News: Mormon church allows banning LGBT members

Donquizote

Quote:

New rules also say children can be barred from being baptized until they disavow homosexuality

Gay and lesbian Mormons and their supporters are reeling over a rule change by church officials that says members in same-sex marriages can be kicked out and their children are to be barred from being baptized unless they disavow homosexual relationships.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints disseminated the handbook changes this week to local church leaders around the world. The goal was to provide clarity to lay leaders who run congregations, church spokesman Eric Hawkins said.

But the revisions triggered a wave of anger, confusion and sadness for a growing faction of LGBT-supportive Mormons who had been buoyed in recent years by church leaders' calls for more compassion and understanding for LGBT members.

"It feels like they are extending an olive branch and hitting you with it," said Wendy Montgomery, a Mormon mother of a 17-year-old gay son. "It's like this emotional whiplash."

The new rules stipulate that children of parents in gay or lesbian relationships — be it marriage or just living together — can no longer receive blessings as infants, be baptized when they are about 8 years old, or serve mission as young adults unless they:

Disavow the practice of same-sex relationships.
Turn 18 and no longer live with gay parents.
Get approval from their local leader and the highest leaders at church headquarters in Salt Lake City.

The church views these key milestones as acts that bind a person to the faith and as promises to follow its doctrine.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/...ction=religion

Quote:

these key milestones as acts that bind a person to the faith and as promises to follow its doctrine.

The irony

cybiko

thanks gorgeous

CakeLike

Well that is called discrimination in the 21st century and i hope they are ready for the lawsuits. In a way i am glad when religious institutions are open with their bigotry because it just shows us how they are incompatible with the modern world and gives us more of a case to lessen their unquestioned rights.

Outlaws

Welp...

LuLuDrops

They were playing with promo after Prop 8 exposed them and trying to act more "tolerant"

The Church even blessed an anti-discrimination law (full of exemptions) to get more PR, but now their true colors show.

Cannon

I'm Mormon and there has been a lot of fighting going on between members on Facebook and elsewhere. It's really depressing because it's not something I want to support, but the church demands faith and trust in the leaders' decisions. I don't really have much else to say about it.

Ryuuchan_X

Trash

Gabriel

I wouldn't be able to follow a faith that requires me to believe something against my values.

J a y

I don't know much about this so I'm researching it now.

Chastity restricts fornication, adultery, and masturbation as well as sexual thoughts.

Genesis 1:28 emphasises that man and woman should only lawfully marry to multiply and replenish Earth.

Seems to me that these are the same actions that were taken in the UK for same-sex marriage to be legalised.

Why are gay people in general bothered? It doesn't make sense. It matters only to members of both groups.

The Bible does not and will never fully accept same-sex couples unless it's rewritten. It's thousands of years old.

You're here for less than 100. Keep breathing, live your life the best way possible and let others live theirs. How hard is it?

It's incredibly selfish to expect billions of people to rid of their beliefs. They're mostly loving people, not Nazis.

Cherry

Sorry, but they have a point. You shouldn't be a member of the Church (note the capital C) if you're not willing to follow its doctrine. There wouldn't be a need to specify homosexuality in particular if people didn't become flex with their biblical standards as cultural opinions changed (see Romans 12:2). This isn't discrimination.

Temporal

Very saddening. The homophobes keep trying to avoid progress but there's only so much more they can cling on to at this point.

LuLuDrops

Quote:

Originally posted by J a y

I don't know much about this so I'm researching it now.

Chastity restricts fornication, adultery, and masturbation as well as sexual thoughts.

Genesis 1:28 emphasises that man and woman should only lawfully marry to multiply and replenish Earth.

Seems to me that these are the same actions that were taken in the UK for same-sex marriage to be legalised.

Why are gay people in general bothered? It doesn't make sense. It matters only to members of both groups.

The Bible does not and will never fully accept same-sex couples unless it's rewritten. It's thousands of years old.

You're here for less than 100. Keep breathing, live your life the best way possible and let others live theirs. How hard is it?

It's incredibly selfish to expect billions of people to rid of their beliefs. They're mostly loving people, not Nazis.

They are asking kids to choose between their family and their faith. Also, putting kids in the spotlight by offering them no church traditions. That's what bothered a lot of people:

Turn 18 and no longer live with gay parents.

A gay Mormon even said: We knew they weren't going to like us getting married, that's nothing new. What DOES bother us now is that they're trying to tear families apart with these rules.

LuLuDrops

Thousands already plan to leave, even some that aren't gay.

WEEKND

Rebuke religion & live a better life.

that G.U.Y.

Arent those the men that have multiple child wives.

nty

ImmaSlave4u

I can't believe my parents allowed my gay ass to get baptized into that damn church.
A mess.

LoKoPaNdA

Believers are flocking en masse. It's nice to see people caring for tolerance

Eric.

Who cares? I don't get why LGBTs keep taking the bait of any "tolerant" thing Mormons do or that the Pope says. Almost begging these churches to let them in for some reason...

Those churches will never welcome you unless you deny your own humanity.