"NPR should have tried to find individuals that were not 'ex-gay for pay.' Truth Wins Out always challenges journalists to find such people and they come up empty handed," he wrote on his group's website. "This speaks to the fact that there is no genuine 'ex-gay' movement, just a high-dollar, politically motivated marketing campaign to create the appearance that such people exist in large numbers." Wayne Besen, Link
That ex gays abound is an undeniable fact. I would only agree with the idea that there are no 'ex gays' if it is meant in the context that nobody is actually 'cured' of alcoholism. A condition as such still might require active participation on the part of the recovering alcoholic to avoid ruining their life through alcohol. Likewise, homosexuality can be viewed as a problem that is quite complex for the person dealing with unwanted same-sex attraction that can be attributed to a wide variety of factors. However, if Mr Besen or anyone else would like to know if there really are people who have left the homosexual lifestyle behind and are glad they did so, perhaps they might want to speak with such courageous people as...
ex homosexual Michael Glatze
ex homosexual Joe Dallas
former lesbian Jeanette Howard
former lesbian Luanna Hansberger
former lesbian Sandra Aslesen
former homosexual Stephen Bennett
former lesbian Linda Jernigan"
former lesbian Christine Sneeringer
former lesbian Charlene E. Cothran
ex homosexual Phillip Tucker
ex homosexual Nathanael Flock
ex homosexual Richard Weller
ex homosexual Tim Wilkins
former lesbian Melissa Fryear
former lesbian Melinda Selmys
former lesbian Jackie Clune
former lesbian Linda Wall
former lesbian Abigail Meadows
former lesbian Cindy Hinsch
ex homosexual James Hartline
former lesbian Janet Jenkins
former lesbian Teresa Britton
ex homosexual Greg Quinlan
former lesbian Shereka Ford
former lesbian Janet Boynes
ex homosexual Michael Glatze
ex homosexual Joe Dallas
former lesbian Jeanette Howard
former lesbian Luanna Hansberger
former lesbian Sandra Aslesen
former homosexual Stephen Bennett
former lesbian Linda Jernigan"
former lesbian Christine Sneeringer
former lesbian Charlene E. Cothran
ex homosexual Phillip Tucker
ex homosexual Nathanael Flock
ex homosexual Richard Weller
ex homosexual Tim Wilkins
former lesbian Melissa Fryear
former lesbian Melinda Selmys
former lesbian Jackie Clune
former lesbian Linda Wall
former lesbian Abigail Meadows
former lesbian Cindy Hinsch
ex homosexual James Hartline
former lesbian Janet Jenkins
former lesbian Teresa Britton
ex homosexual Greg Quinlan
former lesbian Shereka Ford
former lesbian Janet Boynes
former transexual Walt Heyer
former homosexual Stephen Black
former lesbian Yvette Schneider
former lesbian Kristin (Johnson) Tremba
former homosexual James Wimbush
former lesbian Melanie Spinks
former homosexual Deacon Remnant
former homosexual DL Foster
former homosexual Matt Moore
Former homosexual Christopher Doyle
former homosexual Mike Davidson
former lesbian Akila Brayboy
Former homosexual Robert Breaud
And on and on the list goes. These names were accumulated with just a perfunctory seach, could you imagine if one sat down and really analyzed the issue for a considerable length of time? I hope we can finally rid ourselves, once and for all, of the idea that there 'are no ex gays' and diminish the amount of hateful bigotry leveled against former homosexuals who are brave enough to speak the truth. The above list should provide a starting point for anyone truly interested in finding some that actually exist.
13 comments:
Do you realize how utterly foolish you look? You try to make the case that "ex-gays" exist that are "ex-gay" for pay....by presenting a laundry list of "ex-gay" for pay activists.
Nice going.
Thanks for stopping by Wayne. Is it your belief that of the entire list of former homosexuals up above, that none of them "have left the homosexual lifestyle behind and are glad they did"? A simple yes or no and a brief outline of your reasoning would be nice.
