NO GAY GENE by Linda Bowles in WorldNetDaily commentary 8/10/99

The widely respected Dr. Joel Gelernter of Yale University was quoted in an article in "Science" as making this observation about various studies trying to link genes with complex human behavior: "All were announced with great fanfare; all were greeted unskeptically in the popular press; all are now in disrepute."

Among the studies in "disrepute" is the study of the brains of 35 male cadavers by Salk Institute researcher Simon LeVay. He reported that the cluster of neurons called INAH3 in the hypothalamus was generally smaller in 19 known homosexuals than in 16 heterosexuals.

Unfortunately, there were glaring problems with this study: The sample was too small; the sexuality of the 16 subjects classified as heterosexuals is suspect -- six of them died of AIDS. In advanced stages, AIDS itself is known to cause clinical insanity and might well affect brain structure; and finally, it has not been established that the area of the hypothalamus being studied has anything to do with sexual orientation.

Despite this lack of credibility, the media hailed it as a breakthrough in the quest to find a biological link with homosexual behavior.

In 1993, Dean Hamer of the National Cancer Institute studied 40 pairs of homosexual brothers, and found that 33 of the pairs had DNA markers in the same chromosome region called Xq28.

By happy chance, the study was released on the same day President Clinton was scheduled to lift the ban on homosexuals in the military. Surely, that had nothing to do with the unusual zeal with which the media jumped on the study and hyperventilated about it.

As examples, Mutual News Radio reported that researchers "have isolated a gene found only in gay males." Newsweek published a cover story titled "Gay Gene?" The Wall Street Journal posted the headline "Research Points Toward a Gay Gene." And numerous eminent newspapers announced new proof that homosexuals are born, not made.

Alas, the study has been totally discredited. The sample size was inadequate. There was no control group of heterosexuals where markers might or might not have been found. And finally, the study was later repeated by George Ebers of the University of Western Ontario, with findings that directly contradict Hamer's conclusions. Ebers used a much-larger sample than Hamer, and reported results that "do not support an x-linked gene underlying male homosexuality."

In an earlier study of identical twins, psychologist Michael Bailey of Northwestern University and psychiatrist Richard Pillard of Boston University reported that if one of the twins was homosexual, the other was also homosexual 52 percent of the time. This finding sheds light on the claim that being homosexual is like being black. Imagine what black parents would think if you told them that if they had identical twins and one of them was black, there was a 52 percent chance the other would also be black.

The bottom line is this: Homosexuals are made, and they can be unmade.

THE LESBIAN VISITOR Tim E. Wood of Tacoma Open Bible Church in Leadership Spring 95 p. 49

Molly called asking if we could talk. When she came in, she seemed cautious but expressed a love for Jesus and a desire to grow in her faith. Then she cut to the chase. "Before I get my heart all set on falling in love with this place and these incredible people, answer me this: Do you allow gays here?"

I wasn’t ready for that question. I had been raised in a tradition where the "don’t do’s" far outnumbered the "can do’s."

"I guess that all depends on what your motive for attending is," I finally said. "If you desire to learn more about a loving God and His ways, and are willing to let God have control of your life, you’re welcome to stay."

Then I added, "But if your reason for attending has changed from learning to dividing, proselytizing, justifying, or shocking and shaming the church, I reserve the right to ask you to leave. Is that understood?"

She promised me it was

Molly & I had may heart-to-hearts in the months and years to follow. The topics would change but never failed to challenge me with their scope and depth. One thing became increasingly evident: Molly loved Jesus.

Her life changed at a rapid pace, and her vibrant spirit and testimony drew others to ask questions and investigate the dramatic change.

Soon she said God had placed a burden on her heart to "return to her people" and share what God had done for her. She asked if several people in the church would tag along with her to a gay bar she used to frequent. She wanted to be a light to people on their own turf. Several from the church went with her and hung out or drank coffee or made small talk.

Molly explained that gays had been rejected by the church for so long that expecting them to come to the church looking for answers was unrealistic. She thought that if the gospel was powerful enough to save her, it would be powerful enough to protect her while she ministered in the bar. She was right.

People not only started asking questions, but they also began coming with her to church. Most stopped short of a total surrender to Christ, but they ventured in far enough to witness God’s love through a small but sincere group of people known as the church.

GENETIC BASIS FOR HOMOSEXUALITY?? US News 4/21/97 p. 78

Three lines of evidence support the idea of genetic basis for homosexuality, none of them conclusive. A study of twins and adopted siblings found that about half of identical twins of homosexual men were themselves gay, compared with 22% of fraternal twins and 11% of adoptees; a similar pattern was found among women. While such a pattern is consistent with some kind of genetic loading for sexual orientation, critics contend it also could be explained by the very similar experiences many twins share. And, of course, half the identical twins did not become gay -which by definition means something other than genes must be involved.

A well publicized 1991 study reported a distinctive anatomical feature in gay men. Simon LeVay (an openly gay researcher) autopsied the brains of homosexual men and heterosexual men and women and found that a certain nucleus in the hypothalamus was more than twice as large in heterosexual men as in gay men or heterosexual women. Although LeVay couldn't explain how this neurological difference might translate into homosexuality, he speculates that the nucleus is somehow related to sexual orientation. The hypothalamus is known to be involved in sexual responses.

