When more than 70 junior and senior high school students from several parishes gathered Sept. 20 at the St. Thomas Aquinas Newman Center in Chico to talk about sex, love and relationships, it was “more than just a day to talk about abstinence,” according to Salvatorian Father Michael Newman, director of the Newman Center.

The goals of a video-based program included education and sharing among peers, helping to “teach the kids that sexuality is a gift from God and how to use it correctly,” he said.

A four-video series featuring Pam Stenzel, an internationally acclaimed abstinence educator, formed the backbone of the five-hour event. Two videos dealt with the physical and emotional consequences of sexual activity, experimentation and permissiveness. Two other videos covered the spiritual and character consequences.

“I think young people are open to these ideas,” said Adolfo Mercado, coordinator of youth and young adult ministry for the diocese, who helped kick off the program with a brief talk. “This event is important because it brings young people together and allows them to talk about real life things in a supportive, Catholic setting.”

Students split into two groups to watch the videos. One group, comprised of students who had already seen the first two videos at a “Sex, Love and Relationships” event held at the Newman Center last February, joined to watch the third tape. First-time attendees came together to watch the first tape. Students broke into discussion groups after each video.

“The information was interesting, useful and new to me,” said Alyssa Sionzon, 12, a seventh grader who attends Mass at the Newman Center.

“You can get sexually transmitted diseases without even having sex,” she said. “You can pass them on to your spouse and potentially not be able to have children. This taught me that there is more to learn ñ that you shouldn’t assume you already know it all.”

Justine Lehman, program manager of teen services for Northern Valley Catholic Social Services, who helped facilitate one of the sharing groups, said teens are dealing with both hormonal changes and societal pressures.

“I think it’s harder now for teens to abstain from sex before marriage than it was in the 1950s and 1960s,” he said. “Back then it was the social norm to wait, and society and religion were more in sync with each other. Today it seems like the norm not to wait. Young people need tools to fight the effect of societal and peer pressure.”

He added, “From the response I saw, I think the kids are very open and very willing to listen and take a stand on what they believe. Several of them have been dealing with these issues with their friends, and a number of them have made abstinence-only commitments. It was really motivational to hear them talk about the way they’re incorporating this information into their lives.”

After joining in a Mass celebrated by Father Michael O’Reilly, pastor of St. Dominic Parish in Orland, students formed their groups again to watch videos two and four, followed by more discussions.

Liliana Orozco, 17, a member of St. Thomas the Apostle Parish in Oroville, said it was easier to talk about sex and relationships in a group of her peers.

“I really liked Pam Stenzel’s energy,” she said. “I thought it was important that she said, ‘Just because you’ve made a mistake in your life already, it doesn’t mean you have to keep making that mistake — you can start over. You have to know that God is always going to be there for you.’”

Tenth grader Scott Laczko of St. Thomas More Parish in Paradise said teen-agers “need to hear this stuff — don’t be tempted to do bad things, because the consequences are severe. You should think for yourself and not be swayed by what others might think or do.”

Katie Reiblein, whose ninth grade daughter Lauren, 14, participated in the day, said the videos wouldn’t have had the same impact “if kids couldn’t share them with other kids.”

“Lauren heard things she could relate to — that she’s not the only teenager with questions and pressures,” she said. “She could relate to the kids in the videos and the kids in her group.”

Amy Singer, 20, student leadership team coordinator for the Newman Center who helped facilitate another of the sharing groups, said that one of the values teens learned was that “choosing their friends is an important part of keeping their commitment to abstinence.”

She thinks the video program could also be useful for college students. “I’m concerned that some are already too set in their ways, but I think this kind of program could help some of them,” Singer said.

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