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LaBarbera: UNAIDS has ‘backwards’ thinking
By Charlie Butts – OneNewsNow – 3/17/2010

A United Nations Aids agency complains that homosexuals, drug users and prostitute don’t seek help because of laws that criminalize their practices.

Michel Sidibe of UNAIDS is quoted as saying it is unacceptable that 85 countries still make homosexual conduct illegal, but Peter LaBarbera, president of Americans for Truth About Homosexuality (AFTAH), does not accept that thinking.

“They’ve got everything backwards,” he contends. “Rather than have a campaign – for example an anti-sodomy campaign, an anti-prostitution campaign, an anti-drug abuse campaign that targets the bad behaviors themselves – instead they target countries that are trying to implement conservative policies that target homosexuality.”

In compatibility with his logic, Sidibe suggests that laws against the immoral behavior be changed.

“Mr. Sidibe is just completely confused,” LaBarbera notes. “He says that in states where there are not repressive laws, HIV is contained. Then he goes on to express shock that more than 50 percent of infections in the United States are among homosexuals. So he contradicts himself.”

Homosexual behavior is not illegal in this country, but the AFTAH president believes the answer to the issue is to launch an all-out campaign to educate people and change the behavior that results in infection. That is what reduced smoking in this country.

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Excerpts from the Associated Press story:

“New HIV infections increasing among homosexuals”

By EDITH M. LEDERER (AP) – March 16, 2010

NEW YORK — New HIV infections are increasing among homosexuals, drug users and prostitutes who don’t seek help because of laws that criminalize these practices, the head of the U.N. AIDS agency said Monday.

Michel Sidibe, the head of UNAIDS, said “it is unacceptable” that 85 countries still have laws criminalizing same sex relations among adults, including seven that impose the death penalty for homosexual practices.

He called a proposed Ugandan law that would impose the death penalty for some gays “very unfortunate” and expressed hope it will never be approved.

At a time when UNAIDS is scaling up its program and seeking universal access to HIV treatment, Sidibe said he was “very scared” because bad laws are being introduced by countries making it impossible for these at risk groups to have access to services.

“You have also a growing conservatism which is making me very scared,” Sidibe added….

Sidibe told a group of journalists at a luncheon hosted by the United Nations Foundation that in countries from China to Kenya and Malawi, about 33 percent of new HIV infections are in men having sex with men, a significant increase.

By contrast, he said that in the Caribbean where most countries don’t have repressive laws, only between 3 and 6 percent of HIV infections are in male homosexuals.

Even in the United States, where laws are not restrictive and the gay community was the first to tackle AIDS, Sidibe said it is “shocking” that more than 50 percent of new HIV infections last year occurred among homosexuals. And he said in the 19-25 age bracket the infection rate was even higher.

“It seems like we have come full circle” in the United States, he said. “After almost no cases a few years ago we are seeing again this new peak among people who are not having access to all the information, the protection that is needed.” …

In Nigeria, where there are 1,000 new HIV infections every day, over 30 percent are in vulnerable groups — drug users, sex workers and homosexuals, he said.

Sidibe called for “a prevention revolution” including a campaign in major cities around the world like the anti-smoking campaigns launched in recent years.

“The risk of HIV transmission through receptive anal sex is much greater than the risk of transmission via other sexual activities.” — CDC

"Where the boys are": homosexual bathhouses lure young men into anonymous sodomies. The CDC and Obama Administration should shut down these perversion centers or at least hit them with a large "sin tax." Above is taken from the Steamworks bathhouse chain's website.

Dear Readers, once again the reality that Nature itself discriminates against homosexuality breaks through the bureaucracy’s official political correctness on this issue. Note how the CDC admits that anal sex is  a much higher risk activity than other sexual practices. Yet to teach the special risks of sodomy in schools would be to invite a “discrimination” lawsuit by the ACLU! Homosexual oral sex also is mentioned as a risk factor for syphilis. So why don’t the nation’s “Best and Brightest” on this issue launch an educational, pro-health campaign against “gay” sex, especially sodomy?

A less bold option might be to levy a heavy “sin tax” on homosexual bathhouses and sex clubs where dangerous, anonymous, “queer” sex proliferates, or — God forbid — actually to shut down these perversion centers as public health hazards. (Instead, “gay” bathhouses like “Steamworks” (right) are flourishing and even offering “Spring Break discounts” to lure young men.)

We understand that such ideas are anathema to the “gay”-pandering fraternity of the enlightened who run the country’s incompetent “war on AIDS” — you know, the types who truly believe their own propaganda that “homophobia” helps spread HIV. But the folly of their failed approach is revealed by press releases like that below. Common sense dictates that our government get out of the “gay” advocacy business and start aggressively targeting homosexual practices linked directly to disease — rather than trying to make those inherently unsafe practices “safe.”

If you have any other ideas on how to target destructive homosexual behaviors rather than “homophobia,” write us at americansfortruth@comcast.net. — Peter LaBarbera, www.aftah.org

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CDC – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

NCHHSTP – National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention

Press Release [emphasis added]

All Findings Embargoed Until: Wednesday, March 10, 2010 at 4:30pm EST
Contact: NCHHSTPMediaTeam@cdc.gov [the NCHHSTP is the National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention within the CDC]; (404) 639-8895

CDC Analysis Provides New Look at Disproportionate Impact of HIV and Syphilis Among U.S. Gay and Bisexual Men

A data analysis released today by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention underscores the disproportionate impact of HIV and syphilis among gay and bisexual men in the United States.

The data, presented at CDC’s 2010 National STD Prevention Conference, finds that the rate of new HIV diagnoses among men who have sex with men (MSM) is more than 44 times that of other men and more than 40 times that of women.

The range was 522-989 cases of new HIV diagnoses per 100,000 MSM vs. 12 per 100,000 other men and 13 per 100,000 women.

The rate of primary and secondary syphilis among MSM is more than 46 times that of other men and more than 71 times that of women, the analysis says. The range was 91-173 cases per 100,000 MSM vs. 2 per 100,000 other men and 1 per 100,000 women.

While CDC data have shown for several years that gay and bisexual men make up the majority of new HIV and new syphilis infections, CDC has estimated the rates of these diseases for the first time based on new estimates of the size of the U.S. population of MSM. Because disease rates account for differences in the size of populations being compared, rates provide a reliable method for assessing health disparities between populations.

“While the heavy toll of HIV and syphilis among gay and bisexual men has been long recognized, this analysis shows just how stark the health disparities are between this and other populations,” said Kevin Fenton, M.D., director of CDC’s National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention. “It is clear that we will not be able to stop the U.S. HIV epidemic until every affected community, along with health officials nationwide, prioritize the needs of gay and bisexual men with HIV prevention efforts.”

For the purposes of determining rates of disease for MSM, CDC researchers first estimated the size of the gay and bisexual male population in the United States – defined as the proportion of men who reported engaging in same-sex behavior within the past five years. Based on an analysis of nationally representative surveys, CDC estimated that MSM comprise 2.0 percent (range: 1.4-2.7 percent) of the overall U.S. population aged 13 and older, or 4 percent of the U.S. male population (range: 2.8-5.3 percent). Disease rates per 100,000 population were then calculated using 2007 surveillance data on HIV and primary/secondary syphilis diagnoses and U.S. Census data for the total U.S. population.

The new analysis is the first step in more fully assessing the impact of HIV among MSM and other populations significantly affected by the disease. CDC is developing more detailed estimates of infection rates among MSM by race and age, as well as among injection drug users. CDC is also in the early stages of planning for estimates among heterosexuals. Ultimately, these data can be used to better inform national and local approaches to HIV and STD prevention to ensure that efforts are reaching the populations in greatest need.

Research shows that a range of complex factors contribute to the high rates of HIV and syphilis among gay and bisexual men. These factors include high prevalence of HIV and other STDs among MSM, which increases the risk of disease exposure, and limited access to prevention services. Other factors are complacency about HIV risk, particularly among young gay and bisexual men; difficulty of consistently maintaining safe behaviors with every sexual encounter over the course of a lifetime; and lack of awareness of syphilis symptoms and how it can be transmitted (e.g., oral sex). Additionally, factors such as homophobia and stigma can prevent MSM from seeking prevention, testing, and treatment services.

Also, the risk of HIV transmission through receptive anal sex is much greater than the risk of transmission via other sexual activities, and some gay and bisexual men are relying on prevention strategies that may be less effective than consistent condom use.

“There is no single or simple solution for reducing HIV and syphilis rates among gay and bisexual men,” said Fenton. “We need intensified prevention efforts that are as diverse as the gay community itself. Solutions for young gay and bisexual men are especially critical, so that HIV does not inadvertently become a rite of passage for each new generation of gay men.”

Preventing HIV and STDs among gay and bisexual men is a top CDC priority. CDC provides funding to health departments and community-based organizations throughout the nation to implement proven behavior-change programs for MSM and will soon expand a successful HIV testing initiative to reach more gay and bisexual men. Additionally, CDC is implementing an updated National Syphilis Elimination Plan in cities where MSM have been hardest hit by the disease, and will release an updated HIV prevention strategic plan within the next year to support the President’s upcoming National HIV/AIDS Strategy. CDC officials note that the new analysis released today underscores the importance of the HIV and STD prevention efforts targeting gay and bisexual men recently announced as part of the President’s fiscal year 2011 budget proposal.

For more information on HIV or syphilis, please visit www.cdc.gov/hiv or www.cdc.gov/std.

Greg Quinlan

Folks, Herr Herrschaft over at the “Human Wrongs Campaign” is building up quite a record for himself in shutting down dissent to the homosexual activist message. His homosexual comrades might call him The Enforcer: this is the fellow whose threat of a boycott at a 2007 DiversityInc Magazine panel on “Religion in the Workplace” succeeded in getting AFTAH knocked off the panel as the sole voice representing faith-based opposition to homosexuality. Isn’t it amazing how “queer” militants continually play the victim card to the public even as they aggressively lobby to squelch opposing views in the workplace and throughout society (all in the name of “diversity”!)? Kudos to Greg Quinlan and PFOX for exposing the raw hypocrisy of the GLBT Lobby. — Peter LaBarbera, www.aftah.org

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Ex-Gay Addresses Disney Board of Directors

Contact:  Greg Quinlan, Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays & Gays (PFOX); 513-435-1125; PFOX@pfox.org

San Antonio, TX — Greg Quinlan of Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays & Gays (PFOX) addressed the corporate directors of the Walt Disney Company at its annual shareholders meeting and asked them to approve a resolution to include ex-gays in Disney’s mandatory diversity training for employees.

