LDS Bigotry: Revealing Dallin Oaks' Views on Women, Family, and the Exclusion of LGBTQ Blessings

WEBVTT

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Hello, beautiful humans.

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Welcome to Midlife Revolution.

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I'm your host, Megan Conner.

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And today I want to cover a

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topic that is probably old

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news to some of you at the very least.

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In October of twenty nineteen,

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Dallin H. Oaks,

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who is the first counselor

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in the presidency of the

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Corporation of the Church

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of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,

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gave a talk during the

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women's session of conference.

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This is a session that's

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just designed for women who

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are twelve and older.

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Mothers and daughters go to

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this session together to be

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told by the priesthood

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authorities of the church

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what we're supposed to be doing.

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And in this particular talk,

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Dallin H. Oaks addressed

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some of the LGBTQ issues

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that have come up in the church.

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And I came across this talk

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in preparation for an

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episode that I'm doing

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about the new transgender

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policy that the church

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released back in August.

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And I hadn't heard this talk

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in its entirety before,

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but listening to it today,

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I realized that in this short,

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thirteen minute talk,

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there is a lot to talk about.

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And I wanted to go over some

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of the topics because

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people who may not be as

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informed about the way that

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the church treat its LGBTQ members

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you're going to want to

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listen to this talk.

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This talk really

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encapsulates the way that

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the church of Jesus Christ

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of Latter-day Saints feels

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about LGBTQ members.

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And I think it's important

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for us to go over what's

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being said from the pulpit

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and more importantly,

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what's not being said.

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So I'm going to share this

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talk with you

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I'm going

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to stop and add some

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commentary as we go through it.

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Just so you can understand

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from my perspective,

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as someone who was in the

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church for forty years,

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who was a seventh generation Mormon,

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who knew everything there

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was to know about the church,

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or so I thought,

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because I was a gospel doctrine teacher,

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I was a Relief Society teacher,

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I was in the primary leadership,

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I did every music calling that there was,

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I was a very, very faithful,

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card-carrying, temple-attending Mormon.

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for the majority of my adult

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life and the reason i say

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the majority is because

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there were a couple of

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years right after high

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school where i was out of

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the church for a little

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while but i came back

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because i wanted to raise

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my children with a

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foundation of faith and

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when i started to learn

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some of the real truths of

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mormonism that had been

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covered up i got very upset

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about the fact that i had

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been lied to and deceived

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for the majority of my life

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and i resigned from the church after

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a long struggle with a lot

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of the problematic history of the church.

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I do an entire deep dive on

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why and how I left the

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church on my channel.

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That episode is available in

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the show notes for you.

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And I highly recommend that

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you go through it.

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It talks a lot about truth claims,

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but it also talks about

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harmful policies and the

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fact that even if the truth

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claims were true,

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the church is still a

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really harmful organization.

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And no, I don't believe that it does

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more good than harm in the world.

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I actually believe the

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opposite when you take into

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account the coercive

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control and the abuse that

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the church perpetuates on

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its members and the abuse

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that's been covered up

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historically over the last years.

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So let's take a look at this

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talk and I'll show you what

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I'm concerned about.

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My dear sisters in the

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gospel of Jesus Christ,

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I greet you as divinely

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assigned guardians of the eternal family.

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Okay, so right off the bat,

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Dallin Oaks says that we

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are divinely assigned

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guardians of the eternal family.

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And what he's referring to

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here is in the family,

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a proclamation to the world,

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which was put out in

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nineteen eighty five.

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That document very clearly

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defines the roles of men

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and women in the church of

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fathers and mothers and

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what their roles and

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responsibilities are.

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So when he says that we're

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divinely assigned guardians

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of the eternal family,

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he's talking about the role

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of women to protect the

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sanctity of the family unit.

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And he's saying that we are

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appointed by God.

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This is our role that we're

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supposed to fulfill in our

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lives on the earth.

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President Russell M. Nelson has taught us,

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quote,

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this church was restored so that

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families could be formed, sealed,

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and exalted eternally, end quote.

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So here he's quoting the

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current president of the

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Corporation of the Church

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of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,

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self-declared prophet.

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And he's saying that the

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entire point of our entire

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existence and the

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restoration of the gospel,

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which he's referring to the

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Church of Jesus Christ of

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Latter-day Saints,

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is so that families could be formed,

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sealed, and exalted eternally.

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So what he means by that is

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so that a man and a woman

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could get married together,

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they could be sealed in the temple,

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which is just a special

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ceremony basically saying

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that your marriage is not

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just for this life, but it's for forever.

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And exalted eternally refers

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to the idea that only a man

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and a woman married, sealed in the temple,

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can reach exaltation,

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which basically means the

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highest level of Mormon heaven,

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and that when you're exalted

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as a couple in this way,

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that you can go on to have

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your own spirit children,

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have your own world basically

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just continue procreating

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into the eternities and

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perpetuating this over and over.

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If you've never heard this concept before,

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I know it can be a little bit wild.

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So I totally understand if

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you're lost at this point,

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but try to hang with me

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because that's not really

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the most important thing.

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There is another episode on

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my channel where I do talk

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about the three levels of Mormon heaven.

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I will also link that in the

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show notes to this episode.

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that teaching has important

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implications for persons

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who identify as lesbian gay

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bisexual or transgender

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okay so this is literally

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the third sentence of the

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talk and the first sentence

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reminds us of our role that

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was assigned by god for us

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to be guardians of the

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family unit the second sentence

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talks about the purpose of

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the restoration of the

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gospel of Jesus Christ was

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to bring families together

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and then exalt them in heaven.

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And in the third sentence,

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he's saying this has

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implications for the LGBTQ community.

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Although he can't even say lesbians,

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right?

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He says lesbians,

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which tells me he probably

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doesn't know any lesbians

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and he's probably never

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actually spoken to a lesbian,

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or at least not that he knows of.

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So very clearly he's setting

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this talk up to directly

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address LGBTQ people,

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but he's not directly addressing them.

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He's othering them already.

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He's saying persons who

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identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual,

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or trans.

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When he uses this kind of language,

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it means that he doesn't

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believe there are any LGBTQ

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people in the audience.

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Otherwise, he would say,

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this has important

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implications for those of

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you who are LGBTQ.

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He just says persons who are LGBTQ.

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So me,

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as a bisexual woman sitting in that

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conference center,

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would have heard this talk and thought,

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persons who are LGBTQ, okay?

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So he's talking to me,

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but he's not really addressing me.

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He's talking to other people

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about me while I'm in the room.

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Commonly referred to as LGBT.

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President Nelson has also

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reminded us that we don't

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have to always agree with

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each other to love each other.

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Okay, so the very next point,

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without making any effort

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to tie these ideas together,

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Dallin Oaks is saying, number one,

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women are the divinely

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appointed guardians of the family unit.

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Number two,

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the whole reason that the

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gospel of Jesus Christ was restored,

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and I'm always going to put

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that in air quotes,

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is to form and exalt families.

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Number three,

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this has implications for the

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LGBTQ community.

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And number four,

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we don't have to agree with each other.

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So the unspoken implications

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that he's talking about for

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the LGBTQ community are that gay couples,

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lesbian couples, trans people,

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queer people can't form

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family units in accordance

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with teachings of the

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church and can't be exalted

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as a family unit, right?

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That's the implication he's talking about.

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He's not going to directly say it.

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He's going to speak around it,

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but he's not going to come

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out and say it because it

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would be a really bad look

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for somebody to clip out a

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quote like that

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and say that.

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And so he's talking around it.

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He's so far has made four points,

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none of which he has made

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any effort to tie together.

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The fourth point is,

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we don't have to agree in

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order to love each other.

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And the implication

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underneath that statement is,

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we don't agree with LGBTQ people.

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We don't agree with their lifestyle,

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because it doesn't fit into

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the doctrine of our church.

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So just soak that in for a moment.

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He's not coming out and

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directly saying that we

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disagree with them.

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He's quoting somebody else

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who said that we don't have

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to agree to love each other.

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Immediately after making a

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statement about LGBTQ people,

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indirectly saying that

00:09:43.768 --> 00:09:45.529

they're not able to achieve

00:09:45.670 --> 00:09:47.251

exaltation as a family unit.

00:09:48.152 --> 00:09:49.433

I don't know if anybody else

00:09:49.513 --> 00:09:51.655

understands how insidious this is.

00:09:52.136 --> 00:09:53.077

Because if you ask

00:09:53.137 --> 00:09:54.458

individual members of the

00:09:54.478 --> 00:09:55.319

Church of Jesus Christ of

00:09:55.359 --> 00:09:56.680

Latter-day Saints, they will say,

00:09:57.481 --> 00:09:59.883

we welcome the LGBTQ community.

00:10:00.964 --> 00:10:01.985

Our sign on the outside of

00:10:02.066 --> 00:10:03.827

every building says, visitors welcome.

00:10:04.668 --> 00:10:05.308

We love you.

00:10:05.508 --> 00:10:06.589

We want you to be part of

00:10:06.609 --> 00:10:07.489

our congregation.

00:10:07.909 --> 00:10:09.150

But what we're hearing from

00:10:09.210 --> 00:10:10.570

the pulpit in Salt Lake City,

00:10:10.590 --> 00:10:11.670

which is the definitive

00:10:11.711 --> 00:10:12.891

word on how the church is

00:10:12.931 --> 00:10:15.272

supposed to be run,

00:10:15.292 --> 00:10:16.252

what we're hearing from the

00:10:16.312 --> 00:10:20.133

leadership are these sort

00:10:20.173 --> 00:10:22.714

of veiled commentary that

00:10:22.854 --> 00:10:25.695

LGBTQ people don't actually fit.

