A Parliamentary debate entitled ‘Gay conversion therapies and the NHS’ was held in Westminster Hall on 4 November.
Many Christians are beginning to realise that gay issues are not receding in importance, but rather the opposite. Most worrying is the impact on our young people, increasing numbers of whom are ‘exploring’ their sexuality and ‘coming out’, even in the church.
Some have been sexually abused or had other traumatic life experiences which have persuaded them they are ‘gay’. Others may be married and desperately wanting help to stay in their marriages.
Science has shown that no one is born gay and we believe that people have the right to get the help they want. Many find this help – talking therapy – a lifesaver. There is no magic bullet, but then that is the case with all serious psychological issues.
Right to informed consent
Dr Mike Davidson of CORE Issues Trust has been at the forefront of both offering therapeutic help to those who want it and also contending for people to have the right to access such help. Mike has the T-shirt, as it were, and so knows what is involved. He sent a statement to all MPs ahead of the Westminster Hall debate which you can read at the website shown below*.
Mike and his colleagues do not do ‘gay cure’ as articulated by Nicky Morgan: elec-tro-shock, aversion therapies, etc. And where these exist, they support such a ban. Moreover, client rights to informed consent and self-determination deserve protection and respect. A century of clinical and scientific studies document that professional assistance has been effective for many persons with unwanted same sex attraction (SSA).
Seeking professional assistance to manage or change unwanted SSA, behaviour or identification has not been shown to be generally harmful to those who try.