“Disney’s diversity training emphasizes gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgenders, but fails to include ex-gays,” explained Quinlan.  “Ex-gays remain closeted because they are not protected by diversity policies and are subject to open disapproval.  Employees who support the ex-gay community are also not welcome to express their views.”

In response to the resolution asking for inclusion and diversity for the ex-gay community,  Daryl Herrschaft, director of the workplace project at the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, was quoted by Daily Finance as saying that the resolution is “wrongheaded.”  The Human Rights Campaign, known as HRC, is the nation’s largest gay rights organization advocating for gay equality.

“How can HRC demand gay equality when it refuses to extend equality to others?” asked Quinlan.  “HRC demands that gays and transgenders be included in diversity policies, but belittles ex-gays who ask for the same rights that gays and transgenders currently enjoy.  HRC insists that men can change their gender to become the opposite sex, but refuses to acknowledge that men like me can change our sexual orientation from gay to straight.”

Every year the HRC Foundation issues a Corporate Equality Index which rates American companies on their equal treatment of gays, bisexuals, and transgenders.  HRC gave Disney a 100 rating, its highest score.  HRC rated Disney on its corporate nondiscrimination policy, diversity training, benefits, employee resource group and diversity council, advertising to gays, sponsorship of gay community events or organizations, and for not engaging in action that would undermine gay and transgender equality.

“Is it a conflict of interest for any corporation in this country to donate money or other form of support to HRC, which then rates those same corporations on corporate equality?” asked Quinlan in his speech to the Disney Board of Directors.

“Disney, your equality index score is -0- for ex-gays and their supporters.  You should treat former homosexuals with the same respect and benefits you give to gays and transgenders.”

“This week HRC is celebrating the first “gay marriages” in Washington D.C., our nation’s capital.  As gay couples in D.C. lined up to apply for marriage licenses, they wore HRC victory buttons.  But there is one victory in Washington D.C., that HRC did not celebrate.  And that is the judicial decision issued by the D.C. Superior Court last year, in a case brought by PFOX.  The Court ruled that ex-gays are a legally protected class under sexual orientation and therefore specifically protected from discrimination under the D.C. Human Rights Act.”

“PFOX calls on HRC to issue public statements condemning hatred and discrimination against the ex-gay community. Human rights demand no less.”

The Disney resolution needed a vote of 3% to pass for inclusion at next year’s meeting, and received approximately 2%.  Quinlan is gratified by the support he received from shareholders present at the meeting.  “Shareholders applauded, shook my hand and said it was about time this happened,” said Quinlan.

###

Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays & Gays (PFOX) leads the nation in providing outreach, education, and public awareness in support of families and the ex-gay community. Remember to read the PFOX blog regularly for ex-gay views and news. See http://pfox-exgays.blogspot.com/

“I help people know themselves better, provide advice about mental health and illness, teach classes and let God be God.” – Grove City College professor Warren Throckmorton, writing on his own blog, July 18, 2007

Warren Throckmorton

Controversial “gay”-affirming Grove City College professor Warren Throckmorton is not answering my e-mail queries anymore, but if he is reading this, I would like to know if he still holds to his comparison (below) of a doctor or an insurance agent to a professing Christian therapist confronted with the possibility of confirming a client in a homosexual “identity.”  Talk about trivializing serious moral and spiritual issues!

Maybe I’m missing something, but somehow deep philosophical matters never came up when I went to the doc or bought insurance. On the other hand, in the area of Christians upholding their faith on the job, surely Throckmorton is a aware that there are many doctors, nurses and pharmacists who refuse to compromise their pro-life beliefs by supporting abortion in any way — even if it costs them professionally. How is supporting affirmative homosexuality any different? You will see Throckmorton’s dubious analogy in this response by an Americans For Truth reader to his One News Now interview yesterday. – Peter LaBarbera, www.aftah.org

P.S. From a biblical perspective, if through therapy a client comes to “integrate” homosexuality, bisexuality or transsexuality as a part of his “valued” self-identity, has the therapist truly helped the client to know himself better? Is homosexuality (“being gay”) in reality, as homosexuals and their allies are wont to say, (part of) “who they are” — or is it what they struggle with? And how can any Christian “integrate” valued (proud) homosexuality with what the Bible teaches about this sinful behavior?

A reader writes:

___________________________________

Three points in response to the ONN interview with Warren Throckmorton:

Let us remember that the Bible not only condemns homosexual sex, but also plainly says that “the effeminate” will not inherit the kingdom of God (I Cor 6:9 KJV).  Sin extends beyond explicit, overt activity/behavior; the attitude and demeanor of homosexuality must be cast off as well as the practice itself.

According to the One News Now article, Warren Throckmorton “denies that as a therapist he would advise clients to maintain a homosexual identity.” Dr. Throckmorton contradicts what he wrote publicly on his blog in 2007:

http://wthrockmorton.com/2007/07/18/more-on-the-apa-religion-and-homosexuality/

Comment posted on WT’s blog   ~  Jul 18, 2007 at 5:34 pm:

Warren, you wrote: “…some therapists are so unable to work outside of their worldview that they should only work with clients where an informed agreement to work within a worldview exists.”

Are you able/comfortable/willing to work outside your (presumably traditionally Christian) worldview? If so, how do justify helping a person become more comfortable with sin?

Warren Throckmorton responds  ~  Jul 18, 2007 at 5:45 pm:
… Do it all the time [work outside worldview] … I suppose your physician does as well, probably your real estate and insurance agents and I suspect the operator of the movie theatre where you see movies (if you do that) does as well. I help people know themselves better, provide advice about mental health and illness, teach classes and let God be God.

So Prof. Throckmorton is parsing words when he denies (in a Christian publication) that he would advise clients to maintain a homosexual identity, yet (in his blog, which he appears to use for dialogue with practicing homosexuals and even “gay” activists) he asserts that he is comfortable advising a client outside his own worldview and does it “all the time.” He may not be advising them TO maintain a homosexual identity, but he is certainly advising some how to be happy while doing just that — what’s the difference?

Warren seems to compartmentalize “mental health/mental illness” as if it is entirely separate from the consequences of sinful attitudes, lustful thoughts, wicked behaviors — whereas a mature Christian (especially a counselor) ought to see a strong connection between the two.

Christianity isn’t just something to believe in or practice in one’s personal life, but then to set aside in one’s professional life.  Faith must be primary, all-encompassing, overarching, and fully integrated.  A counselor has far greater responsibility for the soul than a real estate agent or the guy who sells you a movie ticket.  If a counselor helps a homosexual or an adulterer or alcoholic feel more comfortable living in sin, he is actually interfering with the consequences — the Divine discipline — intended to bring that person to repentance. A professor at a Christian college ought to comprehend that.

It is inexcusable for a Christian not to properly answer the question of whether homosexuality is natural.  The Bible plainly calls it UNnatural. If a “Christian” can’t answer that question, he is either ignorant of Scripture, a coward, or a heretic.

Correction: in initially posting this piece, we mistakenly cited the American Psychological Association, instead of the American Psychiatric Association, regarding the changed DSM on homosexuality as a mental disorders. We apologize for the error. — AFTAH, www.aftah.org

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“Nuance” — yet another manifestation of rhetoric serving the cause of sin. Where oh where is C.S. Lewis when we need him to poke holes in the fancy façade of sophistication that we sinners don to conceal our acquiescence to a fallen world?

Grove City College Professor Warren Throckmorton’s feet have been put to the fire recently regarding the Sexual Identity Therapy guidelines that he and Mark Yarhouse of Regent University have developed. Their guidelines state the following:

The emergence of a gay identity for persons struggling with religious conflicts is a possibility envisioned by the recommendations….some religious individuals will determine that their religious beliefs may become modified to allow integration of same-sex eroticism within their valued identity. We seek to provide therapy recommendations that respect these options.

How can a serious follower of Christ “envision” a homosexual identity, that is to say, an identity defined by disordered desire and objectively immoral behavior? Substitute another sin for homosexuality and imagine such a statement:

“The emergence of a polyamorous or promiscuous identity with religious conflicts is a possibility envisioned by the recommendations. Some religious individuals will determine that their religious beliefs may become modified to allow integration of polyamorous eroticism or promiscuity within their valued identity. We seek to provide therapy recommendations that respect these options.”

Throckmorton and Yarhouse’s statement could be made only by those whose allegiance to a secular worldview takes precedence over their allegiance to Christ. Unfortunately, Throckmorton and Yarhouse are not alone in their subordination of faith and truth to the demands of secular professional guidelines or requirements.

In an interview with One News Now [see ONN site HERE; AFTAH analysis and ONN story HERE], Throckmorton stated that “in a professional therapy situation” it is accurate to say that “homosexuals can live normal, natural, and healthy lives that are free of mental illness.” Throckmorton and Yarhouse quote APA guidelines which state that “Psychologists understand that homosexuality and bisexuality are not indicative of mental illness.” In the words of the infamous Gollum, this is tricksy rhetoric that calls for some careful parsing.

What constitutes “mental illness” is determined by the notoriously liberal American Psychiatric Association, which removed “homosexuality” from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual in 1973 because of the political machinations of a group of homosexuals who stormed and disrupted an APA meeting and subsequently applied political pressure to any pockets of resistance.

But whether the APA considers homosexuality a mental illness or not should be irrelevant to a Christian mental health professional. Christian counselors ought not ignore serious moral issues when deciding how or whether to counsel a client. Neither polyamory nor adult consensual incest is considered a mental illness either. Does that mean that Throckmorton and Yarhouse would be complicit in helping a brother and sister who were involved in an incestuous relationship to work out their relationship conflicts?

