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From: dufa@reed.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.religion
Subject: re: Premarital Sex: response to Greg Skinner
Message-ID: <456@reed.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 15-Jan-84 14:30:12 EST
Article-I.D.: reed.456
Posted: Sun Jan 15 14:30:12 1984
Date-Received: Fri, 20-Jan-84 06:25:06 EST
Organization: Reed College, Portland OR
Lines: 54

[This is a response to Greg Skinner's article.]

Concerning the idea of non-marital sex:

     My personal belief is that people should do what they want to do.
Neither should they feel obligated (as a teenager, for example) to
have sex before marriage, nor should they be forbidden.  It seems to
me that the best way for two people to really KNOW if they are going to
like being married together is to live together for some time as though
they WERE married.  Thus, if they find it doesn't work, they can depart
without having to go through the trauma, etc., of divorce.  If living    
together entails having sex, so be it; it's better to find out too soon
respect.

Now for a comment about the Bible quotation:

     Indeed, the Christian's source does not say anything about being
forbidden to have non-marital sex.  As the Bible says, "...you should
avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control his
own body in a way that is holy and honorable..."  Nowhere does it
forbid mortals to engage in non-marital sex.  What is meant by "sexual
immorality"?  That is quite debatable.  To take a someone's personal
opinion, "sexual immorality" could mean rape, but nothing else; to
someone else it could mean homosexuality, but nothing else, etc.
What is "holy and honorable"?  As one can see, this quote from the
Bible (1 Thessalonians 4:1-6, NIV) does not forbid non-marital sex, as what it
forbids depends upon different points of view.  So the Christian probably
didn't convince the non-Christian that there is a law in the Bible banning
sexual intercourse between Christians until they are married.  

One more comment:

     The particular quote from the Bible mentioned above goes on to say,
"...[control your body honorably and holily (?)], not in passionate lust
like the heathen, who do not know God..."  I hate this phrase.  It is
such an attitude that has caused religious wars throughout time and
continue to do so.  I'm sure that there are Christians that lust and
"heathens" that do not.  (Some of those popes of yesteryear were pretty
bad: having secret wives -- or is that just a story?)  If only the Bible
would follow its own advice (such as "love thy neighbor") and not
criticize or be contempt of neighboring non-Christians. . .


			From the Flaming Files of

				Stefan Gruenwedel

                                        _O_
                                       /\_/\ 
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 [Thanks to Daniel M. O'Brien of AT&T Bell Laboratories, all bibles were
changed to Bibles.]