Silver Ring Thing
Unaltered, known until 2019 as Silver Ring Thing (SRT), is an American virginity pledge program founded in 1995 by Denny Pattyn. The program encourages teens and young adults to remain sexually abstinent until marriage. For a few years, it was partially funded by the U.S. federal government.[6] Drawing on Christian theology,[7] SRT uses rock/hip hop concert-style events in an attempt to appeal to 21st-century teenagers. During the gathering, participants commit to a vow of sexual abstinence until marriage by purchasing rings. The organization's theme verse is 1 Thessalonians 4:3–4.
In 2004, SRT began expanding operations into the United Kingdom, with mixed results. While some teenagers in the UK embraced the message of abstinence, some critics rejected and ridiculed SRT, saying it was anti-sex or unrealistic, and that it seemed unlikely that abstinence programs would attract widespread support in the UK because of the UK's differing attitude toward sexuality and sex education. The group's Assistant National Director for the UK, Denise Pfeiffer, said there was a real need for such a movement in the UK to curb what she sees as the ever-increasing rates of sexually transmitted infections and teenage pregnancies, both of which she claims are the highest in Western Europe.[8][9]
In 2005, the ACLU of Massachusetts sued the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services because it believed SRT used tax dollars to promote Christianity.[10] SRT presented a two-part programme: the first part about abstinence, the second about Christianity's role in abstinence. The ACLU claimed federal funding given to this program violated the separation of church and state. On August 22, 2005, the Department suspended SRT's US$75,000 federal grant until it submitted a "corrective action plan".[11] In 2006, a corrective action plan was accepted by the department. The lawsuit was dismissed, and SRT received federal funding.
In a 2007 case in England, R (Playfoot) v Millais School Governing Body, a 16-year-old student Lydia Playfoot alleged that her school had violated her rights by forbidding the wearing of a purity ring.[12][13] The case was funded by the group Christian Concern.[13] On July 16, 2007, the High Court ruled that Playfoot's human rights were not violated.[13] Her father, Phil Playfoot, was the British pastor for Silver Ring Thing at the time,[14] and was ordered to pay £12,000 towards the school's costs.[13]
In 2019, Silver Ring Thing changed its name to Unaltered.[15]
True Love Waits
True Love Waits (TLW) is an international Christian group that promotes sexual abstinence outside of marriage for teenagers and college students. TLW was created in April 1993 by the Southern Baptists, and is sponsored by LifeWay Christian Resources.[16] It is based on conservative Christian views of human sexuality.
Pledge
The True Love Waits pledge states: "Believing that true love waits, I make a commitment to God, myself, my family, my friends, my future mate and my future children to be sexually abstinent from this day until the day I enter a biblical marriage relationship." In addition, they promote sexual purity, which encompasses not only abstaining from intercourse before marriage, but also abstaining from "sexual thoughts, sexual touching, pornography, and actions that are known to lead to sexual arousal."
By the late 1990s, Christian music groups were promoting the program, and events similar to youth rallies were held at Christian music concerts, providing an opportunity for adolescents to sign pledge cards.[17]
Effect
In the first year of the campaign, over 102,000 young people signed the pledge, which was also taken up by other church groups including the Roman Catholic Church and Assemblies of God. The campaign spread across the US, making the use of occasions such as Valentine's Day to gain attention.[18]
By 2004, groups supporting abstinence numbered in the hundreds. During the preceding decade, approximately 2.5 million American youth took the pledge of abstinence.[19]
