Wednesday, September 2, 2015

Can you read the condoms on the wall?


Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and jealousy.  But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires. Romans 13:13-14

Dear University,
Last week when I was moving my son into your dorm, it reminded me of when I moved into my own college dorm 25 years ago... the newness, the excitement, meeting my hall mates... and then I saw the condoms on the bulletin board. We did not have those in my dorm 25 years ago.  I am not naive enough to think that no one had sex when I was in college, but the university did not go out of their way to make it easy.  Single sex dorms with curfews and limited visitation were all attempts to protect us from ourselves.  What are you doing to protect your students?  Condoms on the bulletin board?  Where has this form of "protection" gotten your university?  The first week of school you start promoting your campaign against relationship and sexual violence.  You expect your students to have sex, but you tell them not to hurt anyone.
The unwritten message is, "Boys, this is what we expect of you, and girls, this is what you can expect on your dates."  Where is the message that says they have the right to say no? Where is message that says they have the right to have fun and get to know a person and then say goodnight at the door? Where is the encouragement to abstain from a world of one night stands and broken hearts and bodies?  I didn't see any of those messages.  The only message I saw was "Wrap it before you tap it." Nice.
Perhaps if purity was pursued rather than parodied, or if students were protected by policies and procedures rather than confronted by condoms every time they walk down the hall, you could do away with your campaigns and your t-shirts against sexual violence. Perhaps if you made "no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires" you would have more people studying and less people "tapping it".  I know you will say that I am old fashioned and that times have changed.  You are right, times have changed.  But there is an ancient way that leads to rest for your souls. How many of your students long for that?  How many are being counseled for depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts. Instead of giving them a Rock to cling to, you gave them a condom.

This is what the LORD says: "Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But you said, 'We will not walk in it.' Jeremiah 6:16


1 comment:

Marianne said...

Oh yeah!! So, so good!! Thanks for sharing....I will be sharing! You are such a blessing Marlo!