Teenage sex is increasingly becoming a society wide concern as more teens are becoming sexually active at an early age. Teenage sex has become a major societal concern due to the increased cases of teenage pregnancies, HIV amongst teenagers and Sexuality Transmitted Infections (STIs). In an attempt to remedy the increased cases of teenage sex, various groups including government agencies, religious outfits and social groups have proposed varied approaches to tackle this issue. Some of the measures that have been proposed include sex education, use of condoms and contraceptives and abstinence. These measures proposed to tackle the issues of teenage sex have, however, brought about tussles between their proponents on the basis of morality and religious beliefs, giving rise to two conflicting approaches that are the secular humanistic approach and the Holy/conservative religious approach.
Humanistic approaches to teenage sex are based on the foundations of critical thinking, science, protection of human rights and secure government. People propagating humanistic approaches to tackle teenage sex argue that, teenagers have the make informed choices regarding their sexual life and orientation. In the humanistic approach, sex is viewed a basic human need that should not be restricted to any person who can choose whether they want to engage in or not. This liberal view to personal choice is informed by the position held by humanists, that human rights should be protected at all times. Humanists believe that every human being has the right to choose what they want to do with their life, as long as the actions are legal and ethical and that peoples’ right to choice should not be restricted by the conservative viewpoints or religious beliefs. Access to information and sex education forms the backbone of humanistic approaches in dealing with cases of teenage sex. Humanistic approaches have advocated that sex education should be included in basic education (Siecus, 2010). Humanists believe that educating teenagers on sex and sexual related issues will give them more power to make informed decisions regarding their sexual engagements. Humanists defend their views by stating that as long as teenagers have the right information on sex, they are able to make sound choices. They can choose whether or not they are ready to engage in sexual activities and can have better control of their lives, without their freedom to choose to be infringed into by religious or conservative beliefs. Humanists also encourage teenagers to use contraceptives, which prevent unwanted teenage pregnancies and condoms, which are viewed as instruments that promote safe sex, as they prevent the spread of HIV and Sexually Transmitted Infections (U.S Department of Health and Human services, 2014).
The Holy or Conservative Christians approaches, on the other side, are founded on religious and Christian beliefs on sex and marriage. Conservative Christian approaches draw their beliefs and point of views from religious doctrine and teachings on sex and marriage. The conservative Christian hold on to the belief that sex before marriage is sinful and unacceptable. According o conservative Christian teaching sex is a gift from God and is meant to be enjoyed by a man and a woman in holy matrimony (Wright, 2009). So sex before marriage is not acceptable as it defies the sacred nature of sex. Conservative Christian approaches to teenage sex believe that as much as sex education is important, it should be offered in moderation as not to give teenagers the wrong impression of sex. Conservative Christians argue that moderation are necessary for teenage sex education as sex is being portrayed as right that can be enjoyed by anyone, at any time and that sex is a source of pleasure that is meant to be used to satisfy sexual desires. According to the conservative Christian approaches, total abstinence is the best way of reducing cases of teenage sex and that teenagers should be encourage to refrain from sexual indulges until they are married (Siecus, 2010)
Work Cited
U.S Depertment of Health and Human services (2014). Contraceptive and condom use. http://www.hhs.gov/ash/oah/adolescent-health-topics/reproductive-health/contraceptive-use.html
Siecus, (2010). An Explanation of Federal Funding for More Comprehensive Approaches to Sex Education.
http://www.siecus.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=Page.ViewPage&PageID=1262
Steven W. (2009). Understanding Teenage Sexuality. Armour Publishing Pte Ltd
