Chastity

=Chastity = 

** Definition and Misconceptions **  According to the World English Dictionary (2009), chastity is a noun meaning “the state of being chaste; purity; abstention from sexual intercourse; virginity, or celibacy: a vow of chastity. Commonly replaced by the word abstinence, the two are not mutually synonymous. While chastity does involve abstaining from sexual intercourse until marriage, it is considered to be more of a lifestyle than merely not performing a certain behavior. Chastity is also often practiced and coincides with many religions including Catholicism, other forms of Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism. For example, chastity in Catholicism refers to “the virtue which excludes or moderates the indulgence of the sexual appetite. It is a form of the virtue of temperance, which controls according to right reason,  the desire for and use of those things which afford the greatest sensual pleasures” (Melody, 1908). In many religions, chastity is viewed as a control over the senses through one’s reason and will. Chastity is not merely restricted to those who practice a specific religion, however, and can be defended by a secular viewpoint. In a world where we are taught that “sex sells” and sexual topics seem to be everywhere in the media, chastity creates a different viewpoint and way of looking at love, sex, and the desire to love and be loved in an authentic way.



** Chastity as a L **** ifesty **** le **  Individuals who choose to practice chastity consider this to be a lifestyle, a philosophy, and a different way of looking at love and relationships. International-known chastity speaker and teacher, Jason Evert states that people often “confuse love with lust” (Evert, 2007). Truly loving someone entails looking out for the other’s best interest, whereas lusting is desiring someone else physically for one’s one pleasure. Abstaining from sex should not be considered “prudish or a form of repression,” and sex should also not be viewed as “evil, bad, or dirty” (Evert, 2007). Rather, Jason Evert argues that practicing chastity “frees you to authentically love each other, and not use the other for personal gain” (Evert, 2007). Chastity is a mindset of not relying solely on one’s temporary feelings, but instead using reason and considering what is best for the other person in the relationship. Having sex outside of marriage can be considered to be a lie to the other person in the relationship. By having sex, it is communicating that one is giving themselves completely to the other person, when in reality this is not the case, and one’s body makes a promise that it does not mean (Evert, 2007).

 Teaching and communicating about chastity is an important part of a well-rounded education. Adolescents who often receive sexual education in their health classes should be able to hear all sides and options. This does not mean teaching abstinence-only and using scare tactics about STDs and pregnancy rates by means of information-based instruction, but rather a well-rounded education in which students are provided information regarding a chaste lifestyle. Unlike some of the other sexual education curriculums that often either gives you straight facts, a chastity viewpoint includes the emotional and relational aspect of sex incorporating our human desire to love and be loved by others.

** Opposition to Chastity **  Although chastity is a generally a personal choice, there is some opposition to this lifestyle and in promoting chastity to adolescents and young adults. Some view the push to promote chastity as a political agenda to block federal and state funding for comprehensive sex education and promote abstinence-only education despite a “lack of evidence for its effectiveness in delaying teenage sex, preventing the spread of sexually transmitted diseases, and promoting contraception usage” (Fahs, 2010). An increase in organizations such as chastity and purity clubs across the United States has also raised concern that chastity is merely a way to create a “highly gendered social space that reinforces women's oppressed sociosexual status as the property of men” (Fahs, 2010). It has also been argued that promoting chastity does not properly prepare adolescents to properly “negotiate the terms of their sexual health” (Fahs, 2010). Some view that through the practice of chastity, sexual desires and expression are harmfully repressed (Fahs, 2010). This concept of the repression of sexual desires dates back to Freud’s writings titled, //Three Essays on the Theory of Sexuality// in the early 1900s in which his unresearched theory consists of ideas that everyone has repressed and often unrealized sexual desires and tendencies. Along with this that one’s sexual desires are completely out of their control, some argue that chastity goes against biological human nature (Rossi, 1998). Sexual attraction, desires, and mate selection can be seen as an “evolutionary adaptation just as necessary to species survival as sweating is to cope with summer heat” (Rossi, 1998). Instead of focusing on love and relationships, there is a larger focus on the biological framework of human sexuality. This framework does not consider however, the human capacity to reason, feel, communicate, and be in relationship with one another.

