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Ex-Gays?Everything about homosexuality is controversial. What causes homosexuality is controversial. The definition of what homosexuality is, is controversial. Whether there can be a change in one's sexual orientation so that a homosexual can become heterosexual or in anyway cease to be homosexual is controversial. The therapeutic attempt to change a client's homosexual orientation, even when a client desperately wishes to change is controversial. In fact, there is even a controversy about whether a therapist or counselor should ever assist a client to change, even when asked.Dr. Stanton Jones and Dr. Mark Yarhouse, two professors of psychology at Wheaton College (almost certainly the most respected evangelical university in America), have recently written a ground-breaking and, of course, controversial book titled Ex Gays in which they, through a carefully executed clinical research study, attempt to answer two enormous questions.
The Percentage of Homosexuals in America According to what is likely the most extensive study of the sexual orientation of American adults conducted by Dr. Laumann, about 2% of males and 0.9% of females experience a consistent, persistent, same-sex attraction. We commonly refer to this consistent, persistent same-sex attraction as "a homosexual orientation." Among these, an even smaller percentage of adults identifies himself or herself as gay or lesbian, that is, they take on the sociocultural identity as "gay." The Setting for the Study The "diagnostic Bible" of the mental health professions is called the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). In the first edition of the DSM in 1952 homosexual orientation was labeled as a personality disorder. During the 1960's new editions of the DSM began to move homosexuality away from being categorized as a psychological disorder. In 1973 the American Psychiatric Association voted to remove homosexuality from the DSM as a disorder altogether. Today, the DSM-IV-TR (2000) not only has removed homosexuality from being categorized as a disorder, but has come up with a new diagnosis, "Sexual Disorder Not Otherwise Specified" (NOS). Within the Sexual Disorder NOS, one of the criteria is "persistent and marked distress about sexual orientation." In other words, a few decades ago, to be homosexual was to be disordered. Now, to be distressed about one's sexual orientation and to want to change is to be disordered. Thus, according to the most recent DSM, individuals who want to change their sexual orientation are now considered pathological. Further, according to the American Psychological Association's official website, homosexuality is not changeable. And therapists are warned that assisting clients to change their sexual orientation is potentially harmful to the patient. While therapists are not currently banned from assisting clients to change their sexual orientation, they are strongly warned about the potential of increasing client depression, anxiety, and self-destructive behavior through attempts to change one's sexual orientation. The Biblical Material Drs. Jones and Yarhouse are not only psychologists, but are also very thoughtful biblical scholars. They make a wonderfully convincing case for homosexual behavior as well as premarital sex and extramarital sex being unequivocally condemned by the writers of scripture. Their book, Ex-Gays?, does a very nice job of unpacking the scriptural treatment of homosexuality. In addition, Jones and Yarhouse do a very credible job of setting homosexuality in the wider biblical setting of God's purpose in giving us the gift of sex. The Study Using the very best scientifically recognized research methods, Drs. Jones and Yarhouse recruited 98 subjects, who had been participating in Exodus International groups across America. 90 of the subjects believed themselves to be born-again. 8 of the subjects said they were not born-again. All of them were seeking to change their homosexual or lesbian sexual orientation via Christian meetings, worship, journaling, individual counseling, and small group accountability. Findings The study measured individual change in sexual orientation using a battery of generally recognized scales for measuring sexual orientation. Through individual interviews and quantitative analysis, Jones and Yarhouse found the following:
Jones' and Yarhouse's study further found that there was no evidence to support the claim that harm was caused to any of the subjects who attempted to change their sexual orientation. In fact, the one consistent finding was that individuals engaged in changing their homosexual orientation actually experienced less psychological distress in their lives and more joy. Conclusion Many of us have friends, colleagues at work, or family members who self-identify as gay . If you want to read the best of the current research on homosexuality from a sympathetically Christian perspective that is also scientifically objective, you cannot do better than to read Ex-Gays? I would strongly encourage college students, in particular, to pick up this book and review its findings since this research will conflict with what is commonly taught in college psych classes. And if you are struggling with issues concerning homosexuality, and you are asking the question, "Can I change?" or can a loved one change, you must read this book! You will find yourself very encouraged to personally pursue a God-honoring, God-pleasing life of sexual purity. |
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