00:10:26.636 --> 00:10:27.896

And we don't really know

00:10:27.916 --> 00:10:28.757

what to do about it.

00:10:29.237 --> 00:10:30.057

We disagree.

00:10:30.697 --> 00:10:32.938

We're going to say we welcome them, but

00:10:33.360 --> 00:10:34.621

the policies and the

00:10:34.661 --> 00:10:36.542

doctrines that we teach are

00:10:36.602 --> 00:10:38.423

clearly not welcoming to

00:10:38.443 --> 00:10:39.704

the LGBTQ community.

00:10:40.333 --> 00:10:41.513

I have prayerfully sought

00:10:41.613 --> 00:10:43.054

inspiration to speak to

00:10:43.094 --> 00:10:45.274

this audience because you

00:10:45.374 --> 00:10:47.635

are uniquely affected by these questions,

00:10:48.155 --> 00:10:49.155

which directly or

00:10:49.275 --> 00:10:50.815

indirectly affect every

00:10:50.895 --> 00:10:53.416

family in the church.

00:10:53.556 --> 00:10:54.316

Okay.

00:10:54.336 --> 00:10:56.136

So he's laying the

00:10:56.176 --> 00:10:57.517

groundwork that he has

00:10:57.577 --> 00:10:59.217

prayed about what he's going to say.

00:10:59.897 --> 00:11:01.818

And if you haven't paid

00:11:01.858 --> 00:11:03.218

attention to Mormonism before,

00:11:04.280 --> 00:11:05.701

When Dallin Oaks speaks,

00:11:05.781 --> 00:11:06.941

the thinking has been done.

00:11:07.481 --> 00:11:08.962

Nobody can dispute it.

00:11:09.242 --> 00:11:09.922

And also,

00:11:10.222 --> 00:11:12.831

nobody can question it

00:11:12.831 --> 00:11:14.791

seers, and revelators,

00:11:14.811 --> 00:11:16.332

the top fifteen men in the church,

00:11:17.629 --> 00:11:18.810

again they present

00:11:18.830 --> 00:11:20.550

themselves as prophets and

00:11:20.590 --> 00:11:21.931

so what they're saying is

00:11:21.971 --> 00:11:23.051

coming from god so it's

00:11:23.091 --> 00:11:25.412

beyond contestation so the

00:11:25.452 --> 00:11:26.192

implication is that

00:11:26.212 --> 00:11:27.493

whatever i say here today

00:11:27.673 --> 00:11:28.874

i've prayed about it the

00:11:28.914 --> 00:11:30.254

spirit told me what to say

00:11:30.454 --> 00:11:32.295

therefore you can't really dispute it

00:11:33.069 --> 00:11:34.350

He's also pointing out that

00:11:34.390 --> 00:11:35.530

what he's about to say,

00:11:35.830 --> 00:11:37.171

either directly or indirectly,

00:11:37.291 --> 00:11:38.851

affects every family in the church.

00:11:39.351 --> 00:11:41.472

So what he means to say,

00:11:42.152 --> 00:11:44.954

or let me help you out here, Dallin Oaks,

00:11:45.794 --> 00:11:46.494

what would have been more

00:11:46.534 --> 00:11:48.035

appropriate to say is that

00:11:48.215 --> 00:11:49.175

some of us have family

00:11:49.195 --> 00:11:51.596

members who are in the LGBTQ community.

00:11:51.696 --> 00:11:54.297

So these issues will directly affect us.

00:11:55.117 --> 00:11:56.518

Some of us don't have families.

00:11:56.778 --> 00:11:57.979

family members or people

00:11:57.999 --> 00:11:58.920

that we know and love who

00:11:58.960 --> 00:12:00.522

are in the LGBTQ community.

00:12:01.103 --> 00:12:02.784

But the policies and

00:12:02.824 --> 00:12:04.006

doctrines that we put in

00:12:04.066 --> 00:12:05.707

place that affect those

00:12:05.747 --> 00:12:07.209

people ultimately have

00:12:07.249 --> 00:12:08.750

effect on everyone because

00:12:08.791 --> 00:12:09.912

the family is the most

00:12:10.012 --> 00:12:11.854

important thing in the church.

00:12:12.054 --> 00:12:13.295

I'm going to put an asterisk

00:12:13.335 --> 00:12:14.817

next to family because the

00:12:14.917 --> 00:12:15.978

eternal family is

00:12:16.431 --> 00:12:18.471

is the most important thing in the church.

00:12:18.772 --> 00:12:20.132

The church does not really

00:12:20.172 --> 00:12:21.812

care about all families.

00:12:21.932 --> 00:12:22.812

They only care about what

00:12:22.832 --> 00:12:24.933

they consider to be eternal families,

00:12:25.313 --> 00:12:26.753

which means a man and a

00:12:26.793 --> 00:12:29.234

woman married and sealed in

00:12:29.274 --> 00:12:30.234

the temple with the proper

00:12:30.294 --> 00:12:31.774

authority who have children

00:12:31.794 --> 00:12:33.555

who are born into the covenant,

00:12:33.575 --> 00:12:34.795

which means that ceiling

00:12:35.795 --> 00:12:36.795

works for them too.

00:12:36.916 --> 00:12:37.636

All the children are

00:12:37.716 --> 00:12:38.856

automatically a sealed to

00:12:38.896 --> 00:12:40.636

parents who have been

00:12:41.256 --> 00:12:42.117

sealed in the temple.

00:12:43.087 --> 00:12:44.788

So that eternal family unit

00:12:44.908 --> 00:12:46.588

is the ideal that is always

00:12:46.628 --> 00:12:47.728

taught in Mormonism.

00:12:48.329 --> 00:12:50.929

And if you have not lived up to that ideal,

00:12:50.949 --> 00:12:51.609

for example,

00:12:51.710 --> 00:12:52.990

if you have a part member family,

00:12:53.030 --> 00:12:54.730

if the mom or the dad isn't a member,

00:12:54.890 --> 00:12:55.831

or if they got married

00:12:55.891 --> 00:12:57.851

civilly but not got married in the temple,

00:12:58.191 --> 00:12:59.292

they're just not there yet.

00:12:59.312 --> 00:13:00.172

They're not going to get to

00:13:00.192 --> 00:13:01.612

the highest level of Mormon heaven.

00:13:02.233 --> 00:13:04.813

And since we're always teaching the ideal,

00:13:04.873 --> 00:13:05.794

that means we're going to

00:13:05.814 --> 00:13:06.854

leave some people behind

00:13:06.954 --> 00:13:07.954

and we're okay with it

00:13:07.994 --> 00:13:09.675

because God told us this

00:13:09.695 --> 00:13:10.335

was the right way.

00:13:11.134 --> 00:13:12.516

I begin with what Jesus

00:13:12.556 --> 00:13:14.738

taught were the two great commandments.

00:13:15.038 --> 00:13:16.720

Thou shalt love the Lord thy

00:13:16.760 --> 00:13:19.063

God with all thy heart and

00:13:19.103 --> 00:13:21.525

with all thy soul and with all thy mind.

00:13:22.246 --> 00:13:24.168

This is the first and great commandment.

00:13:24.709 --> 00:13:26.211

And the second is like unto it.

00:13:26.331 --> 00:13:29.434

Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.

00:13:29.574 --> 00:13:30.175

End of quote.

00:13:31.475 --> 00:13:34.537

And if we could just end right there,

00:13:34.897 --> 00:13:35.898

if we could end the talk

00:13:35.938 --> 00:13:37.158

right there and end the

00:13:37.178 --> 00:13:38.359

meeting right there and end

00:13:38.379 --> 00:13:39.440

the discussion right there,

00:13:39.600 --> 00:13:40.460

that would be perfect.

00:13:40.700 --> 00:13:41.501

Let's just say that.

00:13:42.301 --> 00:13:42.942

Love God.

00:13:43.582 --> 00:13:44.322

Love your neighbors.

00:13:44.703 --> 00:13:45.063

The end.

00:13:45.807 --> 00:13:46.627

Love your gay neighbor,

00:13:46.687 --> 00:13:47.888

love your lesbian neighbor,

00:13:48.068 --> 00:13:49.168

love your bisexual neighbor,

00:13:49.528 --> 00:13:50.809

love your transgender neighbor,

00:13:50.909 --> 00:13:51.849

love your queer neighbor,

00:13:52.570 --> 00:13:53.830

love your straight neighbor,

00:13:54.410 --> 00:13:55.731

love your cisgender neighbor,

00:13:55.931 --> 00:13:57.191

love your non-binary neighbor.

00:13:57.231 --> 00:13:58.272

Like we could just end it

00:13:58.452 --> 00:13:59.532

right there and that would

00:13:59.552 --> 00:14:00.513

be perfectly fine.

00:14:00.553 --> 00:14:02.713

But that's not what happened,

00:14:02.753 --> 00:14:03.334

unfortunately.

00:14:03.931 --> 00:14:05.392

This means we are commanded

00:14:05.432 --> 00:14:06.652

to love everyone.

00:14:07.332 --> 00:14:07.472

Yep.

00:14:07.653 --> 00:14:08.153

The end.

00:14:08.193 --> 00:14:08.633

That's all.

