Caught in the downpour of Tropical Storm Fay, Exodus spokesman Randy Thomas writes with clarity and compassion about a troubled friend.
Freed from an obvious connection to sexual orientation and its requisite sugar-coated Dobsonspeak, Thomas demonstrates that he can still perceive people and situations for what they are, without resorting to politically correct language, pre-packaged answers, or trite dismissals.
This is the Randy Thomas that many people once knew. That Randy is missed.
Note: At this writing, Wayne Besen is at NLGJA in Washington, while I’m moving from Hartford to Providence this weekend. So TWO blog posts will be a bit sporadic for a few days.
While my friend John hasn’t battled same-sex attractions, he personally understands sexual addiction as he was embroiled in a deep struggle with pornography for a few years.At one point his wife found out.Unfortunately, like many, they didn’t tell anyone because of fear and shame.That’s the same reason why I waited so long to share my struggles.
A couple of years ago that all changed for my friend John and his wife Joy when they began sharing their story of freedom.
Exodus cheapens true freedom and erodes serious discussion about sexual addiction when it conflates unrelated issues — and when it refuses to specify the kind of “freedom” that it offers to “ex-gays”:
“Freedom” to Exodus means freedom from sexuality, freedom from honesty, freedom from intimate relationship, and freedom from having openly gay neighbors or co-workers.
Exodus International, the North American network of so-called “ex-gay” activists, is steadily building a network of affiliated churches even as the organization’s ex-gay membership declines.
But, despite a $50 annual membership fee, Exodus appears to offer these churches little besides false promises.
Exodus Church Network director Jeff Buchanan tells Ministry Today:
If we’re honest, the issue of homosexuality intimidates most church leaders. It makes us feel helpless. When someone pulls us aside and confides in us that he or she struggles with same-sex attractions, we diligently put on our “leader face” while we shrivel on the inside, feeling absolutely incompetent to address the situation.
Nothing could be further from the truth. If you believe God’s Word to be true, then you automatically have the needed tools for effective ministry, since all Scripture is “useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness” (2 Tim. 3:16, NIV). Therefore, we are equipped as the church to minister to anyone who walks through our doors—homosexual or not.
With the exception of the introductory, cherry-picked verse that is cited above, the remainder of Buchanan’s article fails to cite a single Bible verse that would provide church leaders with guidance in addressing someone who struggles with their sexual orientation. Buchanan fails to justify the central thesis of his article — the dubious notion that the Bible is all that one needs to become a counselor to a gay individual in distress.
Of the three vague tips offered by Buchanan — that a person needs 1) compassionate truth, 2) discipleship, and 3) community — none has a stated basis in “God’s Word,” nor are any explained with useful examples. Indeed, this trite list of needs is unworthy of serious ministerial discussion: Exodus is touting tips that appear to have been borrowed not from a Bible or a professional guide to pastoral care, but from fortune cookies or a second-rate horoscope. (Read More)
“Crystal Christian” is an exciting new play with music that examines the million-dollar therapy industry of the so-called ex-gay ministries. The play itself attempts to tackle the misuse of the word unnatural in regards to sexual diversity, as well as indict the questionable methods of the ex-gay ministries’ ‘reparative therapy’. The play finds hypocrisy swarming inside the evangelical pageant, where shame is a virus. It would be hysterical if it weren’t so horrifying.
The Magic Theatre has offered to host First Sprout Theatre for a week-long workshop in mid-August that will culminate in three shows over the weekend of August 15-17, 2008 at the Magic Theatre Northside Space, Fort Mason Center, Building D.
August 15th - 8pm
August 16th - 8pm
August 17th - 2:30 pm
Tickets are ten dollars, cash only at the door of the Magic Theatre’s Northside Space. Every show is two for the price of one. Please email: firstsprout@gmail.com, to reserve seats for any of the three performances.
For years, ex-gay activists have waged a self-declared “culture war” against the clear and simple meaning of Luke 4:9-13:
4:9 The devil also took him into Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. He said to Jesus, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here.
4:10 For it is written, ‘God will put his angels in charge of you to watch over you carefully.
4:11 With their hands they will hold you up, so that you will never hit your foot against a rock.’”
4:12 Jesus answered him, “It has been said, ‘You must not tempt the Lord your God.’”
4:13 After the devil had finished tempting Jesus in every possible way, he left him until another time.
All too often, leaders of Exodus — from its executive offices down to local member “ministries” — encourage struggling gay individuals to reject Jesus’ admonition and commit a form of blackmail against God. They advise counselees — would-be ex-gays — to make outlandish proclamations of heterosexuality in the so-called “hope” that God will be forced to make good on the believer’s premature claim of “change” by performing a miracle — either instantly or gradually — to make that phony pretense of heterosexuality become real. Some evangelicals refer to such miracle-baiting with the phrase, “Name it and claim it.” (Read More)
High gas prices inspire different reactions in Americans.
