Saying that he loves his son unconditionally, the father of a gay teenager who spoke to The Royal Gazette last week said he still holds out hope that one day his son will live a heterosexual lifestyle.

"I do not condone homosexuality," Frank claimed, "but I will always love my son.

Frank (not his real name) contacted The Royal Gazette after reading the article about his son. He said he wanted people to know the full scope of how his family was dealing with James' (not the son's real name) sexual orientation.

After mistakenly receiving an e-mail message from a gay male (intended for his son), Frank said he felt "angry, betrayed and disappointed". But he said there was only one thing he could do about the discovery - educate himself.

Frank went on the Internet and said he researched all that he could on homosexuality. During his search, he said he happened upon a website which was run by a Minister who was a former homosexual.

The majority of his congregation were former gays too.

"The purpose of his Ministry is not to convert homosexuals, but to offer freedom from same-sex attractions if it is needed," Frank said.

He said he believed the Ministry's messages could not only benefit his son and others like him, but those struggling to come to terms with a loved one being gay as well.

Frank said he subsequently contacted the Minister and they have been in correspondence ever since. Frank subscribes to the site's newsletter and is planning to bring the Ministry to the Island this year.

"There are gay males on the Island who do not want to change, but may not be sure how to," he said. "The Ministry will help them to see that they can."

But is Frank's ulterior motive to convert his son?

"No, while I do not condone same-sex attractions, I support my son.but he wants to change. He and I have cried over this. He's said that he wants to change, but I've told him, `Tell me what you feel, not what you think I want to hear'."

But during James' interview last week, he said: "My father thinks that one day I'm going to be straight, but it'll never happen."

To this, a deeply religious Frank responded: "Without hope, there's no future."

Frank said he is not trying to offend or anger anyone in the gay community by bringing the Ministry here and simply stated: "If the message is not for them, then they won't come."

He said lessons he has learned from the Ministry has helped him to understand his son.

"It has opened my eyes to different reasons why a male becomes gay."

The father said one of the reasons could be the absenteeism of a father, something that he said his son could definitely relate to: "I wasn't always there for my son when he was growing up. When his mom and I broke up, our relationship became very strained."

Frank believed that had he been there during what he called his son's "curiosity phase", perhaps things could have ended up differently.

"Sometimes I feel like I failed as a father," he said.

The father said that during his son's younger years, he saw "signs" of his son being homosexual but did not harp on it. In fact, he said, to some degree he may have played into them.

"When he used to drink from a teacup, he would emulate his mother and stick out his pinkie finger.

"I used to tell him, `James, don't do that. You're acting like a sissy'."

All of that, Frank said, is history now.

He said the relationship that he and James have now is stronger than ever, although James did not tell his father about the interview with The Royal Gazette.

"His mother called me early Thursday morning and told me to look at the paper because she had read the article and felt that it was James. She was upset because he hadn't told her about it, either."

Frank said after reading the paper, he experienced a range of emotions.

He was upset to see what his son was facing, because he was not aware of the extent to which he was being harassed.

"I had confronted the boys on the bikes, but had I known about what was going on at school, I would have went there and called a meeting between the teacher and myself."

But he said the greatest feeling of all was one of pride. Frank said he praised his son for being courageous enough to speak out and share his story.

"I was proud of myself for being able to recognise that this was my son. It speaks greatly of our relationship."

This is something that he would not have been able to do three years ago.

Before bringing the interview to a close Frank stressed why he was glad that his son chose to remain anonymous: "So that every parent learns to become aware of what's going on in their children's lives. I wonder how many of them are saying, `Could this be my son?'"