Truth Wins Out’s research team revealed today that an alleged split in July 2009 between Exodus International and Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays (PFOX) may only be cosmetic. While PFOX is no longer listed as an Exodus referral agency on Exodus’ website, the groups appear heavily enmeshed.
TWO has found that nearly one-quarter (22-percent) of PFOX chapters are actually Exodus member ministries. The cross-over ministries include:
Wisconsin’s Reclamation Ministries, South Carolina’s New Song Ministries, Oklahoma’s First Stone Ministries, New Mexico’s LifeMor ministries, Missouri and Illinois’ Pure Heart Ministries, and Florida’s Family Ties Ministries.
“Despite their public divorce, Exodus and PFOX appear to be very much in bed together,” said Wayne Besen, Executive Director of Truth Wins Out.”These groups should be honest and admit the true extent of their working relationship.”
There is one other possibility. PFOX may be falsely listing Exodus ministries as PFOX chapters in order to mislead the public into thinking the organization is larger than it actually is.
In July 2009, Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays (PFOX) broke away from Exodus International – or perhaps it was the other way around. The details remain murky. They were supposedly split over strategy, with PFOX couching its bizarre arguments in civil rights language.
For example, they want “ex-gays” to be included in laws that protect people from discrimination based on sexual orientation. Exodus, simply wants gay people not to be covered by such laws. There was also Exodus’ concern over PFOX’s judgment in placing quack “therapist” Richard Cohen on television.
Exodus is extremely sloppy when it comes to their memberships. On my website, transchristians.org, I’ve been following Reality Resources. It shut down last June but Exodus still has them listed. I even contacted Exodus to point this out last year. Similarly, it was a number of months for Exodus to move RR from being a member to being an affiliate, and that was even with Exodus being really pissed with RR. (RR was saying total healing was not possible for transgender people.)
What’s the saying? Don’t attribute to malevolence what can be explained by incompetence.
Btw, I didn’t even know there was an Exodus member in Chicago. Maybe I’ll pay them a visit.
[...] Claim: Greg Quinlan, a PFOX spokesperson said, “Ex-gays remain closeted because they are not protected by diversity [...]
[...] PFOX was founded in the late 1990’s by Anthony Falzarano, with political and financial backing from the Family Research Council. He was replaced by Richard Cohen (pictured with tennis racket), the discredited therapist who was expelled for life from the American Counseling Association. The group also has close ties to Arthur Abba Goldberg – the founder of JONAH and a former Wall Street con artist who served hard time for bilking investors. [...]