A Wasilla minister has sparked anger by criticizing women who withhold sex from their husbands and by suggesting that it can lead to spousal rape.

The reaction to the minister’s comments has been so strong that the newspaper that published his guest column is now planning a community forum on sex crimes.

Ron Hamman is the pastor of the Independent Baptist Church of Wasilla and has been a contributing columnist for the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman on matters of faith.

His views on rape within marriage are generating a storm of controversy on the Internet.

Hamman's latest column, "What the Bible says about a modern controversy," was published in the Frontiersman Monday.

In it he says there have been allegations of widespread spousal rape in Alaska, even though he says he has never heard a woman accuse her husband of forcing himself on her.

Hamman says according to Biblical standards a wife's accusation would not be sufficient proof in and of itself, and he says scripture requires married couples to have sex.

"Thus, if these allegations of spousal rape are due to the wife withholding herself in an attempt to control or punish her husband, she is out of line with God."

The comments section on the Frontiersman website showed uniform condemnation of the column, and a writer at another website wrote an editorial in response, seemingly as outraged at the newspaper's decision to publish it as at Hamman for having written it.

At the organization Standing Together Against Rape, or STAR, lead advocate Erin Patterson says law enforcement and the judiciary take spousal rape very seriously.

"We're satisfied that the Special Victims Unit looks at these cases open-mindedly, just like other cases that come in. We know that the statutes don't discriminate based on marital status. There's nothing in our statutes that say if you're married, then it's ok."

Hamman also faces pushback from other pastors.

Dan Jarrell, a pastor at ChangePoint in Anchorage, emailed CBS 11: “Christian husbands serve their wives in love and are never forceful with them.  Christian wives trust their husbands to treat them with honor and respect.  When these biblical principles are ignored or neglected the results are always horrible and sometimes criminal."

Patterson says Hamman has made star's job tougher.

"Knowing that this information, this misinformation is out there is heartbreaking for us because we're working hard with our other agencies in town to promote accurate information on the rights of victims to report sexual violence regardless of their marital status."

Hamman has started a conversation -- one that is growing in intensity.

The frontiersman editor, Heather Resz, e-mailed CBS 11 saying that the reaction to the column has led to planning for a public summit on sex crimes.

She and Publisher Kari Sleight declined to comment on the decision to publish Hamman's latest column.

CBS 11 reached Hamman by email, but he declined to be interviewed, as well.

In Anchorage, District Attorney Adrienne Bachman said spousal rape is neither rare nor frequent, with at least a few cases prosecuted here every year.

Bachman emphasized that using force to overcome resistance to sexual overtures is criminal in any context.

Three other anchorage pastors who were contacted declined to be named but expressed grave concern about Hamman's views.