Diferenças entre edições de "Utilizador:InProgress/Same-sex attraction"

Revisão das 17h54min de 26 de janeiro de 2010

"Love thy neighbor as thyself" is one of the two great commandments in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. There is no teaching or commandment in the church that conflicts with this law. We believe all mankind are our brothers and sisters. All who are baptized into the church have made a covenant to "mourn with those who mourn, and comfort those who stand in need of comfort". This is especially true of our brothers and sisters who are attracted to the same gender,^[1] commonly referred to as gay or lesbian.

We welcome our gay brothers and sisters into the church, and affirm them as good people. We empower them to make decisions that will help them attain happiness in this life, and we help them with whatever trial they are facing. We do this regardless of how they chose to live their lives.

The church welcomes gay people

The Church welcomes all people to come unto Christ. President Hinckley has specifically extended this welcome to gay men and women. In 1999, he made the following statement:

"As I said from this pulpit one year ago, our hearts reach out to those who refer to themselves as gays and lesbians. We love and honor them as sons and daughters of God. They are welcome in the Church." ^[2]

The Church has published several publications designed to reach out to members with same-sex attractions. The most recent, God Loveth His Children, assures that "No one is, or ever could be, excluded from the circle of God’s love or the extended arms of His Church, for we are all His beloved sons and daughters."^[3] Elder Oaks similarly stated: "Church leaders are sometimes asked whether there is any place in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for persons with homosexual or lesbian susceptibilities or feelings. Of course there is." ^[4]

Many are faithful members of the church. LDS Family Services estimates that there are four or five members in every unit of the Church who is attracted to the same sex.^[5] Their stories and testimonies have been published in the Ensign^[6], are printed in books sold at Deseret Book^[7], are covered by the media^[8][9] and are found on the Internet^[10]. Many have formed unofficial organizations, such as Evergreen, North Star, and Northern Lights. These organizations are composed of people with same-sex attractions who uphold the teachings of the church without reservation. Every year, a member of the quorum of seventies gives a special address at the annual Evergreen Conference.

The church affirms gay people

Like all of God's children, the church teaches that gay people are beloved sons and daughters of God. Sometimes, gay people do not feel they are loved by God. The Church affirms them by teaching them that the church loves them and that God loves them. In "A Letter to a Friend", President Spencer W. Kimball reminds gay people to "Remember, the Lord loves you, the Church loves you."^[11]

Instructions given to leaders in the church in 1992 instructed leaders on how to affirm gay members: "When members with homosexual problems come to you for help, they may feel guilty and in despair, having been unable to change their lives. You can instill hope in them. Help them to know that you and their Heavenly Father love them and that they can be healed from their afflictions through the atonement of the Savior." ^[12]

In 1998, President Gordon B. Hinckley said "People inquire about our position on those who consider themselves so-called gays and lesbians. My response is that we love them as sons and daughters of God." ^[13]

In response to an accusation that the church rejects our gay brothers and sisters, President Packer responded "We do not reject you,... We cannot reject you, for you are the sons and daughters of God. We will not reject you, because we love you. ^[14]

Speaking of a gay man, Elder Holland said "I weep with admiration and respect at the faith and courage of such a man who is living with a challenge I have never faced. I love him and the thousands like him, male or female, who "fight the good fight" (1 Timothy 6:12). I commend his attitude to all who struggle with-or who are helping others who struggle with-same-gender attraction." ^[15]

Beyond simply expressing love for gay people, the church affirms that there are indeed good people. In a 1995 interview, President Hinckley said: "Now we have gays in the church. Good people."^[16]

This affirmation is not limited to gay people who keep the standards of the church. In the Miracle of Forgiveness, Spencer W. Kimball said that men who were pursuing same-sex relationships were "basically good people who have become trapped in sin."^[17]

The church empowers gay people

It is often debated whether gay people can chose their actions. There is prevalent belief that gay people are created without a choice in their sexual behavior, and unless they pursue same-sex relationships, they are living a lie. For example, in the Supreme Court case "In Re: Marriage", the court ruled that "the choice of life partner will be, by definition, someone of the opposite sex. This teaching is very harmful to gay people. It teaches them that they are slaves to their sexual urges, and they have no power to decide how to live their lives. This is particularly harmful to the many people attracted to the same gender who want to chose a different path.

