A BLOG BY ALAN CHAMBERS

Swaggart’s Short Memory

You’d think that the Rev. Jimmy Swaggart’s message for those needing grace and redemption would be one of compassion and empathy mixed with the truth. After all it was Jimmy Swaggart that begged for grace and forgiveness more than a decade ago after it was revealed to the world that he had an active sexual addiction and was caught soliciting a prostitute. However, last week Rev. Swaggart made the anti-Christ statement that he would, “kill any gay man who looked at him romantically”.

It never ceases to amaze me how insecure some men are with their own manhood and masculinity that being the object of same sex attraction threatens and frightens them to the point that they would consider murder. Unnatural as same-sex attraction is, it is as repulsive to God as every other sin and just as forgivable.

As the President of the world’s leading outreach to those affected by unwanted homosexuality and a key educational resource for the church at large, I am thankful that Rev. Swaggart’s message of hate is now more the exception than the rule in Christendom. I believe that the years of irrational anger and hatred for the same-sex attracted is coming to an end within the Body of Christ. I am proud that ministries like Focus on the Family through their Love Won Out Conference and Exodus International have helped make a life changing difference in the Church.

It is my prayer that Jimmy Swaggart and all others who have been the undeserving recipients of grace will in turn offer grace to others and that the hateful rhetoric that God abhors will end. After all it is God’s kindness that leads us to repentance.

Mr. Swaggart, I think you should apologize for misrepresenting Christ and hurting a group of people that already hate the Church for this very reason.

Michaelangelo Signorile

For those of you who missed it, I was a guest on Michaelangelo Signorile's radio show this afternoon. I found Mr. Signorile intolerant of my views and unwilling to allow healthy conversation and debate. Like many pro-gay talk shows the agenda was more important than the guest. Below are some of the points that Mr. Signorile brought up that I didn't have time to affirm or comment on:

1). That the Christian community has made out homosexuality to be an issue and a sin that is worse than other issues or sins.

The word that comes to mind is hypocritical. For many years the Church has been hypocritical when it comes to condemning one sin and overlooking another. Homosexuality conjures up more anger and offense in some people than other sins do and that ought not be. Homosexuality is but one of many sexual sins running rampant in our world (and Church) today. God does not favor one sin over another nor would He have kept Jesus from dying for our sins if there hadn't ever been a homosexual. Jesus would have had to die anyway. It is true, there is sin in the Church and it needs to be addressed.

2). Exodus founders fell in love, left Exodus and are still together.

Two men who were apart of the original Exodus conference, one as a volunteer and the other as a true founder of what would become Exodus did meet, have an affair and leave their wives. They were together until one of them died of AIDS in the 1980's.

3). Exodus' forces it's opinion on people and that is hateful and causing people to kill themselves.

I was one of those gay teens who contemplated and attempted suicide on a number of occasions. I wanted to die after I was told that I had to be gay and that there was no alternative. Having no choices made me want to die. I wanted to change.

I hear people tell me all the time that I shouldn't be so hateful by saying that homosexuality is a sin. Well, then that means that I should not quote the Bible when it references such. And, if I shouldn't quote that part of the Bible then I shouldn't quote any of the Bible. Follow it to their logical conclusion and there is no basis for the Bible or Christianity or even God.

Truth hurts. No child wants to be told that they are in the wrong or that the shouldn't do something because it is wrong. There are many people who kill themselves because they just don't believe they can do whatever it is they think they should do (ie: lose weight, stop drinking or doing drugs, make good grades, etc.) But, does that mean that we should stop talking about the risks of obesity or alcoholism or drug addiction or that we should let our kids fail out of school? NO. We must always promote the highest standard and do so in the most truthful and loving ways.

Conclusion
Many homosexual people are bitter, angry and intolerant of Christians because they have been hurt, sometimes devastated, by them. More than ever before we, the Church, need to be quick to apologize for areas where we have fallen short, while standing firm on the word of God.

As I said above, truth hurts. Homosexuality is a sin and that truth needs to be told---but homosexuality does not deserve more condemnation than other sins. Most of all, we as Christians need to be promoting what God is for more than what He is against. If we spend all of our time talking about what is bad then what is good gets lost.

