Ed Smart, Father of Elizabeth Smart, Says He is Gay

Contents:

• 'ABSOLUTELY NOT A CHOICE.' ELIZABETH SMART'S FATHER ON COMG OUT AS GAY, LEAVG MORMON CHURCH
• ELIZABETH SMART'S FATHER REVEALS HE HAS NOT SPOKEN TO HIS EX-WIFE SCE COMG OUT AS GAY
• ED SMART, ELIZABETH SMART'S FATHER, REVEALS HE IS GAY
• ELIZABETH SMART'S FATHER SAYS G OUT AS GAY WAS HIS 2ND 'MIRACLE'
• ELIZABETH SMART'S DAD SCRIB HIS CHILDREN'S REACTN WHEN THEY FOUND OUT HE WAS GAY
• ELIZABETH SMART'S DAD, ED, FIRST TERVIEW SCE G OUT AS GAY: 'THERE IS NO CURE'
• I DIDN’T WANT TO BE GAY, ED SMART TELLS LGBTQ NFERENCE
• ED SMART, FATHER OF ELIZABETH SMART, OUT AS GAY
• READ ED SMART’S LETTER ANNOUNCG HE IS GAY
• ED SMART, FATHER OF KIDNAPPG SURVIVOR ELIZABETH SMART, SAYS HE IS GAY
• ELIZABETH SMART'S FATHER ANNOUNC HE IS GAY AND IS DIVORCG HIS WIFE
• ED SMART, FATHER OF KIDNAPPG SURVIVOR ELIZABETH SMART, OUT AS GAY
• ED SMART, FATHER OF ELIZABETH SMART, COM OUT AS GAY
• ED SMART, FATHER OF ELIZABETH SMART, ANNOUNC HE IS GAY
• ED SMART TALKS ABOUT HIS CISN TO E OUT AS GAY
• ED SMART, FATHER OF KIDNAPPG SURVIVOR ELIZABETH SMART, REPORTEDLY SAYS HE IS GAY
• ELIZABETH SMART’S DAD, ED SMART, SAYS HE’S GAY, DIVORCG WIFE AND LEAVG CHURCH
• ED SMART, DAD OF KIDNAPPG SURVIVOR ELIZABETH SMART, SAYS THERE'S NO GAY 'CURE'

'ABSOLUTELY NOT A CHOICE.' ELIZABETH SMART'S FATHER ON COMG OUT AS GAY, LEAVG MORMON CHURCH

The 64-year-old Smart, who me out as gay Augt, told CBS This Morng that he stggled to accept himself after a lifetime of believg that beg attracted to men was “not acceptable. ” “I was prayg that I was not [gay].

“But how do you cure beg gay?

” Speakg wh CBS This Morng‘s Gayle Kg an terview airg parts this week, Smart said he spoke wh church lears while tryg to figure out his feelgs. “And I went to my other church lear, and I said to him, ‘So am I gay?

ELIZABETH SMART'S FATHER REVEALS HE HAS NOT SPOKEN TO HIS EX-WIFE SCE COMG OUT AS GAY

Am I gay? '” After fdg that he uld not supprs a very real part of himself, Smart cid he need to speak out so others n know that beg gay is not somethg that needs to be fixed. "December 10th, my wife asked me ‘are you gay?

ED SMART, ELIZABETH SMART'S FATHER, REVEALS HE IS GAY

"Elizabeth said to me, 'dad whether you're gay or not, I want you my life, '" he relled. Ed Smart, the father of kidnappg survivor Elizabeth Smart, has e out as gay.

ELIZABETH SMART'S FATHER SAYS G OUT AS GAY WAS HIS 2ND 'MIRACLE'

""I wish to share the news that I have recently acknowledged to myself and my fay that I am gay, " wrote Smart. Earlier this year, the church officials said gay marriage is no longer a s that would rult beg dismissed om the church.

"As an openly gay man, the Church is not a place where I fd solace any longer, " he wrote. "Acknowledgg I am a gay man, is eeg but also hurts many of those whom I love very much, " he wrote. The father of kidnappg survivor Elizabeth Smart was spotted embracg a male pann, markg the first time he has been seen public wh a man sce g out as gay, exclive photos sgle Ed Smart may already be off the market after he was seen huggg the unintified man outsi a Starbucks the Sugarhoe area of Salt Lake Cy, Utah, on Saturday.

