Thursday, November 22, 2007

Psychiatrists Warn Church of England to Reject Reparative Therapy

Ex-Gay Watch is reporting (http://www.exgaywatch.com/wp/2007/11/psychiatrists-warn-church-of-england-to-reject-reparative-therapy/) that the Royal College of Psychiatrists has warned Anglicans in the United Kingdom that therapy to change sexual orientation is based on unproven methods and can cause severe damage. Having spent a great deal of time studying the so-called "cure" programs and reports on their effectiveness (or more precisely, the lack of any such effectiveness), one would think that this would be a no-brainer. Sadly, Christianists never care about what is medically true. It's all about pushing their agenda to force everyone to live by their religious views. Here are highlights from Ex-Gay Watch:
The report, which also addresses the nature of gay and lesbian relationships, the origins of homosexuality, and the mental health of gay men and women, concludes by urging Anglicans to accept gays and lesbians fully into the life of the Church:

[There] is no scientific or rational reason for treating LGB people any differently to their heterosexual counterparts. People are happiest and are likely to reach their potential when they are able to integrate the various aspects of the self as fully as possible. Socially inclusive, nonjudgemental attitudes to LGB people who attend places of worship or who are religious leaders themselves will have positive consequences for LGB people as well as for the wider society in which they live.
The full report to the Church of England can be viewed here: http://www.churchtimes.co.uk/temp/CoEsplisteningspexercisespSIGspsubmissionsp311007.pdf

2 comments:

Java said...

Tis good of the psychiatrists to make this statement. Yea, I hope the church listens. The church hears what it wants to hear, and filters it through some pretty strange notions. What makes perfect sense to some sounds like utter falsehood to someone with those filters on.

Anonymous said...

Since the Psyche Industry created reparative therapy, perhaps the church should listen to the torturers.

Thankfully some of us listened to biologists and philosophers rather than attach our anatomies to their curative devices. I wonder how many still get their cures in a similar manner?