Former director of ‘ex-gay’ mistry Love Actn marri same-sex partner

Contents:

• FORMER DIRECTOR OF ‘EX-GAY’ MISTRY LOVE ACTN MARRI SAME-SEX PARTNER
• JOHN SMID, FORMER 'EX-GAY' THERAPY LEAR, TALKS 'LOVE IN ACTN' DOCUMENTARY
• FORMER LEAR OF EX-GAY NVERSN THERAPY GROUP ADMS ’S HARMFUL AND DON’T WORK
• ABOUT THE CENTERSCE 1983 THE CENTER HAS BEEN SUPPORTG, FOSTERG AND CELEBRATG THE LGBT MUNY OF NEW YORK CY. FD MORE RMATN ON AND OUR WORK ABOUT THE CENTER. VIS ABOUT THE CENTEROUR MISSNCYBER CENTERCENTER HISTORYRACE EQUYMEDIA CENTERLEARSHIP & STAFFEMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNICORPORATE PARTNERSHIPSANNUAL REPORTS & FANCIAL INFORMATNCONTACT USHOURS & LOTNSEMAPSUPPORT THE CENTER
• FORMER GAY NVERSN THERAPIST WARNS OF SUICI RISK
• STIGMA AGAST GAY PEOPLE CAN BE DEADLY
• POPE FRANCIS SENT ME A LETTER. IT GIV ME HOPE AS A GAY CATHOLIC.
• USG THE WORD ‘QUEER’ INSTEAD OF ‘GAY’
• CONFN, EXASPERATN AND DATG APPS – MY MONTH AS A GAY REPORTER AT THE QATAR WORLD CUP

FORMER DIRECTOR OF ‘EX-GAY’ MISTRY LOVE ACTN MARRI SAME-SEX PARTNER

The former director of an "ex-gay" mistry that endorsed "straight boot mps" has married his same-sex Smid, who was director of the Memphis-based nservative mistry Love Actn, married Larry McQueen Oklahoma Nov. The mistry me unr fire 2005 after a teen posted to MySpace the l of the group's mp, Refuge, that claimed to teach gay youth how to be shuttered Refuge 2007 after a documentary about the mistry showed Smid nversn therapy was hurtg the LGBT muny, Smid said. Three years later, he announced he was openly gay and did not believe sexual orientatn uld change — the same year he and his wife met McQueen three years ago but started datg a year uple liv Paris, Tex., but drove to Oklahoma to get married bee Texas do not issue same-sex marriage licens.

The film is largely set Memphis at the real-life Love Actn, an “ex-gay” Christian mistry, n on screen by Edgerton as chief therapist Victor Syk (a portrayal of the mistry’s former director, John Smid) is not Edgerton’s first film behd and ont of mera (four years ago, he ma a psychologil thriller lled The Gift). ”Instead, he swung the other way, wrg Troye Sivan’s character, Gary: a posed, seemgly well-adjted young gay man, savvy enough to tell the nversn therapists what they want to hear. Although you wonr how a gay director would have tackled the same issu, the fact that Edgerton is some ways sanisg Conley’s memoir – rather than sensatnalisg – perhaps monstrat the creasg sensivi straight directors have about how they tell queer stori.

JOHN SMID, FORMER 'EX-GAY' THERAPY LEAR, TALKS 'LOVE IN ACTN' DOCUMENTARY

Now agnostic (asi, he says, om some Catholic guilt), he ternalised the town’s attus and had to learn to accept homosexualy later Kidman and Rsell Crowe as the parents Boy Erased.

This at a time when the bate over whether straight actors should portray gay characters rag anew, followg Darren Criss’s announcement that he would no longer take on gay rol, and awards acclaim for Rami Malek and Olivia Colman playg LGBTQ characters. ”Regardls, he’s happy wh the Boy Erased stg this regard, and fairly so: Hedg (who has prevly stated he’s “not totally straight”) the ma role, while Xavier Dolan and Sivan (both out gay men) are st sendary rol as gay men. The former director of the "ex-gay" nservative Christian mistry Love Actn spoke to CNN today ahead of a feature-length documentary film that expos many of the practic volved so-lled "reparative" therapy.

FORMER LEAR OF EX-GAY NVERSN THERAPY GROUP ADMS ’S HARMFUL AND DON’T WORK

John Smid -- who me forward last fall sayg not only that he is gay, but that is impossible to change one's sexual orientatn -- spoke at length about his prev work on CNN this morng.

ABOUT THE CENTERSCE 1983 THE CENTER HAS BEEN SUPPORTG, FOSTERG AND CELEBRATG THE LGBT MUNY OF NEW YORK CY. FD MORE RMATN ON AND OUR WORK ABOUT THE CENTER. VIS ABOUT THE CENTEROUR MISSNCYBER CENTERCENTER HISTORYRACE EQUYMEDIA CENTERLEARSHIP & STAFFEMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNICORPORATE PARTNERSHIPSANNUAL REPORTS & FANCIAL INFORMATNCONTACT USHOURS & LOTNSEMAPSUPPORT THE CENTER

"We wanted to teach the wrongs of homosexualy -- why was a s, why was wrong, how uld harm their liv -- not realizg that stuff was gog on their hearts that we wouldn't allow them to share, " Smid relled. From 1990 to 2012, John Smid served as the executive director of Love Actn, a Christian anizatn (now lled “Rtoratn Path”) that champned so-lled ex-gay nversn therapy for gay people seekg to change their sexual orientatn. Smid also served as the board of directors of Exod Internatnal for 11 years, an advote of ex-gay therapy whose former Print Alan Chambers later said, “I never met one person who changed their sexual orientatn, cludg me, ” before closg the group 2013.

