The Bay Area Reporter
February 5, 2009
Documents unearthed by the Bay Area Reporter show that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has had a consistent strategy to fight the freedom to marry for gay couples that dates back more than two decades. [Link]
Monday, February 9, 2009
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The follow-up to this story is interesting, talking about the LDS involvement in California from 1997 to Prop 8:
"Prop 8 foes slow to pick up on Mormon involvement":
http://www.ebar.com/news/article.php?sec=news&article=3713
And an interview with LDS Hawaii leader Debi Hartmann:
http://www.ebar.com/news/article.php?sec=news&article=3710
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 (http://GayMormon.net) 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 married by Him, not just during this lifetime, but forever. Together, 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 a child 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 ( http://GayMormon.net ) are about basic beliefs of Mormons, for those who want to know more, and they may be read in any order.
Mormons Are Christian,
You know, most Christian faiths don't consider Mormons to be Christians at all. In fact, what Mormons "know," many Christian faiths say they "don't know." So what we have here in the United States is the freedom to think you know something that others have the freedom to say you don't know. It's called a secular government.
Mormons don't even believe in civil marriage, only their temple sealings are celestial. So they have no real reason to impose their beliefs on others, or do they? President Thomas Monson said in the Salt Lake Tribune that the Texas Sect Polygamist Ranch was a "nightmare" for the LDS. 32 of 53 young girls were pregnant.
But by opposing Prop 8 so forcefully, the LDS came out, not as the Catholics did, molestors of children, but as "protectors of traditional marriage." This is laughably ironic, since Mormons don't believe in a man and a woman as the definition of marriage (see section 132, still in their Doctrines and Covenants proclaiming polygamy as divine.) They did not remove or renounce the practice, only agreed not to practice in order to save their church property and gain statehood (see new york times, october 7, 1893.)
Mormons wagged the dog with prop 8, even Monson's Tribune comment eluded to the idea. Christian faiths believe Mormons are not Christians. They have that right. But isn't it strange that when Mormons sought to put one of their own in the white house, and Romney didn't get evangelical support, that the Mormons sought to build alliances with christians by raising the anti-gay standard?
Shame on them.
Mormons are a frightening cult.
They have 5 U.S. Senators, including the majority whip, Harry Reid, and a dozen congressmen. The Mormon influence of politics includes California, Arizona, Hawaii, New Mexico, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, Nevada and now Massachusetts. Beware the Mormon political aspirations. It is evil and everywhere.
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