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Friday July 27, 2007
The Deseret News reports that the Church has released a new pamphlet on the subject of Same-Sex Attraction.
Some excerpts from the pamphlet:
These blessings are based on obedience to eternal principles. The importance of families is one of these principles. Heaven is organized by families, which require a man and a woman who together exercise their creative powers within the bounds the Lord has set. Same-gender relationships are inconsistent with this plan. Without both a husband and a wife there would be no eternal family and no opportunity to become like Heavenly Father. In some circumstances a person defers marriage because he or she is not presently attracted to a member of the opposite gender. While many Latter-day Saints, through individual effort, the exercise of faith, and reliance upon the enabling power of the Atonement, overcome same-gender attraction in mortality, others may not be free of this challenge in this life. However, the perfect plan of our Father in Heaven makes provision for individuals who seek to keep His commandments but who, through no fault of their own, do not have an eternal marriage in mortal life. As we follow Heavenly Father’s plan, our bodies, feelings, and desires will be perfected in the next life so that every one of God’s children may find joy in a family consisting of a husband, a wife, and children.
...Many people with same-gender attraction respect the sacredness of their bodies and the standards God has set—that sexuality be expressed “only between man and woman, lawfully wedded as husband and wife” (“The Family: A Proclamation to the World,” Ensign, Nov. 1995, 102). The lives of these individuals are pleasing to our Father in Heaven. Some, however, cross this boundary and indulge in immoral conduct. The desire for physical gratification does not authorize immorality by anyone.
...Neglecting these positive influences and withdrawing from the Church because of discouragement, perceived rejection, or a sense that you do not belong can only hurt your spirituality and your desire to control your actions. Some people with same-gender attraction have felt rejected because members of the Church did not always show love. No member of the Church should ever be intolerant. As you show love and kindness to others, you give them an opportunity to change their attitudes and follow Christ more fully.
...One of these adverse influences is obsession with or concentration on same-gender thoughts and feelings. It is not helpful to flaunt homosexual tendencies or make them the subject of unnecessary observation or discussion. It is better to choose as friends those who do not publicly display their homosexual feelings. ... Association with those of the same gender is natural and desirable, so long as you set wise boundaries to avoid improper and unhealthy emotional dependency, which may eventually result in physical and sexual intimacy. There is moral risk in having so close a relationship with one friend of the same gender that it may lead to vices the Lord has condemned.
The pamphlet is available through the lds.org website under the gospel library, Support Materials, Leadership section and is entitled “God Loveth His Children”. Here is a direct link to the pamphlet:
God Loveth His Children (pdf)
Read the whole thing.
Some of my previous posts related to this topic:
*The Consistency of the LDS Church’s Position Regarding Legislating Marriage
*Q&A with LDS General Authorities: Same-Gender Attraction
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Thanks for pointing this out. I was not aware of this pamphlet.
this seems like a great pamphlet, and i have nothing but respect for our church leaders’ efforts to promote personal sexual righteousness as well as righteousness in respecting others and their struggles without judgment.
i did note this one passage: “It is not helpful to flaunt homosexual tendencies or make them the subject of unnecessary observation or discussion.” obviously agreed on the first part; the second part, while again i agree, leads me to think about what “unnecessary” observation or discussion means. i had a (self-described) gay friend who was my home teaching companion some years ago, and one of his struggles was that he felt he really couldn’t discuss his struggles, say, in elders quorum freely without being the object of stigma. now, that’s probably true of all of us with our private struggles: if i’m a kleptomaniac, then i can’t share that with the elders quorum without stigma either.
and yet, elements of our culture (not mormon-specific i don’t think) make it that we can discuss pornography problems in elders quorum (not our own, but generally) but we can’t discuss homosexuality in the same way comfortably. again, i think that’s just a cultural thing.
halfway through this entry i realized that i had answered my own initial point (with the kleptomania example), so perhaps i should delete this. but as with many things i say, i won’t.