The Church teaches that all people "are free to chose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death." (2 Nephi 2:27) The ability to chose was of fundamental importance in the war in heaven. This empowers the gay person. It teaches that they are in control of their destiny, and they can make of their life what they want.

God Loveth His Children affirms this choice and teaches gay people that "You are a son or daughter of God, and our hearts reach out to you in warmth and affection. Notwithstanding your present same-gender attractions, you can be happy during this life, lead a morally clean life, perform meaningful service in the Church, enjoy full fellowship with your fellow Saints, and ultimately receive all the blessings of eternal life."^[18]

The Church helps gay people find peace

The mission of the church is to bring all people to Christ. We believe that this is one of the fundamental ways in which we can serve our fellow man. We believe we can come closer to Christ by taking upon us his name through the covenant of baptism, which includes a covenant to obey his commandments. Teaching and encouraging our fellow man to obey the teachings of Christ is an important part in bringing them to Christ. This is the greatest good we can do for our fellow man, and what will bring them the greatest joy.

The path that leads to eternal life is straight and narrow, but we want as many of our brothers and sisters to find that path as possible. Christ taught against fornication and adultery, and we believe that includes all sexual relationships besides that of a husband and a wife. We teach and encourage all to obey this commandment, as part of our duty to bring them to Christ. Elder Oaks explains the natural consequences if gay people do not follow the law of chastity: "Those commandments, if they are not adhered to, result in guilt. That guilt is painful to people. There are two solutions to that guilt. One is to disbelieve in God or hold a congress and pretend that you can change God's commandments. The other is to discontinue that kind of conduct to the best of your ability."^[19] While the church may not follow the world's approach, we believe that our approach of promoting the commandments of the Lord will help alleviate the guilt people feel by inspiring them to live are higher moral code.

There are people who feel that by promoting this higher moral code, we are rejecting those who do not follow it. Elder Packer responded to this concern as to how it applies specifically to gay people. He said:

"We understand why some feel we reject them. That is not true. We do not reject you, only immoral behavior. We cannot reject you, for you are the sons and daughters of God. We will not reject you, because we love you. You may even feel that we do not love you. That also is not true. Parents know, and one day you will know, that there are times when parents and we who lead the Church must extend tough love when failing to teach and to warn and to discipline is to destroy." ^[20]

There are many gay members of the church who find the teachings of the church to be encouraging. Elder Wickman explains that this is one of the reasons why the Church teaches about homosexuality: "One of the purposes of that discussion was to try to be hopeful and encouraging to those who do but nonetheless want to conform their lives to what they understand the Lord's teachings to be."^[21]

We have no other reason for teaching the law of chastity other than out of love for our fellow man. Spencer W. Kimball taught that "the Church and the Lord have no ulterior motives - the only desire being for the restoration of you, yourself, a son of God, made in his image.^[22]

Joseph Smith once taught that a religion that does not require the sacrifice of all things cannot produce the faith necessary for salvation. Certainly, we would want both the gay and straight members of the church to be able to produce the faith necessary for salvation. Our eternal family would not be complete without our gay brothers and sisters.

