LAMBETH: David's Diary - From My Ear to Yours (3)

http://www.virtueonline.org/portal/modules/news/article.php?storyid=8764

[VirtueOnline] 31 Jul 2008--The whole gay and lesbian presence here is overwhelming and relentless. When you go into the Marketplace, the first booth to hit you as you go through the front door is "Lesbian and Gay Christian and Our Friends". (Who set that up?) Cheery young people dressed in yellow tee shirts hand out literature to all and sundry. From there the push is on. In all, there are five sodomite booths ranging from Integrity, Inclusive Church, Affirming Catholicism (pro gay), Changing Attitude to Sybils (a transgender presence). A Massachusetts priest who had a sex change operation (he now sports a beard) is eager to tell his story. And then there's the Rev. Dr. Christina Beardsley, now a woman who was a man, who functions as a hospital chaplain in the UK. Gay and lesbian literature is everywhere, but most of it seems unread. Last night there was an evening with somebody called Peterson Toscano who has written a play, "Doin' Time in the Homo No Mo Halfway House" in which he tells the story of how he survived the 'ex-gay' movement.

Speaking of ex-gay or post-gay, the Zacchaeus Fellowship is here bearing witness to the transforming power of Christ's love in our lives. "As men and women who have struggled with same-sex attractions, we seek to be a voice of hope to the church and to others who share these struggles. We encourage the Church to stand firm in proclaiming to everyone who experiences same-sex attractions that Christ offers them new life and hope." Not with this crowd. Inclusion means never having to repent or change your life.

Revulsion is everywhere. The Africans find all this public display of homosexual behavior repulsive and in-your-face. They are polite here, except for occasional eruptions in Indaba groups. When they go back to their countries, I have no doubt they will have second thoughts about what they saw and heard. Africans react slowly, but when they do, it will be final and possibly fatal to the long- term future of the Communion.