Request for Help Against Prop 8
Posted by John on August 12th, 2008 at 7:48 am · 23 Comments
Mormons in California are being torn apart by the Church’s support for Prop 8. While many, perhaps even the majority of regularly attending Mos support the discriminatory ban on gay marriage, I’m surprised at how many are openly against it. And they’re not all liberal Sunstone-types either. Many are card-carrying Republicans, but have gay friends, children, nieces and nephews, coworkers, neighbors who they love and respect.
I imagine that they experience the First Presidency’s attempt to impose Mormonism’s values on and in the process to crush the happiness of those outside of the Church as an affront to the fundamental Mormon principles of free agency and Christlike compassion as well as to their sense of basic human decency and dignity. How can they reconcile these teachings with their desire to honor and obey their general and local Church leaders?
From what my friends in Orange County wards tell me, this campaign is being reinforced every week in leadership councils as well as in Sacrament, Sunday School and Priesthood and Relief Society meetings. It sounds like similar pressure is being applied to members of Catholic and many evangelical communities as well (I’m mostly familiar with the LDS situation–if you have any information on other denominations, please let me know).
I’d like to find some way to validate those who are struggling in conservative California congregations, and I think that I will make this one of my chief goals on this blog and in my local community between now and Election Day. It fits well with Mind on Fire’s mission to reach out to the marginalized within religious institutions, to promote a progressive agenda around issues concerning gender and sexual orientation, and to smack religious institutions down whenever official representatives start acting like patriarchal assholes.
Right now I’m trying to brainstorm effective actions. The one idea that keeps spinning around in my mind is to stand in front of churches on Sundays holding signs. These would have affirming and thought-inducing slogans that would reinforce the misgivings of members who silently question their leaders’ anti-gay admonitions. The goal would be to reinforce any pro-gay leanings among individuals rather than to attack the church in general–this is, after all, an outreach effort to the marginalized as much as it is an attempt to minimize the impact of the LDS political machine on the freedom and happiness of our gay friends and neighbors. Of course, some members and leaders will be offended no matter what, but they’re already too far gone to save.
Please email me or comment below if you’re interested in helping in any way–even if you live outside of California and can only contribute ideas and emotional support.
Tags: Gay Rights and Queer Issues · Politics
