Craig Gross

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Luke Ford/Wiki

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Porn has been very very good to Ron Jeremy, the cherubic hardcore star who, paradoxically, could serve as an inspiration either for the main character in Hung or a figure in a Disney film. (One of his nicknames is, after all, "Hedgehog.") After appearing in nearly 2,000 adult films, Jeremy is considered an elder statesman of porn. 

On the other hand, Las Vegas' Craig Gross is the founder of both the Strip Church and Fireproof Ministries that reaches out to "unchurched people," as well as the Triple X Church, which is not so much a church as "a Web network that helps those struggling with pornography or workers in the sex industry."

The two men will face off in what's described as a friendly debate titled "The Pastor and the Porn Star." What the debate could be over is unclear -- theology? bukkake techniques? Jeremy, besides being a porn icon, is Jewish, so it will be interesting to see what common ground he and Gross will find. A press release says Gross will try to persuade Jeremy of "Jesus' love for Jeremy and all porn stars while drawing attention to the damage that pornography causes."

By a coincidence, Gross has a book out called Jesus Loves You . . . This I Know, which, we are told, "shares the simple message that Jesus loves you no matter who you are or what you have done." Or, in Jeremy's case, who you have done. It all takes place where the spirit and the body meet, USC.

University of Southern California, Bovard Auditorium, 3551 Trousdale Parkway; Wednesday, Oct. 7, 7:30 p.m. Contact: Beibei Bai, (937) 245-1320. Admission is on a first-come, first served basis.