Gay Mormon Dcrib Endg Relatnship, Denyg Himself for Fah

Contents:

• PHOTOS OF GAY MORMON MISSNARI STIR NTROVERSY
• MATTHEW GONG, GAY MORMON, REFLECTS ON HIS JOURNEY OM NER WAR TO NER PEACE
• MORMON AND GAY: CHURCH SAYS YOU N BE BOTH
• MORMON AND GAY: HOW IT’S GOG
• CHURCH UPDAT OFFICIAL ‘MORMON AND GAY’ WEBSE
• RISG NUMBERS OF YOUNG ADULT MORMONS THE US ARE GAY, LBIAN OR BISEXUAL
• 283 MORMON GAY BANQUE PHOTOS ET IMAG HTE RéSOLUTN
• CHURCH UPDAT OFFICIAL ‘MORMON AND GAY’ WEBSE

PHOTOS OF GAY MORMON MISSNARI STIR NTROVERSY

The photographs, part of an stunt-sponsored exhibn tied to Diversy Week by gay, lbian and transgenred artists at the school's South Cy mp, pict two young men whe shirts and dark pants, one of them wearg a missnary name tag. Farmer, who is gay, told The Salt Lake Tribune that he was raised a member of The Church of J Christ of Latter-day Sats and had difficulty while growg up rencilg the two worlds.

”And th he me to see his gay self as a “weed” the Latter-day Sat is hardly alone such a feelg of beg misplaced, of urse, but his experience is unual.

”Though Gong’s relatnship wh his parents got off to a “rocky start” after he me out — not for lack of love or rejectn but for mismunitn — they are now as close as ever and talk almost every isn’t to say father and son agree on all asked 2018 if havg a gay son had affected his views on LGBTQ issu, the apostle replied, “We love each member of our fay. C., area, where his dad worked at a policy thk the fay moved to Utah, the young Gong found himself a much more homogeneo muny wh a “domant culture, ” he says, where his peers and teachers weren’t exactly sure about his he Mexin? ”)He didn’t want to accept himself as gay, “bee the only queerns I had ever seen was bad” — the AIDS crisis, promiscuy, ath.

MATTHEW GONG, GAY MORMON, REFLECTS ON HIS JOURNEY OM NER WAR TO NER PEACE

In movi, gays were victims, targets for bulli, or “the sassy iend. He was lled to London on a Mandar-speakg missn his 21st birthday, at the start of the fal year on his missn, Gong wrote separate emails to each of his brothers and his parents to tell them he was gay. Mormon and gay: Church says you n be both.

LDS Church has lnched a new sectn of s official webse, tled "Mormon and Gay".

Self-intified gay Mormon: The church's shift on this issue is "monumental". As a creative director for church public affairs, Rosas was asked to help sign the church’s latt mpaign: a new sectn of s official webse tled “Mormon and Gay.

MORMON AND GAY: CHURCH SAYS YOU N BE BOTH

As the office’s attentn fixed upon homosexualy, Rosas sctized himself.

Now he and his wife Elizabeth are featured promently on “Mormon and Gay, ” discsg how they have grown together as the new materials gave them the tools for “a healthy dialogue.

No issue the last has divid church as eply as homosexualy. As public opn – and scientific unrstandg – on sexualy has shifted wh remarkable speed, many nomatns, cludg Mormon lears, have had to grapple wh a difficult qutn: How do they mata tradnal doctre that homosexual acts are sful, while acceptg and misterg to gay and lbian Mormons who scerely wish to rema part of their church?

MORMON AND GAY: HOW IT’S GOG

Unveiled on Tuday, “Mormon and Gay” is one answer to that qutn. The web page featur vio msag and says om five church members, cludg Rosas, who intify as same-sex attracted, gay, lbian or bisexual.

CHURCH UPDAT OFFICIAL ‘MORMON AND GAY’ WEBSE

Senr church lears ll the new materials “simply an update” om the webpage “Mormons and Gays, ” released 2012 on a doma unaffiliated wh the church’s official webse. (“Mormons and Gays” now redirects to the new “Mormons and Gay” page.

Mch Mayne, a proment gay Mormon and blogger, said, “Above and beyond gettg to the ntent of the webse, the URL is absolutely fantastic – ’s an clive statement. While the prev se promently displayed the church’s doctral stance agast homosexual activy on s homepage, the new materials feature the stori of gay members. “Church Teachgs” is loted on a separate page; roughly 1, 700 words and five vios on “lovg one another” prece the first direct statement that “homosexual activy is a s.

Fulmer, who self-intifi as a gay Mormon and is featured on the new webse, said the new materials “give a steppg stone to have more open munitn about this and to te others on how to help and how to rpond to somebody who is gay. Trevor Johnson, a gay man who was raised Mormon but rigned his membership after gettg engaged, said, “When I first me out, the most damagg thg was feelg like people didn’t believe me that I was attracted to men.

RISG NUMBERS OF YOUNG ADULT MORMONS THE US ARE GAY, LBIAN OR BISEXUAL

I appreciate that the church is releasg materials that validate the realy of the homosexual experience.

Keetch both say they have bee more ted on homosexualy through their volvement producg the materials — a two-year procs which volved the church learship, LGBT advocy groups and mental health profsnals. Soon, Searle began to date gay men. But his experience as a fahful gay Mormon hasn’t been easy.

“I wish there was ntent on how to be a celibate gay man an emotnally healthy way.

283 MORMON GAY BANQUE PHOTOS ET IMAG HTE RéSOLUTN

While the church once regard homosexualy as “curable” and enuraged members to be “forced” to heterosexual marriag, the church has backed off of this remendatn.

CHURCH UPDAT OFFICIAL ‘MORMON AND GAY’ WEBSE

“Mormon and Gay” leav the qutn of future relatnships for Fulmer and Searle open-end, sayg they don’t know what the future holds. In a church found on the ncept of ntual revelatn, many members qutn what those “future updat” uld be — cludg whether the church will revoke s ntroversial policy on the children of gay parents.

Mormon evolutn on homosexualy. Prr to 1950Homosexualy regard by church as “s that dare not speak s name” 1952“Homosexualy” is ed publicly by a senr church lear for the first time, lled an “abomatn” parable to masturbatn and btialy1969Homosexualy regard as “curable” by a senr church lear; beg “forced” to heterosexual relatnships is enuraged 1976Church-sponsored Brigham Young Universy nducts electroshock therapy for 14 gay Mormons1978-81Church fac public backlash for opposg Equal Rights Amendment, argug uld extend legal protectn to “lbian and homosexual marriag” 1990sLears beg referrg to homosexualy as same-genr attractn, acknowledgg the realy of sexual attractn while nmng the s of actg on those feelgs 2008-09Church attempts to balance “relig liberty and nondiscrimatn” polil advocy, mpaigng agast legalizatn of gay marriage California and supportg a nondiscrimatn ordance Salt Lake Cy2012Church “gay” for the first time public munitns.

In a seri of vios on “Mormons and Gays, ” lears ask members to “fd mon ground” while “beg te to relig beliefs”2015“Handbook of Instctn” for church lears is updated wh a new policy barrg children of same-sex upl om church baby blsgs and baptism. Same-sex marriage is regard as apostasy and grounds for exmunitn2016Church lnch new “Mormon and Gay” sectn on s official webse, which Mormon lears ll for creased dialogue about homosexualy, and gay Mormons share their experienc as active, celibate church members. Christofferson, who has a gay brother, also led the creatn of the “Mormon and Gay” webse, acrdg to a church spokman.