00:14:09.055 --> 00:14:10.576

since jesus parable of the

00:14:10.596 --> 00:14:12.158

good samaritan teaches that

00:14:12.358 --> 00:14:13.459

everyone is our neighbor

00:14:14.920 --> 00:14:16.441

but our zeal to keep this

00:14:16.501 --> 00:14:18.463

second commandment must not

00:14:18.523 --> 00:14:19.744

cause us to forget the

00:14:19.764 --> 00:14:23.006

first okay this is right

00:14:23.167 --> 00:14:25.969

where when reviewing this

00:14:26.009 --> 00:14:27.330

talk in preparation for

00:14:27.390 --> 00:14:31.353

another episode i start to

00:14:31.373 --> 00:14:33.335

get upset admittedly i

00:14:33.375 --> 00:14:34.596

start to get angry because

00:14:34.676 --> 00:14:36.998

now you're interpreting scripture

00:14:39.049 --> 00:14:39.510

And of course,

00:14:39.550 --> 00:14:40.551

he thinks he's entitled

00:14:40.571 --> 00:14:42.212

because he thinks that he's a prophet.

00:14:42.853 --> 00:14:45.616

He thinks that he's a revelator,

00:14:45.656 --> 00:14:46.938

that it's his job to

00:14:47.078 --> 00:14:47.939

interpret the scriptures

00:14:47.959 --> 00:14:48.980

for us and tell us what God

00:14:49.020 --> 00:14:49.741

wants us to do.

00:14:51.062 --> 00:14:53.505

But there's nowhere in any Bible,

00:14:54.265 --> 00:14:57.169

in any other Christian text, anywhere,

00:14:57.649 --> 00:15:00.212

that gives us that qualifier.

00:15:00.875 --> 00:15:02.856

he has the audacity to

00:15:02.896 --> 00:15:05.237

qualify that we shouldn't

00:15:05.317 --> 00:15:06.558

let loving our neighbor

00:15:07.038 --> 00:15:08.819

interfere with loving our God.

00:15:09.179 --> 00:15:10.720

So clearly God comes first,

00:15:11.460 --> 00:15:12.501

neighbors come second.

00:15:13.281 --> 00:15:13.662

Noted.

00:15:13.982 --> 00:15:15.503

Just want to make sure we're

00:15:15.563 --> 00:15:17.504

all on the same page with that.

00:15:17.678 --> 00:15:19.259

God requires us to obey his

00:15:19.299 --> 00:15:20.580

commandments because only

00:15:20.600 --> 00:15:21.861

through that obedience,

00:15:22.001 --> 00:15:23.162

including repentance,

00:15:23.763 --> 00:15:24.904

can we return to live in

00:15:24.944 --> 00:15:28.987

his presence and become perfect as he is.

00:15:29.107 --> 00:15:30.348

So I just want to make sure

00:15:30.368 --> 00:15:31.889

that everybody who is not Mormon,

00:15:31.929 --> 00:15:32.770

never been Mormon,

00:15:32.870 --> 00:15:35.112

understands the doctrine behind this.

00:15:36.407 --> 00:15:38.169

In order for us to return to heaven,

00:15:38.269 --> 00:15:39.249

we have to keep all the

00:15:39.269 --> 00:15:41.131

commandments and not just the big ten.

00:15:41.271 --> 00:15:41.912

Because remember,

00:15:41.952 --> 00:15:43.453

Mormons have a whole other

00:15:43.873 --> 00:15:45.915

list of commandments listed

00:15:45.975 --> 00:15:47.236

throughout the Book of Mormon,

00:15:47.276 --> 00:15:48.257

the Doctrine and Covenants,

00:15:48.277 --> 00:15:49.358

the Pearl of Great Price.

00:15:51.174 --> 00:15:52.874

Not to mention any

00:15:52.914 --> 00:15:54.495

commandment that modern day

00:15:54.555 --> 00:15:55.715

prophets have given us.

00:15:56.495 --> 00:15:58.476

So anytime that these guys

00:15:58.496 --> 00:15:59.576

speak from the pulpit,

00:15:59.976 --> 00:16:01.037

what they say is considered

00:16:01.057 --> 00:16:01.777

to be scripture.

00:16:02.457 --> 00:16:03.637

And if they tell us to do

00:16:03.677 --> 00:16:04.558

something like keeping a

00:16:04.598 --> 00:16:05.918

year supply of food storage,

00:16:06.338 --> 00:16:07.158

it's a commandment.

00:16:07.218 --> 00:16:08.419

And we have to keep all of

00:16:08.439 --> 00:16:09.499

the commandments in order

00:16:09.519 --> 00:16:10.879

to return to the presence of God.

00:16:11.339 --> 00:16:11.960

Not only that,

00:16:12.000 --> 00:16:13.520

but he does mention repentance.

00:16:13.873 --> 00:16:14.714

which means that if we've

00:16:14.754 --> 00:16:16.356

done something wrong, if we've sinned,

00:16:16.696 --> 00:16:17.937

we have to go through the

00:16:17.977 --> 00:16:19.959

repentance process in order

00:16:19.979 --> 00:16:21.000

to be considered fully

00:16:21.040 --> 00:16:22.302

clean and fully worthy to

00:16:22.422 --> 00:16:23.523

enter the presence of God.

00:16:23.943 --> 00:16:24.063

Now,

00:16:24.143 --> 00:16:25.965

Mormons do repentance a lot different

00:16:25.985 --> 00:16:27.307

than most other churches do.

00:16:27.727 --> 00:16:29.329

Most other churches, you either

00:16:29.969 --> 00:16:32.512

confess to a priest, like in Catholicism,

00:16:33.213 --> 00:16:34.474

or in Protestantism,

00:16:34.515 --> 00:16:35.736

where you just pray to God

00:16:35.916 --> 00:16:37.318

and you ask for forgiveness

00:16:37.378 --> 00:16:38.579

and you promise to do better.

00:16:39.120 --> 00:16:39.821

In Mormonism,

00:16:39.841 --> 00:16:41.903

there are certain sins that

00:16:41.943 --> 00:16:43.845

you have to confess to a bishop.

00:16:44.206 --> 00:16:46.368

So anything considered a serious sin,

00:16:46.468 --> 00:16:47.529

which does anyone want to

00:16:47.569 --> 00:16:48.711

hazard a guess at what

00:16:48.771 --> 00:16:50.553

might be a serious sin in Mormonism?

00:16:53.497 --> 00:16:53.917

That's right.

00:16:54.297 --> 00:16:56.258

Anything having to do with

00:16:56.658 --> 00:16:58.279

relations of any kind,

00:16:58.659 --> 00:17:00.659

even with yourself.

00:17:01.140 --> 00:17:02.760

All that has to be confessed to a bishop.

00:17:02.780 --> 00:17:03.840

And then the bishop gets to

00:17:03.880 --> 00:17:06.081

decide what your repentance

00:17:06.121 --> 00:17:07.002

process looks like.

00:17:07.022 --> 00:17:07.642

For some people,

00:17:07.662 --> 00:17:08.742

that looks like not taking

00:17:08.782 --> 00:17:09.903

the sacrament in a very

00:17:09.963 --> 00:17:11.923

public ceremony every single Sunday.

00:17:12.443 --> 00:17:13.104

For some people,

00:17:13.184 --> 00:17:14.564

it looks like telling you

00:17:14.604 --> 00:17:16.125

not to go to the temple for a while,

00:17:16.485 --> 00:17:17.825

removing your temple recommend,

00:17:17.965 --> 00:17:19.566

asking you not to wear your garments,

00:17:19.606 --> 00:17:20.226

things like that.

00:17:21.899 --> 00:17:22.940

It's bishop roulette.

00:17:23.100 --> 00:17:24.721

They get a little bit of guidance on this,

00:17:24.761 --> 00:17:27.783

but not anything really super specific,

00:17:27.883 --> 00:17:28.904

except for a little bit of

00:17:28.924 --> 00:17:29.925

training that they receive

00:17:29.945 --> 00:17:30.886

every once in a while.

00:17:31.506 --> 00:17:33.808

And the reactions of

00:17:33.848 --> 00:17:35.589

different bishops vary

00:17:36.189 --> 00:17:38.531

widely depending on that

00:17:38.591 --> 00:17:40.472

bishop's experience, background,

00:17:40.532 --> 00:17:42.594

whether or not he's nuanced or orthodox,

00:17:42.614 --> 00:17:43.495

whether or not he...

00:17:44.701 --> 00:17:48.043

you know, his age, his marital status,

00:17:48.083 --> 00:17:49.845

like all of those things come into play,

00:17:49.885 --> 00:17:51.306

like personal dynamics come

00:17:51.326 --> 00:17:52.366

into play so much when

00:17:52.406 --> 00:17:53.367

you're a bishop in the church.

00:17:53.687 --> 00:17:54.428

There are some bishops who

00:17:54.468 --> 00:17:56.149

are really great, wonderful people,

00:17:56.509 --> 00:17:57.770

good men trying to do the

00:17:57.790 --> 00:17:59.852

best they can with the very

00:17:59.892 --> 00:18:00.632

little that they're given.

00:18:01.052 --> 00:18:02.173

And there are other bishops

00:18:02.213 --> 00:18:03.714

who wield that authority

00:18:03.814 --> 00:18:05.876

and enjoy punishing people

00:18:06.436 --> 00:18:09.338

when they come to the bishop

00:18:09.378 --> 00:18:11.019

with a confession of some kind.

00:18:11.500 --> 00:18:13.381

So your repentance process

00:18:13.481 --> 00:18:14.682

is going to vary depending

00:18:14.742 --> 00:18:16.103

on who your bishop is.

