Church Perspectives

This article is adapted from D. Lauritsen, Mormons Under a Microscope, Cedar Fort, Inc. Springville, Utah, 2010, pp. 21, 22.

Mormon Beliefs on Homosexuality

Referring to individuals who have same-sex attraction, late President and Prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Gordon B. Hinckley stated,

“We love them as sons and daughters of God. They may have certain inclinations which are powerful and which may be difficult to control. If they do not act upon these inclinations, then they can go forward as do all other members of the Church.”1

Elaborating on President Hinckley’s statement (above), Elder Dallin Oaks, Mormon apostle, said:

To me that means that a person with [same-gender] inclinations, where they’re kept under control, or if yielded to, are appropriately repented of, is eligible to do anything in the Church that can be done by any member of the Church who is single. Occasionally, there’s an office, like the office of bishop, where a person must be married. But that’s rather the exception in the Church. Every teaching position, every missionary position can be held by single people. We welcome to that kind of service people who are struggling with any kind of temptation when the struggle is a good struggle and they are living so as to be appropriate teachers, or missionaries, or whatever the calling may be.

There is another point to add here, and this comes from a recent statement of the First Presidency, which is a wonderful description of [the Church’s] attitude in this matter:

“We of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints reach out with understanding and respect for individuals who are attracted to those of the same gender. We realize there may be great loneliness in their lives, but there must also be recognition of what is right before the Lord. . . . We encourage Church leaders and members to reach out with love and understanding to those struggling with these issues.  Surely if we are counseled as a body of Church mem- bership to reach out with love and understanding to those ‘struggling with these issues,’ that obligation rests with particular intensity on parents who have children struggling with these issues.”2

Mormon Beliefs on Same-sex Marriage

Regarding the issue of same-sex marriage, the LDS Church published an extensive explanation of its position under the title “The Divine Institution of Marriage,” which appeared in the August 13, 2008 edition of News room, the official outlet for the Church’s Internet news service (which can be accessed at www.newsroom.lds.org). In part, the news release stated:

The focus of the Church’s involvement [in supporting the passage of California’s Proposition 8] is specifically same-sex marriage and its consequences. The Church does not object to rights (already established in California) regarding hospitalization and medical care, fair housing and employment rights, or probate rights, so long as these do not infringe on the integrity of the family or the constitutional rights of churches and their adherents to administer and practice their religion free from government interference.

The Church has a single, undeviating standard of sexual morality: intimate relations are proper only between a husband and a wife united in the bonds of matrimony.

The Church’s opposition to same-sex marriage neither consti- tutes nor condones any kind of hostility toward homosexual men and women. Protecting marriage between a man and a woman does not affect Church members’ Christian obligations of love, kindness, and humanity toward all people.3

http://www.youtube.com/watch?<wbr>v=Ym0jXg-hKCI

Notes

1. Gordon B. Hinckley, as quoted by Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, www.lds.org/ldsnewsroom

2. Ibid.

3. “The Divine Institution of Marriage,” The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, www.lds.org/ldsnewsroom.

Additional Resources

Mormon Beliefs: Homosexuality

Discussions on Threats to Traditional Marriage

Evergreen International

The Meaning of Life

Mormon Families

This article is taken from a talk given by Elder Bruce C. Hafen.  He was addressing an Evergreen International conference.  To see the full transcript of Elder Hafen’s talk, including his references, click here.

As difficult as same-gender attraction is, feeling that attraction does not mean that a person is flawed, either temporarily or permanently.  “Whenever the adversary tries to convince you that you are hopelessly ‘that way,’ so that acting out your feelings is inevitable, he is lying. He is the father of lies.”

Some may wonder whether even Christ can sympathize or empathize with this kind of trial.  Elder Neal A. Maxwell has reminded us that Christ descended below all things, and that by doing so, He “earned empathy.” He knows that every day may feel like a major battle for you.  The General Authorities of the Church remind all that the Lord judges us according the degree of our knowledge and the difficulty of our earthly trials.  Elder Maxwell compared this to Olympic diving.  The judges decide not only on the execution of a dive, but they also weigh the difficulty of the dive.  Thus, it could be said that no two people are judged the same by the Lord.  He not only knows our capacities, talents, and trials, but also our personalities thoroughly.  For many, life is ”being made much harder these days by the increasing cultural confusion that now swirls around the topic of homosexuality.”

We must understand that gender was never intended to be a gray area.  We had a specific male or female gender in the Pre-Mortal existence, and since families are intended to continue forever, we will have specific male or female gender and attractions in the eternities.

