JONAH

Jews Offering New Alternatives to Homosexuality (JONAH) is a non-profit organization that claims to be “dedicated to educating the world-wide Jewish community about the social, cultural and emotional factors which lead to same-sex attractions [and] seeks to reunify families [and] to heal the wounds surrounding homosexuality.” Focusing specifically on Orthodox Jews who identify themselves as homosexuals, JONAH uses various aversion therapy techniques to attempt to change homosexuals into heterosexuals. The organization is extremely controversial in both the academic and Jewish worlds, and has received a great deal of criticism for its academically unorthodox tactics to alter sexual orientations.

History

JONAH was created in 1999 by convicted white-collar felon Arthur Abba Goldberg, secretary-treasurer of National Association for Research & Therapy of Homosexuality (NARTH) in Jersey City, New Jersey. In 2000, JONAH began providing literature and personal education to gay and bisexual Orthodox and Conservative Jews and their families from the tri-state area on supposed methods of reducing and eliminating homosexuality, and became a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation. Since then, it has expanded to include membership in the United States of America, Israel, Canada, and various European nations. In 2010, JONAH adopted its current logo.[1].

Success Rate

Despite posting numerous anecdotes and personal commendations of the success of former participants on its website[2], JONAH has not published any statistics on the effectiveness of its treatment, including the amount of incoming patients and the amount of outgoing patients who have successfully become or failed at becoming heterosexual. In addition, no publications have been offered by JONAH dissecting the amount of its patients who begin to suffer from mental conditions following or during JONAH’s treatments.

Methodology

JONAH abides by the Orthodox Jewish principle that same-sex sex acts are abominations against God. As such, it seeks to prevent these sex acts by altering the sexual orientation of those likely to perform them. Although there is debate as to whether sexual attraction to persons of the same sex is religiously permissible, JONAH unanimously agrees that that these attractions may be prevented and eliminated.

JONAH uses the conversion therapy techniques of purported ex-gay psychologist Richard Cohen, which focus heavily on identifying potential environmental causes of homosexuality and undoing their effects through therapy. Cohen’s advocacy for his theories resulted in his permanent expulsion from the American Counseling Association in 2002.

In addition to therapy, JONAH employs “mentoring and coaching services, group support, [weekend retreats], seminars and outreach” for its participants, all of which it claims to be a part of the process of becoming heterosexual.

Allegations and Accusations

On July 18, 2010, a video by Truth Wins Out appeared on YouTube featuring two former clients of JONAH’s program. Both claim that JONAH failed to alter their sexual orientations, in addition, they claimed that Arthur Goldberg promised JONAH’s success, that Alan Downing, a JONAH councillor, demanded that his participants strip off all of their clothing in front of a mirror in his presence; and that Downing’s clients were told to touch their genitals in front of him.

Truth Wins Out also published an article accusing JONAH of adhering to an “archaic reparative model” and “[perpetuating] the unwise idea that gay people should marry [people of the opposite sex]”. Joe Kort, author of Gay Affirmative Therapy for the Straight Clinician, referred to JONAH’s philosophy of marriage on his website as “cruel and unfair to the gay individual struggling to accept his or her sexual orientation”.

Truth Wins Out, Joe Kort, and Ex-Gay Watch all accuse JONAH’s techniques of being fundamentally rooted in Christianity and not in Jewish values or methods, citing the use of many of JONAH’s techniques as having been developed by Christian fundamentalists.