Coming soon

Just a heads up about something I'm pondering at the moment.

An essay on Alternet about fascism details the steps for instituting fascim. What struck me were the many parallels to the steps taken by ex-gay ministries and reparative therapies.

"Fascist America, in 10 Easy Steps"

Supporting Self-Destruction

"support any individual’s self-determination to pursue change in their same sex attractions"

I ran into the above declaration over at a blog about ex-gay ministries. The context itself was really interesting, but what really struck me was that the blog authors, who have presented themselves as in opposition to ex-gay ministries and reparative therapy, at least, enough to criticize such organizations regularly, actually endorsed the idea above.

The evidence for the destructiveness of ex-gay ministries and reparative therapy is lengthy and convincing. Which raises the question - is it ethical, is it humane, is it Christian, to support someone in an attempt to mutilate themselves psychologically?

On the one hand, conservative Christians claim that they are 'saving' GLBTQ people from self-destruction. The problem there, of course, is that homosexuality is not intrinsically harmful, and what harm is associated with being GLBTQ, is predominantly caused by the prejudice against homosexuality. Even the theological concern over damnable sin is unfounded, for Christ promised forgiveness for all sins:

John 3: 14-18
Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.[e] 16"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son,[f] that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son.[g]

In the case of ex-gay ministries, there is too much evidence of harm directly caused by those ministries. I've touched on some, a tiny fragment, in prior posts. No doubt, it will be needful to cover more in the future. Here is a single personal account for today. Some snippets to encourage you to read the whole account:

But after nine months at WGA, she still felt attracted to women and decided that the program wasn’t rigorous enough. She became close to one of the staff members, a compassionate thirtysomething ex-gay man named Scott Kingry, but she didn’t want to end up making the choices he had: Convinced homosexual behavior was a sin but unable to form a connection with a woman that would lead to marriage and sex, he had been celibate for nearly a decade.

- - -

Months later, however, a letter to a friend revealed a tangle of confused feelings: “I’m 30 now, and I really want to be straight, married, and possibly have kids, and I guess I feel like I’m running out of time. I mean, I really really really (!) want to be married to a woman, but again, that’s not what…God intended.” Soon after, Christine’s faith in her therapy was shaken by a piece of powerful news: Ex-gay poster-husband John Paulk had been seen and photographed at a Washington, D.C., gay bar. Paulk’s apparent “slip” created a national uproar. On the Internet, Christine was finding an increasing number of references to ex-ex-gays. “I’m so angry with God that he doesn’t change people who want to change!” she wrote to a pastor friend at the time. “I just feel ultimately misled and very betrayed by…those who would promise healing.”

- - -

Christine was ready to admit that ex-gay counseling hadn’t worked. That realization was triggered, in part, when she saw Peterson Toscano’s well-received one-man show, Doin’ Time in the Homo No Mo Halfway House: How I Survived the Ex-gay Movement. His hilarious observations about his experiences in the Love in Action program reinforced her feeling that it was safe to come out of the ex-gay closet. Browsing Christian websites, she found that there was a growing interest in a more traditional form of Christianity that accepted homosexuality. She also began attending a support group at Denver’s Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Community Center in a nondescript downtown building. There she encountered several women she’d first met at Where Grace Abounds—they were ex-ex-gay now too. Bonding with other ex-exes, she finally seemed to have found the one group in which she truly belonged.

Jesus seems to take it for granted that even we who are mere imperfect humans, know at least little bit about right and wrong.

Matthew 7, 9-12 "Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will our Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! 12So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.

As I pondered the support of pursuing reparative therapy/ex-gay ministry, it occured to me that good parallels exist, which we can examine and consider.

