A disturbing number of Americans are addicted to pornography. So says Morality in Media as it kicks of its Be Aware: Porn Harms National Awareness campaign on Monday.

Morality in Media hopes the campaign will reach hundreds of thousands of Americans with demonstrations of how pornography harms people. This week, the campaign focuses on addiction.

“Addiction is one of the foremost harms of pornography. It is at crisis levels in the U.S.,” says Patrick Trueman, president of Morality in Media.  “It affects children and adults in very significant numbers and ruins many lives, marriages and families. Few pornography addicts are getting the treatment they need though there are many services available.”

As Trueman sees it, this addiction would all but disappear if the U. S. Department of Justice would vigorously enforce criminal laws against the major producers and distributors of adult pornography. He called on Attorney General Eric Holder to begin enforcing existing federal laws against obscene adult pornography now. 

Dawn Hawkins, director of the Be Aware: Porn Harms campaign, says the evidence of addiction to pornography is now so overwhelming that it cannot be denied.

“Porn addiction is affecting every segment of American society and the harm it causes is great,” she says. “Substantial research on pornography addiction can be found at the website www.PornHarms.com.” 

 Morality In Media will not only highlight the problem of addiction to pornography, but also provide many sources of support for addicts and family members. Candeo, an addiction recovery service, as well as Covenant Eyes and Net Nanny, which provide Internet Safety software, will giveaway free subscriptions to their services. 

Betty Ford, the former First Lady who overcame drug and alcohol addiction and has helped many others find victory, passed away on Friday. The widow of the late President Gerald Ford was 93.

After completing her own treatment for chemical dependency at the U.S. Naval Hospital in Long Beach, Calif., Ford talked to her friends about the need for a treatment center that emphasized the special needs of women, the Betty Ford Center website explains.

Ambassador Leonard Firestone encouraged her to pursue this dream. In 1982, they co-founded the non-profit Betty Ford Center in Rancho Mirage, Calif.

In a statement on Friday, President Barack Obama said the Betty Ford Center would honor Mrs. Ford’s legacy “by giving countless Americans a new lease on life.”

“As our nation’s First Lady, she was a powerful advocate for women’s health and women’s rights,” Obama said. “After leaving the White House, Mrs. Ford helped reduce the social stigma surrounding addiction and inspired thousands to seek much-needed treatment.”

During her tenure as First Lady, Ford addressed public issues that were important to her. She was an outspoken advocate of women’s rights and aspirations in an era when there was much debate on the matter, encouraged the appointment of more women to senior government posts, supported the U.N. International Women’s Year in 1975, and supported passage of the Equal Rights Amendment, according to the Ford Library Museum.

“She was a wonderful wife and mother; a great friend; and a courageous First Lady,” former President George H.W. Bush said in a statement on Friday. “No one confronted life’s struggles with more fortitude or honesty, and as a result, we all learned from the challenges she faced.”

God’s Word is breaking through in a country that Luis Palau says has resisted gospel preaching for hundreds of years—southern France.

Palau led an evangelistic campaign in southern France last week. The campaign, which targeted the cities of Istres, Aix-en-Provence and Marignane, ended with a three-day gospel festival on Marseille’s crowded Plage du Prado beach. The festival reached 16,000 with the gospel of Jesus Christ. It was the first time a gospel event was allowed in an open venue.

“Small as it was by the numbers we are used to, I am so glad I came to southern France,” Palau says. “The Lord used this campaign to open doors, to plant seeds, to establish relationships and to lead hundreds of people to Himself. There is nothing greater than that.

“In addition, because of the wonderful multiplier effect of mass media, we had the opportunity to reach many more people through the Internet, television and radio.”

Strategy-wise, the Palau campaign rode on the tails of France’s official Day of Music on June 21. The festival included special musical performances by guest artists from throughout France and the United Kingdom. The 73-member Salem Baptist Gospel Choir from Chicago was also on site.

Hundreds of individuals made public decisions for Jesus Christ in response to Palau’s gospel proclamation that was given in Spanish and translated into French. According to local pastors and leaders, the events were groundbreaking for the region.

“This is historic for us in Provence,” says Gilbert Leonian, chairman of 1 Meme Couer, an organization made up of church leaders from throughout the region. “Never have we seen such open doors or had so many opportunities to openly share the gospel.”

Several mayors from the surrounding area shared the same sentiments at a gathering later in the week, greeting Palau and the team enthusiastically and offering support in whatever way possible. The Mayor Adjoint of Marseille went on record saying, “We’ll be behind you next year and every summer. We’ll offer you the beach as many times as you wish.”

President Obama’s father may have been willing to put the child that bears his name up for adoption, according to documents a Boston Globe reporter obtained.

While a sophomore at the University of Hawaii in 1961, the president’s father, Barack Obama Sr., was under scrutiny by federal immigration officials who were concerned that he had more than one wife, according to the Globe. Having more than one wife was grounds for deportation back to Kenya.

“When he was questioned by the school’s foreign student adviser, the 24-year-old Obama insisted that he had divorced his wife in his native Kenya. Although his new wife, Ann Dunham, was five months pregnant with their child—who would be called Barack Obama II—Obama declared that they intended to put their child up for adoption,” the Globe reports.

