Exodus International’s new women’s ministry leader is a hardline ex-lesbian who once joined critics in decrying moderate remarks by Exodus President Alan Chambers.
Yvette Schneider, also known as Yvette Cantu Schneider and previously Yvette Cantu, will “communicate biblical, compassionate truth to women who feel overlooked by society,” according to an Exodus press release.
In 2007, Schneider joined Peter LaBarbera’s Americans for Truth in criticizing Alan Chambers after the LA Times reported he had softened on the meaning of “change.” Chambers said that “By no means would we ever say change can be sudden or complete.”
LaBarbera immediately supported pal Stephen Bennett in disavowing Chambers’s remarks, saying he was “disappointed.” Two days later, Yvette Schneider went on record with the following “in response“:
I came out of homosexuality after a powerful encounter with Jesus Christ and a desire to serve and obey Him. I can say with complete honesty that I NEVER have homosexual desires of any sort – physical or emotional.
Readers might prefer to check out the Google cache here. Why? Because XGW contacted Alan in early August to ask about the apparent rift. Chambers neglected to respond, but presumably he was not too busy to consult LaBarbera, as a disclaimer was added yesterday, within 24 hours of the announcement of Schneider’s appointment:
Yvette Schneider’s comments below relate to her own story of transformative change and were initially made following a controversy last year surrounding Exodus President Alan Chamber’s quotes in the Los Angeles Times. Since we first published this piece, we have learned that Alan’s statements were incomplete and taken out of context by self-serving homosexual activists to create an impression that he never sought to create — i.e., questioning the potential for radical and even complete change in the life of homosexual strugglers.
Since the Times interview, Mr. Chambers has clarified his position on change in homosexuality to AFTAH saying:
“There are a variety of levels at which individuals experience change when it comes to the issue of homosexuality. For some it may be a rapid, total transformation, but for many, it is often a gradual process of dealing with difficult life issues, habits and behaviors. Regardless of the timing, any change is still change and as Christians, we know that the process of dealing with sin and becoming more like Christ will continue throughout the course of our lives.”
The criticism remains on LaBarbera’s website unchallenged for over a year, and then suddenly it’s time to issue a disclaimer?
A timely damage-control exercise, but just as potentially damaging is Schneider’s history of right-wing political involvement. As well as her association with the notorious LaBarbera, Schneider has worked with Eagle Forum, Family Research Council and Matt Barber’s Concerned Women for America. Not a good omen for an organization that claimed last year they were leaving politics behind.
In summary, what does Schneider’s appointment mean? On inspection, it appears Exodus has appointed to a major role in its organization a woman with a track record of ultra-conservative political activism (despite Exodus’s claim to be a non-political group), who pushes a hard line on orientation change (despite Exodus’s deliberate attempt to steer away from such rhetoric, at least in public) and who has openly criticized its president’s more moderate statements (although LaBarbera tries to alter that by pinning the blame on “self-serving homosexual activists”). Isn’t this looking like just another move in the wrong direction?
Thanks Dave, you saved me a post.
I read that earlier on the Exodus site and then did some research. Finally I decided to try you guys to see what came up.
Airhart does a good rebuttal to her rebuttal to another article: If gay were straight, could you change yourself?.
What she said that stood out for me was her mention of Dean Hamer (not the author of the article in question), in order to say this (bold in original):
So there’s the “Christian” morality of one Yvette ‘Cantu’ Schneider — if same-sex love is determined to be inborn, then there should be no “moral” distinction made between adult consensual same-sex relationships, and the (‘inborn desire’) to rape and kill children.
Exodus International at its finest.
“There are a variety of levels at which individuals experience change when it comes to the issue of homosexuality. For some it may be a rapid, total transformation, but for many, it is often a gradual process of dealing with difficult life issues, habits and behaviors. Regardless of the timing, any change is still change and as Christians, we know that the process of dealing with sin and becoming more like Christ will continue throughout the course of our lives.”
1. If there are a variety of levels, why doesn’t EXODUS make that perfectly clear from the get go? Look at their website….there is no LEVELS mentioned.
2. “we know that the process of dealing with sin and becoming more like Christ will continue throughout the course of our lives.” That sounds very Catholic to me, and I thought the Exodus Inter. organization was more in line with evangelical Christianity.
In Catholicism, we believe salvation is an ongoing process whereas Evangelical Christianity theology tends to state that “once saved always saved.”
What I found offensive on their website was the following:
The bottom line – you don’t have to be gay! You can lead a life of fulfillment and holiness as God intended, a life far better than what you have experienced so far.
Imagine if they put “black” or “Mexican” or “Jewish” or “Muslim” where the word “gay” is!
If only these “ex-gayers” would realize how they are just being used as puppets by their leaders. Sad.
