John C. Avise
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- January 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780195369670
- eISBN:
- 9780199871063
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195369670.001.0001
- Subject:
- Biology, Evolutionary Biology / Genetics
About 99.9% of vertebrate species reproduce sexually. This makes the exceptional 0.1%—the asexual or clonal reproducers—fascinating in their own right, and also uniquely instructive about the ...
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About 99.9% of vertebrate species reproduce sexually. This makes the exceptional 0.1%—the asexual or clonal reproducers—fascinating in their own right, and also uniquely instructive about the biological significance of alternative reproductive modes. This book describes the genetics, ecology, natural history, and evolution of all of the world's approximately 100 “species” of vertebrate animal that routinely display one form or another of clonal or quasi-clonal reproduction. The book investigates the astounding realm of sexual abstinence, from the levels of DNA molecules and somatic cells to whole animals and natural populations. Also described is how scientists have learned to mimic and extend nature's own clonal processes by engineering perfect copies of genes, genomes, and whole animals in the laboratory. By considering the many facets of sexual abstinence and clonal reproduction in vertebrate animals, new light is also shed on the biological meaning and ramifications of standard sexuality.Less
About 99.9% of vertebrate species reproduce sexually. This makes the exceptional 0.1%—the asexual or clonal reproducers—fascinating in their own right, and also uniquely instructive about the biological significance of alternative reproductive modes. This book describes the genetics, ecology, natural history, and evolution of all of the world's approximately 100 “species” of vertebrate animal that routinely display one form or another of clonal or quasi-clonal reproduction. The book investigates the astounding realm of sexual abstinence, from the levels of DNA molecules and somatic cells to whole animals and natural populations. Also described is how scientists have learned to mimic and extend nature's own clonal processes by engineering perfect copies of genes, genomes, and whole animals in the laboratory. By considering the many facets of sexual abstinence and clonal reproduction in vertebrate animals, new light is also shed on the biological meaning and ramifications of standard sexuality.
Mark D. Regnerus
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- May 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195320947
- eISBN:
- 9780199785452
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195320947.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
Americans remain deeply ambivalent about teenage sexuality. Many presume that such uneasiness is rooted in religion. This book tackles such questions as: how exactly does religion contribute to the ...
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Americans remain deeply ambivalent about teenage sexuality. Many presume that such uneasiness is rooted in religion. This book tackles such questions as: how exactly does religion contribute to the formation of teenagers' sexual values and actions? What difference, if any, does religion make in adolescents' sexual attitudes and behaviors? Are abstinence pledges effective? Who expresses regrets about their sexual activity and why? The book combines analyses of three national surveys with stories drawn from interviews with over 250 teenagers across America. It reviews how young people learn, and what they know about sex from their parents, schools, peers, and other sources. It examines what experiences teens profess to have had, and how they make sense of these experiences in light of their own identities as religious, moral, and responsible persons. The author's analysis discovers that religion can and does matter. However, the analysis finds that religious claims are often swamped by other compelling sexual scripts. Particularly interesting is the emergence of what the author calls a “new middle class sexual morality”, which has little to do with a desire for virginity but nevertheless shuns intercourse in order to avoid risks associated with pregnancy and STDs. And strikingly, evangelical teens aren't less sexually active than their non-evangelical counterparts, they just tend to feel guiltier about it. In fact, the analysis finds that few religious teens have internalized or are even able to articulate the sexual ethic taught by their denominations. The only-and largely ineffective-sexual message most religious teens are getting is: “don't do it until you're married”. Ultimately, the author concludes, religion may influence adolescent sexual behavior, but it rarely motivates sexual decision making.Less
Americans remain deeply ambivalent about teenage sexuality. Many presume that such uneasiness is rooted in religion. This book tackles such questions as: how exactly does religion contribute to the formation of teenagers' sexual values and actions? What difference, if any, does religion make in adolescents' sexual attitudes and behaviors? Are abstinence pledges effective? Who expresses regrets about their sexual activity and why? The book combines analyses of three national surveys with stories drawn from interviews with over 250 teenagers across America. It reviews how young people learn, and what they know about sex from their parents, schools, peers, and other sources. It examines what experiences teens profess to have had, and how they make sense of these experiences in light of their own identities as religious, moral, and responsible persons. The author's analysis discovers that religion can and does matter. However, the analysis finds that religious claims are often swamped by other compelling sexual scripts. Particularly interesting is the emergence of what the author calls a “new middle class sexual morality”, which has little to do with a desire for virginity but nevertheless shuns intercourse in order to avoid risks associated with pregnancy and STDs. And strikingly, evangelical teens aren't less sexually active than their non-evangelical counterparts, they just tend to feel guiltier about it. In fact, the analysis finds that few religious teens have internalized or are even able to articulate the sexual ethic taught by their denominations. The only-and largely ineffective-sexual message most religious teens are getting is: “don't do it until you're married”. Ultimately, the author concludes, religion may influence adolescent sexual behavior, but it rarely motivates sexual decision making.
