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When police discovered thousands of pornographic images on the home computer of a man involved in the leadership of a nearby church, Darrell Brazell wasn't surprised.

"They said they found something like 6,000 images on his computer," Brazell says. "That sounds like a lot, but it's not. You can download that much in a very short amount of time."

Brazell knows. He was addicted to pornography for nearly 15 years.

"It's a very common misconception that somehow ministers are above all of that," he says. "The truth is, ministers are humans too, with the same weaknesses and frailties as any other person."

Brazell, who says he has been "clean" for 10 years, is pastor of New Hope Fellowship in Lawrence, Kansas. He counsels and coordinates faith-based support groups for men addicted to pornography, and a large number of the men he counsels are ministers. When a minister realizes he is addicted to pornography, the efforts to cover up the problem lead to inner conflict, which can create growing frustration and hopelessness.

"The trouble is, for many years, pornography and addictions related to it have been able to fly under the radar," Brazell says. "Then, along came the internet, which allowed free and perceived anonymous access to pornography practically anytime, anywhere. And you won't ever stop it completely, people being people, but you can make the church property as clean of it as possible."

The struggle with pornography for pastors and church staff members is not new. In 2001, LEADERSHIP journal surveyed pastors and found that four in 10 struggled with it. A 2007 New York Times article estimated $3 billion in annual sales for the internet porn industry in the United States, and since then, the availability of mobile devices that access the internet with ease, including laptops and cell phones, has exploded.

As church offices evolve, so do the uses of technological devices. Frank Sommerville, a Texas-based attorney and editorial advisor for Your Church, has been a member of three churches that asked pastors to leave because of addictions to pornography. He says pornography "can be as addictive as crack cocaine."

So how can churches respond with safeguards that help protect their pastors and staff with church equipment, whether in the office or on the go?

Sommerville points out that the safeguards churches must take to protect their offices extends beyond pastors and staff members. Others with access to a church's property can take advantage of using equipment to visit inappropriate sites.

"There are people who know full well how easy it is to track pornography on a computer, so they might stop by the church, especially if they have their own keys and know they will be alone, to use a computer there prior to going home," Sommerville says. "Fortunately, if it's done right, certain types of websites can be blocked from ever getting on a computer, and tracking software can easily report wherever a computer has been. And with passwords or ID cards, even though you can't be totally sure who was sitting at a computer when pornography was accessed, the prospects can be narrowed down dramatically."

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