** Statistics and Facts Regarding the Promotion of Chastity **  There are several statistics that support chastity and its impact on individuals as well as communities. According to the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance conducted in 2005, “t een sexual activity rates have been dropping for over a decade, and now the majority of high school students are virgins ” (  Gerberding,  2005). Also the annual national survey entitled, America’s Adults and Teens Sound Off About Teen Pregnancy, it was found that among those who had already lost their virginity, two-thirds of them wished they had waited longer to have sex (77% of girls and 60% of guys) (National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, 2003). Also it has been found that “the younger a girl is when she becomes sexually active, the more likely she is to experience multiple sexual partners, STDs, out of wedlock pregnancies, depression, abortion, and poverty” (Rector et al., 2003). Figure 3 displays one of the charts from “The Harmful Effects of Early Sexual Activity and Multiple Sexual Partners Among Women: A Book of Charts” conducted by Rector et al. These surveys and statistics conducted support the importance of promoting and accepting chastity.



** Concluding Thoughts on Chastity ** Although there are differing views on chastity, through this information provided it is evident why one might choose to practice chastity in their life. While some researchers argue that chastity goes against biology, it is clear that there are many other social and emotional effects of having sex outside of marriage. Accepting a lifestyle of chastity consists of not confusing love with lust, using the human intellect and will, and not solely relying on present feelings and instant pleasure and gratification. While there are many other reasons one might adopt chastity into their life (religion, parents, peers), education and knowledge about chastity should be included in sexual education and communication in order to cover all the aspects of sexuality. It is important to remember that through a chastity viewpoint, sex is not considered to be evil or dirty, but rather it is seen as a physical expression and promise made between two spouses that they are completely committed to the other and that they give themselves completely to them as well.

** References **

Chastity. (2009). Collins english dictionary. Retrieved April 09, 2011, from http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/chastity

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Evert, J. (Producer). (2007, December 1). Romance without regret [Video Podcast]. True Love Revolution. Retrieved from []

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Fahs, B. (2010). Daddy's little girls: on the perils of chastity clubs, purity balls, and ritualized abstinence. Frontiers - A Journal of Women's Studies, 31(3), Retrieved from [|http://find.galegroup.com.proxy2.library.illinois.edu/gps/retrieve.do?contentSet=IAC-Documents&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&qrySerId=Locale%28en%2C%2C%29%3 AFQE%3D%28ke%2CNone%2C20%29daddy%27s+little+girls%3AAnd%3AFQE%3D %28TX%2CNone%2C38%29daddy%27s+little+girls%3A+on+the+perils+of%24&sgHitCountType=None&inPS=true&sort=DateDescend&searchType=BasicSearchForm&tabID=T002&prodId=IPS&searchId=R2&currentPosition=1&userGroupName=uiuc_uc&docId=A243644064&docType=IAC&contentSet=IAC-Documents]

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Gerberding, J. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Center for Disease Control and Prevention. (2005). Youth risk behavior surveillance (55 SS-05). Atlanta, Georgia:

<span class="apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;"> Melody, J. (1908). Chastity. In The Catholic encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Retrieved April 10, 2011 from New Advent: []

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy (2003). With One Voice 2003: America’s Adults and Teens Sound Off About Teen Pregnancy. Washington, DC.

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Purity ring; religion wiki. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://religion.wikia.com/wiki/Purity_ring

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Rector, R., Johnson, K., Noyes, L., & Martin, S. (2003). The harmful effects of early sexual activity and multiple sexual partners among women: a book of charts. http://s3.amazonaws.com/thf_media/2003/pdf/Bookofcharts.pdf

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Rossi, A. (1998). The impact of family structure and social change on adolescent sexual behavior. Children and Youth Services Review, 19(5-6), Retrieved from [|http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6V98-3SX1H50- 3&_user=571676&_coverDate=12%2F31%2F1997&_rdoc=1&_fmt=high&_orig=gatew ay&_origin=gateway&_sort=d&_docanchor=&view=c&_searchStrId=1713153860&_rer unOrigin=google&_acct=C000029040&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=571676& md5=1bd19cd72d174278713505cebe7eec58&searchtype=a]

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Weddings and flowers. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://weddingandflowers.info/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/diy-wedding-flowers-01.jpg&imgrefurl=http://weddingandflowers.info/2009/04/the-best-wedding-flower-ideas-and-different-types-of-wedding-flowers/&usg=__gRL0Dt-dV3GpUGPwqvhgDI98g_o=&h=306&w=500&sz=18&hl=en&start=0&sig2=3kEI3x38Hvf4A2AnllHdfg&zoom=1&tbnid=qI9eXxZS2XU49M:&tbnh=92&tbnw=147&ei=97CiTYG6K4a20QGGmsCMBQ&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dwedding%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26hs%3DSyr%26sa%3DX%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26biw%3D1152%26bih%3D557%26tbm%3Disch%26prmd%3Divnscelm&itbs=1&iact=rc&dur=125&oei=97CiTYG6K4a20QGGmsCMBQ&page=1&ndsp=22&ved=1t:429,r:3,s:0&tx=81&ty=23