Throckmorton asserts that “homosexuals can live normal, natural and healthy lives,” which raises the critical question of how he, as a Christian first, defines normal, natural and healthy. He quite obviously is not applying biblical understandings of normality, naturalness or health. I can’t imagine even what secular standards he is using to define these terms. [Editor's note: in a 2007 radio interview with homosexual activist Mike Signorile, Throckmorton was asked this question: "So you think it is normal, natural and healthy for people who come out and accept that being homosexual — accept being gay — and completely have no issues with their religious faith — you believe — would you describe the words as 'normal, natural and healthy' – that that is fine?" He responded:  "Yes. Yes, I have been very clear about that in my public statements, that the efforts to demonize people who accept their homosexuality and come out as gay have been futile."]

Since homosexuals constitute somewhere between 2-4 percent of the population, homosexuality can’t be considered normal. And since the predominant sex act between homosexual men is profoundly unhealthy and structurally damaging, and homosexual sex is inherently sterile, it’s hard to see how anyone would define homosexuality as natural or healthy.

But most important, as a Christian first, how is Throckmorton defining that which God calls abominable as normal, natural and healthy?

In his interview with One News Now, Throckmorton also said that “he takes a more ‘nuanced’ view” on the topic of same-sex marriage. He said “that he opposes same-sex marriage but believes the Equal Protection Clause permits homosexual civil unions.” Tricksy rhetoric again. He cleverly avoids saying he supports homosexual unions, instead saying that the Equal Protection Clause permits homosexual unions.

First, if the Equal Protection Act actually required homosexual unions, it seems it would require same-sex “marriages” also.

Second, the question Throckmorton needs to answer directly is, does he, who claims to hold orthodox Christian views on homosexuality, believe that “civil unions” — which are really same-sex “marriages” in all but name — should be legalized? Some are interested not in what he thinks the Equal Protection Clause permits, but what he personally thinks should exist.

What seems clear is that many Christian mental health professionals are subordinating their faith to the professional standards established by a world largely hostile to faith. No serious Christian — no one who understands that Christ expects full submission of every aspect of the lives of those who accept the gift of eternal life that came at the cost of His life — would affirm to others either implicitly or explicitly profoundly sinful behavior, behavior that orthodox Christian doctrine teaches will lead to eternal damnation.

Increasingly, Christians from all walks of life are going to have to choose between their work and their faith, between friendships and faith, and perhaps even between family and faith. We shouldn’t be surprised: Jesus told us that,

Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven. Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law – a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.

Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. (Matt. 10:32-39)

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Laurie Higgins is a writer and analyst with Illinois Family Institute. She can be reached through AFTAH at americansfortruth@comcast.net.

Warren Throckmorton

Prof. Warren Throckmorton said in an interview with AFA’s One News Now published today that he supports homosexual “civil unions” and equivocated on the question of whether homosexuality is “normal, natural and healthy.” (In 2007, Throckmorton answered affirmatively to the same question when asked by radical homosexual activist Mike Signorile.) Is this what Throckmorton’s employer, Grove City College, means when it advertises itself as “authentically Christian”?

Note Throckmorton’s parsing of words in the ONN interview (below). Looking through the lens of Judeo-Christian history, to NOT discourage someone from adopting a ‘gay’ identity and practicing  homosexuality (even in a “monogamous” same-sex relationship), is effectively to promote the acceptance of homosexuality — i.e., sexual sin.

Moreover, Prof. Throckmorton seems to adhere to the notion that his Christian life and his professional “therapist” role are mutually exclusive — as if secular requirements in the current psychological paradigm supersede adherence to God’s holy and inspired Word. As AFTAH previously reported, Throckmorton’s and Regent University professor Mark Yarhouse’s “Sexual Identity Therapy” (SIT) stipulates that therapists must respect their client’s chosen “sexual identity” — whether that means rejecting a homosexual identity out of religious convictions or embracing one that “allow[s] integration of same-sex eroticism within their valued identity.” (p. 7)

The overriding question remains: can a faithful, Bible-believing Christian who believes it is sinful to condone immoral sexual behavior practice the SIT approach professionally — if that means NOT attempting to dissuade clients who decide they are happiest living homosexually from embracing that identity?

Perhaps the choice between faith and therapy is not as stark for Throckmorton because — despite his claim to ONN to uphold a “traditional view of homosexuality and sexual ethics” — the GCC professor affirms monogamous “gay” relationships. In 2006, the Los Angeles Times reported that Throckmorton is “uneasy that NARTH [National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality] rejects even the possibility of a fulfilling life with a same-sex partner.” Writing on his blog the day the story was reported, Throckmorton did not take issue with the L.A. Times article but in fact linked to it, noting that it had also been picked up by other news sources.

Normal,  Natural and Healthy?

I will gladly take a shot at answering the three-part question that Throckmorton answered so assuredly in his radio interview with Signorlie, but with which — in the ONN interview — he struggles, ultimately trying to split it down the middle:

“Is homosexuality natural, normal and healthy?”

• Natural? Nope. Anal sodomy and various other homosexual sex acts are unproductive perversions obviously at odds with human anatomy and God’s created design. Since two people of the same sex cannot produce a child, it is not natural (nor possible) for a child to have “two dads” or “two moms.”
• Normal? Not a chance. (Well, maybe in San Francisco, where men are allowed to walk the streets completely naked; where an “order” of male “drag queens” called “Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence” — with twisted names like Sister Roz Erection — are regarded as a legitimate charity; and where every Easter Sunday a city park hosts a shameful spectacle called the Hunky Jesus Contest that blasphemes the Son of God on the Christian holy day.)
• Healthy? Again, no: check out the latest CDC stats on the disproportionate disease rates for “men who have sex with men.”

It appears that in an effort to preserve his reputation, Prof. Throckmorton not only has raised more concerns about his dubious claim to to biblical fealty, but further undermined Grove City’s slogan — aimed at parents of future potential GCC students — that the evangelical college is “authentically Christian.” AFTAH will be publishing other pro-family advocates’ reactions to the ONN interview with Throckmorton.  – Peter LaBarbera, Americans For Truth About Homosexuality, www.aftah.org

One News Now reports:

___________________________________________________

Christian professor clarifies stance on ’sexual identity’

Jim Brown – OneNewsNow – 3/11/2010

A professor at an evangelical Christian college in Pennsylvania says his guidelines for “sexual identity therapy” are being misunderstood by some Christian proponents of traditional marriage.

Dr. Warren Throckmorton of Grove City College says he has not lost faith in God’s ability to change people who are struggling with homosexuality, but believes most of those people are not likely to experience a “diminishment” in same-sex attraction.

Dr. Warren Throckmorton”To say that because it appears from the research that change is infrequent in attractions doesn’t mean I’ve lost my faith in God’s ability to change people,” he states.

Peter LaBarbera of Americans for Truth About Homosexuality expressed concern on American Family Radio Monday that Throckmorton “downplays” the stories of former homosexuals “who have experienced profound change.” (See earlier story)

Throckmorton tells OneNewsNow that his “Practice Guidelines for Sexual Identity Therapy” are for professional therapists and not pastors. He denies that as a therapist he would advise clients to maintain a homosexual identity.

“The framework [for the guidelines] doesn’t encourage a client to do what the counselor thinks he or she ought to do,” says the professor. “The framework follows the beliefs and the values of the client. So to say that the counselor encourages clients any particular direction would be in error.”

Throckmorton says he personally holds a “traditional view of homosexuality and sexual ethics.” However, when asked whether he believes homosexuality is “normal, natural and healthy,” he said he could not answer that with a simple “yes” or “no” response. He said “in a professional therapy situation” it is accurate to say that “homosexuals can live normal, natural, and healthy lives that are free of mental illness.”

On the issue of same-sex “marriage,” Throckmorton says he takes a more “nuanced” view — and that he opposes same-sex marriage but believes the Equal Protection Clause permits homosexual civil unions.

From: Margaret Hemenway [mailto: ------]
Sent: Wednesday, January 20, 2010 6:17 PM
To: ‘rgjewell@gcc.edu‘ [Grove City College President Richard Jewell]
Subject: RE: Professor Throckmorton

Sir, as we begin to review materials mailed to us from colleges soliciting applications for admission from my bright and accomplished 16-year-old daughter, we regret that we are now leery of considering your campus, Grove City, after hearing about Professor Throckmorton’s open advocacy of homosexuality.  All three of our children are enrolled and flourishing academically in Catholic schools, and part of the reason we chose religious schooling is that we wanted them to avoid the inappropriate and misleading homosexual propaganda that our youngest experienced in first grade–in D.C. public school–when subjected to a “gay marriage” lesson plan without parental notification or approval and in contravention of our religious beliefs (and contrary to much lip service to the concept of “parental rights”).

We want our children to grow up to be healthy and happy–enjoying a wholesome college experience–not one which will undermine their years in a safe and nurturing Catholic educational environment.  It is remarkable that the College would permit this professor, given your school’s Biblical charter, to crusade on behalf of homosexuality–would you also allow your staff to advocate openly for adultery, pornography or prostitution–other sexual sins?  Where do you draw the line and how is the professor’s conduct and activity consistent with your Christian mission?  We would look forward to your reply.

Sincerely,

The Hemenways
17 E. Maple St.
Alexandria, VA  22301

“I have experienced Professor Throckmorton’s forked tongue, as he has pretended to seek ‘my side’ of the story various times, then turned around and told a biased side of the same story, in a public sphere, with the intention of discrediting my testimony and shaming my stance for Gospel truth.”
– Former homosexual activist Michael Glatze

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Once "gay" turned Christian Michael Glatze

Editor’s Note: in apparent anger over Americans For Truth’s campaign to expose renegade Grove City College associate professor Warren Throckmorton’s unscriptural approach toward homosexuality, Throckmorton is questioning the accuracy of a OneNewsNow story featuring comments by AFTAH’s Peter LaBarbera — including LaBarbera’s assertion that Throckmorton actively seeks to discredit bold testimonies of profound change like that of ex-”gay” Christian Michael Glatze. Below, Michael explains why he no longer trusts Throckmorton and others who “pervert the truth.” Please say a prayer of thanks for this young man who God has drawn out of homosexuality, and that God will use him mightily to proclaim truth about homosexuality in the years and decades ahead. Please also pray for Throckmorton, who as a professed Christian at an evangelical institution should not be using his authority to affirm anyone in a “gay” sexual identity. You can write either man through AFTAH at americansfortruth@comcast.net:

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The Truth about Warren Throckmorton

By Michael Glatze, Special to Americans For Truth

It is funny. In this world, truth seems to almost be subjective. Then, you meet Jesus. In Jesus, truth is objective. It is from this vantage point that I write this.

