Homosexual activist and atheist sex-columnist Dan Savage crassly attacks the pope and Christianity as a speaker at Elmhurst College, April 29, 2012, at the college’s historic Hammerschmidt Memorial Chapel. This amateur video was shot by John Kirkwood, pastor of Grace Gospel Fellowship, in Bensenville, Illinois. AFTAH will be providing further excepts of Savage’s speech at Elmhurst. The college shot video of the speech, but had not posted it as of May 1, 2012. We will add a transcript at the bottom. Also, note AFTAH’s new website button, “Savage Hate” (www.SavageHate.com), which will document Savage’s troubling record. – Peter LaBarbera, www.aftah.org

Link on AFTAH YouTube page: http://youtu.be/Chco0JkpL_A

Scott Lively addressing the AFTAH banquet in October. Lively received AFTAH's "Americans Truth Teller" award for 2011.

Part Five of the AFTAH interview [click HERE to listen] with Scott Lively of Defending the Family International.  This was pre-recorded and aired Dec. 3, 2011. Go to the AFTAH Radio Hour Archive for the rest of this very informative interview. In the course of AFTAH President Peter LaBarbera’s interview with Lively, the two discussed:

• The dire state of the American Christian Church vis-a-vis the aggressive movement to normalize homosexual behavior and gender confusion in the culture;
• The “terror” tactics and aggressive campaigns used by homosexual activists to intimidate good people into silence on this issue;
• Lively’s personal experience with the dirty tactics and lies used by radical LGBT activists against pro-family leaders attempting to stop the “gay” revolution (including one notorious fake “anti-gay hate crime” in Oregon). Lively more than almost any pro-family conservative alive today has experienced these tactics firsthand in more than 20 years of working on the front lines (here and abroad) against the homosexualist agenda;
• The futility of relying on politics and the courts to contain the advance of government-backed homosexuality — and how many “ministry-minded” or apathetic believers are woefully naive about the Culture War raging on this issue;
• The campaign of lies used by pro-homosexual militants (and repeated by the media) to smear Lively and others as allegedly supporting the murder of homosexuals in Uganda;
• The corruption of words by the pro-homosexual Left, including “gay,” “sexual orientation” and “marriage equality”;
• The appearance of PRO-homosexuality “evangelicals” like Grove City College’s Warren Throckmorton and Chicago’s Andrew Marin – who confuse Christians and undermine biblical truth on the issue by capitulating to pro-”gay” ideology and semantics;
• The connection of homosexuality and sexual deviance to the Nazi Party in Germany. (See Lively’s book, The Pink Swastika);
• The very real threat to religious liberty posed by the tremendous rise of homosexual (“gay”) power in the United States.

HOW TO LISTEN: This is an mp3 file, supported in most operating systems by Windows Media Player, Quick Time and/or I-Tunes.  Real Player is not supported and there may be difficulty when attempting to listen with it.  Left click once on the link below to play. (Please be patient, depending upon the speed of your internet connection it may take a moment or two to load.)  OR right click the link then “save target as” to download the whole show.

12-3-11, Scott Lively, Part Five

In another post we will publish Prof. Rob Gagnon’s response to Richard Cohen’s new and curiously “gay”-affirmative approach to the homosexual issue.  – Peter LaBarbera, www.aftah.org

Warren,

I certainly don’t think Richard Cohen or anyone needs to apologize for stating the obvious truth that “Change [away from and rejecting homosexuality] is possible.” If we were to apologize for everything that “offends” hardened LGBT activists, we’d be apologizing 24/7.

The question is, when will YOU apologize for affirming homosexuality as an acceptable (or innocuous) identity — while claiming (falsely) to uphold biblical orthodoxy? When will YOU repent for working hand-in-hand with “gay” activists who are diametrically opposed to the Christian worldview on homosexuality as an overcomable sexual sin (and an abomination) — by actively discrediting the need AND potential for wholesome change away from same-sex behavior and indulging same-sex desires?

You should either publicly apologize for undermining Scriptural (and observable) Truth — or renounce your claims to be faithful to historic Christian sexual teachings. This request is made more urgent by your employment with an evangelical institution, Grove City College, which purports to be “authentically Christian” — something few biblically-faithful observers of your recent flirtation with pro-”gay” advocacy would accuse you of being. 

I can document all the above statements concerning your conduct and “gay”-affirming advocacy, which has caused widespread consternation and confusion in Christian circles, and within the pro-family movement. You (or anyone) may publish this if you wish. 

Sincerely,

Peter LaBarbera 

Americans For Truth About Homosexuality
www.aftah.org 

Cc: pro-family leaders

Following is Warren Throckmorton’s daily e-mail for today (or view online HERE)::

From: Warren Throckmorton <ewthrockmorton@gcc.edu>

Date: Tue, 01 Nov 2011 13:08:35 +0000

To: <americansfortruth@gmail.com>

Subject: Warren Throckmorton

International Healing Foundation Comes Out?

Posted on www.wthrockmorton.com  Oct. 31, 2011

Or something.

Richard Cohen’s International Healing Foundation has re-invented itself as a LGBTQU (U for unwanted) organization on a new website called Coming Out Loved.

On Coming Out Loved, gay affirming people can find a page full of LGB resources as well as an apology from Cohen:

We at IHF wish to offer a sincere, heartfelt apology to everyone in the LGBTQ community who may have been hurt by our message of “change.” As the director of IHF, I apologize and ask your forgiveness. I did not realize that by stating, “Change is Possible,” some would be offended. That was the furthest thing from my heart and mind. To think that our message of “change” would cause further pain to LGBTQ youth and adults is painful to imagine … I am deeply and profoundly sorry.

Really? Is this a sign of the apocalypse?

Whatever it is, I doubt it is going very far. The website also has the old references to same-sex attraction being caused by environment and family background, and to treatment to resolve “unwanted same-sex attraction.” NARTH’s protocol for change therapy is there along with the old list of reparative therapists for referral. Cohen is still offering his book Coming Out Straight, one of the most direct promotions of the change paradigm ever. Moreover, Chris Doyle is speaking this weekend at the NARTH conference, along with a speaker who promotes criminalization of homosexuality.

Perhaps I am cynical, but the changes just look like business as usual along with a parody of gay affirming therapy.

This is photo from Warren Throckmorton's blog taken from Ricard Cohen's online video. To watch the actual video with Richard Cohen, go to Intenational Healing Foundation's website at www.gaytostraight.org.

But then again, in the promo video for the new attitude, there is a rainbow flag. (Note [in photo of video at left] the flag circled in the screen cap to the left).

I am looking forward to seeing reaction from AFTAH, PFOX, Liberty Counsel, JONAH and the like.

Seriously, if the IHF crew want to be taken seriously, they need to explain more about how and why they are expecting people to trust them. Also, if the same touch therapy and pillow beating protocols are on the table, then taking a neutral stance is still not enough to address concerns about their work.

A man holds a sign with the message, “Is Willow Creek Qualified to Lead” as part of AFTAH’s sign vigil outside Willow Creek Community Church’s campus during their two-day “Global Leadership Summit.” We will continue to ask why a Christian church would ever honor people who use their leadership gifts (given by God) to advance ungodly agendas. In 2009, a key Leadership Summit speaker was former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who used his “leadership” tenure to aggressively push homosexuality in the name of civil rights in the U.K.

Dear Readers, this story is fluid. AFTAH has been having serious web issues – in part due to hacking — so please pardon the delay in posting this item. Here is the press release on Willow Creek that AFTAH sent out yesterday via Christian Newswire. At our small vigil outside Willow Creek yesterday morning, we met WCCC spokesman Susan Delay, who assured me  (contradicting my statement below) that Willow Creek’s break with Exodus International in 2009 had nothing whatsoever to Willow Creek’s meeting with the homosexual activist group Soulforce the previous year. Delay said that Willow senior pastor Bill Hybels soon would be issuing a statement on the church’s approach toward homosexuality.

I informed Ms. Delay that the concerns with Willow go far beyond the Soulforce incident, and raised the 2009 Leadership Summit’s featuring of former Britich Prime Minister Tony Blair — who championed homosexuality during his “leadership” tenure in the U.K. Certainly we continue to question why a Christian church — or a related church-sponsored leadership ministry — would honor a man (and men) who used their executive gifts to advance explicitly ANTI-BIBLICAL agendas in the culture. The story goes far beyond Willow Creek to the purpose of Christians as defenders of God’s unchanging Truth (as opposed to subjective, man-centered “truths”) in a sin-soaked world.

One more thing: nothing here takes away from the important work that Willow Creek Community Church does in the community through its many ministries. I spoke to two friends in Illinois – a man and a woman — who have been deeply blessed by acts of Christian charity carried out through the church’s giving programs. AFTAH focuses on homosexuality, in this case Christian fidelity to politically incorrect Scriptural teaching: we believe that steadfast honoring of biblical truth (no matter the cost) — combined with selfless love – defines the believer’s calling. We’ll keep you updated. — Peter LaBarbera, www.aftah.org

____________________________________

AFTAH Protests Willow Creek’s Lack of Biblical Leadership in Breaking with Ex-Gay Ministry

August 11, 2011

Contact: Peter LaBarbera: 630-717-7631; americansfortruth@gmail.com

S. BARRINGTON, Illinois — Americans For Truth About Homosexuality (AFTAH) President Peter LaBarbera announced a peaceful sign vigil today and tomorrow outside Willow Creek Community Church—to protest the mega-church’s puzzling disassociation from a Christian ministry that helps men and women overcome unwanted homosexual desires.

The Americans For Truth vigil targets Willow Creek’s annual “Global Leadership Summit” – which draws thousands of Christians annually to the church’s campus in Barrington, Illinois. AFTAH’s banner message – “Is Willow Creek Qualified to Lead?” – will greet Summit attendees Aug. 11-12. That and other messages such as “Willow Creek Caves to Gay Activist Pressure,” will highlight the influential mega-church’s failure to boldly proclaim the Gospel’s life-changing truth on the homosexual issue.

“Christians across the nation were stunned to learn that Willow Creek had abandoned its friendly working relationship with Exodus International, the world’s largest ‘ex-gay’ ministry,” LaBarbera said. “Worse, the break came in 2009, shortly after Willow Creek’s leaders met with Soulforce, a homosexual activist group. Soulforce activists target mega-churches and Christian ministries like Focus on the Family — demanding a (politicized) “dialogue” even as they accuse leaders who defend the Bible’s clear, historic prohibition of homosexuality of “spiritual violence.”

In 2008, to protest the WCCC-Soulforce meeting, AFTAH held a silent sign vigil just outside Willow Creek’s entrance. Upon learning of our small protest, WCCC’s chief of security belligerently tried to block AFTAH from setting up our banner – apparently ignorant of our First Amendment right to protest on a public sidewalk. Ultimately, police were called in and the peaceful protest went forward.

In recent days, AFTAH placed several calls to Willow Creek inquiring as to whether the 2009 break with Exodus was linked to the church’s hosting of Soulforce and subsequent “dialogue,” but our calls were not returned. Many observers, including Exodus President Alan Chambers, a former homosexual, believe the disassociation stems from Soulforce’s meeting at Willow Creek.

