Christian Group Closes Doors and Apologizes for Anti-Gay Mission

In a wonderfully shocking statement issued Wednesday, the President of Exodus International announced that the group will be shutting down after 37 years of causing “suffering and judgment” for promoting and administrating ex-gay therapies. Here’s to healing a ton of hearts, today.

Exodus is a notorious ex-gay group for its mission to minister a “world impacted by homosexuality” by mitigating any same-sex attraction. According to the group, they’ve been mulling over their mission: “for quite some time we’ve been imprisoned in a worldview that’s neither honoring our fellow human beings, nor biblical.”

In the statement titled, “I Am Sorry,” Chambers says the following:

Never in a million years would I intentionally hurt another person. Yet, here I sit having hurt so many by failing to acknowledge the pain some affiliated with Exodus International caused, and by failing to share the whole truth about my own story. My good intentions matter very little and fail to diminish the pain and hurt others have experienced on my watch. The good that we have done at Exodus is overshadowed by all of this…

And then he just piles on amazing apologies:

Please know that I am deeply sorry. I am sorry for the pain and hurt many of you have experienced. I am sorry that some of you spent years working through the shame and guilt you felt when your attractions didn’t change. I am sorry we promoted sexual orientation change efforts and reparative theories about sexual orientation that stigmatized parents. I am sorry that there were times I didn’t stand up to people publicly “on my side” who called you names like sodomite—or worse. I am sorry that I, knowing some of you so well, failed to share publicly that the gay and lesbian people I know were every bit as capable of being amazing parents as the straight people that I know. I am sorry that when I celebrated a person coming to Christ and surrendering their sexuality to Him that I callously celebrated the end of relationships that broke your heart. I am sorry that I have communicated that you and your families are less than me and mine…

Moving forward, we will serve in our pluralistic culture by hosting thoughtful and safe conversations about gender and sexuality, while partnering with others to reduce fear, inspire hope, and cultivate human flourishing…

We whole-heartedly thank Exodus for understanding God and Christianity as a religion of love, tolerance and acceptance, for embracing “love thy neighbor as yourself” as a mission of acceptance. In that same spirit, Exodus is without a doubt forgiven for their past sins. Now let’s all hug because I love you guys.