Exodus International responds to Canadian New Dictions director

Awhile ago the president of a division of Focus on the Family did some really ugly back stabbing in a magazine article where few reading would look bellow the surface. It was the ideal venue for payback, for winning which is what Exodus Global and Exodus International now exists for.

Alan Chambers is president of Exodus International. an anti-gay reparative umbrella group in the US. I don’t use anti-gay lightly, but time after time this branch of Focus on the Family has shown it’s true face.

There is one organization left in Canada willing to associate with Exodus – Living Waters. Another group called New Directions made the announcement in February it would no longer associate with Exodus. In May, Exodus President Alan Chambers took his shot at this little ministry in an article, The New Homosexuality published in Charisma Magazine, and it was shameful. Thing is, his idea of punishment and mocking doesn’t work on people who don’t fall for your condemnation.

For a small conservative evangelical Canadian ministry to tell the mighty Focus on the Family they can no longer walk together is not a small thing. To do so means facing retaliation, be it financially or in US religious media.
The men running Exodus play political hardball. They do not accept or tolerate disagreement, their ministry is about conflict, their politics are about conflict and their lives are conflicted. God help anyone who in their eyes and parlance “err too much on the side of grace”. If evangelicals keep doing that, they’ll be out of the spotlight and out of a job.

Now I read that if New Directions hadn’t made a thoughtful and I think theologically wise discussion to leave the umbrella of Exodus, they would have been kicked out. Good. I’m glad to read the New Directions board made the choice they made when they did. They are now free to help those they are meant to help and carry their own knapsack.
The games and bullying of politicized fundamentalism do not have to weigh them down. New Directions director:

Alan did speak to me directly via email about his concern as to whether or not New Direction could continue as a member ministry given my thoughts about covenantal friendships. The article, however, was a complete surprise to me.

Instead of retaliating at Chambers for his Charisma Magazine article, New Directions director Wendy Gritter decided to be a Christian. She waited, prayed, consulted and then reached out to Alan Chambers. I think given the past behavior of Exodus it was prudent of this small Canadian organization to keep this public, and I’m not going to pretend I understand this kind of courage and what it has cost this group and it’s director.

I had a lot of unanswered questions after I read the article and wanted to take some time to pray and reflect before communicating with Alan. Part of me wanted to just “let it go.” But I also knew that if I did not have some resolution about some of my questions it would seriously hinder any potential for future relationship. So, I sent Alan an email about it at the end of March and we had several emails back and forth – trying to work this out as followers of Christ.

At one point, Alan suggested that we do an “interview” of sorts on my blog as an opportunity to clarify some of the issues – and hopefully to model some resolution even in the midst of some disagreement.

So here goes:

The interesting thing about conflict resolution is that often the conflict isn’t resolved. What can be gained is personal and organizational freedom, clearer ethics and peace to move forward.

I want to commend Ex-Gay Watch for picking up and discussing Alan Chamber’s theology in his email chat with Wendy Gritter.

A few things jumped out in what Chambers said. 1) Gay people are “handicapped”. 2) “After the fact, my biggest concern was if such an article would alienate Canadians in general. In hindsight I should have simply left Canada out of it all together. I am really sorry that I didn’t.” 3) “There are portions of the Body now erring on the side of grace, which in my opinion is just as dangerous as erring on the side of truth…” 4) Chambers did not answer the question why he wrote The New Homosexuality.

GLBT being handicapped is an old canard and is better addressed elsewhere. It would be beneficial to Canada if Exodus Global packed up (they are headquartered in Southern Ontario) and moved their executive and their agenda down to the Exodus International headquarters in Florida. Canadians have no problem being alienated from thier tactics. I can’t see the Christian community missing them.
It would be refreshing to see Living Waters Canada wake up, smell the political coffee, and take the grown up step of leaving Exodus International. God words do not a Christian walk make. The gospel is not a choice to be made between truth and grace.

Alan Chambers blog
Exodus International VP Randy Thomas blog
Exodus International – wiki
Exodus Global AJax Ontario
Living Waters Canada Winnipeg – Exodus affiliate