LaBarbera agrees: “Are we to believe it is just a coincidence that Willow Creek dropped a hopeful ministry like Exodus – which testifies to Jesus Christ’s power to transform lives – shortly after WCCC’s meeting with a contingent of homosexual activists, who pressed Willow Creek to end its ‘prominent partnership with Exodus’?”

“This is a stunning capitulation to the “gay” lobby,” LaBarbera said. “We expect the world to reject truth on sexual morality. But churches like Willow Creek that profess to be biblically faithful must not surrender to the notion that somehow homosexuality is too hard for God to change – or that it is the basis for a healthy identity.”

Willow Creek’s dumping of Exodus is hardly its first controversial act. The church has been widely criticized for bringing in heretical teachers, and its global “Summit” has featured leaders like former British Prime Minister Tony Blair who are at odds with traditional biblical morality. Blair counts among his greatest achievements the advancement of homosexual rights in Britain.

Stephen Black, who left the homosexual lifestyle and has now been married 25 years, says Gospel truth must be preached to "gays," in the love and humility of Jesus Christ.

Here is Part Two of our pre-recorded interview with Stephen Black [click HERE to listen] of First Stone Ministries, based in Oklahoma City. This interview with Black (www.stephenblack.org), who once considered himself “gay,” aired July 9, 2011. Stephen and AFTAH President Peter LaBarbera discuss the ideal of speaking the truth about homosexual sin, in the love of Christ. They criticize the soft, defensive message of “emergent” Christians like Andy Marin (author of “Love Is and Orientation”) – as a false form of love bereft of biblical truth. (Marin is reluctant to call homosexual practice sinful and has launched an “I’m Sorry” campaign whereby evangelicals apologize to homosexuals (and others) for the alleged “homophobic” shortcomings of the Church; see the video of pro-same-sex-”marriage” evangelical Peggy Campolo currently at the top of Marin’s blog HERE [dated July 14th].) Black and LaBarbera agree with ex-”gay” Andy Comiskey that the ”emergent”-type approach like Marin’s is a “gutless gospel.”  Yet they also agree that harsh or insensitive Christians can preach a lot of truths about homosexuality. but without the love and humility demanded of those advancing the Gospel (Black says some have been “cruel and mean” toward homosexuals). Stephen gives a short version of his personal testimony, but in Part One of this interview he lays out his life story (including being molested as a boy) and exodus from homosexuality; click HERE for Part One.  You can visit the archive page containing all the AFTAH Hour interviews HERE.

P.S. LaBarbera has extended an open invitation to Andy Marin to appear on the AFTAH radio show, or speak/debate at at a neutral forum on the proper attitude of Bible-believing Christians toward people practicing homosexuality. We hope he accepts; you can contact Marin at info@themarinfoundation.org.

HOW TO LISTEN:  Left click once on the link below to play. Please note: This is an mp3 file, supported in most operating systems by Windows Media Player, Quick Time and/or I-Tunes.  Do not use Real Player.  It is not supported and there may be difficulty when listening with it.  (Please be patient, depending upon the speed of your internet connection it may take a moment or two to load.)  OR right click the link then “save target as” to download the whole show.

7-9-11, Stephen Black, Part Two

Dr. Michael Brown, author of "A Queer Thing Happened to America," says true biblical love cannot bury the truth that homosexual behavior and relationships are sinful.

This is the fourth and final part of AFTAH President Peter LaBarbera’s interview with Dr. Michael Brown, author of “A Queer Thing Happened to America.”  This aired May 14, 2011. [Click HERE to listen.] Brown, director of Coalition of Conscience, and LaBarbera discuss the proper approach of telling the “truth in love” to people practicing homosexuality. Brown espouses a “Reach Out and Resist” approach of lovingly reaching out to homosexuals with the Gospel while steadfastly resisting the agenda to normalize homosexual, bisexual and transgender behavior through the law and culture.

When asked about controversial pro-”gay” Grove City College professor Warren Throckmorton and others who support “civil unions” and pro-homosexual “sexual orientation” laws as an alleged outworking of Christian compassion, Brown says faithful Christians cannot support the idea of legal ”civil rights” based on sinful behavior.  He assails the non-biblical approach of “Love Is An Orientation” author Andrew Marin, a liberal Chicago evangelical living in Boystown who seems reluctant to affirm clear Scriptural teachings that homosexual behavior is always sinful. Brown also prays for “Chaz” Bono, the daughter (Chastity) of Sonny and Cher who has gained immense sympathetic media attention surrounding her tragic quest to become a “man.”

Special “A Queer Thing” Offer: Michael Brown’s book “A Queer Thing Happened to America” is available through AFTAH at a discount price fo $25 (including shipping and postage). Make a $25 gift online at www.americansfortruth.com/donate/; or mail your $25 donation requesting the book to: AFTAH, PO Box 5522, Naperville, IL 60567-5522.

HOW TO LISTEN: This is an mp3 file, supported in most operating systems by Windows Media Player, Quick Time and/or I-Tunes.  Do not use Real Player.  It is not supported and there may be difficulty listening with it.  Left click once on the link below to play.  (Please be patient, depending upon the speed of your internet connection it may take a moment or two to load.)  OR right click the link then “save target as” to download the whole show. 

5-14-11, Dr. Michael Brown

April 21, 2011 [WARNING: Offensive content in video] 

This man in drag and member of the "Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence" is wearing a shirt that says "Bottom For Jesus" at the sadistic-sex-celebrating Folsom Street Fair in San Francisco in 2007. "Bottom" refers to the receiving position in anal sodomy. Every year on Easter Sunday, the "Sisters" hosts the blasphemous "Hunky Jesus" contest. See video below, and click on photo above to enlarge.

Contact: Peter LaBarbera: americansfortruth@gmail.com  

CHICAGO – This Easter Sunday in San Francisco’s Delores Park, Christianity-spoofing homosexual drag queen “nuns” calling themselves the “Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence” will stage their annual “Hunky Jesus” contest — mocking the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ — as shirtless men in “crucifixion” costumes parade on stage in an atmosphere of haughty, homoerotic humor. 

The profane and shockingly insensitive spectacle illustrates the secular, pro-“gay” Left’s hypocrisy in demanding “respect” for homosexuals and transsexuals — even as they cynically mock Christ and true religion on the holiest day of the year for Christians, says Peter LaBarbera, president of Americans For Truth About Homosexuality (AFTAH). 

“There’s nothing that delights arrogant, pro-homosexual liberals more than making fun of Bible-believing Christians – as evidenced by this blasphemous Easter ‘contest,’” LaBarbera said. “Of course, it goes without saying that these defiant champions of ‘tolerance and diversity’ wouldn’t dare hold a ‘Hunky Muhammad’ contest during Ramadan — so it seems even envelope-pushing, in-your-face, pro-perversion libertines know their limits. (Muslims: beware: LGBT activists will end up hating you as much as they hate Christians.)” [Watch YouTube below; press release continues after the page jump and video:] 

LaBarbera said the “Hunky Jesus” contest symbolizes the contempt that many homosexual militants have for God and religion. Politically this translates into their growing advocacy of pro-homosexuality laws that use State power to crush Americans’ historic religious and First Amendment liberties – i.e., to reject homosexuality and other immoral, destructive behaviors. 

“Gay activists are out of the closet in their plans to criminalize Christianity insofar as it relates to their particular politically-correct sin,” he said, “One way they do that is by reviling and ridiculing committed Christians and others who oppose homosexuality — portraying them as sociopaths and the heartless equivalent of deranged racists. But the fact that African-Americans now poll strongest against ‘same-sex marriage’ throws a wrench into this evil ‘frame.’” 

LaBarbera said the “Hunky Jesus” contest – despicable as it is — actually is less threatening to Christendom than the escalating campaign by “LGBT” activists to re-define Christianity and other religions as “gay-friendly.” 

“Homosexual political groups are strategizing on how best to persuade evangelicals that supporting pro-homosexuality-laws including ‘same-sex marriage’ is part of the Christian’s duty to ‘love thy neighbor,’” he said. “Who knew that creating a system of superior legal ‘rights’ based on a sin that God’s own Word, the Bible, says is ‘detestable’ was part of the divine plan?! 

“Truth is, the most compassionate thing a Christian can do for people practicing homosexuality is to reach out to them with the Gospel – with an uncompromising ‘tough love’ that says proud homosexuality is never part of God’s plan for anyone’s life. The same Jesus Christ whom the San Francisco liberals mock not only will judge them one day – but He has helped innumerable men and women — like Trace McNutt and Denise Jones — leave homosexuality behind.”

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. — Romans 12:2

Vicky Gene Robinson, move over. There’s a new spiritual fraud in the pulpit. The liberal media and pro-”gay” advocates are applauding “Bishop” Jim Swilley for declaring his homosexuality at his church. (If there’s one thing that secular, left-leaning reporters like more than “gay” Republicans, it’s homosexual “Christians.”) I will have more comments on Swilley’s interview with fawning CNN anchor Don Lemon (himself a pro-homosexuality activist who was homosexually molested as a boy). See also D.L. Foster’s piece over at Gay Christian Movement Watch, “Bishop Jim Swilley fasttracking the gay christian lie.”

Pray for Swilley — that he would cease and repent of his rebellion against his Creator. But also pray against his evil and unconscionable attempt to synthesize changeable sexual sin with Christianity, thus deceiving the Body of Christ and untold millions with his world-conforming testimony. Swilley needs to feel shame (not “gay pride”) for advocating sin as an identity, but right now he appears preoccupied with becoming the latest “gay christian” (small “c”) celebrity. — Peter LaBarbera, www.aftah.org

Editor’s Note: In the One News Now article below, when I made the comment, “Most boys don’t think about sex,” I was referring to very young boys. I am always perplexed to hear adult homosexual men talk about how they “knew they were gay” from a very young age, say, five years old. Normally, boys don’t even know what sex is, much less homosexuality, in their early years, so such comments in an of themselves seem to indicate dysfunction, at best, or victimhood at the hands of a predator, at worst, in the young lives of these homosexually identified men. – PL 

__________________________

American Family Association’s “One News Now” reports:

LaBarbera: GA Pastor Swilley ‘Christianizing’ Sin
By Charlie Butts
OneNewsNow – 11/17/2010

A Georgia mega-church pastor has come out of the closet as a homosexual, but the head of a group dedicated to exposing the homosexual activist agenda thinks the “bishop” is compromising God’s Word.
 
Fifty-two-year-old Jim Swilley of the Church In The Now, an inter-denominational Christian church in Conyers, has stated that the September suicide of a Rutgers University student prompted him to unveil his secret life to his congregation.

According to the Newton Citizen, Swilley’s announcement last month was not a surprise to many members of the church. “There are two things in my life that are an absolute. I did not ask for either one of them,” he reportedly told his congregation. “Both of them were imposed on me. I had no control over them. One was the call of God on my life…the other thing was my sexual orientation.” He continued to explain that he had struggled with his sexual orientation his whole life, always attempting to come to terms with that and his faith in God.

