Same-sex marriage coming to Utah

[Jeff Lebowski]

Eric Snider. Gay LDS film critic. Still active in the church and still a believer.

http://bycommonconsent.com/2015/11/1...-of-testimony/

I’m going to speak in coded language for a moment. I’m 41 years old, I’m single, I don’t enjoy sports, and I love musical theater. I’ll let you fill in the blanks. But the answer is yes, I am.

I’m also a Mormon. Each of those things, by themselves, can complicate a person’s life. Make things more difficult. And both of them, together — that has its own complications.

And so people say, “Why would someone of that orientation be in that religion?” Or they say, “How can someone of that religion be that orientation?”

But here’s the thing. Of my sexual orientation and my religion, only one of those things is a choice. I choose to be a Mormon. I choose to live the gospel. I choose to take the sacrament as a sign that I’m willing to take the Lord’s name upon me, to always remember Him, and to keep His commandments.

Why am I a Mormon? Same answer as Simon Peter: where else would I go? This is where eternal life is — in the doctrines and ordinances of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the only authorized version of which is only found here.

[Donuthole]

lol -- you're killing it today.

Don't laugh at that; TriplePops has gone to that well way too many times.

[Bo Diddley]

Don't laugh at that; TriplePops has gone to that well way too many times.

And even though he cried wolf (the kind that gets shot far too often) one too many times, it was actually funny this time.

[ByronMarchant]

I just saw that the Church issued a clarification on its new policy.

Something along the lines of:

1) Be nice to kids no matter what.

2) If primary residence is with gay cohabiting parents:

A) If baptized, proceed with priesthood, etc. (Stick with the program.)
B) If not baptized, don't baptize.

Does this increase or decrease clarity? Still seems confusing to me.

Citation: https://www.lds.org/pages/church-han...anges?lang=eng

[scottie]

This made me chuckle, thanks desnews:

[CardiacCoug]

This made me chuckle, thanks desnews:

Yeah I agree that was funny. Definitely true though that the vast majority of people at these demonstrations have had nothing to do with he church for many years.

[Topper]

Don't know if this article has made the rounds, but interesting nonetheless. Greg Prince does a good job documenting this sort of stuff.

http://bycommonconsent.com/2015/11/1...ng-revelation/

[Jeff Lebowski]

I know we are all sick of reading essays about the policy change, but I thought this was an interesting summary by Grant Hardy.

https://divinity.uchicago.edu/sighti...-just-happened

More troubling to top church leaders, however, is that many of those who expressed concerns were active, believing Latter-day Saints, including some of the local leaders charged with implementing the new policies. This is nearly unprecedented in Mormondom.

So gay and lesbian Mormons, whether married or not, are upset; extended families of LGBT Latter-day Saints are upset; some devout members are upset at policies they perceived as draconian or doctrinally problematic; conservative Mormons are upset with fellow congregants who questioned the wisdom of the changes or the inspiration of leaders; and senior church leaders are undoubtedly upset at how all these decisions were rolled out. That’s a lot of unhappiness over a few lines in a handbook.

For Mormons, anxiety over the changing definition of marriage is not simply a matter of conservative prejudice; it is an issue with deep theological consequences which appear to contradict God’s plan for eternal families.

Yet many LDS families in the here and now are feeling keen discomfort, and the Mormon community as a whole, which operates more like a world-wide family than most other denominations, has discovered rifts that go beyond the old distinctions between active and inactive members.

[Eddie]

My active LDS gay co-worker spoke in sacrament meeting last Sunday. He had some people a little worried about what he might say. Here is the talk he gave:

http://bycommonconsent.com/2015/11/1...urn-for-peace/

This week has been a very hard one for me and many of my friends. I’ve spent many hours on the phone with friends comforting them and being comforted in return. I’ve sat with friends who ache, and we’ve wept together. And while this week has been… extra-ordinary …we have — each one of us — at one time or another, asked what the poet asks: “Where can I turn for peace?”.

[Jeff Lebowski]

Yale LDS PhD candidate encourages bishops to defy the new policy.

And to pay your tithing in fast offerings.

http://www.sltrib.com/opinion/319357...ining-loyal-to

[Moliere]

I am sure a rewording/update is forthcoming.

Just curious, but did the policy ever get reworded to be more clear? Maybe it's still going through revisions at Kirton & McConkie.

[Jeff Lebowski]

Just curious, but did the policy ever get reworded to be more clear? Maybe it's still going through revisions at Kirton & McConkie.

No idea.

[Moliere]

No idea.

It was a rhetorical question since I already knew the answer. They haven't and I doubt they will.

[Jeff Lebowski]

It was a rhetorical question since I already knew the answer. They haven't and I doubt they will.

You already knew?

That sounds downright Dehlinesque.

[Moliere]

You already knew?

That sounds downright Dehlinesque.

Hey now, you are the one that has the JD label on this board...don't try and pawn it off on me...

BTW, I feel bad for not creating a new thread for this PR/church debacle (yes, I was the first one to post on it here: http://www.cougarstadium.com/showthr...=1#post1223924). Feel free to break this convo up into a new thread and stick it into the Foyer.