Booksology Elizabeth Smart, who was abducted and repeatedly raped for nine months at the age of 14, slammed purity culture in 2013. “After that first rape, I felt devastated. Who needed me now? I felt so dirty, so unclean. I totally understand why someone wouldn’t get away with that alone,” Smart said. Smart detailed this experience and more in her 2014 memoir, “My Story.”
Although not all of the purity culture memoirs listed below are by evangelical Christian authors, the majority detail the experiences of white women. I’d like to see more memoirs that explore the damage of purity culture in the black church, like Joya Goffney’s Confessions of a Good Girl, Levonne Briggs’ “Sensual Faith: The Art of Returning to Your Body,” and Kelly Brown Douglas’ “Sexuality and the Black Church: A Feminist Perspective.”
Below, read eight memoirs that examine the damage of purity culture in the evangelical church and beyond.
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A memoir exploring the damage caused by pure culture
On My Knees: A Prayerful Jezebel Memoir by Brenda Marie Davis
“My Christianity depended on purity,” writes Brenda Marie Davis. Davis’s memoir follows his 20s in Los Angeles and examines whether a Christian life is possible without the threat of sexual contamination. As such, this book is perfect for dismantling evangelicals who are not ready to completely leave the faith.
Wayward: A Memoir of Spiritual Warfare and Sexual Purity by Alice Gretzin
This memoir is about a homeless childhood and the subsequent decision by his parents to take a gamble and trust the Lord to provide for them and their five children. here, sex drive Actress Alice Gretzin talks about the damage caused by her evangelical upbringing, starting with her suicidal thoughts at age 13.
“Finding the Sunshine: A Coming of Age Memoir about Love in the Debris of Purity Culture” by Chrissy Holm
Chrissy Holm’s memoir about growing up bisexual as the child of a conservative Christian pastor is sure to resonate. It’s billed as “more of a memoir of triumphant love than a religious trauma book.” find the sunshine is an uplifting, graphic must-read for LGBTQIA+ Christians and those who have left the faith.
“Pure: Inside the Evangelical Movement That Shamed a Generation of Young Women and How I Escaped” by Linda Kay Klein
If you’re looking for a seminal text on the purity culture of the evangelical church, look no further. Linda Kay Klein exposes the shame and guilt associated with this movement. pure The book chronicles Klein’s 12-year journey to understand purity culture after his church’s youth pastor was convicted of sex crimes against preschoolers.
Facing the Music: My Story by Jennifer Knapp
Jennifer Knapp left the Christian music industry at the height of her career. Then, when she came out as a lesbian in 2010, she was confronted by former fans who were convinced she had abandoned the church and everything she once stood for. in face the musicKnapp makes a case for LGBTQIA+ Christianity. Good for both straight and queer readers to listen.
How to Say Babylon by Safiyah Sinclair
One of two non-Christian titles on this list, Safiyah Sinclair’s National Book Critics Circle Award-winning novel traces the poet’s childhood and adolescence under the thumb of a domineering father. His strict rules of “no makeup, no jewelry, no opinions, no friends” made Ms. Sinclair’s Jamaican home a prison. Poetry helps her escape, and her lyricism is utilized here.
Cartwheel in a Sari: Memoir of a Growing Cult by Jayanti Tam
Guru Sri Chinmoy declared himself to be God. He prohibited sex with outside media by law. He told Jayanti Tam that she was the “chosen one”. But when the pressure to be perfect led Tam to attempt suicide, she ultimately made the difficult decision to sever ties with the only community she had ever known.
Rift: A Memoir of Escaping the Christian Patriarchy by Kate West
Kate West’s memoir, which deals with the serious subject of abuse in the Christian church, is not for the faint of heart. Here, West examines the stay-at-home daughter movement and its negative impact on the lives of women and girls across the evangelical community.
For memoirs and other books that explore religious themes, check out our two must-read lists: Books on Christianity and Books on Cult Life.