The revelations are part of Sally H. Jacobs’ new book The Other Barack: The Bold and Reckless Life of President Obama’s Father. Jacobs is basing her book on 1961 immigration forms she obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request, as well as interviews.

The book excerpt, which appeared in the Globe, indicates that it isn’t clear whether the senior Obama truly intended to put his son up for adoption or if he was making up the story to avoid trouble with immigration officials. Specifically, the elder Obama told immigration officials that Dunham was “making arrangements with the Salvation Army to give the baby away.”

“Ann Dunham had good reason to consider surrendering her child,” Jacobs writes. “At the time that she gave birth in 1961, Dunham was just 18 years old, and mixed-race marriage—while legal in Hawaii—was a felony in many of the 22 states in which it was banned. Even in Hawaii, the only state at the time with a nonwhite majority, blacks accounted for less than 1 percent of the population, and a black face drew curious stares on the streets of Honolulu.”

Among others, Jacobs interviewed former White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs, who said the president was unaware of any plans for adoption and did not believe his mother had seriously considered giving him up.

“I never heard any talk of adoption whatsoever,” Charles Payne, Dunham’s uncle, told Jacobs. “Ann decided she had done this and this was her child and she was going to take care of him. From day one, as far as I could tell, she and Madelyn [Dunham] and Stanley [Dunham] were all completely committed to Barack.”

Be Aware: Porn Harms. That’s the message Morality in Media wants you to get loud and clear during its four-week educational effort that kicks off on Monday.

“Pornography is silently and secretly destroying men, women and children. It is a pandemic ruining lives, marriages and families,” says Patrick Trueman, president of Morality in Media, the leading member of the War On Illegal Pornography Coalition. “Our now pornified society has eroded the cultural norms in America”

As Trueman sees it, the pandemic of harm from pornography demonstrates a critical need for enforcement of current federal laws against illegal hardcore pornography. This harm must end, he says, and that is motive behind the “Be Aware: Porn Harms” campaign.

“Every day we receive messages from the victims of pornography—men caught in the ravages of addiction, women and children raped, women trafficked and made to perform degrading sexual acts on tape, broken families and devastated hearts,” explains Dawn Hawkins, executive director of Morality in Media. 

Each week of the campaign, Morality in Media will focus on a specific harm of pornography: porn addiction, harms to children, increased sexual trafficking and violence against women. Hawkins says there will be over 25 events during the month, from local rallies to webinars to live online conferences via Facebook. Participating groups will provide hundreds of free subscriptions to addiction recovery services and filtering software.

Chief Judge Belvin Perry sentenced Casey Anthony to four years in prison on Thursday morning. Anthony must also pay $4,000 in fines for lying to law enforcement officials, according to ABC News.

Anthony was found not guilty of first degree murder and manslaughter in the case of her 2-year-old daughter Caylee’s death on Tuesday.

Caylee was last seen on June 16, 2008. Anthony never called the police.
And Caylee’s grandmother, Cindy Anthony, waited a month to notify law
enforcement.

Anthony has already served almost three years. Although she will get credit for time served and good behavior, how much time she must remain imprisoned remains unclear. The New York Times reports that Perry will meet with lawyers for at least an hour to decide how much time Anthony will be credited with serving.

ABC News reported that Anthony entered the courtroom with her long hair down, as opposed to the
tight ponytails she has been sporting throughout the trial. Anthony chatted with her attorneys,
laughed and even winked a few times, ABC reports, but looked downcast as the judge
read the sentencing.

{youtube width=”500″}wDlLiWDyd94{/youtube}

Casey Anthony was found not guilty of murdering her 2-year-old daughter, Caylee. But the debate continues in the court of public opinion.

One Florida man was so enraged by the verdict, he launched a Facebook page called “Boycott Casey Anthony” to get his message out. Less than a day later, there are nearly 6,000 fans, demonstrating the passion that people across the U.S. have about this headline-making case.

Noteworthy are the views of God’s judgment, hell and grace. Some on the page are pronouncing shame on the jury for the decision. And most are suggesting that Anthony go to the place Rob Bell doesn’t believe exists—hell. God (and Anthony) knows if she was involved in her daughter’s death. Even if she was, Jesus can forgive her if she repents. But that’s not the sentiment many online are taking.

Following are a handful of responses from the Boycott Casey Anthony page that highlight people’s religious views in the wake of what they see as a travesty of justice. The responses are shocking, but not from a worldly point of view that leaves little room for grace:

Bubbs M. wrote, “I hope she dies in hell.”

Nicovia M. penned, “They should allow the stoning just for this matter … Still wowed at the jury … my heart goes out to the baby … r.i.p.”

Meanwhile, Andrew R. wrote, “There is a special place reserved in hell for child murderers. the state of Florida might not find you guilty, but you will face judgement. One way or another you will answer for killing kasey. You will pay the price.”

Lydia P. writes, “OH MY GOD … WHERE IS THE JUSTICE???????? I have comfort in knowing that GOD will be her final JUDGE …”

There was at least one voice of evangelism in the mix, though.

