Community Submissions
Eu amo minha tribo LGBT. A associação não é restrita por cor. Toda tonalidade é bem-vinda. Nós amamos e julgamos por outros, esperançosamente, padrões mais elevados. Buscamos encontrar o bem um com o outro, onde temos um terreno comum, e buscamos construir verdadeira empatia, ouvindo e aprendendo, compartilhando e cuidando.
I love my LGBT tribe. Membership isn’t restricted by color. Every shade is welcome. We love and judge by other, hopefully higher, standards. We seek to find the good in each other, where we have common ground, and we seek to build true empathy by listening and learning, sharing and caring.
Since I found Affirmation, I’ve been impressed by the level of faith of LGBT Mormons of all labels—active, inactive, disfellowshipped, excommunicated, walkaways, out or closeted, swimming with the current or against it, and so many others. I expected to find weakness in many forms. Instead, I found strength.
Brigham once said something that would later defend his own shortcomings in our day: The devil himself could tell the truth, and it would still be the truth.
In today’s world, the puzzle is 5000 pieces. Some people try to force the wrong pieces together, and then get mad, maybe even take drastic action, when it doesn’t work. I’ll set one aside and work with another piece until that fits somewhere. The right picture makes sense when the right pieces fit the right way.
The final list of Affirmation 2016 Conference workshops and presenters!
We desperately need an Affirmation that is united across the Church/faith divide, but just saying that we need it is not enough. If we really want it, we need to work at it. The tensions between folks on the opposite sides of that divide are very real.
By Duane Jennings
I love art. … [L]ike any spiritual nourishment, from bird-song to evensong, it is a critical part of soul health. And great would be the society that could awaken the young to all song with a clear inspiration rather than with some stumbled-upon hearing, while always acknowledging the paradox of the mysterious source. I would be part of that sounding if I could, with my art and with my life.
The personal, real-life stories of gay and lesbian individuals who have come out to family, friends, co-workers and neighbors in the decades since Stonewall have been instrumental in shifting the tide of public opinion. The court rulings and laws recognizing same-sex marriage and regulating or limiting anti-gay ministries, are welcome news to the majority of openly gay, lesbian and bi individuals and their families and friends, because they grant much needed rights and protections, and empower us to live our lives without fear and in accordance with our conscience.
Our interactions with those who oppose these decisions in the weeks and months ahead may not be easy. In fact, they may be excruciatingly difficult. Do not be dismayed! Move forward in your lives with fortitude and strength, engage opponents with kindness, and have faith “that all things work together for good that love God.”