The church helps family members of gay people

One way that the church helps gay people is by supporting their families, and encouraging them to love and reach out to their family members regardless of how they chose to live their lives. In a 1992 statement to Church leaders, the Church counseled: "If a person with homosexual problems chooses not to change, family members may have difficulty maintaining feelings of love and acceptance toward the person. Encourage them to continue loving the person and hoping that he or she may repent." ^[23]

This was reiterated by Elder Oaks in 1997: "Surely if we are counseled as a body of Church membership to reach out with love and understanding to those ‘struggling with these issues,’ that obligation rests with particular intensity on parents who have children struggling with these issues... even children who are engaged in sinful behavior associated with these issues" ^[24]

Families with gay members are strengthened through living the principles of love and respect taught by Jesus Christ and reiterated in the Proclamation to the World on the Family. One woman with a lesbian sister submitted an Ensign article in which she describes how the church has helped her with her relationship with her sister (Leigh). "I know the best thing I can do to have a close relationship with my sister is to have a close relationship with Heavenly Father and His Son. Leigh recently commented that it has been through the way our family has loved her that she has felt what she understood to be God’s love." ^[25]

One of the best services that we can do for our gay brothers and sisters is to help them feel the love of God through our actions.

The Church helps gay people

While the Church seeks to help all people with their problems, a special call has been issued for members of the Church to help gay people. In 1995, Elder Oaks taught "All should understand that persons (and their family members) struggling with the burden of same-sex attraction are in special need of the love and encouragement that is a clear responsibility of Church members, who have signified by covenant their willingness "to bear one another’s burdens" (Mosiah 18:8) "and so fulfil the law of Christ" (Gal. 6:2)."^[26] Three years later, President Hinckley echoed Elder Oaks remarks "We want to help these people, to strengthen them, to assist them with their problems and to help them with their difficulties." ^[27]

There are many ways in which the church helps the gay population. For example, the church is an advocate for employment and housing rights for gay people. When Salt Lake City asked the Church for its opinion on whether to pass ordinance to protect gay people from housing and employment discrimination, the Church supported the measure calling it a "common-sense right" and a question of "human dignity".^[28] Elder Holland said it could be a model for the rest of Utah.^[29] This was done after the Utah legislature voted down these rights.

Beyond the legal protection for gay people, the church has also sought to protect gay people from physical and verbal abuse. Elder Oaks taught "Our doctrines obviously condemn those who engage in so-called "gay bashing"-physical or verbal attacks on persons thought to be involved in homosexual or lesbian behavior."^[30]

The church helps gay people by steering them away from destructive patterns, such as blaming themselves for their sexual orientation.^[31] The leadership has warned against therapies to try to change sexual orientation that have been shown to be abusive by the scientific field,^[32] using marriage as a therapeutic step to change sexual orientation,^[33] and have instructed leaders not to encourage gay members to cultivate heterosexual feelings, since it often leads them to frustration and discouragement.^[34] They have assured gay members that being gay is not a sin^[35] and if they remain faithful they can receive all the blessings that Heavenly Father has promised his children, with no requirement to change sexual orientation.^[36]

Related links

• l1=Myths about the Church and homosexuality
• l1=The Church and gay rights
• l1=Causes of Homosexuality
• /Can the Church welcome gay people while teaching against same-sex relationships