Of course the pro-gay lobby would never consider the other side of the coin. When Bishop Robinson left his wife of many years to pursue a gay relationship (just to cite one infamous example), did anyone say that there is no such thing as an "ex-straight"?.
The real issue is not sexual proclivity or orientation. The ingrained proclivity is not sexual orientation, but rather sin nature. There is no such thing as an ex-sinner; only forgiven sinners. Homosexuality, hetero-sexual adultery, lying, cheating, stealing, gossiping or self righteous attitudes toward any of the above are all equally effective at evoking divine displeasure, and all equally forgivable by responding to the cross in repentance and faith.
Someone else to add to your list, whom I wrote about in response to a Washington Times articles a couple years ago:
http://mdcrustacean.blogspot.com/2009/12/when-foundations-are-being-destroyed.html
I guess there must be no such things as recuperating pedophiles or other sex offenders, either.
I was in the ex-gay ministries for 22 years. I have had private conversations with several of the men on your list. Each man firmly rejects the label of "gay" and each claims to not be engaging in gay sex, but none of the ones I know claim to have heterosexual desires. So, I think it's fair to say they are non-active homosexuals, not ex-gay.
None of them claiming to have heterosexual desires is different than staing outright that they don't have them.
I believe that there is no wonder-cure for unwanted same-sex attractions and that in some, if not many cases one can struggle with them as the alcoholic struggles with the desire to take drink.
Homosexuality is not an addiction, but let's use your analogy. Would AA be credible if their success rate was 0.01% That's what the president of Exodus International ex-gay ministry says is their success rate after 36 years of trying. There are over 4 million Christians alive today who are gay (2% of 2.1 billion). Many reject the "gay" label but they will always have same-sex attraction.
Define 'success' as they meant it.
"A recent study by Nicolosi, Byrd, and Potts surveyed 882 clients engaged in sexual reorientation therapy. Of the 318 clients who rated themselves as having exclusively same-gender sexual orientation prior to treatment, post treatment results found 18% rating themselves as exclusively heterosexual and 17% almost entirely heterosexual. Only 13% reported remaining either exclusively or almost exclusively gay or lesbian following treatment. Self-report information on these individuals also revealed significant improvements in self-acceptance, emotional stability, depression, and spirituality.
"A couple of recent studies specifically examined religiously-motivated attempts to change sexual orientation. In one study, 248 individuals reported experiencing significantly more heterosexuality than they recalled experiencing at age 18. At a one-year follow-up, 140 of these subjects were reinterviewed and 60.8% of males and 71.1% of females reported behavioral success, defined as abstaining from homosexual contact.
Success was associated with strong religious motivation and positive mental health. The authors also reported that therapy was not found to be a significant factor in participants' success. Additional analyses suggested that the benefits of conversion therapy may not be experienced until well into the therapy process. This is in keeping with the Nicolosi, Byrd and Potts study where the average length participants had received therapy was 3.4 years." Link with footnotes
Please answer 1 question for me Jerome, in a yes/no format.
Is there a single shred of evidence whatsoever that reparative therapy is any more harmful than the homosexual lifestyle itself?
"After my first homosexual experience at age sixteen, I quickly developed an addiction to it because of the affirmation and sense of acceptance I was finally receiving from other men." Former homosexual Andrew Comisky
Jerome, please note this is my 2nd attempt at asking you this question. I would suggest not engaging in the semination of gay agitprop and answer the question in a straightforward manner.
"Please answer 1 question for me Jerome, in a yes/no format.
Is there a single shred of evidence whatsoever that reparative therapy is any more harmful than the homosexual lifestyle itself?"
If yes, then feel free to cite the study here.
Jerome, you cite absolutely zero evidence that there has even been a valid comparison between the two.
Youre done on this thread.
Wayne. he doesn't look foolish to me. Your belief that there is no such thing as am ex-gay speaks to your lack of exposure.
I must disagree. If you are right, then I don't exist. But yeah, "several"--that's conclusive. Yeah, it's very "safe to say..."
I'm so tired of being dismissed and turned into an illegitimate entity. And it's always by those who promote appreciation for diversity.
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