Conventional wisdom says that American universities that have lost their religious roots are places where neither spiritual longings nor moral boundaries can get a hearing. But Donna Freitas, a religion professor at Boston University, says that students themselves defy this wisdom by showing an insatiable interest in spirituality and ethics, particularly as they challenge the hypersexed party scene dominant on such campuses. Freitas spoke with CT assistant editor Katelyn Beaty about her latest book, Sex and the Soul, and what nonreligious schools (which Freitas calls spiritual schools) can gain from born-again virgins and evangelical authors such as Joshua Harris and Lauren Winner. Sex and the Soul emerged from conversations in your class "Dating and Friendship" at St. Michael's College. What about those conversations made you want to investigate sex and spirituality on campuses? I thought it was interesting that even though hookup culture was prominent on campus, I had so many students trying to get into the class, dying to have a conversation about spirituality and religion in relation to their dating lives. I saw in them a yearning to critique hookup culture with spirituality and religion, even if they were unsure of what that meant. There was also a turning point during my class when my students came back from spring break. One student admitted out loud that she hated hookup culture—that she was participating in it but that it didn't make her happy. Suddenly the whole class shifted: they were all shocked to realize that they were all unhappy; they were acting a certain way because they felt like that's what they were supposed to do. I was interested in that dissonance between what they thought everyone wanted to do versus what they really wanted for themselves. Read On

In 1999, Sweden passed a law prohibiting the purchase of sexual services but not the sale of them. The law also prohibits procuring, which means pimps and traffickers are arrested. Sweden believes that prostitution is a form of violence against women, and as such, they are going after the demand side of the equation and have been very successful. An absence of johns wanting to buy sex translates to no prostituted persons selling it. In November 2008, the residents of San Francisco will vote on a different approach; they propose to decriminalize prostitution. The ballot measure states, “Law enforcement agencies shall not allocate any resources for the investigation and prosecution of prostitutes for prostitution.” It further says the funds should be reallocated to policies that reduce “institutional violence and discrimination against prostitutes.” Sweden says prostitution is harmful to women, children, men and society, and as such, seeks to eradicate it in their country. They allocate their resources to arresting the johns, pimps and traffickers and providing access to employment programs, education, protection and support for prostituted persons so that they can leave that life. Prostitution Laws in San Francisco and Sweden: Who Is Right?

Call girls, little white lies, big fat fibs, wavering loyalties, wincing spouses, unfortunate remarks, questionable use of campaign funds and, yes, one possible love child. A New York Post headline shouts the news of a scandal involving New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer in March. Mr. Spitzer resigned from office after revelations that he had been a client of a prostitution ring. (Agence France-Presse/Getty Images) A newly realized culture of seduction has cast a potential pall over the Democratic convention this week and diminished the role of certain party luminaries and up-and-comers who could have had starring roles at the podium.  Their passions clouded their reputations, at least temporarily, and it happened only two years after Democrats captured control of Congress from a scandal-scarred GOP it blasted for promoting a "culture of corruption" on Capitol Hill.  Protesters demonstrate outside of Orchestra Hall in Detroit where Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick was giving his State of the City address. Wayne County prosecutors filed criminal charges against Mr. Kilpatrick for misconduct in office; his extramarital affair with a staff member became public in July. (Getty Images) The Democratic convention has billed itself to be green, all-American and diverse. But it's not necessarily forgiving. There is a roster of rejects expected to be absent from the proceedings, which begin in a matter of hours. Former presidential hopeful John Edwards won't be there. Neither will former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer, Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa - all passed up for a pivotal moment before tens of thousands of Democratic loyalists after their sexual dalliances became public. "A silver lining in these scandals is that infidelity is still scandalous. Infidelity thins convention ranks

The president of Concerned Women for America says declining female fertility rates carry long-term negative economic, spiritual, and social consequences for the United States. A U.S. Census Bureau survey finds more women in their early 40s are childless, and those who are having children are having fewer than ever before. In the last 30 years, the number of women ages 40-44 with no kids has doubled, from 10 percent to 20 percent. Wendy Wright of Concerned Women for America (CWFA) says pension plans will suffer serious setbacks and employers will have to rely more heavily on immigrant labor as a result of couples having fewer children. She adds there is also a social cost when large numbers of women choose to have fewer children. "When there are [fewer] children around, the society tends to turn against children overall," Wright contends. "There's almost a hostility toward children, and that society can lose a part of its soul when it has a hostility toward children – and especially loses a vision for the future if there are fewer children around to remind them of the reasons why we need to be working for tomorrow, not just for today." Wright believes there has been "tremendous pressure" placed on the last two generations of women to focus on their careers instead of building a family. 

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