Christine J. Gardner
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780520267275
- eISBN:
- 9780520950559
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520267275.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
Even though they are immersed in sex-saturated society, millions of teens are pledging to remain virgins until their wedding night. How are evangelical Christians persuading young people to wait ...
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Even though they are immersed in sex-saturated society, millions of teens are pledging to remain virgins until their wedding night. How are evangelical Christians persuading young people to wait until marriage? This book looks closely at the language of the chastity movement and discovers a savvy campaign that uses sex to “sell” abstinence. Drawing from interviews with evangelical leaders and teenagers, the book examines the strategy to shift from a negative “just say no” approach to a positive one: “just say yes” to great sex within marriage. The book sheds new light on an abstinence campaign that has successfully recast a traditionally feminist idea—“my body, my choice”—into a powerful message, but one that the author suggests may ultimately reduce evangelicalism's transformative power. Focusing on the United States, the study also includes a comparative dimension by examining the export of this evangelical agenda to sub-Saharan Africa.Less
Even though they are immersed in sex-saturated society, millions of teens are pledging to remain virgins until their wedding night. How are evangelical Christians persuading young people to wait until marriage? This book looks closely at the language of the chastity movement and discovers a savvy campaign that uses sex to “sell” abstinence. Drawing from interviews with evangelical leaders and teenagers, the book examines the strategy to shift from a negative “just say no” approach to a positive one: “just say yes” to great sex within marriage. The book sheds new light on an abstinence campaign that has successfully recast a traditionally feminist idea—“my body, my choice”—into a powerful message, but one that the author suggests may ultimately reduce evangelicalism's transformative power. Focusing on the United States, the study also includes a comparative dimension by examining the export of this evangelical agenda to sub-Saharan Africa.
Mark D. Regnerus
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- May 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195320947
- eISBN:
- 9780199785452
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195320947.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter traces the development of adolescent heterosexual ethics and norms, including their motivations to avoid sex or engage in sex. It documents what types of adolescents are likely to take ...
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This chapter traces the development of adolescent heterosexual ethics and norms, including their motivations to avoid sex or engage in sex. It documents what types of adolescents are likely to take abstinence pledges, how well they work, and the sexual and familial idealism they portray. It also explores the popular but vaguely defined theme of “emotional readiness” as a barometer of sexual preparedness.Less
This chapter traces the development of adolescent heterosexual ethics and norms, including their motivations to avoid sex or engage in sex. It documents what types of adolescents are likely to take abstinence pledges, how well they work, and the sexual and familial idealism they portray. It also explores the popular but vaguely defined theme of “emotional readiness” as a barometer of sexual preparedness.
Susan Mendus
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198297819
- eISBN:
- 9780191599880
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198297815.003.0002
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
Impartialist political philosophy must show how and why the priority of impartial justice can be reconciled with a belief in the permanence of pluralism. Although the argument from epistemological ...
