LGBT Advocate Joey Heath Featured on PBS

February 20, 2010

In the past, you may have seen me mention Joey Heath, the young gay man who was denied a transfer of membership in the United Methodist Church a few years back. His challenge of that decision put him at the center of the UMC’s controversy about LGBT inclusion.

Joey was interviewed for the PBS series Religion & Ethics Newsweekly. It airs tomorrow (check local listings) on PBS, but the segment was made available online today.

I met Joey a few months back in Washington, D.C., and I can tell you that he’s as contagiously optimistic as he appears on PBS.

Please watch before you read on. I’ll have some spoilers and a pop quiz immediately after. (Here’s a link in case the embed doesn’t work.)

 

 

Okay, hands up all who knew Bob Perdue was “ex-gay” before they mentioned it. Everybody? That’s what I thought.

It’s a good piece, and I’m glad PBS is tackling the issue, but I’m eternally frustrated by the presentation of “ex-gay” as a viable, healthy choice. The fact that the “ex-gay” industry has convinced Rev. Perdue that he was abused into being gay and needed to be repaired is heartbreaking.

I warn him, though, that passing that lie on to new victims is a dangerous, unGodly, and anti-Christ path to tread. Being gay is not a sickness, is not like alcoholism, and does not keep someone from “experiencing life to the fullest.”

(Also, if you’re going to reference Leviticus 18:22, I’ll quote Leviticus 20:13 right back at you. Pick up a rock and get to it, sir.)

Those statistics on homeless LGBT kids have been floating around for a while, but I hadn’t heard the one-in-three statistic for New York City. It’s so sad that so many parents are willing to throw away their kids. I daresay it’s a side effect of teaching such as Rev. Perdue’s.

Kudos to Joey and the others on the side of God who were interviewed for this piece. You’re a wonderful example of what The Church should be.


  • robertcooper

    Being gay…does not keep someone from “experiencing life to the fullest.

    Are you kidding me? You haven't lived until you've felt that sick feeling in the pit of your stomach after somebody you really don't want to have kids with tells you she thinks she's pregnant!

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Volunteer-BodyGuards/100000147774041 Volunteer BodyGuards

    I won't begrude LGBT couples or singles from fighting to stay in their family/original homophobic churches. None the less, arguing over one bible verse or another is extremely stupid. Horrible mis-translations of symbolic and hand me down versions upon versions make any scriptural reference dubious at best, hardly authoritative when Jehovah or any other alleged deity is no where to be found to save innocent straights or gays from deadly evils. Hebrew is completely unreliably translated without vowels, needing a “tradition” or remembered “useage” and even where the “dots” go, it can be either of 5 vowels in such “consonants.”
    Add on top of all that near gibberish Aramaic hand me down “traditions” plugged into gutter Greek, then Latin then German and theen 16th Century English, and what fool thinks an alleged all powerful “loving” alleged deity sends “his” perfect word down that rat hole? Human love is nurturant and true. The only deviants are the homophobes and closet perverts who abuse children. If you were born with genes, brains, noses, tongues and ears to hear the sweet voice of a life partner who has similar “plumbing' to yours rather than “opposite” plumbing, so what? Breeders might or ought to copulate for purely reproductive purposes 2 times in a lifetime. If not, 7 billion will soon become 8 billion read to kill one another for scarce land and resources. Homosexuality ought to be fully embraced. Leaves less competition for us who love women. I do care that gay men be fully protected and recognized for their beauty and strength and full civil equal rights in all matters of law. And no woman should be forced to submit to male rape for breeding purposes. 843-926-1750 Dial An Atheist Larry Carter Center

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Volunteer-BodyGuards/100000147774041 Volunteer BodyGuards

