ABSTRACT
‘Sex before marriage is a sin.’ This message is commonly associated with religious voices when questions arise concerning young people, their sexual attitudes and behaviours. As a major world religion, Christianity in its various forms shares this stance, preaching the sacredness of bodily intimacy and sexual abstinence prior to marriage. But how effective is this message for today’s youth in a modern and increasingly global world in which sex has become a public and pervasive feature of social life? Although many countries are witnessing the increase of both new religious movements or variants of more established ones, and reports of religious affiliation among adolescents remain high (Smith et al. 2002; Garner 2000), religious attendance does not necessarily equate with religious influence. Might the relevance of religion for teenagers, and hence its ability to impact their social lives and practices actually be diminishing as secularists suggest?