Within Christianity there are some congregations, some denominations, that practice certain expressions of faith that could be described as extreme. They handle poisonous snakes, and/or drink liquids that are at least represented as being poison, and have a scriptural basis to support these practices. That last part might look familiar. So will this:

"If a worshipper is bitten, poisoned, or burned during the services, it is believed to be because that individual lacked faith, has sin(s) unrepented for in their life, or that it was a message from God, either to teach them suffering or to demonstrate to those lacking faith in the ceremony that the poison is real.[citation needed] Few seek medical attention after being bitten.[citation needed] While children attend the services, the worshippers strongly deny that any of them have been bitten.[citation
needed]"

Now, in the spirit of full disclosure, citations are required to substantiate those statements, and Wikipedia is susceptible to error. So let's look around some more together.

Snake Handlers Hang On in Appalachian Churches

"Junior G. McCormick is a serpent-handling pastor from Georgia. He explains that, for him, handling snakes is simply following the gospel to the letter. "Other folks don't do this because their churches don't believe, or it's just something they're scared of," he said. "They come to that scripture but want to jump over that part because it's a deadly thing."

Now that really is similar to what anti-gay churches say about churches that accept GLBTQ people.

"Churches that practice serpent handling tend to be wary of publicity. This desire for privacy stems, in large part, from negative media attention that inevitably follows the practice after injuries or deaths due to snakebite occur.

"There are over 100 documented deaths from serpent bites," said Hood. "In every tradition, people are bitten and maimed by them. They risk their lives all the time by handling them. If you go to any serpent-handling church, you'll see people with atrophied hands, and missing fingers. All the serpent-handling families have suffered such things.

"It's a misconception that these people believe they won't get hurt," Hood explains. "The Bible says to take up serpents, not that they won't be bitten. If they're bit, that's up to God. The issue is obedience to God. There's no magic power type of stuff. They know the reality of it because so many families have had people hurt and killed."

No doubt, you've seen several other strong similarities between those who believe in serpent handling, and those who condemn homosexuality and support ex-gay ministries and reparative therapies.

Ex-gay ministries very much parallel serpent handling/poison drinking ministries.

There is one major difference though: society is not threaded through and through with punitive laws, prejudices, hate crimes designed to coerce people into becoming serpent handling Christians. But the pressure on GLBTQ people to be made into heterosexuals, is continuous and pervasive, invasive and all but inescapable.

As another source put it"snake handlers “are willing to die for their beliefs” - but with ex-gay ministries and reparative therapies, for the most part, those with the most at risk, benefit the least. The leaders make fortunes from books and speaking engagements, claim accolades and worship from desperate families and motivated politicians - leaving the suffering for others.

Who here would genuinely support a friend, a family member in the effort to please God by handling poisonous snakes, or drinking poison? Some people have survived such worship practices, others have not.

If your mother told you, "God told me He wants you to jump off that 12 story building over there" - would you? Some people have survived a fall from that height. Many others, have not.

Some people appear, for now at least, to live heterosexually as a result of ex-gay ministries, most do not, and too many have died as a result. So, I have to wonder, which of us, if our friend asked for comfort, peace, a fulfilled life and relationship, would we send him to a reparative therapist or ex-gay ministry instead?

When struggling GLBTQ people cry out for love and acceptance,

there are people who would give a rock, a serpent, a reparative therapist, instead.

Tactics that certainly look like Sin

Maybe if Jesus had explicitly said 'do not brainwash others if you do not want to be brainwashed yourself', things would be different today.

I noticed some striking parallels in this account "The Secrets of the Christian Right's Recruiting Tactics" and reports on ex-gay ministry events.

Some excerpts:

The emotional meltdown that leads to the conversion experience -- one often induced in crowds skillfully manipulated and broken down by demagogues -- is one of the most pernicious tools of the movement. Through conversion one surrenders to a higher authority. And the higher authority, rather than God, is the preacher who steps in to take over one's life. Being born again, and the process it entails, has far more in common with recruitment into a cult than it does with genuine belief.

I attended a five-day seminar in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., where I was taught the techniques of conversion, often by D. James Kennedy of Coral Ridge Ministries. The callousness of these techniques -- targeting the vulnerable, building false friendships with the lonely or troubled, promising to relieve people of the most fundamental dreads of human existence, from the fear of mortality to the numbing pain of grief -- gave to the process an awful cruelty and dishonesty.

