Church must not reject homosexuals, ministry warns

The church reaches out to alcoholics, drug addicts, and unwed mothers, but often rejects or ignores homosexuals, the director of a national Christian ministry says.

..."We offer alcoholics and drug addicts hope. Why can't we offer gays hope? The hope is Jesus," Anthony Falzarano of Parents & Friends of Ex-Gays (see link #1 below), told Religion Today.

...The ministry, also known as P-FOX, is a network of 16 local chapters of the families and friends of homosexuals. They seek to love homosexuals while still disagreeing with their lifestyle. P-FOX, based in Washington, D.C., is a branch of Exodus International (see link #2 below), a Seattle-based umbrella group for 110 ex-gay groups nationwide.

..."We are led by God to offer advice to parents and loved ones caught up in a web of homosexual deceit," Falzarano said. P-FOX was founded in 1996, partly to counteract the efforts of Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, which has about 400 chapters and promotes acceptance of homosexuality.

...Homosexuals are "inundating all of us with their propaganda," said Falzarano, who said he was involved in the homosexual lifestyle, including male prostitution, for nine years before becoming a Christian. He says he slept with more than 400 people in the 1970s and considers it a miracle that he tests negative for the virus that causes AIDS. Falzarano traces his homosexuality to the emotional coldness of his father and molestation by an older brother.

...Some Christians "have been duped" into thinking homosexuals can't change, Falzarano said. "Don't buy the lie." He and his wife have been married for 15 years, have two children, and live in Northern Virginia. The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 6:9 that those who practice homosexuality will not inherit the Kingdom of God, but "verse 11 says such were you but you were cleansed by the blood of Jesus," he said.

...Sin in the church is another reason for failure to help homosexuals, Falzarano said. "Why are they not helping? Some are paralyzed because of the rampant secret sins found in the church," including addiction to pornography and sex outside marriage, he said. "The church is full of heterosexual sin, but not much is being done about it. For some reason pastors are not talking about addiction to pornography and masturbation as sin."

..."We must educate the church with the truth that gays can recover," Falzarano said. "We must let them know that no one is born gay." Saying that people are born homosexual is "a lie, propaganda," Falzarano said. "Gays have convinced the church that nothing can be done, and many churches believe that gays are condemned to hell anyway, that they are getting what they deserve."

...Only 10 churches support P-FOX, which has an annual budget of $175,000, Falzarano said. "We are desperate for support. We could do so much more. We could keep many more kids out of the homosexual lifestyle if we had the budget. More kids out of that lifestyle means more kids coming to Christ.

..."We can help people come out of a gay lifestyle. We can help them be free. We can help parents to not give in to their child's manipulations to accept their sin. We help parents stand strong." P-FOX can be contacted at 1017 12th St., NW, Washington, D.C. 20005. The phone number is (202) 371-2900.

...God is using "the lepers of the society, ex-gays," Falzarano said. "He is cleaning them up and sending them into the church as prophets to warn and hold the church accountable for its hypocrisy."

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RELATED LINKS:
1: http://www.pfox.org/
2: http://www.religiontoday.com/Archive/FeatureStory/view.cgi?file=19980714.s1.html
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Religion Today - June 29, 1999

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