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Impartialist political philosophy must show how and why the priority of impartial justice can be reconciled with a belief in the permanence of pluralism. Although the argument from epistemological abstinence explains the permanence of pluralism, it cannot explain why justice should have motivational priority. It delivers only, and at most, a modus vivendi defence of toleration. The way to attain a defence that is more than a modus vivendi is to ground political impartialism in moral impartialism.Less
Impartialist political philosophy must show how and why the priority of impartial justice can be reconciled with a belief in the permanence of pluralism. Although the argument from epistemological abstinence explains the permanence of pluralism, it cannot explain why justice should have motivational priority. It delivers only, and at most, a modus vivendi defence of toleration. The way to attain a defence that is more than a modus vivendi is to ground political impartialism in moral impartialism.
Jeanne L. Gillespie
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- January 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195306316
- eISBN:
- 9780199867721
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195306316.003.0017
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
Mesoamericans celebrated sexuality, which placed them in opposition to Catholic priests. The cultures manifested a connection between abstinence, purity, and uncleanliness caused by excess and ...
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Mesoamericans celebrated sexuality, which placed them in opposition to Catholic priests. The cultures manifested a connection between abstinence, purity, and uncleanliness caused by excess and imbalance due to a lack of sexual moderation.Less
Mesoamericans celebrated sexuality, which placed them in opposition to Catholic priests. The cultures manifested a connection between abstinence, purity, and uncleanliness caused by excess and imbalance due to a lack of sexual moderation.
Glenn Holland
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- January 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195306316
- eISBN:
- 9780199867721
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195306316.003.0004
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
The emphasis on the virgin birth of Jesus, the apparent celibacy of Jesus due in part to his itinerant lifestyle, and the apparent sexual abstinence of many of his disciples served as models for ...
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The emphasis on the virgin birth of Jesus, the apparent celibacy of Jesus due in part to his itinerant lifestyle, and the apparent sexual abstinence of many of his disciples served as models for Christian practice at a later period. The early Christian motivation for celibacy was connected to the eschatological expectations of the early community, and later celibacy became associated with a veneration of the ascetic lifestyle.Less
The emphasis on the virgin birth of Jesus, the apparent celibacy of Jesus due in part to his itinerant lifestyle, and the apparent sexual abstinence of many of his disciples served as models for Christian practice at a later period. The early Christian motivation for celibacy was connected to the eschatological expectations of the early community, and later celibacy became associated with a veneration of the ascetic lifestyle.
Christine J. Gardner
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780520267275
- eISBN:
- 9780520950559
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520267275.003.0007
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter follows the American evangelical sexual abstinence rhetoric to sub-Saharan Africa to explore the differences between the American and African cases. It shows that the abstinence message ...
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This chapter follows the American evangelical sexual abstinence rhetoric to sub-Saharan Africa to explore the differences between the American and African cases. It shows that the abstinence message in Kenya and Rwanda largely borrows the rhetoric of the abstinence campaigns in the United States, with a stronger emphasis on the fear of AIDS. Surprisingly, Rwandan youth express less fear of acquiring HIV/AIDS than fear of displeasing God. American evangelicals offer a positive focus on purity and emphasize that pleasing God has tangible benefits for the individual. In contrast, Kenyan and Rwandan youth emphasize that pleasing God is an end in itself. For evangelicals in the United States, sin is an individual problem; in the context of sub-Saharan Africa, sin is viewed as a structural problem. There are gender differences, too: in the United States, the campaigns portray females as possessing power over their bodies; in sub-Saharan Africa, Kenyan and Rwandan young people portray females as bearing responsibility for their bodies.Less
This chapter follows the American evangelical sexual abstinence rhetoric to sub-Saharan Africa to explore the differences between the American and African cases. It shows that the abstinence message in Kenya and Rwanda largely borrows the rhetoric of the abstinence campaigns in the United States, with a stronger emphasis on the fear of AIDS. Surprisingly, Rwandan youth express less fear of acquiring HIV/AIDS than fear of displeasing God. American evangelicals offer a positive focus on purity and emphasize that pleasing God has tangible benefits for the individual. In contrast, Kenyan and Rwandan youth emphasize that pleasing God is an end in itself. For evangelicals in the United States, sin is an individual problem; in the context of sub-Saharan Africa, sin is viewed as a structural problem. There are gender differences, too: in the United States, the campaigns portray females as possessing power over their bodies; in sub-Saharan Africa, Kenyan and Rwandan young people portray females as bearing responsibility for their bodies.
