L-3 PEOPLE FILE
- Charles Lehardy - Jean-Yves Leloup - Steve Lenk - Carl Lentz - Bill Leonard - Josh LeSage - Autumn Leva - Russell Levenson - Sharma Lewis - Brooke Ligertwood - Paul Lim - John Lindell - Hal Lindsey - Damon Linker - Scott Lively - David Livingston - Loran Livingston -
==charles lehardy=============== |
- Twitter -
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==Jean-Yves Leloup==============
Jean-Yves Leloup is a French theologian, writer, translator of Greek and Coptic language texts, born in 1950 in Angers. He is the author of over ninety books in French, some translated into other languages, including English, German, Spanish and Portuguese.The primary subject of his writings is Christian spirituality.
Jean-Yves LeLoup
“Sometimes we must undergo hardships, breakups, and narcissistic wounds, which shatter the flattering image that we had of ourselves, in order to discover two truths: that we are not who we thought we were; and that the loss of a cherished pleasure is not necessarily the loss of true happiness and well-being.”
― Jean-Yves Leloup, Compassion and Meditation: The Spiritual Dynamic between Buddhism and Christianity
― Jean-Yves Leloup, Compassion and Meditation: The Spiritual Dynamic between Buddhism and Christianity
Jean-Yves LeLoup
“The canonical Gospels offer no information as to the specific nature of the seven demons or spirits that initially possess Miriam—that is to say, alienate her from her freedom. However, we might make some surmises about them by referring to other texts that were current in those times. According to Evagrius Ponticus, who made a thorough study of such matters, these logismoï (his term for“negative or destructive thoughts”) act to destroy a person’s orientation toward the nous, and then the orientation of the nous toward the Pneuma. In other words, they act to obstruct peace, contemplation, and the Presence of the Son seeking to establish itself in the person. Lists of such demonic spirits vary. In the West they later become known as the seven deadly orcardinal sins: gluttony, fornication, covetousness, sadness, anger, vainglory, pride. Evagrius adds accidie to the list, meaning a kind of despondency or apathetic rejection of spiritual realities.”
― Jean-Yves Leloup, The Gospel of Mary Magdalene
― Jean-Yves Leloup, The Gospel of Mary Magdalene
==steve lenk=======================
As a man thinks, so is he.” Proverbs 23:7. What we think about is crucial to who we are. Scientists don’t agree on how many thoughts we have each day, but all agree there are thousands of them. Who we are is shaped moment by moment by the thoughts we choose to let into our mind and heart. But how can we control the thousands of thoughts that enter our mind each day? What do we do with the thoughts that are not pleasing to God? How can we, in reality, take every thought captive? Often, our thoughts have to be focused on the regular tasks we must accomplish that day. However, as we go through the day, we can catch thoughts and attitudes that are contrary to God’s will and keep them from gaining control of our mind and heart. Paul explains how this is possible: “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.’’ 2 Corinthians 10:4-5. It is written that we need to battle to keep our thoughts pure, but it is also written that we have weapons to fight with!
--Steve Lenk: Active Christianity: How do I take every thought captive?
--Steve Lenk: Active Christianity: How do I take every thought captive?
==carl lentz======================
Carl Lentz
“I failed miserably...I should have called someone and said I have disqualified myself from ministry.....I let down a lot of good people. I can only apologize and change.....It’s a pretty humbling road to be on every day......My actions are my fault. What I’ve done is my fault. But where this thing started I had no control over. I was a kid."
