On Saturday, Nov. 8, the Diocese of the Mid-South of the Charismatic Episcopal Church hosted a diocesan-wide purity seminar for teens and their parents entitled, “Sex, Love, and Relationships.” The seminar was held at Christ the King Church in Sharpsburg and was led by David and Sharon Holland of St. Andrew’s Church in Covington. In total, 50 people (teens and parents) participated.

The seminar included talks, video presentations, skits, and break-out groups all designed to impart an understanding of the physical, emotional, and spiritual consequences of sex outside of marriage and what organizers say is “the call of God to sexual purity.”

Special guests Matt and Casey Robuck, newly married after a courtship of six years which led them from high school through college, were present to share their testimony of commitment to Biblical purity before marriage and what they said were “the joys of following God’s plan for sex, love, and relationships.”

Overall the seminar was well received, say organizers, with many parents and teens requesting follow-up talks on biblical courtship and marriage.

Canon Randall Allen of St. Andrew’s Church commented, “I am thankful that we as a Diocese are starting to talk about these things with our children. Though the subject matter is no doubt challenging and uncomfortable, the fact that children as young as 11 and 12 years of age are becoming increasingly sexually active and putting their lives and health at risk makes the need to teach God’s view of sex, love, and relationships absolutely necessary. To fail to do so would be irresponsible.”

Plans are underway to provide follow-up seminars and additional teaching of the subject of sexual purity. In addition, all materials and video recordings of the sessions are being shipped to the Cathedral of Christ the King in Manila, the Philippines, at the request of Archbishop Loren Hines who has expressed an interest in providing a similar course in his province.

The purity seminar was sponsored by the Mid-South Diocese’s newly formed division of ministry development which seeks to equip the people of the diocese for the work of the ministry by providing continuing education and special training opportunities for clergy, commissioned ministers, and laity.

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