Sex is good, says pastor

2008-12-01 07:13

Leané du Plessis

Johannesburg - If the sex is good, the marriage will be good, the American TV evangelist, Rev Ed Young said on Sunday.

The pastor at the Fellowship Church in Texas recently raised some eyebrows when he announced the Seven days of Sex challenge to his flock, in order to boost their marriages.

Young and his wife, Lisa, encouraged married couples to become "sexperts" in this "sexperiment". The challenge ended last Monday.

In the middle of their programme, the Youngs had to leave for Britain and South Africa. Young first preached in London and then came to Johannesburg, where he preached at the Rivers Church in Sandton.

A few years ago Rev André Olivier, pastor at the Rivers Church, and his wife Wilma visited the Youngs in the US and became "good friends" with them, Olivier told his congregation on Sunday.

Young conducted three of the six services at the Rivers Church this weekend.

In the first service on Sunday morning, he used the first few minutes to advertise the books he had written.

Sex challenge 'to build families'

Regarding the much talked-of Seven Days of Sex, he said the best thing you could do for your children was to have a healthy marriage.

"People have asked me if I initiated this 'sexperiment' to draw more members to the church.

"No, I did it to build families. If the sex is good, the marriage will be good, because you not only experience physical intimacy, you also form a spiritual bond. It makes the marriage stronger."

In the rest of the service he focused on spiritual growth. He compared it to birth and adolescence and encouraged the congregation to become spiritually more mature.

"At one stage you stop feeding a baby and then it has to start eating on its own," he said.

The same applied to adolescence, a phase which, he said, is characterised by rebellion against authority.

"In the adolescence stage, the faithful should realise that God and authority figures in the church know better.

"As a spiritual 'adolescent' you do not have the necessary knowledge or wisdom."

Young left the building directly after the service as a special collection was being taken up for him.

- Beeld