The Law of Chastity is unchanging, and that is why church policy will never change.  The Lord has revealed through His prophets, both ancient and modern, that sexual behavior outside the bonds of marriage between a male and female is wickedness.  This includes heterosexual behavior as well as homosexual behavior.  “While same-gender attraction is not a sin, you need to resist cultivating immoral, lustful thoughts toward those of either gender.  It’s no sin if a bird lands in your tree, just don’t let him build a nest there.  No temptation is so strong that you can’t resist it, unless you have already given away some portion of your agency to a total addiction.”

“Focus on all the good things you may have put on hold—your education, career plans, social experience, and Church service. Stop focusing so much on yourself, including hating yourself, and spend more energy caring about other people.  Build good associations with people of your own gender.  Find a therapist who can help you identify the unmet emotional needs that you are tempted to satisfy in false sexual ways.”

“If you have engaged in immoral behavior, you need to repent fully by confessing your sins and forsaking them.  These actions unlock the door to the Savior’s mercy, which allows your complete forgiveness.  But if you feel an attraction you didn’t seek and haven’t acted on, you have nothing to repent of.  The Atonement can heal us not only from sin, but also from carelessness, imperfection, and all mortal bitterness — intended and unintended.

“The blessings of the Atonement include its healing and compensating power when one has been separated from God by sin, by unintentional mistakes, or simply by adversity.  I classify same-gender attraction within the category of ‘adversity,’ because typically you haven’t brought it upon yourselves.  It has consequences similar to being harmed by the sins of others, such as the separation from God felt so commonly by the victims of childhood sexual abuse.”

“To those challenged by same-gender attraction, the Atonement offers two healing blessings. First, Christ helps us draw on His strength to become more “at-one” with God even while still overcoming the attraction.  He helps us bear the burden of our afflictions.  As a second healing blessing, the Atonement enables the grace that assures us of this grand promise: No eternal blessing—including marriage and family life—will be withheld from those who suffer same-gender attraction, if they do ‘all they can do’ to remain faithful always.”

Some Historical Background of the Gay Movement

“Today’s cultural and legal climate is making your challenge much harder than it would otherwise be.”  Elder Hafen began teaching family law in the early 1970’s, when civil rights movements were pressing forward for equality.  “During that period, almost no one considered people with homosexual attraction as a distinctive demographic group (like race or gender) who were the victims of discrimination.  The main legal goal of gay activists then was to eliminate criminal penalties against homosexual acts, as a first step toward their goal of greater public acceptance.”  These laws, though rarely enforced, were considered constitutional until 2003.  In the 1970’s both legalists and doctors viewed homosexuality as a psychological disorder.  As recently as 1982, the mayor of San Francisco vetoed a bill that would have allowed spousal rights to both straight and gay couples.  “No country anywhere in the world recognized gay marriage until 2001, eight years ago.  Since then, a few countries and six U.S. states now recognize same-gender marriages.”

In 1973 the American Psychiatric and Psychological Associations removed homosexuality from their official lists of disorders.  This was done by vote, the first time a definition was changed due to social pressure rather than advances in science.

Science and Homosexuality

Recently, “the activists have used similar methods in the years since then, trying to prove that they are a legitimate demographic category with fixed and unchangeable characteristics.  They must present themselves in this way in order to justify their demand for the same legal protections now given to race and gender. That is a crucial point in understanding both the agenda and the tactics of intimidation used by today’s activists.”  Said Dallin H. Oaks:

“We have seen unrelenting pressure from advocates of [the homosexual] lifestyle to accept as normal what is not normal, and to characterize those who disagree with them as narrow-minded, bigoted and unreasonable.  Such advocates are quick to demand freedom of speech and thought for themselves, but equally quick to criticize those with a different view and, if possible, to silence them by applying labels like ‘homophobic.’… This is more than a social issue — ultimately it may be a test of our most basic religious freedoms to teach what we know our Father in Heaven wants us to teach.”

There are four misconceptions about homosexuality that can make it more difficult for those who desire to overcome their same-sex attraction.