Intense interest by a group of three or four evangelists in a potential convert, an essential part of the conversion process, the flattery and feigned affection, the rapt attention to those being recruited and the flurry of "sincere" compliments are a form of "love bombing."

It is the same technique employed by most cults, such as the Unification Church, or "Moonies," to attract prospects. It was a well-developed tactic of the Russian and Chinese communist parties, which share many of the communal and repressive characteristics of the Christian right.

"Love bombing is a coordinated effort, usually under the direction of leadership, that involves long-term members flooding recruits and newer members with flattery, verbal seduction, affectionate but usually nonsexual touching, and lots of attention to their every remark," the psychiatrist Margaret Thaler Singer wrote. "Love bombing -- or the offer of instant companionship -- is a deceptive ploy accounting for many successful recruitment drives."

What disturbs me most is that this process takes something genuine and turns into a means of manipulating people.

Seed to Tree

There are many ways that people chose to express their negative opinion about homosexuals and homosexuality, ranging from the superficially polite (homosexuality is inconsistent with Christianity) to the brutal (God hates fags). People who employ the more polite appearing language frequently defend their position while vigorously rejecting the more brutally phrased variations.

But all of it, from "inconsistent with Christianity" to "God Hates Fags" are derived from and express the same basic concept, one developed from the same assumptions and interpretations of the same handful of texts ripped from their context.

Fred Phelps, progenitor of the "God Hates Fags" meme, employs Romans 1 as key element of his theology of hatred for GLBTQ human beings. Any person, from any denomination, who believes that Romans 1 condemns homosexuality, has that key foundation in common with Rev. "God hates Fags".
Fred insists that the story of Sodom is about homosexuality, though it is not according to Jesus and Ezekiel, so anyone who believes Sodom is about homosexuality, shares that belief with these people.

Fred and his congregation use both of the Leviticus verses, though Fred at least has the honest to quote Leviticus 20:13 completely, while others conveniently ignore the second half: "they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them." Anyone who quotes Leviticus Leviticus 18:22-23 and Leviticus 20:13, together or separately, and interprets them as a condemnation of homosexuality, is teaching the same thing Fred Phelps teaches, basically.

If you use these passages, and Romans 1 24-32, 1 Corinthians 6:9, to construct a condemnation of homosexuality, you are in the same school of belief that Fred Phelps is.

Fred is just using the most dramatic and blunt language he can get away with.

At one end of the continuum of condemnation, "inconsistent with Christianity" or "is sin";

at the other end, "God hates fags". And no amount of sugar-coating or good intentions will change the fact that both are expressions of the same thought.

Not that Fred Phelps is the only person to arrive at horrendous ways of expressing the traditional interpretation derived from these same passages. The Catholic church declares that same-sex parents do violence to their children just by being same-sex couples.

The Catechism describes homosexual acts as "intrinsically disordered": "They are contrary to the natural law. They close the sexual act to the gift of life. They do not proceed from a genuine affective and sexual complementarity. Under no circumstances can they be approved."

Intrinsically disordered is really not that far from from Fred declares:

Fags live filthy, unhealty, dangerous, unhappy, and in many cases, violent lives.

Just slightly more clinical. And the charge 'do not proceed from a genuine affective complentarity' is just polysyllablic way of saying that our love for each other is not real.

Dr. Mohler, who writes,

"And that compassionate truth is this: Homosexual acts are expressly and unconditionally forbidden by God through His Word, and such acts are an abomination to the Lord by His own declaration. - - - Essential to understanding this reality in theological perspective is a recognition of homosexuality as an assault upon the integrity of creation and God's intention in creating human beings in two distinct and complementary genders. - - -The biblical witness is clear: Homosexuality is a grievous sin against God and is a direct rejection of God's intention and command in creation. All sin is a matter of eternal consequence, "

Is not saying anything that is essentially different from Fred Phelp's message, and Dr. Mohler's position is the standard Southern Baptist position on homosexuality. Dr. Mohler inflicts on humanity the same message as Fred's, couched in less brutal language but with the same brutal consequences.