00:18:16.884 --> 00:18:17.804

And you have to go through

00:18:17.824 --> 00:18:19.726

that process in order to be

00:18:19.766 --> 00:18:21.767

considered worthy to go to the temple.

00:18:22.347 --> 00:18:22.628

Again,

00:18:22.668 --> 00:18:23.909

you have to be a card-carrying

00:18:23.949 --> 00:18:26.070

temple recommend holder in

00:18:26.170 --> 00:18:27.611

order to reach the highest

00:18:27.651 --> 00:18:29.432

level of Mormon heaven.

00:18:29.472 --> 00:18:30.353

Just want to be clear that

00:18:30.393 --> 00:18:31.514

everybody understands that.

00:18:32.605 --> 00:18:33.466

Oh, and one other thing.

00:18:34.247 --> 00:18:35.928

Did you notice the mention of perfection?

00:18:36.188 --> 00:18:37.209

Because the scripture in the

00:18:37.229 --> 00:18:39.371

Bible that says, be ye therefore perfect,

00:18:39.471 --> 00:18:41.333

even as my father in heaven is perfect,

00:18:41.893 --> 00:18:43.195

is not something that

00:18:43.235 --> 00:18:44.276

Mormons just strive for.

00:18:44.296 --> 00:18:44.976

It's something that they

00:18:45.016 --> 00:18:46.678

believe in literally.

00:18:47.058 --> 00:18:48.079

They believe that we can't

00:18:48.099 --> 00:18:49.340

be perfect in this life,

00:18:49.740 --> 00:18:51.202

but once this life is over,

00:18:51.242 --> 00:18:51.902

then we're going to have

00:18:51.922 --> 00:18:53.063

that thousand years when

00:18:53.124 --> 00:18:54.245

Jesus is reigning on the

00:18:54.345 --> 00:18:56.026

earth to perfect ourselves

00:18:56.066 --> 00:18:57.728

and literally become just

00:18:57.788 --> 00:18:59.069

as perfect as Jesus Christ.

00:19:00.750 --> 00:19:03.172

How's that for something to aspire to?

00:19:03.614 --> 00:19:04.695

In his recent talk to the

00:19:04.715 --> 00:19:06.016

young adults of the church,

00:19:07.277 --> 00:19:08.398

President Russell M. Nelson

00:19:08.438 --> 00:19:09.979

spoke of what he called the, quote,

00:19:10.380 --> 00:19:11.801

strong connection between

00:19:11.861 --> 00:19:15.144

God's love and his laws, end of quote.

00:19:16.273 --> 00:19:17.294

Okay, get ready for it.

00:19:17.374 --> 00:19:18.834

He's setting us up to say

00:19:18.894 --> 00:19:20.355

that God's love is tied

00:19:20.475 --> 00:19:22.116

directly to obedience to his laws.

00:19:22.276 --> 00:19:22.936

I'm telling you,

00:19:22.977 --> 00:19:25.018

this is a concept that most

00:19:25.078 --> 00:19:26.538

Mormons don't understand,

00:19:27.059 --> 00:19:28.159

that Mormons actually

00:19:28.179 --> 00:19:29.680

believe that the fullness

00:19:29.800 --> 00:19:31.141

of God's love is

00:19:31.181 --> 00:19:32.642

conditional upon your

00:19:32.702 --> 00:19:34.382

obedience to his commandments.

00:19:34.442 --> 00:19:34.643

Now,

00:19:35.563 --> 00:19:36.724

We've had lots of debate

00:19:36.784 --> 00:19:37.744

about this over the years.

00:19:37.764 --> 00:19:39.005

This was a debate that

00:19:39.045 --> 00:19:40.026

happened when I was a

00:19:40.046 --> 00:19:40.746

member of the church.

00:19:40.806 --> 00:19:42.047

I actually taught this

00:19:42.107 --> 00:19:43.667

concept because I was

00:19:43.708 --> 00:19:45.769

taught this concept that, yes,

00:19:45.829 --> 00:19:47.089

God loves everyone,

00:19:47.530 --> 00:19:49.231

but the fullness of his

00:19:49.311 --> 00:19:50.811

love is reserved for those

00:19:50.831 --> 00:19:51.972

who keep his commandments.

00:19:52.332 --> 00:19:53.253

Watch.

00:19:53.833 --> 00:19:55.034

The law that applies most

00:19:55.074 --> 00:19:57.115

significantly to the issues

00:19:57.195 --> 00:20:00.597

relating to those identifying as LGBT is

00:20:01.399 --> 00:20:04.602

is God's law of marriage and

00:20:04.662 --> 00:20:07.444

its companion law of chastity.

00:20:07.524 --> 00:20:09.526

Okay, so by the law of marriage,

00:20:09.686 --> 00:20:11.647

he's speaking specifically, again,

00:20:11.827 --> 00:20:13.249

about a man and a woman

00:20:13.769 --> 00:20:15.610

married and sealed in a temple.

00:20:16.912 --> 00:20:20.114

And its companion law, the law of chastity,

00:20:20.815 --> 00:20:23.317

is that no one can have any

00:20:24.277 --> 00:20:28.901

sexual relations except to

00:20:28.941 --> 00:20:29.982

their husband or wife,

00:20:30.392 --> 00:20:31.933

to whom they are legally and

00:20:32.013 --> 00:20:33.434

lawfully married.

00:20:34.035 --> 00:20:34.855

That's the standard.

00:20:34.875 --> 00:20:36.076

That's the law of chastity.

00:20:36.096 --> 00:20:37.017

That's what it means.

00:20:37.617 --> 00:20:40.759

So fidelity within marriage

00:20:41.460 --> 00:20:44.697

and no relationships outside of marriage.

00:20:45.122 --> 00:20:46.002

President Nelson taught,

00:20:46.503 --> 00:20:47.523

many countries have

00:20:47.683 --> 00:20:49.524

legalized same-sex marriage.

00:20:50.244 --> 00:20:51.185

As members of the church,

00:20:51.245 --> 00:20:52.845

we respect the laws of the land,

00:20:53.045 --> 00:20:54.406

including civil marriage.

00:20:55.246 --> 00:20:56.347

The truth is, however,

00:20:56.387 --> 00:20:57.507

that in the beginning,

00:20:58.008 --> 00:21:00.049

marriage was ordained by God.

00:21:00.709 --> 00:21:01.529

And to this day,

00:21:01.569 --> 00:21:03.430

it is defined by him as

00:21:03.470 --> 00:21:05.171

being between a man and a woman.

00:21:05.691 --> 00:21:06.952

Okay, that's your opinion, though.

00:21:06.972 --> 00:21:07.912

That's conjecture.

00:21:08.352 --> 00:21:09.693

Because in the Bible,

00:21:10.033 --> 00:21:12.214

there isn't any mention of marriage.

00:21:13.401 --> 00:21:15.442

homosexual relationships whatsoever.

00:21:15.522 --> 00:21:16.483

So therefore there's no

00:21:16.523 --> 00:21:18.104

mention of homosexual

00:21:18.144 --> 00:21:19.645

marriage whatsoever.

00:21:20.055 --> 00:21:20.696

that one, I guess.

00:21:20.716 --> 00:21:22.337

God has not changed his

00:21:22.417 --> 00:21:23.618

definition of marriage.

00:21:24.979 --> 00:21:26.360

President Nelson continued,

00:21:26.800 --> 00:21:28.581

God has also not changed

00:21:28.801 --> 00:21:30.022

the law of chastity.

00:21:30.703 --> 00:21:31.783

Requirements to enter the

00:21:31.823 --> 00:21:34.025

temple have not changed, end of quote.

00:21:34.763 --> 00:21:35.263

Once again,

00:21:36.384 --> 00:21:38.044

Dallin Oaks has not directly

00:21:38.124 --> 00:21:43.505

said that if you're in a

00:21:43.525 --> 00:21:45.906

homosexual marriage that you're sinning.

00:21:46.406 --> 00:21:47.946

He hasn't specifically said that.

00:21:48.490 --> 00:21:51.051

Again, he's talking around this issue.

00:21:51.091 --> 00:21:53.052

He doesn't want there to be

00:21:53.092 --> 00:21:54.933

a soundbite out there that

00:21:54.993 --> 00:21:58.134

says that you're sinning if

00:21:58.174 --> 00:22:01.595

you're in a legal gay marriage.

00:22:01.635 --> 00:22:04.056

What he's saying is he's

00:22:04.116 --> 00:22:05.657

wanting you to connect the dots.

00:22:05.677 --> 00:22:06.957

He's not going to do it for you.

00:22:08.338 --> 00:22:09.158

He's very sneaky.

00:22:09.498 --> 00:22:10.219

He's an attorney,

00:22:10.519 --> 00:22:11.599

so he knows what to say and

00:22:11.619 --> 00:22:12.299

what not to say,

00:22:12.319 --> 00:22:13.540

and he knows how to say it

00:22:14.140 --> 00:22:16.401

in order to not be caught out.

00:22:17.930 --> 00:22:18.490

He says,

00:22:19.268 --> 00:22:21.169

God originally instituted marriage

00:22:21.189 --> 00:22:22.130

between a man and a woman.

00:22:23.171 --> 00:22:26.513

That's in the Bible.

00:22:26.573 --> 00:22:27.454

Number two, he says,

00:22:27.754 --> 00:22:29.915

some countries and some states,

00:22:30.276 --> 00:22:32.517

I should add, he didn't say that,

00:22:32.557 --> 00:22:33.638

but some states have

00:22:33.718 --> 00:22:35.959

legalized same-sex marriage.