Those who seek to provide some kind of intellectual “nuance” to the Gospel will, inevitably, engage in the sin of Pride. The Gospel is quite clear; and, all information about it can be found within God’s Word. Furthermore, all truth — as revealed in God’s Word — will be seen to be true in human experience, as well. Homosexuality is one of those examples.

Six years ago, I began my Christian walk. At that time, I was considered a “rising star” in the “gay rights” movement, editor of a national gay magazine, and a sought-after authority on the subject of gay youth. But, as a new Christian, I began to discover that I simply could not ignore the truth of the Gospel, no matter how difficult it may have been for my habitual, sinful nature to handle those truths. It was not easy to read things that made me feel guilty, or uncomfortable. It was not easy to go before God’s throne in humble repentance. It is still not easy to do so.

However, every time I did that, I found myself blessed — and, I found that God gave me the grace I needed to move on, to grow up, and to grow out of sinful practices that had become quite ingrained in me. This, to those who are unfamiliar, is the blessed process of sanctification. I began to understand that God’s mercy is unfathomable, yet unceasing. I began to understand that I did not have a free ride from sin and temptation, once saved. I began to feel the distance from God, whenever I followed through with a sinful temptation, or acted on that sin — i.e., the spiritual death describe so aptly in the book of James, as following the fulfillment of a sinful action.

Homosexuality, like other sins, involves the temptation to do something that is — quite simply — not necessary. To disagree with God, to say that it is OK, is to sin. And, to confess your sin is to humble yourself enough to say to God, “You were right; I was wrong.” This is an ongoing process.

A great temptation among humans is to step in-between the sinner’s relationship with God, and offer a new way out. People do this in every walk of life. People step in and say, “I know God’s Word is difficult …  let me offer you an alternate way that won’t be so painful.” People do this with philosophies, with “support groups,” and with serious academic “discoveries.”

I have come across many folks, since I first came out as opposed to homosexuality, on a path through healing from homosexuality, standing on the platform of the Gospel to fight against falsehoods about homosexuality — encouraging Christians to not falter on the Gospel truth about homosexuality, and all other sins. It is not easy, nor is life — necessarily — always a walk in the park. But, we must recognize those folks who, momentarily, play Jesus, and put themselves — or, their philosophies, or the fruits of their labors — in Jesus’ place: as mediator between God and man.

Sadly, Warren Throckmorton has been one of those people. He, like so many professing Christians, peddles a false gospel about homosexual sin that includes the lie that homosexuality “might be OK for some people.” Of course this false gospel will seem preferable for many, because it requires less moral responsibility than the true gospel. But, that does not make it right.

I have experienced Professor Throckmorton’s forked tongue, as he has pretended to seek “my side” of the story various times, then turned around and told a biased side of the same story, in a public sphere, with the intention of discrediting my testimony and shaming my stance for Gospel truth. As we have all seen, throughout Christian history, it is quite easy for people to create false worlds, to skew human perception, to persecute Christian truth. Sadly, this professor at a seemingly-reputable Christian school, has engaged in these tactics, with the outcome of persecuting the very truth he supposedly is teaching, atop his perch.

I write this now, as I recognize efforts are being made to describe his indiscretions, and — undoubtedly — a war of words will ensue. All people are redeemable; I am a profound example of that truth.

As I have said in other articles, homosexual sin is a very serious trojan horse that Satan will use — and, has used — to divide and conquer. I know, through the testimony of my own life, as a gay activist and practicing homosexual, who has been delivered from the lifestyle, from the desires, and from the whole mindset, that Gospel truth WILL prevail. But, Christians must be unafraid to tell the truth, stand for the truth, and hold those accountable who pervert the truth.

God Bless You all.

Michael Glatze

LaBarbera was a guest today on Diane Gramley’s “American Family Focuses on Pennsylvania Issues” radio program, discussing Throckmorton’s de facto defection from the pro-family movement opposing GLBT activism. The pre-taped program airs tonight (Wed.) at 5:05 PM Eastern on Pennsylvania Christian radio WAWN-FM (89.5) out of Franklin, Penn., and reaches into several counties (it can be heard on the campus of Grove City). The program will then be available online at AFA of Pennsylvania’s website: www.afaofpa.org.

Today LaBarbera was also interviewed on the “Bob Dutko Show” in Detroit (WMUZ Christian radio). Dutko, like others who had once interviewed Throckmorton as a pro-family advocate defending the truth that homosexuals can experience profound change, expressed sadness that the GCC professor now believes most homosexuals cannot experience such change. (Writes Throckmorton: “I now believe durable change in basic attractions is very infrequent.”) Dutko agreed with LaBarbera that no faithful Christian should ever encourage a homosexual struggler in a positive “gay” identity, as Throckmorton’s (and Regent University Professor Mark Yarhouse’s) “Sexual Identity Therapy” does if such a self-identification brings about “client satisfaction.”

Tomorrow, LaBarbera will be interviewed by Martha Kleder for Concerned Women for America’s online radio program to discuss the GCC-Throckmorton-Biblical-faithfulness controversy, and on Monday he appears on Linda Harvey’s daily Christian radio show in Columbus, Ohio. Harvey is the founder and president of Mission: America, and her article on Throckmorton’s misapplication of the “Golden Rule” can be found HERE.

AFTAH has also learned that Throckmorton has been questioning the accuracy of the OneNewsNow story, and e-mailed ex-”gay” Michael Glatze regarding the accuracy of LaBarbera’s comments about Glatze below. We’ll have more from Glatze in an upcoming post.

OneNewsNow reports:

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Christian college prof encourages ‘gay identity’

Jim Brown – OneNewsNow – 3/10/2010

Dr. Warren ThrockmortonA conservative activist is asking a Christian college in Pennsylvania whether it supports the “sexual identity therapy” of one of its professors who is unwilling to discourage some of his clients from remaining in the homosexual lifestyle.

Dr. Warren Throckmorton of Grove City College was once a spokesperson for the ex-”gay” group PFOX (Parents and Friends of Gays and Ex-Gays) and produced a documentary titled I Do Exist, which highlighted the testimonies of former homosexuals who chose to leave that lifestyle.

But now Throckmorton is encouraging some clients to maintain their “gay identity,” even though it is at odds with scripture.  In a paper he co-authored with Regent University’s Mark Yarhouse titled “Sexual Identity Therapy:  Practice Guidelines for Sexual Identity Conflicts,” Throckmorton writes that “the emergence of a gay identity for persons struggling with religious conflicts is a possibility envisioned by the recommendations.”

The professor also states his therapy “respects” that “some religious individuals will determine that their religious beliefs may become modified to allow integration of same-sex eroticism within their valued identity.”

Peter LaBarbera, president of Americans for Truth About Homosexuality, believes Throckmorton has “lost his faith in God’s ability to change people.”

“Here’s the thing that troubles me the most: there are many people who have experienced profound change, and it seems sometimes Throckmorton has almost sought to downplay those individuals,” LaBarbera notes.  “I talked to Michael Glatze…a young man who was once sort of a gay activist. He was held up and featured by the homosexual side, [but] Michael Glatze has left the lifestyle.  He’s now going to Bible college, and he’s sort of got some hostile e-mails from Throckmorton along the idea of ‘it’s not smart to put out the idea that homosexuals can experience profound change.’”

The organization president adds that Grove City College, which bills itself as “authentically Christian,” needs to explain whether it sanctions what he calls Throckmorton’s “unorthodox, anti-biblical counseling approach.”

Dr. James Dobson

The following is excerpted from WorldNewsDaily.com. We’ve already noted Focus on the Family’s illogical and unprincipled position on judges and homosexuality [see pro-family veteran Gary Glenn's assessment HERE]. How ironic would it be if the ministry launched by James Dobson — which is now taking its biblical worldview “Truth Project” into hundreds of thousands of churches nationwide — were to suddenly lose its zeal for defending Truth against the Forces of Evil in the Culture War?! If the new, “kinder gentler” Focus translates into one that will present less of an obstacle to the wicked pro-abortion and pro-homosexuality movements, then Pastor Hutcherson is right about the direction of this ministry. It just seems implausible that after all its work to date, Focus will be able to retreat in any meaningful way from the Culture War.

We also suspect that Focus may be feeling the pull of George Barna’s polling research denigrating “religious right” activism (e.g., Barna Group President David Kinnaman’s and Gabe Lyon’s influential yet painfully shallow book UnChristian) and the appeasing liberal Christian “Emergents” — both of which appeal to younger generations of Christians who eschew the polarizing “culture war.”  In that regard, Focus has a choice: does it follow the worldly culture trends driven by these new generations — who, although they probably are loathe to admit it, are indoctrinated in politically correct,  “gay”-tolerant attitudes? Or does it recommit itself to educating these youth and standing boldly for timeless truths no matter where the culture is headed? (We realize there are many Christians who advocate quitting the cultural war against social evils, but they never have a good answer to this question: what about the hugely funded and powerful Homosexual, Abortion and Porn Lobbies that never quit; do we simply abandon America’s cultural/political landscape to them in a free society?)

I think Dr. Dobson would have opted for the latter, tougher course. That’s why he — like Hutcherson — is a target for hateful “queer” activists like Wayne Besen. Jim Daly may be less hated than Dobson, but that does not mean he will be more effective as a soldier in God’s Army. — Peter LaBarbera, www.AmericansForTruth.org

[Hutcherson column after jump…l

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I lost my Focus on the Family

Posted on WorldNetDaily, March 08, 2010

By Dr. Kenneth L. Hutcherson

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall,
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
All the king’s horses and all the king’s men
Couldn’t put Humpty Dumpty back together again.