Christian denominations, churches, clergy and laypeople who teach any expression of 'homosexual lovemaking is sin' are teaching the exact same concept that Fred Phelps is.

The consequences of that teaching are horrific for GLBTQ people. I've covered some examples in past posts here. But the very idea itself is intrinsically violent and horrific.

Much of Christianity, especially its conservative or literalist sects, teach that the 'wages of sin is death', that all sins are equal, that even one sin is sufficient for damnation. The prevalent understanding of damnation is, in essence, eternal torture and torment.

So, to declare, in one phrasing or another, that the lovemaking between two people of the same gender is 'sin' - is to declare it deserving of death, damnation, eternal torment. Eternal consequences, Mohler declares.

That is what it means to declare 'homosexuality is sin' : deserving of death, damnation and eternal torment.

There is no love in such a thought.

Think about what that really means, on a gut, personal level.

If you are heterosexual, really imagine what it would be like to be told that your most intimate, beautiful, loving act of intimacy, vulnerability, is, in the opinion of other people, something so horrible, so vile and disgusting, that you deserve to be put to death, and suffer eternal torture thereafter.

That is what some heterosexuals have been saying to GLBTQ people, for centuries. If you really take that in personally, apply it right to your life, it is uglier than any quote I've yet provided from Fred Phelps.

Here's another source of hate.

"God doesn't recognize these so called "gay" marriages. They are an abomination to Him and a putrid stench in His nostrils."

Yeah, it is from a couple of years ago - but watch and see how it syncs up with current events.

I'm kinda curious just how it is that Stephen Bennett decided that he speaks for God. The Bible says nothing about same-sex marriage, for or against. But that is not the most interesting part:

"America has arrogantly declared war against the God of all creation and I'm sure it will draw a quick and appropriate heavenly response. "

Stephen is writing on behalf of the American Family Association. He makes many, many false claims that bear refuting, lies for which he owes millions of people repentence. One more quote from Stephen Bennet on behalf of the AFA:

"Now as a prideful America thinks we are different in some way from the rest of these defunct civilizations, it just goes to show how true the biblical proverb is - "...a dog returns to his own vomit."

Considering then all of the above, please take a look at this video from Fred Phelp's congregation:

This declaration, from Fred Phelp's congregation, is derivable result from their belief that homosexuality is sin. It just isn't that big a step from condemning millions of people for making love, to condemning the entire creation.

In IT, it is called scope creep. Fred Phelps, Pat Robertson, Stephen Bennet all have manifested it. What starts out as hatred of one group of people, and a voiced desire for those people to be destroyed, grows and grows, including more and more people. For Fred, its the whole world that he wants to see punished.

This is important, because it indicates that the root cause is not some response to homosexuality, nor is it Scripture.

Another example:

"A religious group that staged a protest at Kutztown University today drew hundreds of angry students after members of the group told them they would burn in hell if they were gay, Jewish or Catholic."

Seek dominance by harming others for personal gain

Whether the target is GLBTQ people, or women, or people of color, Jews, etc - it is all the same phenomena. The fact that anti-gay groups will openly turn on other decidely anti-gay gay groups, like the Catholic church, demonstrates how little it really has to do with anyone's life or afterlife.

It is about domination.

The question then is, who wants to be part of a continuum of belief that leads to "God hates the World"?

Not Jesus Christ, for He said:

John 3

16"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son,[f] that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son.[g] 19This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God."[h]

I think it would be great to see a couple hundred congregations and choirs and just groups of friends post their own videos to YouTube, videos of people singing "Jesus Loves Me" or "He's Got the Whole World In His Hands" or the one I guess Fred and Stephen and Albert et al never learned,

"They'll Know We are Christians by Our Love".

