Saturday, July 6, 2013

Pornography and the Mobile Culture

Mobile technology is allowing anyone interested to enter the cyberspace at anytime and place. A recent Catholic Time's article reported on a forum, conducted by the Bishops Mass Media Committee, that dealt with the proliferation of mobile devices and pornography. With easier access to mobile devices we are likely to see, according to the forum, a breakdown of our traditional values. Determining what measures can be used to counter this trend was an important consideration for the forum presenters.

The article mentions that when the porno actor from Japan came to Korea, he was greeted enthusiastically by the young people, and in the interview, he mimicked the sex act. Sadly, the reception he was given is perhaps a sign that pornography is becoming a staple of our culture, and that we can expect more out-of-wedlock pregnancies, abortions and abandoning of infants. As a result, many are asking for more action on this issue from the Church.

The sex act, a gift that is exchanged between the partners in marriage, is increasingly being commercialized and distorted by pornography. Those who are involved in marketing this travesty of love, distorting the sex act and, for some, making marriage more difficult, are denying the dignity of our person-hood, as one presenter expressed it.

It also magnifies the divisions in oneself, breaking the relationship we have with God and causing us to lose the direction of life.  Porno and violence give birth to anxiety and sadness was one of the conclusions of the forum.

The director of the Bishops Committee mentioned that even in home theaters suggestive scenes without any filtering are becoming commonplace. We need to discern and oppose this take-over of our society by the commercialization of sex for quick and easy profits.

In another article, a  journalist who was present at a parish sex education program for grammar and middle school children, said that hearing children speak about sex so openly and and frankly left her with mixed feelings.  In her day all was negative and hush hush, but for these children it was very different. But she knows that what they know has come from the mass media and their smart phones and, being fragmentary, cannot give much discernment.
 

The journalist concludes that this is an issue the Church will have to take seriously, including all adults, whether having children or not, if we are to protect all children--and ultimately our society--from the false sexual culture that is being promoted today.

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