Former 'Ex-Gay' Lears Denounce 'Conversn Therapy' In A New Documentary : NPR

Contents:

• EX-GAYS RPOND TO ANDY STANLEY’S CLAIM THAT LGBT PEOPLE HAVE ‘MORE FAH THAN A LOT OF YOU’
• WHAT COM AFTER THE EX-GAY MOVEMENT? THE SAME THG THAT CAME BEFORE.
• FIVE EVANGELIL PASTORS WHO BACK GAY MARRIAGE
• FORMER 'EX-GAY' LEARS DENOUNCE 'CONVERSN THERAPY' IN A NEW DOCUMENTARY
• GAY, EX-HILLSONG LEAR SPEAKS ABOUT EXPERIENCE WH UNCLEAR POLICY
• FOUNR OF FIRST ‘EX-GAY’ MISTRY DI, AND THE TRIBUT ARE POURG
• GEIA MEGACHURCH PASTOR REVEALS HE'S GAY
• GAY UNSELOR'S FIRG BY INDIANAPOLIS CATHOLIC SCHOOL PERMTED BY FERAL APPEALS URT
• EX-GAY MARRIED, BEME A PASTOR
• THE EX-GAY CHRISTIANY MOVEMENT IS MAKG A QUIET EBACK. THE EFFECTS ON LGBTQ YOUTH ULD BE VASTATG.

EX-GAYS RPOND TO ANDY STANLEY’S CLAIM THAT LGBT PEOPLE HAVE ‘MORE FAH THAN A LOT OF YOU’

| Screenshot: YouTube/Gwt Church Christians who once intified as homosexual have mixed opns about recent remarks ma by Pastor Andy Stanley, which the megachurch lear said that LGBT dividuals who go to church have “more fah than a lot of you. ”Last month, a short clip of Stanley was posted on Twter which he said “a gay person who still wants to attend church after the way the church has treated the gay muny, I'm tellg you, they have more fah than I do.

Stanley acknowledged that there were vers the Bible that nmned homosexualy, but then add, “oh my goodns, a gay man or woman who wants to worship their heavenly Father, who did not answer the cry of their heart when they were 12 and 13 and 14 and 15.

WHAT COM AFTER THE EX-GAY MOVEMENT? THE SAME THG THAT CAME BEFORE.

”“Andy Stanley repeatedly munit ‘gay people’ as a legimate inty given to this morn culture over the last 100 years om psychology and the Amerin Psychologil Associatn legimizg rpt human sexual sir as orientatns.

”Black drew a parallel to the mistry known as Revoice, a Christian mistry that, while adherg to the belief that homosexualy is sful, garnered ntroversy theologilly nservative circl for s embrace of ias like Christians beg able to intify as LGBT.

FIVE EVANGELIL PASTORS WHO BACK GAY MARRIAGE

CHANGED is a ​group​ found by Elizabeth Wong and Ken Williams, two pastors om Bethel Church who prevly intified as homosexual and are now married to members of the oppose sex. Jamie Lee Fch, a relatnship ach and thor, ​ took to Twter to nounce the posts and claim that CHANGED is “not simply harmful—their theologilly and scientifilly unexamed #oncegay stance is recklsly evil.

Q Christian Fellowship even went so far as to create “UNCHANGED, ” a ​webse​ that tells the story of LGBTQ+ Christians and seeks to be “an affirmative unter to the damage wrought the name of God through ex-gay theologi and philosophi, ” acrdg to their Church rpond to the accatns via s Instagram: “The msage of CHANGED has never been ‘All Mt Change’…For those of you who feel fulfilled and happy as you are, we love you! ” An ​article​ at “The Pulp and Pen” criciz the CHANGED webse for not g the words “s” or “repentance, ” argug that the mistry is “signed to prent Christiany as a liftyle enhancement for homosexuals.

In dog so, though, Bethel has wad to a murky middle ground, askg if one n “leave homosexualy behd” while also claimg to love those who feel “happy and fulfilled” as they are.

FORMER 'EX-GAY' LEARS DENOUNCE 'CONVERSN THERAPY' IN A NEW DOCUMENTARY

" | (Photo: Christopher Yuan)Christopher Yuan, pastor and thor of Out of a Far Country: A Gay Son's Journey to God, A Broken Mother's Search for Hope, provid The Christian Post wh a statement on Friday regardg the news. "The married father of two – who openly adms to still havg same-sex attractn but do not intify as gay – dited that he still holds to the biblil belief that homosexualy is a s, but he strsed his apology that he will exercise his beliefs "wh great re and rpect for those who do not share them. "The Natnal Associatn of Rearch & Therapy of Homosexualy, meanwhile, released a statement notg that the mistri that prised Exod Internatnal will rema operatn and that NARTH self will still "meet wh the many dividuals seekg help for their sire to manage or dimish their unwanted homosexual attractns.

