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All of us have been seriously affected by this evil little microbe, from rationing our toilet paper to being out of a job to a sudden and painful death of a person close to us. Fortunately, I’m better off than many others. I have plenty of TP, I’m retired, and I don’t know anyone close who’s suffered from it. I’ve also tested negative, and I stay six feet away from others and wear a mask whenever I make a run for essentials. But my biggest loss during this stay-at-home order—the issue that hits me where it really hurts—is not having someone to cuddle.
On May 5, 2020, Affirmation’s president, senior vice president, vice president, and director of operations hosted a live discussion about Affirmation as a nonprofit organization supporting the LGBTQIA+ Mormon community, how we’re staying connected in this time of COVID-19, and much more.
They were born into OUR Mormon families. They grew up singing the same Primary songs, learning the value of family relationships and wanting that for themselves, being taught they are each a child of God, learning to love one another, learning to get their own answers through prayer, and learning to stand up for what is right, even if they must stand alone.
For those who believe that Joseph indeed saw God the Father and Jesus Christ and seek to partake of the restored gospel, we are subject to the whims of those who have been called to lead the Church and must find a balance in living a full and fulfilling life without risking our relationship with and activity in the Church that we believe is important.
There are many things about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that I really like, things that resonate with me. I like that our God isn’t silent, that God answers prayers, and wants to reveal new things to us. It’s just that where church intersects with how I was made by our Creator, there is tension.
A prophet is sometimes as clueless as we are. We don’t know why God asks us to do something that makes no sense, but we have faith that we’ll understand somewhere down the line, because that’s how faith usually works.
National non-profit organization Affirmation LGBTQ Mormons Family and Friends, began its first Hawaii chapter in the Laie community this year, said organizers, due to a need voiced by BYU–Hawaii students and faculty.
Nathan Kitchen is president of Affirmation: LGBTQ Mormons, Families & Friends, a nonprofit that supports LGBTQ individuals and their families as they navigate the intersections they occupy in life, including the ways they interact with the Mormon church, whether they’re members or not. Kitchen, an alumnus of BYU, spoke with me to discuss the changes and ambiguity in the honor code, its impact on students, and what could instead be done to create a safer and more loving environment for LGBTQ individuals.
The anchor in each of our lives, whoever it is, who’s there when the times get tough, who helps our boat stay afloat and stop rocking so much in the storm until things calm down again, and who assures us that it will.