The Southern
Baptist Convention has created a new position of national
strategist on gender issues, who will work with gays and
lesbians who believe they can "overcome" their
homosexuality. Bob Stith, who served as pastor of
Carroll Baptist Church in Southlake, Texas, for 37
years, started the new job June 1. On June 13, at the SBC
annual meeting in San Antonio, Stith said he hopes to
bring men and women ''to wholeness in Jesus Christ.''
He hopes the ministry will help gays and lesbians
''come to a place where this temptation doesn't dominate
their life.''
Stith and SBC
officials are still working out the specifics of the job.
With more than 16 million members, the Southern Baptist
Convention is the largest Protestant denomination in
the country. Several evangelical groups, including
Exodus International and Focus on the Family, run
programs teaching that homosexuality is a sin that can be
overcome. Gay rights groups and many medical
professionals say faith-based programs advocating
''reparative therapy'' for gays and lesbians are dangerous
to patients. (AP)