1. “Same-gender attraction is an inborn and unalterable orientation.  This untrue assumption tries to persuade you to label yourselves and build your entire identity around a fixed sexual orientation or condition.”  In truth, “there is simply no scientific consensus about what causes homosexual tendencies.”  The American Psychological Association has said that “no findings have emerged that permit scientists to conclude that sexual orientation is determined by any factor or set of factors. … Nature and nurture both play complex roles.” The possibility that homosexuality is genetically caused has been dismissed by science.  80% of women who have same-gender attraction were abused in some way as children.  Among men, some who have had certain experiences just before puberty have taken on a gay identity.  “Often these boys are emotionally sensitive, introspective, and, especially among Church members, perfectionistic.”  Their transition from relating to other boys to relating instead to girls is blocked, and this can be helped through proper counseling.
2. “A second misconception the activists promote is that therapy cannot treat, let alone change, same-gender attraction.”  This misperception is related to the first.  If a person believes no change is possible, he only has two choices: to either give in, or give up.  “In general, well over half of those seeking treatment can be significantly helped by it.  That is roughly the same success rate as treatments for clinical depression. One non-LDS therapist who has treated both men and women for years reports that 40% of his clients find full heterosexual resolution, another 40% achieve enough resolution to control their attraction and behavior, and 20% are unsuccessful.”
3. “The third misconception is that most Americans favor same-gender marriage, which means the Church is outside the mainstream in opposing it.”  The truth is that “six American states now permit same-gender marriage. But 40 states have already passed laws opposing such marriages.  And the most recent national polls reinforce that large majority opinion, despite some modest recent gains by the activists.”  Recent random polls still show that a strong majority of U.S. citizens are not in favor of gay marriage.
4. “The fourth misconception is that there are no rational, non-religious reasons for opposing same-gender marriage.  Marriage is our most significant social institution — not merely a private project. This ‘public interest’ or ’social interest’ separates the marriage contract from every other contract in society.  The research clearly shows that, by every measure of child well-being — such as health, emotional stability, education, and avoiding crime, drugs, and abuse — children do far better in a two-parent, married heterosexual family.    The contrast between adult rights and the rights of society and children introduces the most persuasive example I have seen of the secular case against same-gender marriage.”  The French parliament performed a thorough study of gay marriage before banning it, deciding that society would only benefit by disallowing the desires of the adult population to trump the basic needs of children.  “The French report said that to accept a public policy that consciously places children with homosexual adults increases the risks to children who are already at risk because they feel identity confusion and abandonment by their biological parents. To ignore this need is to discriminate against these children.  So France rejected same-gender marriage so that children ‘do not suffer as a result of situations imposed on them by adults.  The interest of the child must outweigh the exercise of freedom by adults, whatever life choices are made by the parents.’  This view takes marriage away from the private, adults-only world of gay and lesbian lifestyles and returns it to its original place as society’s primary social institution.”

“An LDS medical doctor who has worked closely with many people who deal with same-gender attraction recently said to me, ‘This is a truly difficult problem, but in its very difficulty is something that allows those who meet the challenge to become amazingly purified and sanctified and thus qualified for special comfort and revelation from the Savior, who knows how to succor ‘all’ men and women in their infirmities.’  His words prompted a memory of Elder Maxwell’s insight: ‘If we are serious about our discipleship, Jesus will eventually request each of us to do those very things which are [the] most difficult to do.’  The apostle Paul wrote, ‘All things work together for good to them that love God’ (Romans 8:28). Even same-gender attraction can work for your good IF you  love God.”

Although not the only religious group opposing same-gender marriage, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) has received a great deal of attention concerning their active opposition to marriages for same gender couples. This website seeks to help people understand the Church’s stand on this subject, and on marriage in general.

Marriage was ordained by God from the very beginning of time. He created two people, a man named Adam and a woman named Eve. They were joined together by Him, and according to God’s Plan of Salvation, their union was meant to last through the eternities, and not just for their mortal lives. They were told to begin a family and raise their children together. From the first days of the earth, God set the pattern for family life—a man and a woman, and, if possible, children. This basic family structure creates an appropriate foundation for all other units of society and for an eternal life.

Mormons teach that gender is an essential part of who we are, and that it was determined long before birth. However, they do not teach that having homosexual inclinations is a sin. Only the practice of homosexuality is a sin. Feelings are not sinful; practice of inappropriate feelings can be.

Members of the Church with homosexual inclinations, who choose not to act on them or advocate for the acceptance of such actions, can be members of the Church in full standing. They may hold any role in the Church that may be held by any other unmarried person of his or her gender, which means that most positions are open to them.

The Church teaches its members to love and to respect those with homosexual inclinations, just as they do anyone else, and make it clear that mistreatment is not tolerated. However, this does not mean they feel inappropriate behavior must be condoned. Churches are, by nature, in the business of defining right and wrong. If they refuse to do so, to remind people of God’s teachings on any given moral subject, and to stand for something, they have no real reason to exist.

With this in mind, the Mormons, as representatives of God, must take a firm stand on anything that affects the sanctity and well-being of the family, one of God’s most sacred creations. This site will help you understand more about this eternally critical subject.

In order to entirely understand why Mormons object to changing the legal definition of marriage, one must understand a number of critical doctrines of the Church. With a complete understanding of these doctrines, while you might still disagree, you will better be able to understand why we feel obligated to fight for the traditional family. Please follow the following path of articles to help you build a foundation for your study.

Child of God—Mormons know that what you consider to be your defining characteristic has a powerful impact on your life. Mormons with homosexual feelings do not consider same gender attraction to be what defines them. They consider the primary defining factor to be that they are children of God.

