons are married, it cannot be adultery.

III. Conclusion

Premarital sex is a social problem that can lead to bigger and worse problems if no one can put a
stop on it. Here are some objectives which came from the ideas of the teenagers who has already
committed to premarital sex:
 We should know the emotions they feel after having premarital sex.
  We should know if they consider relationship before engaging premarital sex
 We should be aware on how teenagers thinks about premarital sex.

Sex is a basic human need. Every person has the desire to enjoy a physical relationship with
someone they care about. And in the context of marriage, those moments of intimacy can bring
pure joy and pleasure to your life. But when it's used in the wrong way, sex can cause guilt,
anxiety, depression, disease and low self-esteem. How do you make the right decision about
when and with whom you should have sex?
If you've made a wise decision about what's best for your life, you won't be as likely to give in to
your desires.

Premarital sex has no moral grounds, it is against God, and it is unsafe physically and
emotionally. Although sex is pleasurable, it is designed by God to be enjoyed by two married
people.

IV. Bibliography

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Premarital_sex
 http://www.collegetermpapers.com/viewpaper/1303579884.html
 http://www.termpaperwarehouse.com/essay-on/Effects-Of-Premarital-Sex/44532
 "Premarital Sex". Sex and Society 3. New York: Marshall Cavendish. 2010. pp. 663–666.
ISBN 978-0-7614-7908-6.
 http://www.allaboutworldview.org/premarital-sex-2.htm
 http://www.thechristianleftblog.org/blog-home/premarital-sex-is-it-a-sin-or-not