Changes at Exodus & Apologizing for the Pain of Ex-Gay Survivors
There has been a lot of buzz of late about changes in the focus of Exodus International under Alan Chambers’ leadership. As many of our readers will know, New Direction used to be a member ministry of Exodus. In fact, I served as the Regional Rep for Canada for about three years. In that time, I did my best to encourage the network to step back from debates about causation, to focus on discipleship rather than reorientation change, and to cease any involvement in political matters that would impede or prevent civil equity for LGBT people. It seems that some five years later some of these changes are being incorporated into Exodus as it moves forward.
In my last conversation with Alan, I encouraged him to think very carefully about how Exodus will navigate dialogue with those who hold affirming views in the future. He and I both know that societal attitudes are shifting at an incredible pace, at least in North America. These shifts are happening both outside of and inside of the Christian community. I challenged Alan to think about the potential role Exodus could play in modeling peace-making and being a catalyst of respectful dialogue in the midst of diverse perspectives on the question of gay marriage for Christians.