Gender was determined prior to birth. What this means to Mormons struggling with same-gender attraction.

Gay Mormons: A summary of what the Church believes about homosexuality

Attitude Toward Trials

Mormons and Marriage: How Mormons view marriage and why they don’t want the legal definition of marriage changed.

Mormons and the Same Sex Marriage Battle

Can Churches Participate in the Political Process?

Is Polygamy a Valid Gay Marriage Argument?

The remaining articles on the site are about basic beliefs of Mormons, for those who want to know more, and may be read in any order.

Bruce C. Hafen on Same-Gender Attraction

For members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the principle defining factor about ourselves is that we are children of God. For this reason, anything else that might seem to define us in mortality is really only temporary and not the most important thing we know about ourselves.

“…some people consider feelings of same-gender attraction to be the defining fact of their existence. There are also people who consider the defining fact of their existence that they are from Texas or that they were in the United States Marines. Or they are red-headed, or they are the best basketball player that ever played for such-and-such a high school. People can adopt a characteristic as the defining example of their existence and often those characteristics are physical.

We have the agency to choose which characteristics will define us; those choices are not thrust upon us.

The ultimate defining fact for all of us is that we are children of Heavenly Parents, born on this earth for a purpose, and born with a divine destiny. Whenever any of those other notions, whatever they may be, gets in the way of that ultimate defining fact, then it is destructive and it leads us down the wrong path.” (Dallin H. Oaks.)

When something defines you, it becomes central to your life. It can occupy your mind nearly every moment, and influence the decisions you make. For this reason, it’s important to choose your defining characteristic wisely. Mormons who struggle with gender issues or homosexual feelings know this is only one small part of who they are during this brief life, and not the most important part of who they are. They know everyone has something he struggles with, and each person can decide whether he should  let that struggle take over his life, or if he will put it in its proper place and focus more attention on those things that matter eternally. God gives each of us the ability to choose for ourselves how to handle the various aspects of our personality and lives, and to choose our priorities. This isn’t to say he accepts any choice.

The Bible makes it clear God considers choices to be important. Joshua, in the Old Testament, admonished us to choose this day whom we will serve. Just because we have the ability to choose doesn’t mean our choices are always right. A person who follows Joshua’s admonition will choose God over temporary pleasure. God promises we will never be tempted beyond our ability to resist. Mormons know they can resist any tempting urges they experience if their faith in and love for God is great enough. With this as their focus, other challenges become background irritants, not a defining aspect of mortality.

Mormons are taught to evaluate the consequences of each decision they make—not just the temporal consequences, but the eternal ones. They must ask themselves, “Is what I will get when I do this worth what I will give up?” Viewed from an eternal perspective, giving in to homosexuality desires is not worth the sacrifice. To gain a few moments or years of worldly happiness, one would be required to forego an eternity of true joy, and the opportunity to live with God forever. Because no one will struggle with this challenge in Heaven, the relationships that develop here cannot continue after death. The attraction will be gone at that time. This means one is definitely making a choice that brings pleasure for only the very briefest of times, and is sacrificing eternal joy for that brief moment of pleasure. This is rather like the shortsightedness of Esau, who sold his birthright for a mess of pottage—a moment of satisfaction that affected a lifetime. (Genesis 25)

It is important, as we make choices for our lives, to think of the “big picture,” the vision of eternity. The commandments are a guideline that marks the path back to God. Nothing in this world is worth more than to spend eternity with God. When making our choices for life, we must be certain we don’t sell our eternal birthright as children of God, for a brief time of worldly pleasure. Only eternal joy can bring true happiness. Staying focused on our role as a child of God can help us to put our priorities in order.

Next: Gender was determined prior to birth. What this means to Mormons struggling with same-gender attraction.

There was a time when we all lived together in Heaven with God. We call this the Premortal world. God had created our spirits and we lived in His presence, learning to love Him and to know Him as our Father. In this place, we had no body, but we did have our spirits, the essentialness that makes us who we are. Our spirits took a form like the ones that we have now. In other words, we looked like us, but without a solid body. When God created us, He gave us a set gender and we had clear gender identity there. We had personality, character, interests, and all those things which make human beings who they are. In time, God called us all together and told us of His great plan for us. We’d come to a special place He’d create just for us, but away from Him. We’d learned truth. We’d learned to love Him. Could we find the truth and live it when we were away from home?As parents we know it is easier for our children to live what we’ve taught them when we’re standing right beside them. It’s when they’re away, and especially when they move out on their own, that they find out who they are and how strong they are. It’s that time that tests them. God is literally our Father, and He knew the time must come when we must be tested, when we can find out who we really are. In order for us to return, we would have to live a sinless life. God knew we could not do that, of course, and so He said He would send someone to help us make our way back home. He loves us and wants us to return. Lucifer offered himself to be the person who helped. However, He didn’t approve of the plan God had laid out for the person who came to help us. He felt the best way was for the Savior to control our every thought and movement, turning us into mere puppets, with him as the puppeteer. In this way, we’d never make a mistake and would be guaranteed the ability to return home. He felt agency, which we had in our premortal life, should be removed during our time on earth. In return for this, he wanted all the glory and honor.

