I Kissed Dating Goodbye by Joshua Harris

Conservatives began to observe the liberal homeschooling movement and recognized there was a real opportunity here for conservative Christians especially… Among liberals, the movement really began as an extension of the radicalism of the 1960s, a pushback against institutionalized forms of learning and a basic anti-authoritarianism. ‘In one sense’, Mohler writes, ‘it was conservatives who learned from the liberals about the model of homeschooling. As explained in an article by Dr Albert Mohler, the movement actually began among the cultural left almost at the same time as the cultural right picked it up ( The Tragedy of Joshua Harris: Sobering Thoughts for Evangelicals, Al Mohler, 8-1-19). Joshua’s parents were pioneers in that style of education and were greatly influential in the 1970s and 80s in the Pacific Northwest. Joshua Harris is the eldest of Gregg and Sono Harris’ seven children and grew up in a Christian home largely surrounded by the lifestyle of Christian homeschooling. Many people tell me that there is a different way to practice faith and I want to remain open to this, but I’m not there now’. By all the measurements that I have for defining a Christian, I am not a Christian. The popular phrase for this is deconstruction, the biblical phrase is falling away.

Shortly after announcing that he and his wife of 21 years would be separating, Harris announced further distressing news, ‘The information that was left out of our announcement is that I have undergone a massive shift in regard to my faith in Jesus. To many, Harris was the face of the American Christian purity movement. His second book, Boy Meets Girl: Say Hello to Courtship became a sort of textbook among American evangelical families for maintaining purity and seeking a spouse.

For those who may never have heard of Joshua Harris, his first book I Kissed Dating Goodbye has become a hallmark of the American evangelical purity movement against American culture’s extreme sexualized and casual dating scene. This was a major surprise and shock among young American Christians. In recent years, some significant changes have taken place in both of us… Thank you for your understanding and for respecting our privacy during a difficult time’, read Harris’ Instagram post. ‘We’re writing to share the news that we are separating and we’ll continue our life together as friends. In July 2019, Joshua Harris, a popular American author and pastor announced on social media that he and his wife Shannon would be divorcing.

I Kissed Dating Goodbye by Joshua Harris