LGBT Mormons
Affirmation Dominican leaders and other members have volunteered and joined forces to rent an office for The Rainbow Ark and have started program coordination, international affiliations, coordinating hosting and arranging visa process operations for incoming participants. For young adults 18+ and older The Organization will assist in work placement and provide help with accommodation, visas and relocation assistance.
A lesbian couple who stopped by were delighted to learn that Affirmation had a place for them even though they had left the Church long ago, while it also had a place for their devout, believing family and friends. Another lesbian woman I spoke to shared her faith and her testimony with me, as she also shared the intense conflict she experienced, and was grateful to learn about Affirmation’s Prepare group, for church-active LGBT Mormons.
Bring all of who you are and march with us. Bring a sign. Bring a picture. Bring a poster or a painting. Something that symbolizes a significant piece of your journey and/or who you are.
We invite allies to come join us and show solidarity! Bring something that symbolizes your celebration of the life of an LGBTQ+ loved one!
For those of us who are lesbian, gay, bi or transgender and LDS, it is reassuring that our Church has gone on record to stand with us against those who would bully us or discriminate against us.
It seems odd for us to apply the term “allies” to parents. In a normal world, every child simply assumes that their fiercest, most loving defenders are and will always be their parents. The term “parent” ought to be synonymous with “ally.” Unfortunately, we don’t necessarily live in a world where that can automatically be assumed. In the meantime, we are deeply grateful to parents who — sometimes quietly, sometimes boisterously — stand by our sides and let us know through action and through words that family matters, and that we are family.
We respect the right of all people to tell their own story. However, it is vital to point out that these stories belong to the couples who own them in their personal lives and should never be used to manipulate others into false hope or dictated life choices.
There is a reason that LGBT Mormon testimony meetings are so powerful. It is because we have had to wade through rivers of doubt and climb mountains of rejection to know what we know. When we choose to put Gospel principles to the test, we must fight gravity, push against the current.
Once I had accepted myself, the self esteem issues melted away. I came to terms with my religion. I realized I could never leave the church. I am a Mormon; being gay will not change that. I am gay; being a Mormon will not change that. I am not some mistake that God made, he knows me and he wants me to be happy.