Pure
Subtitle: inside the Evangelical movement that shamed a generation of young women and how I broke free
By: Linda Kay Klein
Edition: First Touchstone hardcover edition.
Publisher: Touchstone
Published: 2018
Language: eng
Format: Hardcover
Number of pages: 341
ISBN-13: 9781501124815
Subjects: Evangelicalism; Sexual behavior; Christian women; Women's rights; Women in Christianity; Sex; Christianity
Description: From a woman who has been there and back, the first inside look at the devastating effects evangelical Christianity's purity culture has had on a generation of young women--in a potent combination of journalism, cultural commentary, and memoir. In the 1990s, a "purity industry" emerged out of the white evangelical Christian culture. Purity rings, purity pledges, and purity balls came with a dangerous message: girls are potential sexual "stumbling blocks" for boys and men, and any expression of a girl's sexuality could reflect the corruption of her character. This message traumatized many girls--resulting in anxiety, fear, and experiences that mimicked the symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder--and trapped them in a cycle of shame.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (pages 311-321) and index.
Table of contents: title: Movement I: The stumbling blocks. Sin, psychosis, or system; title: The lie; title: Pure destruction; title: Sexual violence, classified; title: Movement II: Stumbling through church. Man-made girls; title: The virgin; title: The tigress; title: Family values; title: The stained-glass ceiling; title: Movement III: Stumbling out of church; title: Trapped; title: Frozen; title: The G(od) spot; title: Dementor; title: Movement IV: How we get over. Going home; title: The no shame movement; title: Sanctuary.