Jesus Christ Offered Himself for Us

This, of course, was not at all God’s plan. What would be the purpose of coming to earth if we were merely puppets with no ability to think for ourselves, or to make choices? Fortunately, Jesus offered to help us in a way that exactly matched the plan the Father had for us. He would come to earth Himself, taking on a mortal body and all the challenges that would come with life on earth. This would allow Him to understand our own trials. He would live a sinless life for us, and then, just prior to His death, would take upon Him all the sins that ever had been and ever would be committed on earth, each one individually, making the atonement a personal one for each of us. Then He would allow Himself to be killed and rise again from the dead. This extraordinarily loving sacrifice would allow us to repent of our sins, since He would have paid the primary price of sin, and to return to our Father in Heaven someday. All would be resurrected and live forever, and those who loved God enough to live the gospel and to repent when needed would be allowed to return to His presence forever. For all of this, He wanted nothing in return. He asked that the glory and honor go to God.

Some Rejected the Savior

One third of the people in this premortal life preferred Lucifer’s easy route. They rebelled and refused to accept the Father’s plan, or Jesus as their Savior. Since Jesus would be the Savior of all who came to earth, those who rejected His loving offer were not allowed to come to earth. Lucifer was cast out of heaven and his followers went with him. They have since devoted their lives to trying to make us as miserable as they themselves are.

The rest of us, all who have ever come to earth, agreed to God’s plan, and accepted Jesus’ offer of atonement. And so the earth was created and we began taking our turns here on earth.

Those who have children know that babies seem to come to earth with pre-formed personalities. Each baby born into our family has a clear personality from the first day, one they brought with them from Heaven. Experiences on earth can alter those, but they start out as a real person who is who he had chosen to be in Heaven. Gender is a part of that real person. The gender was chosen when our spirits were created.

Where did same-gender attraction come from?

Elder Lance B. Wickman said:

“Gratefully, the answer is that same-gender attraction did not exist in the pre-earth life and neither will it exist in the next life. It is a circumstance that for whatever reason or reasons seems to apply right now in mortality, in this nano-second of our eternal existence.

The good news for somebody who is struggling with same-gender attraction is this: 1) It is that ‘I’m not stuck with it forever.’ It’s just now. Admittedly, for each one of us, it’s hard to look beyond the ‘now’ sometimes. But nonetheless, if you see mortality as now, it’s only during this season. 2) If I can keep myself worthy here, if I can be true to gospel commandments, if I can keep covenants that I have made, the blessings of exaltation and eternal life that Heavenly Father holds out to all of His children apply to me. Every blessing – including eternal marriage – is and will be mine in due course.” (Same Gender Attraction)

Note that if same-gender attraction will not exist in the next life, a marriage created here based on that temporary attraction, will be entirely unappealing in Heaven, and is one reason God cannot adapt His eternal plan to our temporary desires.

The church leaves the explanation of why there is gender confusion or homosexual tendencies to science. The why really doesn’t matter. What does matter is that a person choose to follow the commandments of God, whatever challenges may be placed in the path as they strive to do so.

Next: Gay Mormons: A summary of what the church teaches about homosexuality

In order to understand the place a homosexual member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has in the Church, it is important to recognize what the Church teaches about this issue.

The Mormons take no stand on what causes homosexual inclinations. In general, the Church lets science take care of science, and the Church worries about those issues that affect our eternal salvation. For this reason, the cause isn’t important from a spiritual standpoint. What does matter is behavior. The Church teaches that inclinations are not a sin, nor is temptation. After all, the Bible tells us that Satan tried to tempt Jesus. That said, we are commanded to avoid giving in to temptations.

Is Homosexuality a sin?

A person who has homosexual tendencies or desires is not considered to be committing a sin as long as he doesn’t act on those tendencies or promote them as desirable. This is true of other types of tendencies that could lead to sin as well. For instance, a member might have been an alcoholic prior to becoming LDS. Even after giving up alcohol use, he may still have longings for alcohol. This is not a sin. However, if he allows those temptations to win out and begins to drink again, he is then sinning. But unless this occurs, he is not considered to be doing anything wrong and is a member in full fellowship.

What about treatment?

The Church does not recommend any specific types of treatment and doesn’t determine whether or not a person should seek treatment. This is between himself and whatever counselor he might choose to see, if he chooses to see one.

