RIDGECREST, N.C. (AP) – Alan Chambers says leaving behind his life as a gay man was the equivalent of the Hebrews’ biblical exodus from slavery in Egypt.

“The people you will find here will tell you homosexuality was very much a bondage issue for them,” said Chambers, one of hundreds of Christians meeting last week at the 30th annual Exodus Freedom Conference, which bills itself as the largest annual gathering of former homosexuals.

“Our message is that there’s an alternative,” said Chambers, president of the Orlando, Fla.-based group.

Exodus International faces considerable animosity from many in the gay community but Chambers and other attending the conference argue strenuously they are not anti-gay.

The gathering, held at a Southern Baptist-affiliated conference center outside Asheville, brings together leaders of Exodus-affiliated ministries, people who identify themselves as formerly gay and others linked to the movement for six days of speeches, workshops and fellowship.

The mother of actress Anne Heche – known for her relationship with Ellen DeGeneres – taught a workshop advising parents on what to do when they’re told by a child, “I’m gay.” Other programs offered “12 Steps to Ex-Gay Survival” and “Understanding the Roots of Lesbianism.” The Rev. Jerry Falwell also addressed the conference.

The Exodus conference came six weeks before the Reconciling Ministries Network, a group working to involve gays and lesbians fully in the life of the United Methodist Church, holds its “Hearts on Fire” conference at nearby Lake Junaluska.

The Rev. Troy Plummer, the Chicago-based head of that group, said he opposes Exodus and its work.

“I believe it plays on people’s hopes and fears to the detriment of their spiritual well-being,” he said. The group’s arguments are “not based theologically or in any scientific research, they show no success rate, all their evidence is anecdotal and they break up families.”

Plummer said scientific research has shown that a homosexual orientation cannot be changed by force of will. Other research has shown “lesbian and gay persons are as well adjusted and happy and as capable of being good parents as heterosexual people,” he said.