What is LDS Reconciliation and how did it start?
By ldsrecon | September 19, 2007
LDS Reconciliation
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
LDS Reconciliation is a group of Gay Mormons who either are or have previously been members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or who wish to associate and study the Gospel of Jesus Christ as taught by the Churches scriptures and manuals. The term Gay in this context refers to Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual, Transgendered, Intersexed, and all other sexual orientation. The group was originally started under the direction of LDS Family Fellowship ([1]), a volunteer organization of Parents with Gay Children from Mormon Backgrounds.
Topics: Gay Mormon, Spirituality | No Comments »
Homosexuality: A Straight BYU Student’s Perspective
By admin | October 24, 2010
1) President Packer’s general conference talk
2) The recent rash of suicides by gay teens across the country, accompanying “It Gets Better Project,” and current suffering of my homosexually oriented brothers and sisters
3) My coauthor, from whom I have received much help and inspiration, wants it out sooner than later
These are the reasons why I am releasing my book now. I preferred to wait until Homosexuality: A Straight BYU Student’s Perspective was groomed and edited further; however, it is not my book alone. Heavenly Father helped me write it, and I believe He would have me release it rather than keep it on my hard drive while I spend months making minor improvements. This book is destined to relieve some of the suffering of my homosexual brothers and sisters, though I don’t yet know by how much. Stuart Matis, shortly before committing suicide on the steps of an LDS chapel on February 25, 2000 in Los Altos, California, wrote to his family: “Perhaps my death … might become the catalyst for much good. I’m sure that you will now be strengthened in your resolve to teach the members and the leaders regarding the true nature of homosexuality. My life was actually killed many years ago. Your actions might help to save many young people’s lives.”
So here it is- my 165-page magnum opus to date, in raw .docx and .pdf form (google doc: https://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B1u3K43P-3JoYTUzNjYwMGEtNzNmYi00ODkwLTllMzYtNjRlOTVlMWUwYTM2&hl=en
Non gmail users, in .pdf only:
http://rapidshare.com/files/426861209/Homosexuality_A_Straight_BYU_Student_s_Perspective_Draft_2.pdf). I invite your feedback as I’m still in the later editing stage. Summary of the book below.
My promise to the open-minded reader is that you will be touched, you will learn things you had never considered, and your views on same-sex marriage and homosexuality in the LDS church will likely change voluntarily.
-Bradley Carmack
Summary: The book has two parts: 1) homosexuality (chapters 1-3) and 2) same-sex marriage (chapters 4-7).
In chapter 1, I argue that church members should have great compassion for homosexually oriented members of the church because of the personal difficulties they experience as a result of their orientation and how the Mormon community typically responds to that orientation. I quote a number of studies and give voice to the experiences of many LDS homosexually oriented people.
In chapter 2, I explore causation, detailing both the religious voice and the scientific consensus. Elder Oaks noted how appropriate this type of an inquiry is: “The Church does not have a position on the causes of any of these susceptibilities or inclinations, including those related to same-gender attraction. Those are scientific questions — whether nature or nurture — those are things the Church doesn’t have a position on.” I detail 60 statements by church leaders on what causes homosexuality. On the scientific side, I discuss 32 separate subjects to juxtapose two opposing hypotheses for the causation of homosexual orientation: 1) biological factors such as genes and pre-natal hormones, and 2) factors such as infection, molestation, and choice. Some examples of the evidence addressed: homosexual men have, on average, measurably and significantly different ratios of the second to fourth digit of their hands than their heterosexual counterparts. The anterior commissure of their brains is gender shifted away from the heterosexual male norm and toward the heterosexual female norm. Their limb:trunk ratio is similarly gender-shifted, as is their performance on visio-spatial tasks, third interstitial nucleus (a region of the brain thought to be directive of male-type sexual behavior) size and density, left:right brain hemisphere ratio, brain response to sex pheromones, cochlear sound production, thalamic response to female faces, verbal abilities, physical aggressiveness, expressiveness, and childhood gender conformity to name just a few.
