“Ex-Gay” Pastor Matthew C. Manning Can’t Stop Touching Guys

Posted 1 year, 1 month ago at 10:38 am. 1 comment

The “ex-gay” movement claims homosexuality can be cured, usually by religious means.  One of their prominent spokesmen, Matthew C. Manning, is the co-founder, with his wife Christa, of Lighthouse World Evangelism, Inc. offering “counseling services” based in San Francisco.  Manning first came to public notice when he spoke from the audience of the Roseanne show, claiming that God delivered him from homosexuality and healed him of HIV/AIDS to boot.  He’s since made the rounds of religious television talk shows including The Joni Show and Pat Robertson’s 700 Club.

A recent report on Ex-Gay Watch, a site that monitors the ex-gay movement, documents several incidents that might indicate the ex-gay pastor is not so ex, including a 2005 arrest, charging that “he did willfullly and unlawfully touch an intimate part of JOHN DOE.”  Manning pleaded “no contest” and was ordered to stay away from the victim (reportedly a straight 22-year-old man) and also to no longer frequent the 24 Hour Fitness center where the alleged incident occurred.