gay

Homosociality and the Friendship Between David and Jonathan

June 17, 2010
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Homosociality and the Friendship Between David and Jonathan

OT SS Lesson #23 The story of David and Jonathan is one of the most inspiring examples of true friendship anywhere.  Our LDS SS manual firmly places this lesson within the mainstream view of Biblical exegesis, presenting the two as strong personal and platonic friends.  As I studied the covenant made between these young men in 1 Samuel 18, I was touched by the loyalty shown by the young Jonathan, because he “loved as his own soul.”  Because of this love, Jonathan relinquishes his hopes for his father’s throne in deference to God’s choice.  In a symbolic and ceremonial...

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What the Golden Rule Does NOT Say: or, “Jesus wouldn’t recognize that rationalization.”

April 28, 2010
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One of my monthly New Year’s Resolutions last year was taken from Matthew 7:9-12, a slight change in my original plan. (See here.) These verses state: Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him? Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to...

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After Action Report: The Community of Christ Did WHAT?

April 21, 2010
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Headline in the Independence Examiner for Thursday, April 15, 2010: “Delegation Takes No Action on Human Sexuality Issues: Church Will Continue Dialogue.” Headline  by John Hamer on BCC on Thursday, April 15, 2010: “Gay Rights Revelation Added to The Community of Christ D&C” ———- The two headlines above generally cover the spectrum of opinion about what happened at the Community of Christ World Conference as it completed the process of canonization of a new Section 164 for its D&C. The spectrum of opinions about whether what happened was a good thing or bad thing, of course, runs even more...

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CoC to tackle Major Issues at April Conference: Gay Marriage & Baptism

January 20, 2010
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This is the second guest Post from FireTag, a member of the Community of Christ (formerly known as RLDS).  As he mentioned in his previous post, the Community of Christ is going through the process of canonization of a new revelation.  Here’s his latest installment of the process. CofChrist Prophet: Baptism in Christ Transcends Culture “5 It is imperative to understand that when you are truly baptized into Christ you become part of a new creation. By taking on the life and mind of Christ, you increasingly view yourselves and others from a changed perspective. Former ways of defining...

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Canonizing Modern Revelation – A Tourist Guide

January 5, 2010
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Over the past year or so, I’ve become blogging buddies with FireTag, a member of the Community of Christ.  He has his own blog at The Fire Still Burning.  Many of you should recognize FireTag, as he frequently comments here at Mormon Matters.  He was part of my panel for the Interview with the Community of Christ. As some of you may know, the Community of Christ (formerly known as RLDS), canonizes revelations in their edition of the Doctrine and Covenants much more frequently than the LDS church does.  There is an upcoming World Conference (similar to General Conference)...

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Hate Crimes up for Gays, Religious

November 24, 2009
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So, what do you make of this?  This AP article says that Hate crimes up against gays, religious groups – “Overall, the number of reported cases increases 2 percent.” Now the FBI says this could be the result of better reporting, and not really an increase.

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Great Expectations: What Are Your Hopes and Predictions for General Conference?

September 29, 2009
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Great Expectations: What Are Your Hopes and Predictions for General Conference?

“It’s the MOST WONderful TIIIME of the YEARRRRRR.”  The leaves are starting to change color. The evenings and mornings are a bit crisper. Even the birds’ singing suddenly sounds sweeter than ever. General Conference must be coming this weekend.

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A Personal Interpretation of Elder Hafen’s Remarks

September 25, 2009
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At the Evergreen conference held September 18-19, 2009, Elder Bruce Hafen gave a talk regarding homosexuality. The talk was reprinted on the official LDS Church Newsroom website. I will not synopsize the talk here but I suggest reading it yourself. Within a very short time, for obvious reasons, the bloggernacle was dissecting and analyzing the speech. These actions generated some interesting discussions here, and one permablogger at FMH did a good job of challenging the less-than-spectacular research here.

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What if the Brethren decided to allow gay marriage? by Justin Perry

August 16, 2009
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What if the Brethren decided to allow gay marriage? by Justin Perry

What if the Brethren decided to allow gay marriage? They’d have to do a lot of back-peddling to explain why they were suddenly in favor of something they stood against for so long. But over time, the church’s previous “official” opposition to gay marriage would be downplayed, the Apostles who spoke publicly against gay marriage would be criticized for giving their own personal, uninspired opinion, and new generations of LDS children would grow up in a church that accepted gays openly.