Maria‐Zoe Petropoulou
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- May 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199218547
- eISBN:
- 9780191711503
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199218547.003.0006
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, European History: BCE to 500CE
The chapter summarizes Christian attitudes toward animal sacrifice in the first two centuries AD, with regard to both Greek and Jewish religion, and with a clear distinction between the period before ...
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The chapter summarizes Christian attitudes toward animal sacrifice in the first two centuries AD, with regard to both Greek and Jewish religion, and with a clear distinction between the period before AD 70 and the period after AD 70. As regards the Christian teaching towards pagan addressees, the preaching against the offering of sacrifices mainly comes to the fore in the Apologetics of the 2nd century. Similarly, the Christian objection to Jewish animal sacrifice is explicitly expressed only in the 2nd century AD, but traces of it are found already in the 1st century. Second-century attestations show Christians abstaining from sacrifices, something which played a role in their being arrested or condemned by the pagan authorities. Special attention is also paid to the issue of sacrificial metaphors as a factor contributory to the alienation of worshipers from the practical aspects of animal sacrifice.Less
The chapter summarizes Christian attitudes toward animal sacrifice in the first two centuries AD, with regard to both Greek and Jewish religion, and with a clear distinction between the period before AD 70 and the period after AD 70. As regards the Christian teaching towards pagan addressees, the preaching against the offering of sacrifices mainly comes to the fore in the Apologetics of the 2nd century. Similarly, the Christian objection to Jewish animal sacrifice is explicitly expressed only in the 2nd century AD, but traces of it are found already in the 1st century. Second-century attestations show Christians abstaining from sacrifices, something which played a role in their being arrested or condemned by the pagan authorities. Special attention is also paid to the issue of sacrificial metaphors as a factor contributory to the alienation of worshipers from the practical aspects of animal sacrifice.
Nancy Kendall
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780226922270
- eISBN:
- 9780226922294
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226922294.001.0001
- Subject:
- Education, Educational Policy and Politics
Educating children and adolescents in public schools about sex is a deeply inflammatory act in the United States. Since the 1980s, intense political and cultural battles have been waged between ...
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Educating children and adolescents in public schools about sex is a deeply inflammatory act in the United States. Since the 1980s, intense political and cultural battles have been waged between believers in abstinence until marriage and advocates for comprehensive sex education. This book upends conventional thinking about these battles by bringing the school and community realities of sex education to life through the diverse voices of students, teachers, administrators, and activists. Drawing on ethnographic research in five states, the author reveals important differences and surprising commonalities shared by purported antagonists in the sex education wars, and illuminates the unintended consequences these protracted battles have, especially on teachers and students. Showing that the lessons which most students, teachers, and parents take away from these battles are antithetical to the long-term health of American democracy, she argues for shifting the measure of sex education success away from pregnancy and sexually transmitted infection rates. Instead, the author argues, the debates should focus on a broader set of social and democratic consequences, such as what students learn about themselves as sexual beings and civic actors, and how sex education programming affects school–community relations.Less
Educating children and adolescents in public schools about sex is a deeply inflammatory act in the United States. Since the 1980s, intense political and cultural battles have been waged between believers in abstinence until marriage and advocates for comprehensive sex education. This book upends conventional thinking about these battles by bringing the school and community realities of sex education to life through the diverse voices of students, teachers, administrators, and activists. Drawing on ethnographic research in five states, the author reveals important differences and surprising commonalities shared by purported antagonists in the sex education wars, and illuminates the unintended consequences these protracted battles have, especially on teachers and students. Showing that the lessons which most students, teachers, and parents take away from these battles are antithetical to the long-term health of American democracy, she argues for shifting the measure of sex education success away from pregnancy and sexually transmitted infection rates. Instead, the author argues, the debates should focus on a broader set of social and democratic consequences, such as what students learn about themselves as sexual beings and civic actors, and how sex education programming affects school–community relations.