The sin of Greed: Harming others for personal gain

As a recent uproar revealed, there is a certain negative connotation to the term, and concept, of mercenary. Wikipedia comments that "When the term "mercenary" is used to refer to a soldier of a national, regular army, it usually considered to have pejorative connotations." Dictionaries go into further detail, including "too strongly influenced by desire for money".

Societies have tended to recognize the need for soldiers, whose job it is to hurt other people, but to disapprove of soldiers who are "acting merely for money or other reward".

Assassin in another career choice with a primarily negative connotation. It is bad enough to commit murder, but to do so for personal gain makes it even worse.

Even actions that are normally seen as pleasurable, or good, or beneficial, are tarnished by the appearance of being in it primarily for money. Even when the results are primarily beneficial, there remains a bias: Non-profit organizations are seen as preferable to for-profit organizations that provide the same services. Altruism is seen as a virtue, greed is not.

While I'm loathe to dismiss out of hand any beneficial service that is done for profit, when I encounter someone who is profitting from harming others, the profiteering compounds the heinousness of their destructive actions.

If you haven't met him before, allow me to introduce you to Joe Dallas. He makes a living harming other people, basically.

What brought him to my mind was a review of his new book. You can buy a copy of his book, which attacks the spirituality of GLBTQ people, for $13.99, on his website.

The first thing that struck me, reading the review, is that though it promises to "Dispels Myth that Homosexuality is Compatible with Scripture" - there is not a single argument from Scripture within the review, nor in the summation of the book on Joe's website. Apparently, you have to shell out $13.99 to get any information.

However, I did find an essay on the subject by Joe Dallas. It is interesting in so many, many ways.

"To the biblically ignorant, general pro-gay religious arguments can pass for truth."

Interesting opening salvo that essentially says 'anyone who doesn't agree with me is "biblically" ignorant.

Sadly, there is little substance for Joe's boast. There is precious little Scripture in this essay as well. An interestingly enough, Joe does not address the challenges from Scripture that GLBTQ Christians make. He settles for rather strained interpretations of the more personal portions of the testimonies of GLBTQ people, and his arguments resolve down to one premise "Saying "I'm Christian and gay" proves nothing." Ironically, even for heterosexual, saying "I'm Christian" proves nothing. Even for heterosexual ministers, saying "I'm Christian" proves nothing. Even for ex-gay, presumably heterosexual writers, saying "I'm Christian" proves nothing:

"The pro-gay theology is a strong delusion-a seductive accommodation tailor-made to suit the Christian who struggles against homosexual temptations and is considering a compromise. Some who call themselves gay Christians may be truly deceived into accepting it; others might be in simple rebellion. What compels them to believe a lie we cannot say. What we can say is that they are wrong . . . dead wrong."

(Joe Dallas, essay "Responding to the Pro-Gay Theology," )

How on earth or in Heaven Joe just knows better than I do the truth of my spiritual journey is unclear. I was under the impression that such omniscience was a trait attributed only to God.

Further into that last link, someone a little less polished that Joe paraphrases his pseudo-omniscient declaration in a more direct, and honest, fashion:
"Of course, I reply. Lucifer is another name for Satan, according to Christian belief, an archangel who wanted to be equal to God. Being that there can only be one God, Lucifer was cast out of heaven.
"Ever since, he's been trying to get back at God, and he'll do anything to do it," Hopper says, her eyes shining, a huge grin on her beaming face. "You've been duped by Satan to believe woman and woman is in order. You've been duped by Satan to get back at God."

Joe offers up summations of the challenges to the anti-gay theology, paraphrased to be as weak and dismissalbe as possible, and then answers them thusly:
"The fact is, in Leviticus, Romans, 1 Corinthians and 1 Timothy, homosexuality is mentioned in the context of sexual and immoral behavior!"

Shall we count all of the verses in which heterosexuality is mentioned in the context of sexual and immoral behavior?

