Wednesday,
Jan. 21, 1998
Sex: Why some say you should wait
JOEL SHEMPERT
Feature Editor
Sex is infinitely valuable for capturing people’s atten
tion. It’s working already. All I have to do is mention sex,
and here you are reading.
Advertisers know this. They’d sell Coca-Cola with nude
women if they could. Hollywood knows this. They can
and do sell about anything they want with glistening, na
ked celebrity bodies. So, if for no other reason than to
ensure that Clackamas students read at least one of my
articles this year, I’d like to talk about sex.
First of all, please understand that I am riot at all op
posed to sex—I find the whole prospect terribly thrilling,
and look forward to my first time. What I am opposed to is
the twisting of the beauty of sex in our society. I believe
that sex is designed by God to be the most intimate expres
sion of love between a man and a woman on this earth.
By now, the reader will have noticed a certain spiritual
tone to this article. You might even call it religious. Let me
make this clear from the outset—yes, I am a Christian, and
yes, my views on sex are based on the idea that there is a
God who created us and knows how we should live.
The idea of marriage creates in many people’s minds an
impression of narrow-minded, restrictive legalism, along
with visions of Dana Carvey’s Church Lady chirping, “no
sex before marriage” in a prudish tone. People tend to
think of marriage as a formality, a piece of paper making
“acceptable” their sexual union, and therefore incidental
to sexuality—and somewhat removed from romantic love.
I say that nothing could be further from the truth.
Marriage is not a confinement; it is a pledge. In an age
when there is so much complaint of lack of commitment, it
amazes me to witness how few couples respect the cer
emony that consecrates that commitment. Marriage is the
bond that elevates sex to true joy.
The Judeo-Christian school of thought actually has quite
a lot to say about the joy of sex. Martin Luther was known
to write of the ecstasy of his sex life in such vivid language
as would causgthc Church Lady many a blu^h. In Rembrandt’s
Danae, we seethe, artist’s nude wife waiting in bed for him.
And King Solomon produced a book, the Song-gf Songs,
which is one of the most passionate—arid sexual—loySkpngs
ever written.
The core diChristian teaching on this is set forth frdm the
beginning: “The two shall become one flesh,” to whichjChrist
adds, “Therefore, what God has joined together, let man not
separate.” How much more intimately
connected can you be with another hu
man being? Sex is what many commenta
tors have taken to calling “total dynamic
oneness.”
That’s why I believe in waiting
for sex until marriage. Sex is a gift I want
to give to the love of my life—my
soulmate. If I have sex with someone else,
Sex is a gift I have cheapened that gift.
Solomon, setting down advice
1 want to
for his son, wrote, “May your fountain be
give to the blessed, and may you rejoice in the wife
love of my of your youth. A loving doe, a graceful
life... my deer—may her breasts satisfy you al
ways, may you ever be captivated by her
soulmate. love. Why be captivated, my son, by an
adulteress?”
Joel P.
As a hopeless romantic I can take
Shempert ;
comfort in the fact that God has such a
Feature Editor
healthy and robust view of sex, and that
He has picked the person with whom I
will spend the rest of my life. Sex with someone else before
marriage is like cheating in advance. It is sharing with another
what is meant for your husband or wife.
I have met many people that have slept with someone they
did not love. Some have regretted it. Others see nothing
wrong and continue to do it. Sex has ceased to be intimate
love and has become a sport.
Solomon, in his quest for meaning in life, tried pleasure for
pleasure’s sake and reported, “I denied myself nothing my
eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. . .Yet when I
News Briefs
Volunteers are needed to tutor adults
in reading and writing approximately
two hours a week, Contact Joe
VanZutphen at ext. 2724.
Qualified math tutors are wanted who
have completed MTH 111, calculus, or
precalculus. Starting rate is $8.02 per
hour. Stop by the Math Lab for an
application.
The deadline for the writers’ club con
test is Feb. 18. Students may submit
up to three poems, one essay, and one
piece of fiction. Submit four copies of
each entry along with the text on disk.
Include a cover page for each. Spe
cifically, manuscripts should be pre
pared as follows: cover page with the
title, category, student’s name, social
security number, address and phone
number. The first page of the story
should only include the student’s so
cial security number and the title. Do
not put your name on the first page of
the entry. All entries will be consid
ered for the literary magazine Synes
thesia. Submit entries to Allen
Widerburg in M233 or call ext. 2359.
The college would like to thank the two
licensed massage therapists, Susan
Powell and Danny White, who came
and donated their time to give free
massages in December during finals
week. There was a constant flow of
people, and many students asked if the
therapists were coming back. ASG has
already confirmed five therapists to
come again next term.
The college is offering a free, one-day
Wednesday, January 21,1998
workshop titled “Raising Cooperative
Kids” from 6-8 p.m. today in Modular
7, room F106. Parenting instructor Pat
Rust will lead the course, which will
focus on learning techniques to handle
children’s difficult behavior. The work
shop is sponsored by the AWACC
Connections program. For additional
information, contact the Family Re
source Center at ext. 2526.
A free workshop titled “Women Mak
ing Connections on the Internet” will
be held from 12:30-1:30 p.m. Thurs.
