tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2730636855717448971.post7695579780654630592..comments2023-06-10T03:06:39.748-06:00Comments on In These Gay Mormon Shoes: THT: How Would You Interpret These Facts?Jonathan Adamsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03888679384571699094noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2730636855717448971.post-63111792627446954782011-01-06T03:16:42.843-07:002011-01-06T03:16:42.843-07:00I never get answers, but that is because God knows...I never get answers, but that is because God knows that I don't really want to hear them. So He is silent with me because we both know that I'm just a big coward, which is fine. Distance is safety.Steven Lesterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01285355643172321289noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2730636855717448971.post-72265076130545552802011-01-05T22:54:48.240-07:002011-01-05T22:54:48.240-07:00@LionHeart- very true. When you feel like you are ...@LionHeart- very true. When you feel like you are not deserving of answers, you can't really recognize them.Jonathan Adamsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03888679384571699094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2730636855717448971.post-67856731516787112532011-01-05T22:49:15.113-07:002011-01-05T22:49:15.113-07:00Thanks for the shout-out! I agree with the comment...Thanks for the shout-out! I agree with the comments about personal revelation, but getting that revelation is difficult sometimes when such strong emotions/feelings are tied to this issue.LionHearthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16972142561588043057noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2730636855717448971.post-3812670729979101332011-01-05T17:57:00.213-07:002011-01-05T17:57:00.213-07:00@Steven- I think it just puts that much more impor...@Steven- I think it just puts that much more importance on personal revelation. We aren't supposed to just sit and nod and accept everything as truth without really pondering it and applying it to our own experiences and life.Jonathan Adamsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03888679384571699094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2730636855717448971.post-69583170630058883932011-01-05T13:28:57.263-07:002011-01-05T13:28:57.263-07:00The problem with these kinds of wrong definition a...The problem with these kinds of wrong definition articles is that they always beg the question: Well, if they were wrong with these thing, what else are they wrong about? Anybody out there game for a little pickin' and choosen'?Steven Lesterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01285355643172321289noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2730636855717448971.post-49718305983826018852011-01-05T03:07:22.565-07:002011-01-05T03:07:22.565-07:00@this duck author- Thank you so much for sharing a...@this duck author- Thank you so much for sharing a bit of your story with me! I'm so glad that you are still here with us! Unfortunately, too many of us (like you) come dangerously close to ending the pain and confusion the only way we know how. For those of us that, by some miracle, survived, that experience seems to bring us closer to truth. For me, it really felt like the effects of the atonement- a knew view of God and self. <br /><br />@Clive- Spot on. The value of personal revelation is far greater than any other. I agree that our judgment will be much more personalized than we seem to talk about in church. I believe in a checklist that decides what level of heaven you enter. I think it goes against everything I have come to know about God. I also agree that we are the ones to work out our salvation by personal study, which includes questions and seeking personal revelation on anything presented to us as truth.Jonathan Adamsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03888679384571699094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2730636855717448971.post-39279882571534657732011-01-04T22:44:27.722-07:002011-01-04T22:44:27.722-07:00Great post! You and Lionheart have summarized both...Great post! You and Lionheart have summarized both sides of the issue most effectively. <br /><br />For those of us who are trying to find a middle ground in which we are able to enjoy the full measure of our creation and still be true to our testimony of Christ, our dilemma can be profound. <br /><br />For me, this challenge was resolved with the understanding that the Gospel and its principles (including the Atonement and mission of Christ, man's divine parentage, the non-existence of hell, the nature of heaven, etc.)are eternally true, but the interpretation and application of those principals through the Church may or may not be. <br /><br />Personal revelation and our agency allow us as individuals to determine how these eternal principles apply to us and our lives, and ultimately serve as the foundation for our relationship with God. Nephi, for example, committed murder and still stood before Christ approved.<br /><br />In the end, I believe we will all be held accountable for how we forged our relationship with Heavenly Father and how honestly we exercised our agency in our quest to return to him. <br /><br />Unquestioned obedience to the voice of men regardless of their calling or position, is not in my view, how God expects us to exercise that great gift of agency. Unquestioned obedience in fact places responsibility for our salvation in the hands of others rather than on our own shoulders where it belongs.Clive Durhamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13429000026909551119noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2730636855717448971.post-69347467509932220132011-01-04T22:36:29.183-07:002011-01-04T22:36:29.183-07:00As a gay Mormon woman, I have wrestled with ALL of...As a gay Mormon woman, I have wrestled with ALL of the above. When, several years ago, I came face to face with myself, and had to acknowledge one way or the other if I was gay, I had to answer yes. My next question was, "What am I going to do with it?" <br /><br />At that time, I thought I only had 2 choices: stay in the church and deny the gay part of me OR leave the church and accept the gay part of me.<br /><br />It caused such chaotic stress for me because I did not know how I could leave either part of me. The emotional pain it caused was horrendous.<br /><br />I finally decided that I could no longer take the pain, and concluded that I would have to take my life, to be rid of the pain and any aftermaths caused by other decisions.<br /><br />If not for a police officer who pulled me over for driving too fast, and NOT giving me the ticket I so rightly deserved, I was led to understand that God's hand was in my life, that Heaven did NOT want me killing myself and that I was loved.<br /><br />All of this happened within a few seconds after the police officer told me to drive slowly. The enormity of what had just happened hit me like a million pounds and I began weeping. I had to pull to the side of the road because I could not see to drive.<br /><br />Within a couple of days, I was able to come to peace that I could be in the Church, i.e. I would not need to relinquish the "church" or the gospel parts of my life AND I could be gay, whatever form I chose to take that aspect of myself, i.e., remain celibate, find a partner, leave the church, etc.<br /><br />That was my conclusion.<br /><br />And, a rather long-winded one at that. Sorry.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com