The only study so far to report an actual genetic connection to homosexuality is a 1993 study by Dean Hamer, a National Institutes of health biologist who identified a genetic marker on the X chromosome in 75% of gay brothers. The functional significance of this piece of DNA is unknown, and subsequent research has not succeeded in duplicating Hamer's results.

HOMOSEXUALS ATTACK ANOTHER CHURCH AFA Journal 3/94

Radical homosexuals continue to attack Christians and disrupt worship services. On

November 7. 1993. services at the Village Springs Presbyterian Church in Colorado Springs were disrupted by a leather-clad ACT-UP contingent. When Associate Pastor Jim Singleton began the service, the militant homosexuals arose and chanted. "Gays and lesbians are under attack in Colorado Springs. We act up. This is for (pro-family Activist) Will Perkins. Enjoy your Sunday." Then they hurled condoms at the worshipers. The condoms were attached to packets of Kool-Aid upon which had been written. "Remember Jonestown."

July 25 1993: The Los Angeles Times reported an alarming study by the San Francisco Department of Public Health. It is confirmed that a generation of young homosexual men age 17 to 25 is ignoring the dangers of HIV infection and engaging repeatedly in high-risk behavior. So-called "gay bath houses" are again being frequented in San Francisco,

whereas they were closed after the AIDS epidemic came to light. Consequently, the incidence of HIV-positive cases among young homosexuals is again soaring.

("Dangerous Liaisons: Young Gay Men Know All About AlDS and HIV, Yet They Persist in Having Unprotected Sex." Jones, Robert A., Los Angeles Times June 25, 1993 p.10)

September 19 1993: Members of Hamilton Square Baptist Church in San Francisco were attending their Sunday evening service when they were attacked viciously by the gay-activist groups Act-Up and Queer Nation. The church was surrounded by more than 100 rioters who screamed obscenities and roughed-up parishioners who were attempting to attend the service. When the protesters saw boys and girls inside the church, they shouted, "We want your children, give us your children!" A nine-year-old boy was crying hysterically, They are after me. It's me they want."

The pastor, Dr. David Innes, begged for additional police support but his request was denied. He was told, "You must understand, this is San Francisco." No arrests were made.

(News release from Hamilton Square Baptist Church. San Francisco. Calif.)

TRUE HOMOSEXUAL CHARACTER REVEALED AFA JOURNAL FEB 94

Homosexuals argue that they are a peaceful and gay people. Yet, according to the Washington Times, 80% of homosexuals the U.S. Army court-martialed for sexual misconduct in the past four years had engaged in sexual assaults against their victims. Of these 102 cases, nearly half involved the molestation of children.

In addition, Dr. Paul Cameron of the Family Research Report writes "the top six U.S. male killers were all homosexuals." The list includes John Wayne Gacy (raped and killed 33 boys), Patrick Kerney (murdered 32 young men), Juan Corona (murdered 25 migrant workers), Jeffrey Dahmer (lured, drugged, raped and killed numerous young men).

"Our survey shows that the average homosexual has around 100 sex partners in a lifetime," Cameron says.

CREDITING GOD FOR CONDONING HOMOSEXUALITY Parade Mag., 1/31/93 p.7

George Melton, who has now been diagnosed as symptom free of his type of AIDS, turned 40 recently and had a birthday party." It was the first such party "since AIDS came on the scene... I felt it was time for a celebration of life." The writer for Parade notes that: "Melton and his male companion live in San Francisco." Melton observes "AIDS has been a gift for me because it presented clear choices: Live or die. The words of Jesus became sweet to me again. Through the teachings of Jesus, I discovered that my life has a purpose."

HOMOSEXUAL GAME Uncle John's 4th Bathroom Reader, p. 13

The proprietors of "Buddies," a well known gay bar in Boston, invented this game (Twinkies and Trolls), which they described as a "lighthearted reflection of gay life and the gay lifestyle." Players come out of the closet, visit their first gay bar and the "baths" in New York, San Francisco, Provincetown, and Ft. Lauderdale. The object is to amass as many "Twinkies" (gay slang for young, attractive preppies), and avoid "trolls" (old, ugly gay men).

THE POSSIBILITY OF GENETIC INFLUENCE QUESTIONABLE Newsweek, 1/15/96 p. 57 from article "Holes in Those Genes - Not even DNA can live up to all the hyped claims"

Biologist Michael Meaney of McGill University separated newborn rats from their mothers for an easy 15 minutes or for a stressful 6 hours a day. "We found that receptors (for certain brain chemicals), and the gene for the receptors, are both altered," Meaney says. As adults, the rats that were stressed as pups had fewer of certain receptors and so tended to over produce stress hormones; normal rats had more receptors and were less likely to be flooded with hormones during stress. Might certain childhood experiences - being menaced by a new dog, falling from a new Jungle Gym - determine whether one develops more or fewer brain receptors for novelty seeking? (the object of this article's emphasis). All it would take is a mechanism like the one Meaney found. But his results go further. Early life experiences were so influential in the rats, he found, that they literally determined which receptor genes turned on, and thus how many receptors the brain built.

If genes can be altered by experience, where does that leave the question of whether nature or nurture contributes more to who we become? Meaney likes to quote a former teacher who compared that question to asking which contributes more to the area of a rectangle, its length or its width? DNA has not been knocked off its throne yet. But with more research showing that experience can reach into our very genes, its day may be numbered.