Now Joe's word for it is hardly sufficient to a follower of Jesus Christ, after all, Joe is not Jesus. The various theologians who refute the traditional interpretation tend to provide large, even overwhelming quantities of evidence to support their position. But all Joe needs is a version of 'because I said so'.

I'm generally quick to acknowledge that there is a wealth of information relevant to a discussion of the two interpretations ("homosexuality is intrinsically sin" and "homosexuality is not intrinsically sin"), and that it is unfair to expect readers in every dialog to wade through it all. But I do make an effort to include at least a reasonable slice each time. So, we can examine in great detail the specific flaws of reason in Joe's essays at a later date, if there is sufficent interest. Unfortunately, there is precious little evidence presented in his essays available online.

The next point to jump out at me was Joe's libel of millions of GLBTQ people:
"The goal of the gay-rights movement is twofold: To convert the culture's thinking on homosexuality, then to marginalize or silence those who won't be converted."

Now this lie is told despite the fact that GLBTQ people, in statement after statement, document after document, paper after paper, have asserted and defended other people's right to believe anything they want about homosexuality, including condemning it. What GLBTQ people are seeking is simply the right to not be forced to share in and live within the prohibitions those negative convictions about our lives.

The irony is that many conservative Christians, like Joe Dallas, are actually working to marginalize and silence GLBTQ people who will not be converted to heterosexuality.

At the end of the review, we learn something very interesting about Mr. Dallas:
"Joe Dallas is a featured speaker for Love Won Out – a Focus on the Family conference that promotes the truth that change is possible for those who are unhappy with their same-sex attractions."

Focus on the Family has a long and ugly history of anti-homosexual activity. "Love Won Out" is an organization that claims to change homosexuals into heterosexuals with love, and yet, their history belies both claims.

Before we lose track of Joe Dallas, some more connections.
Exodus International, another of the for "non-profit" yet high profitable ex-gay ministries, has this to say about him:
"Joe Dallas is the Founder of Genesis Counseling in Orange, California, a Christian counseling service to men dealing with sexual addiction, homosexuality and other sexual/relational problems."

The Ex-Gay Fraud

"Like many other homophobic Bible abusers, Joe Dallas uses the tired old argument that Christian homosexuals have revised and distorted the Bible to teach acceptance and respect for homosexuals and homosexuality. The truth is the other way around. Only in recent years has the Bible been translated in clearly homophobic ways that do violence to the original context and meaning of the Hebrew and Greek words. Nowhere does the Bible say that Lesbians and Gays can or should change their sexual orientation. Nowhere does the Bible even discuss, much less condemn, romantic love between people of the same sex. "

One more crucial piece, from Joe's website:
"Genesis offers services at significantly lower rates than for-profit counseling organizations, and we frequently offer low cost/no cost services for those in financial distress. "

It is amazing how often anti-homosexual theology is followed by requests for money.

Joe Dallas's opinions, which online at least are not substantiated with Scripture, are presented in the context of making his living promoting ex-gay therapy.

This is an important distinction. Many fine, wonderful, loving people write books about theology, and social issues, and their religious experiences. Many dedicated scholars have written extensively researched papers on the subject of homosexuality, published them, and expected a reasonable compensation for their efforts.

But ex-gay therapy and reparative therapies don't work, and they harm people. That is a crucial difference. A few days back, I presented some information about ex-gay ministries and their history of failure. Let's look at some more, together.

What do medical professionals say about reparative therapy?
"In response to recent news coverage on Reparative Therapy, the American Psychiatric Association issued the following media advisory:
Questions and concerns regarding the effectiveness of "reparative" therapy -- a term used to describe treatment attempts to change a person from a homosexual or bisexual orientation to a heterosexual orientation -- are again being raised in the public arena.
The American Psychiatric Association (APA) Position Statement on Psychiatric Treatment and Sexual Orientation, adopted by the APA Board of Trustees in December 1998, states in part: ...the American Psychiatric Association opposes any psychiatric treatment, such as "reparative" or "conversion" therapy, which is based upon the assumption that homosexuality per se is a mental disorder... "

"There is no published scientific evidence supporting the efficacy of "reparative therapy" as a treatment to change one's sexual orientation. It is not described in the scientific literature, nor is it mentioned in the APA's Task Force Report, Treatments of Psychiatric Disorders (1989)."

