Purity is bullshit?

I have some wonderfully fabulous women-friends who have been posting this from Jezebel.com: http://jezebel.com/female-purity-is-bullshit-493278191

I trust these women-friends. They care about women and how women are treated, and they are passionate. They probably know more about the subject of female purity and how it is distorted by our culture. They're also Christians.

I just fear something is getting lost in translation over Facebook. I don't get to hear them speak about where they coming from when they "like" the article. I don't get to listen to their hearts and why (if this is the case) they think purity, in and of itself, is a non-entity.

Because I, too, agree with so much of what Lindy West says. I agree that a woman's worth is not dependent on what she will or will not do for a man, that a woman's "value as a human being is not contingent on her sexual capital". That there is something inherently wrong with a culture that teaches a young girl that if you have sex before marriage, you're the equivalent of a chewed up piece of gum.


I just think she's throwing the baby out with the bathwater.

Much of what surrounds purity is patriarchal discrimination against women. But at it's heart, purity is a call to live in a way that is true to the selves that God calls us to be. So rage against the culture surrounding it and the double standard perpetuated by men who say that "pure" women are as rare as unicorns. Go to battle for the women who have not known grace, who have been or who are still held captive by lies that purity is something that you get once and can lose.

Because purity isn't simply not doing something, right?

I just feel like there's a really good conversation to be had, and I'm missing it because of Facebook, and how awful discussions can get online. So, women, come talk to me, please?

(Sidebar: In looking for another view on this, I found this blog: Bad Catholic: Is Female Purity Bullshit?. Good thoughts...frustrating that there is little acknowledgement of common ground between Catholics and Protestants.)