00:22:36.900 --> 00:22:39.522

Your state too, by the way, Dallin Oaks.

00:22:42.868 --> 00:22:43.408

Number three,

00:22:44.048 --> 00:22:45.989

he says God's laws have not changed.

00:22:47.450 --> 00:22:48.770

Marriage between a man and a woman,

00:22:49.131 --> 00:22:49.991

still the standard.

00:22:50.931 --> 00:22:52.572

The law of chastity hasn't changed.

00:22:53.792 --> 00:22:55.553

So what he's implying here

00:22:56.213 --> 00:22:59.055

is that if you are in a

00:22:59.095 --> 00:23:01.395

homosexual relationship and

00:23:01.415 --> 00:23:02.216

you're not married,

00:23:03.216 --> 00:23:04.017

you're breaking the law of

00:23:04.037 --> 00:23:05.117

chastity because the law of

00:23:05.137 --> 00:23:06.678

chastity says that you will

00:23:06.778 --> 00:23:08.578

only have relations with

00:23:08.618 --> 00:23:10.579

your husband or wife to

00:23:10.619 --> 00:23:12.600

whom you are legally and lawfully wedded.

00:23:13.227 --> 00:23:16.348

period so the implication

00:23:16.388 --> 00:23:18.229

here is that if you're in a

00:23:18.289 --> 00:23:21.130

legal marriage that doesn't

00:23:21.170 --> 00:23:22.650

mean that god accepts it

00:23:22.670 --> 00:23:23.591

because god's law about

00:23:23.631 --> 00:23:25.371

marriage hasn't changed and

00:23:25.411 --> 00:23:26.612

if you're not in a marriage

00:23:26.652 --> 00:23:27.192

but you're in a

00:23:27.212 --> 00:23:28.352

relationship we still

00:23:28.412 --> 00:23:29.513

expect you to keep the law

00:23:29.553 --> 00:23:32.514

of chastity which means no

00:23:32.974 --> 00:23:34.574

relations before marriage

00:23:34.654 --> 00:23:35.795

and then total fidelity

00:23:35.815 --> 00:23:37.035

within marriage that's the

00:23:37.075 --> 00:23:38.156

standard that they're that

00:23:38.176 --> 00:23:38.776

they're teaching

00:23:39.987 --> 00:23:41.268

Again, it's an implication.

00:23:41.368 --> 00:23:42.849

It's one of those in-speak

00:23:42.889 --> 00:23:44.010

things that high demand

00:23:44.050 --> 00:23:45.431

groups do where they just

00:23:45.531 --> 00:23:46.972

expect you to know because

00:23:46.992 --> 00:23:48.392

you've heard this before, right?

00:23:48.713 --> 00:23:50.274

You know how I feel about this.

00:23:50.734 --> 00:23:51.034

By the way,

00:23:51.074 --> 00:23:52.435

this is something that

00:23:54.016 --> 00:23:55.917

manipulative people do as well.

00:23:57.098 --> 00:23:58.499

They will say something like,

00:23:58.559 --> 00:23:59.740

you know how I feel about

00:23:59.800 --> 00:24:01.281

this without actually

00:24:01.541 --> 00:24:03.042

saying how they feel about

00:24:03.082 --> 00:24:03.662

it because they're

00:24:03.702 --> 00:24:04.863

expecting you to number one,

00:24:04.903 --> 00:24:06.224

read their mind or number two,

00:24:06.384 --> 00:24:07.785

recall some past experience

00:24:07.805 --> 00:24:08.565

where they said how they

00:24:08.605 --> 00:24:09.246

actually did feel.

00:24:11.301 --> 00:24:13.483

very manipulative, very controlling,

00:24:13.863 --> 00:24:15.551

very narcissistic.

00:24:15.571 --> 00:24:17.493

Commission as apostles is to

00:24:17.533 --> 00:24:18.914

teach nothing but truth.

00:24:19.714 --> 00:24:21.075

That commission does not

00:24:21.295 --> 00:24:23.037

give apostles the authority

00:24:23.397 --> 00:24:24.798

to modify divine law.

00:24:27.124 --> 00:24:27.804

I want you to,

00:24:28.105 --> 00:24:30.086

I'm going to play that sentence again,

00:24:30.206 --> 00:24:34.388

and I want you to notice his posture,

00:24:35.389 --> 00:24:37.070

notice his tone of voice,

00:24:38.031 --> 00:24:39.111

and what I notice

00:24:39.291 --> 00:24:47.956

underneath is actually seething anger.

00:24:48.157 --> 00:24:49.497

I didn't notice this until I

00:24:49.557 --> 00:24:50.858

started watching conference

00:24:50.898 --> 00:24:53.680

talks again just in the last year or so.

00:24:54.360 --> 00:24:55.581

These men who lead the church

00:24:57.345 --> 00:24:58.566

underneath everything that

00:24:58.586 --> 00:25:00.207

they say there is a layer

00:25:00.267 --> 00:25:02.429

of anger and hatred there

00:25:04.331 --> 00:25:05.612

and If you don't see it,

00:25:05.992 --> 00:25:06.973

I would love to be able to

00:25:07.013 --> 00:25:09.495

point it out to you It's

00:25:09.555 --> 00:25:10.856

something that I had to

00:25:10.896 --> 00:25:12.778

learn how to do in my

00:25:12.818 --> 00:25:14.039

childhood home growing up I

00:25:14.079 --> 00:25:15.320

had to learn to read facial

00:25:15.360 --> 00:25:16.641

expressions and lead read

00:25:16.661 --> 00:25:17.942

body language and listen to

00:25:18.022 --> 00:25:19.183

intonation inflection in

00:25:19.223 --> 00:25:20.764

people's tone of voice to

00:25:20.804 --> 00:25:22.526

protect myself from being harmed and

00:25:23.478 --> 00:25:26.359

And so I have sort of a,

00:25:26.499 --> 00:25:27.700

I have a skill for it.

00:25:28.240 --> 00:25:29.681

And once you see those things,

00:25:29.701 --> 00:25:30.661

you can't unsee it.

00:25:30.681 --> 00:25:31.362

So I'm going to play this

00:25:31.402 --> 00:25:33.102

twice more once so that you

00:25:33.122 --> 00:25:34.643

can listen to his body

00:25:34.683 --> 00:25:36.444

language or watch his body language,

00:25:36.484 --> 00:25:37.604

listen to his tone of voice.

00:25:38.005 --> 00:25:38.645

And then I'm going to play

00:25:38.685 --> 00:25:40.946

it again with no sound so

00:25:40.986 --> 00:25:42.667

you can really see it

00:25:42.707 --> 00:25:44.708

without any words behind it.

00:25:46.308 --> 00:25:47.649

And I want you to see what you notice.

00:25:49.598 --> 00:25:49.878

Ah, shit.

00:25:49.978 --> 00:25:51.520

It's nothing but truth.

00:25:52.561 --> 00:25:54.282

That commission does not

00:25:54.582 --> 00:25:56.724

give apostles the authority

00:25:57.164 --> 00:25:58.906

to modify divine law.

00:26:00.596 --> 00:26:16.487

And now without sound.

00:26:17.537 --> 00:26:18.177

It is subtle,

00:26:18.597 --> 00:26:20.558

but when Dallin Oaks looks at the camera,

00:26:20.598 --> 00:26:21.998

that's when I see the anger.

00:26:22.659 --> 00:26:24.279

Let's see if you can spot it as well,

00:26:24.699 --> 00:26:26.514

or if I'm just making it up.

00:26:26.726 --> 00:26:28.007

President Nelson reminded

00:26:28.087 --> 00:26:29.167

all of us that our

00:26:29.227 --> 00:26:31.408

commission as apostles is

00:26:31.448 --> 00:26:33.349

to teach nothing but truth.

00:26:34.350 --> 00:26:36.030

That commission does not

00:26:36.330 --> 00:26:40.252

give apostles... When I

00:26:40.272 --> 00:26:42.853

look into that face and into those eyes,

00:26:43.194 --> 00:26:44.274

when I look into those eyes,

00:26:44.414 --> 00:26:45.975

I do not see loving kindness.

00:26:46.435 --> 00:26:47.235

I don't see guidance.

00:26:47.275 --> 00:26:48.456

I don't see shepherding.

00:26:49.196 --> 00:26:51.677

I see contempt.

00:26:51.717 --> 00:26:52.451

...the authority

00:26:52.703 --> 00:26:53.944

The work of The Church of

00:26:54.004 --> 00:26:55.845

Jesus Christ of Latter-day

00:26:55.905 --> 00:26:58.346

Saints is ultimately concerned

00:26:59.097 --> 00:27:00.678

with preparing the children

00:27:00.698 --> 00:27:02.899

of God for the celestial kingdom,

00:27:03.580 --> 00:27:05.180

and most particularly for

00:27:05.241 --> 00:27:07.202

its highest glory, exaltation,

00:27:07.402 --> 00:27:08.182

or eternal life.

00:27:09.163 --> 00:27:10.924

That highest destiny is only

00:27:10.984 --> 00:27:13.605

possible through marriage for eternity.

00:27:14.426 --> 00:27:15.847

Eternal life includes the

00:27:15.887 --> 00:27:18.188

creative powers inherent in

00:27:18.208 --> 00:27:20.009

the combination of male and female.

00:27:21.332 --> 00:27:22.773

He means S-E-X, you guys,

00:27:22.813 --> 00:27:24.593

just in case you missed it.

