Homosexual Activist Files Deceptive Practices Complaint against Ex-Gay Video 1/25/2007

Homosexual activist Wayne Besen has filed a complaint with the Illinois Attorney General’s office over an Illinois ministry promoting the video “It’s Not Gay.” Besen claims that the video, which features interviews with those who have come out of homosexuality, is deceptive. A similar charged has been filed against the American Family Association and others who promote or sell the video. Martha Kleder spoke with Matt Barber, CWA’s policy director for cultural issues and Pete LaBarbera, founder and president of Americas for Truth, the ministry targeted by Besen. Listen Online | Download

By Sonja Dalton

I ran across this MySpace blog (below) a few days ago. It merits note. I have sat in a number of school meetings where board members, administrators, and teachers insist that 15-16 -17 year old high school students are “mature” and “wise.” This teenager’s post will henceforth suffice as my response to that claim. It is full of typos, misspellings, incorrect punctuation, and (most importantly) misplaced emotion, arrogance, ignorance, poor logic, misinformation, and lies. To set the record straight:

• Americans For Truth (AFTAH) has never used the term “The Solution to the Gay Problem” and never would, except in response to this lie. There is a “solution” to homosexuality, but it’s certainly not akin to the one mentioned below. The solution to homosexuality — and to all sin — is redemption in Jesus Christ (Colossians 1:13-14, 21-23, 3:1-7).

• Why does this young man suggest that Americans For Truth advocates a homosexual holocaust? The claim is absurd; AFTAH and its president, Peter LaBarbera, have condemned all abuse and violence against homosexuals, and have also condemned unbiblical messages such as Fred Phelps’ “God Hates Fags” protests (which are now targeting the funerals of American soldiers). More than likely, this youthful MySpace writer is repeating nonsense that he heard from pro-homosexual teachers or adult “gay” activists. He didn’t read such a thing on this website.

• This teenager claims that AFTAH has taken a position against the violence in Iraq, yet AFTAH has not addressed Iraq.

• Contrary to our young friend’s assertion, homosexual activists are indeed asking for society’s blessing — something most would admit. Not only do they want to redefine marriage and family to accommodate their aberrant lifestyles; they advocate teaching homosexuality and transgenderism as positive lifestyles to very young children. Moreover, homosexual activists routinely smear those who disagree with them as “haters” and ultimately will push for “hate speech” laws against those who affirm the truth that God condemns homosexual practice. (Already, Christians in foreign countries like Canada, Great Britain and Sweden are being persecuted under such pro-homosexual “hate speech” laws — yet American homosexual activists for the most part are not renouncing the growing pro-“gay” totalitarianism abroad.)

• Affirming God’s Word by teaching that homosexuality is physically, emotionally, and spiritually destructive is not hate but Truth. There is abundant secular research to confirm these aspects of the homosexual lifestye (see the website of NARTH, the National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality). And people can overcome homosexuality, as proven by countless ex-“gays” living contented lives across the world.

If teenagers are so “mature” and “wise,” then why do we send them to school to learn? Maybe these “educators” should spend less time adoring youthful impudence and more time with adults to regain proper perspective. The fact is that teenagers are not yet mature or wise, but they can attain both qualities in due time, through prayer, studying God’s word, and experience, including actually researching what groups like Americans For Truth believe rather than making up lies about us.

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MySpace posting bashing Americans For Truth:

Doc Holid?y

Male
16 years old
Naperville, ILLINOIS
United States

Tuesday, January 02, 2007

Rodney Dangerfiled was right
Current mood: disappointed
Category: Life

There simply is no respect anymore. No respect for beliefs, no respects for individualism, no respect for humanity. I just read my friend Emily’s note about a group called ‘Americans For Truth’ and I visited their website. It made me want to vomit and cry. This group is dedicated to ‘educating’ America and the world about what they call “The Solution to the Gay Problem”. This made me remember something else along those lines, it was called “The Final Solution to the Jewish Problem”. The ‘Final Solution’ to this imaginary malady was thought up by none other than Adolf Hitler. The solution as he saw it was mass extermonation and genocide. I want to know, where does all this hate come from. The same people who run this orginization also claim to be devout christians adn against the violence in Iraq and many other places in the world. Yet they fail to realise that just because it isn’t neccesarily physical, that doesn’t mean it is any less disgusting or violent. One thing every parent tries to preach, or at lest should try to, is understanding and compassion. Where is the understanding and compassion anymore? When did it become acceptable to shout hate and ignorance becasue you don’t understand teh way someone live’s their life. They are not asking you to take part in anything you don’t want to, they aren’t even asking for your blessing. all tehy are asking is that you let then life their life, and live it in peace. You may not agre with it, in fact i guarantee there are things in this world that make you want to spriral into blind rage at the near mention of, but I ask you, I beg you, do not hate something because you cannot understand it. Do not hate because the masses dictate that you should, groupthink is genocide of the mind. Finally, I ask you, love your neighbor like your brother and love the world like you love your friend. I have always made sure above all else that my friends know one thing about me if nothing else, that is that I would readily take a bullet for them, that no sacrifice is too great, and that nothing comes before them.