The 64-year-old announced Augt 2019 that he was gay and leavg the Mormon Church, as well as divorcg his wife Lois after 34 years of marriage. ' Ed Smart was seen huggg a male pann outsi a Starbucks Salt Lake Cy, Utah on Saturday, exclive photos show The 64-year-old mentned prev terviews that he was datg, but the are the first pictur of Smart wh a man sce he announced he was gay. An eyewns told 'Ed really looked happy wh the guy' Smart announced Augt 2019 he was gay and was divorcg his wife, Lois after 34 years of marriage and leavg the Mormon Church.

ELIZABETH SMART'S DAD SCRIB HIS CHILDREN'S REACTN WHEN THEY FOUND OUT HE WAS GAY

He returned to the spotlight Augt when he announced he was gay, would be divorcg his wife of 34 years and leavg the Mormon Church. They were very touchy-feely, ' the eyewns said'Somehow, this person I've loved my whole life thks I'm a horrible person, that really tears me', ' Smart told host Gayle Kg on CBS This Morng December.

ELIZABETH SMART'S DAD, ED, FIRST TERVIEW SCE G OUT AS GAY: 'THERE IS NO CURE'

' But Louis nonted him four years ago and asked him, 'Ed, are you gay?

I DIDN’T WANT TO BE GAY, ED SMART TELLS LGBTQ NFERENCE

I said, you know, "Your mother and I are gettg a divorce and I'm gay, "' Smart said.

ED SMART, FATHER OF ELIZABETH SMART, OUT AS GAY

His kids' reactns ranged om supportive to revealed some of his children reacted sayg: 'Well, dad, if you're gay, you're gay. But I do feel their love and I'm very grateful for that, ' Smart told host Gayle Kg. Back Augt, Ed Smart announced to iends and fay, and later to the public, that he is gay.

”Smart me out to his then-wife December 2018, when she asked him if he was gay. “Do my beg gay mean that I’m gog to be ls of a person, that I’m not gog to be that good person that I’ve tried to be all my life?

Elizabeth Smart's dad scrib his children's reactn when they found out he was gay. Ed Smart: One police theory for dghter's abductn was blackmail "bee I was gay".

READ ED SMART’S LETTER ANNOUNCG HE IS GAY

Now he's sharg his own our exclive terview, Smart reveals how difficult was to e out as gay to his fay and iends – and how 's affected his relatnship wh his Smart, father of Elizabeth Smart: "There is no cure" for beg gay "The thg about is I never looked at myself as beg gay. I know this sounds crazy, " Smart told "CBS This Morng" -host Gayle Kg.

"The thg is, when a child go missg, the first on that they have to look at is the fay, " Smart explaed one of the theori police had about Elizabeth's abductn: "They potentially thought that somebody was blackmailg me… bee I was gay. "That somehow I was havg this gay affair, which was absolutely not, " Smart said. "I said, you know, 'Your mother and I are gettg a divorce and I'm gay.

ED SMART, FATHER OF KIDNAPPG SURVIVOR ELIZABETH SMART, SAYS HE IS GAY

"He reunted the children's reactns ranged between "Well, dad, if you're gay, you're gay. '"About four years ago, Smart said his wife asked him an unexpected qutn: "Ed, are you gay?

""But wasn't your choice to be gay, you're sayg? "It was not my choice to be gay. And to those who say, "Ed, you have a problem, " Smart said: "I would say that my problem was that I was tryg to be straight when I was gay.

ELIZABETH SMART'S FATHER ANNOUNC HE IS GAY AND IS DIVORCG HIS WIFE

Seventeen years after his dghter Elizabeth's high-profile kidnappg and rcue, Ed Smart spoke Monday of his stggle to e out as a gay man. This is absolutely not a choice, " Smart said, sobbg an terview wh Gayle Kg on "CBS This Morng. I wish that, more than anythg, ” said Smart, who scribed his plited and nflicted relatnship wh his lifelong Mormon fah and his sexualy – and the fallout that took place after g me out as gay Augt a Facebook post to iends and fay, nfirmg to Utah media that he wrote the post.

