Heriss arī atvainojies LGBT (lesbiešu, geju, biseksuāļu un transpersonu) komūnai par saviem uzskatiem, kas ir pretrunā ar cilvēktiesībām. 

Savā grāmatā "I Kissed Dating Goodbye" (1997), kas pārdota miljons eksemplāru, autors iestājās pret seksu pirms laulībām un homoseksualitāti.

Tagad Heriss, atskatoties uz savu grāmatu, saka, ka viņa darbs veicināja "neiekļaušanas un neiecietības kultūru" un šobrīd viņš ir pārdzīvojis lielas iekšējas pārmaiņas attiecībā uz savu ticību Jēzum Kristum. Vietnē "Instagram" viņš raksta, ka vairs nav kristietis.

"Visai LGBT komūnai vēlos atvainoties par saviem uzskatiem, ko sludināju kā mācītājs un savā grāmatā," viņš raksta. "Ceru, ka spēsiet man piedot."

 

 

 

 

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My heart is full of gratitude. I wish you could see all the messages people sent me after the announcement of my divorce. They are expressions of love though they are saddened or even strongly disapprove of the decision.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ I am learning that no group has the market cornered on grace. This week I’ve received grace from Christians, atheists, evangelicals, exvangelicals, straight people, LGBTQ people, and everyone in-between. Of course there have also been strong words of rebuke from religious people. While not always pleasant, I know they are seeking to love me. (There have also been spiteful, hateful comments that angered and hurt me.)⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ The information that was left out of our announcement is that I have undergone a massive shift in regard to my faith in Jesus. The popular phrase for this is “deconstruction,” the biblical phrase is “falling away.” By all the measurements that I have for defining a Christian, I am not a Christian. Many people tell me that there is a different way to practice faith and I want to remain open to this, but I’m not there now.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ Martin Luther said that the entire life of believers should be repentance. There’s beauty in that sentiment regardless of your view of God. I have lived in repentance for the past several years—repenting of my self-righteousness, my fear-based approach to life, the teaching of my books, my views of women in the church, and my approach to parenting to name a few. But I specifically want to add to this list now: to the LGBTQ+ community, I want to say that I am sorry for the views that I taught in my books and as a pastor regarding sexuality. I regret standing against marriage equality, for not affirming you and your place in the church, and for any ways that my writing and speaking contributed to a culture of exclusion and bigotry. I hope you can forgive me.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ To my Christians friends, I am grateful for your prayers. Don’t take it personally if I don’t immediately return calls. I can’t join in your mourning. I don’t view this moment negatively. I feel very much alive, and awake, and surprisingly hopeful. I believe with my sister Julian that, “All shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well.”

A post shared by Joshua Harris (@harrisjosh) on Jul 26, 2019 at 12:04pm PDT

"Instagram" viņš arī paziņojis, ka pēc 21 gada laulībā šķiras. "Mūsos abos notikušas būtiskas izmaiņas," viņš raksta. 

 

 

 

 

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We’re writing to share the news that we are separating and will continue our life together as friends. In recent years, some significant changes have taken place in both of us. It is with sincere love for one another and understanding of our unique story as a couple that we are moving forward with this decision. We hope to create a generous and supportive future for each other and for our three amazing children in the years ahead. Thank you for your understanding and for respecting our privacy during a difficult time.

A post shared by Joshua Harris (@harrisjosh) on Jul 17, 2019 at 8:03pm PDT

Viņa pirms 22 gadiem izdotā grāmata mudināja jauniešus izvairīties no randiņiem un ievērot celibātu pirms kāzām. Viņš brīdinājis par miesaskāres briesmām. "Miesaskāre ir problēma. Un Dievs to ienīst. Arī jums tā būtu jādara," viņš rakstīja savā darbā.

Grāmatā Heriss apraksta arī to kā ar viņu mēģinājuši flirtēt trīs geji. "Es nekad neaizmirsīšu tās dusmas un riebumu, ko jutu tajā brīdī," viņš raksta. "Tas bija tik nepareizi, tik netīri."

Pēdējos gados Heriss jau kritiski atskatījies uz savu grāmatu, piemēram, "Tedx Talk" lekcijā "Strong Enough to be Wrong" ("Pietiekami stiprs, lai atzītu kļūdas") (skat. video).

Video (angļu val.)

Heriss sarakstījis vēl dažas grāmatas, to skaitā - "Sex is Not the Problem (Lust is)" un "Boy Meets Girl: Say Hello to Courtship".