"Jesus Christ always offers forgiveness and provides a clean start. So, I encourage all single believers to wear white on February 14 and proudly take a public stand for purity”
In today’s
culture where people are bombarded with messages that encourage
promiscuity, Liberty Counsel is encouraging Christians to take a public
stand for purity. The 21st annual Day of Purity is a campaign that
encourages followers of Jesus Christ to wear white on February 14 to
publicly promote abstinence and inspire others to save sexual intimacy
for marriage.
The
Day of Purity is based on God’s Word that encourages holiness and
sexual purity. For example, First Corinthians 6:18-20 says, “Flee sexual
immorality. Every other sin that a person commits is outside the body,
but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body. Or do you not
know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you
have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought
for a price: therefore glorify God in your body.”
While
Hollywood and the media may encourage sexual activity without limits,
practicing purity before marriage has spiritual, physical, emotional,
and social benefits.
Regarding
the physical benefits, the benefits of abstinence before marriage
include preventing diseases, pregnancies, and even abortions. On
average, young people in the United States have sexual intercourse for the first time at about age 17, but do not marry until their mid-20s. An estimated
19 million new cases of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) are
diagnosed each year in the United States — almost half of them among
young people age 15 to 24. In 2021, unmarried women accounted
for 87 percent of all abortions. Young women under 15 years obtained .2
percent of all 2021 abortions, women 15–19 years accounted for 8.1
percent, women 20-24 years accounted for 28.3 percent, and women 25-29
years accounted for 28.7 percent. Women living with a partner to whom
they are not married account for 25 percent of abortions.
Regarding the emotional and social benefits of purity, research has shown that couples who delay sexual intimacy until their wedding night have more stability in their marriages and are less likely to divorce than couples who have premarital sex.
In a 2016 Barna Group report,
“What Americans Believe About Sex,” 50 percent of U.S. adults agree
strongly that “choosing not to have sex outside of marriage is healthy.”
However, six in 10 Elders agree strongly as compared to 53 percent of
Boomers, 49 percent of Gen-Xers, and 43 percent of Millennials.
Practicing Christians are more than twice (72 percent) as likely as
adults of no faith (38 percent) to say that choosing not to have sex
outside marriage is a healthy choice.
Liberty
Counsel Vice President of Media and International Director for the Day
of Purity, Holly Meade, said, “The Day of Purity is an opportunity for
Christians to take a stand for purity and publicly communicate they will
not be influenced by Hollywood’s images and sexual temptations. In
today’s culture, we are constantly bombarded with messages luring us to
become sexually active at a young age and to experiment with sexual
preferences. However, research confirms that practicing purity before
marriage has spiritual, physical, emotional, and social benefits. We, as
the church, must stand up and be an example as God has called us to
be.”
“However,
participating in previous sexual intimacy outside of marriage does not
exempt someone from this special campaign. Jesus Christ always offers
forgiveness and provides a clean start. So, I encourage all single
believers to wear white on February 14 and proudly take a public stand
for purity,” said Meade.
Liberty Counsel is an international nonprofit, litigation, education, and policy organization dedicated to advancing religious freedom, the sanctity of life, and the family since 1989, by providing pro bono assistance and representation on these and related topics.
