Longtime support group for gay Mormons shuts down

Contents:

• AFFIRMATN, THE GAY MORMON SUPPORT GROUP, HAS SEEN A ‘SEA CHANGE’ S 40 YEARS
• GAY MORMON GROUP TO MEET WH CHURCH OFFICIALS
• CHURCH UPDAT OFFICIAL ‘MORMON AND GAY’ WEBSE
• GAY MORMONS
• GAY MORMONS GRAPPLE WH FAH, SEXUALY
• GAY MORMON
• LONGTIME SUPPORT GROUP FOR GAY MORMONS SHUTS DOWN

AFFIRMATN, THE GAY MORMON SUPPORT GROUP, HAS SEEN A ‘SEA CHANGE’ S 40 YEARS

Affirmatn, a support group for gay Mormons, was born 1977, at a time when admissn of same-sex attractn among the LDS fahful was a matter of ner turmoil, ep shame and relig rejectn — even a e for the time, the LDS Church viewed their sexualy as perverse and sful, and their love as unholy. Any acceptance of gays had to be, 40 years later, hundreds the church’s LGBTQ muny, their fai and iends, are celebratg Affirmatn’s anniversary openly and wh gto at a three-day nference at the Utah Valley Conventn Center Provo — many embracg their gayns and their group has a full-time paid executive director, John Gtav-Wrathall, members more than a dozen untri and, by the end of 2017, will have hosted 19 events cludg regnal nferenc and this annual natnal this meetg, which began Friday, there were ssns for youths, mothers, fathers, alli, advot, people of lor, spo and LDS lay lears.

”The group has seen a “massive sea change, ” Gtav-Wrathall says, the relatnship between The Church of J Christ of Latter-day Sats and s gay members. ”Affirmatn began as a simple effort by activists at Brigham Young Universy: Assure gay Mormons they were loved and not alone, while strivg to stop them om killg themselv. “You were eher ex-gay and Mormon or ex-Mormon and gay, ” says Gtav-Wrathall.

GAY MORMON GROUP TO MEET WH CHURCH OFFICIALS

”Even when parents were acceptg of their gay children, he says, “ was rare for them to bee public advot. ”Gtav-Wrathall’s own vout LDS mom and dad stggled wh how to balance parental love wh church standards, which, at the time, said even beg gay was a s. ”The executive director was exmunited om the church, but matas his Mormon belief and has been attendg his LDS ngregatn Mneapolis sce ’s LDS Church says beg gay is not a s, though actg on is.

It ntu to oppose gay marriage, though did support Salt Lake Cy’s and Utah’s anti-discrimatn measur.

It also recently endorsed the LoveLoud ncert Orem, whose missn was to raise money to prevent gay suicis. Ironilly, two of the church’s most visible actns — supportg California’s Proposn 8, which fed marriage as only between a man and a woman 2008 and, 2015, sayg that same-sex Mormon upl are “apostat” and generally barrg their offsprg om Mormon ruals until they turn 18 — propelled the nascent LDS gay rights movements greatly enlarged the number of Affirmatn participants, he says, but also stretched s rourc to meet the needs of an ever-growg populatn.

CHURCH UPDAT OFFICIAL ‘MORMON AND GAY’ WEBSE

“We need to be a rource for those who are gay and Mormon, as well as those who have left the church.

”The gays tell their stori and church officials listen, he says, “then they tell their stori and we listen. Gee, Utah, to raise money for the ncer treatment of the mother of a gay man the muny, and the Fire Hoe is one of the few venu town that hosts LGBT events. She's a "mama dragon, " a term the Mormon muny to scribe mothers who fiercely advote for gay rights.

"I thk every gay Mormon child wish for a mom like that, " Garett says wistfully.

GAY MORMONS

"There's no pri center or gay club or place that un , " Kyle says as he walks out to the night. It had always been challengg to be gay and Mormon.

The Church had often fought agast the risg ti of marriage equaly; s members were major fancial backers of 2008's Prop 8 California, which briefly banned same-sex marriage the state before beg more progrsive Church members voiced strong disapproval, Garett, like many Mormons, believed the spirual lears were warmg to gay rights. The Church had been takg small but signifint steps forward, acknowledgg that beg gay isn't a choice and that fai should accept their LGBT loved on.

GAY MORMONS GRAPPLE WH FAH, SEXUALY

)When the cisn me down, legalizg same-sex marriage all across the natn, Garett felt an emotn he didn't often feel as a gay Mormon man: vditn. ) Statistilly, that means that the Church has hundreds of thoands of gay followers. Its official policy toward homosexualy is that "actg" on one's sire is a s and that same-sex marriage is agast God's, twenty-six, and Garett, twenty-four, have had a long, plited relatnship wh the relign to which they were born.

GAY MORMON

Neher of them associated wh or even knew any Church's official policy toward homosexualy is that "actg" on one's sire is a s and that same-sex marriage is agast God's will.

LONGTIME SUPPORT GROUP FOR GAY MORMONS SHUTS DOWN

"I felt a strong obligatn to be out there for other gay Mormons to see.

That night, they met another gay Mormon uple at Olive Garn for a celebratn over pasta and a bottle of whe for Kyle's brother and sister--law, they did not tell their fai. He is also openly gay, but unlike Garett, he is celibate. His relign and his homosexualy are equal parts of him, and he says he don't want to put "eher inty the closet.

Garett uld only assume that his parents believed they had one gay son who stayed celibate orr to bt serve his fah, and another who abandoned relign to have a meangful has never wished to be seen as the good gay son.