As sensible people realize that gas prices will only go higher in the coming years, some people move closer to transit, employment, or schools. Some people telecommute. Some people car-pool. Some lose weight through once-common practices known by quaint names such as “walking” and “biking.” This writer (for what it’s worth) is selling his car next month and moving to an urban center with good neighborhoods, transit, and walkable streets.
Not everyone can pick up and move, but incremental changes are possible.
On the other hand, some people just want to complain.
In a recent op-ed article, Exodus President Alan Chambers admits to central Florida that he’s mad at gas prices and polluted air. But his recollection of a recent commute across Orlando suburbs in his old Mercedes offers no sign that Chambers was taking any measures to conserve fuel, besides briefly turning off his air conditioning. He seems unwilling to publicly acknowledge a basic truth: His decision to live and work in separate, car-dependent suburbs represents an unyielding and unsustainable lifestyle choice which, repeated by millions of motorists worldwide, is the cause of both rising fuel prices and worsening air pollution. (Read More)
Arkansas ex-gay advocate Victor J. Adamson advises people to adopt his ex-gay lifestyle which — according to those whom he has counseled — consists of pretending to be heterosexual. (Source: XGW)
Another ex-gay ministry, Mastering Life Ministries, has severed ties with Exodus — the second prominent, achhem, “exodus” this year. The leader of the ministry, David Kyle Foster, reportedly has long-standing issues with control, self-righteousness, and fraudulent misrepresentation of science and demographics — but those traits are by no means frowned-upon by Exodus or its membership guidelines. It is possible that Foster became fed up with what he perceived to be the “campy, gossipy, lispy” behavior of the U.S. ex-gay leadership. Foster’s board of advisers includes Neil T. Anderson, an advocate of the belief that gay Americans and the mentally ill are controlled by demons. Anderson’s “theophostic” therapy utilizes amateur “counselors” to coerce patients into recovering false memories. The theophostic counseling industry, it seems, has been established as a profit center by dominionists who have bypassed accountability to the professional mental-health community. Critics say this form of unlicensed counseling has also been used by conservative ideologues such as Chuck Colson to conduct “faith-based coercion” — at taxpayer expense — against captive audiences of prisoners. MLM was a long-standing member of Exodus, so a very big question demands an answer: Why does Exodus tolerate such abuses of mental health among its membership, and what other member organizations remain similarly obsessed with conjuring and then exorcising non-existent demons out of impressionable individuals? (Source: XGW)
Despite recent departures, Exodus claims to have more than 200 member organizations. But a quick count by TruthWinsOut.org of the ministries listed on Exodus’ referral list finds only 98 referral ministries in the United States (give or take a few) — and only two referral ministries in Canada. Many of the Exodus web site’s referrals are not ex-gay ministries, but rather for-profit conversion therapists and members of Exodus’ political mobilization network of antigay churches. Exodus’ network of ex-gay ministries seems to be shrinking, even as it grows its political network of antigay churches.
Exodus executive vice president Randy Thomasredefines transparency and accountability to mean truthiness — in other words, whatever a morally compromised ideologue wants them to mean.
Northern Irish lawmaker and ex-gay proponent Iris Robinson says gay people are worse than child molesters. Despite her later denials, her remarks were confirmed. Robinson’s defense? She proudly asserts that anything she says “is what Christ teaches us” and “is out of love.” Robinson claims to have Christian values — after redefining “Christian” to mean “intentionally untruthful” and “malicious.” And she claims to defend the word of God — but none of her particular words seem to be found in the Bible nor any other holy book. Nevertheless, British ex-gay activist Peter Ould supports Robinson’s antigay tirades and claims that the real problem is that “the world hates Jesus.” (Source: XGW)
In typical fashion, Exodus and Focus on the Family are fooling future victims with false advertising, pie-in-the-sky promises and semantic games. In hyping the Asheville event, Focus on the Family wrote an article that claimed the following:
** For 33 years, Exodus has been spreading a message of hope and freedom to a world impacted by homosexuality.
I would agree that Exodus is spreading a message of hope. Indeed, the entire organization is all about “messages” - even if their slick words conflict with the dark reality experienced by most of the people who will attend the group’s conference. The sad truth is, anyone can offer “messages” - but are these messages backed by substance or simply empty promises that will cause needless pain and suffering? The statistic-free Exodus refuses to show whether its rhetoric matches reality - because it doesn’t. In my view, the Exodus message machine borders on consumer fraud.
** Exodus President Alan Chambers said, “There is a biblical alternative, that we can find freedom from homosexuality.”
Once again, Chambers is word-smithing to make it appear as if Exodus is offering a magical cure. Chambers pathologically denies this, but wide-eyed, new conference-goers will surely see Chambers’ words as offering a new life as a heterosexual. After all, “freedom from homosexuality” implies that the alternative is heterosexuality. Anyone who says otherwise is flat out lying and exploiting people.
** Jeff Johnston, gender issues analyst at Focus on the Family, attended his first Exodus conference more than 20 years ago. It helped him gain victory over homosexuality, and he said he wants that message of freedom to spread. “You have some churches saying, ‘Homosexuality is OK; that’s how God made people,’ ” he said. “Exodus is proclaiming (the) truth and helping people find freedom.”