God’s condemnation of homosexuality is abundantly clear—He opposes it in every age:

• In the patriarchs (Genesis 19:1-28)
• In the Law of Moses (Leviticus 18:22; 20:13)
• In the Prophets (Ezekiel 16:46-50)
• In the New Testament (Romans 1:18-27; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10; Jude 7-8)

Why does God condemn homosexuality? Because it overturns God’s fundamental design for human relationships—a design that pictures the complementary relationship between a man and a woman (Genesis 2:18-25; Matthew 19:4-6; Ephesians 5:22-33).

— John MacArthur

An open letter to Peter LaBarbera and posted Dec 30, 2006, on lesbian Pam Spaulding’s blog, Pam’s House Blend, reads:

An Open Letter to Peter LaBarbera
by Rick
Sat Dec 30, 2006 at 17:16:20 PM EST

(I never did receive a response from LaBarbera [he wrote me first, see my open response]. Blender Rick decided to tackle a letter to the Americans for Truth honcho. Will he get a reply — promoted by pam)

Note: After reading a post about Autumn Sandeen, I got the general impression that Peter LaBarbera spends at least some time reading the goings on here at the Blend. Since this is the case, I wanted to write an open letter to him, just to give him some insight as to how some of us see him.

I wanted to start by pointing out an ideology that’s seemed to creep into Evangelical Christianity in recent years. When I came to Christ 9 years ago, I saw small bursts of it, but it appears that things have reached a fever pitch in recent years. Peter, there’s a big difference between not condoning homosexuality, and condemning it, and that’s where the Golden Rule applies in spades. I can understand how you feel the Bible condemns homosexuality, but I have a hard time understanding why you need to actively condemn it on at least a weekly basis in a very public arena. Didn’t Christ start a second epoch where the justice and wrath of God has already been fulfilled due to His sacrifice? Why the active campaigning against a people group you disagree with? These aren’t the money changers in the temple, these are the sinners Christ ate with.

Peter, how do your actions convey the Golden Rule? Do you love Pam, Autumn, and the rest of the gay community as you love yourself? Truly, do you? In what ways are you reaching out to the gay community to convey the love of Christ to them? How are you helping to defend the poor, sick, and weak? And let’s be perfectly frank here, telling people that they’re sick and perverted only makes them feel attacked, since in all reality, it really is a character attack. Are you showing the love of Christ to these people, or committing character assassination? Perhaps it’s time to turn away from press releases for a while, and actually follow the Golden Rule. You could volunteer with your local LGBT community center doing HIV prevention, and show them the love of Christ more than you ever will with hollow words. Perhaps at next year’s pride parade or leather ball, it would be more fitting to show your love in meaningful ways (such as passing out water bottles) rather than standing in judgement with picket signs. Or, perhaps we could see you actively campaign against other sins, such as gluttony (obesity in the Church, anyone?) divorce, greed, or any other myriad of sins. Constantly harping on the issue of gay sin while you ignore others only makes you look like a hypocrite, and turns away members of the gay community. Remember, you will have to answer to Christ when he asks if your actions deterred gay people from coming to Him, rather than leading them to Him. What will you be able to say?

And why don’t you feel the need to turn the other cheek? If you feel attacked by what’s written about you here, shouldn’t you just confess your pain to God and get on with life? Why the need to post retaliation-based press releases at AFT and Agape Press? Here’s a little constructive criticism too; lose the vitriolic intonations, and maybe the gay community wouldn’t take such offense to your writings. Oh, and stop making up the “Gay Agenda.” We both know there’s no such thing. People saying they want equality or recognition doesn’t deserve the borderline-slanderous militant bent you’re labeling it with. Bearing false witness is bearing false witness, and that’s a sin.

Seriously, I’d suggest a good ol’ “quiet time” for you reading the book of John and making sure there’s no sin in your life. If you’d like, I can loan your my John MacArthur study Bible, as there are some excellent resources in there. I’m not saying these things to be mean. I’m not referring to you as “Porno Pete” or any other epithets used against you. I’m saying these things to you because I’m genuinely concerned about you. I worry that your heart is following a dark path of hatred against your fellow man, guised in the cloak of righteous indignation. Remember, brother, vengence belongs to the LORD.

