GA Megachurch pastor comes out.

[CurtEastPoint]

The last graf in this story made me glad:

“I know all the hateful stuff that’s being written about me online, whatever,” Swilley said. “To think about saving a teenager yeah, I'll risk my reputation for that.”


Here's a bit more plus link to story:

ROCKDALE COUNTY, Ga. -- The pastor of a Rockdale County megachurch has publicly announced he is gay. Jim Swilley, bishop of Conyers’ Church in the Now, said he hopes his coming out will change attitudes toward homosexuality. “I know a lot of straight people think it is a choice. It is not,” Swilley told Channel 2’s Diana Davis.

Swilley, 52, founded the church 25 years ago. He seemed the stereotypical picture of a pastor, with four kids and a wife who doubled as his associate pastor. But Swilley said he's known he was gay since he was little boy. He said his wife, Debye, also knew his secret from the start.

“I think some women marry gay men because they really think they can change them,” Swilley said. The now-divorced couple kept their secret for 21 years, but earlier this year, Swilley said Debye told him it was time to stop living a lie. She said he should practice what he preaches and follow the church’s motto, “Real people experiencing a real God in the real world.”

So, Swilley came out to his kids and his congregation. He said he knew he might risk everything, but the recent rash of gay teen suicides pushed him over the edge.

Full story: http://www.wsbtv.com/news/25568419/detail.html

[lillypaddle]

1. Good for him

and good for his wife (ex) - brave people. Best wishes to him and his family - and congregation.

[MindandSoul]

2. Great! I think I would feel that I can trust him more after this!

[Divine Discontent]

3. Praise Jesus!@!@!@! That is a great story! Keep 'em coming!

[customerserviceguy]

4. I'm not familiar with this church

Anybody know what they've said about the subject in the past?

[Odin2005]

5. Good for him!

:applause:

I hope this changes attitudes among evangelicals.

[DeSwiss]

6. This non-believer salutes you Pastor Swilley. - K&R - n/t

[rug]

10. That's big of you. “Real people experiencing a real God in the real world.”

[skepticscott]

7. And what has he been doing

for the past 25 years in his church? Staying silent while hateful, homophobic attitudes fermented? Or worse yet, helping those attitudes to persist and spread? It'd take a lot more than a warm and fuzzy coming out to make up for that.

[AlecBGreen]

8. when anything happens

you can choose to focus on the positive or the negative. you have chosen to focus on the negative. if that becomes a habit, your life can really start to suck. i say that from experience. try looking on the bright side this time.

[skepticscott]

9. When anything happens

you can choose to see all sides of the situation, or you can choose to limit what you will let yourself think about. I choose the former, with no apology. Your presumption (not knowing me at all), that I'm not happy about the other side of things is simply wrong. I am, but I chose to comment on an aspect of the situation that no one else on the thread did. A little balance is a good thing, wouldn't you agree? Having someone point out ways of looking at a situation that you may not have considered yourself is a good thing, wouldn't you agree?

[AlecBGreen]

11. you are correct

after I typed that post I thought about it again and wished I had chosen my words more carefully. I think its my frustration that there are some who focus strictly on the negative and refuse to acknowledge the good that is also present. I used to be like that, and often revert back to that. Its a hard habit to break.

People's understanding of homosexuality and their attitudes towards it are a sensitive topic for me. As a Christian with a gay family member (and a believer that its not a sin to be gay) I am ecstatic when my fundamentalist Christian brothers and sisters "see the light" on this topic.

"A little balance is a good thing, wouldn't you agree?" In most cases yes.

"Having someone point out ways of looking at a situation that you may not have considered yourself is a good thing, wouldn't you agree?" Always!

[Copernic]

12. Seems to be happening a lot.

But consider the alternative brought to you by your friends over at The Chicago Dope.

http://www.thechicagodope.com/2010/09/26/gay-man-comes-out-as-an-evangelical-megachurch-preacher/">Gay Man Comes Out as an Evangelical Megachurch Preacher