""NARTH ntu to affirm that the experience of thoands of clients wh unwanted homosexual attractn and the licensed therapists who serve them monstrat that traed, experienced, and ethil profsnal clicians play a val role succsful treatment procs, " reads the also noted that unlike Exod Internatnal is not a fah-based enty and looks toward scientific treatments for those wh unwanted homosexual believ that the ultimate msage of this news should be that while human enavors evably end J Christ remas. Alan Medger, the first executive director of Exod Internatnal, scribed as “a change self-perceptn which the dividual no longer intifi him- or herself as homosexual.

GAY, EX-HILLSONG LEAR SPEAKS ABOUT EXPERIENCE WH UNCLEAR POLICY

Recent bat among nservative Anglins and Prbyterians over whether someone n claim a “gay inty” are only the latt round of siar disput that have echoed church rridors for years. As Stott wrote Issu Facg Christians Today back 1982, “In every discsn about homosexualy we mt be rigoro differentiatg between this ‘beg’ and ‘dog, ’ that is, between a person’s inty and activy, sexual preference and sexual practice, nstutn and nduct.

FOUNR OF FIRST ‘EX-GAY’ MISTRY DI, AND THE TRIBUT ARE POURG

In the Uned Stat, as the 1969 Stonewall rts New York announced the birth of the gay rights movement, orthodox Prottants were already askg what posive visn Scripture giv for people who are gay. In a statement, the lears clared, “We repent of the cripplg ‘homophobia’ … which has loured the attus toward homosexual people of all too many of , and ll our fellow Christians to siar repentance.

Schaeffer foraw signifint cultural chang when, 1978, an Orthodox Prbyterian Church ngregatn San Francis found self sued for releasg a gay employee who had vlated the church’s of nduct.

Church historian Richard Lovelace’s 1978 book Homosexualy and the Church garnered hearty endorsements om evangelil lumari Ken Kantzer (a former CT edor), Elisabeth Ellt, Chuck Colson, Harold Ockenga, and Carl F. First, would require profsg Christians who are gay to have the urage both to avow [acknowledge] their orientatn openly and to obey the Bible’s clear junctn to turn away om the active homosexual life-style.

GEIA MEGACHURCH PASTOR REVEALS HE'S GAY

The church’s sponsorship of openly avowed but repentant homosexuals learship posns would be a profound wns to the world ncerng the power of the Gospel to ee the church om homophobia and the homosexual om guilt and bondage. Yet this was the Christian visn of Lovelace and Henry, Ockenga and Ellt, Kantzer and Colson, Lewis and Graham, Schaeffer and Stott, and a young gay evangelil Anglin who felt too aaid to e his own name, even though he was still a virg.

As I watch evangelil church and nomatns fumble their way through discsns of sexual orientatn and inty, often enforcg the language and tegori of a failed ex-gay movement, we’re missg the real battle: The surroundg culture has nvced the world that Christians hate gay people. They are already send-gusg their fah bee they hear all around them that Christians hate gay people, and they n’t pot to anyone their ngregatn who is gay, is fahful, and is loved and accepted as such.

Mike Riley: When [former homosexual] Frank Worthen joed our fellowship, I was workg wh the llege group and Sunday school, so I didn't have a lot of time to thk about .

GAY UNSELOR'S FIRG BY INDIANAPOLIS CATHOLIC SCHOOL PERMTED BY FERAL APPEALS URT

" Other pastors preparg to lnch an ex-gay mistry their church n ntact Mike Riley at Church of the Open Door, 2130 Fourth Street, San Rafael, CA 94901; phone: 415-459-1980.

EX-GAY MARRIED, BEME A PASTOR

He fend tradnal marriage a 2008 Christiany Today article, sayg he wasn’t sure he’d perform a same-sex blsg, although he did exprs support for gay and lbian civil rights. After takg a leave of absence om Harvard Universy to study the Bible and homosexualy, Matthew V gave a speech at his church about acceptg gay Christians that has amassed over 1 ln views on YouTube sce 2012. He also started The Reformatn Project, a nonprof tryg to “reform church teachg on sexual orientatn and genr inty, ” and wrote the book “God and the Gay Christian: The Biblil Case Support of Same-Sex Relatnships.

While he said recently that his church, Northland, A Church Distributed, will mata that the Bible prohibs gay relatnships, he now believ nservative church should wele and support those of all sexual orientatns.

THE EX-GAY CHRISTIANY MOVEMENT IS MAKG A QUIET EBACK. THE EFFECTS ON LGBTQ YOUTH ULD BE VASTATG.

If you said someone was evangelil you knew pretty much what you were gettg – errancy of the Bible, importance of preachg, a foc on evangelism, warngs of hell and most of all – opposn to gay marriage.

While still far om the mastream and the overwhelmg majory of self-scribed evangelils are still opposed to gay marriage, there are a growg list of pastors who scribe themselv as evangelil and yet support same sex upl.

'It has taken untls hours of prayer, study, nversatn and emotnal turmoil to brg me to the place where I am fally ready to ll for the full acceptance of Christian gay upl to the Church, ' he wrote.