Crossroads Church is inviting the public to attend a weekend event about pornography, including the screening of Canadian documentary Over 18 at Chatelech Secondary School. The screening will be followed by a Q&A with Dave Currie, a Christian therapist who operates a family counselling service that espouses Christian values and counsels against using pornography.
Despite its ties to and funding from the church, the weekend-long event will not be focused on religion, according to a release.
Danielle Raverty, director of youth programming at the church and the event organizer, said she was motivated to bring the film to the Sunshine Coast after hearing Currie speak at a conference.
She said members of her church have raised the issues of pornography addiction and underage exposure to porn, as well. “It seems to be a growing concern,” Raverty told Coast Reporter.
While the film will screen at a high school, School District No. 46 (SD46) is not connected to the event. Vanessa White, director of instruction and student support services at SD46, said the district organizes online safety education initiatives to teach caregivers and students about online safety in general, including pornography, but also sexual exploitation, which she said is the greater concern.
The film screening will take place on Saturday, Feb. 16 at 6:30 p.m. Admission is by donation. Workshops about technology and pornography will be held on Sunday at Crossroads Ministry Centre in Davis Bay at 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m.