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Dancing Through the Sidebar

July 11, 2009
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Comment on any of the following articles – or anything else from the sidebar – or any other article of interest to this forum that we missed. There is no such thing as being normal If Kaimi were in dire straits, he would prefer to render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s Apparently, marriage is hard work Gayby Boomers? Silly name, interesting phenomenon An explanation for Utah bankruptcies I don’t think PETA would approve of this Aren’t you glad we have calculaors? Even Orson Scott Card realizes that Mormonism is a culture Another reason to have more kids – Placenta...

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“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” Supreme Court Decision Poll

June 8, 2009
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The US Supreme Court just announced it will not hear arguments regarding the US military’s “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy.

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CA Supreme Court Upholds Prop 8; Gay Couples Remain Married

May 26, 2009
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The link to the article summarizing the CA Supreme Court decision is in the sidebar to the left.  In summary, the court allowed Prop 8 to stand (keeping marriage in CA defined as being between a woman and a man) but also allowed all homosexual couples married prior to its passage to retain their married status.

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Can Love Be A Bad Thing?

May 26, 2009
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Can Love Be A Bad Thing?

The following must not be interpreted as petition to the Church. It’s simply a summary of some thoughts I have had that I would like to hear other perspectives on. Criticisms are welcome, but let’s keep it respectful, compassionate, and understanding.   This post isn’t about marriage. It isn’t about sex.

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“Out-of-Wedlock” Is No Longer “Illegitimate”

April 15, 2009
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“Out-of-Wedlock” Is No Longer “Illegitimate”

In a recent CNN.com/living article (“Out-of-wedlock births hit record high”), the discussion centered on the fact that the birth rate outside of marriage in the United States has risen nearly 25% in the past five years.  You read that correctly – 25% in 5 years.  The following are some representative quotes from that article:

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Strange Bedfellows

March 20, 2009
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Strange Bedfellows

One aspect of the church that makes me nervous at times is the alliances we form when our interests coincide with other groups, whether this is in the political realm (as is often the case), or even at times in interfaith work we undertake.

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Does Tom Hanks Hate Mormons?

March 11, 2009
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Does Tom Hanks Hate Mormons?

Tom Hanks is a beloved actor to many Mormons for his family-friendly roles and everyman quality.  Yet, his recent negative remarks (and hasty retraction) calling Mormons who supported Prop 8 “unAmerican,” and his role as executive producer on Big Love which is about to air the most sacred Mormon ritual on television begs the question:  Does Tom Hanks hate Mormons?

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Would This Gay Marriage Compromise Work?

March 4, 2009
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Would This Gay Marriage Compromise Work?

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Celibacy and Sexuality

February 9, 2009
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As they say, sex sells. The church has had a lot to say about sex and sexuality. It’s been on a winding path, but over time it has developed a rather comprehensive universe-view to back its positions. I like to think, even if some people vehemently disagree with the church position, or think that the church has become bland on certain doctrinal points in relationship to its past, LDS doctrines concerning the family have been consistently unique, fresh, and vitalic (even though that’s not a word, no other word sounds right to me…so hush up!)

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Gender: A State of Mind

February 4, 2009
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This is a post written initially on my own blog.  It was reprinted on Feminist Mormon Housewives a while back.  It created a very lively discussion and even got some comments from a few people who had personally been through a transgender operation.  I have edited the original post to make it more up-to-date and to include some of the comments it generated. ————————————————————————– Sometimes I find it hard to reconcile certain Church teachings with real-life stories.  I was reminded about this after catching an old episode of Oprah a few weeks ago. 

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Examining the Church’s Political Neutrality

November 21, 2008
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Examining the Church’s Political Neutrality

neu-tral /ˈnutrəl, ˈnyu-/ Show Spelled Pronunciation -adjective: not taking part or giving assistance in a dispute or war between others. (Random House Dictionary.) * * * * * Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. -Jesus (Matt. 10:34-35.) Although much, probably too much, has already been said about the Church’s endorsement of Proposition 8 in California,...

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