With all of the flyers along dormitory walls advertising information sessions on safe sex or bribing students with free condoms, it's easy to assume that everyone on campus is getting laid. But believe it or not, not all of your 27,000 fellow students are having sex. Some of them, in fact, are avoiding it - by choice.
Some choose this lifestyle to adhere to their religious beliefs.
"Sex is a gift that God gave to everybody," said Tim Sennett, a freshman English major.
As a devoted Catholic, Sennett wants to wait for the commitment of marriage to start a sexual relationship with his girlfriend. To him, sex is more than emotions and pleasure - it's a sacred bond.
The Islamic faith holds a similar point of view. For Muslims, sex is a spiritual act of worship that should be treated with respect and responsibility.
Obada Shamaa, President of Muslim SA, explained that choosing whether or not to wait until marriage to have sex is "a concept of either being a slave to yourself, giving into all of your desires, or a slave to your Lord."
Shamaa, a junior biochemical pharmacology major, said that Muslims are generally not allowed to date, and pre-marital sex is forbidden. Restricting lustful desires in order to find love is the goal of this rule, because "love equates to God, and your intentions with somebody should be for God."
Different religious rules on pre-marital sex give some young adults the guidance they need to reject the messages from the media that casual sex is common and free of consequences, according to Mark Baetzhold, a campus minister for the Newman Center. He feels that the current generation is faced with intense pressure to be sexually active.
He also knows that although some students may want to follow the church's teachings, they might also feel that the rule on pre-marital sex does not apply to today's world.
"I wouldn't encourage anyone to just take that rule without really understanding what the teaching is about," Baetzhold said.
According to Baetzhold, the Catholic Church, like Islam, wants young people to develop a deep relationship with a partner that goes beyond physical attraction.
Others believe that a trusting, meaningful relationship can be attained without the commitment of marriage. In that case, some don't see the need to wait years to have sex.
"If you're with someone that you care about, then it's okay," said Marc Richards, a senior history major.
Andrea Greenwood, the assistant director of counseling at UB, stresses the importance for young people to be aware of their own values and needs before becoming sexually intimate with another person.
"It can be risky to go into a casual sex relationship without some self awareness and knowing what you need in a relationship," Greenwood said.
Many see a growing trend of uncommitted relations occurring on campus and attribute it to the newfound freedom students acquire when they enter college. Some students would rather keep interactions casual than settle down.
"Because it's new, exciting and because they can," said Nathalie Desrayaud, a graduate student in communications.
While some see sex as creating deep, emotional ties that should only be formed when two people are in a committed relationship, others feel that it's perfectly fine to satisfy physical needs without the emotional dependency.
"It doesn't have to be like, 'Oh I'm in love with him, I want to be just with him,'" said Kathryn Mawn, a sophomore nursing major. If it's more than a one night stand with a stranger, though, Mawn thinks that a friendship and closeness can develop outside of a committed relationship.
"At some point, one or both people gets involved," she said.
Regardless of whether or not a person is having sex in a relationship or simply enjoying some promiscuity, most agree that responsibility in using protection is a must.
"I don't think (pre-marital) sex isn't wrong as long as you're safe," said Talbot Abendroth, a sophomore psychology major.
Desrayaud agrees.
"College is the time to experiment."
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