I have a problem with that: I think Humpty Dumpty was pushed!

Of all the people I know, in an effort to find some semblance of reality about what really happened, I am the only one who has talked to both sides – Dr. James Dobson and Jim Daly, the new president of Focus on the Family who also represents the board.

I think that Focus does have a new focus; an image change designed to make them accepted and well-liked rather than standing for righteousness in an unrighteous society.

Dr. James Dobson is one of the most loving, committed Christian men I have ever met. I love him with all my heart, am committed to him and would take a bullet for him.

He is too gracious to ask the question, but someone has to, so I will: Why is he off the air at Focus on the Family when he and his son are starting their own radio program elsewhere so he can remain on the air?

The infusion of biblical truth into the culture over the years by Focus on the Family has been a miraculous movement of God, and all at the hands of Dr. James and Shirley Dobson.

What is this new Focus on the Family? There is a tendency after many years of success for new blood and new minds to come in with a new plan. (I’ve always thought: If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!) Just because something sounds new and elegant does not guarantee it will be better.

A great example of the products currently coming out of the new Focus on the Family is the Tim Tebow ad during the Super Bowl. It said nothing. What a great opportunity that was to promote the pro-life position by revealing what abortion really is. But I guess they didn’t want to offend the world and wanted to make sure everyone loved them.

The current emphasis at Focus is on being loved and understood. I have read the entire Bible from Genesis 1:1 through Revelation 22:21 – and while it says, “The truth shall set you free,” nowhere does it say, “Sensitivity shall set you free.” What set the Focus board free to take Dr. Dobson off the air? …

I am not very happy with the new, progressive, “loving” leadership at Focus on the Family. However, it is God’s ministry, and He will do with it what He pleases….

This board will regret its decision not to honor the founder of the ministry that God ordained. I have already had many tell me where their support will go. If the board members have any guts at all, they will get this man back on the Focus radioprogram. …

We are called to be the salt of the earth, a beacon, and we are warned not to hide our light under a bushel. Focus on the Family’s light is not only under a bushel, it’s under a cloud.

The leadership had better wake up. They have made a serious mistake and they need to correct it.

Dr. Kenneth L. Hutcherson is the senior pastor of Antioch Bible Church in Kirkland, Wash. He is also a former NFL linebacker for the Dallas Cowboys and Seattle Seahawks.

I think Mr. Bier’s e-mail ought to come to the attention of Grove City College Board and executives, for three reasons:

1. They are about to graduate a young man from their so-called Christian institution without teaching him that God not only disapproves of homosexuality, but He describes it as an abomination, unnatural, dishonorable, perversion, depravity.  (What is the school’s position?  What are they allowing professors to teach?) Not only is this young man either ignorant or defiant of Biblical truth, he is actually deluded into believing that those who embrace homosexuality are moral, while those who hold to the Biblical position (“homosexuality is sin”) are immoral. Isaiah 5:20 — “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil” — comes to mind;
2. Apparently, Throckmorton’s deceit has permeated the campus to some degree.  How many GCC students are under the misapprehension that God approves of homosexuality, bisexuality, and transsexuality?  (Wow, I guess only us heterosexuals are called to abstinence, sexual purity, marital fidelity?);
3. This college senior cannot write a sensible paragraph.  “Your unsolicited attack”?  I would characterize what [Americans For Truth writes] as “exposing Throckmorton’s counseling philosophy as unbiblical” — not sure how that qualifies as “an attack.”  And does Mr. Bier think that you are supposed to wait until you’re invited to comment on Throckmorton’s counseling philosophy?  In that case, his own e-mail [to AFTAH] is an “unsolicited attack,” isn’t it?

Most importantly: Please advise Mr. Bier that Jesus Christ does not “accept others as they are.”  The first recorded words of His public ministry were: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

Priscilla Smith
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Priscilla Smith is a freelance writer based in Indiana. She can be reached through AFTAH at americansfortruth@comcast.net.

Editor’s Note: links have been added to the following letter sent by Steve Baldwin to Grove City College President Richard Jewell (Phone: 724-458-2500). For more contact information on GCC, go HERE.

From: “Steve Baldwin” [e-mail address withheld]
Date: Mon, 8 Mar 2010 13:35:55 -0800
To: <rgjewell@gcc.edu>
Subject: Message from Steve Baldwin

President Jewell:

Warren Throckmorton

We’ve met before when I was the Executive Director of the Council for National Policy.  I’ve been following the controversy involving your professor, Warren Throckmorton, and I have to say, Throckmorton is doing great damage to the reputation of Grove City College.

It’s bad enough having a professor who actively declares that homosexuality is just fine if the person in question is happy with himself.  That is simply not biblical and you know it.  It like saying alcoholics are fine the way they are as long as they’re happy with themselves.

But what’s worse is that he seems to have poisoned the minds of many of your students.  The email message below is from one of your students to Peter Labarbera [of Americans For Truth] and it just made me sick to my stomach:

Your recent article on Grove City College professor Warren Throckmorton is yet another of your pathetic attempts to mislead otherwise moral individuals into the belief that God disapproves of homosexuality.  Your unsolicited attack on Throckmorton isn’t surprising, but you should still know that Throckmorton has the support of the student body here.  Perhaps one day you will realize that the only thing doing “incalculable harm to many young people” is your ignorant and hate-inspired position on homosexuality.  Throckmorton’s Golden Rule Pledge simply encourages to do as Jesus did: accept others as they are, not as we want them to be.Thanks for your time,

David Bier, Grove City College Senior

This student is saying that God does NOT disapprove of homosexual behavior and he implies that the entire student body is in agreement with this heresy.  Since this has gone on for some time now, I would like to know if this is the official view of Grove City College.  I’m in contact with hundreds of conservative high school students and many often ask me for my recommendations as to what colleges to attend.  If this view of homosexuality is now the official view of the Grove City College, I need to know, as I will no longer be recommending Grove City College.

I look forward to your answer.

Steve Baldwin

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The writer (left) is the former Executive Director of the Council for National Policy, a former State Assemblyman in California, and a longtime conservative Republican activist. He and his wife Patti and their four sons live in Santee, California, outside of San Diego. You can write Baldwin through americansfortruth@comcast.net.

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From:  “Bier, David J.” [GCC e-mail address]
Date: Mon, 8 Mar 2010 10:43:31 -0500
To: <americansfortruth@comcast.net>
Subject: Article on Warren Throckmorton

Dear Americans For Truth,

Your recent article on Grove City College professor Warren Throckmorton is yet another of your pathetic attempts to mislead otherwise moral individuals into the belief that God disapproves of homosexuality.  Your unsolicited attack on Throckmorton isn’t surprising, but you should still know that Throckmorton has the support of the student body here.  Perhaps one day you will realize that the only thing doing “incalculable harm to many young people” is your ignorant and hate-inspired position on homosexuality.  Throckmorton’s Golden Rule Pledge simply encourages to do as Jesus did: accept others as they are, not as we want them to be.

Thanks for your time,

-David Bier, Grove City College Senior

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Related Americans For Truth articles:

• “Is Grove City College Still ‘Authentically Christian’ if It Abides Pro-’Gay’ Professor Warren Throckmorton and his ‘Sexual Identity Therapy’?”
• “Grove City College Prof Throckmorton Misapplies the Golden Rule on the ‘Day of Silence’”

Would you want your child counseled at Grove City College? How can an evangelical Christian college like Grove City that claims to follow the Bible affirm a "gay" "sexual identity" that values "same-sex eroticism" -- especially for a person struggling in his conscience against homosexuality? The above excerpt is taken from Page 7 of GCC Professor Warren Throckmorton's (and Regent University's Mark Yarhouse's) paper, "Sexual Identity Therapy: Practice Guidelines for Sexual Identity Conflicts" (emphasis added).

TAKE ACTION: Contact Grove City College (President Richard Jewell: 724-458-2500; rgjewell@gcc.edu) and ask them if GCC professor Warren Throckmorton’s unorthodox views on homosexuality represent “authentically Christian” teachings on this issue. (GCC advertises itself as a solid, “authentically Christian” institution.) Request a written response as to whether Throckmorton’s writings on and approach toward homosexuality honor Grove City’s Christian charter “rejecting relativism and secularism.” Please share the response you receive with us at americansfortruth@comcast.net.

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By Peter LaBarbera

Folks, I had to laugh the other day when heretical Grove City College Assistant Prof Warren Throckmorton accused pro-family groups advocating a walkout on the nationwide, pro-homosexual “Day of Silence” with “mischief.” You see, “Mischief” is Throckmorton’s middle name. Here’s Warren taking a cheap shot at Americans for Truth About Homosexuality in one of his many Uganda posts.  (Note how Warren sounds like … well, a “gay” activist … in cynically accusing Ugandan pastor Martin Ssempa of “tak[ing] his pornography show to church”; Ssempa was using video to warn fellow Ugandan Christians about the reality of homosexuality.)

Question for Warren: is AFTAH doing a “porn show” when it exposes to the rest of America that twice a year in San Francisco, home of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi — third in line to be President of the United States — “tolerance” is so distorted that men are allowed to walk around publicly by the hundreds completely naked as the authorities stand idly by?

Here’s one of Throckmorton’s particularly snarky posts against Christian ex-”gay” advocate Richard Cohen (what about that Golden Rule, Warren?). The latter is a frequent target of Throckmorton’s barbs, perhaps because Cohen — unlike the Grove City professor — actually has helped many, many people experience real change and overcome homosexual desires.

There are good defectors and bad defectors in this world. Exemplifying the former are ex-”gays” like Pete Lines — whom I just interviewed for AFTAH’s new radio show — who have walked away from homosexuality toward a biblically faithful life. Warren is a bad defector. Though he works for an evangelical institution, Pennsylvania-based Grove City College, which advertises itself on faith-based websites as “authentically Christian,” Warren promotes a new, morally neutral paradigm on homosexuality that affirms people’s “Sexual Identity” according to their feelings (and comfort level with same).

