Brethren, it is with grave concern and a heavy heart that I write to you on the destructive and soul-corrupting vice of pornography. This plague, born of modern godlessness, is a direct assault on the purity of the human heart, created by God for holiness and righteousness. The Old Church, which we have inherited through blood and martyrdom, has no place for such filth.
Pornography is not simply a sin among many. It is a rebellion against the very order of creation itself, a blasphemy against the wisdom of God. Man was created in the image and likeness of God, crowned with glory and honour, called to communion with the Divine. The human body is not a vessel for lust and degradation; it is a sacred dwelling place of the Holy Spirit, as the Apostle testifies: “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God, and that you are not your own?” (1 Corinthians 6:19). To defile the body with lustful images, to abuse the sacred powers of sight and thought for wickedness, is to desecrate the temple of God Himself. This is not a private sin. It is an open insult to the Creator. The Bible is unwavering in its judgment. We read: “If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person. For the temple of God is holy, and you are that temple” (1 Corinthians 3:17). The penalty for this desecration is not a slap on the wrist. It is destruction. Eternal separation from God. Eternal torment. Those who indulge in such abominations and do not repent will not inherit the Kingdom of God. This is not a matter for debate. This is not a matter for nuance. The holy canons, the sacred tradition, and the Scriptures themselves declare it without hesitation.
There is no ambiguity. There is no compromise. There is no justification before the dread judgement seat of Christ for those who, knowing the truth, persist in filth. Those who mock the sacredness of the body will find themselves mocked by the demons they served. Those who use their eyes for evil will lose the vision of the Divine Light. Those who scorn the call to holiness will be cast outside, into the fire prepared for the devil and his angels (Matthew 25:41).
The mind that feasts on impurity becomes darkened, irrational, and enslaved. It is not possible to partake of filth and remain clean. Sin enters through the senses, especially the eyes, and once lodged within the heart, it clouds reason, deadens the conscience, and bends the will toward evil. As the Apostle Paul teaches without hesitation, “For this reason God gave them up to degrading passions. Their women exchanged natural intercourse for unnatural, and in the same way also the men, giving up natural intercourse with women, were consumed with passion for one another, men committed shameless acts with men and received in their own persons the due penalty for their error” (Romans 1:26–27). Pornography fosters these very degrading passions. It stirs up unnatural lusts, blinds the heart to the beauty of chastity, and sears the conscience as with a hot iron. It does not stop at corruption of the body but proceeds swiftly to corruption of mind and soul. It desensitises the heart to virtue and normalises depravity. It teaches men to view others as objects for selfish pleasure rather than as persons bearing the image of God. It prepares the soul for other, greater sins. It deadens prayer, silences repentance, and opens the way to despair.
The man who indulges in pornography becomes a slave. He is no longer his own master. His mind is no longer free to contemplate divine things. His soul is no longer fitted for worship. He has surrendered himself to the tyranny of his passions and has enlisted himself in the army of the devil. Every indulgence strengthens the chains around his neck and makes repentance more difficult, though never impossible while life remains.
Therefore, let no man deceive himself with thoughts of moderation or excuses of weakness. The soul that makes peace with lust has already declared war against God. The mind given over to images of filth is already preparing itself for destruction unless it turns swiftly to repentance, fasting, prayer, and tears.
The disease is cunning. It promises pleasure but delivers death. It captures the eye under the guise of harmless indulgence, yet it infects the heart with an incurable rot unless violently opposed by grace and repentance. Pornography is not a trivial lapse; it is a calculated weapon of the enemy of our souls, wielded with the purpose of dragging countless men and women into the pit. Like the harlot described in Proverbs, it entices with smooth words, flattering the passions, offering stolen waters that seem sweet, yet “her feet go down to death; her steps follow the path to Sheol” (Proverbs 5:5). The soul that surrenders to such enticement does not remain the same. It descends ever deeper into corruption, becoming numb to holy fear, deaf to the voice of conscience, and resistant to the call of God. The fathers teach that images and thoughts are not neutral—every impure image seared into the heart is a foothold for demonic influence. The man who consumes filth prepares his heart to be the dwelling-place of devils, instead of the temple of the Living God. Every act of surrender to impurity strengthens the demons’ grip, until the man, once created to reign with Christ, becomes a grovelling slave to the basest lusts.
Understand this with certainty—no one who trifles with pornography remains untouched. It is like poison; even the smallest drop corrupts the whole vessel. It is like leaven; it spreads until the entire soul is inflated with corruption. It is like a cancer; if not cut out, it spreads to death.