Smid adms his group shredd the liv of dividuals and their fai, swdlg them of their money and phg the disproven theori that “life events, unhealthy fay relatnships, or … sexual wounds” e homosexualy. Even though Smid left Love Actn and married a man 2014, he says many ex-gay therapy groups like his ntue to operate while ignorg the mounta of evince agast their harmful practic.

FORMER GAY NVERSN THERAPIST WARNS OF SUICI RISK

Syk for his part, was the based-on-a-te-story Executive Director of ex-gay Christian mistry Love In Actn (now lled Rtoratn Path)- the nversn therapy center is loted Arkansas. “And yet at the time, we really believed we were somehow gog to rcue the kids om a life of homosexualy…so we set them up, really, for a fa, we set them up for a false image of what life would be like.

Smid now heads an anizatn lled Grace Rivers which is a monthly Christian group for “those who ll themselv gay and want to seek a relatnship wh God a place where they’re ee to do that. Male Heim/The Wona Daily News, via Associated PrsA group of lears of the Uned Methodist Church, the send-largt Prottant nomatn the Uned Stat, announced on Friday a plan that would formally spl the church, cg “fundamental differenc” over same-sex marriage after years of plan would sunr a nomatn wh 13 ln members globally — roughly half of them the Uned Stat — and create at least one new “tradnalist Methodist” nomatn that would ntue to ban same-sex marriage as well as the ordatn of gay and lbian clergy.

STIGMA AGAST GAY PEOPLE CAN BE DEADLY

Louis last Febary, when 53 percent of church lears and lay members voted to tighten the ban on same-sex marriage, clarg that “the practice of homosexualy is patible wh Christian teachg.

POPE FRANCIS SENT ME A LETTER. IT GIV ME HOPE AS A GAY CATHOLIC.

Several people terviewed on Friday believed that most Amerin church would stay, though there has not been any formal a pluraly of Amerin Methodists nsir themselv nservative, acrdg to the Pew Rearch Center’s Relig Landspe Study 2014, six 10 believe that homosexualy should be accepted and nearly half favor same-sex many of the church’s regnal nferenc this past summer — stat like Florida, Geia and Texas — members rpond to last year’s vote by electg legat for the upg global nference who largely supported cludg gays and lbians the full life of the church.

USG THE WORD ‘QUEER’ INSTEAD OF ‘GAY’

Smid shared rmatn about growg up Omaha the 1950's an abive hoehold, disverg Evangelil Christiany, workg at ex-gay mistry Love In Actn, his two heterosexual marriag, leavg the ex-gay movement, makg amends wh those he harmed, and marryg his hband, Larry.

John Smid, born Denver, Colorado, is a whe, gay man, and former Executive Director of Love In Actn (1990-2008), one of the largt and olst ex-gay mistri the world and part of ex-gay umbrella anizatn Exod Internatnal. Durg the 18 years, Smid mted himself to the rtrictive l of the Love In Actn program, which clud renouncg and avoidg any “False Imag, ” a term ed to scribe anythg nsired a temptatn of the “homosexual liftyle. ” Smid uld not listen to any non-Christian mic, attend theatre productns, watch most movi, wear any clothg nsired gay, feme or revealg, and did not allow himself to have close iendships wh men.

CONFN, EXASPERATN AND DATG APPS – MY MONTH AS A GAY REPORTER AT THE QATAR WORLD CUP

Wrg at the webse for his new mistry, Grace Rivers, he publicly clared that he is gay, and that effect, there are no genue "ex-gays" - only gay people who have learnt to live a life ntradictn wh their nate orientatn.

John Smid, the former Executive Director of Exod Internatnal’s olst mistry “Love Actn, ” has publicly admted that he is gay, and now says that beg LGBTQ is an trsic part of a person’s beg, not a “behavr” that one n repent om. Wrg on the webse of his new mistry, Grace Rivers, Smid said, “One nnot repent of somethg that is, who rigned as Executive Director of Love Actn 2008 — an ex-gay Christian mistry that purports to “rtore those trapped” homosexualy — is now disavowg the msage he preached for years that promised gays they uld are the simple facts.

What terts me, om the perspective of queer fah, is the story behd the story - what was the journey that led him om director of a major ex-gay program, to g out himself, and proclaimg publicly the dishonty that unrps the movement. And so was that om ially beg opposed to havg any part the filmg, John Smid moved to a pot where he wanted to participate the premier, and has likewise moved om nng a program to "nvert" gay men to ex-gays, he has now e out publicly as gay himself, and clared that ed there are no ex-gays. But, I’ve also met some who experience transformatn om sexual promiscuy to a fahful gay relatnship that is tly, their experience, a great blsg to their relatnship wh Christ.