Listen "Purity Culture, Married Sex, and Navigating Intimacy (w/ Jenni Brooker)"
Episode Synopsis
Purity culture was/is a movement that started in the 1990s primarily within Evangelical American Christianity which emphasized individual "purity," generally associated with female chastity. Purity culture places a strong emphasis on abstinence before marriage. In some circles, dating was discouraged entirely to avoid pre-marital sex (the book, “I Kissed Dating Goodbye” by Josh Harris promoted abstinence and popularized the concept of “courtship” as an alternative to dating. This book sold over a million copies).
It’s pretty obvious from the Scriptures that God wants Christians to live lives of sexual purity. But did purity culture promote a Biblical vision of sexuality? Or did it use shame and fear?
Or even worse…did it promote soft prosperity gospel- in that a certain methodology of relationships would deliver a happily-ever-after ending—a great marriage, a great sex life—even though this isn’t necessarily promised by Scripture?
It’s pretty obvious from the Scriptures that God wants Christians to live lives of sexual purity. But did purity culture promote a Biblical vision of sexuality? Or did it use shame and fear?
Or even worse…did it promote soft prosperity gospel- in that a certain methodology of relationships would deliver a happily-ever-after ending—a great marriage, a great sex life—even though this isn’t necessarily promised by Scripture?
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