00:27:25.313 --> 00:27:26.434

They can't even bring

00:27:26.454 --> 00:27:27.794

themselves to say the word,

00:27:28.395 --> 00:27:30.015

so they talk about the

00:27:30.055 --> 00:27:31.694

procreative powers.

00:27:33.290 --> 00:27:34.631

So again,

00:27:34.711 --> 00:27:37.692

he's talking about people who are

00:27:37.732 --> 00:27:39.253

exalted after this life,

00:27:39.273 --> 00:27:39.893

that they're going to get

00:27:39.913 --> 00:27:41.834

to continue to create spirit children,

00:27:42.354 --> 00:27:43.574

literally what Mormons believe.

00:27:43.654 --> 00:27:44.995

Modern revelation describes

00:27:45.095 --> 00:27:47.015

as the continuation of the

00:27:47.055 --> 00:27:49.116

seeds forever and ever.

00:27:49.196 --> 00:27:49.456

Okay.

00:27:49.656 --> 00:27:50.697

Now this is where I started

00:27:50.737 --> 00:27:51.697

to go down a little bit of

00:27:51.717 --> 00:27:52.798

a rabbit hole because I

00:27:52.838 --> 00:27:54.838

wanted to remind myself of

00:27:54.878 --> 00:27:56.739

the scriptural reference of

00:28:04.330 --> 00:28:05.611

the incidents where it talks

00:28:05.631 --> 00:28:07.492

about seeds forever and ever.

00:28:07.972 --> 00:28:10.374

So these are my old Mormon scriptures.

00:28:10.494 --> 00:28:11.935

I used to lug these things

00:28:11.975 --> 00:28:12.995

around until I was about

00:28:13.055 --> 00:28:14.596

thirty years old and I got a smaller set,

00:28:14.616 --> 00:28:15.437

but it's got my name

00:28:15.477 --> 00:28:16.558

embossed on it right here.

00:28:17.298 --> 00:28:19.940

This is the quadruple combination.

00:28:20.500 --> 00:28:23.142

It is the Holy Bible, the Book of Mormon,

00:28:23.262 --> 00:28:24.242

the Doctrine and Covenants,

00:28:24.362 --> 00:28:26.964

and the Pearl of Great Price.

00:28:27.004 --> 00:28:28.925

And in the Doctrine and Covenants,

00:28:30.026 --> 00:28:33.168

section one thirty two, our favorite

00:28:35.456 --> 00:28:36.616

This is where it talks about

00:28:36.716 --> 00:28:40.207

seeds continuing forever and ever.

00:28:40.793 --> 00:28:41.393

So there are a couple of

00:28:41.413 --> 00:28:42.154

things that you should know

00:28:42.194 --> 00:28:42.834

about section one,

00:28:42.874 --> 00:28:44.755

thirty-two of the Doctrine and Covenants.

00:28:45.436 --> 00:28:46.637

This is the section that

00:28:46.697 --> 00:28:49.598

talks about polygamy, plural marriage.

00:28:50.259 --> 00:28:50.759

Section one,

00:28:50.799 --> 00:28:52.180

thirty-one is the one that

00:28:52.300 --> 00:28:53.461

actually talks about

00:28:53.661 --> 00:28:56.963

marriage being a divine commandment.

00:28:57.729 --> 00:28:59.050

So going back just a little

00:28:59.070 --> 00:29:00.490

bit to section one thirty one,

00:29:00.530 --> 00:29:01.831

because that's actually the

00:29:01.871 --> 00:29:03.171

section that talks about

00:29:03.612 --> 00:29:04.972

marriage being a divine law

00:29:05.512 --> 00:29:06.733

and that you can only get

00:29:06.773 --> 00:29:07.913

into the highest degree of

00:29:07.974 --> 00:29:09.614

Mormon heaven if you are

00:29:09.834 --> 00:29:11.843

married with the proper authority.

00:29:12.101 --> 00:29:13.042

What's interesting about the

00:29:13.062 --> 00:29:14.143

doctrine and covenants is

00:29:14.183 --> 00:29:16.464

that before each section in the heading,

00:29:17.285 --> 00:29:18.325

it tells us where the

00:29:18.365 --> 00:29:20.247

prophet was when these

00:29:20.307 --> 00:29:21.427

revelations were given.

00:29:22.228 --> 00:29:24.049

And what's interesting to me

00:29:24.229 --> 00:29:25.310

is that during this time,

00:29:25.470 --> 00:29:27.491

Joseph Smith was living in Nauvoo,

00:29:27.571 --> 00:29:28.072

Illinois,

00:29:28.172 --> 00:29:30.233

which is the city that he created.

00:29:30.753 --> 00:29:31.634

He was the mayor,

00:29:32.035 --> 00:29:34.837

he was the authority in that town.

00:29:34.877 --> 00:29:36.519

He even had his own bank at one point.

00:29:37.239 --> 00:29:39.320

So starting with section one, twenty four,

00:29:39.760 --> 00:29:40.740

this was when the saints

00:29:41.041 --> 00:29:42.641

moved to Nauvoo and started

00:29:42.701 --> 00:29:44.442

establishing their city there.

00:29:44.842 --> 00:29:45.602

So section one,

00:29:45.642 --> 00:29:48.544

twenty four through section one, thirty,

00:29:49.124 --> 00:29:50.764

that's six sections of the

00:29:50.784 --> 00:29:52.545

Doctrine and Covenants were

00:29:52.605 --> 00:29:54.346

recorded in Nauvoo, Illinois.

00:29:57.427 --> 00:29:59.548

Between January of eighteen forty one.

00:30:00.988 --> 00:30:03.029

And April of eighteen forty three.

00:30:03.487 --> 00:30:04.767

Then we have this strange

00:30:04.787 --> 00:30:06.168

phenomenon of section one

00:30:06.208 --> 00:30:07.708

thirty-one and one thirty-two,

00:30:07.768 --> 00:30:09.928

which were recorded in Ramus, Illinois,

00:30:11.189 --> 00:30:11.909

not Nauvoo.

00:30:13.129 --> 00:30:13.989

And also, by the way,

00:30:14.049 --> 00:30:14.729

the sections of the

00:30:14.749 --> 00:30:17.870

Doctrine and Covenants are not in order.

00:30:17.990 --> 00:30:19.670

They're not in chronological order.

00:30:21.131 --> 00:30:22.051

And one of the first

00:30:22.111 --> 00:30:23.151

examples that we see of

00:30:23.191 --> 00:30:24.491

things going out of order

00:30:24.671 --> 00:30:26.112

is when we went to section

00:30:26.172 --> 00:30:27.592

one thirty-one and one thirty-two,

00:30:28.012 --> 00:30:30.953

which were revealed, published, whatever,

00:30:31.433 --> 00:30:32.633

in eighteen forty-three.

00:30:33.934 --> 00:30:35.835

And then the next section

00:30:35.875 --> 00:30:37.235

right after that goes back

00:30:37.935 --> 00:30:39.295

to eighteen thirty five.

00:30:40.036 --> 00:30:41.196

So there is a little bit of

00:30:41.256 --> 00:30:43.097

trickery with the arranging

00:30:43.117 --> 00:30:43.717

of these sections.

00:30:43.757 --> 00:30:43.857

Now,

00:30:43.877 --> 00:30:45.597

what's what's interesting to note is

00:30:45.617 --> 00:30:46.537

that Ramus, Illinois,

00:30:46.557 --> 00:30:48.018

was not where Joseph Smith lived.

00:30:48.618 --> 00:30:50.379

What was he doing in Ramus, you might ask?

00:30:50.439 --> 00:30:50.739

Well,

00:30:51.199 --> 00:30:52.999

he had two sisters that lived in Ramus,

00:30:53.019 --> 00:30:55.520

Illinois, but also a family friend.

00:30:56.698 --> 00:30:59.439

Joseph Smith had close friends in Ramus.

00:30:59.579 --> 00:31:02.121

He often stayed with Benjamin F. Johnson.

00:31:03.261 --> 00:31:05.202

Benjamin F. Johnson happened

00:31:05.242 --> 00:31:07.323

to have a daughter whose

00:31:07.363 --> 00:31:08.864

name was Elmira Johnson.

00:31:09.521 --> 00:31:14.096

her on May

00:31:14.156 --> 00:31:16.158

fifteenth of eighteen forty-three.

00:31:16.665 --> 00:31:17.645

Section one thirty one of

00:31:17.685 --> 00:31:18.506

the Doctrine and Covenants

00:31:18.526 --> 00:31:20.826

was recorded on May

00:31:20.886 --> 00:31:22.406

sixteenth and seventeenth

00:31:22.786 --> 00:31:23.927

of eighteen forty three.

00:31:24.919 --> 00:31:26.740

And the infamous section one thirty two,

00:31:27.400 --> 00:31:28.500

which talks about polygamy,

00:31:29.805 --> 00:31:31.586

was recorded on July twelfth

00:31:31.626 --> 00:31:33.027

of eighteen forty three now

00:31:33.047 --> 00:31:33.967

the other thing that I find

00:31:34.187 --> 00:31:35.528

really interesting so just

00:31:35.588 --> 00:31:36.568

just to put that together

00:31:36.608 --> 00:31:38.729

for you guys Joseph Smith

00:31:39.230 --> 00:31:40.890

recorded the sections that

00:31:40.930 --> 00:31:41.911

talk about marriage and

00:31:41.931 --> 00:31:44.952

plural marriage in the same

00:31:44.992 --> 00:31:46.233

month that he married

00:31:46.475 --> 00:31:47.169

Elmira

00:31:47.209 --> 00:31:49.551

Johnson whom he was

00:31:49.591 --> 00:31:52.192

visiting when he recorded those sections

00:31:53.630 --> 00:31:54.811

He married her in May.

