One Night With A Porn Star
Tonight on Nightline, My friend Craig Gross will be part of a debate with legendary porn star Ron Jeremy. Martin Bashir moderates the debate that took place at Yale a few nights ago and will be played tonight. This debate is not new, Craig (leader of xxxchurch.com a ministry to porn stars and those addicted to porn) has been traveling to college campuses this last year debating Ron in front of enormous crowds of college students.
Last year I traveled with Craig on one of these debates and posted my thoughts . Given tonight’s broadcast (which you may want to view with caution, I learned a few things at the debate I really didn’t want to know, but it wasn’t edited for television (does that make a difference anymore?) ), I thought I would re-post my recap of the experience.
Mark
March 12,2007
Last week I accompanied Craig Gross of XXXChurch.com to Texas Tech for a pornography debate with legendary porn star Ron Jeremy.
Ron has reportedly appeared in over 1800 porno flicks and has currently become well known for his appearance on the television program The Surreal Life.
Before meeting Ron for dinner my mind was full of questions, what would meeting a porn star be like?
Ron entered talking on a cell phone and sat down at the table pausing only to stick out his left hand for a shake and a brief “Hi I’m Ron” introduction. After hanging up, he commented on some potato skins he had passed in the bar and asked if we’d like any, I said sure and off he went to fetch some. “Nice Guy”, I thought.
It must be the Pharisee in me, but as we visited, I couldn’t help but focus on finding something wrong with this man. (why do we Christians do this?) Surely he couldn’t be happy being a porn star. There must be some area of his life that is failing, hurting, some reason he needs Jesus. But nothing really jumped out. He was a kind, considerate and thoughtful person.
Turning 54 today (Happy Birthday Ron) and single, Ron has most of the same issues a single person of 54 years might have (loneliness, desire for family etc). In fact, his issues remind me of many Christian singles I know.
We headed for the university where Craig and Ron debated the dangers of pornography. Ron held his position very well and made many compelling arguments I’m currently following up on. (perhaps I’ll blog on this later at a later time). Craig Gross did a great job keeping his cool and representing Christianity in an authentic manner. The Fox newsperson standing near me said, I think this might be how Jesus would want to be represented. And I wondered, If Jesus were here, what WOULD He do? (yeah yeah I know WWJD)
Would Jesus enter into a debate about whether pornography was right or wrong? Would he debate whether or not pornography was harmful?
Quickly reflecting on all the passages of scripture I could recall from memory, I wasn’t sure. Yes, Jesus spoke about the breadth of sin in The Sermon On The Mount. His objective was to show everyone that no matter how strictly one followed their notion of what made something right or wrong … all are sinners in need of forgiveness.
It wasn’t just “murder” that was wrong, but also harboring hatred in your heart toward a brother. Physically engaging in adultery was sin but also merely thinking lustfully toward another.
Bottom line, Jesus discussion of sin was to point out that none of us haven’t sinned, we are all guilty. Ron Jeremy’s sexual exploits were no more offensive to God than any of us who have imagined having a similar romp. We are all guilty. But Jesus purpose was to save humankind, and to show us how to live life to the full. Many of our definitions of “to the full” are what Jesus would question.
I can’t see Jesus taking the time to debate an issue like pornography, when he could speak to the heart of the man. Ultimately, Jesus was concerned with people and showing them they could live life abundantly through a relationship with God and others. I could see Jesus talking to Ron like he did Zacchaeus, calling Ron to live a transformed life. Jesus would want him to live life abundantly (and by “abundant” I’m not talking riches.. remember Zacchaeus gave away most of his!). Ron may not be experiencing anything abnormally wrong in his life, but he’s missing out on God’s riches that come through transformed living. I wonder how many Christians are missing out on this too?
After the debate, we went back to the hotel before dining at the only restaurant open and within walking distance … Denny’s. Ron came into Craig and my room and laid down on my bed nodding off a few times before we left.
I thought about what Jesus said
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
Salvation doesn’t come by finding something evil in a person’s life (that is too easy to do), but from offering what comes from salvation… rest for their soul.
PS ... Some have asked how I could even eat with a man like this. I respond with the following. Mark 2:14-17 As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him. While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and “sinners” were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. 16When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the “sinners” and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?”
On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
PlanetWisdom Student Conference
All Boys Want Is …
The only thing boys are interested in is ...
How did you finish the sentence? If the word you used to finish it rhymed with ‘sects’ a new study may convince you otherwise. (I use ‘sects’ so this will not get banned from any censoring filters).
According to the New York Times: The report, published in this month’s Journal of Adolescence, paints a far different picture of teen boys than the stereotype of testosterone-fueled youth. Psychology researchers from the State University of New York at Oswego surveyed 105 10th-grade boys whose average age was about 16.
The boys were asked their reasons for dating and were allowed to mark more than one answer. Notably, being physically attracted to someone wasn’t the primary motivation they gave for dating. More than 80 percent of the boys noted “I really liked the person.’’ Physical attraction and wanting to get to know someone better were the second most popular answers.
“Let’s give boys more credit,’’ said study author Andrew Smiler, an assistant professor of psychology at the university. “Although some of them are just looking for ‘sects’, most boys are looking for a relationship. The kids we know mostly aren’t like this horrible stereotype. They are generally interested in dating and getting to know their partners.’’
Let’s face it, ALL teenagers are thinking about ‘sects’ more than they did when they were in grade school, but we’ve often thought of boys as being interested in this one thing only. Most movies geared toward your generation (American Pie, Superbad, etc) seem to emphasize this too, as if it were a fact. When I think about my own years in high school ... that wasn’t true of me. I had relationships on the brain (not just ‘sects’). Apparently the same is still true.
