Purity ring

Organizations

Silver Ring Thing

Unaltered, known until 2019 as Silver Ring Thing (SRT), is an American virginity pledge program founded in 1995 by Denny Pattyn. The program encourages teens and young adults to remain sexually abstinent until marriage. For a few years, it was partially funded by the U.S. federal government.{{cite news | access-date = 2010-07-11}} Drawing on Christian theology, SRT uses rock/hip hop concert-style events in an attempt to appeal to 21st-century teenagers. During the gathering, participants commit to a vow of sexual abstinence until marriage by purchasing rings. The organization's theme verse is .

In 2004, SRT began expanding operations into the United Kingdom, with mixed results. While some teenagers in the UK embraced the message of abstinence, some critics rejected and ridiculed SRT, saying it was anti-sex or unrealistic, and that it seemed unlikely that abstinence programs would attract widespread support in the UK because of the UK's differing attitude toward sexuality and sex education. The group's Assistant National Director for the UK, Denise Pfeiffer, said there was a real need for such a movement in the UK to curb what she sees as the ever-increasing rates of sexually transmitted infections and teenage pregnancies, both of which she claims are the highest in Western Europe.

In 2005, the ACLU of Massachusetts sued the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services because it believed SRT used tax dollars to promote Christianity. SRT presented a two-part programme: the first part about abstinence, the second about Christianity's role in abstinence. The ACLU claimed federal funding given to this program violated the separation of church and state. On August 22, 2005, the Department suspended SRT's US$75,000 federal grant until it submitted a "corrective action plan".{{cite news | access-date = 2008-08-26 }} In 2006, a corrective action plan was accepted by the department. The lawsuit was dismissed, and SRT received federal funding.

In a 2007 case in England, R (Playfoot) v Millais School Governing Body, a 16-year-old student Lydia Playfoot alleged that her school had violated her rights by forbidding the wearing of a purity ring. The case was funded by the group Christian Concern. and was ordered to pay £12,000 towards the school's costs.

In 2019, Silver Ring Thing changed its name to Unaltered.

True Love Waits

True Love Waits (TLW) is an international Christian group that promotes sexual abstinence outside of marriage for teenagers and college students. TLW was created in April 1993 by the Southern Baptists, and is sponsored by LifeWay Christian Resources. It is based on conservative Christian views of human sexuality.

Pledge

The True Love Waits pledge states: "Believing that true love waits, I make a commitment to God, myself, my family, my friends, my future mate and my future children to be sexually abstinent from this day until the day I enter a biblical marriage relationship." In addition, they promote sexual purity, which encompasses not only abstaining from intercourse before marriage, but also abstaining from "sexual thoughts, sexual touching, pornography, and actions that are known to lead to sexual arousal."

By the late 1990s, Christian music groups were promoting the program, and events similar to youth rallies were held at Christian music concerts, providing an opportunity for adolescents to sign pledge cards.

Effect

In the first year of the campaign, over 102,000 young people signed the pledge, which was also taken up by other church groups including the Roman Catholic Church and Assemblies of God. The campaign spread across the US, making the use of occasions such as Valentine's Day to gain attention.

By 2004, groups supporting abstinence numbered in the hundreds. During the preceding decade, approximately 2.5 million American youth took the pledge of abstinence.

Supporters

Various individuals advocate for purity rings, or have previously advocated for them.

• BarlowGirl
• Miley Cyrus
• Selena Gomez
• Group 1 Crew
  • Blanca
• Jonas Brothers
• Demi Lovato
• Stacie Orrico
• Rebecca St. James
• Jessica Simpson
• Jordin Sparks

Criticism

Some studies of the efficacy of virginity pledges have found they may be effective in delaying vaginal intercourse but ineffective in reducing the rate of sexually transmitted infection. They also reduce the likelihood of contraceptive use. Additionally, it has been reported that pledgers replace vaginal intercourse with other sexual activities, such as oral or anal sex, thinking they "don't count".{{Cite journal | doi-access = free

David Bario of the Columbia News Service wrote:

According to a study conducted by Peter Bearman and Hannah Brückner published in 2005 in the Journal of Adolescent Health, 21% of young adults who had taken the pledge had vaginal intercourse, 13% reported having practiced oral sex and 4% anal sex. In the 2011 book Making Chastity Sexy: The Rhetoric of Evangelical Abstinence Campaigns, Christine Gardner criticizes True Love Waits for "using sex to sell abstinence" by promising more satisfying sexual activity within marriage for those who abstain from premarital sex; she argues that this rhetoric reinforces selfish desires for gratification, sets people up for divorce and dissatisfaction with marriage, and simply adapts "secular forms for religious ends". In 2014, Jimmy Hester, one of the main founders of the program, said that although some studies have shown that many young Christians have broken their commitments, it has served as a benchmark for some who have returned to the faith.

