Alliance 2024 Institute Report
- Christopher Rosik
- Oct 9, 2024
- 2 min read
The 2024 Alliance Institute was held in Bloomington, Minnesota, on September 19th and 20th. The Institute featured presentations with an academic and clinical focus on the first day, followed by presentations of interest to both clinicians and the faith community on the second day. Paul Sullins, Ph.D., a research professor of sociology at the Catholic University of America, gave the opening plenary of Friday, addressing how social science supports the traditional natural form of marriage as the best arrangement for benefiting children and promoting their care. He observed that natural marriage orients adult desire to the possibility of children whereas marriage defined only as a committed relationship orients the possibility of children to adult desire. Mike Davidson, Ph.D., Alliance board member and chairman of the International Foundation for Therapy and Counseling Choice, gave the next plenary, providing some theoretical background to the group work known as psychodrama and then leading a live demonstration of this work with several attendees.
Dr. Davidson’s second plenary on Saturday focused on the important distinction between celibacy and abstention in the context of claims some individuals make of being celibate gay Christians. He observed that the appropriated terminology of “celibacy” may perpetuate and reinforce a continual state of struggle rather than the goal of “transformation” as a realistic aim for therapeutic and personal development. He featured a recent podcast discussion of the issue involving himself, Elizabeth Woning from the CHANGED movement, and Dr. Rosaria Butterfield, an ex-lesbian and former professor of English at Syracuse University. There was expressed concern that the idea of a gay Christian reflected the problem of syncretism. The final plenary was given by Jane Anderson, M.D., a distinguished pediatrician who taught for 33 years at UC San Francisco as a Clinical Professor of Pediatrics and is currently the Vice President of the American College of Pediatricians. Dr. Anderson gave an overview of transgender ideology, including its history, the evolution of gender affirming care and its physical and emotional harms, and important resources for parents, educators, physicians, and policy makers.
Ten breakout sessions were also offered to attendees, led by Andrew Rodrigues, LPC, Keith Vennum, MD, with Anthony Duk, MD, Peggy McFarland, MS, Anthony Cox, PhD, Robert Vazzo, LMFT, with David Pickup, LMFT, Daren Mehl, Andy Visser, MHC, Pastor Nate Oyloe, and Brandon Showalter, a journalist with the Christian Post. A special feature of this year’s Institute was the evening showing of two recent documentaries concerning the issue of transgenderism. Dysconnected told the story of one biologically female detransitioner, while Dead Name told the heartbreaking stories of four parents who lost their children to transgender ideology.
This year’s Institute was preceded by the Alliance board’s day-long strategic planning meeting, where the five Alliance division chairs gave their yearly reports with goals and objectives for 2025. Planning is now getting underway for next year’s Institute, to be held in Houston, Texas. Stay tuned for dates and other details. The board hopes to see you there!