Have any of you heard a sermon in the past five years that discussed the problem of prostitution or any of the many aspects of the commercial sex industry?

No?

I thought that would be the response. Not one person has heard a sermon about the sexual exploitation of young men and women? My guess would be that of all the churches in America, only a handful would ever hear a sermon about one of the great threats to urban youth.

Did you know that the average age of entry into prostitution, strip dancing, Internet nude modeling and many other sexual jobs is 14? No, of course you didn't. Because of all the places you get your information - including church - nobody wants to talk about this problem.

I am convinced some weird things are happening in our culture because of the availability of sexual products and services.

Recently, I talked with the Rev. Al Erickson, a pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, who for more than a decade has been trying to get Lutheran clergy and congregations to think seriously about the threat of the commercial sexual industry. Now he has a new curriculum, designed for confirmation-age children, that appears to be right on the mark. Erickson, who was drawn into his ministry by the involvement of a family member in prostitution, says the sex industry is bigger than we think.

"I think there is a lot of stuff going on with men," Erickson said. "Of course, sex - we've had our explosions in recent years. But nobody has opened the windows, and we have so much material in the Bible. Look at King David, willing to risk everything for one night with Bathsheba. No preacher deals with that text. And if a pastor is caught, they're just kicked out. There is never any possibility for healing.

"But ask people in a congregation," Erickson said. "They will tell you there is no molestation, no use of prostitutes. How can we not talk about this stuff in the church?"

Erickson believes since the Internet became a popular tool for communication that temptations for people have increased dramatically.

"I think of the American male - how lonely we are, how stressed we are, and some of these sexual products and services can look awfully good."

Erickson's six-week curriculum features a videotape and printed material that clergy and lay teachers can use to talk honestly with eighth- and ninth-graders. Pastors might think this is a phony issue and most of their parishioners behave themselves when they spend hours on the Internet or reading in a private part of the house. But something is happening when you consider that pornography is by far the most desired information on the World Wide Web.

And it is easy to access thousands of Web sites where beautiful young women pose for the men of the world. And don't think all of those men are non-believers who never darken the doors of the church. What are the odds that some of those guys are checking into the sex-for-sale pages of the Internet on a regular basis?

Of course, all kinds of men - and women, too - have looked at sex products on the Internet and have not been damaged psychologically. But I also don't know what, if any, long-term problems might arise from the practice.

If you have the courage, take a look at Erickson's anti-prostitution curriculum and start the discussion at your church.

To contact the Rev. Al Erickson about his anti-prostitution curriculum, call (612) 869-5450.

Clark D. Morphew