Palin's Church Promotes Gay Conversion, page 5
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ATS Members have flagged this thread 5 times


reply posted on 9-9-2008 @ 02:33 PM by RichWhiteMan
reply to post by Cowgirlstraitup7


Yep, as a lurker, it amazes me how some people can say "Not as bad as hitler" as a reason for something being OK.


Thanks for bringing this post to our attention.


reply posted on 9-9-2008 @ 02:35 PM by RichWhiteMan
Originally posted by jam321
reply to post by Quazga


Do you believe that it is a good thing to pray that masses of people change something about themselves which has no impact on the people praying?




What would be better, to pray for that person, or to humiliate them over their sexuality in an effort to force them to change? I say pray. My prayer is between me and my God.



Why would you do either? Pray for them or humiliate them? Both of these reactions start with the supposition that there is something inherently wrong with being gay.

Sorry for butting in here.. but I thought I'd ask.


reply posted on 9-9-2008 @ 02:51 PM by Anonymous ATS
reply to post by Nivek Serca



these bible verses could be interpreted in several different ways. it seems to me that this is telling us that homosexuality will be an inevitability, as is death.

- she ate the fruit, now we're gonna die.
- they followed the creature rather than the creator, now some will be gay.

i am not a religious person; however, i believe that the bible can be explained, translated, and interpreted in many, many different ways. i do not feel as if this is just reason for "the church" to deem some to be inferior or unacceptable by "god" and society.

being a homosexual isn't an illness or disease. it is not something that can be "cured" and certainly not something that a religious person can "pray away". and for that matter, if praying works so well, don't you think that there are more important things to "pray away"? aids, cancer, racism, INTOLERANCE, hate, gas prices!? c'mon people, think about it!


also, there is abslutely nothing wrong with someone independently coming into a church and wanting to be more "mainstream" by converting into a hetrosexual. but honestly, how long have they been told that they were anti-christ and/or evil for being true to themselves? some people have very christian families and they only want to fit in and feel loved. of course they would want to be this so-called normal person. all they can do is suppress their feelings and urges. and that can't be healthy after an extended period of time.

Shame on anyone who could look down upon another human being for expressing their love for another person. open your eyes and look around you. there is so much hate and intolerance in the world STILL today. life is so short. why cant people just let others be happy?



reply posted on 9-9-2008 @ 03:13 PM by zippy1958
Originally posted by jam321
reply to post by Grafilthy


I guess it boils down as to whether you believe in God or not.

If you believe in God, you believe that God has the power to create miracles.

If you don't believe you feel like the ones praying are just wasting their time.

But just like you wouldn't like someone to criticize you for not praying, you shouldn't criticize others for doing so.



I believe in God and I am a lesbian. I tried your way and got married to a man that I cared very much for. I buckled under the pressure. I tried to please my family and church. I prayed with all my heart to God to change me. I was baptized. I went to church every Sunday.

I divorced my husband because I could not love him the way he deserved to be loved. I hurt him. I hurt my family. All because I was trying to be something I was not.

The gay people that go to those churches to try to be straight are young and buckling under the pressure like I did. It won't work.

Young gay people kill themselves everyday because of the hate they feel from society. It infuriates me.

If you want to pray for me, fine, go ahead. Just don't pray for me to become straight. I don't need to change my sexuality any more than you do.


reply posted on 9-9-2008 @ 03:16 PM by moocowman
reply to post by Cowgirlstraitup7



ANCHORAGE, Alaska (Sept. 8) - Gov. Sarah Palin's church is promoting a conference that promises to convert gays into heterosexuals through the power of prayer.



So, when will the christians be offering the same conversions to the pedophiles?


reply posted on 9-9-2008 @ 03:41 PM by Bombeni
Originally posted by moocowman
reply to post by Cowgirlstraitup7



ANCHORAGE, Alaska (Sept. 8) - Gov. Sarah Palin's church is promoting a conference that promises to convert gays into heterosexuals through the power of prayer.



So, when will the christians be offering the same conversions to the pedophiles?


I don't think homosexuals like being compared to pedophiles. They claim that homosexuality does not lead to pedophilia.


reply posted on 9-9-2008 @ 03:43 PM by Cowgirlstraitup7
reply to post by zippy1958


Zippy, I could not agree more, to me praying the gay away and these people believing they are "healed" will eventually give in the their true selves. In the long run it will HURT more people than it will "heal". Imagine these young folks feeling the pressure to be straight, living straight and starting families finally realizing that they were not meant for that life and go back to their true selves. Now how many people have they hurt from this process.

Christians believe that God forgives us of our sins, so if that is true and Christians believe that homsexuality is a sin, then let them live their lives as they see fit and wait for God to forgive them. It's not your job to change who they are.

Any person running for office needs to leave their Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Jewish, etc. beliefs at the door.

When I see a woman running for VP, standing at the pulpit of a church that is obviously anit gay, I say run her butt out of town on a rail!



reply posted on 9-9-2008 @ 03:48 PM by jam321
reply to post by zippy1958


Young gay people kill themselves everyday because of the hate they feel from society. It infuriates me.


First, there is no hate here. Nothing but respect. I am just as human as you are.

Second, I won't pray for you to go straight. Most of all because I don't know you. Like I said it is usually only families and friends and even then that doesn't mean I pray for every single gay person in my family.

