Item Detail
-
33127
-
1
-
2
-
English
-
Sexual Purity and Its Discontents in Mormonism
-
Routledge Handbook of Mormonism and Gender
-
London
-
Routledge
-
271-283
-
“The purpose of this chapter is to examine how the LDS Church promotes sexual purity as a foundational theological principle. As a formalized church teaching, there is no effort to update the language to make it appeal to a young, contemporary audience. As this rhetoric intersects with the lived experiences of Mormons, it is left to believers, themselves, to articulate this principle in the contemporary world. Therefore, a second purpose of this chapter is to understand how church members negotiate these teachings alongside the questions posed by the world they live in. The most useful primary sources toward this two-fold end include church doctrine, youth magazines, blogs, and religious education curricula and resources. Careful analysis of these sources reveals a sustained commitment to sexual purity that is situated within a sophisticated theological understanding of family and eternal salvation. Far more than evangelical Christians who prioritize its temporal benefits, Mormons who embrace sexual purity articulate a relationship between earthly life and heavenly expectations. This is pointedly not a concession to the modern world, but an effort to maintain a strong institutional presence in the lives of Mormon believers.” [Author]