Community Submissions

Marcial Fuenmayor, president of Afirmación Venezuela, sharing with members of the Human Rights Network of Zulia State.

Affirmation Venezuela is Now Part of REDHEZ

March 23, 2023 |

Affirmation Venezuela’s voice is important and a blessing as we work through positive actions toward change in partnership with REDHEZ. We will continue building a brilliant path along which all colors of creation are recognized.

Illustration of head, colorful, thoughtful.

Moving Beyond “It’s Not a Choice” as a Defense for LGBTQ+ Identities

March 23, 2023 |

“It’s not a choice” no longer has to be a defense of queerness and can instead be one of many ways of coming to and explaining a sexual and/or gender identity. This linguistic and conceptual shift is not only more inclusive and affirming of those who frame their queer identities in more agentic and experimental ways, but it also makes the question of whether a sexual or gender identity is “chosen” increasingly irrelevant.

The Value of Friendship Celebrated by Affirmation Venezuela for Valentine’s Day

February 13, 2023 |

While those within Affirmation Venezuela celebrate friendship every day as an invaluable gift from our Heavenly Father, we recognize that this was a unique opportunity to celebrate this transcendent gift, as friendship is the salt of life.

“Questions from the Closet” Answered at Surrey Stake Training and Devotional

February 5, 2023 |

A recent training and devotional hosted by the Surrey Stake in British Columbia, Canada, featuring Ben Schilaty and Charlie Bird, garnered some addition, some even calling it historic. Similar meetings have been happening in various stakes of the Church for quite some time, as leaders and members of the Church seek to better understand, love, and minister to LGBTQIA+ Latter-day Saints.

Dean Snelling Diary of a Gay Latter-day Saint

Dean Snelling: Diary of a (gay) Latter-day Saint

January 25, 2023 |

Snelling takes you on his over-six-decade journey of self-discovery, faith, sacrifice, loss, and affirmation, blending his memory with excerpts from letters, church talks, and other materials. Dean lives a double life, where, on the surface, he is a beloved teacher, family man, and worthy priesthood holder serving in various callings. However, below that surface is a man desperately struggling to hold it all together, seeking satisfaction in dark places and not understanding why this struggle was not being taken from him.

Personal Revelation through Prayer at the Sacred Grove

January 18, 2023 |

I did ask in my prayer if God accepted me as a gay man and if it is a sin to be gay, as I was excommunicated from the LDS Church. An overwhelming presence of the Spirit of God fell upon me. No, I didn’t have a vision or anything like that, but I did feel extremely at peace and felt a warm sweet love present.

Gregory Stowers Washington D.C. Temple

Alone No More, Singing with Gay Men’s Chorus at Washington D.C. Temple

December 13, 2022 |

The last time that I was here at the D.C. Temple was to sit in the lobby while the rest of my family got to see my sister and her husband get married and sealed in the temple, wondering why I had never felt more alone after failing my temple recommend interview.

Recognizing the Right to Our Identities

September 21, 2022 |

The recognition of our identity goes through a necessary exercise of self-valuation and self-recognition of who we are; of that unique essence that makes us truly authentic and valuable.

Mirror, Mirror: The Magic of Love from a Fairy Tale

September 21, 2022 |

This was another unforgettable activity hosted by Affirmation Venezuela that focused on recognizing that we are children of our Heavenly Father and that He loves us.