“This so-called ‘Bishop’ Swilley is a very confused man,” laments Peter LaBarbera of Americans for Truth About Homosexuality (AFTAH). “He thinks he’s being honest about — quote — ‘who he is,’ but actually, he’s compromising the Word of God and he’s Christianizing sin, which is impossible.”

LaBarbera contends Swilley should step down from his ministerial position, stop preaching the Word of God, and repent of his sin and the advocacy of it. Swilly has shared that his congregation has been supportive of his coming out for the most part, but the AFTAH president is not surprised that some members of his church have left.

“There’s no doubt in the Bible about whether homosexual practice is a sin,” the conservative advocate points out. “He says he knew he was — quote — ‘gay’ since he was a boy. Most boys don’t think about sex, much less homosexuality, so we’re wondering what happened in his early life. Obviously, he’s a confused man.”

LaBarbera emphasizes that homosexuality it is not condoned in Christianity, so Swilley has “set about rationalizing his sin, which is very dangerous business.” Swilley is the father of four children and is now divorced after a 20-year marriage. His former wife still works for the church.

Our second Truth Academy — to be co-sponsored with our good friends at Mission America – in Columbus, Ohio, is 10 days away:  April 1-2, 2011. Each Truth Academy — the first was in Chicago (see tape ordering info below) — is an intensive seminar designed to educate citizens from a conservative perspective on the homosexual-bisexual-transgender agenda. The Columbus Truth Academy – focusing on the “‘hate’-labeling of Christians” –features some of the world’s top pro-family experts on the homosexualist agenda. Basic information follows:

What: Truth Academy: Columbus 2011: theme: “The ‘Hate’ Labeling of Christians—Why it’s Happening and What We Can Do”

Co-sponsored by Mission America ( www.missionamerica.com) and Americans for Truth ( www.americansfortruth.com ).

David Kupelian, author of "The Marketing of Evil" and "How Evil Works," is keynote speaker Friday evening.

When: Friday, April 1 and Saturday, April 2, 2011; ;  doors open Friday, April 1 at noon; program begins at 1:00 PM; Friday evening dinner-lecture by award-winning journalist David Kupelian, WorldNetDaily editor and author, “The Marketing of Evil,” and “How Evil Works,” Saturday: program runs from 9:30 AM to 3:30 PM [see hourly schedule below]

Where: Columbus, OH. Discover Christian Church, 2900 Martin Rd., Dublin, OH 43017 [see map HERE]; near the intersection of Sawmill Rd. and Rt. 161, near the airport.

Cost: $75 prepaid ; $99 at the door; make payment online at www.americansfortruth.com/donate/ (using Paypal or your Visa or MasterCard); or send your check for $75/attendee (with “Truth Academy” in the memo line), made out to Americans For Truth, and send to: AFTAH, PO Box 5522, Naperville, IL 60567-5522

Payment – online or through the mail: Online: www.americansfortruth.com/donate/. Regular mail: check payable to “Americans for Truth” to: AFTAH, PO Box 5522, Naperville, IL 60567-5522.

Specal Pastors/Students Discount: $25 for all pastors and students (high school and college*); also, please consider sponsoring a pastor or young person to attend the Truth Academy with your donation of $75 per attendee: www.americansfortruth.com/donate/

*We reserve the right to refuse admission and/or charge any Truth Academy attendee the full admission rate ($99); disruptions of presentations will not be tolerated.

RSVP: Reserve your spot at: americansfortruth@gmail.com or info@missionamerica.com; or call: 630-717-7631 (Americans For Truth) or 614-442-7998 (Mission America)

Tentative Speakers Schedule:

“The Hate Labeling of Christians: Who’s Behind It and What We Can Do”

 

Linda Harvey

Truth Academy: Columbus, Ohio, Discovery Christian Church, 2900 Martin Rd., Dublin, Ohio [see map HERE], April 1-2, 2011; co-sponsored by Americans For Truth and Mission America:

FRIDAY, APRIL 1:

Noon – -1:00 pm —Registration

1:00 pm –1:15 pm—Opening prayer, remarks and welcome: Linda Harvey, Mission America

Peter LaBarbera

1:15 pm—2:00 pm— “Homosexual Activism: How it is Undermining Faith and Freedom in America”—Peter LaBarbera, Americans for Truth About Homosexuality

2:00 pm—2:45 pm— “Christian Theology and Homosexuality: Why God Has Not Changed His Mind”—Dr. Robert Gagnon, Associate Professor, New Testament, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary [Listen to AFTAH's radio interviews with Gagnon HERE.]

2:45 pm –3:00 pm—Break

Prof. Rob Gagnon

3:00 pm—3:45 pm – “Sexual Anarchy in the Military: the Implications for Christian Faith and National Security,” J. Matt Barber, Attorney, Vice President, Liberty Counsel Action [Listen to AFTAH's radio interviews with Barber HERE.]

3:45 pm—5:00 pm Panel: “Why Should Christians Care about Homosexual Activism and ‘Gay Rights’?”

Moderator: Peter LaBarbera, Americans for Truth

Panel Members: J. Matt Barber, Liberty Counsel

 

 

 

SATURDAY, APRIL 2:

Prof. Rena Lindevaldsen

9:30 am—9:45 am—Prayer and opening remarks—Peter LaBarbera, Americans for Truth About Homosexuality

9:45 am —10:30 am — “Marriage and Family in the Crosshairs”— Prof. Rena Lindevaldsen, Associate Professor, Liberty University School of Law [Listen to AFTAH's radio interviews with Lindevaldsen HERE.]

10:30 am—11:15 am— “The Corruption of Youth and Schools: How Christians are Being Compromised in America,” Linda Harvey, Mission America [Listen to AFTAH's radio interviews with Harvey HERE.]

11:15—Noon— “The Reality of Leaving Homosexuality and the Attacks on the Ex-Gay Witness,” Greg Quinlan, President, PFOX ( Parents and Family of Ex-Gays and Gays) [Listen to AFTAH's radio interview with Quinlan HERE.]

Matt Barber

Noon—1:30 pm—Lunch on your own

1:30 pm—2:15 pm —“Propaganda or Journalism? The Role of the Media in Undermining Christianity”— David Kupelian, World Net Daily

2:15 pm—3:00 – “Current Controversies in the Campaign to ‘Christian-ize’ Homosexuality,” Prof. Rob Gagnon, www.robgagnon.net

3:00-4:00 pm –Panel: “How to Be Overcomers in a Today’s America” and Q & A

Moderator: J. Matt Barber, Liberty Counsel

Panel: Peter LaBarbera, Americans for Truth

Prof. Rena Lindevaldsen, Liberty Counsel

Greg Quinlan, PFOX (Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays and Gays)

Dr. Robert Gagnon, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary

Please tell your network of friends about this exciting and informative event!  RSVPs and e-mail inquiries to americansfortruth@gmai.com or info@missionamerica.com. Phone: AFTAH (630-717-7631) or Mission America (614-442-7998)

---

TAPE ORDERING INFO FOR DEBUT “TRUTH ACADEMY: Chicago 2010″ (held outside Chicago, August 5-7, 2010)

Three-day teaching seminar answering “gay” misinformation was one of most comprehensive pro-family teach-ins  on the Homosexual Agenda ever held

Click HERE for a PRINTABLE DVD/CD ORDER FORM (For Faxing and Mailing)

______________________________________

Conference DVD/CD Order Form – Truth Academy: Chicago 2010

Two ordering options: full set (DVD/video or CD/audio) OR individual speaker sets (DVD/video or CD/audio). Attendee discounts available only to those who attended Truth Academy: Chicago 2010.

By Fax: Fill and print out order form and fax to AFTAH at 630-839-0799;

By Regular Mail: send check with completed form to: Americans For Truth, PO Box 5522, Naperville, IL 60567-5522;

Order online: go HERE and order with a standard credit card (Visa or MasterCard) or via PayPal. For PayPay orders, send a separate e-mail indicating your payment and what you ordered to americansfortruth@gmail.com.

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Truth Academy: Chicago 2010 – Conference DVD/CD Order Form

FULL SET: Check to order [get easier-to-print ORDER FORM here]

_____ Full DVD set (all speakers including Q&As and panel discussion): $179 [all prices include shipping and handling]

_____ **Special Truth Academy attendee DVD discount rate** (full DVD set): $149

_____ Full CD set (audio only): $119

_____ **Special Truth Academy attendee CD discount** (full CD set): $99

TOTAL: $___________

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INDIVIDUAL SPEAKER sets:

Individual speakers ($25 per speaker set DVD/ $20 per CD set; each set includes ALL talks by speaker; Laurie Higgins’ presentations available only on CD). Select speaker presentations:

INDICATE: ___ DVD (video)     OR        ___ CD (audio)

___  Matt Barber, Liberty Counsel (one talk with Q&A and Thursday panel discussion)

___  Prof. Rob Gagnon, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary (3 talks w/ Q&A)

___  Arthur Goldberg, JONAH (Jews Offering New Alternatives for Healing); (2 talks w/ Q&A)

___  Laurie Higgins, Illinois Family Institute (2 talks w/ Q&A) [audio only available for Laurie Higgins]

___  Cliff Kincaid, Accuracy in Media (3 talks w/ Q&A)

___  Robert Knight, Coral Ridge Ministries (2 talks)

___  Peter LaBarbera, Americans For Truth (Welcoming remarks and Saturday talk)

___  Prof. Rena Lindevaldsen, Liberty University Law School (3 talks w/ Q&A)

___  Greg Quinlan, Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays and Gays (2 talks w/ Q&A)

___  Ryan Sorba, Young Conservatives of California (2 talks w/ Q&A)

____ TOTAL # sets order: indicate: ___ DVD (video)      or     ___ CD (audio only)

TOTAL # of Speaker Sets: ____ @ $25 per set DVD= $_______  OR @ $20 per set CD

TOTAL=  $___________

Customer Information:

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Send completed form and payment to: Americans For Truth, P.O. Box 5522, Naperville, IL 60567-5522;

Fax to AFTAH: 630-839-0799; inquiries: americansfortruth@gmail.com ; ph: 630-717-7631.

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Truth Academy: Chicago 2010 Instructors:

Robert Knight, Coral Ridge Ministries

Peter LaBarbera, Americans For Truth About Homosexuality

Ryan Sorba, Young Conservatives of California

Cliff Kincaid, Accuracy in Media

Prof. Rena Lindevaldsen, Liberty University Law School

Matt Barber, Liberty Counsel

Laurie Higgins, Illinois Family Institute

Greg Quinlan, Parents and Friends of Gays and Ex-Gays

Prof. Rob Gagnon, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary; see www.RobGagnon.net

Arthur Goldberg, JONAH (Jews Offering New Alternatives to Homosexuality)

For more information about ordering Truth Academy DVDs or audio CDs, – or to inquire about holding a Truth Academy in your area – send an e-mail to americansfortruth@gmail.com. Or call AFTAH at 630-717-7631.

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AFTAH Truth Academy: Chicago 2010

Full Speakers Schedule:

THURSDAY, AUGUST 5 (Day One)

All presentations are 45 minutes followed by 15 minutes of Q & A.  There will be a panel discussion and Q & A on Thursday and Friday, and a special evening presentation each of those evenings.