As you can see above, Throckmorton’s and Regent University’s Mark Yarhouse’s “Sexual Identity Therapy” model grants the possibility that some clients may come to embrace a positive “gay identity” that “modifies” their religious beliefs in such a way as to “allow integration of same-sex eroticism within their valued identity.” Hold on…. This is wholly against Scripture: there is nothing in the Bible or the long history of Judeo-Christian tradition that even hints at ascribing a morally-neutral or worse — a “valued identity” — to sexual sin.

And Warren Throckmorton has the audacity to lecture the Ugandans about their approach toward homosexuality?

Warren Throckmorton of Grove City College

We applaud Throckmorton’s past and current work affirming homosexual strugglers’ right to live by their own religious and moral creed and seek counseling help to move away from  “gayness.” But his  “nonjudgmental” Sexual Identity Therapy approach affirming those who choose to embrace a “gay identity” wouldn’t pass the smell test if it were applied to any other sinful temptation. (“Doctor, I am so happy now that I’ve finally decided to embrace my core identity as a Sexual Swinger….”)

So we say to Grove City College and Regent University: let Throckmorton and Mark Yarhouse apply their “gay”-tolerant theories on their own — privately — but if you continue to allow them to do so under the auspices of GCC (or Regent) — then stop misleading people by promoting Grove City as “authentically Christian” (and Regent as “education from a Biblical perspective”).

And further questions remain: what is Professor Throckmorton teaching his students about homosexuality and the pro-homosexual activist movement? Does he counsel students struggling with homosexuality at GCC — and if so, does the school sanction his unorthodox, anti-Biblical counseling approach?

Larger Issue: Course of Modern Christianity

Understand this: Throckmorton –  who was once a respected part of the pro-family movement before he lost faith in people’s ability to change and leave homosexuality behind — is not the issue. (“I now believe durable change in basic attractions is very infrequent,” he writes.)  The larger issue is what is “authentically Christian” teaching on the matter of homosexuality? What is sin, how relevant is the Bible, and what is the real application of the Golden Rule? The Christian Church is at a pivotal moment regarding homosexuality: will Christians abandon Biblical orthodoxy and begin recognizing and affirming “gays,” “gay Christians,” and/or a homosexual “sexual identity” — or will they adhere to the historic Christian understanding that holds homosexual practice as sinful and which rejects the notion of a positive “identity” based on homosexual desires?

I’ll apply this high-stakes question to the most important people in my own life. If one of my sons — God forbid — came home from college one day with the revelation that he is “gay,” I wouldn’t accept that “identity” for him. Instead, I would emphatically plead with him that “being gay” is NOT “who you are” nor even a part of “who you are.” (It may be a burden with which he would have to bear with God’s help.) Of course, I would love my son as much as I’ve always loved him, but I would warn and counsel him that practicing homosexuality is a sin; that it is extremely unhealthy; that if he does not repent and turn from it, this sinful embrace could lead to his eternal separation from God; and that the Lord can help him to be an overcomer in this struggle — just as He has aided untold millions of sinners struggling with other difficult, besetting sins.

In other words, I wouldn’t be “neutral” or “nonjudgmental” — and certainly not affirming — on the matter or make the primary determinant of my counsel to my son his “feelings or stated “attractions.” Instead, I would seek to imitate as best I could — with much prayer — God’s heart on homosexuality — balancing love and truth. The Lord is merciful, forgiving and just but being holy He cannot affirm “gayness” (homosexuality) any more than He could affirm porn-use or promiscuity, etc. (e.g., a “porno identity”). We’re all born sinners, but it is a cop-out to say our “orientation” or “identity” is tied to any special sin.

And by the way, I would throw the book at anyone who ever tried to harm my son in any way or whose only response to him would be to hate and ridicule him.

Today, in post-biblical America, “Christians” who defect from the Truth are a dime a dozen. The challenge for you — committed Christian — is to hold to the Truth and love “gays and lesbians” (the quote marks are there because sin does not define personhood) enough to tell them the truth: that God loves them and He will forgive them — that is why He sent his Son to die for their sin — but that they must repent and turn from that ungodly lifestyle.

My good friend Linda Harvey is right: Warren’s namby-pamby “Golden Rule Pledge” isn’t biblical, and it isn’t truly compassionate. God has a better plan for today’s youth than to confirm or affirm them in a “sexual identity” linked to behavior that He calls an abomination. — Peter LaBarbera, www.aftah.com

P.S. On behalf of Americans For Truth, I have asked Throckmorton for his views on “same-sex marriage,” “civil unions,” homosexual “special rights” (“sexual orientation”) laws, etc., but he has not answered my queries. We will be presenting these and other questions to Throckmorton publicly.

RELATED ARTICLES:

• Grove City College Prof Throckmorton Misapplies the Golden Rule on the ‘Day of Silence’
• What Qualifies the United States to Lecture Uganda on Homosexuality?
• Grove City Prof Warren Throckmorton Affirms Homosexuality as ‘Normal, Natural and Healthy’

TAKE ACTION: Contact Grove City College (President Richard Jewell: 724-458-2500; rgjewell@gcc.edu) and ask them if GCC professor Warren Throckmorton’s unorthodox views on homosexuality represent “authentically Christian” teachings on this issue. (GCC advertises itself as a solid, “authentically Christian” institution.) Request a written response as to whether Throckmorton’s writings on and approach toward homosexuality honor Grove City’s Christian charter “rejecting relativism and secularism.” Please share the response you receive with us at americansfortruth@comcast.net.

______________________________

By Linda Harvey, www.missionamerica.com

A broad coalition of pro-family groups recommends that parents keep their children home on the deceptive, pro-homosexual “Day of Silence,” to be observed this year on April 16, 2010, but one “gay”-affirming counselor started what he calls the “Golden Rule Pledge” instead.

Yet, the “Golden Rule Pledge” actually functions as a disinformation tool and a divisive wedge in schools and among Christians. It is insidiously misleading and would bring harm to kids. It grieves me to take this position, but there’s no choice, because lives are at stake.

Dr. Warren Throckmorton (pictured above), a self-labeled “christian” counselor at Grove City College [contact GCC HERE], has indicated on a radio show he does not object to homosexuality when a person feels comfort with the lifestyle. My concern is that he may be communicating this to youth and college students whom he counsels, because his “Golden Rule” project takes a stand tolerant of this destructive and sinful behavior by encouraging student “respect.”

He has expressed his preference for students remaining in school on the “Day of Silence” and hearing pro-homosexual propaganda, and learning to sympathize with those practicing these behaviors, rather than taking an unequivocal, biblical stand against these harmful practices by remaining home. Throckmorton doesn’t even like the Exodus-sponsored “Day of Truth,” which encourages kids to remain in school and have a frank conversation, in love, with friends while presenting the biblical view of homosexuality. Throckmorton calls this “offensive.”

Throckmorton’s support of the “Day of Silence” will do incalculable harm to many young people. Misleading professionals like Throckmorton in positions of influence can make our sons and daughters become comfortable with entering into, staying in, or approving of homosexuality, bisexuality and gender change.

If I were a parent who discovered my minor child had been counseled in this way, I’d bring the largest and most aggressive medical malpractice suit I could launch against this counselor at Grove City.

Golden Rule? Not on your life.

Jesus would never make a person feel more comfortable about:

• Young males having sex with males, the incidence of which rose over 12 % per year between 2001 and 2006 among males ages 13 to 24 1;
• Young “lesbians” choosing a fatherless life for any future children, since they can never conceive children with female partners;
• Hoping in such relationships for a false “marriage” in violation of Matthew 19:4-6 and Mark 10:6-9, where Christ told us that “from the beginning” people were created male and female, and that one man and one woman form a marriage;
• Teens and even younger children believing they should change genders. As with homosexuality, we should be doing everything possible to counsel these kids and prevent these behaviors among youth.

Throckmorton on his site (http://goldenrulepledge.com/about/) uses the language of homosexual activism. He couldn’t be more helpful to their cause if he were a consultant with GLSEN, the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, which sponsors the national “Day of Silence” Examples of the GRP’s sympathetic, even pro-homosexual statements:

1. The Day of Silence is to “bring awareness to bullying and harassment of transgender, gay, lesbian, and bisexually identified students.” This is odd both in the use of activist terms and that “transgender” comes first. This “gay”-crafted rhetoric gives a nod to the unsupportable “born-that-way” claim and a significant level of sympathy for those involved in what the eternally-existent Christ called an “abomination.” By any Christian standard, is this GOLDEN RULE material? NOPE.

2. Another phrase is quite revealing:

“Many straight Christian and conservative students are conflicted about this day. They do not affirm homosexual behavior but they also loathe disrespect, harassment or violence toward any one, including their GLBT peers.”

The logical fallacies here abound. If students truly don’t “affirm” homosexuality, then don’t cooperate with its promotion through the deceptive “Day of Silence.”

The second sentence is classic pro-”gay” propaganda. These are not the only choices! To stay home is to show “violence” or approval thereof? This is so unfair to tradition-minded families and students, who feel they make a very positive statement by staying home! The Gospel and its sexual standards are, after all still good news. And one does not have to approve of homosexuality to prevent bullying, violence, or uncivil behavior.

3. Here’s the actual “pledge” language:

This is what I’m doing:

I pledge to treat others the way I want to be treated.

Will you join me in this pledge?

“Do to others as you would have them do to you.” (Luke 6:31).

Hmmm. “…The way I want to be treated.” So, if a student is about to enter, or has entered, a high-risk practice that is called an abomination by our Lord, and has shared this with classmates, a “true” Christian should attend school to support a day that affirms this behavior and scorns any warnings to that student? Some friendship!

Here’s a biblically-based alternative: “Friends don’t let friends do homosexuality!”

Then, the Pledge website talks about affirming the “safety” of all, based on Christ’s teachings. This piggybacks on the language of GLSEN (the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network) and others who have used a supposed “safety” strategy to obtain affirmation of homosexuality in the schools. Homosexuality is safe and Christian teachings about it being an abomination are unsafe, is the real message. Bullying? Harassment? No one wants those things, but that’s not GLSEN’s actual concern, because schools are fully empowered now to punish incidents where such misbehavior occurs.

