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Can Homosexuals Change Their Orientation?

A conversation between sociologist Tony Campolo and Phil Busbee, pastor of First Baptist Church of San Francisco.
Campolo:

I am convinced that at least for males—my research among females is too limited—men do not choose this orientation. They generally find themselves struggling with sexual identity in their early teens. They're not sure why they are the way they are, and initially they try to change. But they can't.

Now I believe God can do anything, but for the overwhelming majority of gay men, they may determine to abandon a particular lifestyle because it's not in harmony with Scripture, but the changing of orientation is unlikely.

Busbee:

Perhaps. But I look at 1 Corinthians 6, where Paul lists a number of immoral behaviors, including greed, deception, and homosexual practices, and he says, "And such were some of you."

He indicates the immoral behavior had ended. Yes, in that passage, it's an issue of activity, not identity. It's a form of bondage to redefine activity into identity, and say, This is your identity. You can't escape it, when in reality it has to do with activity. I stopped using ...

May/June
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