Exodus International has launched an ad campaign starting with a full page in the Cincinnati Enquirer. Headlined, “I Questioned Homosexuality,” its theme is also reflected in a new entry page to the Exodus website titled “Question Homosexuality… Change is possible. Discover how.”

To their credit, the graphic layout and copy are lean and fresh.

The approach is old and familiar, though. In the ad, Chambers describes being victimized by:

  • Sexual molestation at the hands of an adult when he was a child
  • Being the target of teasing, spitting, and name-calling in school

Tragic stuff, of course, to which no kid should be subjected. Conveniently omitted from the ad is that Exodus rails against efforts to prevent the kind of bullying he experienced.

And, he repeats his claim that he would have been victimized simply by having by the option of same-sex marriage:

If I had a gay marriage option 10 years ago, I’d never have dealt with the root issues of my homosexual behavior. I’d probably be in and out of half a dozen ‘marital’ relationships.

So, Chambers was ready to run a 6-cycle marriage-and-divorce marathon in a decade that took Liz Taylor a quarter-century? Golly. Apparently, a same-sex marriage law would have trumped his faith, his family, and his convictions, rendering him helpless and victimized yet again.

Also conveniently omitted from the ad’s assertion that “change is possible… tens of thousands … questioned homosexuality and found answers … [and] Exodus was there to help … [with] knowledge and tools” is that Exodus is a conservative Christian ministry whose primary answer to homosexuality is “redemption found in Jesus Christ, a gift which is available to all who commit their life and their sexuality to Him”. Local ministries have been renamed “member chapters” in the ad (but not at the website).

I congratulate Chambers on discovering the life that fits his beliefs and values, on his relationship with his perfect complement, Leslie, and on the joyful anticipation of their growing family.

The idea that anti-gay law was the only thing which saved him from himself, however, makes it sound like his God cowers at the feet of Caesar, has already been rendered powerless in Massachusetts, and can only be salvaged by having Chambers’ beliefs codified into law.

A PDF (683KB) of the Enquirer ad is here. This press release was issued by Exodus this afternoon:

From: Randy Thomas [mailto:rthomas@exodus-international.org] Sent: Thu 7/8/2004 4:07 PM
Subject: Exodus Launches New Ad Campaign

Exodus Launches “Q & A” Ad Campaign

It’s time for our culture to question homosexuality and for the church to provide the answers

Cincinnati, Ohio – The roller coasters at Kings Island are not the only things causing a stir in Cincinnati this summer. Exodus President Alan Chambers and his wife Leslie appeared in a full-page ad placed today in the Cincinnati Enquirer. The ad is one of 4 that will be featured in various media markets all over the country and is the first ad in what Exodus is calling the Q & A Campaign. “We believe that our culture is being bombarded with scientifically, psychologically and spiritually inaccurate information by the liberal media and political elite,” Alan Chambers stated this morning, “Exodus is challenging mainstream America to question homosexuality and encouraging the Church to provide the answer.”

In the ad, Alan shares the importance of marriage and the possibility of freedom from homosexuality. He states, “If I had a gay marriage option 10 years ago, I’d never have dealt with the root issues of my homosexual behavior. I’d probably be in and out of half a dozen ‘marital’ relationships. And I’d never know the complete peace I now have about my past. Leslie is not my diploma for ‘healing’ nor is she a prop that shows how I’ve abandoned a sexual identity. She is my perfect complement and completes me in ways no male relationship can ever do…physically or emotionally.”

Communications Director Randy Thomas shares, “The calls from Cincinnati started coming in early. We are in the process of scheduling follow up interviews and helping those seeking freedom from homosexuality get connected with ministries and churches in their area. A good message has gone forward in Cincinnati. Freedom is spreading.”

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