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Petition Home Page
Below are links to church history and
personal stories of those who have experienced the pain that
comes from endeavoring to change their sexual orientation in
order to comply with church teachings and policy.
Personal stories,
Rocky, Drew, Val & Ray
Gay & Lesbian Member Suicide List
We Can Change History For Gay LDS
Lifetime
Celibacy or Excommunication
Policy
The Etiology of
Homosexuality from Authoritative Latter-day Saint Perspectives,
1879-2006
A Revised
History of Homosexuality & Mormonism, 1840-1980
Chronology Of Mormon / LDS Involvement In Same-Sex Marriage Politics
Mormons for Marriage
supports marriage equality for all, and stands in respectful
opposition to California Proposition 8.
Mormon Politics & Member Opinion
ABC News- Gay Mormons Face Excommunication
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Foundation for
Reconciliation
A Higher, More
Inclusive Truth
"Contrary to what people may say, I’m not
angry with the church. Rather, sorrow keeps me from supporting it
today. In short, I had to put distance between me and the church or
jeopardize my emotional and spiritual health. Furthermore, I don’t
care how my church friends voted on Proposition 8. They clearly had
little choice in the matter, being led to believe that: 1) a prophet
had told them to vote for the measure, and 2) the rewards they seek
call for obedience.
What saddened me is that while members
worked so zealously to pass the resolution, there was no
commensurate effort to provide our gay brothers and sisters a place
of refuge and welcome. We didn’t fast or pray for them, or hear
reminders from the pulpit that we’re to love them unconditionally.
Too many young members battle same-sex attraction—never hearing a
kind word spoken on their behalf—only to choose suicide as an escape
from our indifference. I would prefer we encourage Heavenly Father’s
gay children to find sanctuary outside the church, since we care so
little about their desperate and lonely struggles in it. No matter
how often we say otherwise, we clearly do not love the sinner. Let’s
be honest, we find them creepy.
That’s what people must have thought about
my in-laws, Even and Esther, who in 1958 decided to get married and
learned they couldn’t—at least not in Utah. Both had served as
missionaries and were deemed worthy to act as God’s ambassadors, but
they were prohibited from marrying each other in the temple they
loved. Neither could they wed civilly by state authorities. Utah, at
the time, enforced anti-miscegenation laws that prohibited Evan, a
white man, from marrying Esther, an Asian-American woman. So
contrary to the admonition of church leaders, they crossed into
Colorado to exchange vows. Despite that inauspicious start, their
marriage was an example of tireless devotion to God and church. As
husband and wife, they completed two more missions together and
Evan, for his part, served as a branch president, district
president, stake president, regional representative and mission
president.
Was their marriage contrary to God’s will?
I once asked a general authority that question and he spoke of the
historical context behind Utah’s ban on race-mixing—a stance that
was part of church policy even as the first pioneers entered the
Salt Lake Valley and established a secular government. They were a
people, he said, who were influenced by the bitterness of the civil
war and shouldn’t be judged harshly for what seems like bigoted
notions today. Though he didn’t say as much, the implication was
clear: Church members at the time were incapable of rising above
personal prejudices to live as Jesus would have them.
As a devout Christian, I have to believe
with every fiber of my being, that it isn’t God’s will, but the
intolerance of individuals that keeps the church from understanding
and living a higher, more inclusive, truth about love and marriage.
I have to believe it, because to accept the alternative would render
the gift of eternal life intolerable for me."
-M. Alan Bahr,
August 2009
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Please take time to read this petition, as well as read the stories and
links provided, and pass this information on to your friends and
link to us if you have a website or blog.
By
doing so, you will be sending a message to the leaders of the Church
of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that it is time for
reconciliation between the Church and its gay and lesbian members.
More importantly, you will be showing support for those who have
been hurt by Church policies and practices because of their sexual
orientation.
"Gay, lesbian and bisexual teens and
young adults have one of the highest rates of suicide attempts — and
some other health and mental health problems, including substance
abuse. A new study suggests that parental acceptance, and even
neutrality, with regard to a child's sexual orientation could have a
big impact in reducing this rate."-NPR, All
Things Considered, December 29, 2008
"I
implore the students at BYU to re-assess their homophobic feelings,"
wrote Stuart Matis in The Daily Universe
shortly before
committing suicide. "Seek to understand first before you make
comments. We have the same needs as you. We desire to love and be
loved. We desire to live our lives with happiness. We are not a
threat to you or your families."
"Utah’s overall suicide rate is the 10th highest in the nation.
Unfortunately, it is the leading cause of death for Utah males ages
15 to 19, who die at a rate nearly double the national average. It
is the leading cause of death for adolescent males in Utah."-KUED.org
Voices of Hope Discussion Guide
"Thank
you,
Carol Lynn Pearson,
for reminding us that the task of any religion is to teach us whom
we're required to love, not whom we're entitled to hate." - Rabbi
Harold Kushner
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