Holding the Courage Apostolate Accountable

As I noted in a previous post, I’m very interested in seeing how the Roman Catholic Church’s Courage apostolate responds to the American Psychological Association’s recent repudiation of “reparative therapy.”


About Courage

As I’ve documented previously (most notably here), Courage seeks to help people move beyond “same-sex attraction” by encouraging a life of “interior chastity in union with Christ.” The apostolate labels itself a “pro-chastity ministry” and equates chastity with celibacy. Although Courage itself does not attempt to change adult homosexual orientation, its website has a link to the U.S.-based National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality (NARTH), a sham organization of “therapists” that teaches that homosexuality is a disorder not only chosen, but changeable through effort and therapy.

The Courage website also links to numerous non-Catholic so-called “ex-gay” conservative religious groups — such as, Exodus International, Homosexuals Anonymous, Hope Ministry, International Healing Foundation, JONAH, People Can Change, Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays and Gays (P-FOX), and Straightway.


Important Questions

In light of the latest from the APA, why would Courage continue to endorse organizations that recommend and/or offer “therapies” aimed at changing people from gay to straight?

If the apostolate is going to link to resources offering psychological information and/or care, shouldn’t such resources be credible, i.e., in line with mainstream psychological thinking and practice?

Advocating celibacy for gay people, which Courage maintains is its main aim, is one thing. And for some gay people, such a response to their sexuality may indeed be appropriate* (although I question if celibacy is a serious option for healthy individuals with normal levels of desires). Yet aligning with questionable organizations that advocate “reparative therapy” is something altogether different, and something the Church should not be doing. And since the call to celibacy certainly doesn’t require such an alignment, why is it encouraged and tolerated by the Courage apostolate?


What You Can Do

The Minnesota-based Catholic Pastoral Committee on Sexual Minorities (of which I serve as executive coordinator) urges you to join it in contacting Courage so as to raise and discuss these important questions.

Let us make contact as Catholics concerned that our Church is being linked to disreputable psychological theories and practices.

And please consider requesting, politely yet firmly, that Courage:

1) Publicly refute the pseudo-science of reparative therapy advocated by NARTH and other “ex-gay” groups.

2) Remove from its website links to any and all organizations offering such therapy.

3) Commit to actively dissuading its members from pursuing such therapy.

4) Educate its leadership and members on what the mainstream psychological establishment says about homosexuality and the impact of homo-negativity on psychological health,** and be open to allowing this reputable psychological knowledge to inform its theology of human sexuality.

Courage’s central office is located in New York City. Fr. Paul Check serves as director of the apostolate in the U.S.

Courage
c/o Church of St John The Baptist
210 West 31st Street
New York NY 10001

Email: NYCourage@aol.com
Phone: (212) 268-1010
Fax: (212) 268-7150

Local chapters of Courage exist in various dioceses. Here in the Archdiocese of St. Paul-Minneapolis, Courage goes by the name of Faith in Action. The Office of Marriage and Family Life, which administrates the Faith in Action program, can be contacted at 651-291-4438.

After making contact with Courage, please consider sharing in the comments section of this post how your conversation went.


Update: I just got off the phone with Fr. Jim Lloyd, a clinical psychologist who for the last ten years has facilitated a Courage group in New York City. Fr. Lloyd also serves on the Courage Board of Advisors. We had a very friendly chat about the issues and questions I raise in this post.

Fr Lloyd, a member of the APA and a self-professed Freudian, does not believe that Courage will be adversely affected by the APA’s repudiation of “reparative therapy.” At one point he compared this repudiation to a mosquito bite. When I asked him if the apostolate will be removing from its website links to organizations that recommend and/or offer reparative therapy, he said that these organizations offer more than this particular type of therapy. There’s a lot of “picking and choosing” that goes on when it comes to psychology, he said. (Hmm . . . sounds like “cafeteria Catholicism”! Something of which I’m sure Fr. Lloyd wouldn’t approve.)

He reiterated Courage’s goal of helping people with “same-sex attractions” live chaste lives in accordance with the Roman Catholic Church’s teaching on homosexuality, though concluded our conversation by noting: “Whatever position you take, as long as you believe in it.”

______________________________

* On the issue of celibacy as therapy Wayne Besen writes: “It is true that in extreme cases, a lifetime of celibacy may lead to a happier existence than coming out of the closet. These rare people, unfortunately, are often so damaged by fundamentalism that they are unable to express their sexuality in healthy ways. Indeed, they are stricken by excessive guilt if they enjoy any form of pleasure that is not sanctioned by their church. In such instances of irreparable damage to victims of faith-based oppression, celibacy may work (sort of) as a last ditch effort to help these people find a small measure of peace.”

** In September 2008 researchers at the University of Minnesota published a study showing that the degree of internalized homo-negativity (negative attitude towards homosexuality) among homosexual men is what predicts poor mental and sexual health – not the degree of homosexuality. The study appeared in the September issue of the Journal of Homosexuality.

According to Simon Rosser, Ph.D., a researcher in the School of Public Health and principal investigator of the study, the results of the study helps inform the debate of whether or not being homosexual is healthy. “This study is a missing link in our understanding of the relationship between sexuality and health,” he said. “It provides new evidence that negative attitudes towards homosexuality, not homosexuality itself, are associated with both poorer mental and sexual health outcomes seen in sexual minorities. Conversely, positive attitudes towards homosexuality are associated with better mental and sexual health.”

For more than 150 years, scholars and educators have debated whether homosexuality is an objective disorder or whether societal prejudice, not homosexuality, leads to the elevated rates of depression, drug use, and HIV/STD epidemics seen in studies of gay men. Rosser called this study groundbreaking because it directly tested both theories and found evidence that only one was accurate.

“Given the debates in many religious denominations about homosexuality, and in society about homosexuals and civil rights, it’s also timely,” Rosser said. “In particular, the old advice to gay men to fight, deny, or minimize their homosexuality likely only increases depression, greater isolation, and poorer sexual health. In short, viewing homosexuality as a disorder is not only inaccurate, it may be harmful as well.”


See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• It’s Official: APA Opposes “Reparative Therapy”
• “Curing” Homosexuality
• Debunking NARTH (Part I)
• Debunking NARTH (Part II)
• What Scientists in the UK Are Saying About Homosexuality
• The Real Meaning of Courage
• The Many Forms of Courage (Part I)
• The Many Forms of Courage (Part II)
• The Many Forms of Courage (Part III)
• Beyond Courage

Recommended Off-site Links:
The APA Says “No Evidence” in Support of Ex-Gay Therapy - Wayne Besen (TruthWinsOut.org, August 5, 2009).
APA Passes Resolution Against Ex-Gay Therapy - Jim Burroway (Box Turtle Bulletin, August 5, 2009).
Exodus International Responds to the APA Resolution on Change Therapy - Jim Burroway (Box Turtle Bulletin, August 6, 2009).
NARTH Responds to the APA Resolution on Change Therapy - Jim Burroway (Box Turtle Bulletin, August 7, 2009).
Celibacy as a Therapy Goal - Wayne Besen (TruthWinsOut.org, August 6, 2009).