OLD SAYBROOK, Connecticut — The Bibles weren’t wrapped in brown paper.

And the windows of Shoreline Church weren’t covered to hide what was going on.
But the children were excused early, and the congregation knew it wasn’t a typical Sunday when Pastor Mike Calo launched into his “Bust Lust is a Must” sermon with energetic references to masturbation, Hustler magazine and the saving grace of God.

Welcome to Porn Sunday, part of a national movement among some churches to help people deal with the fallout of what organizers say is a “sex-saturated” society that has 40 million people surfing 4.2 million Internet porn sites every day.

About 50 people turned out for Sunday’s 10 a.m. service, many of them regulars of the evangelical, nondenominational church tucked in a concrete industrial office park off Route 154.

Some in attendance declined to be interviewed or refused to give their names, but others praised Calo for having the courage to bring controversial issues into the open.

“I think it’s important that we address these issues,” said Peter Schulze, 39, of Clinton. “These are things that we need to talk about. Other churches are afraid to address these things. They talk in generalities. I applaud the pastors for taking this subject on.”

Sunday’s service was the first of five consecutive meetings in the coming weeks that are part of a free church series entitled “Healing Sexual Brokenness.” The services are designed to help people recognize personal problems with pornography, lust and sex and learn ways to deal with them.

The local series is patterned after the work of the web-based ministry, XXXchurch.com, which is devoted to exploring the effect of pornography and lust on today’s individuals and families in a nonconfrontational, supportive and Christian way.

XXXchurch.com organizes a National Porn Sunday event every October. Calo said he already had the subject matter in mind when he heard about XXXchurch.com and adopted some of its programs to share with his congregation. He felt the issue was important enough to address now and to revisit in October.

“We’re not here to do this for us,” Calo told his flock Sunday. “We’re doing this because I really feel there are people out there who need this. If we can help save one marriage, save one family, save one child, that’s what a church is all about. It’s not about raising money or running programs.”

The porn industry generated more than $8 billion in revenue in one recent year, according to a U.S. News and World Report article cited in a fact sheet that Calo circulated Sunday. That is more than all revenues generated by rock and country music in a year, and more than what American consumers spent on Broadway productions, theaters, ballet, jazz and classical music combined, the fact sheet said.

Thirty percent of all unsolicited e-mails contain pornographic material, according to a 1999 ChooseYourMail.com study mentioned in the fact sheet, and 37 percent of Christian pastors responding to a 2001 survey in Christianity Today said pornography is a problem in their home.

Calo, who grew up in Waterbury, admits that he had problems with alcohol, drugs and pornography before meeting his wife, Meredith, and devoting himself to God years ago. He runs Shoreline Church, with Meredith as co-pastor, and has a home renovation business on the side.

The focus of his message Sunday was hope. He told those present that “the power of lust lies in its secrecy” and that by bringing it into the open, by acknowledging it, a person can be held accountable.

“And once you’re accountable, you can be separated from it,” Calo said.

Through skits, music and spoken word, Calo encouraged his congregation to recognize their issues with lust and sex and to address them.

At times, the symbolism was heavy, such as when Calo played a short video clip that showed a man whose obsession with porn was ruining his marriage. The man calls a spiritual friend who comforts him with counsel and prayer, helps him to give up his obsession and ultimately to reunite with his family. This all took place as an uplifting pop soundtrack sings “Let Freedom Ring” and the shadowy images of a man’s hands being unshackled play in the background.

Kathy Braumann, 46, of Old Saybrook, participated in the service while her 5-year-old daughter, Shannon, was at Bible study. Her four other children stayed home.

“I think it’s very enlightening,” Braumann said afterward. “It’s really important. I’m a parent and I want to make sure my children are safe. It was very tastefully done. The pastor spoke about the love of God. If more people had that, it would keep them in check.”

Next week’s sermon is entitled the “Eyes of Evil” and will focus on the visual temptations of porn and lust and sex that Calo believes distract individuals every day and can ruin marriages and relationships. A 2005 documentary on the porn industry called “Missionary Positions” will be featured in a special evening service on Feb. 11 at 6 p.m. The viewing is for adults only.