8-9:30 – Light breakfast pastries;  Registration

9:30 – 9:35 – Opening Prayer, Calvin Lindstrom, Pastor, Church of Christian Liberty; Christian Liberty Academy

9:35 – 10:00 – Welcoming Remarks, Peter LaBarbera, President, Americans For Truth About Homosexuality:

“From gay pride to gay tyranny”

10:10 – 11:10 – Prof. Rena Lindevaldsen, Liberty University School of Law:

“History of modern ‘gay’ activism and the courts”

11:20-12:20 – Cliff Kincaid, America’s Survival; Accuracy in Media:

“No criticism of homosexuality allowed: combating pro-homosexual media bias”

12:20-1:20 – Lunch Break; light lunch provided

1:20-2:20 – Ryan Sorba, Young Conservatives of California:

“The ‘born gay hoax”

2:30 – 3:30 – Laurie Higgins, Illinois Family Institute:

“Using reason and logic in answering pro-homosexuality arguments”

3:40-4:40 – Arthur Goldberg, JONAH (Jews Offering Healthy Alternatives to Homosexuality), author, Light in the Closet: Torah, Homosexuality, and the Power to Change:

“Can gays change? Is gay parenting good for kids? Presenting the research on homosexuality”

4:50-6:00 – PANEL DISCUSSION and Q & A:

Theme:  “Can the effort to ‘mainstream’ homosexuality in American culture be stopped?”

Panelists:  Rena Lindevaldsen, Matt Barber, Laurie Higgins, Ryan Sorba, Arthur Goldberg, and Greg Quinlan, Cliff Kincaid; Moderator: Peter LaBarbera

Special Thursday evening presentation (Q & A will follow talk):

7:45 – 9:15 – Greg Quinlan, Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays and Gays (PFOX); Pro-Family Network:

“An Ex-Gay Christian Discusses Love, Truth and Homosexuality”

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FRIDAY, AUGUST 6 (Day Two)

8:00-9:00 – Light breakfast pastries; Registration

9:00 – 10:00 – Cliff Kincaid, America’s Survival, Accuracy in Media:

“The battle over blood: ‘gay’ health risks and public policy”

10:10 – 11:10 – Prof. Rena Lindevaldsen, Liberty University School of Law:

“The zero-sum game: homosexuality-based ‘rights’ vs. religious and First Amendment freedoms”

11:20-12:20 – Laurie Higgins, Illinois Family Institute:

“Corrupting children, politicizing schools: the homosexual youth agenda”

12 :20-1:20 – Lunch Break; light lunch provided

1:20-2:20 – Arthur Goldberg, JONAH (Jews Offering New Alternatives to Homosexuality:

“The gender confusion agenda: ‘transgender rights’”

2:30 – 3:30 – Prof. Robert Gagnon, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary:

“From abomination to ‘gay’: answering ‘queer theology’ — Old Testament”

3:40-4:40 – Prof. Rena Lindevaldsen, Liberty U. School of Law:

“The legal strategy to stop homosexual ‘marriage’: triumphs and pitfalls”

5:00-6:00 – PANEL DISCUSSION and Q & A:

Theme:  “Returning the debate to behavior – getting off the ‘GLBT’ playing field”

Panelists:  Rena Lindevaldsen, Matt Barber, Laurie Higgins, Ryan Sorba, Arthur Goldberg, Cliff Kincaid, Robert Knight, Robert Gagnon, Gregg Quinlan; Moderator: Peter LaBarbera

Special Friday evening keynote presentation (Q & A will follow talk):

7:35 – 7:45 – Special introduction by Sandy Rios, FOX News contributor and Chicago radio talk show host

7:45 – 9:15 – Robert Knight, Coral Ridge Ministries; author, Radical Rulers: The White House Elites Who Are Pushing America Towards Socialism:

“From destroying DOMA to homosexualizing the military: Obama’s radical homosexual/transsexual agenda for America”

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SATURDAY, AUGUST 7 (Day Three)

8:00-9:00 – Light breakfast pastries; Registration

9:00 – 10:00 – Prof. Robert Gagnon, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary:

“’But Jesus never said anything about homosexuality’”: Answering ‘Queer Theology’ — New Testament”

10:10 – 11:10 – Robert Knight, Coral Ridge Ministries:

“Destructive legacy: Alfred Kinsey and the (Homo)Sexual Revolution”

11:20-12:20 – Greg Quinlan, PFOX, Pro-Family Network:

“The big, pink plan for a lavender culture”

:20-1:20 – Lunch Break; light lunch provided

1:20-2:20 – Cliff Kincaid, America’s Survival; Accuracy in Media:

“Can you be in support homosexual activism and be conservative’? Confronting the pro-’gay’ Right”

2:30-3:40 – Prof. Robert Gagnon, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary:

“Agreeing with God: a truly biblical approach toward ‘out and proud’ homosexuality”

3:50-4:50 – Ryan Sorba, Young Conservatives of California:

“Confronting the zeitgeist: new strategies to turn around younger Americans on ‘gay rights’”

5:00-6:00 – Matt Barber, Liberty Counsel, AFTAH Board Member:

“Don’t Ask, Don’t Bleed: stopping Obama’s campaign to homosexualize the U.S. military”

6:00-6:20 – Closing remarks, Peter LaBarbera, Americans For Truth

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Prof. Rena Lindevaldsen will teach at the AFTAH Academy on the inherent battle in the law between "gay rights" and Americans' precious religious and First Amendment liberties.

Dear Readers,

We’re delighted to announce the debut of our ongoing “Americans For Truth Academy,” designed to train Americans young and old how to answer “gay” activist misinformation and fight the homosexual-bisexual-transsexual agenda. We hope and pray that ‘Truth Academy: Chicago 2010′ will be the first of many Truth Academies held across the United States, and maybe outside the USA some day.

This debut Academy will be one of the most important pro-family conferences on homosexuality ever held in the United States.  Please consider sponsoring a student/young person (ages 14-25) to attend for $99 or attending yourself (or encouraging your pastor to attend). RSVP to: americansfortruth@gmail.com. Rarely will you get a chance to learn from such brilliant teachers on the homosexual issue all in one rigorous seminar.

To reserve a spot, go online to www.americansfortruth.com/donate (designate AFTAH Academy); to sponsor a young person ($99/student), specify “Youth Scholarship” on the online form. Or mail your check to: AFTAH, PO Box 5522, Naperville, IL 60567-5522. Please RSVP to americansfortruth@gmail.com.

UPDATED ADULT PRICING POLICY: Adults, full 3-day conference: $149, or $50/day; youth ages 14-25: $99 (scholarships available); married couples discount: $199.  Pay online by designating “Truth Academy” however you choose to pay (Paypal or Credit Card) at www.AmericansForTruth.com/donate. Or send your check to: Americans For Truth, P.O. Box 5522, Naperville, IL 60567-5522.

This August 5-7, AFTAH will bring together some of the country’s leading pro-family experts on homosexuality to teach both young and old how to answer the lies and myths that so readily emanate from the “GLBT” (“gay”) camp. I am very excited about this new project’s potential to reverse years of pro-”gay” brainwashing in the schools and popular culture — corrupting the hearts and minds of  our young people.

Let’s face it: much of the conservative establishment has dropped the ball on fighting the homosexual agenda (or given up entirely), so AFTAH is stepping up to train a new generations of activists to contend with the sexual sin movement that has fooled so many Americans into treating a human wrong — changeable same-sex behavior — as a “civil right.” Please help us make this future-oriented event possible with your tax-deductible donation to Americans For Truth at www.americansfortruth.com/donate. God bless you. — Peter LaBarbera, www.aftah.org

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Free Book Offer Selections for Sponsoring AFTAH Academy Student:

• “Homosexuality: A Freedom Too Far,” by the late Dr. Charles Socarides, who fought the American Psychiatric Association’s gay-pressure-induced “normalization” of homosexuality in the early 1970s [hardcover: 312 pp]; or
• “Out from Under: The Impact of Homosexual Parenting,” by Dawn Stefanowicz. This harrowing yet beautifully written story about Dawn’s troubled upbringing with her promiscuous “gay” dad is required reading for anyone who is tempted to embrace “gay parenting.” (Dawn has agreed to be an instructor at future AFTAH Academy seminars.) [Softcover: 245 pp.]

To order these books without donating to the AFTAH Academy, send $20 postage paid per book (specify which book you’d like to order) or $35 postage paid for both books. Order online at www.americansfortruth.com/donate, or send your check or money order to: Americans For Truth, PO Box 5522, Naperville, IL 60567-5522.  Complete this online form to apply.

Mission America and Americans for Truth About Homosexuality (www.aftah.org)

9:00 am –9:30 am—Registration—Coffee/donuts in Global Cafe

Grove City College Professor Warren Throckmorton

Throckmorton asserts that proclamations of truth constitute a “considerable offense” [against people practicing homosexuality]. Someone should ask him if he thinks Paul’s “vilification” of homosexuality constitutes a “considerable offense.” – Laurie Higgins

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By Laurie Higgins, for Americans For Truth

Grove City College professor Warren Throckmorton has written a self-serving and exploitative analysis of Letter # 7 in C.S. Lewis’ classic The Screwtape Letters, which Throckmorton correctly sees as a warning to Christians not to allow cultural issues to supplant the central message of the Gospel.

The problem is that Throckmorton uses Lewis’ prescient warning to chastise only those Christians who work tirelessly to counter the spate of lies spewed by the culture on the topic of homosexuality, lies which even our public schools have been recruited to disseminate.

Throckmorton writes as follows:

Screwtape encourages his apprentice to foster devotion to a cause. This then takes him further away from the real encounter with God and the faith relationship. Indeed, if Wormwood’s human “patient” can put movements and organizations and crusading ahead of all else then he is of no real threat to Screwtape.

I think this passage provides caution to those who believe fighting the culture war is Christian ministry. When fighting the culture war becomes more important than a witness to the gospel, then the mischief really begins. Specifically, in the past several years, I have seen people who are so concerned with the “gay agenda” that they overlook cult involvement in people because they are “ex-gay.” Some here in the US who are willing to tolerate the very unChristian stance of the Anti-Homosexuality Bill because, in Lou Engle’s words, ”Uganda has become ground zero” in the fight against the gay agenda.…

Some might argue that I am just as guilty because of my advocacy against the Uganda bill. And I would not take that criticism lightly. My view is that freedom of conscience is necessary for the Church to have the greatest impact. Advocacy for that position is important business but it is not the main business. I doubt that such advocacy will lead anyone away from the redemptive business of the church. On the other hand, my great concern is that culture warring lulls people into feeling that that the cause justifies the considerable offense that comes with vilifying those the church yearns to reach.

Dr. Throckmorton shrewdly pre-empts any challenge to his own complicity in the culture war, complicity which often seems to serve efforts to normalize homosexuality. Throckmorton proleptically introduces the challenge and responds to it by claiming meaninglessly that he wouldn’t take such a charge “lightly.” He attempts to efface the charge that he himself may be guilty of making “the world an end.”

