‘Healed’ by God

Debating ‘ex-gays’
Activists for gay and lesbian causes unreservedly denounce Love Won Out as twisting science for a conservative religious cause. Love Won Out and other advocates of reparative therapy — what has come to be known popularly as the “ex-gay movement” — are selling “sham science,” in the view of Barbara Menard, director of the Human Rights Campaign Foundation.

Gay rights advocates point to the position of the major medical professional organizations. In recent years, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Counseling Association, the American Psychiatric Association, the American Psychological Association and the National Association of School Psychologists have all declared that homosexuality is not a mental disorder that can or should be cured.

Dr. Brad Bullock, a pediatrician in Nashville who is gay, said he had found the language used by Maier and others to be “astounding,” noting that the American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality from its list of developmental disorders more than 30 years ago. Last month, the association called for recognition of same-sex marriages.

“It’s remarkable to me that [the ex-gay movement] can make any headway,” Bullock said in an interview here during the annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention, several of whose most prominent figures are associated with Focus on the Family, which vigorously opposes homosexuality. The message of reparative therapy is “counter to the message of Jesus,” he said.

Bullock called the ex-gay movement “hurtful,” but Maier invited protesters to venture into a session at the Love Won Out event Saturday. “They might be very surprised to hear a message of hope and healing and challenge to the church,” he said.

Maier said he endorsed the evangelical position that homosexuality was a sin, but he said that did not influence his reading of the scientific data. If nothing else, he said, he hopes protesters will take the time to give it a fair hearing.

“We’re not talking about forcing our views down someone’s throat,” Maier said, adding that it would be ethically wrong to even try because the only opinion that really matters is that of the person undergoing therapy.

Many gays and lesbians “simply want to live their lives and be left alone,” and that’s fine, he said. “We believe in client autonomy and self-determination. The client should have that right.”

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