Ivor J. Davidson
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- August 2004
- ISBN:
- 9780199245789
- eISBN:
- 9780191601453
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199245789.003.0007
- Subject:
- Religion, Early Christian Studies
By the late 380s, Ambrose had emerged, to some extent, from the struggle to assert his authority that had marked his earlier years as bishop, though he still had enemies. De officiis is intended as a ...
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By the late 380s, Ambrose had emerged, to some extent, from the struggle to assert his authority that had marked his earlier years as bishop, though he still had enemies. De officiis is intended as a moral manifesto for this social context. It contains practical advice on ‘seemly’ behaviour, including speech, body language, attitudes, and actions, and on the importance of controlling the passions through reason. There is a strong emphasis on charity and on self–denial, including sexual abstinence. It is seen as vital for the church to present a convincing appearance to a watching world.Less
By the late 380s, Ambrose had emerged, to some extent, from the struggle to assert his authority that had marked his earlier years as bishop, though he still had enemies. De officiis is intended as a moral manifesto for this social context. It contains practical advice on ‘seemly’ behaviour, including speech, body language, attitudes, and actions, and on the importance of controlling the passions through reason. There is a strong emphasis on charity and on self–denial, including sexual abstinence. It is seen as vital for the church to present a convincing appearance to a watching world.
Christine J. Gardner
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780520267275
- eISBN:
- 9780520950559
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520267275.003.0002
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter considers the incongruity of the positive, benefits-oriented rhetoric of an evangelical abstinence campaign that is all about a prohibition. The message focuses on a positive call to a ...
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This chapter considers the incongruity of the positive, benefits-oriented rhetoric of an evangelical abstinence campaign that is all about a prohibition. The message focuses on a positive call to a lifestyle of purity instead of a negative prohibition implied by the term abstinence. The campaign rhetoric is reconfiguring virginity too, constructing it as a choice that can be found after it has been lost. To a public audience, abstinence is portrayed as the healthy choice. The chapter considers the impact of this shifting rhetoric—from prohibition to admonition—on attempts to control adolescent sexuality, as well as how it defines the contours of evangelicalism as a whole. Evangelicals use rhetorical agency as a strategy of persuasion, constructing their audience as teenagers who have the power to control their bodies.Less
This chapter considers the incongruity of the positive, benefits-oriented rhetoric of an evangelical abstinence campaign that is all about a prohibition. The message focuses on a positive call to a lifestyle of purity instead of a negative prohibition implied by the term abstinence. The campaign rhetoric is reconfiguring virginity too, constructing it as a choice that can be found after it has been lost. To a public audience, abstinence is portrayed as the healthy choice. The chapter considers the impact of this shifting rhetoric—from prohibition to admonition—on attempts to control adolescent sexuality, as well as how it defines the contours of evangelicalism as a whole. Evangelicals use rhetorical agency as a strategy of persuasion, constructing their audience as teenagers who have the power to control their bodies.
Christine J. Gardner
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780520267275
- eISBN:
- 9780520950559
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520267275.003.0004
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
A key argument in the evangelical sexual abstinence campaigns is that delaying sexual gratification today means a greater prize of true love and romance tomorrow. This theme is communicated through ...
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A key argument in the evangelical sexual abstinence campaigns is that delaying sexual gratification today means a greater prize of true love and romance tomorrow. This theme is communicated through the use of the fairy-tale narrative, complete with beautiful princesses in distress, valiant princes on horseback, and evil forces that threaten to steal the princesses' virginity. This chapter analyzes how the fairy-tale narrative both supports and subverts traditional gender roles. Young women may be waiting for their princes, but they are also taught that modestly covering their bodies exerts power and control over lustful young men. The young men, in turn, are actively pursuing and protecting their princesses, but they are also trapped and emasculated by their seemingly uncontrollable hormonal urges.Less
A key argument in the evangelical sexual abstinence campaigns is that delaying sexual gratification today means a greater prize of true love and romance tomorrow. This theme is communicated through the use of the fairy-tale narrative, complete with beautiful princesses in distress, valiant princes on horseback, and evil forces that threaten to steal the princesses' virginity. This chapter analyzes how the fairy-tale narrative both supports and subverts traditional gender roles. Young women may be waiting for their princes, but they are also taught that modestly covering their bodies exerts power and control over lustful young men. The young men, in turn, are actively pursuing and protecting their princesses, but they are also trapped and emasculated by their seemingly uncontrollable hormonal urges.