00:31:54.911 --> 00:31:56.453

He recorded these sections in May.

00:31:56.633 --> 00:31:58.255

It's all a little too coincidental.

00:31:59.036 --> 00:31:59.917

One thing that some people

00:31:59.957 --> 00:32:00.918

don't put together, though,

00:32:01.378 --> 00:32:03.601

is that Elmira Johnson was

00:32:03.681 --> 00:32:06.864

his twenty-second wife.

00:32:06.904 --> 00:32:08.205

So by the time he recorded

00:32:08.245 --> 00:32:09.747

these sections about plural

00:32:09.767 --> 00:32:11.809

marriage that were revelations from God,

00:32:12.250 --> 00:32:13.411

he had already been married

00:32:13.471 --> 00:32:16.134

twenty-two times.

00:32:16.959 --> 00:32:19.222

So again, I apologize for the rabbit hole,

00:32:19.242 --> 00:32:20.163

but I wanted to go to that

00:32:20.203 --> 00:32:21.224

scripture that talked about

00:32:21.264 --> 00:32:22.805

seed continuing forever and ever.

00:32:22.906 --> 00:32:24.107

And it is the longest verse

00:32:24.227 --> 00:32:25.388

in section one thirty two

00:32:25.408 --> 00:32:26.409

of the Doctrine and Covenants.

00:32:26.509 --> 00:32:27.430

It is verse nineteen.

00:32:27.951 --> 00:32:28.732

I will read it for you.

00:32:30.805 --> 00:32:32.346

And again, verily I say unto you,

00:32:32.446 --> 00:32:34.268

if a man marry a wife by my word,

00:32:34.308 --> 00:32:35.149

which is my law,

00:32:35.249 --> 00:32:37.030

and by the new and everlasting covenant,

00:32:37.531 --> 00:32:38.712

and it is sealed unto them

00:32:38.872 --> 00:32:40.233

by the Holy Spirit of promise,

00:32:40.293 --> 00:32:41.735

that's that temple sealing

00:32:41.755 --> 00:32:42.555

I was telling you about,

00:32:45.378 --> 00:32:46.699

by him who is appointed

00:32:46.959 --> 00:32:48.220

unto whom I have appointed

00:32:48.240 --> 00:32:50.402

this power and the keys of the priesthood,

00:32:50.903 --> 00:32:52.624

that means somebody who has

00:32:52.664 --> 00:32:53.625

the priesthood authority.

00:32:53.865 --> 00:32:54.726

Stay with me, guys.

00:32:55.206 --> 00:32:55.787

It's a long one.

00:32:57.508 --> 00:32:58.749

And it shall be said unto them,

00:32:59.209 --> 00:33:00.530

You shall come forth in the

00:33:00.550 --> 00:33:01.611

first resurrection.

00:33:02.391 --> 00:33:03.532

And if it be after the first

00:33:03.592 --> 00:33:05.293

resurrection and the next resurrection,

00:33:05.473 --> 00:33:07.435

and shall inherit thrones, kingdoms,

00:33:07.515 --> 00:33:09.376

principalities, powers, dominions,

00:33:09.476 --> 00:33:10.376

all heights and depths,

00:33:10.757 --> 00:33:12.118

then shall it be written in

00:33:12.158 --> 00:33:13.238

the Lamb's book of life,

00:33:13.513 --> 00:33:14.334

And if you abide in my

00:33:14.374 --> 00:33:15.775

covenant and commit no

00:33:16.356 --> 00:33:17.696

whereby to shed innocent blood,

00:33:17.797 --> 00:33:18.957

it shall be done unto them

00:33:19.037 --> 00:33:20.078

in all things whatsoever.

00:33:20.138 --> 00:33:21.219

My servant hath put upon

00:33:21.239 --> 00:33:23.000

them in time and through all,

00:33:23.020 --> 00:33:24.621

through all eternity and

00:33:24.642 --> 00:33:26.103

shall be full of full force

00:33:26.123 --> 00:33:27.143

when they're out of the world.

00:33:27.604 --> 00:33:28.765

Basically that just means

00:33:28.805 --> 00:33:30.706

that if you get married in the temple,

00:33:30.826 --> 00:33:32.447

as long as you don't commit mock duck,

00:33:33.308 --> 00:33:34.248

then you're going to

00:33:34.689 --> 00:33:35.970

inherit all of these things

00:33:37.171 --> 00:33:38.271

and your marriage is going

00:33:38.311 --> 00:33:38.892

to last forever.

00:33:41.282 --> 00:33:42.222

And they shall pass by the

00:33:42.362 --> 00:33:43.223

angels and the gods,

00:33:43.263 --> 00:33:44.623

which are set there to

00:33:44.663 --> 00:33:46.803

their exaltation and glory in all things,

00:33:46.923 --> 00:33:48.464

as hath been sealed upon their heads,

00:33:48.504 --> 00:33:49.844

which glory shall be a

00:33:49.884 --> 00:33:51.325

fullness and a continuation

00:33:51.445 --> 00:33:53.065

of the seeds forever and ever.

00:33:53.545 --> 00:33:55.786

That's basically scriptural

00:33:55.826 --> 00:33:57.666

confirmation that whoever

00:33:57.726 --> 00:33:59.006

goes through this ceremony

00:33:59.347 --> 00:34:00.627

gets to continue to make

00:34:00.647 --> 00:34:02.749

babies forever and ever.

00:34:03.074 --> 00:34:04.935

That is to become like God

00:34:05.635 --> 00:34:07.156

with the exalted life and

00:34:07.217 --> 00:34:10.699

divine potential of our heavenly parents.

00:34:11.600 --> 00:34:12.860

That is the destiny we

00:34:12.900 --> 00:34:14.842

desire for all we love.

00:34:15.901 --> 00:34:16.942

Because of that love,

00:34:17.062 --> 00:34:18.724

we cannot let our love

00:34:18.784 --> 00:34:20.166

supersede the commandments

00:34:20.826 --> 00:34:22.208

and the plan and work of God,

00:34:22.849 --> 00:34:23.770

which we know will bring

00:34:23.810 --> 00:34:26.318

those we love their greatest happiness.

00:34:26.398 --> 00:34:27.339

Okay.

00:34:27.359 --> 00:34:29.962

So again, this is an assumption that

00:34:31.391 --> 00:34:33.231

What he's implying here is

00:34:33.251 --> 00:34:34.492

that we know what's going

00:34:34.512 --> 00:34:36.272

to bring people their greatest happiness.

00:34:36.672 --> 00:34:38.213

It is this exaltation.

00:34:38.653 --> 00:34:39.213

And therefore,

00:34:39.253 --> 00:34:40.673

we can't let our love for

00:34:40.713 --> 00:34:42.173

them get in the way of the

00:34:42.213 --> 00:34:43.834

fact that we know what's best for them.

00:34:44.234 --> 00:34:45.534

We know that they can only

00:34:46.154 --> 00:34:47.175

get to heaven or the

00:34:47.215 --> 00:34:48.235

highest level of heaven

00:34:48.715 --> 00:34:52.196

through adhering to these

00:34:52.216 --> 00:34:53.256

commandments as they are.

00:34:54.255 --> 00:34:55.216

But there are many we love,

00:34:55.296 --> 00:34:56.457

including some who have the

00:34:56.517 --> 00:34:57.398

restored gospel,

00:34:57.759 --> 00:34:59.260

who do not believe in or

00:34:59.320 --> 00:35:01.042

choose not to follow God's

00:35:01.062 --> 00:35:02.264

commandments about marriage

00:35:02.684 --> 00:35:03.545

and the law of chastity.

00:35:03.585 --> 00:35:05.727

What about them?

00:35:05.747 --> 00:35:07.029

God's doctrine shows that

00:35:07.229 --> 00:35:08.691

all of us are His children

00:35:09.491 --> 00:35:11.614

and that He has created us to have joy.

00:35:12.858 --> 00:35:14.238

Modern revelation teaches

00:35:14.278 --> 00:35:15.619

that God has provided a

00:35:15.679 --> 00:35:17.339

plan for a mortal

00:35:17.379 --> 00:35:19.099

experience in which all can

00:35:19.139 --> 00:35:21.260

choose obedience to seek

00:35:21.300 --> 00:35:23.360

His highest blessings or

00:35:23.400 --> 00:35:24.621

make choices that lead to

00:35:24.761 --> 00:35:26.599

one of the less glorious kingdoms.

00:35:26.599 --> 00:35:26.669

quote.

00:35:26.689 --> 00:35:28.070

I've spoken of the first commandment,

00:35:28.110 --> 00:35:29.031

but what of the second?

00:35:29.411 --> 00:35:30.192

How do we keep the

00:35:30.232 --> 00:35:31.833

commandment to love our neighbors

00:35:33.419 --> 00:35:34.540

We seek to persuade our

00:35:34.820 --> 00:35:37.021

members that those who follow lesbian,

00:35:37.321 --> 00:35:38.521

gay, bisexual,

00:35:38.601 --> 00:35:40.102

or transgender teachings

00:35:40.362 --> 00:35:42.543

and actions should be

00:35:42.603 --> 00:35:43.984

treated with the love our

00:35:44.024 --> 00:35:45.664

Savior commands us to show

00:35:46.025 --> 00:35:47.485

toward all our neighbors.