No, the “Day of Silence” is about propaganda. The goal is to shame and label Christians and tradition-minded students and teachers, silence their authentic witness, and even silence any public health warnings. Real safety would be to scream from the rooftops about the harm homosexuality or gender change will bring to these young lives. And since no one is born homosexual, these desires are demonstrably changeable, so no one is left without a positive alternative. Christ’s authentic path always gives hope.

This is such a travesty that if we were all ancient Israelites, we’d be rending our clothing and putting on sackcloth and ashes! What is happening to kids is corruption by uncaring and misguided adults.

Throckmorton is doing a great job of affirming propaganda meant to harm young lives and keep them away from Christ through misunderstanding. I don’t know if he means to do that, but that is going to be — guaranteed — the result.

This is completely upside down. Throckmorton doesn’t get it, or doesn’t want to get it, or loves the approval of “gay” and “transgendered” blogs and activists, or he has an as-yet-undisclosed motive. [Editor's note: Americans For Truth has asked Throckmorton for his views on "same-sex marriage," "civil unions," homosexual "special rights" ("sexual orientation") laws, etc., but he has not answered our queries.]

This is not Christian and is a heretical use of the Golden Rule.

Please join me in praying for Warren Throckmorton, for his repentance, and also for his duplicitous dealings to be revealed so no further harm is done to our precious and impressionable kids.

And please help me pray that the emotionally manipulative “Day of Silence” is revealed for what it is — adults exploiting precious kids.

Notes:

1. http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5725a2.htm. See Table at end.

Linda Harvey, founder of Mission:America

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Linda Harvey is founder and president of Mission: America, based in Columbus, Ohio. Perhaps more than any other American, she has sounded the alarm about the danger of promoting/affirming “GLBT” (Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender) identities to young people [click the "To Christians" button HERE]. Please support Mission: America’s important work [Donate link is at the bottom of the main website page]. To order a 2-DVD set of Linda Harvey’s talk last year at Americans For Truth, send $35 postpaid to: Americans For Truth, P.O. Box 5522, Naperville, IL 60567, or specify “Linda Harvey 2-DVD set” with your gift of $35 or more through AFTAH’s online donor page.

Mass Resistance founder Brian Camenker (left) with Mike Huckabee

Folks, I am delighted to be a speaker at the Mass Resistance banquet this Saturday evening. Mass Resistance founder Brian Camenker and MR blogger Amy Contrada are good friends who do critical work for the movement opposed to the normalization of homosexuality and gender confusion in our culture — especially among students. Both have demonstrated remarkable tenacity and dedication in pursuit of that mission. Brian is a longtime veteran of the pro-family movement who never backs down from a principled stance — a quality that, sadly, has led him to be held at arm’s length by other, more politically correct, “pro-family” groups that are quite willing to use MR’s research but can’t seem to match MR’s integrity.

The reason Brian and Amy are hated so much by the Libertine Left is that they — perhaps better than anyone in the country – chronicle the radical activities of the homosexual/transsexual movement using firsthand “gay” sources. And there is no shortage of material in Boston, where Mass Resistance is based. Camenker exposed the notorious GLSEN (Gay, Lesbian, Straight Education Network) “Fistgate” scandal in 2000 — which jaded homosexual activists now love to make fun of but which shows precisely why parents must never trust their children to “gay”-affirming educators. And Amy has a wealth of information on the MR blog — including various exposés on the transsexual agenda and GLSEN founder Kevin Jennings, whose lifelong crusade has made schools across America “safe” for homosexual advocacy. (Jennings, now Obama’s “Safe Schools” chief, cynically uses student safety to advance GLSEN’s extreme agenda.)

I hope to see some of you at the MassResistance fundraising banquet Saturday, but whether you come or not, please donate to this outstanding organization. — Peter LaBarbera, www.aftah.org

“Men who have had sex with men since 1977 have an HIV prevalence (the total number of cases of a disease that are present in a population at a specific point in time) 60 times higher than the general population, 800 times higher than first time blood donors and 8000 times higher than repeat blood donors (American Red Cross).” –FDA (U.S. Food & Drug Administration), “Blood Donations from Men Who Have Sex with Other Men - Questions and Answers”

War is bloody, yet men who have practiced homosexuality cannot give blood. Writes Barber: "If 'gays' are allowed to serve openly ... how much more would soldiers in the field – where battlefield blood transfusions and frequent exposure to biohazards are commonplace – face pointless peril?"

Another informative piece by Matt Barber, AFTAH Board Member and Director of Cultural Studies at the Liberty Counsel. To read about the current FDA policy banning blood donations from MSM (“men who have had sex with men”) — and women who have had sex with MSM — go HERE. Homosexuality is not about “human rights,” but rather (changeable) human wrongs — and human wrongs often have public health consequences. — Peter LaBarbera, www.AmericansForTruth.org; write us at americansfortruth@comcast.net.

TAKE ACTION: Call and write your U.S. Congressman and Senators (202-224-3121; www.congress.org) and urge them to oppose ALL efforts to force open homosexuality on the military. Oppose S. 3065 in the Senate and HR 1283 in the House — bills that would homosexualize our Armed Services and force our nation’s conservative military culture to become one that celebrates homosexual “pride.” 

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Don’t Ask, Don’t Bleed

By J. Matt Barber

The U.S. military has always discriminated. There are a host of malignant behaviors such as illicit drug use or habitual criminality that can render a person ineligible to serve. As my father-in-law learned, there are also benign maladies such as vision impairment or flat feet that can bar an otherwise eligible applicant. Any number of behaviors or conditions with varying degrees of severity can dash one’s hope of donning the uniform.

This is discrimination only insofar as “discriminating minds” with expertise in these matters have found that such restrictions are necessary to maintain excellence in our historically unparalleled fighting force.

In formal recognition of the long-established finding that “homosexuality is incompatible with military service,” federal law – Section 654, Title 10 – objectively prescribes the following:

• The primary purpose of the armed forces is to prepare for and to prevail in combat should the need arise;
• Success in combat requires military units that are characterized by high morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohesion;
• The prohibition against homosexual conduct is a long-standing element of military law that continues to be necessary in the unique circumstances of military service;
• The presence in the armed forces of persons who demonstrate a propensity or intent to engage in homosexual acts would create an unacceptable risk to the high standards of morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohesion that are the essence of military capability; and
• There is no constitutional right to serve in the armed forces.

Indeed, federal courts have ruled over and again that a prohibition against homosexual conduct within the ranks of the military is both constitutional and justified.

So now that Barack Obama is president, what has changed? Is there something about “out and proud” homosexuality, hitherto absent or unseen, that suddenly makes it compatible with military service? Is there something about our military that has, for the first time in history, made it compatible with this particular lifestyle?

The answer to both is no.

The fact that “homosexual acts would create an unacceptable risk to the high standards of morale, good order and discipline” has not changed. Proponents of military homosexualization offer scant evidence to the contrary. In truth, the only thing that has changed is politics.

Reasons for incompatibility are manifold. They are firmly rooted in both common sense and in the “settled” anthropological, sociopolitical and medical sciences, as well as the theological arena. Taken alone, each provides ample justification for maintaining the status quo. Combined, they prove the case. For now – in the interest of brevity – we’ll focus on but one: medical science.

Consider that current U.S. health regulations prohibit men who have sex with men (MSM – aka “gays”) from donating blood. Studies conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration categorically confirm that if MSM were permitted to give blood, the general population would be placed at risk.

According to the FDA: “['Gay' men] have an HIV prevalence 60 times higher than the general population, 800 times higher than first-time blood donors and 8,000 times higher than repeat blood donors.”

The FDA further warns: “['Gay' men] also have an increased risk of having other infections that can be transmitted to others by blood transfusion. For example, infection with the Hepatitis B virus is about 5-6 times more common, and Hepatitis C virus infections are about 2 times more common in ['gay' men] than in the general population.”

A 2007 CDC study further rocked the homosexual activist community, finding that, although “gay” men comprise only 1-to-2 percent of the population, they account for an epidemic 64 percent of all syphilis cases.

Do the math: If “gays” are allowed to serve openly – as to appease leftists’ euphemistic demands for “tolerance” and “diversity” – how much more would soldiers in the field – where battlefield blood transfusions and frequent exposure to biohazards are commonplace – face pointless peril?

All things considered (and we’ve only scratched the surface), is it any wonder that, according to a 2008 Military Times survey, almost 10 percent of currently enlisted personnel say that should “gays” be allowed to serve openly: “I would not re-enlist or extend my service.” Furthermore, 14 percent warn: “I would consider not re-enlisting or extending my service.” The potential exodus of up to 14 percent of military personnel from our all-volunteer services would be devastating.

When we apply these uncompromising medical and administrative realities to the “gays in the military” debate, we find that, objectively, and based solely upon medical science and the imperative to maintain good order and unit cohesion, homosexual behavior and military service remain today as oil and water.

Yet, inexplicably we see reckless movement from this administration, liberals in Congress and even a handful of high-ranking military commanders toward military homosexualization. This type of San Francisco-style social experimentation within the ranks of the armed services would demonstrably weaken, not strengthen, our military, jeopardizing national security.

In a purely civilian world perhaps we can afford to grant liberal social engineers a manageable level of latitude to play fast and loose with wistful “gay rights” rhetoric. However, it’s an entirely different proposition when bad behaviors place others – particularly those who’ve already waged life and limb for country – at both an unnecessary and avoidable level of risk.

For these reasons (and many more) allowing practitioners of the homosexual lifestyle to serve openly in our armed services should not and must not be “tolerated.”

Mr. President, it’s your sworn duty to place national security above misguided ideology and extreme special interests. It’s high time you begin to take your job seriously.

_______________________________

Matt Barber is an attorney concentrating in constitutional law. He is author of the book “The Right Hook – From the Ring to the Culture War” and serves as Director of Cultural Affairs with Liberty Counsel. Send comments to Matt at jmattbarber@comcast.net. Barber is a Board Member of Americans For Truth About Homosexuality. (This information is provided for identification purposes only.)

