"Now, brethren of the priesthood, there should not be any X- or R-rated movies that we participate in viewing or talking about. There must be no pornographic magazines, pictures, or stories, no re-telling of filthy jokes or crude experiences. Once in a while we should stop and ask ourselves, "In whose army are we fighting? Whose battle lines are we defending?" Do you have the courage to walk out of an off-color PG-rated movie--or do you watch and listen, and suggest to yourself, "This soon will pass," or "Everyone is doing it; it must be an acceptable type of entertainment"? Have you the courage to keep out of your home some television shows that are filled with suggestive sexual conversation--and even experiences? Have you thought lately how effective these shows are in piercing even the strongest spirits? Brethren, we must not feed ourselves a diet of trash!"
"I am persuaded that if we are to 'conquer Satan and . . . escape the hands of the servants of Satan that do uphold his work', we must understand and recognize the situation as it is."
(Joe
J. Christensen, "The Savior is Counting on You" - CR, Oct.
1996, p. 55
"Guard your homes. How foolish it seems to install bars and bolts and electronic devices against thieves and molesters while more insidious intruders come in as invited guests."
Gordon B. Hinckley, “Overpowering the Goliaths in Our Lives,” Ensign, May 1983, 46
Gordon
B. Hinckley
"Tithing:
An Opportunity To Prove Our Faithfulness"
General
Conference, April 1982
"Pornography pollutes the mind. The stench of obscenity and vulgarity reaches and offends the heavens. It putrifies all it touches. . . . Pornography and erotic stories and pictures are worse than polluted food. Shun them. The body has power to rid itself of sickening food. That person who entertains filthy stories or pornographic pictures and literature records them in his marvelous human computer, the brain, which can't forget this filth."
"When it comes to pornography, we must never open the door even the slightest crack, for as the ancient sage Rabbi Isaac once said of evil: 'At first it is a wayfarer and a lodger. At last it becomes the master of the house.' (Jon R. Haddon, 'An Urge Toward Evil,' Reader's Digest, Nov. 1998, p. 48).
"Now a mind that has been deceived into receiving trashy input cannot but send false signals to the feet, the hands, and the tongue. Future decisions will all be colored by the impurity allowed to enter that control center of his entire being.
As you invite unclean thoughts to become a part of your total being, be assured some of your faculties will becomeconsiderably sharpened. Your temper will be sharpened. Your tongue will be sharpened. Your desire for more trash will besharpened. Your ability to shade the truth will be sharpened. Yes, just about every negative part of your character will be enhanced.
There will also be a noticeable diminishing effect in your life. Your personality will be diminished. Your family relationships will be impaired. Your ability to pray will be lessened. Your spirit will be affected adversely, and your testimony of the truth will start to slip away, probably so gradually at first that you won’t even realize it is happening until it is too late."
"As the boundaries expand, viewers become increasingly inured to material that they not so long ago considered taboo" (Alessandra Stanley, "The TV Watch; It's a Fact of Life: Prime-Time Shows Are Getting Sexier," New York Times, 5 Feb. 2003, E1).
Even more pernicious are the R-rated movies that are more explicit. It is clear that frequent exposure tends to legitimize that which we see and hear. It dulls our sense of conscience between the acceptableand unacceptable. It is Satan's way of leading you down the slippery slope toward immoral thoughts and actions.
And those parts of the Internet that move you into pornography serve as the devil's trump card. It only takes a few viewings of pornography and he has you hooked. Then he begins to work his magic, because what you have seen and heard becomes paramount in your thought processes.
In the case of the single adult, he gradually leads them into the abyss of immorality. In the case of the married, he debases and devalues the spouse and at a minimum destabilizes relationships and spirituality in the home. At worst, it can lead to adulterous relationships and potential divorce and breakup of families.
"Achieving your full potential" - Donald L. Staheli - CES Fireside - March 2, 2003
"There is the matter of pornography. It has become almost a pornographic world. Now, you leave it alone! If you have any, destroy it! And if you know somebody that has it, help them destroy it! And do not look at it, not ever! It is destructive, and it will take you on a path that is not consistent with who you are and what you can decide. Do not watch it, not ever!"
"There is no way that you and I can involve ourselves in pornography or anything of vulgarity without the darkness inside us increasing. There is no way you and I can look at an indecent scene on television or video, or listen to explicit sexual encounters, or view nudity, without the darkness inside us increasing and the light decreasing. There is no way we can use uncouth language without the darkness increasing inside us, because there is no way that light and darkness can occupy the same place at the same time."