Pastoral of Sex Workers

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inthecloud

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I have seen some valiant evangelicals women who were former prostitutes, porn stars or strippers start outreach iniciatives to get women out of the sex industry, a difficult task because of the social stigma, the addictive nature of attention and easy money, the pimps, and the psychological, medical and legal problems of many women in the sex trade. Given that many mostly Catholic cities in the US like NY, Miami and of course LA have huge sex industries, and many of the women involved were raised Catholic, I´m curious if there are especific Catholic outreach to sex workers. When the Vatican issued a pastoral letter on bad driving habits, they also issued a pastoral letter on sex work that when largely unnoticed. So I´m curious to know if the Church in the USA is doing something.
Here (Central america) is doing nothing.
 
None that I am personally aware of.

Of course you have to look at these “born-again” prostitutes. Often it is just replacing one obsession (sex, drugs, etc…) with another (extreme religion) and they end up missing the point in the long run. Often the real underling issues are unmet to bring true healing.
 
True, but I prefer a born again exprostitute being a jesus freak than a prostitute risking her life, mental stability and getting STDs, getting mistreated by pimps and johns.
To great problems radical solutions. The question is that the Catholic Church have the avantage of having vast educational and health care resocurces, smart, educated people who are not distrustfull of science and can do a excellent job with them without the strong suspicion that lingers on evangelicals that they would not help them is they not convert first. The Catholic Church is far better than that.
BTW I heard of the case of a former italian porn star who is now a nun, so evangelical exprostitutes are not the only ones going to the other extreme when quiting the life.
 
inthecloud said:
So I´m curious to know if the Church in the USA is doing something.
Here (Central america) is doing nothing.
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There is some outreach at the Parish level in certain dioceses and there area couple of Catholic outreach groups in Canada that deal with sex workers, but no, we pretty much seem to have left this to the evangelicals. I know of an Anglican group in California that does outreach as well.

It’s a shame really because there is more than one order of nuns that was founded specifically to help prostitutes – the Good Shepherd Sisters, for example – but all of them seemed to have abandoned this as their main focus.
 
We really need an army of counseling-trained nuns operating worldwide to help victims of sex trafficking. We also need an order to evangelize in LA where a lot of porn gets made. We need pure men to call other men to live out chastity and stop using women and degrading themselves. True Knights is a great organization for men who need support in breaking addictions, but since lust is THE sin of our generation, we really need a bigger focus on it with more groups and more attention called to the problem.
 
The main porn producing centers are in catholic countries or areas of the US.
Think american porn is made in
  1. Los Angeles, were is Cardinal Mahoney?
  2. Miami.
    And in LA the industry upper ranks seem populated by secular Jews and secular (lapsed catholic) Italians. In Miami Jews and Cubans.
    In Europe the main porn production centers are in Prage and Budapest. Mostly agnostic citys that were once catholic. Many porn producing giants are based in Spain.
    Yet when the girls want hepl getting out they have to ask for help and even covert to the evangelicals.
    In latin america Brazil is the one main producer.
    In Spain and Italy and on the spanish speaking countries of latinamerica there is the extrange situation that while porn making is legal Catholicism oftem put a severe limit on the avaliavility of local talent. So the porn industry is either small or in the case of Spain and Italy dependent on Czechs and Hungarians who are largely agnostics.
But I think is funny that given the size of the sex industry in LA and that almost half of the people in there were raised Catholic Mahoney have even tried a outreach effort there.
 
NewUlm1976_2000 said:
None that I am personally aware of.

Of course you have to look at these “born-again” prostitutes. Often it is just replacing one obsession (sex, drugs, etc…) with another (extreme religion) and they end up missing the point in the long run. Often the real underling issues are unmet to bring true healing.
Click to expand...
What do you mean by extreme religion? How is it an obsession if they are born again? Sadly, comments like this suggest that the Holy Spirit is not involved in changing people’s lives.

God bless,
Ed
 
I too prefer a “born again” ex prostitute to a young woman lost in deep sin and endangering her life and the lives of others. If change from sinful behavior to righteousness is extreme, bring on the extreme.

Obviously it would be better if the young woman and the men who buy sex from them found the full truth but half is better than none.

Are there enough orthodox movements to really do any good? Or has the damage to the monastic movements, female as well as male, been so deep that a new wave of Orthodox monasteries is our only hope?

CDL
 
I totaly agree, better to be a born again christian that a prostitute. Period.
But my questions comes because I noticed in Christian Forums that other that New Creation (Paula Howell I think is her real name) who is a canadian anglican according to her profile, most of the women involved seem to be non denon. evangelicals. And some girls who were raised Catholic, Orthodox or are agnostics have stated that they want help in getting out of the life but they, for several reasons do not want to go the evangelical’s “believe us of else” way.
I do not know any resourses in LA, Miami, Prague, Brazil, London or Barcelona who are Catholic or mainstream christian to help those girls who do not want to go out the evangelical/fundamentalist way.
 