"Clinical experience suggests that attempts to change sexual orientation may occasionally result in behavioral changes for some motivated individuals for limited periods of time, but that such changes often are accompanied by depression, anxiety, and other symptoms.Homosexuals and bisexuals -- like others -- are raised in a homophobic society and often experience internalized homophobia. Some may seek conversion to heterosexuality on that account. Clinical experience suggests that relief of homophobia allows for better psychological functioning. Those who have integrated their sexual orientation into a positive sense of themselves function at a healthier psychological level than those who have not."

I'm looking and I'm looking, and I can't find any evidence that Joe Dallas has any training in psychology or psychiatry. Does he just know better?

More to consider:
"Some so called "ex-gays" claim they have gone straight. However, the research seems clear that trying to change a natural sexual orientation out of fear of God and guilt seldom works. Perhaps it works for the few that weren't really sure or were there orientation was influenced more by emotional issues than biology. It seems clear however, most gays were born that way and trying to change them is forcing them to live a lie.
Some may leave the "gay lifestyle" by altering behavior, but that does not make them heterosexual. They simply become non-practicing gays, that's all. Despite "testimonies" to the contrary, there is not one documented, authenticated case of a actual change in sexual orientation. There has only been change in behavior. Healthy skepticism needs to be exercised of those claiming a heterosexual conversion. "

"Another example is Kent Philpott's book, The Third Sex, in which he gives the testimonies of six homosexuals who supposedly became heterosexual. Within a year after the book was published, all six of the people written about sent notarized affidavits to the publisher, stating that the book was untrue and that they were all still homosexuals. Nevertheless, the book continued to be printed and sold to an unwary public for eight years afterwards. To this day, people are "praising God" for changes that never took place. The continued publication of that book, along with its promulgation for eight years after having received written denials from the subjects themselves, highlight the extent of deception fundamentalists are willing to go to foster belief in a goal based on illusion rather than reality. With fundamentalism it appears that honesty and truth are expendable items."

There is a lot more at that link. Take a look. Ken Philpott is tied to "Love In Action", the organization that provides much of the documentation of the "Day of Truth" campaign through which Christian teens are encouraged to agitate in favor of continued harassment and violence against GLBTQ youth in public schools.

There's a lot of destruction coming out of ex-gay ministries. Here you will find some first hand accounts:
"Faced with the pain of losing those friends (especially the one) that I’d become so dependent on as part of my ‘healing’ process, and with the fact that my attractions hadn’t changed at all (which no doubt had to be my fault), I chose to withdraw from the world rather than deal with the loss. I did go through another program during that time, this one geared more generally toward sexual addictions (since that’s what homosexuality was, according to many of the books I’d read), but again, it brought me no closer to my goal of becoming straight."
(From Eugene's account)

"The marriage lasted twenty years and produced two sons. But, even though I kept my resolutions and lived a perfectly straight and faithful married life, my experiment in self-transformation was not only a dismal failure but a disaster as well. At no time during my marriage did I feel heterosexual or even bisexual. Marital relations, always emotionally painful, became burdensome as well. I felt like a circus bear trained to perform an act alien to its nature such as roller skating or riding a bicycle. I began to resented being "put through my paces." Very gradually, and to the considerable distress of my wife, I lost all interest in sex. I felt that, rather than living my own life, I was living the life of a fictional "straight" character of my own creation. I feared that I would live out my entire life never having interacted honestly with another human being. I became severely depressed. "
(From Michael's account)

