Anyone ever attend a Promise Keepers gathering?

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In 1997 there was a huge Promise Keepers convention planned here where I live. Advertised weeks ahead in multi media, it was supposed to be a major event. Free admission and a free pizza lunch was on offer. A 2,000 seat Pentecostal Church was booked for the two days of meetings. I was at a crossroads in my Christian life and, having read the Promise Keeper book and being somewhat impressed by their goals, decided to attend.

It began at 9am on the Saturday morning of the big weekend. Not being socially inclined I arrived early to ensure a seat in the back row, well away from any outbursts of righteous enthusiasm. By 9:15 the organizers decided everyone who was likely to attend was already there and it was time to begin. I looked around and counted 27 people scattered throughout this huge auditorium. Naturally the first thing the MC did was encourage everyone to move down closer to the front, which everyone but me complied with.

After a couple of hours of slide shows, men weeping in the aisle, and an usher and his wife who obviously had nothing to do other than shout praises and add plenty of applause, urging us all to BE MEN, I thought to myself, “this is so lame” and slipped out the door.

I encountered a handful of timid males looking in but not wanting to commit to anything further. One heckler, an old man with spittle on his lips, was muttering something about everyone inside being “Sunday-keeping heathen”. I’m guessing he was a true Sabbath Keeper and proud of it.

Anyway, I left and told my wife, who was surprised to see me home before noon, that the whole thing could have been done over the phone for all the enlightenment and motivation I felt was available. If anyone has had a better experience than mine I would be interested to know. 😉
 
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Those events are too …too…touchy-feely? for me. I don’t like revealing my feelings like that.
 
I remember thePromise Keeper rally’s though my husband would never attend such an event. My impression of them was that this was a time when Evangelical Christianity was greatly concerned over the feminization of churches. Not the feminist movement but the problem of the majority of parishioners being women and too much talk of feelings. They felt that more men needed to view church as a masculine endeavor, not a feminine one. More warrior Jesus and less compassionate Jesus.

Many men praised the rally’s. The hope was to get more men involved in Church overall. I have no idea whether they considered it successful or not. There’s not many of them anymore so maybe not?

I’d love to hear from anyone that did attend an entire rally and your thoughts on the event.
 
Macusculinity can be overplayed sometimes when there are more important traits to work on.
 
Pattylt said:
The hope was to get more men involved in Church overall.
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That, plus be more responsible as husbands and fathers. This was interpreted by PK’s many detractors that it would mean being more overbearing, more dominating, and more structured in a way that would please the men but no one else. The true premise was just the opposite and I admired it. But a rally was not something I was familiar with and I’ve never been to a similar event since.
 
When I first read the title I thought it was about those events where pubescent girls pledge their chastity to their fathers until they get married. Are those groups still around?
 
on_the_hill said:
When I first read the title I thought it was about those events where pubescent girls pledge their chastity to their fathers until they get married. Are those groups still around?
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I hate chastity rings.

They’re. just. so. icky.
 
Never went to any of that stuff, but one of my buddies from school had a Dad who was really involved with them. That was in Ft. Lauderdale, FL in the late 1980s. I hadn’t even thought of the PKs again until I read this post…bringing back some memories. now. 😉
 
PKs were founded in 1990 (and there is some connection between the founders and the founder of the Catholic St. Joseph’s Covenant Keepers I think). I remember an uncle got really involved with them in the late 1990s; he even wore the Promise Keepers t-shirt. It seemed to really help him with his family and his faith was on fire for many years. His enthusiasm for Christ definitely made a profound impression on me when I was a kid. Although the Promise Keepers seemed to fade away in prominence in the 2000s and I don’t know if he’s still involved, he is still happily married (a rarity among my extended relatives, sadly). There always seemed to be a “good, clean spirit” about them.
 
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CelticWarlord said:
One heckler, an old man with spittle on his lips, was muttering something about everyone inside being “Sunday-keeping heathen”. I’m guessing he was a true Sabbath Keeper and proud of it.
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And the Pharisee said “at least I am not as this tax collector” is the first thing that comes to mind. The Gospel says the tax collector was more worthy in front of God because he felt unworthy while the Pharisee was presenting his own virtues in front of God.
I wouldn’t care for such gathering based on what you present here. Then again I am a heretic because as an EO I should NEVER even consider the gathering of neoprotestants, and all protestants, because they are sect (self-severed from the Church).
 
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A post on their website suggests that the movement is now attempting to stage a comeback after disappearing from public view.

Promise Keepers, the Christian men’s ministry which filled stadiums across America and convened over a million men to the Mall in the District of Columbia in the 1990s, announced Tuesday the launch of a new era, and a new national event at AT&T Stadium in Dallas July 31 and August 1, 2020. The event is… Read More

Blog | Promise Keepers]
 
I’m a girl, so I can’t go, but I can’t fault somebody trying to do the right thing ie being a good husband and father and loving Jesus.
 
They’re called Purity Rings. A Google search shows them for sale all over the Internet.
It’s not the sort of practice I practiced with my daughters, but who am I to judge?
 
It is icky. IMO, it crosses boundaries.
 
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There was a group of girls pledging chastity in W. Pa., where I used to live. It was called the Silver Ring Thing. I think it was started by the diocese. Probably still around in some form.
 
In a big way. I really don’t want to be connected in any way to my daughters’…behaviors, as it were. Yuck.
 
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