Sincerely,
Rick

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Now, you might be thinking that our friend Rick must be a sincere and godly man — but we are thinking that he might need to read his John MacArthur study Bible a little more carefully or perhaps visit Grace to You for additional resources. You see, Rick is also known as Blandella and, as you evaluate his criticism of Peter LaBarbera, you might consider his choice of casual wear (read carefully):

How I wish he were enjoying Coca-Cola instead.

What should be your response to the homosexual? Make it a gospel response — confront him with the truth of Scripture that condemns him as a sinner, and point him to the hope of salvation through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ.

— John MacArthur

Rick, please study what John MacArthur has to say about the Bible and homosexuality, as well as Hebrews 10:26-31 and I John 3:6. No one can practice or approve of homosexuality and please God. — Sonja Dalton

Excerpted from the Oct 2, 2006, post on The Seventh Sola:

… this is what becomes of a party that compromises for political expediency, especially when it involves pro-family moral values. Liberal Republicans and so-called “moderates” are precisely why a real conservative agenda never gets enacted. And the idea of a “Log Cabin Republican” is simply abhorrent.

Read the rest of this post…

This post entitled Push Comes to Shove was posted Sept 28, 2006, on Independent Gay Forum by Stephen H Miller:

…Opposition to same-sex marriage is based on a visceral reaction, characterized by gut emotion rather than reason. Which is why changing minds requires persistent appeals to the heart as well as the head. Either that, or training for fisticuffs…

Peter LaBarbera responded:

Stephen, making political points by generalizations cuts both ways…
The fact is, there is a cultural debate going on, and there are extremist wackos on both sides of that debate. Your side has its share, as I’m sure you know–and I would contend that “gay” intolerance (refusal to respectfully “tolerate” dissenting views) is on the rise as “gay” power grows.

Regarding the debate, both sides employ reason and emotion, albeit from opposing worldviews…

And posed the question:

…FACT: people are losing their jobs or getting disciplined for defending traditional sexual mores or criticizing homosexuality–e.g., Matt Barber, who was fired by Allstate for writing an online article criticizing “gay marriage.” Do you defend this?…

One IGF reader applauded Christians being fired:

Yes, I defend it. People are fired on the spot if they oppose rights for blacks or other minorites in the workplace. So why should blatant homophobia be allowed?

A lengthy exchange between Peter LaBarbera and IGF readers follows –

Continue reading…

On Friday, Sept 15, we received this letter from a reader (who shall remain anonymous since he was mostly polite) in response to our post, Five More Reasons to Get Your Kid OFF MySpace.com:

Everyone at Americans for Truth has the right to their own opinion, a right we all share in this great country. However, Sonja recently came to some disturbing conclusions regarding an innocent blog comparing MySpace to gay.com. Her unsaid, although clear conclusion is that every gay person on MySpace is somehow preying upon children. There are predators on MySpace, but to automatically assume they are only gay is absurd. The fact is, most child predators are \”straight\” men preying on young girls, and to ignore that is simply misinformation. Pedophiles, regardless of their sexual orientation, are a danger to children, so please, don\’t put every homosexual into a group with pedophiles, to do so is not only unfair, but completly deviod of logic. I acknowledge the fact that groups such as yours rarely care about the truth, which makes me realize, PLEASE continue spreading your lies, it will simply make it so much easier for us to win the war against HATE!!!!!!

And we responded as follows:

Good Evening [name omitted],

Thank you for writing, sir. I did not (and would not) imply that “Josh & Josh” are pedophiles, nor would I imply that all/most homosexual men have such a tendency. (Some do.) There was nothing in their post about pedophiles/children, so how could that be my point?

The “Josh & Josh” not-so-innocent post reveals that adult homosexual men are posting provocative profiles and “trashy” photos on MySpace and are using the site to hook up for sex. Thus, my point was:

Any kid playing around on MySpace is vulnerable to accessing the graphic profiles of adult homosexual men, complete with sexually suggestive or even pornographic photographs, sexual dialogue, etc. No child, no teenager, should be exposed to that sort of explicit material. Parents need to wake up and get their kids OFF these websites.

I hope you will re-read the post and see that I made absolutely no suggestion about anyone being a pedophile.

However, if I were to write about homosexual pedophiles (and at some point I may), I could say this much, and I wouldn’t have to “automatically assume” anything: I’ve seen firsthand the MySpace profiles of *some* (certainly not all) adult homosexual men, with hardcore homosexual pornographic photos posted on their MySpace profiles, who are indeed preying upon young boys (just as some heterosexual men are preying upon young girls, which is also reprehensible). That danger presents an even more urgent reason for parents to take responsibility and block these sites.

Best Regards (and No Hate) –
Sonja Dalton

Matthew 18:6-7