Many people believe that their faith or religion has authority over how they live their lives. This belief can extend to issues related to sexuality, including what they do with their bodies and who they have sex with.
Some argue that this is a violation of bodily autonomy, which means having control over one's own body and what happens to it. This tension between religious/spiritual authority and bodily autonomy challenges the notion of consent in sexual relations, which includes informed, freely given, enthusiastic agreement for all involved.
Some religions teach that certain behaviors are sinful or immoral, such as premarital sex or extramarital affairs. But these rules may conflict with individual feelings about what feels right or wrong for themselves or others.
A woman may feel called to be celibate but desire to have children; or a man may want to explore his sexual identity without fear of shame. Others might identify as LGBTQ+ and want to express their gender through intimacy with partners of the same gender. These desires could be seen as going against traditional religious teachings, leading to guilt, shame, or fear of punishment by God.
The idea of bodily autonomy also raises questions about reproductive rights, including access to birth control, abortion, and assisted reproduction technologies like IVF. Religious institutions may see these practices as unnatural or sinful while ignoring their benefits for women and families. They may also promote abstinence-only education, denying young people accurate information on safe sex and contraception. In addition, there can be pressure on individuals to remain virgins until marriage due to cultural norms around purity or modesty.
Bodily autonomy allows people to make their own choices regarding their bodies and relationships. It enables them to choose how they engage with intimacy, whether it's with one partner or many, regardless of gender identity or sexual orientation. This is essential for creating healthy, consensual, respectful relationships built on mutual trust, communication, and pleasure.
This right can clash with spiritual beliefs that dictate what is acceptable behavior in society.