--Carl Lentz; after being exposed for cheating on his wife 8.1.23
"Often.....megachurches are forced to battle a negative stereotype among a slice of the public that views them as giant moneymaking operations tainted by scandals, such as the one at Hillsong Church, where pastor Carl Lentz admitted to marital infidelity and was fired in 2020 for "moral failures." Because the churches are outsized, their scandals "are broadcast on a larger stage," (Scott) Thumma says. --Scott Neuman; NPR; Megachurches are getting even bigger as churches close across the country 7.14.23
Carl Lentz
"My actions are my fault. What I've done is my fault, but where that thing started, I have no control over. I was a kid.........I am responsible for allowing an inappropriate relationship to develop in my house with someone that worked for us..........Any notion of abuse is categorically false. There were mutual decisions made by two people who lied profusely, mainly to my wife........Typically, the way that Hillsong has handled scandal ... was (by doing) what looks best for the church. Most of the time, it serves everybody to push everything down. You just push it as far under the rug as you can. We choose narrative over truth and that leads to absolute disaster, because the truth doesn't go anywhere just because you cover it up.........Part of the healing from that heartache led us to the decision to be a part of a documentary that we do not control, that we don't have any say in and that we haven't even seen yet," he wrote. "We'll see it when the world does." -Carl Lentz; 5.3023
May 9, 2023:
👉From the "I wonder what else is going on at Hillsong" File: Carl Lentz is facing up to the scandal that brought down his leadership at Hillsong New York City. A newly released teaser trailer for the upcoming FX Networks docuseries, The Secrets of Hillsong, includes clips of the disgraced pastor admitting to "some major lies" in his life. Lentz was fired from Hillsong NYC in November 2020 because of "moral failures" and he admitted at the time to marital unfaithfulness. Despite his adultery, his wife Laura Lentz has stuck by him and she will also appear in the docuseries.
👉From the "I wonder what else is going on at Hillsong" File: Carl Lentz is facing up to the scandal that brought down his leadership at Hillsong New York City. A newly released teaser trailer for the upcoming FX Networks docuseries, The Secrets of Hillsong, includes clips of the disgraced pastor admitting to "some major lies" in his life. Lentz was fired from Hillsong NYC in November 2020 because of "moral failures" and he admitted at the time to marital unfaithfulness. Despite his adultery, his wife Laura Lentz has stuck by him and she will also appear in the docuseries.
From Hillsong's disgraced Carl Lentz, who had multiple affairs with women, to an Indiana pastor who was confronted in front of his entire congregation about his sexual relationship with a 16-year-old girl, these are the biggest falls from grace. Carl Lentz, the star pastor who brought the global megachurch Hillsong from Australia to the United States, and once ministered to Justin Bieber and a bevy of other celebrities and sports stars, was exposed in 2020 for cheating on his wife. He was fired from the church in November 2020 after his five-month affair with Brooklyn-based jewelry designer Ranin Karim emerged. Lentz and his wife Laura were also the subject of abuse accusations from another Hillsong pastor. Leona Kimes, co-pastor of Hillsong Boston with her husband Josh, announced in a bombshell Medium post in May 2021 that she had been 'subjected to manipulation, control, bullying, abuse of power, and sexual abuse' by the Lentzes while working at their home as a nanny. The Lentzes strongly denied Kimes's allegations. The Christian Post published excerpts of an internal investigation into the Lentzes' behavior, which found that Laura had punched Leona Kimes when she found her snuggled on the sofa with her husband Carl. The investigation into the Lentzes also alleges that while Lentz was seeing Ranin Karim, he also engaged in another 'inappropriate relationship' with a woman he called Germany, who he met in Brooklyn. Lentz was accused of causing workers to suffer mental health problems by belittling and bullying them. Other former church members have compared the church to a cult and detailed incidents of sexual assault. --Andrea Cavallier; Daily Mail; When good pastors go bad: From disgraced Carl Lentz's multiple affairs in Hillsong scandal to NYC's 'bling bishop', these are the biggest falls from grace 3.12.23
==bill leonard====================
==Josh lesage==================
Josh LeSage was appointed as the Valley Chrsitian High School Principal beginning in August 2020. Josh came from Louisiana and replaced Dan Kuiper as the school’s high school principal.
Jan 10, 2023: World Magazine: Arizona Christian school sued for firing pro-LGBT teacher
According to McDorman, Valley Christian High School Principal Josh LeSage found out about the student’s post and met with her along with Chizzy Anderson, the school’s coordinator of student health and wellness.
