Porn and the Church
Pornography is more accessible than ever, and even in churches it is being consumed on a daily basis. How can church leaders address this issue and pastorally care for those who struggle with it?
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Sex is a beautiful gift given to us by God to be enjoyed in a loving, marital relationship as an expression of Christ's love for the church. Pornography is an ugly distortion of that gift, damages those involved, and damages those who consume it.
One of the world's largest porn sites recorded 42 billion hits in a year, or 220,000 video views per minute. And it's not only men; nearly 40% of those visitors are women. And it's not only people outside the church: just over half of practising Christians in a US study report consuming porn, with 22% consuming it on a weekly basis.
In this episode, Adrian Reynolds (Associate National Director) speaks with Ian Henderson (The Naked Truth Project) about the influence and harms of porn, how it distorts God's good gift for sex, and how church leaders can address the issue and pastor those in their churches who struggle with it.
00:00 - Introduction
02:03 - Definitions and statistics of pornography
10:45 - The harms of pornography
17:57 - The sin of porn, a distortion of sex
21:39 - Pastoring people through porn issues
30:52 - Professional help for porn strugglers
33:11 - Realism and optimism
Show notes
- The Naked Truth Project (The Naked Truth Project)
- Pornhub’s Annual Report (Fight the New Drug)
- 25 Porn Addiction Statistics for 2025 (Ecare Behavioural Institute)
- Over Half of Practising Christians Admit They Use Pornography (Barna)
In:Dependence is the official FIEC podcast for local church leaders, where you’ll hear conversations on helpful topics from the FIEC staff team and guests.
You can subscribe by searching for “In:Dependence” on your favourite podcast app or by subscribing to the FIEC YouTube channel.
Podcast music: Drifting by Future Infinite.
