What Rabbi Twerski means is that by doing it over many years we have developed certain pathways in our brains which will always be there. That is actually important to know because, as people with this condition, we need to be extra careful. We can be clean for 20 years, but if we open the door to lust even a little bit, we can quickly fall back into the old patterns/pathways. So being an addict for life is not a downside. It is a bonus. Because we know that we cannot AFFORD to lust, even a little bit. We must avoid it at all costs or we can get sucked back in.

Diogo Bercito, an international journalist in Jerusalem, is writing an article about GYE in Portuguese and he would like to interview anyone who was helped by our organization (anonymously, of-course).

He needs to send in the article in about 4 hours (5 PM EST) TODAY (March 13, 2013), so if anyone would like to be interviewed, please contact Diogo at the contact info below ASAP.

diogo.bercito@grupofolha.com.br
Folha de S.Paulo
From U.S. +972 54 914 3357
In Israel: 054 914 3357

Tizke Lemitzvos

Always remember this my friends: Today is the first day of the rest of your life.

This 8 week long call is an excellent opportunity for men with unwanted same-sex attractions to begin learning what steps they can take to achieve real inner peace and freedom away from their homosexuality. Given by Jonathan H. - Life Coach, BA in Psychology - and expert in providing men a powerful and healthy way to diminish their unwanted homosexuality and discover real heterosexuality. The calls will focus on first understanding the underlying cause of one's SSA and will then provide effective tools for creating a world where change is possible. The goal is to provide men with a clear vision of what this path can look like and will G-d willing jump-start long lasting growth for the future. The group will meet every Sunday at 3 pm Eastern and 10 pm Israel time. If you struggle with your SSA, this is a once a week phone group that you don't want to miss.

Please contact Jonathan H. at jhoffmancoaching@gmail.com if you are interested. This call will begin when there are a sufficient amount of participants.

Yetzer Hara is when we would "like" to do something wrong. It sounds tempting. And if we're presented with the opportunity, it is hard to resist... That's all a standard Yetzer Hara.

Addiction, on the other hand, is when we feel we "need" it. When we feel we can't live without it.

The tools of GYE and the 12-Step program are designed to give us freedom from the addiction. Freedom from that desperate "need" that makes us feel we simply cannot live without it... But we'll always have a Yetzer Hara, even those who are "free" from the addiction for years.

Exactly.

I would have no problem if nederman would let people know that he found a method that works for him, and he would share it with others. But we can't have a situation where someone consistently causes debates, and who discredits other methods/approaches or philosophies that have been known to work for many others.

The subtle difference between powerless and helpless have been the source of many debates on this forum. But it is a silly distraction to get caught up in the symantics. The 12-Step method makes it very clear that we are responsible for our recovery. Powerless does not mean helplessness, and powerless is never an excuse to continue. All it means (in the context of the 12-step program) is that our own will power alone is not effective in dealing with the complex problem of this addiction. We cannot think our way out, we need to act our way into a new pattern of thinking. And we do that through the steps, through the group, and with Hashem's power. Kovei Hashem Yachalifu Koach. Determination, however, is completely up to us.

The way I see it, powerlessness simply means that once we start on the roller-coaster of lusting - we find it almost impossible to stop. And it also means that we have seen by our track record that our own power is not enough anymore, we need power outside of ourselves, group support and Hashem. It doesn't absolve anyone of anything. Even if we're powerless, we are still fully RESPONSIBLE for our recovery. There are MANY tools that can be used to combat this disease, including the cognitive method. Powerlessness means we can't ride the bull and control it, but it doesn't mean we have to ride the bull. We may not be able to control our lusting, but we can be FREE of it.

If you want to continue this discussion with me nederman, please do it off the forum and write me an e-mail at eyes.guard@gmail.com. Thank you.

Nederman, I am sorry but it seems your posts are causing a lot of strife and unnerving people... Our website needs to be a place of peace and healing... If you have any chassidim who feel your approach is the right way and they have been helped by your approach, they should send me an e-mail to eyes.guard@gmail.com and I will reconsider.

I have nothing against you, nor against your approach. But too many people are complaining, and there's too much disagreement going on here as a result. This is not conducive to recovery. I must have the greater good of the community in mind.

Sorry.

Problems solved?

Blind Beggar wrote:


This was fixed.

The pencil appears in the private chaat window, next to the member's name on top. I hope to make it animated soon, so it stands out more when the user is typing.