Christine J. Gardner
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780520267275
- eISBN:
- 9780520950559
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520267275.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter looks at how American evangelical teenagers are negotiating the gray area between sex and no sex. Although all the respondents have pledged to practice abstinence, they regularly make ...
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This chapter looks at how American evangelical teenagers are negotiating the gray area between sex and no sex. Although all the respondents have pledged to practice abstinence, they regularly make choices as to what constitutes appropriate physical intimacy within the context of the abstinence pledge. Young people choose to limit their choices in acts of self-control, creating boundaries of sexual activity. Whereas a diversity of appropriate boundaries exists, young people seem to agree on an execution of the concept of purity in which respecting others trumps self-gratification. Abstinent teens use their personal agency to discipline their sexuality and choose to surround themselves with communities of support. Positive peer pressure can reinforce the abstinence message, but it also can lead to rebellion within the peer group. Going along with the crowd can sometimes weaken the abstinence commitment by masking a false pledge.Less
This chapter looks at how American evangelical teenagers are negotiating the gray area between sex and no sex. Although all the respondents have pledged to practice abstinence, they regularly make choices as to what constitutes appropriate physical intimacy within the context of the abstinence pledge. Young people choose to limit their choices in acts of self-control, creating boundaries of sexual activity. Whereas a diversity of appropriate boundaries exists, young people seem to agree on an execution of the concept of purity in which respecting others trumps self-gratification. Abstinent teens use their personal agency to discipline their sexuality and choose to surround themselves with communities of support. Positive peer pressure can reinforce the abstinence message, but it also can lead to rebellion within the peer group. Going along with the crowd can sometimes weaken the abstinence commitment by masking a false pledge.
Christine J. Gardner
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780520267275
- eISBN:
- 9780520950559
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520267275.003.0006
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
Millions of young people have pledged abstinence, but that does not mean that they are all virgins. What happens to the happily-ever-after of the fairy tale of abstinence if the prince or princess ...
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Millions of young people have pledged abstinence, but that does not mean that they are all virgins. What happens to the happily-ever-after of the fairy tale of abstinence if the prince or princess did not wait for true love? Or, worse, what if the prince or princess never shows up? What, then, happens to the reward for abstinence? The abstinence campaigns offer a message of second virginity for those with sexually active pasts who want to renew a commitment to abstinence, but often young people are left to deal with the pain of their own fractured fairy tales. This chapter tells the stories of young people who have committed to abstinence but are also managing the pain of past sexual relationships, the challenges of forgiving a partner who did not wait, and the silent suffering and loneliness of singleness and homosexuality in a heterosexual world.Less
Millions of young people have pledged abstinence, but that does not mean that they are all virgins. What happens to the happily-ever-after of the fairy tale of abstinence if the prince or princess did not wait for true love? Or, worse, what if the prince or princess never shows up? What, then, happens to the reward for abstinence? The abstinence campaigns offer a message of second virginity for those with sexually active pasts who want to renew a commitment to abstinence, but often young people are left to deal with the pain of their own fractured fairy tales. This chapter tells the stories of young people who have committed to abstinence but are also managing the pain of past sexual relationships, the challenges of forgiving a partner who did not wait, and the silent suffering and loneliness of singleness and homosexuality in a heterosexual world.
Christine J. Gardner
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780520267275
- eISBN:
- 9780520950559
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520267275.003.0008
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter examines how evangelical abstinence educators in Africa rhetorically construct the condom. It argues that they construct the condom as (1) a tool for marital fidelity; (2) a tool for ...
