Correction to "the crux of the divide"

Rev. Karen Booth

I have added a correction to my blog posting entitled "Frank Schaefer's trial and the crux of the UMC same-sex divide."

I stated in the original version of the posting that the Transforming Congregation Movement, a part of the Good News Movement,  believes in "reparative therapy," such as was formerly practiced by Exodus International.

In a comment to that posting, Rev. Karen Booth, executive director of Transforming Congregations, says that the Transforming Congregtion Movement rejected "reparative therapy" shortly after she became executive director of the organization because it was Freudian rather than Christian-based.

I had based my original conclusion on an article written by Rev. Booth and Rev. Thomas Lambrecht in Good News Magazine entitled "Transformation is Still Possible: The Closure of Exodus International." 

In that article Rev. Booth and Rev. Lambrecht stated that Transforming Congregations and Good News were sadden by the closing of Exodus International and the new position taken by its executive director Alan Chambers. 

Their article also stated that their organizations believe transformation "is not accomplished by simply 'praying away the gay,' but is usually a more strenuous and lengthy process involving various counseling approaches and spiritual disciplines to foster emotional and spiritual growth and healing." 

I interpreted this to mean they agreed with the kind of "reparative therapy" formerly practiced by Exodus International.

I encourage everyone to read Rev. Booth's article here to undertsand the position of Transforming Congregations and the Good News Movement. 

I am sorry for any way I may have misinterpreted or misrepresneted their position.
 
I do not believe whether the Confessing Movement and Good News believe that therapy should by "Freudian" or "Christian" affects my argument that opposition to same-sex marriage within the United Methodist Church is largely based on the prejudice that same-sex couples are not capable of  the same kind of  healthy relationships and families that we encourage and support among different-sex couples.    

is not accomplished by simply “praying away the gay,” but is usually a more strenuous and lengthy process involving various counseling approaches and spiritual disciplines to foster emotional and spiritual growth and healing. - See more at: http://goodnewsmag.org/2013/07/transformation-is-still-possible-the-closure-of-exodus-international/#sthash.r1BP8c85.dpuf