Dr. Throckmorton asserts that “freedom of conscience is necessary for the Church to have the greatest impact. Advocacy for that position is important business but it is not the main business.” Huh?

What precisely is Dr. Throckmorton concealing here through his ambiguous rhetoric? Is he advocating for freedom of conscience regarding the morality of homosexuality? If so, who disagrees? Certainly the mere expression of theologically orthodox views about homosexuality does not diminish anyone’s “freedom of conscience.” Those who affirm homosexuality are as free to reject theologically orthodox moral propositions as the theologically orthodox are free to reject heresy.

Since this ambiguous phrase follows a reference to the Ugandan law, perhaps he actually thinks that what most alarms his critics is his obsession with it. Perhaps he is trying to divert attention from his ambiguous stance on the morality of homosexuality to the controversial Ugandan law, his opposition to which he may be mistaking for “Christian ministry.”

If so, Dr. Throckmorton needs to know that what most concerns his critics is that he may be on a crusade not merely to affirm that individuals should have the freedom to believe as they wish, but that he may also be on a crusade to affirm that homosexual practice is permissible for Christians, which would constitute a decidedly non-orthodox theological position.

Dr. Throckmorton continues: ”I doubt that such advocacy will lead anyone away from the redemptive business of the church.” In Dr. Throckmorton’s world, advocacy of “freedom of conscience” will not “lead anyone away from the redemptive business of the church,” but preaching the truth about homosexuality will.  Curiouser and curiouser.

It would be enormously helpful if Dr. Throckmorton would fight as tenaciously for the freedom and right of parents to protect their children from unbiblical ideas and images of homosexuality and Gender Identity Disorder in American public schools as he does to oppose laws in foreign countries.

Throckmorton further claims that “my great concern is that culture-warring lulls people into feeling that that the cause justifies the considerable offense that comes with vilifying those the church yearns to reach.”

There are a couple of points to be made in response to this stupefying statement.

• First, this statement implies that those who affirm homosexual acts as moral are not engaging in the culture war.
• Second, this statement employs the non-biblical, fallacious argument common among homosexualists that condemnation of volitional homosexual acts constitutes hatred or “vilification” of persons. One wonders how Dr. Throckmorton is able to expound any biblical truths regarding behavior if he believes that expressions of opprobrium constitute vilification of persons which, in turn, he believes impedes the redemptive business of the church.

Throckmorton asserts that proclamations of truth constitute a “considerable offense.” Someone should ask him if he thinks Paul’s “vilification” of homosexuality constitutes a “considerable offense.”

Does society’s “vilification” of pornography or pedophilia constitute a considerable offense against the porn-makers, porn-partakers, or pedophiles that the church hopes to reach?

Did Martin Luther King Jr.’s “culture-warring” against racism constitute a “vilification” and “considerable offense” against the racists that the he hoped to reach?  Did MLK Jr. mistakenly believe that fighting the “culture war” was a Christian ministry?

Of course, anyone who supplants the Gospel with philanthropic or political efforts is in error, but Throckmorton seems to suggest that those who oppose the homosexual agenda are somehow guiltier of this error than those who seek to normalize homosexuality.

The reality is that there are people whose work–their vocation–is to promote truth in the culture and to oppose the cultural and legal promotion of moral error. Some people are accountants, some veterinarians, some plumbers, some sales clerks, and some are “activists.” The fact that some men and women are called to activism for their vocation no more means they have lost sight of the most essential truth, which is the Gospel, than the fact that some are called to work as architects means that they’ve lost sight of the most essential fact of human existence: the Good News of Christ’s substitutionary work on the Cross.

In my estimation, there are far too few Christians who are willing to speak the truth in the public square. At different times in history, different biblical truths are attacked with particular ferocity. During the era of slavery and Jim Crow laws, biblical truth about the dignity and worth of African American women and men were attacked with special intensity. During those decades, an equally vigorous public response to the cultural lies that destroyed lives and families was necessary. Unfortunately, for far too many years, the white church failed to respond courageously.

Similarly, the church is failing now to respond with courage and vigor to the assault on  biblical truth about sexuality, marriage, and the family from the mainstream news media, Hollywood, Madison Avenue, the music industry, and public education. Throckmorton is right when he warns against mistaking bold proclamations about biblical morality for preaching the Gospel. He is wrong in trying to persuade Christians to remain silent in the face of perilous cultural lies.

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Laurie Higgins is a writer and analyst for the Illinois Family Institute. To listen to the AFTAH Hour’s recent radio interview with Higgins, go HERE for Part One, and HERE for Part Two.

“How can a Christian even in the service of mental or psychological consonance be open to a client assuming a same-sex identity when this therapist knows that consonance comes at the cost of his or her client’s eternal life?” — Laurie Higgins

Mark Yarhouse, Professor of Psychology, Regent University

Folks, it’s a heckuva long road from “abomination” (Leviticus 18:22) to “gay” (no Scriptural citation possible). Note the critical difference between acknowledging in a free society that people have the free will to make bad choices (i.e., embrace sin) — and respecting the sinful choices of such individuals as a “valued identity.” Laurie Higgins is right: Mark Yarhouse’s (and Warren Throckmorton’s) “Sexual Identity Therapy” puts Christian professionals in the dangerous position of doing the latter. Here is Yarhouse’s defense of SIT, “Understanding Sexual Identity Therapy.” And here is his and Throckmorton’s paper, “Sexual Identity Therapy: Practicing Guidelines for Managing Sexual Identity Conflicts.”

Also, we feel obligated to note that although we concur with Higgins regarding Yarhouse’s strained defense of SIT, we in no way put him in the same category as Throckmorton, the Grove City College professor and one-time pro-”change” advocate who has become a de facto pro-homosexual activist — talking down the possibility of lasting, ex-”gay” change for people caught up in homosexuality even as he disingenuously claims to adhere to biblical orthodoxy. – Peter LaBarbera, www.aftah.org

Higgins writes (article after jump):

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Regent University Professor Mark Yarhouse’s Defense of Sexual Identity Therapy

By Laurie Higgins, reprinted with permission from Illinois Family Institute, April 20, 2010

Several weeks ago, I wrote about the Sexual Identity Therapy (SIT) Framework co-developed by Grove City College professor Warren Throckmorton and Regent University professor Mark Yarhouse. This week, I’m going to take a stab at unpacking Dr. Yarhouse’s defense of the SIT Framework.

I will acknowledge the obvious from the get-go: I am not a trained mental health professional. I am an ordinary person trying to sift through what seems to me to be murky, abstract, intellectualized jargon that doesn’t quite conceal the anti-biblical ideas embedded in it.

I will also acknowledge that I’m critiquing these guidelines based on the assumptions that Drs. Throckmorton and Yarhouse hold orthodox theological views of homosexuality and that they believe that Christians are to submit their hearts, minds, and wills to Christ. I assume they believe that the Christian walk is not a hobby practiced in the evenings and on the weekends, and that we owe God both our leisure time and our professional lives. And further, I assume they believe it would be a sin of the gravest order to affirm in or to others that which God–whom they believe is an objective, transcendent, eternal reality–deems abominable.

Throckmorton and Yarhouse’s SIT Framework states the following:

The emergence of a gay identity for persons struggling with value 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 …. Clinicians should assist clients to clarify their values in order to determine their preferred course of action. Therapists should be open to the possibility that a same-sex identity is the least dissonant course.

For a secular therapist this approach would be understandable, but how can a Christian even in the service of mental or psychological consonance be open to a client assuming a same-sex identity when this therapist knows that consonance comes at the cost of his or her client’s eternal life? Is temporal dissonance a more serious problem than eternal damnation? Is it compassionate to facilitate the appropriation of the “least dissonant course” when that course is one which God hates? And can a follower of Christ be complicit in any way of facilitating the pursuit of such a course?

It strikes me that the life of all Christians is a life of dissonance. Our temporal lives are necessarily characterized by a dissonance between our fallen, depraved natures and our new natures that are being sanctified through the power of the Holy Spirit. Ephesians 4:22-24 tells us that “You were taught with reference to your former way of life to lay aside the old man who is being corrupted in accordance with deceitful desires, to be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and to put on the new man who has been created in God’s image–in righteousness and holiness that comes from truth.” Isn’t the term “dissonance” as used in the SIT Framework merely secularized jargon to describe the painful struggle all humans experience in trying to oppose our sin natures while living for Christ?

Believers, including those who are mental health professionals, owe our very lives to Christ, including our professional lives. We owe those who struggle with seemingly intractable, persistent sin–which is all of us–comfort, support, prayer, fellowship, and wise counsel that reflects truth, for it is only the truth of Christ that can set people free from bondage to sin. Those Christians who counsel men and women who suffer from unbidden same-sex attraction have no right or authority as Christians to “provide therapy recommendations” that “respect” the “option” of modifying religious beliefs in such a way to make possible “the integration of same-sex eroticism within a valued identity.”

The SIT Framework also states that “in sexual identity therapy, the focus is on sexual identity as a construct that incorporates the person’s assessment of sexual orientation, emotional preferences and inclinations to engage in sexual activities.”

SIT states that “We believe that the therapist should not attempt to persuade clients about how to value these dimensions but can assist clients to determine their own valuations.” How can a Christian, who is a Christian first, “assist” clients in determining that they “value” homosexual practice. If the professional standards dictate that therapists may not attempt to persuade clients how to “value” their same-sex attractions, then I would argue that Christian therapists ought to choose not to counsel clients who find little or nothing morally problematic with acting on same-sex impulses.

Let’s imagine that age of consent laws are someday overturned. And imagine a client experiences pedophiliac impulses. Or, imagine a client who experiences zoophilia, that is, a sexual attraction to animals. Could a serious follower of Christ be part of any process that results in a client determining that they value and will integrate pedophilia or zoophilia into their lives?

Clearly, those clients who enter therapy with some kind of dissonance between their same-sex attraction and their faith hold at least somewhat to orthodox Christian beliefs. Are temporal subjective feelings so superordinate that facilitating heresy in a client is justified? And to a Christian therapist, is the biblical position that homosexuality is anathema to God a “value,” or is it objective truth?

Dr. Yarhouse explains the different conceptions of mental health practitioners:

Some people will assume that Christians in the mental health field should function like they are a particular kind of pastoral care provider. Although there are many ways in which pastoral care providers practice, I see pastoral care providers as representing their faith tradition in a very intentional way. They hold up a standard and provide pastoral care to help people move toward that standard of orthodoxy (right belief) and orthopraxy (right practice)…. Others would view licensed mental health professionals as different than (sic) pastoral care providers in some important ways. They would see a licensed Christian psychologist, for example, as entering enter (sic) into a fiduciary relationship with the public, a relationship built upon trust, and part of that trust is built upon the assumption that the services provided are in keeping with the standards in the field as it is currently governed by the state in which the psychologist practices. So a group of one’s peers (psychologists, in this case, not Christian psychologists necessarily) would reflect on what is standard practice for addressing the topic of homosexuality in clinical practice.

