Dustin Lance Black Explains Mormon Marriage Beliefs
[Mitt Romney] still pays a full and complete tithe to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
To Mormons, this signals an investment in maintaining his Temple Recommend … [T]his also reflects a deep investment in core LDS beliefs — including the promise of an afterlife reserved only for heterosexual Mormons married in an LDS temple. Full tithe and obedience in exchange for his own planet in heaven to send down the spirit children he creates with his heavenly wife. Procreation here and in heaven, that’s the LDS view of marriage. Marriages for gay and lesbian families fly in the face of those core beliefs.
“Dustin Lance Black Blames Obama and Romney for the Mess of Gay Marriage”
Dustin Lance Black for The Hollywood Reporter, 26 April 2012
(Source: hollywoodreporter.com)
Understanding Mormon Change on Homosexuality
To their credit, I’ve heard a few local Mormon leaders concede that the church has no answers for its gay members. They are correct. But senior Mormon leaders cling to their 19th-century gender role theology, which has no place for the very concept of homosexuality. Mormon doctrine does say the scriptural canon is open and God has yet to reveal many things, but in fact the church resists anything but glacial change and is loath to think itself unfinished.
Still, the men who lead the Mormon church are not dim bulbs. They know that Prop 8 trashed the church’s reputation. There’s reason to think a few of them might consider liberalization. And there are signs of re-thinking among some rank and file. But only the president of the church can make the kind of change that matters, and any equalizing of same-sex relationships would require him to re-write the theology more radically than has ever been done before.
The last few Mormon presidents have all been theological conservatives and every potential successor for decades to come looks the same. So any change of the currently predominant Mormon belief that same-sex marriage and relationships are spiritually fatal is likely to be far in the future, if it happens at all.
“What LGBT People Might Expect from a Mormon President”
Rob Donaldson for San Diego Gay & Lesbian News, 20 April 2012
(Source: sdgln.com)
Live Blog: BYU Panel of Gay Students
Previously mentioned here. Live blog transcript available here.
Shirley Grover for The Student Review, 4 April 2012
Joanna Brooks Supports Gay Rights, BYU Prof Questions Her Mormonness
[Sh]e decided she no longer felt comfortable attending church because of her disgust with the way Mormon leadership aggressively campaigned against same-sex marriage.
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“Joanna’s position on gay marriage is irreconcilable with the church,” [BYU poli-sci professor and blogger Ralph Hancock] tells The Daily Beast and Newsweek. “Latter-day Saints are adaptable, and of course there is diversity within the Mormon Church, but it is hard to conceive of calling anything Mormon that relinquishes the importance of sexual difference and procreation in the big, eternal scheme of things. Joanna is unreservedly confident that all ethical and religious truth must be on the side of acceptance of homosexuality. I think that’s a nonstarter. I don’t want to sound harsh or cruel, because I want her to remain Mormon, but she must choose between being a gay-rights proponent and being a Mormon.”
“Ask Mormon Girl Author Joanna Brooks on LDS Church, Mitt Romney, Faith”
Jamie Reno for The Daily Beast, 4 March 2012
(Source: thedailybeast.com)
Mormons Believe Everyone ‘Cisgender and Heterosexual’ After Death
Mormons believe that people who do not receive these ordinances do not go to heaven, and that people who haven’t been sealed to their families (or who don’t obey the church’s leaders, including by paying a 10 percent tithe) will be split up from their families in the next life. This includes all non-Mormons who have ever lived, as well as all people in same-gender partnerships — Mormons believe that LGBT individuals and asexual people will be cisgender and heterosexual in the next life, and that same-gender partnerships won’t be allowed in heaven.
“Why Do Mormons Baptize Dead People (Like Anne Frank) By Proxy?”
Jared Spurbeck for Yahoo News, 22 February 2012
(Source: Yahoo!)
Progressive Mormons Support Gay Rights, Marriage
In the last few years, I have become acquainted with the progressive theological and social movement within the Mormon world. It’s much bigger than the public perceives, if it is perceived at all. There is a wide range of thought within the membership of the LDS on matters religious and political. There is a loyal opposition to its leadership’s positions on same-sex marriage, homosexuality, women’s limited roles, and other issues. The online Mormon “bloggernacle” on these topics includes dropout (or “Jack”) Mormons, temple-ready, tithe-paying Mormons, Mormons who take the Book of Mormon literally, Mormons who don’t, Mormon Democrats, and Mormon Republicans.
“Mormon Reckoning”
Jim Burklo, 9 January 2012
(Source: tcpc.blogs.com)
Mormon Church Politically Uninvolved, Except on Gay Rights
Americans will find such Mormon teachings often are a bit distinct, including:
• Their scriptures say it is unjust “to mingle religious influence with civil government.” So the church does not tell members how to vote and says it does not dictate policy to politicians. It sometimes weighs in on what it calls moral issues, such as gay marriage.
“Mormon View on Role of Governing Is Distinct”
Lee Davidson for The Salt Lake Tribune, 31 December 2011
(Source: sltrib.com)
BYU Newspaper Removes Homophobic Opinion Piece
BYU is responding to what some are calling homophobic comments printed in the campus paper. They were generated by letters to the editor about the ABC sitcom Modern Family.
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One student wrote, “Sexual sins, of which homosexuality is one, are not OK.”
This statement is not true. The LDS church teaches it is not a sin to experience same sex attractions, but it is a sin to act on those feelings.
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The managing editor for the Daily Universe says he will use this mistake as a learning experience for his students.
“BYU Removes Homophobic Comments from Campus Paper”
ABC 4 KTVX, 18 November 2011
(Source: abc4.com)
