Church program tackles same-sex attraction

LACONIA — A pastor says same-sex attraction is one of the “hurts, habits and hangups” that can be healed through a faith-based 12-step program called Celebrate Recovery.

The program, which is offered Fridays from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at LifeQuest Church, provides support for those seeking help and is effective and appropriate, Pastor Shaun Dutile said.

Opponents contend such programs can be harmful to participants and reinforces negative stereotypes.  

Dutile said Celebrate Recovery, modeled on Alcoholics Anonymous and offered at thousands of churches, has provided help to about 125 people locally over the last two years. Only one or two were concerned about same-sex attraction. Most sought help for addiction and other problems.

Gov. Chris Sununu this month signed House Bill 587, prohibiting counseling professionals from providing therapy that seeks to change a minor’s sexual orientation or gender identity.

Such therapy “has been rejected by every major professional medical and mental health association,” the ACLU of New Hampshire said in a statement. “It is premised on the false notion that sexual orientation and gender identity are choices, and its risks are particularly acute for youth.”

The local Celebrate Recovery program is for adults, and as a church program, is exempt from the legislation.

Dutile said the bill, which takes effect Jan. 1, is based on assumptions that same-sex attraction is something people want to have and that it can’t be changed.

“I think those assumptions are fundamentally false and can't be proven,” he said.

Dutile said the recovery program began in Lake Forest, Calif., in 1991 and is now in use at 30,000 churches worldwide. “Hurts, habits and hangups” addressed by the program, which is free, also include alcohol, drugs, pornography, sexual addiction, food addiction, codependency, anger, abuse and gambling addiction.

“We have helped people looking for freedom from same-sex attraction,” he said. “We are here to support one another, not fix one another.

“People say the experience is positive. Some need temporary support, some are longer term.”

State Rep. Ed Butler, co-sponsor of the bill banning gay conversion therapy, said that although the church program is not covered by the legislation, he feels the Celebrate Recovery approach can be detrimental to participants. 

“It’s unfortunate there are religious teachings that tell us that we are somehow wrong in our identity,” Butler said. “I know that that's not correct.

“I know that I, as a gay man, am as healthy and productive a citizen as someone who is not gay or transgender or lesbian or bi-sexual or non-binary.”

He said it’s not uncommon for people to be concerned about their sexual identity.

“If they are counseled by people who believe that identity is wrong, a negative sense of self is reinforced,” he said.

John Dixon, a member of the local gay community, said efforts to change people from homosexual to heterosexual have a “long, sordid and often morbid history.

“The science behind it is so clear. Participants don’t change orientation, they try to change behavior and too often that leads to suicide.”

He noted the Celebrate Recovery program promises help for a wide variety of serious problems.

“How is same-sex attraction in any way equatable to any of those other things?” he asked. “Why do people who feel same-sex attraction need ‘healing?’”

The American Psychiatric Association, in a position statement, recommends that practitioners “refrain from attempts to change individuals’ sexual orientation, keeping in mind the medical dictum to first, do no harm.”