The Jonas Brothers made an abstinence pledge through True Love Waits as teens. The band and pledge are satirized in the 2009 South Park episode "The Ring". In 2013, Morgan Lee, a journalist of The Christian Post, conducted an interview with Joe Jonas and wrote:

In 2019, the Lutheran minister Nadia Bolz-Weber called for people to send her their unwanted purity rings so that she could cast them into a sculpture of a vagina. Apologetic minister Alisa Childers criticized Bolz-Weber for her project, but acknowledged that purity ring campaigns needed to improve.

References

References

1. (20 March 2005). "Virginity pledge comes with a ring--and tarnish". [[Chicago Tribune]].
2. Kathleen J. Fitzgerald, Kandice L. Grossman, ''Sociology of Sexualities'', SAGE Publications, USA, 2017, p. 166
3. (2005-03-19). "Teen Pledges Barely Cut STD Rates, Study Says". washingtonpost.com.
4. (2001-09-11). "Vernacular Abstinence". Practical Matters Journal.
5. Stephanie Rosenbloom. (2005-12-08). "A Ring That Says No, Not Yet". [[The New York Times]].
6. "Silver Ring Thing".
7. Zoepf, Katherine. (2004-07-07). "A Plea for Chastity, but Will It Play in Randy Britain?". [[The New York Times]].
8. Rice-Oxley, Mark. (2004-06-23). "US charity crusade gets cool response in secular Britain". [[Christian Science Publishing Society]].
9. [https://www.aclu.org/reproductiverights/sexed/12603lgl20050516.html American Civil Liberties Union : ACLU of Massachusetts v. Secretary of U.S. Department of Health and Human Services]
10. (2007-06-22). "'Purity' ring case in High Court". [[British Broadcasting Corporation]].
11. (July 16, 2007). "'Chastity ring' girl loses case". BBC News.
12. (June 23, 2007). "Teen Girl Banned From School for Chastity Ring Heads to Court". Fox News.
13. [http://www.pittsburghyouthworker.com/blog/the-silver-ring-thing-presents-something-new-the-unaltered-tour The Silver Ring Thing presents something new... THE UNALTERED TOUR ]
14. [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/roger-friedland/guilty-pleasures-religion_b_649887.html Guilty Pleasures: Religion and Sex Among American University Students], ''[[Huffington Post]]'', July 20, 2010
15. Price, Deborah Evans. (5 July 1997). "Crosse walks many miles to support new reunion set".
16. link. (2016-09-13 , ''[[The Washington Times]]'', February 15, 1997)
17. (29 June 2004). "How effective are abstinence pledges?". BBC News.
18. (2 July 2013). "9 Celebrities Who've Worn Purity Rings". The Huffington Post.
19. (September 26, 2020). "Photo".
20. (June 12, 2011). "Rebecca St. James on Marriage".
21. (2008-09-08). "Jordin Sparks & Russell Brand Spar Over Purity Rings At VMAs".
22. "Virginity Pledges Don't Cut STD Rates". WebMD.com.
23. (2005-03-29). "Power to the pure: Rutland Herald Online". Rutlandherald.com.
24. Hannah Brückner, Peter Bearman, [https://www.jahonline.org/article/S1054-139X%2805%2900055-8/fulltext After the promise: The STD consequences of adolescent virginity pledges], jahonline.org, USA, April 1, 2005
25. Hennie Weiss. (March 27, 2012). "Review - Making Chastity Sexy". Metapsychology Online Reviews.
26. Sarah Pulliam Bailey. (November 18, 2011). "The Rhetoric of Chastity: Making Abstinence Sexy". [[Christianity Today]].
27. Morgan Lee, [https://www.christianpost.com/news/did-the-abstinence-movement-actually-help-christians-save-sex-for-marriage.html Did the Abstinence Movement Actually Help Christians Save Sex for Marriage?], christianpost.com, USA, February 21, 2014
28. (April 28, 2015). "Nick Jonas Reveals One Regret About Losing His Virginity".
29. Lee, Morgan. (December 2, 2013). "Joe Jonas Talks About Relationship With God, Frustration With Purity Rings in Raw, Revealing Interview".
30. Falsani, Cathleen. (6 January 2019). "Authors want to kiss 1990s-era purity rings goodbye".
31. (28 March 2021). "The Flaw at the Center of Purity Culture".