We have a huge YWCA that serves our community and has a safe house and has contact with all the churches. Our community has grown in this over the years but I don’t get invoved in it a lot, I guess I should.

One of our old nun houses was turned into a homeless center but of course is used mostly by women and children has 27 rooms and supported by the churches and owned by the hospital that was owned by the sisters of Mercy ions ago and has Catholic roots big time. Took us a long time to get that far. The people usually stay a month or two because they get help looking for rent and jobs so the whole community works together.

Our other churchs have nun convents, sitting empty and yes I think more could be done.

We have an old nursing home that was turned into a half way house but it is for usually former pediphiles so this is way out of town, of course, and more than likely men not sure.

People need jobs so training is top priority, I think this is what gets people out of the bad life style.

We have a big job center for training and job placements.

I know the priest that is at the poor center of town parish goes door to door looking for stray Catholics welcomes them all anyone who will listen and he personnally talks to them when they come to mass, I saw him do this when I was in that parish, so bless his heart he goes after them all. His secretary says he is never at the office he is out all the time.

I think we need to pray for all and ask them to Church.
D.
 
Those women often need:
  1. Faith and selfsteem
  2. Psychologial services, many suffer from mental illnesses and substance addiction problems.
  3. Jobs and job training.
  4. Fellowship with women who have escaped the life.
  5. Legal and social services. Pimps, dealers, children taken away you get the idea.
  6. Medical services.
    The Church should try to put a comprehensive program with law workers, voluntieers and profesionals.
 
inthecloud said:
Those women often need:
  1. Faith and selfsteem
  2. Psychologial services, many suffer from mental illnesses and substance addiction problems.
  3. Jobs and job training.
  4. Fellowship with women who have escaped the life.
  5. Legal and social services. Pimps, dealers, children taken away you get the idea.
  6. Medical services.
    The Church should try to put a comprehensive program with law workers, voluntieers and profesionals.
Click to expand...
#7. A loving father in the home when they’re growing up. I think Adam Carolla on Love Line once said, “Dads, go ahead and walk out on your daughters because they’re always looking for for new faces at the strip club.”
 
edwest2 said:
What do you mean by extreme religion? How is it an obsession if they are born again? Sadly, comments like this suggest that the Holy Spirit is not involved in changing people’s lives.

God bless,
Ed
Click to expand...
I mean that they have a personality flaw towards excess. At one point it is towards sex, then in this example it is towards religion. The flaw is still there, it is just religion fills the void in their person. They are still vulnerable to excess in religion just like in sex. They can often become irrational and follow every “teaching” (in quotes because of the high variability of what can be called religion in today’s world) without often thinking. They assume an almost cult-like approach towards religion, which is not really spiritually fulfilling or is an solution towards a resolution of their personality flaw.
 
johnnycatholic said:
#7. A loving father in the home when they’re growing up. I think Adam Carolla on Love Line once said, “Dads, go ahead and walk out on your daughters because they’re always looking for for new faces at the strip club.”
Click to expand...
Adam Carolla has all kinds of great wisdom, but as a hardened atheist I’m shocked that a person on here would quote him from Loveline. I give you kudos for that, he’s a great entertainer!👍
 
NewUlm1976_2000 said:
None that I am personally aware of.

Of course you have to look at these “born-again” prostitutes. Often it is just replacing one obsession (sex, drugs, etc…) with another (extreme religion) and they end up missing the point in the long run. Often the real underling issues are unmet to bring true healing.
Click to expand...
wow, that is a bit judgmental. how can you know what is happening in their hearts?

if they became “extreme” catholics would you have a problem with it?
 
In other forum I know of two former strippers who are catholics now and interested in starting a apostolate trying to help some porn stars out of the business. To bad that none are in LA or Miami. I think they need some help on the field there.
 
inthecloud said:
I have seen some valiant evangelicals women who were former prostitutes, porn stars or strippers start outreach iniciatives to get women out of the sex industry, a difficult task because of the social stigma, the addictive nature of attention and easy money, the pimps, and the psychological, medical and legal problems of many women in the sex trade. Given that many mostly Catholic cities in the US like NY, Miami and of course LA have huge sex industries, and many of the women involved were raised Catholic, I´m curious if there are especific Catholic outreach to sex workers. When the Vatican issued a pastoral letter on bad driving habits, they also issued a pastoral letter on sex work that when largely unnoticed. So I´m curious to know if the Church in the USA is doing something.
Here (Central america) is doing nothing.
Click to expand...
I think that the important question may be. Are you doing something to help? The Church is made up of individuals who see a need and step forward to help.
 
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