Bishop Claudio Silvero says the devices are "accursed and tools of sin" and says he denounced them in a homily this week in the shrine of Caacupe, 32 miles (54 kilometers) east of Paraguay's capital, Asuncion.
He told The Associated Press in a telephone interview Friday that mobile phones ease access to pornography and aid in "inappropriate relations." He says about 40 percent of Christian families suffer damage "because of the bad use of cellular phones and the Internet."
His campaign is not shared by many in the church. Cell phones are common among Vatican officials and the church has produced some of its own applications for them.
