What do you Christian people think of those?

Just curious..........

And if you dont know what they are,look them up on google news, tons of
articles.

is that a posh dinner and dance for them that chase, and those who are
chaste?

I'm not Christian, but as long as the participants are sincere, and
consciously, freely chose to do this, I think its great. I don't buy
into religions judgmentalism of sex, nor the idea that promiscuity is
inherently immoral, but conscious self-restraint does have its
advantages.

It just seems to me that if sexual purity is so important, why no ball
or funtion like that for the sons and moms?
Why is it just the girls?
Its a bit shady and wierd, i wouldnt want my dad to hold a symbolic key
to my "chastity belt" and then give it to my husband to own.

but that is just me.

Here is my take on the issue of chastity. First I don't condone any
CHILD having sex. Next when do we consider a child to be an adult?
There are girls as young as 15 and 16 getting married.

We are living longer and healthier lives that ever before in written
history. There is more available to us in terms of travel, technology
and creature comforts than ever before. Since our nation, the world can
be so easily traversed many, many loose the day to day family lifestyle.
We have become much more social because we work, we all work, women,
teenagers, even retired poeple. This brings us face to face with all
the possible ways our lives COULD BE. Most of those I know now in their
30's were married at some point, usually between 18 and 24 and many have
kids. They are no longer married, in fact I know many men who were
divorced in their early twenties and in their late 30's are still not
even seeing someone seriously. I KNOW I KNOW, SO WHAT.

Here's the thing. If we try too hard to force our kids, our girls away
from one of the most powerful driving forces of nature - sexuality, we
are surely only setting them up for one of those short term, young
marriages. Now when they finally get a taste of their sexuality, when
they see what is available to them, when they see the pleasures of
friends and peers, do ya really think they're ever going back to the
celibate chalkboard?

Wouldn't we all rather have well educated kids, who know how to take
care of themselves in a sexual setting, rather than to have a young
daughter with 1 or 2 kids and divorced by they time they're 22?

Not every kid has sex when they're teenagers, I think that's the most we
can hope for, the rest is education and trust.

really?
my church practices courting. there is always someone sitting BETWEEN
a dating couple. i went to a big wedding a while back, mabe 500 people.
they did not kiss after the vows... why? they had never kissed and didnt
want thier first to be infront of a crowd.
you CAN instill morals sucessfully, but you need to be very serious
about it. most parents who let the public fool system babysit thier kids
rather than raising them have little control, but its of thier own doing
in my opinion. it doesent take a village, but rather two old school
parents to raise a child.

Ram, I hope this couple leads an extremely sheltered life or maybe I
should hope that the sex and intimacy they find between them is
completely satisfying for both. It's a long, long life if this is not
so. Part of compatibility is sexual and at a young age when the rage is
there and the satisfaction is not, it can spell doom for the
relationship. Choose to believe it or not, but statistics say it is
true.

IT ALL COME DOWN TO SEX, HUH RED? Theres so much more.

No, it comes down to compatibility, and not just in one area. There are
people for whom sex is not in the equation, but Ram, I think they are
far outnumberd. And in all honesty, I believe these people exist with
or with a Christian belief, just as there are many who would forsake
thier particular Christian upbringing for a fulfilling live in the here
and now.

If you can't enforse the law, maybe it needs to be changed, or maybe the
law was wrong, or maybe it was never meant to last as long at it has.

On the other hand, one can always condemn those who don't live within
the morals of the faith they were raised in, but then again, it's easy
enought to find a faith that will accept them again.

You see, the choice to accept, or not to, to judge or not to , is not in
your book, it's in you.

"Purity Balls?"

Whats that? Are they blue? What happens when you lose your marbles?

This is off topic a little bit...

Neither myself or daughter are religious in the sense of organized...
There are school dances, with adults involved, here...

They have a blast.

One thing I am continuously proud of, is my daughter's integrity of
self.

I'm not so sure anything will stop teens from having sex if they decide
it is what they are going to do. Whatever your religion... And, none I
know of have stopped it.

It's difficult enough to keep them safe, or try. And, to help them
through the roughest time before the 20s hit, lol.

Instilling worth, integrity, and paying attention, and being involved
without "cramping thier style" LMAO!

>> Here's the thing. If we try too hard to force our kids, our girls away
from one of the most powerful driving forces of nature - sexuality, we
are surely only setting them up for one of those short term, young
marriages. Now when they finally get a taste of their sexuality, when
they see what is available to them, when they see the pleasures of
friends and peers, do ya really think they're ever going back to the
celibate chalkboard?

Red, the pivotal word in this paragraph, for me, is "force". This is
like any area of self expression or human relationships, if a person
does not sincerely want to do something, but feels coerced by an outside
force (like parents, or whatever), then unfortunate things are likely to
happen down the line. So in this way I agree with you.

But the purity ball (as I understand it) is not necessarily about
coercion, it can also be a voluntary, symbolic celebration of shared
values. And just like some teenagers should be allowed to choose sexual
exploration, those who appreciate the wisdom of self restraint should be
able to choose to participate in, and benefit from, a formalized
symbolic celebration/declaration of -their choice-. Especially in the
modern world, where there is so little (none?) mainstream cultural
support for their decision!

Autumn, you make a good point about the focus on girls, and the
implication of 'ownership' of women. Feminist ideas have become so
pervasive in our society, it would be interesting to see how/whether the
'Purity Balls' people rationalize this as anything other than sexist.

I mean, sure, there is also a 'male' (the father) that is making a
'commitment' here, but it still strikes me as sexist.