Sadly, I don’t think we give boys a chance. Nobody ever seems to want to discuss how to have meaningful relationships with us boys… we are kind of left to figure it out ourselves. Most of us will grow up lonely too, even in marriage. We need to be able to talk about more than football, the weather and our jobs. High school is the perfect time to start working on these relational skills.
Some people think all of the boys taking this survey are liars, but I highly doubt it. God created us to crave intimacy (which is much greater than the desire for ‘sects’).
What do you think? Is this survey right or wrong?
Thanks for taking the time to read and comment,
Mark
PlanetWisdom Student Conference
A Legend Is Dead
One of the first Christian rockers, Larry Norman passed away Sunday morning.
I’m not sure there has ever been anyone as fresh as Larry. Jesus really made a difference in his life and he knew Jesus could change the lives of his friends.
Larry grew up in a religious home and started making rock music to reach out to people. If they wouldn’t come to church, Larry would bring church to them. He was quite a revolutionary, offending both Christians and non-Christians.
At this time there wasn’t anything in the Christian bookstores like it… actually anywhere like it… you should check out his lyrics, they are pretty bold and very fresh… nobody in the Christian music world writes songs like his anymore. He wrote “I wish we’d all been ready” and “Why should the devil have all the good music?”. One of my favorite songs, “Why dont you look into Jesus?”, is posted below.
I grew up loving Larry Norman’s music (His first solo album debuted the year I was born), and was really excited a few years ago when I spoke at the Cornerstone festival following his performance. Watching him from side stage is a memory I will not soon forget.
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Here’s the lyrics
Sipping whiskey from a pager cup.
You drown your sorrows till you can’t stand up.
Take a look at what you’ve done to yourself.
Why don’t you put the bottle back on the shelf.
Yellow fingered from your cigarettes.
Your hands are shakin’ while your body sweats.
You work all night, you sleep all day.
You take your money and throw it all away.
CHORUS:
Why don’t you look into Jesus,
look into Jesus, look into Jesus,
You know He’s got the answer.
-2-
H.I.V. * on Valentines Day.
And you’re still lookin’ for the perfect lay.
You think that rock and roll will set you free.
Honey-you’ll be deaf before you’re 33.
Shooting junk till you’re half insane.
A broken needle in your purple vein.
You say you’re gonna be a superstar,
but you never really found out who you really are.
(Chorus)
-Solo-
Thinking back when you were a child.
Your soul was free and you heart ran wild.
Things have changed, you’re older now.
If you’re unhappy and you don’t know how.
(Chorus)
-Outro-
* originally “gonorrhea” but updated with the AIDS crisis
PlanetWisdom Student Conference
American Idol: Jason Castro
While watching American Idol last week, I saw a face I knew I had seen before. Later I found out it was Jason Castro who happens to live in Texas. Is it possible I had seen him around here? I know I’ve met the guy? But where?
Later I discovered Jason is connected to Lakepoint Baptist Church in Rockwall, TX . We used to have our Dallas PlanetWisdom at Lakepoint, so I may have seen him there. I am positive I have met him before ... but I could be wrong.
Jason ..if you’re out there… help me out! Either way… My family likes him and will vote for him as long as he continues to sings well ... even if it turns out we never met (but I’m SURE we have!)
Are you into American Idol? Has this show run it’s course or is it here to stay?
Mark
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PlanetWisdom Student Conference
Forget The Lunch Lady
School Bus Fight
ok ... I said I would wait until Tuesday to start .. but this is too good…
Maybe you have seen the fight on the school bus in Gilbert, Arizona between a student and a bus driver. As of Monday I couldn’t find anything that told me whether charges were filed, but police have recommended the driver, the student and the driver’s daughter, and another student have charges filed against them.
Apparently, a bus driver exchanged words with a student who didn’t normally ride her bus. The girl attempted to leave the bus and as you can imagine, the driver was not allowed to let her exit (according to district policy).
What do you think? Who is at fault?
***WARNING***
There is some explicit language in this video, much less than I hear when visiting high school campuses around the country, however.
*****************
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Update:
The Gilbert Police Department has concluded the investigation from “School Bus Incident” which occurred on 02/15/2008. The police report will be forwarded to the Maricopa County Attorney’s office requesting the following charges be filed:
Kim Sullivan: aggravated assault (intentional touching of a child 15 and under) and disorderly conduct - fighting.
Samantha Taylor: aggravated assault (school employee) and disorderly conduct - fighting
Cassandra Schlosser and Erin Sullivan: disorderly conduct - fighting.
PlanetWisdom Student Conference
Mark’s New Blog
Welcome to my new blog on PlanetWisdom.com! I started blogging infrequently a couple years ago on MySpace and realized that I really needed to have my blog featured here on my own site.
I’m not one for blogging for blogging sake, so I may post something everyday or nothing for a week. Many blogs are narcissistic (look it up on dictionary.com), I hope mine won’t be. I don’t think you are interested in where I am or what I am up to on any given day ( today I am hom e in TX writing a bunch of stuff)… so I’ll try to keep those meanderings to a minimum.
My plan is to keep this blog interactive, posting questions from students, asking questions for you to reply, and giving different thoughts about faith an life along the way.
When I’m writing I’m writing for students, so youth pastors and parents, if you are hoping to hear about my philosophies of youth ministry or parenting, you’ll have to read between the lines, this blog is for students.
Please send me news items, questions, or interesting videos and pics you’d like me to comment on and I’ll try to incorporate them in my posts.
Tomorrow we begin, see you here…
Mark