McDorman objected to the meeting, arguing that LeSage should be more accepting of the LGBT population, especially Valley Christian students, and suggested that a gay pastor from the area be invited to the meeting. LeSage declined. In the meeting, which the student recorded, LeSage was sympathetic toward the student, yet he explained that a homosexual lifestyle was counter to the Bible’s teaching.
LeSage told the female student that God might or might not take away her sexual desire for other girls. “But I believe that in either circumstance, you can honor God with what you choose to do with your body because the Word of God says the same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead lives inside of you,” he told her.
According to McDorman, Valley Christian High School Principal Josh LeSage found out about the student’s post and met with her along with Chizzy Anderson, the school’s coordinator of student health and wellness.
McDorman objected to the meeting, arguing that LeSage should be more accepting of the LGBT population, especially Valley Christian students, and suggested that a gay pastor from the area be invited to the meeting. LeSage declined. In the meeting, which the student recorded, LeSage was sympathetic toward the student, yet he explained that a homosexual lifestyle was counter to the Bible’s teaching.
LeSage told the female student that God might or might not take away her sexual desire for other girls. “But I believe that in either circumstance, you can honor God with what you choose to do with your body because the Word of God says the same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead lives inside of you,” he told her.
==autumn leva===================
Autumn Leva is an attorney who came to Family Policy Alliance from the state family policy organization Minnesota Family Council, where she served as MFC’s Director of Policy and Communications. She was the spokesperson for a statewide ballot measure in Minnesota, and she has developed policy from within government as a Legislative and Executive Assistant to a U.S. Congressman from Colorado.
Autumn has also served as a summer associate in the Heritage Foundation’s legal center, studied international human rights law in Strasbourg, France, and led a research team in developing a 50-state textbook on civil procedure. Autumn holds a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education and a J.D. from Regent University School of Law. She is licensed to practice law in Virginia.
Autumn has also served as a summer associate in the Heritage Foundation’s legal center, studied international human rights law in Strasbourg, France, and led a research team in developing a 50-state textbook on civil procedure. Autumn holds a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education and a J.D. from Regent University School of Law. She is licensed to practice law in Virginia.
Autumn Leva
“A political agenda has taken over what would normally be in the realm of parents and medical professionals. We’ve completely turned that (weaponization) around, and now elected leaders are lining up to make sure they show that they do not stand for children being transitioned.” -Autumn Leva on transgender rights; Baptist News Global; 5.30.23
May 30, 2023: Baptist News Global: Focus on the Family affiliate is the unifying force behind campaign to restrict transgender rights
Autumn Leva, FPA’s senior vice president for strategy, said while the “woke left” and their collaborators in the medical establishment have “weaponized” transgender identity, FPA has set up a “shield of defense” protecting children from treatments that do no good and cause great harm.
Autumn Leva, FPA’s senior vice president for strategy, said while the “woke left” and their collaborators in the medical establishment have “weaponized” transgender identity, FPA has set up a “shield of defense” protecting children from treatments that do no good and cause great harm.
==russell j levenson============
The Reverend Dr. Russell J. Levenson, Jr. is Rector of St. Martin’s Episcopal Church in Houston, Texas, and the author of “Witness to Dignity: The Life and Faith of George H. W. and Barbara Bush.”
Russell Levenson
“What’s needed now is full-throated condemnation of the former president from members of his party. By failing to hold Trump to account, they are allowing the party to sink into an abyss and it will pay a high price for ignoring the moral high ground…It may take a generation or more for the party to recover from the looming disaster”. --Rev Dr Russell J Levenson; Opinion: GOP leaders backing Trump are in a moral abyss; 8.1.23
“What’s needed now is full-throated condemnation of the former president from members of his party. By failing to hold Trump to account, they are allowing the party to sink into an abyss and it will pay a high price for ignoring the moral high ground…It may take a generation or more for the party to recover from the looming disaster”. --Rev Dr Russell J Levenson; Opinion: GOP leaders backing Trump are in a moral abyss; 8.1.23
==sharma lewis================
Sharma D. Lewis (born 1963) is an American bishop in the United Methodist Church. She was consecrated in 2016 and is the resident bishop of the Mississippi episcopal area. She is the first African American woman to be elected as bishop in the UMC's Southeastern Jurisdictional Conference.
