addiction to internet pornography

[hope]

I saw a program on ABC news this evening concerning addictions to internet pornography.  What Orthodox resources and (male) saints would be helpful for lustfulness and passions of the flesh?

[erracht]

St. Moses the Hungarian is a good male saint to pray to to help conquer lust. A female saint in this respect would be St. Mary of Egypt.

[hope]

This is such a serious and real problem in this modern age.  Certainly some of you must have received some words of wisdom from your spiritual fathers.  What tools of our faith work best in conquering this addition?  Isn't there an Orthodox book on the subject?

[prodromos]

Lots of prayer and fasting.

[katherine 2001]

A good female saint to ask intercession from would be St. Mary of Egypt.  Women suffer from sexual addiction to--don't limit your prayers for intercession to only one sex.

[katherine 2001]

One way to avoid sexually suggestive TV shows, books, and magazines.  Also, get a good spam filter for your e-mail and delete all that is in your spam folder without looking at it.  If you do, you may be tempted to open a sexually explicit e-mail.  If there is a filter on your computer to filter out certain sites, use it so that your access won't allow adult sites to be brought up.  If nothing else, maybe the thought of having to confess any slippages to your priest/spiritual father might have some effect.  

[Kyrie Eleison]

Another good, yet relatively unknown saint whose intercession is very great is Saint Basil on Mangazeya. His life is very edifying. He is considered to the be patron against homosexuality but I do not believe in limiting the ability and effectiveness of prayer so this might be a help as well.

Saint Basil, pray to God for us!

[Anastasios]

If you find that regular confession and prayer, fasting, and communication with your spiritual father for some reason is not enough, consider this group:

www.sa.org

Some dispute their philosophy that one is always defined by their temptation, but we discussed these types of groups in seminary and I believe they can help some people, at least to get off the ground and running.  Of course make sure you spiritual father agrees.

One of the reasons I personally think confession doesn't suffice anymore in our modern age is the utter breakdown of personal communication and a spirit of collaborationism and corporatism.  Now we see ourselves as totally self-contanined individuals and this limits our ability to get support from fellow Christians.  So 12 step programs such as AA and SA may be able to help fill the void.

anastasios

[David]

Also, there's a book on 12 step programs as applied to Orthodox Theology, Steps of Transformation by Fr. Meletios Webber.  I've wanted to buy it, after discussing it with OCMC missionary Floyd Franz, but haven't gotten around to it yet.

[Nigula Qian Zishi]

I have been working with someone suffering this addiction recently and here are a few resources I suggest.

The Prayer Against Evil Thoughts Booklet by http://www.MonasteryPress.com
The Prayer For Purity from http://www.sjkp.com (may be available from Light-n-Life too)
Install an Internet filter and have someone else set the password
When the urge comes, go to your prayer corner and pray. The above prayers are helpful, as is the 50th Psalm read slowly.
As suggested above, fasting and prostrations are good too.
If you are not keeping the fasts and/or keeping up with your prayer life properly this can lead you toward sin as well. People often fidn in time of seveer temptations that have not been praying enough, not fasting properly or even doing something else like over-eating.
If you can, talking to someone on a regular basis about your temptations can be helpful too.

[Schultz]

If you are not keeping the fasts and/or keeping up with your prayer life properly this can lead you toward sin as well. People often fidn in time of seveer temptations that have not been praying enough, not fasting properly or even doing something else like over-eating.
If you can, talking to someone on a regular basis about your temptations can be helpful too.

I can personally vouch for the wisdom in these words.  The times when I have allowed sin to take over my life where the same times when I turned my back on God.  A cycle then develops whereby the despondency and loss of hope we were discussing in the Alan Keyes thread takes over, and one prays even less.  The feeling that one is so dirty and shameful before God takes precedence over the invitation of God Himself to turn to Him as Loving Father. 

I've found that even a quick veneration of an icon can do wonders for banishing such hopelessness from one's life.

[Fr. David]

As far as dealing with lustful thoughts, the Jesus Prayer often does wonders.

[Mo the Ethio]

Pehaps the following may help:

     While still a neophyte in monastic lif , Moses the Black ( the Ethiopian) was warring against carnal desire. So he went , in a state of turbulence, to confess to Abba Isidoros.

     The elder listened to him sympathetically and , when he had given him words of appropriate councel, told him to return to his cell. However, inasmuch as Abba Moses was still hesitant, for fear of the flame of evil desires rekindling during his return, Abba Isidoros took him by the hand and led him to a small roof  atop his cell

     " Look here"  he told him , directing towards the west. Thereupon Moses saw an entire army of wicked spirits with drawn bows, ready for warfare , and was terrified.

     "Look towards the east now " the elder told him once mor. Myriads of angels in military formation were standing ready yo confront the enemy.

     " All of these" Abba Isidoros told him " are assigned by by go to help th struggler.Do you see how our defenders are many more and ancomparably stronger than our enemies?"

     Moses thanked god with his heart for this revelation and, taking courage , returned to his cell to continue his struggle.


         Forgive  me ... Mo

[Mo the Ethio]

Sorry for spelling errors ..had to hurry...computer has been cutting me of ..due to to " Modem Inactivity"

[Kolya]

If nothing else, maybe the thought of having to confess any slippages to your priest/spiritual father might have some effect.

That works for me quite well!!!

[aurelia]

You get my husband to quit surfing porn and I'll be happy, if for no other reason than the decrease in spyware and viruses and all that stuff. :-

[EkhristosAnesti]

Some may find the following sites helpful:

http://www.settingcaptivesfree.com/home/

http://www.porn-free.org/

[Anastasios]

Part of the SA program I referenced above that can be used by people even who are against the philosophy of the program is a lot similar to our Orthodox custom of confession of thoughts for monastics.  You select someone who you really trust (usually your spiritual father but if he is not able to commit the time for this ask his blessing to find another) and call that person every day or four times a week or at some regular interval. Accountability is a very helpful practice.

Anastasios

[Fr. David]

Sounds like the accountability partner thing we did in our youth groups/school Bible studies in my Evangelical days.

I agree; a good idea.

[Nick]

my spiritual father told me to put an icon of the theotokos by my computer

[aurelia]

Not to sound flippant, but maybe a pic of your mother as well?  Or the kids? I should try that here.

[ania]

As far as dealing with lustful thoughts, the Jesus Prayer often does wonders.

That, and keeping church music on, especially when your asleep.

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