"If you deliberately seek out any of these images, you are directly participating in the violation not just of numerous women’s privacy but also of their bodies. These images - which I have not seen and which I will not look for - are intimate, private moments belonging only to the people who appear in them and who they have invited to see them. To have those moments stolen and broadcast to the world is an egregious act of psychic violence which constitutes a form of assault." Writes Clementine Ford of the website "Daily Life"
With all of the advancements and wonder that the electronic media have given us, this is one of the most dangerous of them all. I am sorry that Jennifer Lawrence and others have had their nude pictures leaked. It is such a violation of privacy and a degradation of the personhood of these women.
What is astonishing to me is that most of the outrage is that these photos were released. My difficulty with the entire situation is that, as a Christian man, I am outraged that the pictures were taken in the first place. Sure, I understand that there might possibly (but I would think remote) thrill that you would have your picture taken in the nude. I also understand fully and completely the attraction of looking at naked pictures of women who are very attractive. Thrill and control are the entire package of making a human being an object. The thrill is about power.
For Christian men, this is not what we ought to be about. Tucked away in the much maligned passage from Ephesians 5:21-33 about being subject to one another, is this passage about men and their wives:
Why Men Should Object to Jennifer Lawrence's Photos
"Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, in order to make her holy by cleansing her..."
Men have been charged with the Honor of women. Why? Is it because men are so much stronger and better? No, it is because over the ages, men have exploited women by degrading them. St. Paul is calling men to honor women by refusing to participate in such exploits in objectification.
These photos of Jennifer Lawrence are degrading because they objectify her. The problem is that they are no different than many of the pictures that are taken of Lawrence and everyone in Hollywood. We have totally objectified actors and actresses. These photos call into question the license that an "entertainment society" gives to us to objectify people who entertain us.
Christian men and women are allowed to rock the socks off in the Bedroom. That, I believe is God's plan. Orgasms are one of God's greatest creations. Couples can and should get saucy in the bedroom once a relationship of trust, honor and mutual respect has been established.
Taking, posing for and looking at pictures of a woman naked in her private bedroom is a dishonoring of the Body with or without a committed marital relationship. It is saying that the body is no different than any other form of entertainment. It is saying that this woman who has a mind, a soul and a body which are all indeed beautiful are nothing more than a dixie cup for us to drink from and throw away. As a Christian man, I cannot support this. Clementine Ford and I agree that we ought not look at these pictures, but where we part company is that no one should have taken these photos in the first place.
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