Dear Friends, When this topic came up on the list, I was shocked & moderately horrified! I had visions of draping women in shapeless costumes, so we wouldn't arouse The sexual drives of the other sex. I remembered one of the first things a male infant does after birth is touch his genitals! I also recall reading about a practice advocated in the 1930s of tying a babies arms and legs to the sides of the crib so he wouldn't touch his private parts.
I'm sure a few of you males have had the lecture about the dangers of Onanism (Genesis chapter 38.) and I actually know women younger than myself whose husbands had to explain the marriage act on their first night! Now I believe excessive focus on this topic does not and will not further the cause of God, which should be our major focus. I do not think virtue is built up or developed through focusing on what one should not do or feel. Sexual feelings are present in children well before the age of puberty. Admittedly, They become more pronounced and have more serious consequences, subsequently! LOL I feel the narrow minded focus on sex as a designed for the act of reproduction is not in keeping with what biologists have discovered about mammalian behaviour. It is also known that infants deprived of touching, holding, and being physically handled do not thrive and often die. Our need to touch and be held is not necessarily sexual in nature and does not necessarily lead to overt sexual behaviour. However, it is a part of our biological heritage of sexuality. I wonder if it is realistic to expect a 12 or 14 year old to display the same moral discipline as an adult? I really wish I knew who The Guardian was responding to and what was the actual question regarding masturbation. Finally, there are many of us who will remain single and alone through out our lives. I think it is cruel to deprive such people of any sexual release throughout their lives. Sincerely, Elainna ---------- You are subscribed to Baha'i Studies as: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] To unsubscribe send a blank email to mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Baha'i Studies is available through the following: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] http://list.jccc.net/cgi-bin/lyris.pl?enter=bahai-st news://list.jccc.net/bahai-st http://www.escribe.com/religion/bahaist (public) http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED] (public)