Johnston is also guilty of manipulating words to make conference attendees believe they will become straight - which they won’t. He is saying that people will “find freedom” and the text supports this by saying that Exodus helped him “gain victory.” For the vast majority of people paying their hard earned money in Asheville, victory means an opposite-sex spouse that they are actually attracted to. It means that when they are at the gym and see an attractive person of the same-sex, they will feel nothing sexual.
Exodus cannot promise such a transformation, and is thus immorally preying on people by offering promises they can’t deliver. Why doesn’t Exodus simply tell people the truth. Here are few honest slogans:
1) “Marry someone you aren’t attracted to and learn to have sex with them!” (Alan Chambers, Instructor)
2) “Improve your acting skills by playing straight! Free Haircuts!” (Melissa Fryrear, Instructor)
3) “Learn the Joys of Lifetime loneliness and Celibacy!” (Randy Thomas, Instructor)
Until Exodus is honest with people, they are nothing more than immoral sleaze merchants who peddle snake oil to the highest bidder. They ought to be ashamed. And, yes, Alan, Jeff and Randy - I’m talking directly to you.
In 2004, Exodus International board member Phil Burress put an anti-marriage constitutional amendment on the Ohio ballot and drew thousands of Ohioans to the polls to support the re-election of George W. Bush for president.
Until recently, Burress — the powerful leader of Ohio’s anti-family organization Citizens for Community Values, an affiliate of Focus on the Family — has withheld support from 2008 Republican presidential candidate John McCain.
Just a month ago, Burress had told the Los Angeles Times that while he might vote for McCain,
he will not work directly for McCain, and he suspects that many conservatives will stay home on election day.
“They think we have no place to go [other than the Republican Party], and in some respects, that’s true,” Burress said. “But it’s going to take a whole lot more than that for him to win.”
Last week, however, the Los Angeles Times reported that McCain met with Burress in a bid to secure far-right votes as McCain’s rival, Democratic candidate Barack Obama, wins over religious centrists and the religious left.
“We told [McCain] that if he didn’t come out and share his pro-family stances on these issues, then he can kiss Ohio goodbye,” said influential anti-gay Ohio activist Phil Burress, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Instead of pursuing a moderate presidential course that might unite Americans behind shared family, community, and national values, McCain pandered to the forces of paranoia and division: He announced his support for an initiative in California to ban same-sex marriage, even though a similar initiative in his home state of Arizona failed.
Burress was impressed:
“It was obvious there were a lot of changed hearts in the room,” said Burress. “We realized that he’s with us on the majority of the issues we care about.”
McCain still hopes to meet with James Dobson, the leader of Focus on the Family. Dobson has said he would not vote for McCain and claimed that neither candidate gives “a hoot about the family.”
Meanwhile, Burress — along with other social conservatives — is pressuring McCain to recruit Southern Baptist minister and former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee as his vice-presidential running mate.
Burress characterized the Huckabee overture as a “suggestion, not a demand.”
“This is a man you don’t threaten,” Burress said of McCain. “His principles are his principles. The last thing you want to do is try to force him to do something he doesn’t want to do because he’d probably do the opposite.”
Burress said that while Huckabee is a favorite of Christian conservatives, the most important thing is that McCain’s running mate be “pro-life and pro-family.” Huckabee isn’t a favorite of all evangelical leaders, either; some dislike his populist message, emphasis on the environment and economic positions.
The leaders meeting in Denver included Phyllis Schlafly, head of the Eagle Forum; “Left Behind” co-author Tim LaHaye and his wife, Beverly, founder of Concerned Women for America; David Barton, founder of WallBuilders; Rick Scarborough of Vision America; and Don Hodel, a former interior secretary and former president of Colorado Springs-based Focus on the Family, according to [Liberty Counsel chairman Mat] Staver.
Burress asserts that the Bible commands evangelicals not to vote for Obama:
“The only evangelicals that will support Obama are the ones who haven’t read their Bible,” Burress said. “The more and more we learn about Obama, the closer and closer we get to McCain.”
Does this Exodus board member feel sufficiently holy that God has permitted him to rewrite the Bible? Or does this Exodus leader feel that merely saying the word “Bible” in a sentence makes the sentence true?
Exodus International has “made peace” with disgraced ex-gay author and counselor Richard Cohen, according to Ex-Gay Watch and Cohen’s assistant director Hilde Wiemann. Furthermore, according to XGW, Exodus has deleted its online warning to antigay parents about Cohen’s unethical and counterproductive practices.
Cohen is a former Unification Church member who charges sexually confused men up to $200 per hour for sexualized cuddle sessions and anti-mother rants with a tennis racket. He claims that the cuddle sessions help repair clients’ broken masculinity, and that physical abuse against mother figures helps repair a childhood wounded by overmothering.
Despite a long history of scandal, it wasn’t until 2006 that he was publicly disavowed by Exodus, and reluctantly sidelined as president of Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays, after his scam was nationally televised by CNN…
High gas prices inspire different reactions in Americans.
