{"id":10250,"date":"2010-08-09T00:33:51","date_gmt":"2010-08-09T00:33:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/2010\/08\/09\/protectingchurches\/"},"modified":"2010-08-09T00:33:51","modified_gmt":"2010-08-09T00:33:51","slug":"protectingchurches","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/protectingchurches\/","title":{"rendered":"Protecting Churches from Porn"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>T<\/strong>he pervasive nature of pornography, sadly, has opened doors to temptation during business hours (or after hours with an organization&#8217;s equipment). And the church office isn&#8217;t immune from the problem, especially as technology increasingly becomes mobile, offering opportunities to connect online via mobile phones and laptops. In 2001, <em class=\"citation\">Leadership<\/em> surveyed pastors and found that 4 in 10 struggled with online pornography.<\/p><p>Leaders must be aware of how church-owned equipment is used, not only to help protect the moral and spiritual well-being of pastors and staff, but also to minimize the potential for a sexual misconduct claim. Here are five precautions that can help protect church leaders using church-owned equipment:<\/p><ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Install filtering services and accountability software (which tracks website activity and generates reports), such as Covenant Eyes, Internet Safety Inc.&#8217;s Ethershield, or XXXChurch.com, on computers, laptops, and mobile devices issued by the church;<\/li>\n<li>Set up passwords and other identification requirements on every computer and laptop. This limits accessibility and provides another way to track web activity by individuals; <\/li>\n<li>Create and use a computer-use policy that (1) establishes no expectation of privacy regarding employee use of e-mail, the internet, and computer files, (2) states specific improper uses, and (3) acknowledges the existence of penalties and disciplinary actions for violations;<\/li>\n<li>Emphasize authentic relationships among church staff, says William Struthers, author of <em class=\"citation\">Wired for Intimacy<\/em>. &#8220;Each church staff needs to look at its unique circumstances. For example, a small church staff with two or three people will have different ways of creating transparency and accountability, especially if they&#8217;re using the same computer. Larger staffs are going to have to have a different approach,&#8221; Struthers says. &#8220;That might look more like specific clusters&mdash;pastoral staff, the children&#8217;s ministry staff, the youth staff, the adult ministries staff&mdash;each one probably should have a unique way of cultivating accountability to create the transparency there.&#8221;;<\/li>\n<li>Find natural ways to keep the issue visible. &#8220;The primary principle is that this should be an ongoing conversation,&#8221; Struthers continues. &#8220;Conversations should include setting standards for appropriate entertainment; discussing culture and scriptural influences on those standards; raising the issue without overpersonalizing it&mdash;reading something as a staff, or bringing in a speaker that creates an open environment to engage the issue; and spending time regularly in prayer.&#8221;<\/li>\n\n<\/ul><p class=\"is-style-article-copyright\">Copyright &copy; 2010 by the author or Christianity Today\/<em class=\"citation\">Leadership<\/em> Journal.<a href=\"http:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/help\/permissions-privacy\/permissions.html\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"copyright\" rel=\"noopener\">Click here<\/a> for reprint information on <em class=\"citation\">Leadership<\/em> Journal.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The pervasive nature of pornography, sadly, has opened doors to temptation during business hours (or after hours with an organization&#8217;s equipment). And the church office isn&#8217;t immune from the problem, especially as technology increasingly becomes mobile, offering opportunities to connect online via mobile phones and laptops. In 2001, Leadership surveyed pastors and found that 4 <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/protectingchurches\/\">Read more&#8230;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"tax_ctp_authors":[2455],"tax_ctp_books":[],"tax_ctp_categories":[142,154],"tax_ctp_field_guide_subcategory":[],"tax_ctp_field_guides":[],"tax_ctp_format":[131],"tax_ctp_multimedia":[],"tax_ctp_point_editor":[],"tax_publications":[718,156,721],"tax_ctp_tags":[3381,3606,3613,3619,3928,4419,4652,4664,5134,5160],"tax_ctp_topics":[],"class_list":["post-10250","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","tax_ctp_authors-matt-branaugh","tax_publications-2010-leadership-journal","tax_publications-leadership-journal","tax_publications-summer_2010-leadership-journal","tax_ctp_tags-administration","tax_ctp_tags-church-buildings","tax_ctp_tags-church-leadership","tax_ctp_tags-church-staff","tax_ctp_tags-facilities","tax_ctp_tags-management","tax_ctp_tags-planning","tax_ctp_tags-pornography","tax_ctp_tags-temptation","tax_ctp_tags-time-management"],"acf":{"scripture_references":null},"yoast_head":"<!-- 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