Focus on the Family web ad rejected by the NCAA.

Behold the latest pathetic capitulation to the Homosexual Lobby by a “mainstream” American institution, the NCAA. It is corporate cowardice of this nature that breeds homo-fascism, a term describing aggressively intolerant homosexual activism that will come to be understood by Americans — as larger and larger portions of the culture cave into the idea that disagreeing with or offending homosexuals (people practicing homosexuality) is beyond the pale. From a logical, historical and spiritual perspective, such an assertion is preposterous, but in the current zeitgeist, emotion, secularism and sheer intimidation trump reason, tradition, and spiritual truth.

Whoever would have thought that 1-3 percent of the population — united around the practice of deviant, unhealthy sex — could command such power? (Only in a declining society, we maintain.) Focus on the Family employs a “soft” resistance to the aggressive “queer” movement (too soft, in our view); if they can’t place an innocuous ad on the NCAA website, then no group defending traditional sexual morality can.

And the hucksters (homosexual and straight) who push the “gay” agenda do so in the name of “diversity.” What a sham. Memo to homosexual extremists: keep demanding such bans on opposing viewpoints — and cheer loudly whenever a pro-normalcy group is silenced! The more you do, the more the American people will see your true colors — which do not match a rainbow’s but rather the oppressive black of a censor’s pen. — Peter LaBarbera, www.aftah.ogl

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– The following is reprinted from OneNewsNow, the news ministry of American Family Association; subscribe to ONN’s daily news briefs HERE and their e-alerts HERE.

NCAA nixes family ad, Focus ‘befuddled’

The NCAA has withdrawn Focus on the Family’s banner ad on its website, apparently because of the organization’s stance on homosexual relationships.

Associated Press reports the National Collegiate Athletic Association heard from some of its members that the banner conflicted with the organization’s policy of inclusion, regardless of sexual orientation. The ad — part of the pro-family group’s “Celebrate Family – Celebrate Life” campaign — was pulled without any notice, according to Focus on the Family’s Gary Schneeburger.

“We’re a little befuddled, I guess is the best way to say it, that an ad that clearly that was not controversial,” he responds. “It was not even political — it was simply about a father wanting the best for his son….”

The ministry spokesman suggests the banner ad was taken down “not…because the ad itself was offensive, but because the very existence of Focus on the Family apparently to some people is offensive.”

The major governing body of college sports says ads must be in agreement with NCAA principles, and its own standards allow it to exclude advertising and advertisers that it deems “do not appear to be in the best interests of higher education and student athletes.”

“What that tells us,” says Schneeburger, “is that we’re not allowed to advertise our family help services because we have biblical values on issues like marriage.” And if such material were “all of a sudden labeled hate speech,” he says “we have deeper problems in our country than we even know.”

Schneeburger points out that Focus spends 90 percent of its budget on parenting and marriage resources, and only 10 percent advocating on behalf of the unborn and for traditional marriage. The supposedly controversial Super Bowl ad featuring Tim Tebow and his mother, Pam, was part of Focus’s “Celebrate Family – Celebrate Life” campaign.

The following is an anonymous testimony of ‘Tim,’ who became involved in homosexual (bisexual) behavior but then left it behind through a renewed and strengthened commitment to his Maker:

I grew up in a very stable home with two loving parents.  However, my dad and I are somewhat alike in personality, but with very different interests.  He’s an outdoorsman.  I’m a something of a “geeky nerd”.  I never felt that I could quite please him.  I love him, and he loves me.  But we have clashed many times over my life.  My two brothers are/were outdoorsmen, much like our dad.  (My elder brother is deceased now.)  I was the odd man out. 
 
That being said, I struggled with thoughts/feelings of bisexuality for many years.  I was not completely gay.  I was still attracted to women.  But there was a part of me that was curious and wanted to experience some things.  I had a couple of very brief [homosexual] experiences in college and right after college.  That scared me, and I just “knew” I was dying of AIDS or something.  So, I did not act on these feelings (except in private fantasy) for a number of years.
 
In addition to my sometimes troublesome relationship with my dad, I also felt very insecure about women, even though I was attracted to them.  I also did not want to “cheat” on my lovely wife, so I seldom entertained thoughts of doing anything with any other woman than my wife. 
 
Some years back, I had a job in sales that required some travel.  This enabled me (unfortunately) to have some freedom to initiate more experimentation.  During that time I got a computer and an internet connection.  To make a long story short, for a period of about nine years, I dabbled in male-to-male sexual contact — on again, off again. I would despise myself and would even be so sickened by these encounters that I would swear that I would never do it again.  A few weeks would pass, and I would be involved again. 

I developed a list of a few guys — some married like myself, some single gay guys — with whom I could meet for these experiences.  I sorta viewed this as mutual masturbation, and not really cheating on my wife.  Warped thinking, I know, but it’s how I rationalized/justified it.  I had ONE brief oral experience with another woman, and I felt SOOO guilty for cheating on my lovely wife that I never repeated that experience again.
 
Keep in mind that no one in my church or my family had any clue of these events. I became very adept at hiding my activities — “working late,” usually. Finally, in the early part of 2008, I was SOOOOO SICK of the whole mess that I cried out to God for help.  Another time I was kneeling in prayer, and in absolute soul-agony, I cried out to God that I was not fit to fill the positions in the church which I hold, but I did not know what to do, without destroying my family, and having a horrible impact upon my church.
 
I have diabetes, which was uncontrolled until [2008].  My blood sugar was very high, which greatly impairs one’s judgment.  One evening I was on the computer chatting online.  To make a long story short, a woman that I know took it upon herself to entrap me into a sexually explicit conversation online on this particular evening, using a fake name and profile.  She used that conversation, in which I admitted to some homosexual encounters, to contact church officials and make all sorts of accusations against me — some true, some untrue.
 
I was confronted with this information.  Needless to say, my world came crashing down.  God was kind enough to me to allow me to be warned before I was confronted (someone had overheard a conversation about it).  My wife knew nothing yet.  I have two friends that know about my past, who both strongly advised me to deny anything about past bisexual activity, for the protection of my wife and my son.  I told the pastor that there was an inappropriate conversation, but there were a lot of untrue statements in the packet (which was an accurate statement from me). 

Then I met with the local Board of Trustees (of which I am a member), and told them the same thing.  I offered to resign everything (I meant my positions in the church and my membership).  The lady who had received the packet responded almost immediately with a true Christlike spirit of love and compassion. She told me that I needed to seek God.  In other words, forget about resignations and punitive measures — just do what you need to do to get straightened out.  The rest of the Board went along with her recommendation.  I told my wife a couple of days later.  However, I have never told any of them about the bisexual activity, for the protection of my family.
 
We had a revival at our church shortly after this, and I began to earnestly seek for God to give me complete and total deliverance.  We believe in two works of grace:  justification and sanctification.  I prayed until I knew that all of my sins were forgiven.  I received a Witness of the Holy Spirit that I was forgiven and that I was restored as a child of God.  I then earnestly sought for the experience of Entire Sanctification.  In this experience, one “dies out” to the carnal nature, with which every human is born, as a result of the fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. 

I prayed earnestly, night and day, for this experience.  I sobbed and cried and prayed.  I drive about an hour to work, and most of that time I’m alone.  I prayed most of the way to and from work.  I prayed myself to sleep at night.  If I woke up in the night, I prayed.  I was very worried about the consequences of telling the whole story, if God required it of me.  I “died out” to those things.  Finally, I prayed until I knew that whatever happened, it was all right.  It is in God’s hand.  I received a Witness and infilling of the Holy Spirit that I was sanctified to God’s will!!
 
The amazing thing is that I am delivered!  I am changed.  I don’t struggle with those illicit sexual desires any longer.  I had opportunities to cheat on my wife with other women, and was probably to the point that I might have done it.  Female co-workers often flirt with me, and I’m pretty sure I could have a fling with more than one of them, if I wanted.  I was considering trying it, before this all came up.  I don’t want to do that.  I have a desire to please God.  I do not look at men or women with lust in my heart.  I am satisfied to make love to my wife exclusively.  My horrible temper is gone.  I am, in short, a new creature in Christ Jesus. [2 Corinthians 5:17]
 
The sad thing is that I really was saved and sanctified when young, but in my immaturity and my failure to maintain a close walk with God, I eventually backslid, and allowed things back into my heart.  I wasted a lot of years.  My wife put up with a very hard-to-live-with husband.  My son put up with a hard-to-live-with dad.  I am resolved to continue to walk closely with God, and to never let satan ever gain glory from my life again.
 
Again, this is confidential.  Not even my wife and family know the part about the sexual activities. I am willing to tell them, when and if God requires it.  He has not done so yet.  God has become very close to me, and He guides me and talks to me.  I want to keep close to Him.  But I don’t know that it would ever be profitable to put my wife throught the pain of knowing what I did.

CBN story on Perkins being disinvited: no, it's not homosexuality that's "incompatible" with military service under Obama; now it's the expression of Christian faith -- opposing homosexuality -- in the public square.

Matt Barber, AFTAH Board Member and Director of Cultural Affairs at the Liberty Counsel, writes: “I believe those few of us remaining who are willing to take a stand on God’s natural design for human sexuality and morality will eventually be completely marginalized and persecuted by both the government and private industry. This is a chilling example of things to come.”

We agree. Christians and all those who oppose the normalization of sexual immorality through the force of law: are you going to stand by and just take it or will you defend your liberty to live out your religious and moral beliefs? This is only the latest proof that homosexual “rights” (so-called) are incompatible with America’s historic protection of religious freedom and First Amendment liberties.

I suppose there are many more craven acts to follow as our men in uniform scramble to appease their left-wing, pro-”gay” Panderer-in-Chief. — Peter LaBarbera, www.aftah.org

Here’s Breitbart linking to Pat Robertson’s CBN interview with Perkins:

http://www.breitbart.tv/prominent-minister-is-disinvited-from-military-prayer-luncheon-over-gays-in-service-issue/