The Porn Phenomenon

THE PORN PHENOMENON THE PORN PHENOMENON THE PORN CRISIS IS NOT COMING... IT IS HERE Pornography is pervasive, permeating our culture from shop windows to web ads, premium cable shows to smartphone apps. Where once it was kept literally under wraps, used furtively in secret and shame, porn is now a standard feature of everyday life, seen by most teens and young adults as less morally offensive than failing to recycle. The Porn Phenomenon is an assessment of the cultural place of pornography today, based on a survey of existing social science research and nearly 3,000 new interviews with U.S. teens, adults and Protestant church leaders. In this research monograph, produced in partnership with Josh McDowell Ministry, you’ll find: • Statistics on porn use and views about porn among key age and faith segments • An overview of scholarly research on porn’s effects on individuals, relationships and communities • Insights from experts and ministry leaders on what the data means for culture and the Church • Barna analysis of the cultural factors at play, including technology and the country’s shifting moral center • Engaging charts, graphs and infographics to help you understand the story behind the numbers The Porn Phenomenon study exposes the breadth and depth of porn’s impact and shows that the Christian community can no longer ignore pornography’s effects on the minds and hearts of the next generation. ISBN-13: 978-0-9965843-6-4 9 0 0 0 0 9 7 8 0 9 9 6 5 8 4 3 6 4 Knowledge to navigate a changing world THE PORN PHENOMENON The Impact of Pornography in the Digital Age Research commissioned by: Josh McDowell Ministry (a Cru Ministry) Research conducted by: Barna Group, Ventura, California Porn Phenomenon 2-23.indd 1 2/26/16 10:41 AM The Porn Phenomenon © 2016 by Josh McDowell Ministry. All rights reserved. All information contained in this document is copyrighted by Josh McDowell Ministry, a Cru Ministry and shall remain the property of Josh McDowell Ministry. U.S. and international copyright laws protect the contents of this document in their entirety. Any reproduction, modiﬁcation, distribution, transmission, publication, translation, display, hosting or sale of all or any portion of the contents of this document is strictly prohibited without written permission of an authorized representative of Josh McDowell Ministry. The information contained in this report is true and accurate to the best knowledge of the researchers and the copyright holder. It is provided without warranty of any kind: express, implied or otherwise. In no event shall Josh McDowell Ministry, Barna Group or their employees be liable for any special, incidental, indirect or consequential damages of any kind, or any damages whatsoever resulting from the use of this information, whether or not users have been advised of the possibility of damage, or on any theory of liability, arising out of or in connection with the use of this information. Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from the New Living Translation copyright ©1996, 2004, 2007, 2013 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. Porn Phenomenon 2-23.indd 2 2/23/16 12:49 PM CONTENTS Preface by Josh McDowell ��5 Introduction ��9 Why the Church Can No Longer Ignore Porn 1� The Landscape of Porn ��15 Special Report: Porn 2.0 ....................... 28 2� The Uses of Porn �� 37 3 � Porn & Morality �� 63 Special Report: Pastors & Porn ................. 80 4� The Impact of Porn �� 87 Special Report: Covenant Eyes ................. 106 5� What Can We Do About Porn? �� 111 Acknowledgements ��133 Methodology ��134 Endnotes �� 137 Appendix Fact Sheets ��141 About�� 160 Porn Phenomenon 2-23.indd 3 2/23/16 12:49 PM PREFACE by Josh McDowell Practically every pastor, youth worker, Christian educator and par- ent says they want to pass on their faith, morals and values to the next generation. I have spent the vast majority of my life trying to help in that mission. About six years ago, I began to sense something was seriously wrong. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. Whatever it was, it was negatively affecting the receptivity of young people to the biblical faith that parents and churches so desperately want to pass on. After a lot of questions and investigation, I concluded that young people are being overwhelmed by Internet pornography. The easy access our kids have to pornography is distorting their views of morality and the Christian faith. While there was good secondary research on the issue, I became convinced that a study among pastors, youth pastors and churched youth and adults was necessary in order to understand the contours of the crisis. Without primary research, I feared it would be difficult to awaken the Church to the emergency. I consulted key pastors and Christian leaders. Chuck Swindoll encouraged the research initiative and told me he believes pornography is the greatest cancer in the Church today. Dr. James Dobson was also supportive but warned there would be resistance because church leaders caught in the grip of porn are burdened with shame and an incredible fear of being discovered. Nevertheless, I pressed forward. Barna Group, under the leadership of David Kinnaman, agreed to take on the challenge. In the end, The Porn Phenomenon became one of the most comprehensive studies Barna has conducted to date. The goal was to assess the extent to which pornography has perme- ated Christian families, the Church and our society at large, and to determine its impact. PReface | 5 Porn Phenomenon 2-23.indd 5 2/23/16 12:49 PM I’ve often said that a problem well defined is a problem half solved. This study defines the problem—but it also goes well be- yond that. Be prepared for an eye opener! The Porn Phenomenon is a wakeup call. When 54 percent of Christian young adults ages 18 to 24 seek out porn at least oc- casionally, and when two out of three youth pastors and more than half of senior pastors say porn is a current or past strug- gle, we have a genuine crisis on our hands. Porn is undermining God’s truth in the lives of young people and eroding the credibility of the Church. Pornography is not new. However, the digital tools that de- liver and propagate it today are new, and they have fundamen- PORN IS tally changed the landscape. But not even the ubiquity and easy UNDERMINING access of smartphone and tablet apps will be able to compete with GOD’S TRUTH IN the coming advancements in virtual reality (VR) technology. THE LIVES OF VR systems such as Oculus Rift, Samsung Gear VR and YOUNG PEOPLE HoloLens immerse the user visually and sonically in a virtual AND ERODING world. In the near future, all three systems will have add-on THE CREDIBILITY devices that bring other parts of the user’s body into the vir- OF THE CHURCH tual space—meaning a user won’t just see and hear but also touch and feel virtual objects and people as if they were real. This technology has promising implications for manufac- turing design, the medical field, other sciences and the arts. But it is not difficult to imagine the devastating capacity of VR devices to lure an entire generation deeper into a virtual world of pornography, turning what is already a crisis into an epidemic of addiction. We must act quickly and create better ways of talking about the problem of porn. This study is a good start. We need a culture among church leaders and parents that is more conducive to transparency and emotional safety, where Christians of all ages can admit their struggles. We need to extend more grace and offer greater hope: People can be restored by God’s grace through the body of Christ. 6 | THE PORN PHENOMENON Porn Phenomenon 2-23.indd 6 2/23/16 12:49 PM In some places, the Christian community is beginning to take positive steps. Pastors, youth workers and parents are WE CAN COMBAT THE coming out of the shadows to sound the alarm. Individuals and PORN PHENOMENON. groups are creating resources that offer help and healing. For MORE IMPORTANTLY, example, I partner with a group called Covenant Eyes (www. WE CAN WIN THE covenanteyes.com) to promote Internet accountability and fil- BATTLE tering services for individuals, families and churches. We can combat the porn phenomenon. More importantly, we can win the battle—if we act now. The apostle Paul’s challenge to the first-century church is as relevant today as then: Use every piece of God’s armor to resist the enemy in the time of evil, so that after the battle you will be stand- ing firm. Stand your ground, putting on the sturdy belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News, so that you will be fully prepared (Eph. 6:13–15, NLT). PReface | 7 Porn Phenomenon 2-23.indd 7 2/23/16 12:49 PM INTRODUCTION Why the Church Can No Longer Ignore Porn Thirty years ago, pornography arrived in the mail wrapped in discreet black plastic. It was checked out for rental from the “special section” behind a curtain in the neighborhood video store. It was purchased from magazine racks raised out of chil- dren’s reach (unless the kids were tall, or enterprising, or both). It was commonly understood that some men looked at porn— but as a general rule they weren’t proud of it, and most wouldn’t have dreamed of bragging about it.

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