What about marriage?

In an interview, Elder Dallin H. Oaks, a high-ranking church official, said:

”President Hinckley, faced with the fact that apparently some had believed it to be a remedy, and perhaps that some Church leaders had even counseled marriage as the remedy for these feelings, made this statement: “Marriage should not be viewed as a therapeutic step to solve problems such as homosexual inclinations or practices.” To me that means that we are not going to stand still to put at risk daughters of God who would enter into such marriages under false pretenses or under a cloud unknown to them. Persons who have this kind of challenge that they cannot control could not enter marriage in good faith.

On the other hand, persons who have cleansed themselves of any transgression and who have shown their ability to deal with these feelings or inclinations and put them in the background, and feel a great attraction for a daughter of God and therefore desire to enter marriage and have children and enjoy the blessings of eternity – that’s a situation when marriage would be appropriate.

President Hinckley said that marriage is not a therapeutic step to solve problems.”

Some might consider this unfair since it requires lifelong celibacy. However, members of the Church are counseled that celibacy is required of all who don’t marry. Therefore, many heterosexual church members who fail to find a mate also remain celibate. Mormons consider this lifetime to be a very small portion of our eternal lives, and sacrifices made here are only for a short time. Since Mormons believe marriage is forever, and that homosexual tendencies are removed when we die, members faced with this challenge will have opportunity to marry in the next life (with temple covenants performed for them by proxy), since there was no opportunity for them to do so here on earth.

Treatment of Homosexuals in the Church

The Church advocates treating all people with respect and has made specific comments to this effect regarding those with homosexual tendencies. As discussed earlier, one who has the tendencies but chooses not to act on them or to promote them as good is no different from any other church member in good standing-after all, everyone has trials. Even in the case of one who chooses to violate the laws of God, the Church separates the sin from the sinner. Church members are still under obligation to treat the person with respect and kindness, while not condoning the specific behavior. Tolerance does not mean one must accept any behavior a person chooses to engage in.

A person with homosexual tendencies is a full member in good standing if he doesn’t act upon those temptations or desires. He can hold any church position open to someone with his gender and marital status. He can serve a mission, teach classes, and hold leadership positions that don’t require marriage. Gordon B. Hinckley, a previous president of the Church, said, “We love them (referring to people who have same-sex attractions) as sons and daughters of God. They may have certain inclinations which are powerful and which may be difficult to control. If they do not act upon these inclinations, then they can go forward as do all other members of the Church.”

The Church’s focus is on belief and behavior. Each of us has trials we must face and overcome, and this trial is like any other. We must face it with faith and courage and turn to God for help.

Next: Attitude Toward Trials

Everyone who has ever lived on earth has faced trials, even Jesus Christ. Nothing in God’s plan for us ever promised us a trial-free life. Homosexuality is just one possible trial a person can have on earth, and Mormons who struggle with this understand that there are other trials just as challenging. Nothing in God’s plan says that He considers a trial an excuse for sin.Temptation

Having a temptation doesn’t mean we must give in to that temptation. A person with alcoholic tendencies must not drink. A person with a longing to steal must not steal. A person with a temper must not give in to that temper. Whatever the temptation, one reason we’ve come to earth is to gain control over our bodies and our minds, to live as we’re supposed to live regardless of the temptations. The Savior showed us the example of how to handle temptation when Satan came to Him with three temptations. He dealt with each one, finally sending Satan away. This is how we also must cope with our own temptations.

Trials

There is no question that having homosexual tendencies is a trial, one that requires a great deal of work to manage at some points in our lives. Everyone has trials. Everyone struggles with something. It’s part of the mortal experience. We don’t know why this particular trial occurs or what causes it, but the whys don’t really matter. What matters is what we do about it and how we choose to feel about it.

Feelings are a choice. There may be times when feelings overwhelm us, but in the long run, we can choose how we want to feel. Choice is an essential part of God’s plan for us. He promises us the right to make choices. We can’t choose our trials, but we can choose our attitude toward those trials.

James E. Faust, a former high ranking church official, said:

“Here, then, is a great truth. In the pain, the agony, and the heroic endeavors of life, we pass through a refiner’s fire…. In this way the divine image can be mirrored from the soul. It is part of the purging toll exacted of some to become acquainted with God. In the agonies of life, we seem to listen better to the faint, godly whisperings of the Divine Shepherd.