Episcopal Diocese of Mississippi elects its first woman, Black person as bishop
In a historical election, the Episcopal Diocese of Mississippi chose Rev. Dr. Dorothy Sanders Wells as its new bishop Saturday, making her the first woman and first Black person elected to lead the church. The selection continues a trend in Mississippi as Sharma Lewis was elected as the first Black woman to become the Mississippi United Methodist Church bishop in November 2022. Wells will become bishop-elect on May 1 and work alongside Seage before being ordained on July 20.
(USA Today 2/4/24) READ MORE>>>>>
In a historical election, the Episcopal Diocese of Mississippi chose Rev. Dr. Dorothy Sanders Wells as its new bishop Saturday, making her the first woman and first Black person elected to lead the church. The selection continues a trend in Mississippi as Sharma Lewis was elected as the first Black woman to become the Mississippi United Methodist Church bishop in November 2022. Wells will become bishop-elect on May 1 and work alongside Seage before being ordained on July 20.
(USA Today 2/4/24) READ MORE>>>>>
‘Turning a corner today’: 142 Mississippi churches leave UMC over homosexuality debate
Following a performance by the Anderson UMC choir, Mississippi Bishop Sharma Lewis said the disaffiliation votes had been approved, and that the vote tallies for the individual churches would be made available later. “I don’t want you to clap,” said Lewis after announcing the result, with those gathered remaining silent. “This is still sensitive and painful. But we are turning a corner today.
(Mike Gryboski/Christian Post/12/9.23) READ MORE>>>>>
Following a performance by the Anderson UMC choir, Mississippi Bishop Sharma Lewis said the disaffiliation votes had been approved, and that the vote tallies for the individual churches would be made available later. “I don’t want you to clap,” said Lewis after announcing the result, with those gathered remaining silent. “This is still sensitive and painful. But we are turning a corner today.
(Mike Gryboski/Christian Post/12/9.23) READ MORE>>>>>
==brooke ligertwood===================
Brooke Gabrielle Ligertwood (Fraser; born 15 December 1983), professionally known as Brooke Fraser, is a New Zealand singer and songwriter best known for her hit single "Something in the Water", released in 2010. Fraser released two studio albums What to Do with Daylight (2003) and Albertine (2006) through Columbia Records before signing a recording contract with Wood + Bone. Her third studio album, Flags, was released in 2010 and is her most successful album to date. She released the album, Brutal Romantic, in November 2014 through Vagrant Records. After a long hiatus from solo albums, she released her first live album, Seven, in 2022, while another studio album, Eight, was released on October 20, 2023. Both recent albums have been released in her married name - Brooke Ligertwood.
The Evolution of Brooke Ligertwood
Brooke Ligertwood has spent more days than she can count in the studio, but there’s one particular session that stands out the most. While filming an acoustic set for her latest album, Eight, Ligertwood had almost started the recording when the studio’s owner approached her with an old microphone in hand. The crew had already set the stage up and the sound was exactly what everyone wanted, so she was confused about what the owner intended to do with the old microphone. Little did she know, it wasn’t just an ordinary microphone.
(Relevant Magazine 1/26/24) READ MORE>>>>>
Brooke Ligertwood has spent more days than she can count in the studio, but there’s one particular session that stands out the most. While filming an acoustic set for her latest album, Eight, Ligertwood had almost started the recording when the studio’s owner approached her with an old microphone in hand. The crew had already set the stage up and the sound was exactly what everyone wanted, so she was confused about what the owner intended to do with the old microphone. Little did she know, it wasn’t just an ordinary microphone.
(Relevant Magazine 1/26/24) READ MORE>>>>>
Why It Feels So Disappointing to Sing to the Lord a Remote Song
Brooke Ligertwood writes in a blog post for Hillsong, “Who is worship for? Spoiler alert: worship is not for people. It’s for the Lord.” Similarly, Justin Rizzo of International House of Prayer tells worship leaders, “God alone will be present at your worship times. You will have no choice but to actually minister before an audience of one . That one alone is worthy of your worship. Worship has always been about Him.”
