Exodus International executive vice president Randy Thomas commented today on the revelation that Christian singer Ray Boltz has always been gay.
Let me explain, I feel awful for him that he felt so isolated and suffered from shame. It’s sorrowful that he didn’t feel like he could be honest and transparent with others unless it was to embrace a gay identity and worldview.
Nonsense. Boltz did not “embrace a gay identity and worldview,” he acknowledged the truth that he has always been same-sex-attracted. Thomas’ politically correct chatter about “identity” and a nonexistent “gay worldview” is a reminder that Exodus leaders too often behave like the heads of an elitist cult — or worse, like press-release writers for a slick politician. They certainly do not present themselves as trustworthy counselors in a safe, sincere, or truthful refuge for Christians such as Boltz who are same-sex attracted.
According to The Washington Blade, Boltz tried to be ex-gay for decades:
It got to the point by the early-to-mid ’00s that keeping his homosexuality hidden had become an increasingly wearying notion.
“You get to be 50-some years old and you go, ‘This isn’t changing.’ I still feel the same way. I am the same way. I just can’t do it anymore.’”
There was some exploration of “ex-gay” therapy though Boltz never attended an “ex-gay” camp or formal seminar.
“I basically lived an ‘ex-gay’ life — I read every book, I read all the scriptures they use, I did everything to try and change.”
Indirectly, this spilled out into his songwriting. Boltz says even though he never told his fans the specifics of his struggle, it added a dimension to his lyrics that resonated.
Thomas’ current advice to same-sex-attracted Christians is the same advice that ex-gay books and therapists gave to Boltz: Hide your sexual orientation. Falsely claim to be heterosexually attracted. Only relate to people and only read books that are “Biblically appropriate” as redefined by James Dobson, Coral Ridge Ministries, or the American Family Association.
Such advice betrayed Boltz, and it continues to betray the spiritual and social well-being of people of faith. It sells out the truth for the sake of correctness, conformity, and authoritarian political interests.
Thomas presumes to pray down to Mr. Boltz and his family, but perhaps it is Thomas who needs prayers.
Related posts
7 Comments »
RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URL
If you’re “same-sex attracted”, then, so far as I can gather, NOT embracing a “gay identity and worldview” means either:
(1) spending the rest of your life trying to persuade yourself and everyone else that you’re straight, or
(2) acknowledging that you’re “same-sex attracted”, but spending the rest of your life fretting over it and telling yourself that it would be better if you weren’t.
Either way, it’s a waste of a life.
Comment by William — September 16, 2008 @ 12:39 pm
“Either way, it’s a waste of a life.”
Not to mention a waste of the afterlife too (if you’re a ‘believer’ (in reincarnation)).
And it’s not like you can just jump back into an adult body and start making up for it all. You’d have to be born as a baby, and then grow up all over again.
Now you try planning the “perfect” and “liberating” lifetime while racked with guilt and shame from your last one.
Now that would be hell.
Comment by Emproph — September 16, 2008 @ 5:47 pm
I am quite familiar with Ray Boltz. Christian music artist Kirk Talley was quoted, “Talley initially declined to be interviewed for this story saying he’d “been through enough hell,” but did consent to one comment: “I will definitely be in prayer for Ray,” he said in an e-mail. “He has no idea the crap he will have to endure.”
Ex gay ministries fail to see the great harm they commit in the name of God. It really is getting to be a shame.
Kirk Talley’s story is more involved and can be found here:
http://www.rockvillecogop.com/board/board_topic/535781/109158.htm
Comment by Matthew Moak — September 16, 2008 @ 5:49 pm
“It’s sorrowful that he didn’t feel like he could be honest and transparent with others unless it was to embrace a gay identity and worldview.”
This is coming from a guy who last week was crucifying himself with a pretty hilarious YouTube video I thrown together, and was claiming “I’ve never stigmatized gay people”.
Randy doesn’t need prayers. He needs medications – and lots of it.
Comment by Scott — September 17, 2008 @ 2:31 pm
What is the secret of successfully posting comments on Randy Thomas’s website?
Recently I posted the following comment in response to Randy’s delineation of what he calls a “gay worldview”:
Let’s just take a look at your description of a gay worldview, and at the ‘default set of “worldview” issues that are inherent for most. Examples: “I’m born this way” “being gay is not a choice” “I should be able to marry my partner”.’
(1) “I’m born this way.” Are heterosexual people “born this way”? Since heterosexual people are in the overwhelming majority, it seldom occurs to them to ask this question. They just accept that that’s the way that they and most other people are, and they’re unlikely to trouble themselves about the “cause” of their orientation. However, I think that most heterosexual people, if asked the question, would simply assume that the answer is “yes”.
That doesn’t mean, of course, that they were born with an explicit and conscious orientation towards people of the other sex, but rather that their sexual orientation was already programmed. Whether this is true or not is another matter; we simply don’t know, and we shouldn’t pretend that we do.
(2) “Being gay is not a choice.” If “gay” is being used here as a mere synonym for “homosexual” (i.e. attracted to other people – although almost certainly not to all people – of the same sex), then this isn’t a worldview issue at all, but a simple statement of fact: being gay is not a choice, and neither is being straight. Again, few heterosexual people ever bother to ask themselves whether they chose to be heterosexual, but those with any self-insight at all would confirm, if asked, that they never actually chose to be: they just are.
(3) “I should be able to marry my partner.” This is an assumption that heterosexual people make pretty well universally.
Thus we see that, mutis mutandis, a gay worldview, as you have described it, differs very little from a straight worldview.
The only difference that I am aware of is the absurd conceit held by quite a few heterosexual people that everyone, but everyone, ought to be straight. The converse belief, that everyone ought to be gay, is rare indeed – although I don’t doubt that you’ll find a tiny handful of gay nutcases who hold it, just as you’ll find some people who still subscribe to the flat earth theory.
Nick expresses concern that “many who struggle and look up to Ray may now feel inclined to follow his example.” I certainly hope so. Even if a closet is so skilfully constructed as to deceive the whole world, it will never deceive God. Furthermore, in one very important respect a closet is similar to your worldly wealth: you can’t take it with you.
After a short interval the above comment, which had apparently been successfully posted, disappeared, and all attempts to re-post it have failed. I gave a valid e-mail address, so can anyone explain to me where I’m going wrong?
Comment by William — September 19, 2008 @ 8:56 am
simple: comments are acceptable to post on Randy’s blog until Randy says otherwise.
Comment by Emily K — September 21, 2008 @ 2:31 pm
William,
I think the issue is he couldn’t answer your question with the Exodus playbook.
Plus I didn’t see anything in your comment that would boost Randy’s ego, or applaud him LOL
Comment by Scott — September 22, 2008 @ 2:39 am