Dr. Yarhouse employs some strained rhetoric in the phrase “Others would view” rather than saying “In contrast, Dr. Throckmorton and I provide services in keeping with the standards in the field as it is currently governed by the state.” Making such a direct first-person claim would reveal the troubling compartmentalization of their faith, the kind of schism about which Nancy Pearcey and Chuck Colson write:

[H]aving a Christian worldview…means following biblical principles in the personal and practical spheres of life….What does this mean in practice?… It means we do what is right even at great cost, because we are convinced that what we gain in the unseen realm is far greater than what we lose from a worldly perspective.

Sadly, many Christians….give cognitive assent to the great truths of Scripture, but they make their practical, day-to-day decisions based only on what they can see, hear, measure, calculate….They may sincerely want to do the Lord’s work, but they do it in the world’s way-using worldly methods.

Dr. Yarhouse’s rhetoric brings to mind the words of Martin Luther King Jr. in “Letter From Birmingham Jail” who was lamenting the failure of church leaders to boldly condemn the evil of racism:

In the midst of blatant injustices inflicted upon the Negro, I have watched white churchmen stand on the sideline and mouth pious irrelevancies and sanctimonious trivialities…. And I have watched many churches commit themselves to a completely other worldly religion which makes a strange, un-Biblical distinction between body and soul, between the sacred and the secular. (emphasis added)

Christian counselors may be prohibited from “imposing” their values or even offering direction to their clients, but surely they enjoy the freedom to direct a client to another therapist rather than becoming complicit in facilitating the integration of same-sex eroticism into the “valued identity” of a client–or to put it another way, of facilitating heresy and behavior that if left unrepented of will lead to eternal separation from God.

I have heard people offer specious analogies to other professions, for example, suggesting that counseling someone who experiences same-sex attraction is analogous to a tax accountant accepting a client who is an adulterer. The analogy fails because tax return preparation is wholly separate from the moral issue of adultery, whereas when a therapist counsels someone on their experience of dissonance between their faith and their same-sex impulses, the moral issue is the entire purpose for their professional relationship.

I’m not arguing that Christian therapists must refuse to treat those struggling with conflicts between faith and sexual impulses. I am arguing that Christians are biblically prohibited from participating in any process that involves facilitating the modification of religious beliefs–that is to say, heresy–in such a way that same-sex eroticism can be integrated into a “valued identity.”

If what Drs. Yarhouse and Throckmorton mean when they say that “some religious individuals will determine that their religious beliefs may become modified to allow integration of same-sex eroticism within their valued identity,” is that therapists have to accept the unfortunate reality that by the end of therapy some clients will choose to pursue lifestyles that include the appropriation of wrong beliefs and destructive sin, their statement would be reasonable even coming from a Christian.

But their assertion that they “seek to provide therapy recommendations that respect the option of modifying religious beliefs to allow integration of same-sex eroticism” suggests a positive regard for an end result that no Christian should hold in positive regard. It suggests a willingness to facilitate the appropriation of wrong beliefs and destructive sin. Such a response is neither biblically defensible nor loving.

It could be cowardice, ignorance, pride, or vanity that causes a Christian counselor to affirm the ideas affirmed in the SIT Framework. But it could be the result of a serious lack of imagination. Imagine that you are a Christian counselor and with your assistance a client decides to modify his religious views in such a way as to accommodate sin that you know with absolute certainty will shortly result in unimaginable suffering–suffering worse than any torture you’ve ever read about in history books. Now imagine saying about this decision “I seek to provide therapy recommendations that respect this option.” Such a response should be inconceivable.

By Peter LaBarbera

Truth is often stranger than fiction these days in Politically Correct America, thanks to the Anti-Christian, Libertine Left:

Every Easter Sunday in San Francisco, the twisted drag queen group "Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence" hosts a blasphemous "Hunky Jesus" contest mocking the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

In three days, in what has become a sick, blasphemous Easter Sunday ritual in San Francisco, America’s “gay” Mecca, a group of homosexual drag queens — posing as mock nuns and calling themselves the “Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence” — will sponsor the “Hunky Jesus” contest in a city park. Scantily-clad homosexual men and cross-dressing, queer “Sisters” with gaudy, painted faces will mock the Resurrection of Christ on an outdoor stage, as crude “homoerotic” jokes fly and the crowd roars with laughter. Last year’s winner: “Brokeback Jesus.” … I wish this were an April Fool’s Day joke…but it’s not. [To watch a "Hunky Jesus" contest on YouTube, go here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4fyiucdHyA&feature=related#]

An Episcopal Bishop, V. Gene Robinson — “V” stands for Vicky; his parents wanted a girl — travels the country using his once-respected church office to promote the sin of homosexuality. He does this in the name of “Christianity,” of course. Yes, Vicky Gene – who left his wife and family to pursue a “gay” lifestyle with another man — knows better than God. He believes “monogamous gay relationships” are a good thing and argues that poor Apostle Paul just didn’t understand all that we sophisticated, modern-day Westerners know about “sexual orientation.” The Episcopal Church has also approved its first avowedly lesbian bishop, “Rev.” Mary Glasspool — Chapter One of the New Testament Book of Romans be damned. … I wish this were an April Fool’s Day joke…but it’s not.

The state of Maine is on the verge of implementing “rights” for “transgender” students to use opposite-sex restrooms in schools — following the passage of a homosexual/transgender law. Grade school boys who think they’re “girls” would be able to use the girls’ restrooms…. I wish this were an April Fool’s Day joke (and so do Maine’s parents)…but it’s not.

Chai Feldblum

President Obama made a recess appointment of lesbian activist and Georgetown law professor Chai Feldblum to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The EEOC is the federal agency charged with enforcing employment anti-”discrimination” laws. Prof. Feldblum has determined that homosexual sex is “moral” and signed on to an extremist document called “Beyond Marriage” — which advocates government recognition of “committed, loving households in which there is more than one conjugal partner.” Feldblum now says it was a mistake to sign the manifesto — which also states that “Queer couples who decide to jointly create and raise a child with another queer person or couple, in two households” – should be recognized as “families” and treated like traditional marriages. Can you spell S-e-x-u-a-l A-n-a-r-c-h-y?

Moreover, Feldblum has written that in employment, newfangled “gay rights” almost always should trump Americans’ religious freedoms — whenever the advancement of “gay equality” collides with the moral freedom of those who disagree with homosexuality (think: Boy Scouts). Thus, in the “zero-sum game” (Feldblum’s words) between homosexuals’ demands that their lifestyle be accommodated — and the liberty of religious people NOT to do so — the Christians lose. … I wish this were an April Fool’s Day joke…but it’s not.

Army Lt. Gen. Benjamin Mixon: rebuked for opposing Obama's plan to homosexualize the U.S. military.

A decorated general, Lt. Gen. Benjamin Mixon, commander, U.S. Army Pacific, was strongly rebuked by Defense Sec. Robert Gates and Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, for publicly opposing President Obama’s plan to homosexualize the U.S. military. Gates is making it harder to report (and thus expel) open homosexuals in the Armed Forces — a clear violation of existing U.S. law banning homosexual servicemen. (Obama is above the law.) Meanwhile, Marine General James Conway, leery of Obama’s plan, has proposed homosexual-only housing for “gay” Marines — to protect the privacy of normal Marines. … I wish this were an April Fool’s Day joke (and so do many in our military) … but it’s not.

The proposed federal “Employment Nondiscrimination Act” (ENDA) [S. 1584/ H.R. 3017] would create nationwide job “rights” based on homosexuality, bisexuality and transsexuality – enforced by Feldblum’s EEOC. The bill would expand “civil rights” to include protection based on “gender-related identity, appearance, or mannerisms or other gender-related characteristics of an individual, with or without regard to the individual’s designated sex at birth.” (No joke – don’t you just love Washington?) That means when Johnny’s 2nd-grade teacher, Mr. Paul Parker, decides he wants to “transition” to become “Ms. Paulette Parker,” the school must accommodate his/her deviant “gender” choice. Parents who don’t approve of cross-dressing teachers as classroom role models for their impressionable children would be told that under ENDA, the school cannot “discriminate.” Hence parents would be forced to either pull their child from the school or subject him or her to a teacher who daily models deviant, destructive conduct…. I wish this were an April Fool’s Day joke…but it’s not.

Cultural degradation, the war against Christianity, and the corruption of children are no laughing matters. It’s now or never for conservatives, Christians and moral-minded citizens to fight back to preserve our nation and its Judeo-Christian heritage. Otherwise, due to the relentless push to radically transform our society by the pro-homosexual, secular Left and its liberal media cheerleaders, the idea of America actually being a nation “under God” will become … well … a very bad joke.

_____________________________

Peter LaBarbera is founder and president of Americans For Truth About Homosexuality (www.aftah.org) and Republicans For Family Values (www.rffv.org), based outside Chicago.

Ironically, Grove City Prof. Warren Throckmorton -- creator of the 2004 video "I Do Exist," about ex-"gays" -- now questions whether many former homosexuals who have experienced "durable change" in their basic attractions actually "do exist." Writes Throckmorton: "It is not appropriate to see the film as a testament to change of sexual orientation."

The following is reprinted with permission from LifeSiteNews, a leading pro-life and pro-family news service: [To subscribe to their daily news feed, go HERE]

By Matthew Cullinan Hoffman, March 22, 2010, LifeSiteNews.com

GROVE CITY, PENNSYLVANIA, March 19, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) — A psychologist teaching at the conservative-Evangelical Grove City College has been making waves by endorsing same-sex civil union legislation, and claiming that homosexuals can live “normal, natural and healthy” lives.

In a recent interview with the Evangelical news service OneNewsNow (ONN), Dr. Warren Throckmorton reportedly said that “he opposes same-sex marriage but believes the Equal Protection Clause permits homosexual civil unions,” according to the news agency.

“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,” ONN reported.

“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,’” added ONN.

Although Throckmorton has been known in the past as a defender of the ex-gay movement and reorientation therapy, he has been distancing himself increasingly from those positions in recent years, and has even rejected the “Day of Truth,” in which high school students seek to inform their peers about the immorality of homosexual behavior, calling it “mischief,” and saying that it “builds more walls than bridges.”

Throckmorton’s defection from the ex-gay movement has been met with condemnation by Evangelicals. “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),” laments Peter LaBarbera of Americans For Truth About Homosexuality (AFTAH).

“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,” he adds.

Helping patients to form a gay “identity”

LaBarbera is referring to Throckmorton’s “Sexual Identity Therapy,” a framework for therapists treating patients who are conflicted about their sexual desires.

Published in 2007 by Throckmorton and fellow psychologist Mark A. Yarhouse [of Regent University], “Sexual Identity Therapy” affirms that the therapist should accept the values of the client, and then help the client to create a “sexual identity” that fits those values — including a “gay” identity, if it is in accordance with the client’s value system.

“Sexuality and moral values and attitudes are important aspects of personality. However, clients value each of these functions in different ways. We believe that the therapist should not attempt to persuade clients about how to value these dimensions but can assist clients to determine their own valuations,” write Throckmorton and Yarhouse.