(Christianity Today 3/5/21) READ MORE>>>>>
Brooke Ligertwood writes in a blog post for Hillsong, “Who is worship for? Spoiler alert: worship is not for people. It’s for the Lord.” Similarly, Justin Rizzo of International House of Prayer tells worship leaders, “God alone will be present at your worship times. You will have no choice but to actually minister before an audience of one . That one alone is worthy of your worship. Worship has always been about Him.”
(Christianity Today 3/5/21) READ MORE>>>>>
==paul lim========================
5 reasons why evangelicals are rallying behind Israel
Former Israeli Ambassador to the United States Ron Dermer said in a May 2021 statement that Israel should spend more of its energy reaching out to “passionate” American evangelicals than to Jews, who are “disproportionately among our critics.” To understand the spiritual, political and theological reasons why evangelical Christians are such big supporters of Israel not just religiously, but also politically, Reckon spoke with Dr. Paul Lim, Christian history professor at Vanderbilt University. Here are five reasons evangelicals are showing such strong support for Israel right now. (Anna Beahm/Reckon 11/10/23)
Read More>>>>>
Former Israeli Ambassador to the United States Ron Dermer said in a May 2021 statement that Israel should spend more of its energy reaching out to “passionate” American evangelicals than to Jews, who are “disproportionately among our critics.” To understand the spiritual, political and theological reasons why evangelical Christians are such big supporters of Israel not just religiously, but also politically, Reckon spoke with Dr. Paul Lim, Christian history professor at Vanderbilt University. Here are five reasons evangelicals are showing such strong support for Israel right now. (Anna Beahm/Reckon 11/10/23)
Read More>>>>>
==John Lindell================
John Lindell, pastor, speaker, and author of Soul Set Free, and New Normal, is known for his powerful and dynamic verse-by-verse teaching of God’s Word. For over thirty-one years, John and his wife, Debbie, have served together as the Lead Pastors of James River Church, a faith-filled, multisite church with six campuses reaching the world with the gospel.
How Does God Heal?
The alleged healing of three amputated toes made national news recently. Pastor John Lindell at James River Church in Ozark, Missouri, claimed that during services in Joplin on March 15th, a woman was healed who was missing three toes. He said her toes were regrown within thirty minutes of praying over her. I’m usually oblivious to things like this since James River Church has a tendency to make the news. A few years ago, Pastor Lindell spoke out on yoga’s spiritualism and it sparked some controversy. But last week, I was approached after a class at the gym by a member of James River Church to go seek healing there during their services. She had overheard me talking to the instructor about my pain and seizures, a disability that has changed so many things about my life. “Thank you, but I’m Baptist,” I apologized to the woman who is obviously a believer in healing.
(Word & Way 4/5/23) Read More>>>>>
The alleged healing of three amputated toes made national news recently. Pastor John Lindell at James River Church in Ozark, Missouri, claimed that during services in Joplin on March 15th, a woman was healed who was missing three toes. He said her toes were regrown within thirty minutes of praying over her. I’m usually oblivious to things like this since James River Church has a tendency to make the news. A few years ago, Pastor Lindell spoke out on yoga’s spiritualism and it sparked some controversy. But last week, I was approached after a class at the gym by a member of James River Church to go seek healing there during their services. She had overheard me talking to the instructor about my pain and seizures, a disability that has changed so many things about my life. “Thank you, but I’m Baptist,” I apologized to the woman who is obviously a believer in healing.
(Word & Way 4/5/23) Read More>>>>>
Aug 4, 2021: Assemblies of God: CMN DIRECTOR OPTIMISTIC
John E. Lindell, an ordained Assemblies of God minister who planted James River Church 30 years ago, spoke at the luncheon. James River Church has nearly 13,000 weekly attendees at campuses in Ozark, Springfield, and Joplin, Missouri.
