Reparative Therapy Rears Its Head Again
Regular readers will know that I have written about this subject several times in the past. The notion that homosexuality is an abomination, a sin against God that can be cured is truly an unacceptable prejudice in which faith is used as a way to discriminate against our fellow humans.
The key psychological organisations in the UK, including the UKCP, BACP, BPS and Royal College of Psychiatrists have signed a memorandum of understanding which states that this practice of “reparative therapy” has no therapeutic use and that homosexuality is not a pathology that needs to be cured.
Disappointingly, ITV has one reparative therapy’s loudest advocates on as a guest giving him a platform for his unscientific, illinformed and frankly homophobic views. Rightly, one of the hosts rounded on this individual referring to him as a bigot.
Whilst railing against reparative therapy is a good thing, it is not a good thing that broadcasters are still giving a platform to this discredited therapy. The time has come to stop using faith as an excuse to hate and discriminate. We live in a free and open society, and practitioners of reparative therapy, whatever their stated intentions or beliefs, are out of step with the psychological and scientific literature. It is time to stop pandering to these people and accept that we are all equals in the eyes of the law and dare I say even equal in the eyes of God. I don’t usually say this sort of thing, but if one is truly Christian, one knows that Jesus did not judge his fellow man. It’s a shame that some who claim to be his followers did not take that lesson from the bible that they are so keen on quoting.
