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Making Chastity Sexy: The Rhetoric of Evangelical Abstinence Campaigns is a 2011 book by Christine Gardner,[1] a professor at Wheaton College.[2] In it, Gardner states that sexual abstinence teachings by evangelicals are currently "using sex to sell abstinence" by promising more satisfying sexual activity within marriage for those who abstain from premarital sex; she argues that this rhetoric reinforces selfish desires for gratification, sets people up for divorce and dissatisfaction with marriage, and simply adapts "secular forms for religious ends".[3]
The book investigates three evangelical organizations that advocate sexual abstinence:[4]Silver Ring Thing, True Love Waits, and Pure Freedom.[5] In addition to these United States–based sexual abstinence organizations, the book studies one Africa-based sexual abstinence organization.[6] The image on the book cover depicts a female human abdomen exposed by a crop top and low-rise jeans; a navel piercing is encircled by a tattoo of the words "True Love Waits" in cursive.[7] In preparation for writing the book, Gardner spent five years doing research at chastity events in various locations in both the United States and sub-Saharan Africa.[8]
Frank Schaeffer called the book "important and perceptive in a profound way".[9] In 2012, Making Chastity Sexy won the Stephen E. Lucas Debut Publication Award for a scholarly monograph or book in the field of communication studies.[10]