Into every life there come the painful, despairing days of adversity and buffeting. There seems to be a full measure of anguish, sorrow, and often heartbreak for everyone, including those who earnestly seek to do right and be faithful. …The thorns that prick, that stick in the flesh, that hurt, often change lives which seem robbed of significance and hope. This change comes about through a refining process which often seems cruel and hard. In this way the soul can become like soft clay in the hands of the Master in building lives of faith, usefulness, beauty, and strength. For some, the refiner’s fire causes a loss of belief and faith in God, but those with eternal perspective understand that such refining is part of the perfection process.” (James E. Faust, “Refined in Our Trials,” Ensign, Feb 2006, 2-7)

When viewed with a proper attitude, any trial, including that of homosexuality, can be seen as a blessing, something that will refine us and help us achieve what God most wants from us, the opportunity to become everything He knows we can be, and to return home to Him, sin-free and trial-free.

This trial, like any other, can be the means of helping us become more like the Savior, stronger, braver, more in control of ourselves and our passions. Or it can become the means to make us give up and give in, allowing our trials to control us instead of having us control them. The choice is entirely ours, but God’s truth will always be God’s truth, and can’t be changed. All that can change is our attitude toward the truth and our desire to honor it.

Next: Mormons and Marriage

“We, the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, solemnly proclaim that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children.

All human beings-male and female-are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents, and, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny. Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose.”

These words open a courageous proclamation issued by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on the nature, responsibilities, and blessings of family life. This document makes clear how the Mormons view marriage.

Marriage is a sacred ordinance, planned for us by God as a way of furthering His great plans for us. He planned for men and women to marry each other, and to, if possible bear and raise children. This unselfish effort would bring the husband and wife closer together as they served each other and their children, and give them companionship and support as they work their way through mortality.

Mormons stand strongly on the principle that marriage is ordained of God and planned by Him, and therefore, because it’s sacred, it must be guarded and preserved, protected from people who want to alter this sacred ordinance or weaken it. A person who has respect for sacredness, even if his own sacredness is found elsewhere, can understand why a group of people would work hard to protect that which is sacred to them from desecration and destruction.

“27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. (Genesis 1, King James Version of the Bible.)

Today, too many people treat marriage as a man-made invention, something casual and unimportant. Too many consider marriage to be something you do until you don’t want to do it anymore, and too many abandon it too easily. Too many consider it unimportant, and not even necessary in today’s world. Too many see it as something for which they can make any rules they choose.

The Mormons don’t treat marriage this way. Not only do they believe it was created by God to help us through this life, but they also believe it was created to be eternal. The marriages we create here can be, if we do what is necessary to make them so, last forever. After all, Heaven is where we’re told we will be happier than we can ever imagine. Could you be happy without those you love most in all the world? Would a loving God place such a powerful love for your family into your heart, tell you to give your family priority in this life, and then yank them away from you forever when you got to Heaven? Of course not, and so He’s promised us we can keep them forever if we live worthy of that wonderful gift and take the necessary steps.

Marriage was ordained before the world began, begins here on earth, and can continue through eternity. That places the definition of marriage, and its rules, under God’s direction. As a result, we can’t decide to change the rules ourselves. A careful reading of the Bible makes it very clear marriage was always intended by God to be between men and women, that God must be a partner in every marriage, and that marriage must be according to the commandments He set forth from the moment he created one man and one woman to begin the human family.

Sources:

The Family: A Proclamation to the World

Marriage on LDS.org

Next: Mormons and the Same-Sex Marriage Battle

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) has been an active participant in the legal battle over gay marriages. What exactly are they trying to achieve in their work in this area?

It’s important to understand they are not trying to ban homosexual behavior, which is best handled through spiritual and moral training. Nor are they focusing on other legal rights for people with homosexual tendencies.

“The Church does not object to rights (already established in California) regarding hospitalization and medical care, fair housing and employment rights, or probate rights, so long as these do not infringe on the integrity of the family or the constitutional rights of churches and their adherents to administer and practice their religion free from government interference.” (The Divine Institution of Marriage)

The entire focus of the Church’s efforts is to protect the definition of marriage and make sure that as a result of laws passed, the free practice of religion is not endangered. There are consequences to changing the definition of marriage that can have far-reaching effects on religions and on family rights.

For instance, making same-gender marriage legal will cause schools to be required to teach this type of marriage as normal and acceptable. We’ve already seen, in some states, that the schools are allowed to do this without parental warning or approval, and can even require children to bring such materials into the home, violating the rights of parents to control the morality of items in their own homes. Although opponants have denied this, if homosexual marriages are legal, schools would have no choice but to include them in discussions of marriage. Any current laws preventing this would certainly be challenged.

There have been challenges to the free practice of religion or freedom of speech in this movement. Some feel that any opposition to the proposed laws constitute hate speech and should be forbidden. This violates laws protecting both religion and speech, and create a double standard, since those declaring it hate speech believe they themselves can employ similar language in opposing those who support traditional marriage. Such a double standard endangers democracy for everyone, since the tide could change at any time, with the prohibitions placed on the opposing party.

