Author, speaker and purity promoter Dannah Gresh has criticized the parents of teen star Miley Cyrus for letting her film a provocative video for her new single, "Can't Be Tamed."

The founder of Pure Freedom ministry and author of the "Secret Keeper Girl" series from Moody Publishers and, more recently, Harvest House Publishers, Gresh said that she was "shocked" by Billy Ray and Tish Cyrus' apparent endorsement of the "highly sex-charged" performance by their teenage daughter, best known for her "Hannah Montana" series.

The young star had "figuratively run across an eight-lane highway, and I know there are a lot of little girls who will follow her if I'm not strong about how I respond," said Gresh who has penned an open letter to the older Cyruses. She said that she feared "carnage" if Miley's young fans "keep feasting on (her) example."

In her letter, Gresh said: "I've been on the frontlines of counseling sexually broken teenage girls for 12 years, and they get broken by imitating the behavior they see in videos like this. The media fuels behavior, especially when a face as trusted as your daughter's is showcased."

She added: "Miley has just placed hundreds of thousands of little girls on a fast track to sexualization, unless their parents pull them off by unplugging them from your daughter's influence entirely."

Signing her letter with "sincere sadness," Gresh urged the star's parents to "show us that you're made of what we believe you are made of: character. ... We just have to remind you that though anyone can play the sex object in Hollywood, there are the few who have proven that you can walk with character in that pressing industry. Please, parent Miley to be one of them."

Last year, Gresh collected thousands of signatures for her "Bod Squad Petition," calling on the Council of Fashion Designers of America and the American Apparel and Footwear Manufacturers Association to tone down styles for young girls.

Click here to read Dannah Gresh’s letter.

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