Prayers for Bobby

From Matter of Faith we learned of the Lifetime movie about the catastrophic failure of the "pray the gay away" approach to homosexuality advocated by some Christian conservatives and in particular Southern Baptists. The movie is Prayers for Bobby. It chronicles the experience of Bobby Griffith, who did not survive his conservative Presbyterian family's attempt to "heal" him.

On Aug. 27, 1983, at the age of 20, Bobby, did a backflip off a freeway overpass, timing his jump so that he landed in the path of a tractor-trailer truck.

The movie is based on a book by the same name. Much of the material from the book, and thus the movie, is from Bobby's diaries.

After Bobby's death, his mother, Mary Griffith, concluded that there had been nothing wrong with Bobby. She concluded that "he was the kind of person God wanted him to be...an equal, lovable valuable part of God's creation." She says, "I helped instill false guilt in an innocent child's conscience."

She became a spokeswoman for and is reportedly still very active in Parents, Families & Friends of Lesbians and Gays.

The trailer below will tell you whether you wish to view the entire work:

You can watch it here in four parts.