wfn.org | UMNS# 04506-Sex education: What the United Methodist Church

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Sex education: What the United Methodist Church says 

Oct. 28, 2004	 News media contact:   Tim  Tanton * (615) 7425470* 
Nashville {04506}

NOTE: This report is a sidebar to UMNS story #504.

By United Methodist News Service*

The United Methodist Church emphasizes the importance of sex education and
chastity before marriage in official statements found in the denomination's
Social Principles. 

"Although all persons are sexual beings whether or not they are married,
sexual relations are only clearly affirmed in the marriage bond," the church
declares in its "Human Sexuality" statement.
 
In the "Rights of Children," the church says: "All children have the right to
quality education, including full sex education appropriate to their stage of
development that utilizes the best educational techniques and insights.
Christian parents and guardians and the church have the responsibility to
ensure that children receive sex education consistent with Christian
morality, including faithfulness in marriage and abstinence in singleness."

The Social Principles are contained in the church's Book of Resolutions and
Book of Discipline.
 
The church also affirms the need for sex education in a statement on
"Pornography and Sexual Violence" in the Book of Resolutions. 

"The supervision and love of Christian parents and other caring adults,
supported by the extended church family, are the primary source of sex
education," the church says. "A comprehensive approach to sex education
offers an additional basis for countering pornography. 

"Children, youth, and adults need opportunities to discuss sexuality and
learn from quality sex education materials in families, churches and schools.
An alternative message to pornography, contained in carefully prepared,
age-appropriate sex education materials that are both factual and explicit
and portray caring, mutually consenting relationships between married adults,
is needed. Materials should be measured by the intentions expressed and the
goals served, not by the degree of explicitness of sexual imagery. 

"If we fail to provide such materials, accompanied by parental and adult
supervision, we risk reliance of children and youth on pornography as the
primary source of information about sexuality...." 

*Vicki Wallace with the InfoServ team at United Methodist Communications
gathered the information for this report.

News media contact: Tim Tanton, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or
newsdesk@umcom.org. 

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United Methodist News Service