Endnotes

1. [note] “The Best Thing I Can Do for Leigh,” Ensign, Sep 2009, 62–65
2. [note]  A Letter to A Friend
3. [note]  Evergreen International Resources for Individuals
4. [note] Hinckley, Gordon B., (1987), Reverence and Morality off-site
5. [note]  1998 What Are People Asking about Us? Gordon B. Hinckley, Official Site of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Retrieved on September 28, 2007.
6. [note] Hinckley, Gordon B. (Nov 1999). Why We Do Some of the Things We Do. Ensign.
7. [note]  (2004), A Conversation with Gordon B. Hinckley, President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints off-site
8. [note] Holland, Jeffrey R., (2007), Helping Those Who Struggle with Same-Gender Attraction off-site
9. [note]  LDS apostle: SLC gay-rights measures could work for state
10. [note] Kimball, Spencer W., (1964), A Counselling Problem in the Church (transcript) off-site
11. [note] Kimball, Spencer W., (1969), The Miracle of Forgiveness Bookcraft
12. [note] Kimball, Spencer W., (1971), New Horizons for Homosexuals LDS Church off-site .
13. [note] Spencer W. Kimball, “President Kimball Speaks Out on Morality,” Ensign, Nov 1980, 94
14. [note]  (1992), Understanding and Helping Those Who Have Homosexual Problems: Suggestions for Ecclesiastical Leaders , Salt Lake City, Utah: LDS Church off-site .
15. [note]  (1995), The Family: A Proclamation to the World , Salt Lake City, Utah: LDS Church .
16. [note]  (1998), Church Handbook of Instructions , Salt Lake City, Utah: LDS Church .
17. [note] God Loveth His Children, off-site
18. [note] "First Presidency Statement on Same-Gender Marriage," 19 October 2004)
19. [note]  (2007), Gospel Library Gospel Topics , Salt Lake City, Utah: LDS Church .
20. [note]  (2007), Gospel Library Gospel Topics , Salt Lake City, Utah: LDS Church .
21. [note]  Statement Given to Salt Lake City Council on Nondiscrimination Ordinances
22. [note] The Divine Institution of Marriage
23. [note] Lattin, Don, (1997), Musings of the Main Mormon: Gordon B. Hinckley off-site
24. [note]  (2004), In Quiet Desperation: Understanding the Challenge of Same-gender Attraction Deseret Book off-site .
25. [note] Moore, Carrie A., Gay LDS men detail challenges off-site
26. [note]  In Focus: Mormonism in Modern America off-site Every person on this planet has personal challenges. Some have challenges with same-sex attraction, some have problems with opposite-gender attraction that have to be controlled.
27. [note]  1995 Dallin H. Oaks Statement, Official Site of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
28. [note] Wickman, Lance B., (2007), Same-Gender Attraction , Salt Lake City, Utah: LDS Church off-site
29. [note]  Packer Ye Are the Temple of God
30. [note] Packer, Boyd K., (1972), The Message: Why Stay Morally Clean LDS Church off-site .
31. [note] Packer, Boyd K., (1976), To Young Men Only: General Conference Priesthood Session, October 2, 1976 LDS Church off-site .
32. [note] Packer, Boyd K., (1978), To the One: Address given to the Twelve Stake Fireside, Brigham Young University, March 5, 1978 LDS Church off-site .
33. [note] Park, Jason, (1997), Resolving Homosexual Problems: A Guide for LDS Men Century Publishing off-site .
34. [note] Scott, Richard G., The Atonement Can Secure Your Peace and Happiness off-site .
35. [note] Throckmorton, Warren , "Initial empirical and clinical findings concerning the change process for ex-gays", Professional Psychology: Research and Practice 242–248
36. [note]  Savin-Williams RC, Ream GL. Prevalence and stability of sexual orientation components during adolescence and young adulthood.
37. [note] p. 156, Seligman, Martin E.P., What You Can Change and What You Can't: The Complete Guide to Self Improvement Knopf, 1993; ISBN 0-679-41024-4
38. [note] Predefinição:Cite news
39. [note] Predefinição:Cite news
40. [note] Predefinição:Cite news</ref>
41. [note] A Place in the Kingdom: Spiritual Insights from Latter-day Saints about Same-Sex Attraction.
42. [note] Wichstrøm L, Hegna K. Sexual orientation and suicide attempt: a longitudinal study of the general Norwegian adolescent population.
43. [note]  Yarhouse MA. Same-sex attraction, homosexual orientation, and gay identity: a three-tier distinction for counseling and pastoral care
44. [note] For example, see Becoming Whole Again and My Battle with Same-Sex Attraction
45. [note] Everyday Lives, Everyday Values Interview with Fred and Marilyn Matis and Ty Mansfield, authors of In Quiet Desperation: Understanding the Challenge of Same-Gender Attraction,
46. [note] Evergreen Testimonies