"Sexy"

[qos]

havah_prewett posted a quotation and link about purity and sexuality. For those who haven't already seen it on her LJ, here's my slightly extended excerpt:

The essay was prompted by a pastor who saw a teenage girl with a t-shirt that read "Purity is Sexy."

Do you want to know what is sexy? People who are able to give themselves freely in mutual expression of love and faithfulness. . . . A God who isn't concerned with technical definitions of purity is one who might require us to think about how we relate to one another, and to make decisions based on accountability, recriprocity, and vulnerability to each other.

Reference: http://www.streetprophets.com/storyonly/2006/6/24/184232/698

Comments

[athenian-abroad.livejournal.com]

Interesting...but I think Pastor Dan is giving the t-shirt an over-literal reading. "Sexy" has more meanings than sexually appealing. It can be used as a synonym for "cool" or "interesting" or just "desirable" (with prurient connotation, but without the literal denotation).

See, for example, the second definition here.

I'd read the t-shirt as nothing more than a clever play on the dual meaning of "sexy," rather than an appeal to the baser instincts of child molesters and rapists.

Of course, there's still the whole "purity" notion to grapple with -- there's some reason to believe that categorizing people as "clean" and "dirty" is even more dangerous (in terms of propensity to diminish empathy and thereby facilitate violence) than simply classifying them as "good" and "evil."

[surly-wench.livejournal.com]

athenian_abroad:
"Of course, there's still the whole 'purity' notion to grapple with -- there's some reason to believe that categorizing people as "clean" and 'dirty' is even more dangerous (in terms of propensity to diminish empathy and thereby facilitate violence) than simply classifying them as 'good' and 'evil.'"

Yeah, the main problem I have with the shirt has to do with the notion of “purity.” I don’t have much of a problem with the use of the term sexy in this case.

I like your profile and journal by the way. I’m a moderate Democrat myself (although I guess I can be a bit of a “radical” on human rights issues), and always enjoy a good political rant. Your comments about the term “fiscally conservative” echo my sentiments on the manner. I have no idea how anyone could believe that the current Republicans have any interest in balancing the budget or limiting spending.