Unfortunately, Alan, there are quite a few evangelical Christian organizations that put the word “Jewish” there…
We Orthodox Catholics are guilty of that as well. Anytime one disguises hate with pseudo-love they’re bound to justify their actions. It’s sad that the Ecumencial movement has died out. I remember back in the 80’s and 90’s when we had Jewish rabbi’s and Protestant ministers at our church assisting the service. As groups, we would go to other churches and visit. Maybe it’s where I live now, but I don’t see that much which is strange because I thought So Cal was progressive than El Paso (El Paso is about 80% Catholic).
The only times I’ve seen any kind of Ecumenical effort in Long Beach has usually been gay related, strangely enough.
But when I read the website (I had read it before, but I took a second look at it yesterday) all I could see what hate disguised as love.
Yvette Schneider:
Why do these people, who based their faith soley on the Bible, IGNORE the Bible? Do they not have the following passage in their Bible:
For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice: and the knowledge of God more than holocausts. (The Prophecy of Osee 6:6 – Hosea 6:6)
I grew up around evangelicals in my family, and they always have “powerful, life changing experiences.” Then, they fall off the wagon and blame everyone but themselves for it. As I’ve stated in previous entries, they are like the rapist blaming their victim.
I think the saddest thing for Yvette Cantu Schneider is how she is trying so hard to show the world: “Look, I’m a saint! I’m good! I’m perfect, and my conversion was a PERFECT conversion!” She is going to hurt so many people by her exterior, surface “conversion” because there are going to be so many women in the Exodus program who will try to be like here and fail, and they will blame themselves for it, they will think God hates them, and they will have emotional scares that will last a lifetime.
What I have also noticed about people like her who say:
“I can say with complete honesty that I NEVER have homosexual desires of any sort – physical or emotional.”
is that they redefine in their head what a “homosexual desire” is. They redefine what “sin” is, so when she, and those like her, for example, see a gorgeous woman walk by, they don’t compute that in their head that it is a “desire” but a “temptation” set on by the devil or something to the like. They negate their own natural feelings by playing mind games.
Again, they claim to base their faith on the Bible, yet they miss the passage that says:
“If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” (Catholic Epistle – St. John I; 1:8 – 1 John 1:8)
If Yvette can keep up her facade, I wouldn’t doubt if they dethrone Alan Chambers and put the ex-gay crown on her head.
If this is true, and I have no knowledge of Yvette to refute this, then Yvette should submit to testing and verification. She should be studied, as all scientific studies of ex-gay results have completely missed Yvette and anyone like her.
As for my own self, I doubt that she was ever actually homosexual. She could have had a bi-curious stage in her life, or she could’ve been one of those angry young women who thinks lesbianism is some absurd way of getting back at men.
Finally, if she was gay, and she has truly changed…we have nothing to suggest that ex-gay therapies are the reason for this change. It might have happened on it’s own without any effort on her part. I can pray every night that the sun comes up tomorrow, that does not make every sunrise my accomplishment. Even if she was gay, she changed, and it was due soley to her ex-gay therapies — there is no data to suggest that this would work for anyone else, in fact the data suggests that it doesn’t work for most people, and those it does “work” for, despite Yvette, continue to experience homosexual thoughts and desires for years afterwards.
In essence, “Yvette, so what?”
Exodus has been a lacky for right wing political groups for quite a while now. Despite their rhetoric about moving away from politics, nothing has really changed. This newest appointment is just further confirmation of that. None of us should be surprised.
How many gay teenagers will go to bed tonight praying and in tears over the knowledge that they are gay ………. and, unable to to turn to anyone for support or guidance? Such organizations as Exodus don’t help. The belief that somehow giving over to Jesus or God will somehow make you “normal” needs to stop. We are normal ……… we just aren’t the majority.
Ok, I totally apologize because it’s got nothing to do with the topic, but there’s no recent open forum and this is phreaking hysterical:
https://americansfortruth.com/news/pfox-help-place-ex-gay-books-in-your-local-library.html
Recently, while looking at our public library website for something totally not related to SSA, my wife pointed out all the pro-gay information on the local library web site. After some diligent searching, it became apparent there was little to no information on unwanted SSA. Material on how homosexuality originates was absent. Any resources to help people overcome their SAME SEX ATTRACTION were also absent.
Yeah, um… it was TOTALLY NOT RELATED TO SSA, and it was MY WIFE WHO POINTED IT OUT.
It can’t stop there, either. Take a look at the biology section: are there enough books that put the case for so-called creation science? And then how about the astronomy section? Are there any books stating the case for the traditional Ptolemaic model of our solar system, or are they all based on the new-fangled Copernican model? And then we have the physics/chemistry sections: is the phlogiston theory being given a fair crack of the whip?
Oh and, by the way, I can’t recall ever seeing a single book on dealing with unwanted left-handedness – or even one on dealing with unwanted OSA (other-sex attraction).
If these cranks want to see anti-gay or ex-gay books in public libraries, then why don’t they get their well-lined “pro-family” organizations to donate them? I deeply resent the idea of tax-payers’ dollars/pounds/euros being spent on books that are likely to have a pernicious effect, especially on gay and lesbian teenagers.