July 19, 2004
An evangelist from Georgia says his local YMCA terminated his family's membership because he shared the gospel with two young men just outside the facility.
An answering machine recording at the Atlanta-area facility greets callers with a friendly message: "Welcome to the East Cobb YMCA, where we build strong kids, strong families, and strong communities." That slogan is certainly in keeping with the national YMCA's stated mission to "put Christian principles into practice through programs that build healthy spirit, mind, and body for all."
But Marietta resident Larry Lee notes surprisingly that his local Y apparently does not support those who want to share their faith in Christ. Earlier this month, he says he went to the East Cobb facility to work out, and as he approached the building, he noticed two young men on the front sidewalk near the main entrance.
Lee took time to witness to both young men, then went inside to work out. "That was it," he says, "until the next morning when I got the call from the YMCA director telling me that my family membership was terminated because I was talking about religion at the Y."
The Georgia evangelist, who runs "Down to Earth Ministry," says the two youths did not appear to mind having him share his beliefs and in fact seemed both receptive and appreciative. Yet pausing for a moment to witness to them ended up costing him and his family their Y membership privileges.
The East Cobb YMCA officials characterized Lee's actions in very negative terms, calling what he did "bizarre" and "uncalled for." He says the director told him the young men he had addressed "were not there to talk about religion" and "that I was interrupting their exercise."
But Lee points out that that was not the case. When he encountered the young men, he notes, "they're outside the YMCA, not exercising, and we just chatted. And they actually thanked me." He adds that since were the young men were local high school seniors, "old enough to vote this November, I assume they're old enough to handle a conversation about Jesus Christ."
However, the YMCA officials made it obvious that they considered Lee's actions inappropriate, and they responded in a way that he finds baffling. "I was just confused," he says, "if it was wrong to talk about Christianity at a Christian organization."
The YMCA idea began among evangelicals. The organization was founded in 1844 in England by a London draper named George Williams, in response to the unhealthy conditions under which he saw many young urban workers living. Williams and a group of fellow drapers organized the first YMCA to substitute Bible study and prayer for life on the streets. Applying Christian principles in order to meet community needs was integral to the organization's mission from its very beginning.
Lee feels one of the saddest things about this episode is that he was never given an opportunity to explain what happened before his family's membership was revoked, arbitrarily and without warning. Representatives from the East Cobb YMCA failed to return phone calls requesting comment on the incident.
© 2004 Agape Press.
