Thursday, January 19, 2017

Golf, Purity Rings, and a New Church


It's Thursday, and you know what that means! A brand-new episode of Bringing Up Bates airs in less than six hours. Tune in to UP tonight at 9pm ET/8pm CT. Did you see the promo video and snapshots we posted yesterday?

Below are two additional videos. The first is a quick overview of the whole episode, and the second is a scene from the golf game that Gil, Lawson, and Papa Bill play. Be sure to listen closely to Papa Bill's advice towards the end. What do you think of his words?



Photo/video courtesy of UP

32 comments:

  1. Not again with those sextist rings! If they gave them to the boys also it would be fine. Giving them to the girls only reinforces that it is the girl's fault if something happens.

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  2. Why do only the girls get "purity" rings? i think the whole idea of purity rings is disturbing. I regret getting them for my daughters, and actually apologized to them when they were grown. Purity encompasses way more than "saving yourself" for marriage. I knew quite a few virgins who were the most jusgemental and prideful girls around. Their haughtiness certainly was not pure!

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    1. I agree. Plus I don't think that forbidding something makes you have a healthy relationship to it. Would it really be the worst thing if those guys and girls had a few girlfriends or boyfriends before finding the one?
      What if they never find "the one"? Should they all live like monks forever?

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    2. Wise words. And I know a few girls who have not remained pure in body before marriage, who have very Christlike attitudes towards others...

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    3. Agree 7:35. I have a very dear friend...lovely, Godly woman. She has been married several times and according to these standards was not "pure" before any marriage. She and her husband love The Lord and truly appreciate His redemttive Grace. These "pure" women who brag about not even kidding before marriage don't get it. It's all works for them. They then carry their haughty, prideful attitudes around like badges of honor. Not pretty!

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    4. That sounds like a blanket judgement, Anonymous at 9:33. The older Bates girls don't come across this way. Prideful and haughty attitudes are a problem, no matter whether you've got a purity ring or not.

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    5. Purity definitely does encompass more than just saving yourself for marriage, but we as Christians need to remember that God makes it clear in the Bible that physical intimacy is to be saved for marriage. Of course, there is grace for those who mess up and repent, but I would encourage people who claim to be Christians and do not see physical intimacy outside of marriage as a sin to get in God's Word.

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    6. What if you have an intimate relationship that doesn't work but simply because it wasn't gonna be "IT", but still nobody hurt one another, you still have respect and fond memories of that relationship.
      Then you go on with life and find your real life partner. If the past relationships didn't include bad behavior, then why not simply recalling them as fond memories? And not something "to repent from".

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    7. Here is an article that might help answer your question. I was going to write a response, but this article says what I was thinking very well. :)

      http://www.focusonthefamily.com/faith/christian-singles/being-single-and-faithful/three-lies-about-sex-before-marriage

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  3. I thought purity rings were also for guys? I remember the Jonas brothers had them.

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    1. Yeah, a lot of good those did on the Jonas brothers... Looking back, I think they were a gimmick for marketing purposes.

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  4. What Papa Bill said at the end regarding decisions... AMEN to that!!! I'm going to put that on a quote board for my classroom.

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  5. Incredible advice! Do they know how blessed they are to have these parents & grandparents? The kind of advice I got was "don't buy the cow without tasting the milk first" and they weren't talking about farming...

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    1. I've heard the opposite advice. "Who's going to buy the cow if they get the milk for free?" Funny how the same advice can be turned inside out. :)

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    2. Kandace, I got the same advice you did.

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  6. Boys need a purity rings just as much as girls do as a visual reminder. Just singling out the girls is sexist.

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  7. "The decisions you make today will determine the decisions you get to make tomorrow." Very profound words from wise Papa Bill.

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  8. Since the PARENTS were not asked why the sons don't get purity rings too, I'll ask here. Please tell us why it isn't important for their sons to remain pure like the daughters and why they don't need a visual reminder like the daughters? Just creepy if you ask me. Their father needed to stay OUT of that area. It's a subject for a mother and her daughter to discuss, like it would be for a father and his son to discuss. Just creepy. This is something that is so private, yet they make a public spectacle of it...not modest.

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    1. It isn't creepy at all. God made marriage and put the first man and woman together. He made sex to be a beautiful thing between husband and wife. Moms and dads should talk to their children together about following God's plan for their lives. They aren't getting into the specifics about the birds and the bees when they give their purity rings. I would assume they would have done that when the kids were younger with the mom talking to the daughters and the dad talking to the sons. Just because they don't give their sons a purity ring doesn't mean that they don't talk to their sons about it and expect it from them as well. The older boys have talked on the show about remaining pure. It is important to them as well.

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  9. Why do these kids call their grandfather "Papa Bill" and their grandmother "Janey"? Why not call them grandpa and grandma or something more traditional. Are these two their biological grandparents? Are they both Gil's blood parents? Doesn't seem like it to me.

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    1. I've heard them say "Papa Bill" and Mama Jane(y). Seems consistent to me. And while prefer grandma and grandpa also, many people call their grandparents by other names like me'em, mema, nana, etc.

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    2. Have you ever given the thought that many people like to call their grandparents in different ways? Why does I only have to be "traditional"? It's also a regional thing.

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    3. They are Gil's parents. What's the problem with the nicknames?

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    4. Why on earth does THAT matter??

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  10. Happy birthday!😃

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  11. I've always wondered why they are so interested in purity. Is pursuing love really a bad thing unless it's through marriage? Does it make you a bad person if you've had more than one intimate relationships in your life (but at the same time you respected everybody you've met, and you've expected the same respect).

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    1. No. It's really not.

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    2. Thankfully, our God is generous in granting grace and forgiveness to those who repent of their sins. The Bible is clear that physical intimacy outside of marriage is a sin, but God is willing and able (and eager) to forgive those who have messed up. If you know someone who is in that situation, I would encourage them to cry out to God. If they don't have a Bible, encourage them to get one and start reading the book of John. God bless!

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    3. The Bible was written 2000 years ago for the society of 3000 years ago. Beliefs like that of purity were typically related to the society of that time. They were used to keep things more in order, to try to give order to the people. I don't think that God cares about how many people we've been intimate with (as long as we respect everybody involved and ourselves). That said, I'm not saying that I'm promoting having lots of partners. Just saying that life happens and love is always worth pursuing, even before marriage.
      I appears to me that God would rather be interested on whether or not we are good and welcoming and open to each other than on our "purity".

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    4. That's an interesting idea. I was looking up Bible verses online and came across this article. It specifically addresses the idea of God's command to save physical relations for marriage being "outdated." Let me know what you think.

      http://www.focusonthefamily.com/faith/christian-singles/being-single-and-faithful/three-lies-about-sex-before-marriage

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    5. Thanks for posting the Focus link. I encourage anyone who has questions to read it. My own thinking is that the Bible's advice is very wise. But even if you're not a Christian and don't follow the Bible, there are good reasons to avoid sex before marriage. Being sexually involved may cloud decision-making when picking a life partner. Also, if people remained chaste until marriage, imagine the lower STD rates.

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  12. I think giving the purity rings is such a sweet gesture from the parents. I wish I had had a conversation like that when I turned 16. Guys should be told similar things as well but I think the rings is traditionally a girl thing. I don't see it as sexist. The boys have said they are held to high standards too about remaining pure until marriage. It's just not made into a sweet celebration like with the girls.

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