The Passion of the Christ

Dear Friends: Mel Gibson was in town yesterday at my church where he spoke briefly about The Passion of the Christ.  Later that night 5,000 of Christendoms biggest names stayed to view the film.  I wouldn't consider myself a big name, but I was there and I was deeply moved---meaning I have been thinking about what I saw and it has caused me to be incredibly introspective and contemplative about my relationship with Christ and His call on my life to be a slave to Him.  His sacrifice was real and it makes me want to give myself fully to Him every second of every day.  You have to see this film and take everyone you know with you.  It opens February 25....Mel said if your theater isn't showing it, ask them to reconsider.  I have no doubt that this will be the catalyst for millions of people to give their hearts to Jesus.  Alan Please read Paul Harvey's comments on The Passion of the Christ below: Paul Harvey's review of The Passion I really did not know what to expect. I was thrilled to have been invited to a private viewing of Mel Gibson's film "The Passion," but I had also read all the cautious articles and spin. I grew up in a Jewish town and owe much of my own faith journey to the influence. I have a life long, deeply held aversion to anything that might even indirectly encourage any form of anti-Semitic thought, language or actions. I arrived at the private viewing for "The Passion", held in Washington DC and greeted some familiar faces. The environment was typically Washingtonian, with people greeting you with a smile but seeming to look beyond you, having an agenda beyond the words. The film was very briefly introduced, without fanfare, and then the room darkened. From the gripping opening scene in the Garden of Gethsemane, to the very human and tender portrayal of the earthly ministry of Jesus, through the betrayal, the arrest, the scourging, the way of the cross, the encounter with the thieves, the surrender on the Cross, until the final scene in the empty tomb, this was not simply a movie; it was an encounter, unlike anything I have ever experienced. In addition to being a masterpiece of film-making and an artistic triumph, "The Passion" evoked more deep reflection, sorrow and emotional reaction within me than anything since my wedding, my ordination or the birth of my children. Frankly, I will never be the same. When the film concluded, this "invitation only" gathering of "movers and shakers" in Washington, DC were shaking indeed, but this time from sobbing. I am not sure there was a dry eye in the place. The crowd that had been glad-handing before the film was now eerily silent. No one could speak because words were woefully inadequate. We had experienced a kind of art that is a rarity in life, the kind that makes heaven touch earth. One scene in the film has now been forever etched in my mind. A brutalized, wounded Jesus was soon to fall again under the weight of the cross. His mother had made her way along the Via Della Rosa. As she ran to him, she flashed back to a memory of Jesus as a child, falling in the dirt road outside of their home. Just as she reached to protect him from the fall, she was now reaching to touch his wounded adult face. Jesus looked at her with intensely probing and passionately loving eyes (and at all of us through the screen) and said "Behold I make all things new." These are words taken from the last Book of the New Testament, the Book of Revelation. Suddenly, the purpose of the pain was so clear and the wounds, that earlier in the film had been so difficult to see in His face, His back, indeed all over His body, became intensely beautiful. They had been borne voluntarily for love. At the end of the film, after we had all had a chance to recover - a question and answer period ensued. The unanimous praise for the film, from a rather diverse crowd, was as astounding as the compliments were effusive. The questions included the one question that seems to follow this film, even though it has not yet even been released. "Why is this film considered by some to be "anti-Semitic?"  Frankly, having now experienced (you do not "view" this film) "the Passion" it is a question that is impossible to answer. A law professor whom I admire sat in front of me. He raised his hand and responded "After watching this film, I do not understand how anyone can insinuate that it even remotely presents that the Jews killed Jesus. It doesn't." He continued "It made me realize that my sins killed Jesus" I agree. There is not a scintilla of anti-Semitism to be found anywhere in this powerful film. If there were, I would be among the first to decry it.. It faithfully tells the Gospel story in a dramatically beautiful, sensitive and profoundly engaging way. Those who are alleging otherwise have either not seen the film or have another agenda behind their protestations. This is not a "Christian" film, in the sense that it will appeal only to those who identify themselves as followers of Jesus Christ. It is a deeply human, beautiful story that will deeply touch all men and women. It is a profound work of art. Yes, its producer is a Catholic Christian and thankfully has remained faithful to the Gospel text; if that is no longer acceptable behavior than we are all in trouble. History demands that we remain faithful to the story and Christians have a right to tell it. After all, we believe that it is the greatest story ever told and that its message is for all men and women. The greatest right is the right to hear the truth. We would all be well advised to remember that the Gospel narratives to which "The Passion" is so faithful were written by Jewish men who followed a Jewish Rabbi whose life and teaching have forever changed the history of the world. The problem is not the message but those who have distorted it and used it for hate rather than love. The solution is not to censor the message, but rather to promote the kind of gift of love that is Mel Gibson's filmmaking masterpiece, "The Passion." It should be seen by as many people as possible. I intend to do everything I can to make sure that is the case. I am passionate about "The Passion." You will be as well. Don't miss it!

Anglican Bishop Could be Prosecuted for Promoting Family Life

London, Nov. 10 (CWNews.com) - An Anglican bishop who suggested that gay people could "reorientate" themselves with psychiatric help is to be questioned by the police.

Bishop Peter Forster of Chester Diocese said in a local newspaper article last week that "some people who are primarily homosexual can reorientate themselves."

He continued, "I would encourage them to consider that as an option, but I would not set myself up as a medical specialist-- that's in the area of psychiatric health."

The Cheshire police department has received a formal complaint about the bishop and has confirmed that they will now question him.

A police spokesman told the Daily Mail, "We will speak to the bishop and then we will send the results of our investigation to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS)."

Forster had said that, while he believed in tolerance toward gay people, he believed they should remain celibate, even within relationships. He also said that sexual activity should be bound up with marriage and raising children.

He added, "All the sociological evidence is that children fare better when raised in a traditional home by a man and a woman who have committed themselves to life-long marriage."

The CPS has prioritized tackling "hate crime" against homosexuals, claiming that 40 percent of gay men and women have suffered at least one incident in the past year.

It is possible that the CPS could prosecute Forster under the 1986 Public Order Act which prohibits language considered to be abusive to sexual groups.