”In Augt:Ed Smart, father of kidnappg survivor Elizabeth Smart, out as gayHe said he went to therapists and church lears, hopg they would provi answers to his anxiety over his Church of J Christ of Latter-day Sats changed s ntroversial l toward LGBTQ people  April, no longer banishg same-sex upl and allowg them to baptize their children to the fah.

ED SMART, FATHER OF KIDNAPPG SURVIVOR ELIZABETH SMART, OUT AS GAY

Smart, 64, said that not only didn’t he want to be gay, but he was “homophobic” about . He said he has sce e to believe he was born gay.

I wanted be fahful and do all those thgs that would enable me to be a place that was the bt place that I uld be, whether was beg the bt person I uld be here on Earth or whether was beg the bt place the hereafter, ” he said was a year ago this month durg a discsn about the church wh his wife, Lois, that she asked him if he was gay.

ED SMART, FATHER OF ELIZABETH SMART, COM OUT AS GAY

The suatn is I’m gay and I’m tryg to be straight. Smart, a father of six children, said he talked to church lears and a therapist who told him he wasn’t gay. “There are two people who know that I am gay.

” Smart said he ma early morng phone lls to each of his children the day after he me out to his wife, tellg them he was gay and gettg a divorce. ”While he agonized over tellg his mother that he is gay, his wife beat him to , “which blew me away, ” Smart said.

"I have recently acknowledged to myself and my fay that I am gay. "As an openly gay man, the Church is not a place where I fd solace any longer, " he wrote the letter.

ED SMART, FATHER OF ELIZABETH SMART, ANNOUNC HE IS GAY

"If they were to ph me to do so, I would [leave], " he the Mormon Church softened some of s anti-LGBTQ polici this year, such as no longer barrg the children of same-sex upl om baptism, is still antigay many rpects. Ed announced he is gay on Aug. 15, 2019 and says he will be leavg his Smart, the father of kidnappg survivor Elizabeth Smart, me out as gay Thursday, sendg a letter g Facebook Msenger to fay and iends that mentned that he plans to separate om his wife and no longer feels fortable The Church of J Christ of Latter-day Smart nfirmed he sent and posted publicly on Friday.

ED SMART TALKS ABOUT HIS CISN TO E OUT AS GAY

[Read more: Ed Smart talks about his cisn to e out as gay]When asked about the matter through a fay spokperson, Elizabeth Smart didn’t specifilly addrs her father’s sexual orientatn. "Smart add: “As an openly gay man, the church is not a place where I fd solace any longer.

ED SMART, FATHER OF KIDNAPPG SURVIVOR ELIZABETH SMART, REPORTEDLY SAYS HE IS GAY

Smart was rcued ne months later while walkg along a street Sandy wh kidnappers Brian David Mchell and Mchell’s wife, Wanda then, Elizabeth Smart and Ed Smart have been well-regard child-safety advot who work through the Elizabeth Smart is the send notable Utahn to e out as gay this summer. Utah County Commissner Nathan Ivie, a Republin, announced he was gay a vio posted to his Facebook page Smart, Ivie said he’d been fightg wh himself about his sexualy for years and had fally e to accept himself.

ELIZABETH SMART’S DAD, ED SMART, SAYS HE’S GAY, DIVORCG WIFE AND LEAVG CHURCH

When that happens, each of be better than we were is wh this same spir that I wish to share the news that I have recently acknowledged to myself and my fay that I am gay. Others have said, “you’re givg up so much for so ltle, and you know how the Lord feels about gays, ” they have nclud that I’ve chosen to waste my remag years by leavg behd some rich and amazg gifts.

Acknowledgg I am a gay man is eeg but also hurts many of those whom I love very much.

ED SMART, DAD OF KIDNAPPG SURVIVOR ELIZABETH SMART, SAYS THERE'S NO GAY 'CURE'

Had I not had a change my beliefs, I would have likely remaed closeted the rt of my an openly gay man, the Church is not a place where I fd solace any longer. Ed Smart, whose dghter Elizabeth Smart was abducted 2002, has announced that he is gay but says he is not leavg the Church of J Christ of Latter-day Sats. Ed Smart, the father of kidnappg survivor and child safety activist Elizabeth Smart, has announced he is gay, divorcg his wife, and leavg The Church of J Christ of Latter-day, 64, who has also served as a child safety advote for years through his dghter's foundatn, announced the emotnal cisn to fay and iends a Facebook msage on Thursday.