They later add that “some religious individuals will determine that their religious identity is the preferred organizing principle for them, even if it means choosing to live with sexual feelings they do not value. Conversely, 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.”

Dr. Throckmorton’s Strange About-Face

In recent years, Throckmorton has done an about-face with regard to his position on homosexual reorientation therapy. Abandoning his previous stance of defending ex-homosexuals and reorientation therapy, he has begun to express skepticism that homosexuals can change in most cases. He has also begun to backpedal on his previous emphasis on the evidence in favor of environmental causes for homosexual orientation, instead asserting biological factors as an explanation for the phenomenon.

The “cause [of homosexual orientation] is a scientific mystery,” he wrote in a recent article for Britain’s Independent newspaper. “However, we do know that once established sexual orientation seems to be quite durable. Several studies have found brain differences between homosexual and heterosexual people.”

“While it seems unlikely that there is one biological or genetic cause for all homosexuals, there are data which suggest that genetic and hormonal factors during pre-natal development have some impact on our desires, in different ways for different people,” he added.

Throckmorton’s previous defense of the ex-gay movement even led him in 2004 to create a documentary, “I Do Exist,” allowing former homosexuals to give their testimony regarding their transformations. However, Throckmorton is now repudiating the film, using vague references to “changes” that has says have taken place since he produced it.

In a Frequently Asked Questions posting on his website about the documentary, Throckmorton writes that “the stories of the people involved were freely offered and reflected their experience at that time. Since then, more changes have taken place. It is not appropriate to see the film as a testament to change of sexual orientation. Rather, the video has a place in the history of the ex-gay movement and may be of interest to those who study that movement.”

“I believe it is important for me to say that I Do Exist is not a current depiction of what I believe to be accurate about sexual orientation,” he concludes.

In addition, Throckmorton has broken off his formerly friendly relationship with the National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality (NARTH), which supports psychologists who offer sexual reorientation therapy to homosexuals.

Although he once cited studies by NARTH psychologists in his own writings, participated in conferences, and even accepted the organization’s Sigmund Freud Award, Throckmorton now regularly writes blog entries attacking the organization, after having canceled his last scheduled appearance at a 2006 NARTH conference.

Under fire from fellow Evangelicals

Peter LaBarbera of Americans For Truth About Homosexuality has been denouncing Throckmorton’s new “Sexual Identity Framework” on his website.

“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,” wrote LaBarbera in a recent post.

“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,’” wrote LaBarbera.

“Would you want your child counseled at Grove City College?” he asks readers. “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?”

Former homosexual Michael Glatze, who once published the national magazine Young Gay America and now speaks out against the homosexual lifestyle, is condemning Throckmorton for his permissive stance towards homosexuality, and for distorting his own statements.

“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,” writes Glatze.

Throckmorton has responded to LaBarbera’s criticisms by claiming that the American Psychological Association’s guidelines require him to take a neutral stand with regard to the sexual morality of the client. However, the texts he cites by the APA do not mention sexual morality, and do not prohibit value judgments by the therapists, only prohibiting the imposition of values that are not directly related to the therapy.

After agreeing to an email interview with LifeSiteNews, Dr. Throckmorton refused to answer the questions submitted, claiming they were “slanted.” The questions sent to Dr. Throckmorton, are available at this link [and are reprinted below]. His latest rebuttal to [AFTAH President] Peter LaBarbera can be found HERE.

Contact Information:

President Richard Jewell
Grove City College
724-458-2500
rgjewell@gcc.edu

Warren Throckmorton
Grove City College
ewthrockmorton@gcc.edu

Related Links (at bottom are additional AFTAH links):

Sexual Identity Therapy: Practice framework for managing sexual identity conflicts

______________________________________

Questions submitted to Dr. Warren Throckmorton by LifeSiteNews.com (for March 22, 2010 article; Throckmorton refused to answer the written questions, claiming they were “slanted”):

1. How have your views of human sexuality changed in the last few years?

2. In a previous article for LifeSiteNews.com, you defended the idea that homosexual orientation is caused by environmental factors.  Have you abandoned that idea?

3. In a recent article you defended the thesis that sexual orientation is biologically determined in the womb, by hormonal deficiencies.  Do you now believe that homosexual orientation is immutable?  [Note: Throckmorton's original statements only suggested that hormonal and other biological factors may influence homosexual orientation, and was therefore amended in a subsequent email.]

4. You now say that you think the equal protection clause gives homosexual couples the right to “civil union” status.  Can you clarify this position?

5. What is your opinion of sexual reorientation therapy now, and how has it changed?

You affirmed in your previous statement to LifeSiteNews (see below) that homosexuals can live “normal, healthy lives.”

6. Do you believe that sex acts between two men or two women are “normal and healthy”?

7. Do you believe that anal sex is normal and healthy?

8. Do you believe that oral sex is normal and healthy?

9. Do you believe that “sexual identity” is something that can be determined by the individual, or is it an objective fact about his nature?  Can a person adopt a “sexual identity” that is in conflict with his actual sex, and still be said to be rational and healthy?

10. Do you believe that moral principles in general are subjective, or are known only by one’s faith, or rather that they are based on human nature, and therefore objectively knowable by man?  If the latter is the case, why do you claim that the therapist is imposing his particular religion when he makes value judgments about human sexuality?

11. Do you believe that the Biblical prohibition against homosexual behavior is based on a mere decree of God, knowable only by faith, or that it is based on an objective harm, including a psychological and/or physical harm, that homosexual practices can cause?

12. Do you claim that the therapist cannot make value judgments in general about the actions of his client, or do you confine this neutrality only to sexual behavior? If the former is true, do you follow this position consistently, treating physical aggression against others in a value neutral way, criminal activity, etc, in your practice?  If the latter is true, on what basis do you confine this moral neutrality to sexual behavior alone?  If confined to sexual behavior alone, does it only apply to homosexual behavior, or does it also apply to bestiality and necrophilia for example?

13. Would you, for example, tell a client involved in bestiality that if his religion or worldview or value system permits bestiality or even condones it, that he can simply adjust his “sexual identity” to match his behavior? If not, why not, given the standard you have set for homosexual behavior?

14. Do you acknowledge that any political elements entered into the change of position of the APAs regarding homosexual sexual conduct and orientation?

15. Do you describe yourself as a heterosexual, a homosexual, or a bisexual?  Regardless of the category you attribute to yourself, do you experience same-sex attractions to a significant degree?

________________________________________

AFTAH Links:

Americans for Truth About Homosexuality (AFTAH) [a general link to Americans For Truth was provided by LifeSite, but below we add some of our recent articles and letters on the Throckmorton/Grove City controversy:

Is Grove City College Still ‘Authentically Christian’ if It Abides Pro-’Gay’ Professor Warren Throckmorton and his ‘Sexual Identity Therapy’? – http://tinyurl.com/GCCauthentic

Grove City Prof Warren Throckmorton Affirms Homosexuality as ‘Normal, Natural and Healthy’: http://tinyurl.com/throck-normal-natural

Higgins Has Questions about Prof. Throckmorton’s ‘Nuanced’ Position on Homosexuality: http://tinyurl.com/higginsthrock

Letter: Grove City Student Should Have Learned that God Disapproves of Homosexuality: http://tinyurl.com/studentthrock

Grove City College Student Scolds AFTAH for ‘Misleading’ People that ‘God Disapproves of Homosexuality’: http://tinyurl.com/scoldsAFTAH

Grove City College Prof Throckmorton Misapplies the Golden Rule on the ‘Day of Silence’: http://tinyurl.com/DOS-Throck

Virginia Parents Leery of Grove City College Due to ‘Prof. Throckmorton’s Open Advocacy of Homosexuality’: http://tinyurl.com/vathrock

Letter: ‘Warren Throckmorton Is Doing Great Damage to Reputation of Grove City College’: http://tinyurl.com/GCCdamage

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

__________________________________________________

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:

__________________________________________________

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

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

__________________________________________

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.

_____________________________________

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

______________________________________

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’”

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.

“Every piece of evidence that can be culled from the text’s literary and historical context confirms that the Bible’s prohibition of homosexual practice, like its prohibition of adult incestuous unions, is absolute, rejecting all forms of homosexual practice regardless of consent and commitment.” –  Robert Gagnon, Associate Professor of New Testament, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary 

“St. Paul was talking about people that he understood to be heterosexual engaging in same-sex acts.  It never occurred to anyone in ancient times that a certain minority of us would be born being affectionally oriented to people of the same sex.  So it did seem like against their nature to be doing so.” – Homosexual Episcopal Bishop V. (Vicky) Gene Robinson, interview with CNSNews.com

TAKE ACTION AND LEARN: Educate yourself about the Bible’s clear teaching against homosexual conduct and relationships. Begin by reading the article below, taken from Prof. Robert Gagnon’s paper, “What the Evidence Really Says about Scripture and Homosexual Practice: Five Issues, and sharing it with your Christian friends, especially those bending to pro-”gay” advocacy. And please support Prof. Gagnon by ordering his excellent 2008 DVD series, “Love, the Bible and Homosexual Practice” (cost is $42 including shipping & handling). As Christians, it is our duty to respond intelligently to false ”gay” theology, which is gaining a foothold in the Church and in the culture. And for those who are not Christian, you need to understand the bogus history that activists like (Vicky) Gene Robinson are using to advance their pro-homosexuality agenda.

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Dear Readers,

Please watch this short video interview of homosexual activist and Episcopal Bishop V. (Vicky) Gene Robinson’s latest attempt  to discredit the biblical (Romans 1) prohibition against homosexual practice (courtesy Eyeblast TV and CNSNews.com):

You can read a transcript of Bishop Robinson’s CNS interview HERE. It is extraordinary to behold a major denominational “Christian” leader dedicate a sizable part of his professional life to undermining the clear witness of the Bible and tradition against a particular sexual sin  — which just so happens to be the one with which he identifies. Unfortunately for Robinson, his rehashed “gay” theology does not square with history, as Prof. Robert Gagnon — the world’s leading orthodox authority on the Bible and homosexuality — reveals below.

Note Robinson’s assumption that homosexuals are ”born.” Despite the existence of a small cottage industry of pro-homosexual researchers — e.g., geneticist-turned-”gay”-activist Dean Hamer — seeking to prove inborn homosexuality, they have not succeeded in doing so. (Hamer’s media-hyped 1993 male “genetic homosexuality” study in the journal Science could not be replicated in the same journal.)

Also note that despite Robinson’s claim about innate homosexuals, the peculiar and obviously dysfunctional circumstances of his own life — starting at his birth — support a “nurture” rather than “nature” model for the causation of homosexuality. Robinson’s parents, expecting him to die, gave him two female names — Vicky Imogene — because they had hoped for a daughter. Then when he survived, they allowed him to live as a boy carrying those feminine names — a parental act that was irresponsible at best and cruel at worst. (Remember the Johnny Cash song, “A Boy Named Sue”?)

Thus, the abnormal factors that undoubtedly contributed to Bishop Robinson’s deviant proclivities and homosexual self-identification as an adult undermine his current, self-serving, specious claim that modern, “monogamous” homosexuality is some kind of benign, naturally “oriented” variation on life that was not yet discovered by the Apostle Paul. [See related AFTAH article: "Researcher: Half of Gay Couples Choose to be ‘Non-Monogamous.’"]