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This chapter examines how evangelical abstinence educators in Africa rhetorically construct the condom. It argues that they construct the condom as (1) a tool for marital fidelity; (2) a tool for saving lives; (3) part of holistic community-based development; and (4) a tool for female empowerment. After demonstrating the prevalence of these four themes, it turns to an analysis of an evangelical statement of conscience on the AIDS crisis as an example of how these constructions of the condom affect public discourse about AIDS prevention. Although evangelicals tend to view the condom as a tool for promiscuity, in Africa the potential to save lives trumps the potential for increased promiscuity. The perceived lack of choices presented by the dire health situation in Africa provides rhetorical space for a positive construction of the condom as lifesaving. This medical focus echoes U.S. evangelicals' construction of abstinence as the healthy choice.Less
This chapter examines how evangelical abstinence educators in Africa rhetorically construct the condom. It argues that they construct the condom as (1) a tool for marital fidelity; (2) a tool for saving lives; (3) part of holistic community-based development; and (4) a tool for female empowerment. After demonstrating the prevalence of these four themes, it turns to an analysis of an evangelical statement of conscience on the AIDS crisis as an example of how these constructions of the condom affect public discourse about AIDS prevention. Although evangelicals tend to view the condom as a tool for promiscuity, in Africa the potential to save lives trumps the potential for increased promiscuity. The perceived lack of choices presented by the dire health situation in Africa provides rhetorical space for a positive construction of the condom as lifesaving. This medical focus echoes U.S. evangelicals' construction of abstinence as the healthy choice.
Christine J. Gardner
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780520267275
- eISBN:
- 9780520950559
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520267275.003.0009
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter argues that the evangelical abstinence campaigns are unwittingly raising a generation of young people with false expectations about the role of sex in marriage and about the sacrifice ...
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This chapter argues that the evangelical abstinence campaigns are unwittingly raising a generation of young people with false expectations about the role of sex in marriage and about the sacrifice and commitment of marriage in general. By tying the abstinence commitment to one's religious commitment, the argument for abstinence threatens to weaken the religious faith of young people if the reward for choosing abstinence is never realized, whether because of singleness or the failure of marital sex to live up to expectations of greatness. However, the abstinence campaigns do get a number of things right. For starters, the campaigns are forcing the church to talk about sex. It may be difficult for the soft voice of religion to be heard against the blaring megaphone of mediated culture, but the campaigns are cranking up the volume, and teens are listening. The campaigns are also empowering young people—particularly young women—to respect their bodies and to make wise, healthy choices.Less
This chapter argues that the evangelical abstinence campaigns are unwittingly raising a generation of young people with false expectations about the role of sex in marriage and about the sacrifice and commitment of marriage in general. By tying the abstinence commitment to one's religious commitment, the argument for abstinence threatens to weaken the religious faith of young people if the reward for choosing abstinence is never realized, whether because of singleness or the failure of marital sex to live up to expectations of greatness. However, the abstinence campaigns do get a number of things right. For starters, the campaigns are forcing the church to talk about sex. It may be difficult for the soft voice of religion to be heard against the blaring megaphone of mediated culture, but the campaigns are cranking up the volume, and teens are listening. The campaigns are also empowering young people—particularly young women—to respect their bodies and to make wise, healthy choices.
Kate Fisher
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199267361
- eISBN:
- 9780191708299
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199267361.003.0004
- Subject:
- History, Social History
This chapter challenges the idea that by the interwar period, appliance methods of contraception were increasingly replacing ‘inefficient’, ‘unreliable’, and ‘unpleasant’ traditional forms. It ...