Nicole I. wrote, “We are all guilty of breaking GOD’s laws and we will either receive wrath and justice from HIM, or grace and mercy when we repent of our sins and place our faith and trust in Jesus Christ and His death on the cross in our place. No matter what your personal OPINION, the LAW says she is NOT guilty of murder.”

Although Casey Anthony was found not guilty of first degree murder and manslaughter in the case of her 2-year-old daughter Caylee’s death, controversy continues to swirl around the fact that she never notified law enforcement the toddler was missing.

But Caylee’s death may not be in vain. The Anthony case has inspired a viral petition campaign to support “Caylee’s Law,” legislation that would make a parent’s failure to notify law enforcement of a child’s disappearance a felony.

As the facts of the case detail, Caylee was last seen on June 16, 2008. Anthony never called the police. And Caylee’s grandmother, Cindy Anthony, waited a month to notify law enforcement.

“When I saw that Casey Anthony had been found not guilty in the murder of little Caylee, and that she was only being convicted of lying to the police about her disappearance, I was sickened,” says Michelle Crowder, who launched the petition. “I could not believe she was not being charged with child neglect or endangerment, or even obstruction of justice.”

So far, nearly 50,000 people in all 50 states have joined a Change.org campaign calling for called “Caylee’s Law.” Nearly 2,000 people have signed the “Caylee’s Law” petition each hour since it was launched. The petition specifically asks Congress to create a law that makes it a federal offense and a felony for a parent or guardian not to immediately call police to report a missing child.

“I saw a page on Facebook proposing that a law be made, but I saw nothing about a petition being started for it,” Crowder says. “I am hoping that this will be made into a federal law so that no other child’s life, disappearance and/or death is treated in the manner that poor Caylee’s was treated. No child deserves that.”

Double-crossed. That’s how you might describe a Christ follower in Livingston, N.J. who’s getting flack for displaying his faith in his own front yard.

The Township of Livingston is using a local ordinance against Patrick Racaniello to try to keep him from displaying crosses on his private property.

In April, Racaniello displayed a 31-by-19-inch wooden cross on a tree in his front yard to celebrate Lent. When an irate neighbor screamed objections about the cross at him and his family, Racaniello called the police.

Although the law should have been on his side, the call backfired on him. The police later ordered him to remove the cross because it was located on a tree within eight feet from the curb. Racaniello complied and instead built a 6-by-4-foot wooden cross and put it in his yard—nine feet from the curb.

But township officials found another way to squash Racaniello’s freedom of speech, charging him with violating an ordinance that mandates a 10-foot right-of-way into his yard. The zoning inspector then sent Racaniello a letter that demanded he “move the cross to another location on your property, outside of the township right-of-way and not on any tree …”

Racaniello wants to display a cross on a tree further back in his yard, but hasn’t done it because he’s afraid of backlash from zoning officials, who are now prohibiting him from displaying a cross on any tree on his property. The Alliance Defense fund is taking up the cause.

“It’s ridiculous to stop citizens from displaying a cross on their own property,” says ADF Litigation Staff Counsel Jonathan Scruggs. “The Constitution guarantees the right of Americans to express their religious beliefs in this fashion, and no local ordinance can trump that. In this case, however, the ordinance itself doesn’t actually even prohibit these crosses.  The law is being used in a vague fashion to stop him from doing what he wishes on his own private property.”

Texas Gov. Rick Perry isn’t the only one getting slammed for his Day of Prayer and Fasting. Some Christian leaders participating in The Response are also getting hammered—or at least questioned—about their participation.

Now, they are answering back.

The Houston Clergy Council, an interfaith coalition of religious leaders, is among the detractors. The group opposes The Response because it believes the prayer meeting violates separation of church and state. The group is also calling the event “non-inclusive” and protests the AFA’s involvement.

The Houston Clergy Council wrote on its website: “We ask that Rick Perry leave the ministry to us and refocus his energy on the work of governing our state.”

American Family Association sponsors the Response, a national prayer event planned for Reliant Stadium in Houston on Aug. 6. Donald E. Wildmon, founder and Chairman Emeritus of AFA, said those who oppose the event are wrong.

“The Response is an open event.  Anyone who wants to pray to Jesus for a nation in crisis is welcome to attend. Next, The Response is a prayer event, not a political event,” Wildmon says. “No political candidates will be speaking. Finally our critics say The Response violates the separation of church and state. The event will be held at a public stadium which has no connection to a religious body.”

Doug Stringer, founder of Somebody Cares America and president of Turning Point Ministries International, is serving as the National Church and Ministry Mobilization Coordinator for The Response. When he was asked to serve, he admits he was initially reluctant to join forces with Perry. But after discussing the event with other leaders was satisfied that there was no political agenda.

“I didn’t want to officially be a part of The Response if there was any inkling that this would be anything political or that preaching pontificators would use this as an agenda for their individual denominations or political aspirations,” Stringer says. “But the governor said it’s going to stay pure. You can’t buy your way or influence your way to the platform.”