Clementi Family Leaves Ridgewood Church Preaching Homosexuality a Sin

The family of Tyler Clementi are no longer members of Grace Church in Ridgewood, an evangelical church that preaches homosexuality is a sin, according to a Saturday article in The New York Times.

A gifted but quiet musician, Tyler Clementi told his parents two days before leaving for Rutgers University in 2010 that he was gay. Weeks later, authorities after he jumped from the George Washington Bridge.

According to reports, Clementi wrote to friends that his father was accepting of his declaration but his mother, Jane, .

In the Saturday Times article, Jane Clementi says her views on homosexuality have changed tremendously since the highly publicized suicide of her youngest son in late September, 2010.

“People talk about coming out of the closet — it’s parents coming out of the closet, too,” she told the paper. “I wasn’t really ready for that.”

Jane Clementi said she believed homosexuality was a sin at the time Tyler told her he was gay, as did other congregants of Grace, according to the article.

The family has said they have since left in Ridgewood over the leadership's belief homosexuality was a sin.

The family previously reported the church community had been emotionally supportive during their grieving, but did not waiver in their beliefs as to same sex relationships.

Tyler's college roommate, Dharun Ravi,  including invasion of privacy and bias intimidation. Ravi publicized Clementi's intimate encounters with a man known in court documents as "M.B."

Ravi served 20 days out of a 30-day sentence but the family has also criticized other students for staying silent during the humiliating series of events. 

, Tyler's brother who is also gay, has said that his brother's suicide was set off by Ravi's actions, though other pain may have been beneath the surface.

The Clementi family have been in honor of Tyler, an organization that pledges to help gay teens find acceptance while reducing bullying as well as suicide.