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This chapter challenges the idea that by the interwar period, appliance methods of contraception were increasingly replacing ‘inefficient’, ‘unreliable’, and ‘unpleasant’ traditional forms. It counters the often-made assumption that improvements in birth control technology and their greater availability improved individuals' ability to control their fertility. Although appliance methods were increasingly employed, their use did not signal the rejection of traditional forms. Contemporary social surveys, in particular the findings of the Lewis-Faning study for the Royal Commission on Population, are shown to have been misinterpreted. These surveys failed to recognize that those who experimented with modern methods, such as female caps and condoms, frequently disliked them and reverted back to ‘natural’ methods such as abstinence, abortion, and withdrawal.Less
This chapter challenges the idea that by the interwar period, appliance methods of contraception were increasingly replacing ‘inefficient’, ‘unreliable’, and ‘unpleasant’ traditional forms. It counters the often-made assumption that improvements in birth control technology and their greater availability improved individuals' ability to control their fertility. Although appliance methods were increasingly employed, their use did not signal the rejection of traditional forms. Contemporary social surveys, in particular the findings of the Lewis-Faning study for the Royal Commission on Population, are shown to have been misinterpreted. These surveys failed to recognize that those who experimented with modern methods, such as female caps and condoms, frequently disliked them and reverted back to ‘natural’ methods such as abstinence, abortion, and withdrawal.
Ronald Hutton
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198205708
- eISBN:
- 9780191676758
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198205708.003.0016
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Medieval History, British and Irish Early Modern History
From its earliest recorded occurrence, in Anglo-Saxon texts dated to the beginning of the eleventh century, the word ‘lenten’ had the dual meaning of the season of spring and the major annual fast of ...
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From its earliest recorded occurrence, in Anglo-Saxon texts dated to the beginning of the eleventh century, the word ‘lenten’ had the dual meaning of the season of spring and the major annual fast of Christianity. It seems to derive simply from the ‘lengthening’ of daylight. The connotations of joy, and of abstinence, were intimately combined in it from the beginning, and this dual aspect was retained as it evolved into ‘Lent’ in the thirteenth century. Not until the seventeenth did the term become confined to the fast. The time was admirably suited to a period of self-denial and spiritual doubt culminating in the rejoicing of the most important of all Christian festivals. The bounds of the fast were standardized for the Church in western Europe by Pope Gregory the Great at the end of the sixth century, to exclude meat, milk, cheese, butter, and eggs.Less
From its earliest recorded occurrence, in Anglo-Saxon texts dated to the beginning of the eleventh century, the word ‘lenten’ had the dual meaning of the season of spring and the major annual fast of Christianity. It seems to derive simply from the ‘lengthening’ of daylight. The connotations of joy, and of abstinence, were intimately combined in it from the beginning, and this dual aspect was retained as it evolved into ‘Lent’ in the thirteenth century. Not until the seventeenth did the term become confined to the fast. The time was admirably suited to a period of self-denial and spiritual doubt culminating in the rejoicing of the most important of all Christian festivals. The bounds of the fast were standardized for the Church in western Europe by Pope Gregory the Great at the end of the sixth century, to exclude meat, milk, cheese, butter, and eggs.
Patrick Collinson
- Published in print:
- 1990
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198222989
- eISBN:
- 9780191678554
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198222989.003.0017
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Early Modern History, History of Religion
One of the commonest complaints of catholic controversialists was that protestants did not fast. The protestants retorted that on the contrary they alone fasted in the spirit of the New Testament by ...
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One of the commonest complaints of catholic controversialists was that protestants did not fast. The protestants retorted that on the contrary they alone fasted in the spirit of the New Testament by joining fasting to prayer and the preaching of the word in public assemblies, and by proclaiming a fast only for a particular purpose. A handbook on the subject, The holie exercise of a true fast, possibly of Cartwright's authorship, divided fasting into ‘outward actions’ of abstinence, which were shared with the papists; and ‘inward virtues, helped forward by the bodily exercise’, and these it was the virtue of the Reformation to have restored.Less
One of the commonest complaints of catholic controversialists was that protestants did not fast. The protestants retorted that on the contrary they alone fasted in the spirit of the New Testament by joining fasting to prayer and the preaching of the word in public assemblies, and by proclaiming a fast only for a particular purpose. A handbook on the subject, The holie exercise of a true fast, possibly of Cartwright's authorship, divided fasting into ‘outward actions’ of abstinence, which were shared with the papists; and ‘inward virtues, helped forward by the bodily exercise’, and these it was the virtue of the Reformation to have restored.
