(Washington Stand) A majority of practicing Christians, including pastors, admit to viewing pornography and a large share say they are comfortable with the habit, a new study has found. In Barna’s recently released researched report, Beyond the Porn Phenomenon, produced in partnership with Pure Desire Ministries, researchers found that pornography use is so prevalent among all demographics and the gap in use among Christians and non-Christians, as well as men and women, has grown narrower over the last eight years.
Even though practicing Christians were still found to view pornography less frequently than non-Christians, the gap between the two groups was only 14 percentage points. Some 54% of Christians reported viewing pornography compared with 68% of non-Christians.
In general, 75% of Christian men and 40% of Christian women reported consuming porn on some level.
“Despite the Church’s stance against lust generally, it seems little progress has been made to deter many of those who fill the pews from pornography consumption specifically,” researchers said. “The gap between professed beliefs and actual behavior raises questions about the efficacy of current approaches within faith communities.” (Read More)