In chapter 3 I examine how changeable sexual orientation is by considering relevant church doctrines and looking at the empirical evidence on both sides.
In chapter 4 I show why homosexuals can reproduce, contrary to popular belief, and note that they are no different from inherently infertile heterosexual couples as to their reproductive capacity.
In chapter 5 I argue why, assuming for a moment that homosexual behavior is not sinful, it makes a lot of moral sense to support LDS same-sex marriage. For instance, I show how important family is to mortal experience and point out that celibacy does not provide a family experience, while same-sex marriage does.
Chapter 6 contains rebuttals to common anti- same-sex marriage arguments, many of which are deeply flawed.
Chapter 7 applies Elder Oaks’s recent speech on the Constitution. Many church members have said that Judge Walker should not have heard the Perry v. Schwarzenegger (Prop 
case, but instead should have let the voice of the people of California decide the matter. I show why this view is antithetical to our constitutional system of governance.
In closing, I explain my motivations for writing and make invitations to the reader.
____________________________________________________
Bio:
Brad Carmack is in his last year of the JD/MPA program at BYU. He majored in Biology, performed clerk assignments for Justice Joel Horton of the Idaho Supreme Court, and is currently a teacher’s assistant for Human Resources Law and Bioethics. Brad also regularly participates in USGA [Understanding Same Gender Attraction], an unsponsored BYU student talk group.
Topics: Gay Mormon, Gay Mormon Stories | No Comments »
Gay Mormon LDS Reconciliation and Utah Pride
By admin | May 31, 2009
For the past five years LDS Reconciliation has participated in Utah Pride with a booth and a Missionary Map allowing men and women gay, lesbian, straight and narrow to put a pin in the map showing where they served their missions. The very first year the map was put up significantly more than 500 Utah Pride attendees put a pin in the map. This number has grown significantly over the years.
This year the LDS Reconciliation booth will be co hosted by the Wasatch Chapter of Affirmation: Gay and Lesbian Mormons. The booth this year will be focusing on resources available to Gay and Lesbian Mormons or ex-Mormons as well as the 2009 International Affirmation Conference to be held in Salt Lake City at the University of Utah Guest House September 18-20. The theme for this years conference is “The View From Here”.
The missionary map will still be making it’s way to Utah Pride in a different form. In past years, there has never been a good count of how many pins were pinned to the map and information on where people served was not kept. This year in an effort to gather more concrete informationm, the missionary map will be placed in a different booth in an electronic format. The information gathered will be invaluable statistically in working with “The Church” and other organizations to help support furthering equal rights causes in Utah and possibly nationwide. We encourage you to locate the new home of the missionary map and provide your information.
Topics: Gay Mormon, Utah Pride Activites | 2 Comments »
How has Gay Mormon LDS Reconciliation helped you?
By ldsrecon | October 20, 2007
Over the years many people have attended Gay Mormon LDS Reconciliation either for a short or longer period of time. We encourage you to comment and tell us how Gay Mormon LDS Reconciliation has helped you in your spiritual journey. Click on the Comments button below to add you personal story.
Remember to visit our site Gay Mormon LDS Reconciliation at www.LDSReconciliation.org.
Topics: Gay Mormon, Gay Mormon Stories, Spirituality | 1 Comment »
Gay Mormon Missionary Stories
By ldsrecon | October 20, 2007
We are interested in gathering a group of gay mormon missionary stories. Please feel free to comment on this post and add your personal story as a gay mormon missionary. Your story will most likely be interesting but may very well help another youth who is trying to decide whether he should go on a mission and serve the church. We look forward to your post.
For further information about our group visit Gay Mormon LDS Reconciliation at www.LDSreconciliation.org
Topics: Gay Mormon, Gay Mormon Stories | 28 Comments »