Jan. 22, in Modular IB by research li
brarian Doris Munson. The workshop
is sponsored by Connections.
For information about the college’s
scholarship application process, join
Sharon Sample, Scholarship Coordi
nator, during January on Thursdays
from 3-4 p.m. in B114.
Western Oregon University will have
a representative on campus today,
from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. in the Community
Center Mall. Stop by the table and
ask questions.
On Tues. Jan. 27 Career Resource Spe
cialist Ethel Swanson will begin the
first of a four-part series beginning
with "Exploring Tomorrow's Careers."
The four workshops are designed for
students as well as the general public,
in preparation for the Job Fair April
17. The workshops will be held from
6:30p.m. to8:30p.m.inCC127. Early
registration is advised, but may be
done at the class. Register for WKS
6-0; the cost is free.
surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled
to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after
the wind.”
Pleasure is temporary. It only leads to dissatisfaction
between pleasures. But this is only part of the problem.
The core of the whole difficulty of sexual purity is that
people don’t know how to love.
“Even the idea of chastity isn’t strictly that you don’t
express yourself with sexual intimacy,” the late Christian
singer/songwriter Rich Mullins concluded after investi
gating the monastic vows of St. Francis of Assisi.
“The point is that when you love, you learn to love
purely. You learn how not to be a user.”
That is the essence of true love: you value another’s
needs more highly than your own.
St. Paul understood this when he recorded a blueprint
for God’s love in his first letter to the Corinthian church.
Love is patient. It doesn’t need instant gratification. Love
is kind. It is sensitive and nurturing to others. Love seeks
not its own. It is about giving; selfish concerns vanish. To
this ideal our own, imperfect love should conform.
This is, of course, a monumental task—tremendous
enough for me to ask it of myself. The ring I wear is a
symbol of the purity which, by God’s guidance, I will main
tain. I hope one day to replace it with a wedding ring.
I’m not passing judgment on those who do not or have
not upheld this commitment to love purely. There is no
condemnation in Christ, and if there is anything to be
learned from the Bible, it is that it’s never too late to change.
Purity is a state of mind. To religious hypocrites, Christ
exclaimed, “You brood of vipers!” but to prostitutes and
adulteresses He said, “Go and sin no more.”
No one will be convinced of the immorality of premari
tal sex only because of this article. That is beyond my
ability. I merely hope that the seed will be planted in
some minds that there is a pure love to be found. Our
society produces unfaithfulness, betrayal, heartbreak,
and disappointment. Foolish use of a precious gift brings
about long-term pain.
But as Paul said, / show you a more excellent way.-
Clubs On Campus
Get involved, join a club! Have an interest you’d like to express with others who share
similar enthusiasms? Want to meet other people on campus? From the Writers' Club, to
the Coyote Circle, to the Ski and Snowboarding Club, the college offers many opportuni
ties to mingle with other students. But if none of the clubs on this list interest you and you
would like to start a new club, contact ASG at ext. 2247.
Intramural Sports Club........................ Norm Berney..................................
ext. 2250
Racquetball Club.................. ............... Kathie Woods................................................ ..ext 2418
Rally Club (Cheerleading)........ .......... Norm Berney....................................................ext. 2250
Rodeo Club.................... .,...............
Amy Lundy.......... .........................
ext. 2250
Ski and Snowboarding Club............... B ob Misley...........................................
ext. 2376
Baptist Student Ministries.......... .•...... Alan Jeffries....................................
ext 2543
Chrysalis (Women's Writer Club)...... Kate Gray..................................
ext. 2371
Cat Colony Club (The Seven C's)..... Gary Nelson.........................................
ext. 2587
Circle K Club....................................... Norm Berney........................................ ext. 2250
German Club....................................... Dick Stones..................................
ext. 2392
Fellowship of Christian Athletes...... Kathie Woods.
.ext. 2418
The Rainbow Club............................... Kate Gray........
ext. 2371
H.E.E.L. (Environment Club).............. Jack Scrivener.
ext 2490
LDSSA..................... ........................... Dick Stones.....
ext. 2392
Coyote Circle....................................... Jan Godfrey or Laney Fouse.............. .’. ext 2552
Ornamental Horticulture Club........ Elizabeth Howley....................
ext. 2389
Phi Theta Kappa................................. Kate Gray...................
ext. 2371
Spanish Club................... .................... Cariota Holley.................. ...................... ext. 2381
Speech Club................................ ......... Kelly Brennan............................
..ext 2726
Students for a Free Tibet.................. . Bill Briare........ .............
ext. 2457
Tai Chi............
,.... ....... Judy Himes or Wayne Keller................ ext. 2848
Writers' Club................................. .
Allen Widerburg.................................... ext. 2359
The Clackamas Print Staff
19600 S. Molalla Ave. Oregon City, OR 97045
(503) 657-6958 ext. 2309 cccprint@clackamas.cc.or.us
Co-Editors-in-Chief: Christina Mueller
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(ext. 2576)
Joel P. Shempert
Feature Editor:
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Copy Editor:
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Co-A&E-Editors:
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Eatherton, Kim Harney, Alex Mahan, Toni McMichael, Jeremy Stailwood, and Robert Schoenberg.
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