My aunt was gay way before gay was out. And I loved her dearly. I never prayed for her. She was a happy person with her girlfriend ( who I called Aunt also). I personally pray for those that seem to be confused. I ask God to guide them and help them find themselves. I prefer straight but if they are happy with being gay then I can live with that.

What I am sensing here is that some are trying to convey that those praying are also hating. And although there are those who do pray and hate for the most part the ones who pray have no hate for gays.

Ones who don't pray are just as likely to hate gays as the ones who pray. It is a small percentage who unfortunately make both sides look bad. Basically because of the media attention these haters get.


reply posted on 9-9-2008 @ 03:51 PM by zippy1958
reply to post by Cowgirlstraitup7


Yep, I agree. Just when I thought this country was starting to make some progress, the McCain/Palin ticket threatens to set us back 100 years.

Shaking my head...


reply posted on 9-9-2008 @ 04:04 PM by jam321
reply to post by RichWhiteMan


I'm glad you ask. Maybe the wording I use was wrong but I will try to convey what I mean.

A lot of opinions stated here give me the impression here that praying is a bad thing. I don't see it that way. I feel like my prayer is between God and myself. Hurts no one. I am not bashing or ridiculing people for being gay. So why is praying to God for gays, straight, abortion, election, Dallas Cowboys, problems, disasters, war, peace, rain food, poor people, rich people, etc..so bad. It is a private conversation with God based on my trust and faith in God and the way I interpret my religion.

On the other hand you have people who humiliate their gay friends and families trying to force these people to change. Like the saying goes you can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink. By humiliating these love ones they are scarring them emotionally and making them be something they are not ready to be. This could lead to serious lack of self esteem, illnesses, depression, and even suicide. It is wrong to humiliate.

So one is harmless and the other is not. that is why I said what I did because some people are giving me the impression that praying is bad.


reply posted on 9-9-2008 @ 04:24 PM by Cowgirlstraitup7
reply to post by jam321


And some people here are saying that being gay is a bad thing and we can pray it away.

You say praying isn't a bad thing, others are saying gay is bad so we pray it away. Either way it seems to me that the bad thing here is looking more and more like prayer.

Flame away.


reply posted on 9-9-2008 @ 04:29 PM by kettlebellysmith
reply to post by Unnoan
Sadly, you miss the point. People pray for people for a number of reasons, and often these people have no knowledge they are being prayed for. There have been controlled studies that show that prayer actually has positive effects on people who are hospitalzied, even though they don't know they are being pdrayed for. There have been other studies that refulte this, so the the jury is still out.
When someone prays for someone, it does not indicate judgement. It indicates caring. I personally don't care if is someone is straight or gay. I don't thing of myself as being religious, although I consider myself spiritual.
What people don't seem to want to understand is that the Bible condemns congress between men and women. The new testament does away with the stoning part, and Jesus commands us to love one another as He loved us.
I just don't understand why people get upset when someone prays for them. If they don't believe, then they just think the person is wasting their time. In my case, go ahead and pray for me. I might not believe in your god, but I figure I can use all the help I can get.


reply posted on 9-9-2008 @ 04:39 PM by TruthParadox
reply to post by Cowgirlstraitup7


What do you have against heterosexuals?

See what I did there? I used the oldest political trick in the book.

No but seriously, what's the problem here? I'm an atheist, but if she wants to pray for gays, then so be it. Being gay is just not the natural order of things, whether you want to admit it or not. So by praying for gays, she's promoting the natural order. I'm sure she's not going to convert anyone that doesn't want to change. That's impossible anyway (well prayer doesn't work anyway but whatever. It's the thought that counts).



reply posted on 9-9-2008 @ 04:44 PM by Bombeni
Originally posted by Cowgirlstraitup7
reply to post by jam321


And some people here are saying that being gay is a bad thing and we can pray it away.

You say praying isn't a bad thing, others are saying gay is bad so we pray it away. Either way it seems to me that the bad thing here is looking more and more like prayer.

Flame away.


You have to accept that there will always be people who are repulsed by the thought of men and women "doing it" to each other, as that is not how we were designed as human beings. It is an aversion no matter what your moral take on it is. I certainly don't consider myself anymore worthy or better person because I am not gay as I have my own issues that are not necessarily in step with society's "norms," but I don't expect society to put their stamp of approval on them either.


reply posted on 9-9-2008 @ 04:48 PM by jam321
reply to post by Cowgirlstraitup7


I will say it best this way


A person who prays did not open this thread. and made an issue out of gays being prayed for.

Are you here to "cure" gays?
Absolutely not. The only time you’ll ever hear the word “cure” used in relation to our event is by those who oppose Love Won Out. They also like to claim we want to “fix” or “convert” gays and lesbians and that we believe people can “pray away the gay.”


www.lovewonout.com...

Here is the website of the organization that is holding the event.

Maybe we should look it over to see if it matches what the media says. I know the media sensationalizes stories for profit. The only ones who lose is us if we don't know all the facts.

[edit on 9-9-2008 by jam321]


reply posted on 9-9-2008 @ 06:32 PM by Cowgirlstraitup7
reply to post by jam321


After several replies you are just now coming up with their "officail rebutal" to all the media hype this conferance is getting. Wow, either they just now typed that up, or you are slow. Seriously, do you believe this is what they are really trying to convey or is this just their way of covering their own asses when crap hit the fan about them and their bigotry.
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