A woman had been caught in the act of adultery, and she was brought to Jesus. While Jesus dealt with the sensitive issue of sexual sins, he did not speak loudly and make a long sermon, but quietly wrote it down. Sometimes honest words that are of a sensitive nature should rather be written down than said. We are aware that sexual matters are not comfortable topics to deal with, as most people treat them with social stigmas, yet we must be diligent to address them thoroughly with the help of the Holy Spirit. These teachings might make someone feel uncomfortable, yet they are one of the most noteworthy teachings of the Bible. The extent and variety of sexual sins are rapidly increasing in our sophisticated societies, so the need has arisen to present sound biblical teachings on sexuality. Many people may find themselves victims of sexual sins because they are ignorant. Hence, the Bible says, “you will know the truth, and truth shall set you free.” The purpose of these teachings is not to embarrass anyone, but to help people discover the truth. This book on chastity seeks to help both married and single people find the necessary motivation to pursue sexual purity in a perverted world, it addresses many sexual problems and objections frequently found in our society. Young people, for whom this book was mainly written, are shown how to live the charisma of virginity and celibacy charismatically — that is as a gift, in all humility, with joy and perfect freedom.

Dawn Eden, internationally known speaker and author, presents a completely revised Catholic edition of her bestselling work, The Thrill of the Chaste. In this version, Eden shares her story of conversion to Catholicism and invites readers into a Catholic understanding of chastity and its spiritual benefits. When Dawn Eden released The Thrill of the Chaste in 2006, she was a Jewish convert to Protestant Christianity, preparing to make the final leap into Catholicism. Now, nine years later, Eden has extensively updated The Thrill of the Chaste, sharing how her Catholic faith, the lives and intercession of the saints, and the healing power of the sacraments have led her to find her true identity in Christ. This revised, Catholic version offers spiritual and practical advice for both men and women seeking to live chastely in a world that glorifies sex. Eden offers tips to help readers avoid temptation and live faithfully—including dressing modestly, but not being afraid to feel good about the way they look; trusting that God has a plan for their life and relationships; and making sure their “yes” comes from the heart.

Winner of a 2015 Catholic Press Award: Books for Teens and Young Adults (First Place). In 2012, journalist Arleen Spenceley outed herself as a twenty-six-year-old virgin in a Tampa Bay Times op-ed that went viral. In Chastity Is for Lovers, Spenceley expands on that piece, advocating Catholic teaching on sex and marriage with candor and humor, and without judgment. In her debut book, seasoned journalist and self-professed “happy virgin” Arleen Spenceley offers a mature, funny, and relatable vision of Catholic teaching on chastity for young adults. Chastity Is for Lovers provides perspective on a variety of topics—the difference between chastity and abstinence, how virginity is an affirming and valuable life choice, how the word “purity” can be harmful in ministry settings, how to date well, and why sexual self-control is the best form of marriage preparation—and gives single adults the best possible chance to find true love. She carefully avoids using language that shames readers and instead presents a view of chastity that is joyful and positive.

In twenty-six short topical chapters, teens and young adults share their questions and real-life experiences about sexual relationships. Their questions range from "How far is too far?" to "What's wrong with cohabitation?" Two questions posed by many people of all ages both within and outside the Church are also treated: "Chastity sounds nice, but is it practical?" and "What do the Bible and celibate men know about sex anyway?" Teens will find A Case for Chastity a readable and informative book, and their parents and teachers, particularly catechists and DREs, will find it an invaluable resource. Paperback

Drama-Free Relationships. Do they even exist? Today’s dating scene is more complicated than ever, especially with social media, texting, and the endless pressure of the world’s expectations. How can men and women overcome the interior and exterior battles and discover the love they desire? From “Hey” to “I do”—as well as the inevitable “gray areas” along the way—Emotional Virtue offers a compelling blueprint for how to thrive in every stage of a relationship—not just survive.

Bearing such titles as The Doctor's Visit or The Lovesick Maiden, certain seventeenth-century Dutch paintings are familiar to museum browsers: an attractive young woman—well dressed, but pale and listless—reclines in a chair, languishes in bed, or falls to the floor in a faint. Weathered crones or impish boys leer suggestively in the background. These paintings traditionally have been viewed as commentary on quack doctors or unmarried pregnant women. The first book to examine images of women and illness in the light of medical history, Perilous Chastity reveals a surprising new interpretation. In an engaging analysis enhanced by abundant illustrations-including eight pages of color plates—Laurinda S. Dixon shows how paintings reflect changing medical theories concerning women. While she illuminates a tradition stretching from antiquity to the present, she concentrates on art from the thirteenth through the eighteenth centuries, and particularly on paintings from seventeenth-century Leiden. Dixon suggests how the assumptions of a predominantly male medical establishment have influenced prevailing notions of women's social place. She traces the evolution of the belief that women's illnesses were caused by "hysteria," so named in ancient Greece after the notion that the uterus had a tendency to wander in the body. All women were considered prone to hysteria-strong emotions, idleness, intellectual activity, or unladylike pursuits could cause it—but it was most commonly diagnosed among celibates. Analyzing paintings of women's sickrooms by Jan Steen, Dirck Hals, Gabriel Metsu, Jacob Ochtervelt, Godfried Schalcken, Samuel van Hoogstraten, and Franz van Mieris, Dixon perceives metaphoric identifications of the womb as the source of illness. She also documents changing fashions in cures for hysteria and discusses allusions to the debilitating effects of women's passions not only in paintings, but also in madrigals by John Dowland and Henry Purcell. In conclusion, Dixon argues that her study has strong ramifications of attitudes towards women and illness today. She takes up images in twentieth-century culture as well and calls attention to a resurgence of female "hysteria" after World War II.

Even though they are immersed in sex-saturated society, millions of teens are pledging to remain virgins until their wedding night. How are evangelical Christians persuading young people to wait until marriage? Christine J. Gardner looks closely at the language of the chastity movement and discovers a savvy campaign that uses sex to "sell" abstinence. Drawing from interviews with evangelical leaders and teenagers, she examines the strategy to shift from a negative "just say no" approach to a positive one: "just say yes" to great sex within marriage. Making Chastity Sexy sheds new light on an abstinence campaign that has successfully recast a traditionally feminist idea—"my body, my choice"—into a powerful message, but one that Gardner suggests may ultimately reduce evangelicalism’s transformative power. Focusing on the United States, her study also includes a comparative dimension by examining the export of this evangelical agenda to sub-Saharan Africa.