Not only is Lutheran Pastor Tom Brock back in the fold after an internal church investigation found he’s still a 57-year-old virgin, but he’s finally getting around to mincing words with Lavender magazine’s John Townsend, who exposed Brock’s supposed hypocrisy.
Townsend has been cagey about how he “infiltrated” Courage, the Catholic support group for gays who want to not be gay. But Brock says flatly: “Townsend had lied his way into this confidential group in order to attend and expose my presence there.” And as for the notion that Brock “slipped” while on a trip to Slovakia (“slip” implying he gave into his cravings), Brock maintains “contrary to what Townsend and the Lavender article strongly implied, I have never engaged in homosexual behavior. An internal investigation by my congregation concluded: ‘We find no evidence from any sources we examined or people we interviewed to indicate that Pastor Brock had engaged in any physical contact or in a homosexual relationship of any type.'” Well that should fend off the critics.
But great news, everyone! Brock is a pious man, and he’s forgiving you, Townsend.
Townsend also states that we believe “unrepentant homosexual activity damns to hellfire.” I do believe this, as it is the teaching of the Bible and the historic teaching of the Church that persisting in any lifestyle of sin (not only homosexuality) without repentance and faith in Christ will exclude people from the kingdom of God (I Corinthians 6:9-11). Townsend states there is “psychological abuse” going on in this Catholic support group. No — we pray together and counsel each other how to remain pure.
While I am disappointed that the reporter and Lavender magazine have breached journalistic ethics, I have chosen to forgive them. My prayer is that some good can come out of this. I hope people will discover that there are thousands of people with unwanted same-sex attraction who have joined similar groups around the country and have found there is hope in Jesus Christ for transformation of life. In other words, there are options other than simply “giving in” to these attractions.
And now, Brock is off to do more of the lord’s work: “After this story broke, a member of my support group called me and said that the one thing the homosexual community never hears from a person in the Christian community is, ‘I have this struggle, but you can have this struggle, still say ‘no’ to it, and follow Jesus.’ This is a message I believe I will now be able to share.”
KWil
I’ll believe in a man’s forgiveness if he can first forgive himself.
the crustybastard
Did they check to see if his hymen was intact?
[Eyeroll]
Your sin is not my crime, Pastor Virgin.
Do try to remember that as much as you don’t want gays in your church, that’s about half as much as I don’t want pastors in my government.
L.
@KWil: I’ll believe in a ‘virgin celibate’ pastor’s dexterousness if he can first finger himself.
james_from_the_great_city_of_cambridge
This guy probably “slipped” by jerking off to gay porn; then again, with the easy access the internet offers, I guarantee you Tom here and all the other ex-gays manage to stay celibate only because they’re jerking it to gay porn daily, maybe hourly. Someone needs to ask them about this and why this isn’t a sin. Freaks.
Geoff M
This man is to be pitied. Someday he will reach a point where he can no longer deny who he is, and the guilt and remorse will be hard to bear.
B
Well, according to Rasputin, God wants you to repent and to really repent, you have to really sin, which is just what Rasputin would do so he’d have something to repent for. Maybe Tom Brock should follow Rasputin’s example – he needs some excuse to “break the ice.”