Posts Tagged ‘ homosexuality ’

The headline is clear. Community of Christ will provide sacramental ordinances of marriage, commitment ceremonies, and ordination independent of sexual orientation in the USA. Specifically, after two days of discussion, the USA National Conference formally approved by a required 2/3rds majority the following recommendations to the First Presidency and Quorum of Twelve: The 2013 USA [...]

Human brains naturally use locations in space and time to make sense of events. Why should we expect eternal spirits to follow that protocol? The question has always bothered me. What follows is speculation about a different way of looking at the relationship between the physical and the spiritual than the Restoration faiths adopted in [...]

There are many on the internet publishing information about our faith, often not very flattering.  Some of that information is faith-shaking.  But where does it cross the line into being “anti-Mormon”?  Some would say that anyone who says anything that is not uplifting or faith promoting is anti-Mormon, but that seems like a pretty low [...]

When I was a pre-teen, I remember overhearing a conversation between adults about the ERA, the political push for women to have equal rights in society and in the workplace.  I was proud to think that while others of my friends belonged to churches that led by fallible men, we had God at the helm, [...]

Unable to sleep a few nights ago, I sought mind-deadening through cable TV. I chanced upon a movie I thought would do the job — a murder mystery set in a mountain abbey in 14th Century Italy. I didn’t get what I expected. Instead, the movie, The Name of the Rose, starring Sean Connery and [...]

The Community of Christ has begun “crossing the Rubicon” on LGBT issues, and there can be no reversing the action taken. CofChrist is committed to the theological precedent that priesthood can be compatible with participation in a legally recognized same-sex sexual relationship. On June 2nd, the Australian National Conference approved the following recommendation to the [...]

A recent news story about Mitt Romney’s highjinks or bullying, depending on your perspective, at a prestigious boys school in 1965 has raised questions about his character. Discuss.

If wickedness never was happiness, and some people are happy in gay relationships, how will anyone continue to oppose them?

At the end of April, Community of Christ released to the church at large a “Draft Statement on Sexual Ethics” for public review and invited comments to be made by e-mail to the First Presidency. This Statement will be considered by the International Leaders Council (which has no strict equivalent in the LDS) in May [...]

We’ve all heard: “The Church is perfect, but the people aren’t.” But what happens when the media increasingly consults the People?

As the culture wars heat up in the 2012 election cycle and more and more states accept same sex marriage, the church remains in a very precarious and somewhat contradictory position.  This seems to be the case when change happens.  Old attitudes eventually give way to new ones, but in the meantime, we have contradictory [...]

I recently chortled my way through an article that listed 9 controversial Rick Santorum quotes.  About halfway through I paused and thought, “Hey, some of these aren’t that far off things I believe might have been said in various church publications on LDS.org.”  Let’s see if I’m right. Feminism & Family Values Santorum on birth control.  [...]

Today’s guest post is from A Friend.  In light of the recent Prop 8 decision in California, the church issued the following statement: “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints regrets today’s decision. California voters have twice determined in a general election that marriage should be recognized as only between a man and a [...]

As I was researching a post last summer on some of the organizations that have sprung up in the stead of the RLDS movement as fundamentalist alternatives to the Community of Christ, I discovered that a childhood friend had become one of the leading officials of one such organization, the Remnant Church of Jesus Christ of [...]

Your local community has a ballot initiative to uphold the traditional definition of marriage, and you’ve been asked as bishop to support the measure.  During this same time frame, you notice a reliable elderly couple has suddenly stopped coming to church. They had previously been very active, but are now conspicuously absent from the pews during sacrament meeting. You drop [...]

“Finally have put a finger on an issue I have with the priesthood of this church. A lot of you want us to embrace, uphold, accept and defend the practicing homosexual. Why is it that because I do not agree with you that you try to paint me as hateful to everyone else?” Thus began [...]

The pity about much LGBT discourse is that much of the discourse among LGBT activists comes from a position of pity and despair. I mean, let’s take the main thrust (from an L and G perspective, although we can extend it to the others with more time). The idea is that some people just happen [...]

In response to revelatory guidance accepted at its 2010 World Conference, the Community of Christ scheduled a US National Conference for the summer of 2012 specifically to deal with questions of sacramental marriage and priesthood ordination for GLBT members of the church. On May 25, the church announced a delay in the US National Conference [...]

“It is my strong belief that the government has to treat all citizens equally. I come from that, in part, out of personal experience. When you’re a black guy named Barack Obama, you know what it’s like to be on the outside. And so my concern is continually to make sure that the rights that [...]

Today’s guest post comes from Cornponebread. I started this out as a “Mormons vs. Latter-day Saints” article.  There had been a few things lately which bothered me about those who practice the “Culture of Mormonism” as opposed to those humble seekers of truth;  the followers of the true doctrine of the restored Gospel.  What I [...]