The Porn Debate

The Great Porn Debate was over a week ago. Over 800 students came and heard Ron Jeremy (porn star) and Michael Leahy (former sex addict) debate about pornography and it's effect on society.

I was in charge of reading the comment cards, and saw mixed reviews. Some people were disappointed with the format, it was too informal, they said. Others loved it. There were the odd complaints about the technical difficulties, but c'est la vie. The debate itself was well attended, thought-provoking and a fantastic advertisement for the second night. Check out the website to see what everyone's talking about!

Night #2 was Michael Leahy's presentation, Porn Nation. I thought it was fantastic!! He had a video showing interviews with former sex addicts, counselors, former porn stars...all sharing the hurt and destruction of pornography. His sincerity and honesty blew me away!

I was so struck by how Michael spoke about his relationship with Ron. It would be so easy for him to express anger or disdain toward the man who represents an industry Michael loathes. Rather, Michael spoke with compassion and a genuine love for Ron. How he prays for him and talks about tough spiritual topics with Ron....Michael's such an example to me of love and of a Jesus-like friend.

After an exhausting 48 hours (or 5 weeks of prepping), I'm excited about what we accomplished with God at UBC. The campus was talking and questioning. We had and continue to have lots of spiritual conversations with students about spirituality and sexuality. And, unlikely as it may have seemed, "porn" is now a very normal part of my vocabulary....