Prof. Rob Gagnon

Moreover, if we know that thousands of men and women have left homosexuality through faith in Jesus Christ and through various methods and circumstances — why would we treat this particular sin as somehow special and unchangeable — or not sinful at all, as long as it is “domesticated”?

Professor Rob Gagnon and other scholars — including some homosexuals — who have studied the context of the New Testament Book of Romans take issue with Bishop Robinson’s claim about monogamous homosexuality not being proscribed. TAKE ACTION AND LEARN:  Please share this article with your friends and support Prof. Gagnon (www.robgagnon.net) — a rare, indefatigable foe of pro-homosexual political correctness in the academy — by ordering his 2008 DVD series, “Love, the Bible and Homosexual Practice” (cost is $42 including shipping & handling). The excerpt below is taken from Gagnon’s 2009 paper, “What the Evidence Really Says about Scripture and Homosexual Practice: Five Issues.”

– Peter LaBarbera, www.aftah.org

“Be on the alert, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love.” (I Corinthians 16: 13-14)

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Prof. Gagnon Responds to “Gay” Theological Arguments on the Book of Romans:

3. Romans 1:24-27 and the Erroneous “Exploitation Argument”

Claim: The Bible’s prohibition of homosexual practice in Romans 1:24‐27 applies only to exploitative and hedonistic forms of homosexual practice such as sex with slaves, prostitutes, and adolescents.

What the evidence really shows: Every piece of evidence that can be culled from the text’s literary and historical context confirms that the Bible’s prohibition of homosexual practice, like its prohibition of adult incestuous unions, is absolute, rejecting all forms of homosexual practice regardless of consent and commitment.

Five lines of evidence make this point clear. First, Paul in Rom 1:24-27 rejects homosexual practice because it is a violation of the God’s creation of “male and female” as a sexual pair in Genesis. In Rom 1:23-27 Paul intentionally echoed Gen 1:26-27, making eight points of correspondence, in the same tripartite structure, between the two sets of texts (humans/image/likeness, birds/cattle/reptiles, male/female). Paul was rejecting homosexual practice in the first instance because it was a violation of the male-female prerequisite for sexual relations ordained by the Creator at creation, not because of how well or badly it was done in his cultural milieu.

Second, the kind of nature argument that Paul employs in Rom 1:18-27 isn’t conducive to a distinction between exploitative and nonexploitative forms of homosexual practice. For Paul contended that female-female and male-male intercourse was “contrary to nature” because it violated obvious clues given in the material structures of creation that male and female, not two males or two females, are each other’s sexual “counterpart” or “complement” (to use the language of Gen 2:18, 20) in terms of anatomy, physiology, and psychology. What Paul says regarding the vertical vice of idolatry (1:19-23) is equally true of the horizontal vice of same-sex intercourse: male-female complementarity is “clearly seen, being mentally apprehended by means of the things made” (1:19-20). Some have argued that the ancients had no comprehension of a complementarity argument. Yet as classicist Thomas K. Hubbard notes in his magisterial sourcebook of texts pertaining to Homosexuality in Greece and Rome (University of California Press, 2003): “Basic to the heterosexual position [among Greek and Roman moralists in the first few centuries A.D.] is the characteristic Stoic appeal to the providence of Nature, which has matched and fitted the sexes to each other” (p. 444). Hubbard is supportive of homosexual relationships, yet admits the point.

Third, the fact that Paul in Rom 1:27 specifically indicts male homosexual relations that involve mutual, reciprocal affections—“males, having left behind the natural use of the female, were inflamed with their yearning for one another”— precludes any supposition that Paul is thinking
only of coercive relationships.

Fourth, Paul’s indictment of lesbianism in Romans 1:26 further confirms that his indictment of homosexual practice is absolute, since female homosexuality in antiquity was not primarily known, or criticized, for the exploitative practices of sex with slaves, prostitutes, or children. And there can be little doubt that Paul was indicting female homosexuality, as evidenced by:

1. the parallelism of the language of 1:26 (“females exchanged the natural use”) and 1:27 (“likewise also the males leaving behind the natural use of the female”);
2. the fact that in antiquity lesbian intercourse was the form of female intercourse most commonly labeled “contrary to nature” and paired with male homosexual practice;
3. the fact of nearly universal male opposition to lesbianism in antiquity, even by men engaged in homosexual practice; and
4. the fact that lesbian intercourse was the dominant interpretation of Romans 1:26 in the patristic period.

Fifth, contrary to false claims that people in the Greco-Roman world had no concept of committed homosexual unions, there is plenty of evidence for the conception and existence of loving homosexual relationships, including semi-official “marriages” between men and between women. Moreover, we know of some Greco-Roman moralists who acknowledged the existence of loving homosexual relationships while rejecting even these as unnatural (indeed, we can trace this idea back to Plato’s Laws). This is also true of the Church Fathers. For example, Clement of Alexandria (late second century) referred to “women … contrary to nature … marrying women” (Paidagogos 3.3.21.3). Obviously marriage implies commitment (else there is no need to marry) yet commitment does not change the unnatural and sinful character of the relationship. And it should go without saying that Jewish writers in Paul’s day and beyond rejected all forms of homosexual activity. For example, the first-century Jewish historian Josephus stated the obvious to his Roman readers: “The law [of Moses] recognizes only sexual intercourse that is according to nature, that which is with a woman…. But it abhors the intercourse of males with males” (Against Apion 2.199).

It is hardly surprising, then, that even Louis Crompton, a homosexual scholar, acknowledges this point in his massive work, Homosexuality and Civilization (Harvard University Press, 2003; 500 pgs.):

“However well-intentioned,” the interpretation that Paul’s words were not directed at “bona fide” homosexuals in committed relationships….seems strained and unhistorical. Nowhere does Paul or any other Jewish writer of this period imply the least acceptance of same-sex relations under any circumstance. The idea that homosexuals might be redeemed by mutual devotion would have been wholly foreign to Paul or any other Jew or early Christian. (p. 114)

Also worth noting is the falsity of claims that the ancient world knew nothing akin to our understanding of a homosexual orientation or of congenital influences on at least some homosexual development. As classicist Thomas K. Hubbard (cited above) notes:

Homosexuality in this era [i.e., of the early Imperial Age of Rome] may have ceased to be merely another practice of personal pleasure and began to be viewed as an essential and central category of personal identity, exclusive of and antithetical to heterosexual orientation. (p. 386)

Bernadette Brooten, a lesbian New Testament scholar who has written the most important book on lesbianism in antiquity also acknowledges this point. She states that “Paul could have believed” that some persons attracted to members of the same sex “were born that way and yet still condemn them [better: their behaviors] as unnatural and shameful…. I see Paul as condemning all forms of homoeroticism as the unnatural acts of people who had turned away from God” (Love Between Women: Early Christian Responses to Female Homoeroticism [University of Chicago, 1996], 244).

“Gary Glenn, president of the American Family Association of Michigan, contends the position held by Focus on the Family is the equivalent of ‘moral retreat.’  ‘It’s not just the damage caused by Focus on the Family’s moral retreat on the issue,’ Glenn argues. ‘[That explanation] will be used by homosexual activists and their allies in the media to further marginalize and delegitimize any pro-family organization that continues to take a Biblical standard.’”

It's hard to imagine former longtime Focus on the Family leader James Dobson saying that pro-family groups should not consider a homosexual judge's "sexual orientation" as a factor in evaluating that judge.

The issue of openly homosexual judges is back in the news, providing us the opportunity to publish this 2009 One News Now piece and agree with our friend Gary Glenn of AFA-Michigan on a very significant “moral retreat” by Focus on the Family.  Back when there was talk of President Obama possibly nominating a lesbian judge to the Supreme Court, two Focus analysts asserted that a judge’s homosexual “sexual orientation” would not be a major consideration for Focus in evaluating such a judge. It is precisely this sort of naïveté that helps explain why aggressive homosexual lobby groups are winning major battles against their pro-family opponents.

I’ll issue the same challenge to Focus that I have made to Grove City College’s wayward, “gay”-affirming prof Warren Throckmorton: show me where you can find (benign) “sexual orientation” or (in Throckmorton’s case)  “sexual identity” in the Bible, and I’ll change my tune that you are selling out Christian, biblical principles. After all, Focus launched a “Truth Project” that teaches believers how to have a “biblical worldview” — and it’s a huge leap from “abomination” to “sexual orientation.” Surely committed Christians should understand how the latter term has been used to strip morality out of the homosexuality equation. — Peter LaBarbera, www.aftah.org

Related AFTAH article: “Prop 8 Trial Judge is Homosexual (‘Gay’) — and It Shows: NRO”

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OneNewsNow reported:

ONE NEWS NOW, May 29, 2009

Should homosexuality be a ‘litmus test’ for high court?

by Jim Brown

Conservative political activists are divided over whether homosexual behavior should disqualify a judicial nominee from consideration for the U.S. Supreme Court.

Focus on the Family’s judicial analyst, Bruce Hausknecht, recently told liberal (Washington Post) blogger Greg Sargent that Focus would not oppose a Supreme Court nominee solely because of their homosexual behavior. “Our concern at the Supreme Court is judicial philosophy,” Hausknecht said. “Sexual orientation only becomes an issue if it effects their judging.”

(See original Greg Sargent report: http://theplumline.whorunsgov.com/republican-party/top-religious-right-group-we-wont-oppose-gay-scotus-pick/) [Editor's note: Sargent also quotes Focus' Hausknecht as saying that a judge's sexual orientation "'should never come up...It’s not even pertinent to the equation.”]

Ashley Horne, federal policy analyst at Focus, says just like a nominee’s ethnicity and life experience, homosexuality should not be a litmus test.

“Someone’s sexual orientation or their preferences, none of these things should come into consideration when we’re talking about evaluating someone who will make decisions based on precedent under the law [and who will] practice judicial restraint,” Horne explains. “Those are the things we look at for whether or not someone would make a fit justice on the Supreme Court.”

Gary Glenn, president of the American Family Association of Michigan, contends the position held by Focus on the Family is the equivalent of “moral retreat.”

“It’s not just the damage caused by Focus on the Family’s moral retreat on the issue,” Glenn argues. “[That explanation] will be used by homosexual activists and their allies in the media to further marginalize and delegitimize any pro-family organization that continues to take a biblical standard.”

Peter Sprigg of the Family Research Council agrees with Focus on the Family that homosexuality should not be an absolute litmus test for a Supreme Court nominee. He argues in blog comments that “even Supreme Court nominees deserve some zone of privacy, and…there is at least a hypothetical possibility that somewhere in the country there is a judge who has experienced same-sex attractions, but who also respects judicial restraint and the original intent of the Constitution.

“In the real world, however, the chances of finding a highly-qualified judge who fits both of those descriptions are probably about equal to the chances of a camel passing through the eye of a needle,” Sprigg concludes. “So don’t hold your breath waiting for social conservatives to ‘support’ a ‘gay’ judicial nominee.”