The conservative movement loves an innocent. Better yet if he has attended an Ivy League college and witnessed the debauchery of the elites firsthand. For this particular position, Nathan Harden, the author of “Sex and God at Yale,” possesses impeccable credentials. He was home-schooled, was already married when he got to college and had worshiped the institution so blindly that he was bound to be disappointed.

Like many home-schoolers, Harden is a true American eccentric. He quit before he finished high school, got a G.E.D. and spent his interim years drifting: loading cow manure for the gardening department at Walmart, working as a baggage handler for United and as a lounge singer in Florida, and volunteering with a medical relief charity. Somewhere in there he found his true love and, almost on a whim, married. Harden’s accounts of his itinerant travels are in some ways the most entertaining parts of the book, although he takes pains to avoid seeming too world-weary so that when he arrives on campus he can be truly, deeply shocked.

Read it all noting the content may not be suitable for all blog readers.

Filed under: * Culture-Watch • Books • Education • Sexuality • Young Adults • * Theology • Anthropology • Ethics / Moral Theology

1. m+ wrote: The only problem is, Sex Week has always had the sound approval of campus feminist groups, with an exception or two where a film has proved a shade too violent. If Harden hopes that his book will reignite a debate about Sex Week, he’s a little late. Last year, conservative students protested the prominence of pornography at Sex Week, and the administration threatened to ban the event (at the time, Yale was also being investigated for Title IX violations and for underreporting sexual harassment). Organizers have since submitted a proposal for a much tamer Sex Week that emphasizes sex education. Eesh. Why does the week get a pass just because campus feminist groups approve? College students, feminist or not, are notorious for unsound judgment and unhealthy behavior.  The administration has the responsibility to promote health and well being in mind, body, and spirit.  I’d love to hear how this week fulfills that responsibility. August 27, 12:20 pm | [comment link]

2. MichaelA wrote: This should do Yale’s reputation no end of good (not).  It doesn’t just compete with unis in the USA, but many of its potential students have the means to study at the most prestigious universities in other countries if they choose.  Articles like this won’t help it to attract those students. August 28, 9:08 pm | [comment link]

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