WHEREAS, The Southern Baptist Convention has spoken on numerous occasions about the harmful effects of pornography; and
WHEREAS, The pornography industry is a multi-billion dollar industry which contributes to many harmful effects in society; and
WHEREAS, New technologies have made possible obscene communications such as “Dial-a-Porn,” a sexually-explicit telephone conversation conducted for commercial gain; and
WHEREAS, The primary users of such obscene communication appear to be America’s teenagers; and
WHEREAS, Pornographic and sexually explicit films are offered for viewing in hotels and motels, of which the Holiday Inn chain is the largest offender; and
WHEREAS, Obscene communication has never been protected under our Constitution.
Be it therefore RESOLVED, That we, the messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention, meeting in St. Louis, Missouri, June 16-18, 1987, call upon Southern Baptist churches to lead out in opposition to the spread of obscenity, whether by print or electronic media; and
Be it further RESOLVED, That we encourage Southern Baptists to work actively for the passage of federal legislation, now pending in Congress, which would prohibit the use of telephone services as a means of obscene communication which appeals primarily to America’s teenagers; and
Be it further RESOLVED, That we call upon the Christian Life Commission to communicate support for this legislation to the appropriate members and committees of Congress; and
Be it finally RESOLVED, That we encourage local congregations to join with similiar effective local and national organizations in active involvement through boycotts, letter writing to advertisers, and selective purchasing-fighting the many dimensions of the pornographic blight.