    I won't begrude LGBT couples or singles from fighting to stay in their family/original homophobic churches. None the less, arguing over one bible verse or another is extremely stupid. Horrible mis-translations of symbolic and hand me down versions upon versions make any scriptural reference dubious at best, hardly authoritative when Jehovah or any other alleged deity is no where to be found to save innocent straights or gays from deadly evils. Hebrew is completely unreliably translated without vowels, needing a “tradition” or remembered “useage” and even where the “dots” go, it can be either of 5 vowels in such “consonants.”
    Add on top of all that near gibberish Aramaic hand me down “traditions” plugged into gutter Greek, then Latin then German and theen 16th Century English, and what fool thinks an alleged all powerful “loving” alleged deity sends “his” perfect word down that rat hole? Human love is nurturant and true. The only deviants are the homophobes and closet perverts who abuse children. If you were born with genes, brains, noses, tongues and ears to hear the sweet voice of a life partner who has similar “plumbing' to yours rather than “opposite” plumbing, so what? Breeders might or ought to copulate for purely reproductive purposes 2 times in a lifetime. If not, 7 billion will soon become 8 billion read to kill one another for scarce land and resources. Homosexuality ought to be fully embraced. Leaves less competition for us who love women. I do care that gay men be fully protected and recognized for their beauty and strength and full civil equal rights in all matters of law. And no woman should be forced to submit to male rape for breeding purposes. 843-926-1750 Dial An Atheist Larry Carter Center

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Volunteer-BodyGuards/100000147774041 Volunteer BodyGuards

    I won't begrude LGBT couples or singles from fighting to stay in their family/original homophobic churches. None the less, arguing over one bible verse or another is extremely stupid. Horrible mis-translations of symbolic and hand me down versions upon versions make any scriptural reference dubious at best, hardly authoritative when Jehovah or any other alleged deity is no where to be found to save innocent straights or gays from deadly evils. Hebrew is completely unreliably translated without vowels, needing a “tradition” or remembered “useage” and even where the “dots” go, it can be either of 5 vowels in such “consonants.”
    Add on top of all that near gibberish Aramaic hand me down “traditions” plugged into gutter Greek, then Latin then German and theen 16th Century English, and what fool thinks an alleged all powerful “loving” alleged deity sends “his” perfect word down that rat hole? Human love is nurturant and true. The only deviants are the homophobes and closet perverts who abuse children. If you were born with genes, brains, noses, tongues and ears to hear the sweet voice of a life partner who has similar “plumbing' to yours rather than “opposite” plumbing, so what? Breeders might or ought to copulate for purely reproductive purposes 2 times in a lifetime. If not, 7 billion will soon become 8 billion read to kill one another for scarce land and resources. Homosexuality ought to be fully embraced. Leaves less competition for us who love women. I do care that gay men be fully protected and recognized for their beauty and strength and full civil equal rights in all matters of law. And no woman should be forced to submit to male rape for breeding purposes. 843-926-1750 Dial An Atheist Larry Carter Center

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Volunteer-BodyGuards/100000147774041 Volunteer BodyGuards

    I won't begrude LGBT couples or singles from fighting to stay in their family/original homophobic churches. None the less, arguing over one bible verse or another is extremely stupid. Horrible mis-translations of symbolic and hand me down versions upon versions make any scriptural reference dubious at best, hardly authoritative when Jehovah or any other alleged deity is no where to be found to save innocent straights or gays from deadly evils. Hebrew is completely unreliably translated without vowels, needing a “tradition” or remembered “useage” and even where the “dots” go, it can be either of 5 vowels in such “consonants.”
    Add on top of all that near gibberish Aramaic hand me down “traditions” plugged into gutter Greek, then Latin then German and theen 16th Century English, and what fool thinks an alleged all powerful “loving” alleged deity sends “his” perfect word down that rat hole? Human love is nurturant and true. The only deviants are the homophobes and closet perverts who abuse children. If you were born with genes, brains, noses, tongues and ears to hear the sweet voice of a life partner who has similar “plumbing' to yours rather than “opposite” plumbing, so what? Breeders might or ought to copulate for purely reproductive purposes 2 times in a lifetime. If not, 7 billion will soon become 8 billion read to kill one another for scarce land and resources. Homosexuality ought to be fully embraced. Leaves less competition for us who love women. I do care that gay men be fully protected and recognized for their beauty and strength and full civil equal rights in all matters of law. And no woman should be forced to submit to male rape for breeding purposes. 843-926-1750 Dial An Atheist Larry Carter Center