Dennis Prager’s Troubling Defense of Pornography, by Carl R. Trueman

By Carl R. Trueman, First Things, 4 . 28 . 23

Carl Trueman is a professor of biblical and religious studies at Grove City College and a fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center. 

Anyone who has been involved in pastoral ministry during the last decade will be acutely aware that internet pornography is one of the great scourges of contemporary society. And one does not need to be religious to believe that. In her recent book, The Case Against the Sexual Revolution, Louise Perry includes a chapter summarizing pornography’s effects on relationships, sexuality, and physical health. She also points out the obvious connections to sex trafficking and exploitation. And yet voices that claim to be conservative still make crass and ill-informed comments on the topic.

The most recent one of note is Dennis Prager. In conversation with Jordan Peterson, he claimed that Judaism does not see the use of pornography as morally wrong and that it is permissible when used by husbands in tandem with, rather than in place of, a normal sexual relationship with their wives. Thankfully, Denny Burk has provided a clear refutation of Prager’s take in a column at World Opinions. …

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