Mar 27, 2015: Charisma: Megachurch Pastor Flatly Tells His Congregation to Stand Against Gay Rights Bill
Megachurch minister John Lindell told his 9,000-plus member congregation to vote "yes" on repealing Springfield, Missouri's, Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity law early next month.
John E. Lindell, an ordained Assemblies of God minister who planted James River Church 30 years ago, spoke at the luncheon. James River Church has nearly 13,000 weekly attendees at campuses in Ozark, Springfield, and Joplin, Missouri.
Mar 27, 2015: Charisma: Megachurch Pastor Flatly Tells His Congregation to Stand Against Gay Rights Bill
Megachurch minister John Lindell told his 9,000-plus member congregation to vote "yes" on repealing Springfield, Missouri's, Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity law early next month.
==hal lindsey=================
Harold Lee Lindsey (born November 23, 1929) is an American evangelical writer and television host. He wrote a series of popular apocalyptic books – beginning with The Late Great Planet Earth (1970) – asserting that the Apocalypse or end time (including the rapture) was imminent because current events were fulfilling Bible prophecy. He is a Christian Zionist and dispensationalist.
Jesus will most definitely return in 2024. Maybe
I vividly remember the first time I got snookered on the whole Jesus parousia date-setting thing. I was a baby Christian who had just been saved by studying eschatology, which started with me reading Hal Lindsey’s best-seller The Late Great Planet Earth. Now, let me quickly pause and say that plenty disagree with Lindsey and his eschatology, but even if he’s wrong, my salvation is proof that God can draw a straight line with a crooked stick. (Christian Post 12/25/23) READ MORE>>>>>
I vividly remember the first time I got snookered on the whole Jesus parousia date-setting thing. I was a baby Christian who had just been saved by studying eschatology, which started with me reading Hal Lindsey’s best-seller The Late Great Planet Earth. Now, let me quickly pause and say that plenty disagree with Lindsey and his eschatology, but even if he’s wrong, my salvation is proof that God can draw a straight line with a crooked stick. (Christian Post 12/25/23) READ MORE>>>>>
Nov 23, 2022: Slacktivist: 11/23 Flashback: 93
Hal Lindsey turns 85 years old today, something that Lindsey himself has spent decades telling us should never come to pass.
Lindsey’s 1970 book, The Late Great Planet Earth — a blockbuster best-seller — told us that the End of the World was nigh. And not just maybe a bit nigh-ish, mind you, but really, really nigh.
Hal Lindsey turns 85 years old today, something that Lindsey himself has spent decades telling us should never come to pass.
Lindsey’s 1970 book, The Late Great Planet Earth — a blockbuster best-seller — told us that the End of the World was nigh. And not just maybe a bit nigh-ish, mind you, but really, really nigh.
==damon linker==============
RELIGION ON THE RECORD: Apr 25, 2014: Author, Damon Linker, in an article published in "The Week" announces boldly: "What Christians get wrong about hell." The assumption, from the title might very well be that there is some sort of apologetics or unique Christian epistemology approach. However, no it is not. The basic summation of the article is that Linker thinks that the great theologian, Socrates, has the more intelligent way to think about hell. What? Socrates was a theologian? No, he wasn't. And neither is Linker. In an attempt to rationalize away any suggestion that hell is eternal damnation, Linker attempts to break away from any perception of hell that the bible may conjure by a bunch of Christians who think that "Jumping off from a handful of Gospel passages in which Jesus Christ speaks about "eternal punishment" for sinners in the afterlife, these believers conjure visions of a cosmic torture chamber in which those who reject God or commit grave sins without repentance are subjected to endless torment as punishment for their transgressions.
==Scott lively===================
Scott Lively is an attorney, pastor, human rights consultant and missionary with service in more than 50 countries. He is the author of eight books including "Redeeming the Rainbow," a textbook on pro-family advocacy and opposition the the LGBT agenda, and his most recent work "The Prodigal Son Prophecy: God's Amazing Plan for the Restoration of the Two Hebrew Houses and the Salvation of the Gentiles."