"After leaving my ministry at the Christian school I began attending a small church in Boston where I decided to be completely honest about my sexuality. I began meeting with the pastor weekly and also received weekly counseling from a Christian therapist who specialized in treating homosexuals. I spent over $3,000 on this therapy over the course of 2 years. At the age of 30 I attended my first Exodus affiliate ex-gay ministry program in Boston. I worked through the 40-week program 3 times, the 3rd time as a leader. I led worship for the program and attended 2 Exodus conferences. I had some of the biggest names in ex-gay ministry pray over me and even prophesy about my healing.
But my same-sex attraction never diminished. I never changed. - - -In 2000, at the age of 40 after spending about $25,000 for therapy, conferences and programs, and after 24 years of fighting, I became very depressed. I gave up ministry and trying to change my sexual orientation. I left my church and isolated myself from the Body of Christ for 6 years."
(From Tom's account)

There's one more piece, a list of summary teachings from ex-gay ministries, taken from the "Our Stories" link I provided the other day. Look at this carefully from an ethical and moral perspective - how many of these suggestions are ethically sound?

1. Get married. Ex-gays who don't marry are always suspect.
2. No long engagements, as you might change your mind.
3. Love does not make a lasting relationship, respect does. You can learn to love your wife, but it's more important that you have an agreed upon partnership to live as heterosexuals.
4. Ex-lesbians don't expect as much as straight women, so choose one of them, if possible.
5. It's not necessary to tell your wife about your previous "lifestyle." Some women would prefer not to know, so gauge whether you tell her based on what you think her reaction might be.
6. Don't show your wife too much affection, because she might expect sex for more than procreation.
7. Have your first child as quickly as possible, ideally within the first year. Children will help force you to stay in the "straight" lifestyle. If you can afford it, have as many children as you can. More kids = more likely to stay straight. Plus, kids make it appear that you have a "normal" sex life. Ex-gays without children are suspect.
8. Visualize men when you have sex with your wife, if that allows you to perform, but don't tell your wife.
9. Women are able to satisfy themselves better than men, so allow her to take care of her own needs. Focus your attention on your own performance.
10. Once all the children you desire are conceived, you have no more obligation to have sex with your wife, but you can continue if it provides any satisfaction.
11. Don't expect that your relationship will necessarily bring you joy. You will find joy in heaven because you lived the life you were supposed to. Find satisfaction in your children or your work.
12. Everyone slips. Don't tell your wife as that will only make things worse. Ask God for forgiveness and avoid situations that might tempt you.
13. Participate in sports, even if you don't like them. Hunting and fishing are good, too, but don't go camping or to other activities where you will spend too much time alone with other men. Take your wife and children, always.
14. Avoid interests like art and music which might bring you into too much contact with active gays.
15. If you are asked about your change, weigh the benefits of everything you say. Will admitting that you still have urges encourage or discourage a new member? It's okay to "sugarcoat" your answers if it means building the hope of someone."


"Money makes the world go around" .

People like Joe Dallas claim that they have good news, the Truth about homosexuality, the answer, the solution.

It can be all yours. For a price of course - they'll share their "good news" after you pay. There isn't anything wrong with getting paid for honest work of course, but where is the honesty in reparative therapy and ex-gay ministries that teach "Visualize men when you have sex with your wife, if that allows you to perform, but don't tell your wife." ?


Jesus didn't charge people to hear the good news. Jesus didn't set a price on the Truth. To do so would have raised questions at least. It might even have appeared to be mercenary, or spiritual prostitution.

What Jesus did, regarding money and spiritual truth, is quite different from the example Joe Dallas has set:
Matthew 21:
12Jesus entered the temple area and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. 13"It is written," he said to them, " 'My house will be called a house of prayer,'[e] but you are making it a 'den of robbers.'[f]"

A den of robbers, a meeting house for mercenaries.

If you feel like you have been harmed for Joe Dallas's personal gain, please, feel free to write to him and ask him to repent. There is contact information on his personal website.