Mormons and gays
A History of Mormons and Homosexuality
Monday, we’re talking about the complicated relationship between the Mormon Church and homosexuality. Our guest is historian Gregory Prince who is working on a history that includes the public and not-so-public campaigns against same-sex marriage and their attempt at punishing and curing same-sex attraction. He also examines whether the LDS theology of an afterlife will ever contain room for queer people. Prince is coming to Utah, and joins us to talk about Mormons and Gays.
Gregory Prince is an independent historian whose books include David O. McKay and the Rise of Contemporary Mormonism [Indiebound|Amazon] and Leonard Arrington and the Writing of Mormon History [Indiebound|Amazon]. The working title of latest is Mormons and Gays.
Prince will be in Utah this Wednesday evening to hand over the 2017 Sterling M. McMurrin Lecture for the University of Utah's Tanner Humanities Center. His talk is called Science vs. Dogma: Biology Challenges the LDS Paradigm. The free event is at the downtown Salt Lake Capital Public Library and begins at 7:00 p.m.
As a gay Mormon, I make my home in the borderlands. In a theology that says every man must be married to a woman in order to be with God and progress in heaven, gay Mormons are anomalies. No one quite knows what to do with us.
For a while, the answer was to serve a full-time mission, join a woman, explain no one, and let things labor themselves out.
When that approach led to tragedy and broken families, the answer became celibacy, which is less of an acknowledge and more of a holding pattern in a religion that declares the family to be “the most vital unit in moment and in eternity.”
Every question, from “How can I be happy with no possibility of result a companion?” to “Will I still be gay after this life?” seems to be met with official answers amounting to “Have faith. It will work out in the end.” And, yet, despite these difficult and unanswered questions, I pick to continue to participate in my Latter-day Saint congregation and community.
So if I don’t fit, why stay? There are plenty of affirming faith communities where queer people and their families have a place at the table as equals. But Mormonism is part of me
'Even though I still don't understand everything, I recognize that I don't contain to. All I am asked to do is love as God would love.'
This comment, and many others like it, is included in an updated version of 'Mormon and Gay,” an official website from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The site reinforces the reality that, in the words of one Mormon scripture, God “…loveth his children;…” (1 Nephi 11:17), and seeks to facilitate everyone better understand queer attraction from a gospel perspective.
Laurie’s Story-A Flicker of Light That Brought Me Back to the Saviour
The first version of this website launched in December 2012 under the title 'Mormons and Gays.' The new appellation, 'Mormon and Gay,' reflects the life that a person doesn’t need to choose between these two identities — one can, in truth, be gay and survive faithful to the teachings of Christ.
The Church acknowledges that Latter-day Saints experience same-sex attraction in a variety of ways. Some strive to remain celibate and others marry. Some identify as gay or lesbian while others do not.
Personal Accounts and Comments from Church Leaders
Mormonandgay.lds.org features five personal
Same-Sex Attraction
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints acknowledges that same-sex attraction is a sensitive issue that requires kindness, empathy and understanding. The “Same-Sex Attraction” section of ChurchofJesusChrist.org reinforces the reality that, in the words of one Latter-day Saint scripture, God “loveth his children” (1 Nephi 11:17), and seeks to help everyone better understand homosexual attraction from a gospel perspective.
The Church does not take a position on the cause of same-sex attraction. In 2006, Elder Dallin H. Oaks said, “The Church does not have a position on the causes of any of these susceptibilities or inclinations, including those related to same-gender attraction.”
Feelings of same-sex attraction are not a sin. President M. Russell Ballard said: “Let us be clear: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believes that ‘the trial of same-sex attraction is a complex reality for many people. The attraction itself is not a sin, but acting on it is. Even though individuals do not choose to acquire such attractions, they do decide how to respond to them. With love and understanding, the Church reaches out to all God’s children, incl