Re: Importance of virginity in major religions
Marriage is a social/religious contract between 2 people. It does not change biology. A child born w/o that contract between his parents is not at fault nor is any less important than a child born in a wedlock.
In the US
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/unmarry.htm
Unmarried Childbearing
(Data are for the U.S.)
Number of live births to unmarried women: 1,633,471
Birth rate for unmarried women: 47.6 births per 1,000 unmarried women aged 15-44 years
Percent of all births to unmarried women: 40.8%