March 19, 2023: Foreign Policy: How U.S. Evangelicals Helped Homophobia Flourish in Africa
In the early 2000s, American evangelical Scott Lively was part of a series of anti-gay events that culminated in Uganda’s 2009 “Kill the gays” bill, which called for the death penalty for what it described as “aggravated homosexuality.” Lively had written books such as The Pink Swastika: Homosexuality in the Nazi Party and Seven Steps to Recruit-Proof Your Child against what he described as “pro-homosexual indoctrination.” The bill—which Lively opposed as too harsh—was introduced after Lively spoke at the March 2009 conference organized by Langa that hosted U.S. representatives of the ex-gay movement.
In the early 2000s, American evangelical Scott Lively was part of a series of anti-gay events that culminated in Uganda’s 2009 “Kill the gays” bill, which called for the death penalty for what it described as “aggravated homosexuality.” Lively had written books such as The Pink Swastika: Homosexuality in the Nazi Party and Seven Steps to Recruit-Proof Your Child against what he described as “pro-homosexual indoctrination.” The bill—which Lively opposed as too harsh—was introduced after Lively spoke at the March 2009 conference organized by Langa that hosted U.S. representatives of the ex-gay movement.
Apr 14, 2022: WND: Scott Lively: WND: When and why American exceptionalism died
Op-Ed: How anti-gay Christians evangelize hate abroad
In March 2009, while in Kampala, Uganda, researching reports of U.S. right-wing evangelical involvement in attacks on LGBTQ equality and reproductive justice, I was invited to a three-day conference on homosexuality hosted by the Family Life Network, which is based in New York. The keynote speaker was Scott Lively from Springfield, Mass., who introduced himself as a leading expert on the “international homosexual agenda.” I filmed Lively over the course of two days as he instructed religious and political leaders about how gays were coming to Uganda from the West to “recruit children into homosexuality.Some of his assertions would have been laughable had he not been so deadly serious. He claimed that a gay clique that included Adolf Hitler was behind the Holocaust, and he insinuated that gay people fueled the Rwandan genocide. In the United States, Lively is widely dismissed as an anti-gay firebrand and Holocaust revisionist. But in Uganda, he was presented — and accepted — as a leading international authority. The public persecution of LGBTQ people escalated after Lively’s conference, with one local newspaper publishing the pictures and addresses of activists under the headline, “Hang Them.”
Lively was also invited to private briefings with political and religious leaders, and to address the Ugandan parliament during his 2009 visit. The next month, Ugandan lawmaker David Bahati unveiled his Anti-Homosexuality Bill, which in its original form called for the death penalty as punishment for a new crime of “aggravated homosexuality.” (Los Angeles Times 3.23.14) READ MORE>>>>>
In March 2009, while in Kampala, Uganda, researching reports of U.S. right-wing evangelical involvement in attacks on LGBTQ equality and reproductive justice, I was invited to a three-day conference on homosexuality hosted by the Family Life Network, which is based in New York. The keynote speaker was Scott Lively from Springfield, Mass., who introduced himself as a leading expert on the “international homosexual agenda.” I filmed Lively over the course of two days as he instructed religious and political leaders about how gays were coming to Uganda from the West to “recruit children into homosexuality.Some of his assertions would have been laughable had he not been so deadly serious. He claimed that a gay clique that included Adolf Hitler was behind the Holocaust, and he insinuated that gay people fueled the Rwandan genocide. In the United States, Lively is widely dismissed as an anti-gay firebrand and Holocaust revisionist. But in Uganda, he was presented — and accepted — as a leading international authority. The public persecution of LGBTQ people escalated after Lively’s conference, with one local newspaper publishing the pictures and addresses of activists under the headline, “Hang Them.”
Lively was also invited to private briefings with political and religious leaders, and to address the Ugandan parliament during his 2009 visit. The next month, Ugandan lawmaker David Bahati unveiled his Anti-Homosexuality Bill, which in its original form called for the death penalty as punishment for a new crime of “aggravated homosexuality.” (Los Angeles Times 3.23.14) READ MORE>>>>>
