"As to swearing to be good husband for your daughter, I think that has some value in it, too. We all know that sometimes a spouse isn't enough to keep one faithful, as romantic as we'd like things to be. Staying the course for one's family as a whole seems pretty wholesome."

I am not certain that staying in a marriage you are unhappy in, just for the kids, is such a good idea. If you are unhappy with your spouse, then that will have a negative effect on your children. I am not saying become a dead beat dad, but if the marriage is failing, then it is better to consider other options. If a husband can't keep himself from cheating, I doubt his Purity Ball pledge is going to do much good, and it might be best if he leaves, but pays his financial responsibility. Spousal abuse is not something the children should see.

That being said, I do go to Buddhist discussion groups at my church, and several of the men (it mostly older women) speak often about spiritual guidance and the teachings of Buddha helping them to become better husbands and fathers. But Purity Balls seem like a step in the wrong direction in terms of improving your relationship with your wife or daughter; treating your loves one like property is not healthy.

I meant to write conquer. Though concur sounds interesting. I also meant variety not verity. Or maybe subconsciously I meant it exactly like I wrote it.

Yeah, I can. I had no idea what the hell I was doing, and what I had done did not produce the result that I had hoped for. Years later when I finally had sex (penetration), I had learned from my lessons and got it right, or at least she said I had.

My opinion of sex is that sex is a skill that has to be developed over time, and those that are more skillful are much better at sex, and good sex is a hell of a lot better than bad sex, for everybody involved in the sexual activity (and great sex is the closest thing to Heaven on Earth). And with modern technology it is easier to have safe sex, and or significantly reduce the risks associated with sex. Also it is much easier, culturally, to discuss sex these days with potential sexual partners, which also significantly reduces any risks.

The Purity Balls themselves would constitute sexual abuse, in that they cause girls to feel guilt, self-repression, and inferiority about their sexuality before they have even have done anything.

I am surprised that more Christians are not appalled by this practice, which is another example (like Mormonism and Branch Davidians) of Christianity becoming horribly twisted by being subjected to certain forces of American grown corruption.

I have a big affinity with Islam in that don't believe in "Original Sin", and believe that you have not sinned, until you have actually sinned.

I was unaware that Purity Balls were a Christian tradition/practice.

In fact I believe that practice is An American invention, and only practiced in the United States, unless I am mistaken.

Where does is say "Thou Shalt Take Ownership of Thy Daughter's Virginity, and Thou Ownership Shall Be Represented By a Ball?"

No where, because even the people of the old testament weren't that disturbed or disturbing.

"Also, in this thread, I keep trying to get people who support this to say if they think this "ideal" of virginity for girls is equally important for boys? Why the silence?"

In Muslims cultures the answer to your question is that the ideal for female virginity is not extended to boys. I have asked many of my Islamic friends (almost all of whom are older men) to explain the apparent hypocrisy, and they give a wide verity of answers that basically boiled down to it being a boy's or man's job to concur as much as he can.

When I asked about the family honor aspect, the topic reverted to penetration, and what penetration represents. The Muslims have an interesting (and not all that disturbing) view of how sacred the inner body is. The Muslim men I talked to all wanted their sons to be pure, but didn't see act of penetrating on their part as too much of a violation.

We also talked about penetration of other body parts, but I don't think you want to know where that conversation went. However, it was not an alarming conversation, and the Muslim men I talked to were a lot more amiable to female sexuality than westerners would think.

It is not a matter of expecting our daughter to behave sexually responsibly. I expect my daughter to behave sexually responsibly, but I see no reason to sexually enslave her, which is exactly what purity balls are an expression of. The idea behind Purity Balls is to say that a daughter's virginity belongs to her daddy in much the same way that pimps believe that their whore's sexuality, their ability to have sex and their sexual organs, are items that can be possess (and rented out). Like pimps, Purity Ball daddies believe their daughter's sexuality belongs to them, and that they can profit off of their daughter's sexuality by presumably saving it for the highest bidder. Purity Ball daddies think they get first pick as to who can take their daughter's virginity, and a few of them have selected themselves.

The whole thing is extremely disgusting, and anyone who engages in the practice has a very warped view of their daughter's sexuality, and very little faith in their daughter acting responsibly.