When the issue has been put to a vote, we’ve seen clearly that Americans are not interested in redefining marriage. Changes to marriage laws generally come through the courts-the choice of a small number of people who choose to override democracy and the morality of the American people. This is a dangerous game to play, and all have an interest in ensuring we don’t have our country overtaken by judges who bypass the system of democracy so carefully crafted at our nation’s founding.

The Mormon Church upholds the civil rights of all citizens.  The Church has even said it would not fight civil unions between gays.  It stops short of approving marriage, since the Lord has proclaimed the institution to be sacred and has promised mankind with destruction should the institution of marriage be corrupted by any sort of movement, idea, or change that is against His will.  Recently, laws were proposed in Utah upholding gay civil rights.  Click here to read about the Church’s stance.

The law in the United States does not allow churches to endorse candidates. It does, however, allow churches to speak out on issues. Therefore, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) was well within its legal rights in speaking out on this issue. It should be noted members were not ordered to vote in a specific way. Voting is always private, and while the church requests that members participate in an issue that involves a core part of the gospel, it does not force such participation, nor does it accompany members to the polling place to supervise their vote. It is the job of a church to teach its members what God expects of them and then to allow them to decide whether or not they want to do what God has asked them to do. This is called agency, and is an important part of Mormon teachings.

This was the specific instruction sent to church members. You can read the entire letter as well. “California and Same Sex Marriage.”

A broad-based coalition of churches and other organizations placed the proposed amendment on the ballot. The Church will participate with this coalition in seeking its passage. Local Church leaders will provide information about how you may become involved in this important cause.

We ask that you do all you can to support the proposed constitutional amendment by donating of your means and time to assure that marriage in California is legally defined as being between a man and a woman. Our best efforts are required to preserve the sacred institution of marriage.

As you can see, they explained they would be working with a coalition of other churches, so members would know what was about to happen. Then they used request language to ask church members to participate. They asked, not commanded, and said members would receive information on how they may help, not on how they must help.

“Before it accepted the invitation to join broad-based coalitions for the amendments, the Church knew that some of its members would choose not to support its position. Voting choices by Latter-day Saints, like all other people, are influenced by their own unique experiences and circumstances. As we move forward from the election, Church members need to be understanding and accepting of each other and work together for a better society.

Even though the democratic process can be demanding and difficult, Latter-day Saints are profoundly grateful for and respect the ideals of a true democracy ” Church Responds to Same Sex Marriage Votes

Even if the church had never specifically asked members to participate in this particular issue, there would be no question as to where the Mormons stood. After all, they have always talked about the divinity of marriage and about the church’s teachings on homosexuality. The advantage of having participated is that some members discovered the church did not oppose civil unions or other legal rights for homosexuals. In addition, it may be that some members were not aware that being homosexual is not considered a sin, but that the sin is limited only to practice, not inclination. This gave the church the opportunity to clarify its teachings to its own members, as well as to the general public. They also took opportunity to strongly teach members to treat those with differing views or lifestyles with respect.

Morality is a critical aspect of religion. It would make no real sense to say churches cannot speak about any morality issue that might come up for election or become part of the political process. This places serious limits on the free practice of religion, since it would stop them from teaching their complete doctrine.

It’s also important to remember that every law in existence is based on someone’s idea of morality or value. It is always illegal to kill people today, because there are some who believe murder is immoral. However, there is a minority that does not believe this, and we don’t protect their minority rights. We imprison them if they violate what the nation has chosen as immoral. (This has not always been the case-it was once legal to murder Mormons in one state.) In some towns, it is illegal to park your car on your lawn. This is a law because of the personal beliefs of certain people who believe cars should be parked in driveways. It makes no difference if another person feels it’s immoral to dig up God’s grass to put in a driveway-the morality of the majority is official, and anyone who chooses to park on the grass will pay a penalty.

All laws are based on values of some sort. Where a person obtains his values should not matter. Whether he gets them from his church, from his political party, or from his pocketbook, they are still valid personal values. All personal values are real, and subject to a vote when they affect others. No source of values should be eliminated from the political process. If a person’s political party can force its values on others, as all political parties try to do, then churches should also be free to put their values to a public vote. While a nation cannot decide all Catholic, Baptist, or Mormon values will automatically be honored, each individual value can be placed into the public arena, as can each individual value of the Republicans or Democrats. Separation of church and state does not mean religious people are banned from the political process. It only means the government can’t force people to belong to a single religion or promote that religion. Religious people have the same constitutional rights as all other people to vote according to their beliefs.

Churches must be free to have a say in religion, as long as those beliefs are put to a vote to the general public and not automatically made into law. The United States came into being due to religion, and the protection of religion is one area that makes our nation a protector of freedoms.