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Great Porn Debate

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BY BRANDON A. PERRY

Pastor Craig Gross and pornography actor Ron Jeremy are showing that individuals from different sides of the tracks can work together to advance positive causes, even if they disagree on a core issue.

Gross and Jeremy, who have sparred publicly over the issue of pornography and its role in society, will bring their ā€œThe Great Porn Debateā€ to Indianapolis on Aug. 8 at the Old Centrum Foundation, 1201 Central Ave. Doors open at 6 p.m. and the event starts at 7 p.m.

Gross and Jeremy will discuss all aspects of pornography during the debate, which will be followed by a question and answer session as wellas a meet and greet period.

The duo has been debating on college campuses the past two years and would like to expand their one of a kind tour to other venues such as theaters and clubs.

ā€œI am against pornography and that is what Ron Jeremy does for a living, but I consider Ron a friend and I have no concerns about sharing a bus with him,ā€ said Gross, who is traveling on a 12 passenger bus with Jeremy, his staff and his wife Jeanette and their two young children. ā€œI am actually excited for the time we will get to spend off stage.ā€

Gross is the founder and ā€œpastorā€ of XXXchurch.com, the largest anti-pornography Web site with more than a half million visitors a month. He quit his job as a youth pastor in 1999 to join a few other ministers in creating the Web site after they noticed that porn and divorce are just as common in the church as outside the church.

The Web site offers viewers spiritual and practical tips on how to break addictions to porn, downloads of Internet ā€œaccountability softwareā€ to track the use of pornography and exclusive testimonies of former adult film stars. Gross and his staff have also hosted ā€œPancake and Pornā€ breakfast forums at many churches.

According to Neilsen/Net Ratings Inc. at least 20 million people visit porn Internet sites each month, and those sites generate an average of $700 million to $1 billion each year.

However, what started out primarily as a Web site to help fellow Christians break free of addiction has turned into a ministry designed to reach people who are actually inside the pornography field as well. XXX.Church.com volunteers have visited adult film festivals to hand out Bibles and literature with the title ā€œJesus Loves Porn Stars!ā€

ā€œIt is the hardest thing we do having to be in that (tempting) environment, but also the easiest thing,ā€ Gross said. ā€œLet me explain: We are able to meet people where they are at, we go to them, we listen, we talk when asked to and we show them love regardless of what they believe.ā€

He added that itā€™s important for Christians to remember that the last thing Jesus instructed his disciples to do was to ā€œgo into all the worldā€ and spread his message of salvation.

ā€œI am tired of lazy, scared, weak Christians that are afraid of the world,ā€ said Gross. ā€œHow are we going to have an influence on the world from the sidelines? Letā€™s get out of the church sometimes.ā€

Although XXXChurch.com has generated controversy among Christians for its straight-forward tactics of attracting viewers (such as the use of an animated penis as a teaching tool), Gross said the Web site is transforming many lives, as shown by the testimonies he has received from former addicts and porn actors who have left their porn careers.

Sierra, one of the most popular Black adult film stars, recently derided the ā€œcrazinessā€ of the industry in an interview she gave XXXChurch.com. She is one of several individuals receiving assistance from the Web siteā€™s Esther Fund to pursue ā€œdreams away from pornography.ā€

Jeremy, who is recognized by many as the ā€œkingā€ of porn, has appeared in over 1,800 porn flicks since his 1978 debut and claims to have had sex with over 4,000 women. While not ready to leave his lifestyle, Jeremy does respect what Grossā€™ ministry has achieved.

ā€œI like what Craig does for a living and I am glad he is here to help people that want help,ā€ Jeremy said in a recent interview with ABCā€™s Martin Bashear.

Jeremy doesnā€™t share Grossā€™ view that pornography is an evil vice, but does agree that adults should make a strong effort to keep it away from children.

Forty-four percent of children in a recent Time/CNN poll indicated that they have visited x-rated sites, and 43 percent said they do not have rules about Internet use in their homes.

Jeremy, who met Gross during one of the pastorā€™s ā€œmission tripsā€ to adult film events, has agreed to appear in commercials with XXXChurch.comā€™s fuzzy sidekick Pete the Porno Puppet. The commercials, which will start airing on cable television and the Web site later this month, are designed to discourage the use of pornography among youth.

ā€œWe (adult actors) really donā€™t want kids to see our videos,ā€ Jeremy said.

Gross said most figures in adult film give only lip service to keeping their products from kids, and praised Jeremy for actually ā€œputting his money where his mouth is.ā€

Admission for the Great Porn Debate, which is open to the general public, is $10 in advance, $15 day of event. For ticket information log on to www.porndebate.com or www.xxxchurch.com.

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