1/16/2023 0 Comments Purity ballI asked my father to watch a video clip of the balls a few years ago I was fascinated with them. And the midst of all this revelry, they promise to remain virgins and their fathers, in turn, pledge to be the protector of that “purity.” Some are given rings-it reminds me of a wedding ceremony. They pose with their fathers under white arches decorated with flowers, like prom dates. Young women and girls are dressed in ballgowns, their hair professionally done. “The command to love him is just that-it’s a command.”Īs a feminist, I found the purity balls themselves the most difficult to watch. Colton Wilson’s wife Anna tells us, “Because I love God I love my husband, regardless of whether or not I have feelings of affection for him in a given moment.” Our culture actually celebrates barrenness.”Įven to the women who marry into the Wilson family, their roles are clear. “Biblical fruitfulness is the opposite of what today’s culture promotes. There, Kameryn is given her great-great-grandmother’s wedding ring as a purity ring and is taught about “fruitfulness.”Ī family friend reads from a prepared speech, telling her, “If and when God brings that Godly man into your life and opens your womb, becoming a mother will be one of the most profound and significant things you ever do.” Later we see Randy building a hope chest for his daughter Kameryn that will be revealed at a ceremony held in the family living room. They wear clothes that do not cover their bodies or that show their bodies in an immodest way. “Sadly, there are a lot of girls that don’t think about me when they get dressed in the morning. Daughter Kaalyn reads from an illustrated book: “Because you are my chosen princess you should dress modestly every day.” His wife, Lisa, homeschooled their children and the “curriculum” speaks volumes. (She uses a book on etiquette from the 1920s to demonstrate how to modestly bend over at a water fountain, or how to greet people with a smile when they come into your home.) Jordyn runs “the School of Grace” out of their home, where she gives advice to other young women on how to be properly ladylike. While other dads may have been teaching their daughters soccer, Randy was making sure that his little girls were focused on traditional feminine pursuits. “I am content here and I feel safe here,” she says. Still, Jordyn says she’s happy being a dutiful daughter until she meets her future husband. There are often shots of Jordyn wistfully looking off into the distance, watching her married sisters’ wedding videos or staring at her doted-on sister Khrystian who plays guitar and always has perfectly coiffed hair. “I want to be a wife and a mother,” she says, “I would hate to go off and spend thousands of dollars on an education that I wouldn’t use.” She’s also the only one of the older three sisters who isn’t married-a fact that dominates her thoughts, given she believes the most important role she could have is that of a wife. (The Wilsons have five daughter and two sons.) Jordyn is college-aged but not in college. Von Arx focuses on one daughter in particular, Jordyn. Because the most compelling focus of the film wasn’t the events themselves, but the way in which one family’s dynamic can reveal so much about American culture and politics.įilmmaker Mirjam von Arx follows the Colorado Springs-based Wilson family whose patriarch, Randy, invented purity balls. Yes, a robot.Īs I watched Virgin Tales, a Swiss documentary about purity balls-dances where young girls pledge their virginities to their dads-I thought of my father often. When I complained that I was too little to do anything, we built a robot together. He bought me chemistry sets and explained atoms to me. My father, in particular, took an interest in ensuring I was as well-rounded as possible. They built a house (themselves, of course) in Woodstock, New York, practiced Buddhism, and were intent on making sure that I didn’t buy into gender stereotypes.
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