Jim Swilley, Georgia Megachurch Pastor, Comes Out To Congregation After Gay Teen Suicides

[Swede]

Jim Swilley, the pastor of a Georgia megachurch, recently revealed to his congregation that he is gay. The 52-year-old father of four said that his wife, to whom he was married for more than 20 years, encouraged him to come out years ago, but at the time, he told her: "These words will never come out of my mouth."

However, the recent spate of teen suicides, particularly that of Rutgers student Tyler Clementi, prompted him to change his mind. "For some reason his situation was kind of the tipping point with me," Swilley told CNN's Don Lemon this weekend.

"There comes a point in your life where you say 'How much time do we have left in our lives? Are we going to be authentic or not?'"

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/11/14/jim-swilley-gay-pastor_n_783279.html

[texshelters]

1. Another example of how hard it is to come out

I am glad he came out. This highlights the pressure in our society to stay closeted and the homophobia that is rampant in our nation.

I hope this is a watershed moment in the rights movement for the LGBT community.

Peace,
Tex Shelters
http://texshelters.wordpress.com/

[Dyler Turden]

2. Good on Jim.

I feel sorry that he felt he had to put himself in such a position for such a long time. I hope he gains some peace from this.

[UrbScotty]

3. Good for him. (nt)

[BrklynLiberal]

4. His wife sounds like a remarkable woman. He is lucky to have her in his life.