For head pastor Ron Wilson of the Living Stones Church, purity balls, a ritual in which a father and teenage daughter pledge their commitment in front of God to maintain her sexual purity and loyalty to God, is a significant commitment to lifelong Christian formation. Resembling aspects of a wedding, purity balls feature a covenant that a father will serve as the “High Priest” in his home in order to safeguard the purity of his daughter:
“I ………’s father, choose before God to cover my daughter as her authority and protection in the area of purity. I will be pure in my own life as a man, husband and father.
I will be a man of integrity and accountability as I lead, guide and pray over my daughter and my family as the High Priest in my home. This covering will be used by God to influence generations to come.”
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While purity balls are not common as expressions of faith in mainline denominations, how is the intersection of faith and sexual development being explicitly and/or implicitly taught in your congregation? What are healthy ways that the church might more effectively model love, appropriate boundaries, and also meet the needs of teenagers as they grow?