Around two out of three Christians say they never watch R-rated flicks, according to a poll run by one of the largest Christian web portals in the world.

ChristiaNet.com pollsters asked visitors to their website whether or not they watch R-rated films - films with violence, bad language or sexually explicit content - and why they chose to do so. Of the 649 people who responded, 61 per cent answered that they "never" watch them.

The result, which was released on Monday, was higher than expected and suggests that religious people are careful about what they watch.

"I'm not interested in anything that does not honour God." explained Bill Cooper, President of ChristiaNet, in a statement. "I'm encouraged that the vast majority of Christians seek to put God first when making entertainment choices."

Out of the remaining 39 per cent of respondents, 21 per cent explained that they watched R-rated movies only a few times throughout the year while 18 per cent answered that they actively watched them throughout the month.

The data may be skewed, however, as people who visit the right-leaning site may be more conservative in their beliefs. But the survey's results are worth noting for the feedback given as to why respondents choose to watch or choose not to watch R-rated movies.

Among those that do not go to these films, a majority of responses fell into three categories. One group explained that they did not want see inappropriate images and possibly sin because of them. Others expressed that they did not think it was Christ-like, and that they should use their time to do something to more glorify God. The final cluster was simply not interested in that kind of entertainment.

"This begs the question, 'Why would any Christian watch an R-rated movie?'" asked a ChristiaNet representatives in a statement.

Out of the group that seldom watched adult level films throughout the year, most Christians explained that they only saw films that were R-rated due to their intense imagery and content but which nonetheless dealt with important issues. Examples of these movies were Passion of the Christ and Schindler's List.

The final group that normally attended mature-rated flicks explained that they watched these films because they were either bored, simply liked the entertainment value, or they liked action movies that received the R-rating only because of violence.

In response to the results, ChristiaNet pollsters are encouraging the general Christian population to start cutting back and eliminating their consumption of mature movies.

"Even though this is the smallest group (18 per cent), this number is too high in a Christian worldview," concluded ChristiaNet sponsors. "Given the decline of moral values in churches today, [we should] fill [our] idle time with reading the Bible or building a relationship with God."