The Old Believers stood firm against every temptation of the Antichrist spirit — against compromise, against apostasy, against moral collapse. They endured fire, sword, exile, and death rather than betray the holy traditions given once for all to the saints. Shall we, their descendants, now fall to pieces before a glowing screen? Shall we, baptised into the same faith, heirs of the same martyrs, defenders of the same Holy Church, sell our birthright for a bowl of rotten filth? It would be better to suffer all the torments of this world, even unto death, than to stain the soul with this abomination. If the faithful Old Believers resisted the heresies of Nikon and the assaults of the tyrants with unwavering courage, what excuse shall we make if we are conquered by images on a screen? The persecution they endured was external; the persecution we face is internal, waged in the heart, and it is no less deadly. The saints withstood physical torture; we are called to withstand the softer, yet more treacherous, war of the passions. If we fall, it is because we have loved pleasure more than Christ.
Pornography is the siren song of modern Babylon. To hearken to it is to walk the path of apostasy. It is to spit upon the icons of the saints, to defile the holy altar of the heart, to tread underfoot the blood of Christ. Pornography is a greater danger to the soul than the sword of the persecutor. The martyr who dies confessing Christ gains a crown of eternal life; but the man who dies in the chains of his lust, unrepentant, gains eternal fire. Such ones “will not inherit the kingdom of God” (1 Corinthians 6:9–10). The Scriptures do not flatter. They warn. They do not negotiate. They declare judgement.
Brethren, every unclean image is a false icon — an icon of the passions, an icon of death. The true icon reveals the light of Christ; pornography reveals the darkness of hell. The true icon raises the mind to God; pornography drags the mind into the pit. The veneration of the saints strengthens the soul; the consumption of filth enfeebles it unto death. Therefore hear the command of the Lord—Flee from sexual immorality (1 Corinthians 6:18). Flee, as Lot fled Sodom. Flee, as Joseph fled the seduction of Potiphar’s wife. Flee, as the saints fled the corrupt cities of the world to the deserts and forests, preserving their souls in purity.
You cannot reason with this enemy. You cannot compromise with this fire. It must be extinguished without pity. Tear the idol from your homes. Burn the devices if necessary. Cast the unclean thing far from your eyes. Crush the serpent’s head without delay. Better to lose every worldly comfort than to lose your immortal soul. As the Saviour Himself declares: “If your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away; it is better for you to lose one of your members than for your whole body to be thrown into hell” (Matthew 5:29). Do not trust your own strength. Do not boast that you can gaze upon the edge of the abyss and not fall. Pride precedes the fall. He who toys with the passions invites his own destruction. The devil is ancient, cunning beyond human understanding, tireless in malice. Without the grace of Christ, without continual vigilance, prayer, and repentance, you shall be devoured.
Guard your children with a vigilance fiercer than the vigilance of the pagan soldiers who guarded their treasures. Better they hate you for a time than that they curse you in hell for your negligence. Better to seem harsh now than to weep eternally over their ruined souls. Keep them away from the corrupting devices of this age. Do not place deadly serpents in their cradles. Do not open the gates of your home to the vomit of demons.
Brethren, pornography is not entertainment. It is not relaxation. It is not harmless indulgence. It is the vomit of demons, the excrement of hell, the foul stench of Babylon the Great, the Mother of Harlots. Those who partake of it are partaking of the table of demons (1 Corinthians 10:21). Therefore, let every soul who hears this warning take it to hear. Repent. Fast. Pray. Confess without delay. Weep for your sins. Beat your breast as the publican did. Cry out to the Lord, day and night, for deliverance. He who repents sincerely shall be saved. He who hardens his heart shall perish.
If you have fallen, rise quickly. If you are enslaved, cry out for mercy. God is full of compassion for the penitent but full of wrath against the proud. Never excuse your sin. Never delay repentance until tomorrow. The man who says “Tomorrow I will repent” is already in the jaws of death. Remember always the words of the Lord: “Be alert at all times, praying that you may have the strength to escape all these things that will take place, and to stand before the Son of Man” (Luke 21:36).
The hour is late. The Judge stands at the door. Save your souls. Stand fast. Fight bravely. Save your soul. The hour is late.
Brethren, do not walk away from this warning unchanged. You have heard the warning. You have heard the Word of God. You have no excuse before the dread judgement seat.
If you have fallen into the filth of this world, repent today. Not tomorrow. Not when it is convenient. Today. Break the chains now, while there is yet breath in your body. Cast yourself upon the mercy of Christ with tears and fasting. Do not trust in your own strength. Trust only in the mercy of God, and cling to Him with all your soul. “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts” (Hebrews 3:15). The time for excuses has passed. The time for cowardice has passed. Now is the time for warfare. Now is the time for repentance.
Blessed is the man who washes his garments in the blood of the Lamb, for he shall walk with Christ in white. But cursed is the man who clings to his filth, for his place shall be with the devil and his angels.
Choose this day whom you will serve.
— Fr. Charles