Looking For Grace: Purity Culture Pitfalls
Go listen to this podcast, y'all
A few weeks ago, one of you lovely people reached out to the Looking For Grace podcast and suggested that I be a guest on the show to discuss purity culture. I’d like to thank you, follower, for sparking my current deep dive into the history, political and social causes, and the way it is lingering in evangelical spaces. Christian babes, you know that shit isn’t in the bible, yeah?1
Looking for Grace podcast explores the history of the Baltimore-based cultic Christian church organization Greater Grace World Outreach (GGWO)2. Past episodes delve into the church’s founder, Carl Stevens3, the tactics the church has employed to grow their numbers (they don’t do membership4), and the abuse allowed by the very culture of the organization. In the summer of 2024, The Baltimore Banner5 published a series of articles about the way in which the current and past leadership has covered up the sexual abuse of minors. This past December, independent investigators from Godly Response to Abuse in the Christian Environment (GRACE)6 released their findings — the report that kicked off my seeming to dedicate this space to writing about Greater Grace.
This past week, Elita from Looking for Grace and I finally got together to discuss one factor that contributes to all manner of abuse: Purity Culture — a toxic system that negatively affects both women and men (but, like, especially women). In the episode, we discuss our experiences as teens at Greater Grace with purity culture, and even how it has followed us into adulthood.
I cannot stop reiterating that purity culture is a system of control that uses fearmongering to keep people in line. And for what? To keep certain people in positions of social or political power. But let me stop climbing up onto this soapbox and let you go listen to our conversation for yourself. I hope I did y’all proud.
Looking for Grace podcast can be found on both Spotify and Apple podcasts. Their social media is Looking for Grace on Facebook and Instagram.
Some topics we did not get into, and ones I currently don’t feel qualified to speak on, are how purity culture is damaging to the queer community, trans people, people with disabilities, and our BIPOC brothers and sisters. Since recording this episode, I have learned that the sexual purity social reform movement of the 19th century was predicated on white cisgender women’s implied inherent purity. That places sexual morality within white heterosexuality asking everyone outside those parameters to assimilate. Not news, but definitely something straight white people need to be reminded of.
Or drop a few dollars in the tip jar — help keep a woman caffeinated!
Ps. This is my first time on a podcast, and I was super nervous. If you read my last post about reframing to see everything as a growth experience, that’s what I was talking about. I hope our conversation sparks reflection and discussions in y’alls lives all the same. Enjoy.
The tenets of purity culture are based on societal norms, and the ones a certain sect of American Christians would like to be societal norms.
I used to attend an affiliated church in New England starting at age 15 until I went to college. During and after college I attended sporadically until I walked away completely. Then, I accidentally started going full time again in my 30s. I started dating and married my husband, then together we left in 2023. We still have friends and family who attend, good people who are trying to be good Christians. But I have found that I cannot be silent about the toxic and unbiblical beliefs they promote.
This guy supes wanted to be a cross between Billy Graham and Joseph Smith.
Cause then they’d be beholden to their shareholders.
The Baltimore Banner GGWO articles: it’s worth the $1 trial membership.
So here are some valid questions:
Can anyone truly live purity culture?
Does trying to live it fervently ultimately result in more frustration and failure?
Does it turn people in to "posers" wearing a religious mask of repression while they're horny as everyone else, yet pretending to possess internal strength they really don't have?