00:35:47.505 --> 00:35:48.226

Oh, really?

00:35:48.706 --> 00:35:49.006

Thus,

00:35:49.046 --> 00:35:51.327

when same-sex marriage was declared legal,

00:35:51.907 --> 00:35:52.888

the First Presidency and

00:35:52.928 --> 00:35:54.828

Quorum of the Twelve declared, quote,

00:35:55.589 --> 00:35:57.049

The gospel of Jesus Christ

00:35:57.089 --> 00:35:58.310

teaches us to love and

00:35:58.350 --> 00:35:59.370

treat all people with

00:35:59.430 --> 00:36:00.711

kindness and civility,

00:36:01.311 --> 00:36:02.332

even when we disagree.

00:36:03.232 --> 00:36:04.533

We affirm that those who

00:36:04.613 --> 00:36:06.494

avail themselves of laws or

00:36:06.554 --> 00:36:08.555

court rulings authorizing

00:36:08.615 --> 00:36:10.236

same-sex marriage should

00:36:10.296 --> 00:36:12.237

not be treated disrespectfully."

00:36:14.739 --> 00:36:15.059

Further,

00:36:15.239 --> 00:36:16.920

we must never persecute those who

00:36:16.960 --> 00:36:19.122

do not share our beliefs and commitments.

00:36:20.282 --> 00:36:20.983

Regretfully,

00:36:21.423 --> 00:36:22.804

some persons facing these

00:36:22.884 --> 00:36:24.665

issues continue to feel

00:36:24.745 --> 00:36:26.526

marginalized and rejected

00:36:27.106 --> 00:36:28.787

by some members and leaders

00:36:29.408 --> 00:36:31.258

in our families, wards, and stakes.

00:36:31.514 --> 00:36:31.654

Now,

00:36:31.954 --> 00:36:34.736

I wonder why people would continue to

00:36:34.776 --> 00:36:37.057

feel marginalized and

00:36:37.077 --> 00:36:39.726

disrespected by leaders.

00:36:40.026 --> 00:36:42.068

He said kinder and more civil,

00:36:42.128 --> 00:36:43.388

but he didn't say kinder

00:36:43.489 --> 00:36:44.369

and more accepting.

00:36:45.150 --> 00:36:46.470

Important distinction.

00:36:46.532 --> 00:36:46.788

commandments.

00:36:47.831 --> 00:36:48.972

For the women of the Church,

00:36:49.052 --> 00:36:50.192

President Spencer W.

00:36:50.232 --> 00:36:51.713

Kimball described that duty

00:36:52.193 --> 00:36:54.975

in this great prophecy, quote,

00:36:55.035 --> 00:36:56.195

Much of the major growth

00:36:56.215 --> 00:36:57.136

that is coming to the

00:36:57.176 --> 00:36:58.457

Church in the last days

00:36:59.017 --> 00:37:00.277

will come because many of

00:37:00.317 --> 00:37:01.738

the good women of the world

00:37:02.278 --> 00:37:03.559

will be drawn to the Church

00:37:03.599 --> 00:37:04.480

in large numbers.

00:37:05.322 --> 00:37:05.682

End of quote.

00:37:29.744 --> 00:37:31.165

except the women of the

00:37:31.185 --> 00:37:32.385

world are not being drawn

00:37:32.465 --> 00:37:34.025

to the church in large numbers.

00:37:34.266 --> 00:37:34.706

In fact,

00:37:35.286 --> 00:37:36.386

the members of the church are

00:37:36.406 --> 00:37:37.567

being drawn away from the

00:37:37.607 --> 00:37:39.087

church in large numbers.

00:37:39.887 --> 00:37:40.648

Of that prophecy,

00:37:40.688 --> 00:37:41.828

President Russell M. Nelson

00:37:41.868 --> 00:37:43.728

declared that the day that

00:37:43.789 --> 00:37:45.929

President Kimball foresaw is today.

00:37:46.229 --> 00:37:48.270

You are the women he foresaw.

00:37:50.545 --> 00:37:51.686

Little did we who heard that

00:37:51.726 --> 00:37:53.127

prophecy forty years ago

00:37:53.227 --> 00:37:55.289

realize that among those

00:37:55.429 --> 00:37:56.390

the women of this church

00:37:56.450 --> 00:37:58.352

may save will be their own

00:37:58.392 --> 00:38:00.734

dear friends and family who

00:38:00.774 --> 00:38:02.315

are currently influenced by

00:38:02.375 --> 00:38:04.197

worldly priorities and

00:38:04.277 --> 00:38:06.359

devilish distortions.

00:38:06.459 --> 00:38:06.719

OK,

00:38:07.240 --> 00:38:09.221

so this is another point at which I

00:38:09.602 --> 00:38:12.524

lost my temper because, again,

00:38:12.604 --> 00:38:14.406

it's all implication.

00:38:15.098 --> 00:38:15.878

He's not going to come out

00:38:15.918 --> 00:38:16.819

and directly say it.

00:38:17.439 --> 00:38:18.719

But what he's talking about

00:38:19.339 --> 00:38:23.020

are people who are in the LGBTQ community,

00:38:23.060 --> 00:38:25.181

people who have engaged in

00:38:25.241 --> 00:38:26.241

same-sex marriage and

00:38:26.261 --> 00:38:27.462

same-sex relationships.

00:38:27.982 --> 00:38:29.242

And he's calling those

00:38:29.282 --> 00:38:32.243

things devilish distortions.

00:38:33.604 --> 00:38:35.704

And he's saying that if we

00:38:35.764 --> 00:38:37.085

women are righteous,

00:38:37.105 --> 00:38:38.685

that we can save our own

00:38:38.705 --> 00:38:39.706

family members who are

00:38:39.826 --> 00:38:41.606

already engaged in these things.

00:38:42.646 --> 00:38:44.307

This is inflammatory language.

00:38:45.292 --> 00:38:46.913

This is shaming.

00:38:47.193 --> 00:38:48.513

This is belittling.

00:38:48.733 --> 00:38:51.954

This is not accepting of LGBTQ people.

00:38:52.294 --> 00:38:53.835

You cannot say that you love

00:38:53.895 --> 00:38:55.615

people out of one side of

00:38:55.635 --> 00:38:58.156

your mouth and then call

00:38:58.196 --> 00:39:00.637

them devilish distortions

00:39:00.857 --> 00:39:02.157

out of the other side of your mouth.

00:39:02.197 --> 00:39:04.798

That is just not the way that it works.

00:39:05.518 --> 00:39:08.299

This is classic coercive

00:39:08.339 --> 00:39:11.200

control and manipulation.

00:39:11.260 --> 00:39:13.080

When someone says one thing,

00:39:13.120 --> 00:39:14.301

but they mean another thing.

00:39:15.237 --> 00:39:16.918

Because it leaves it open for debate.

00:39:17.138 --> 00:39:18.039

It leaves it open for

00:39:18.079 --> 00:39:19.100

faithful members to say,

00:39:19.280 --> 00:39:20.201

that's not what he meant

00:39:20.241 --> 00:39:21.001

when he said that.

00:39:21.656 --> 00:39:23.698

It's infuriating because

00:39:25.079 --> 00:39:26.940

having lived with

00:39:27.480 --> 00:39:29.822

narcissism my entire life,

00:39:30.743 --> 00:39:32.644

having healed from narcissistic abuse,

00:39:32.684 --> 00:39:35.927

having healed from coercive

00:39:35.967 --> 00:39:37.328

control situations,

00:39:37.873 --> 00:39:39.034

and in controlling and

00:39:39.054 --> 00:39:40.395

manipulative relationships.

00:39:41.416 --> 00:39:43.897

I can't unsee it.

00:39:44.077 --> 00:39:45.398

I have a hair trigger for it.

00:39:45.558 --> 00:39:47.280

I recognize it everywhere.

00:39:47.396 --> 00:39:48.388

people's words and

00:39:48.508 --> 00:39:49.549

actions don't match,

00:39:49.649 --> 00:39:51.010

it is a huge red flag.

00:39:51.850 --> 00:39:53.372

The words of this church

00:39:53.412 --> 00:39:55.053

leader do not match the

00:39:55.173 --> 00:39:57.154

actions that he has taken,

00:39:57.314 --> 00:39:59.116

along with the other church leaders,

00:39:59.616 --> 00:40:02.238

to marginalize the LGBTQ community.

00:40:04.304 --> 00:40:05.404

The next episode that I'm

00:40:05.464 --> 00:40:07.565

doing is to talk about the

00:40:07.605 --> 00:40:08.945

new transgender policy.

00:40:09.485 --> 00:40:10.546

So if you don't see it yet

00:40:10.586 --> 00:40:11.386

or you don't quite know

00:40:11.406 --> 00:40:12.426

what I'm talking about,

00:40:12.546 --> 00:40:13.426

you're welcome to go look

00:40:13.446 --> 00:40:14.587

it up on the church website

00:40:14.607 --> 00:40:15.627

in the church newsroom.

00:40:16.267 --> 00:40:18.328

It's a little confusing to understand,

00:40:18.368 --> 00:40:19.428

so I'm going to try to help

00:40:19.628 --> 00:40:20.648

decipher it for you.

00:40:21.009 --> 00:40:21.729

But this is one of the

00:40:21.769 --> 00:40:23.649

places where the leadership

00:40:23.689 --> 00:40:25.250

of this church have made a

00:40:25.310 --> 00:40:27.570

deliberate decision to be

00:40:27.650 --> 00:40:30.271

vague in their commentary about

00:40:30.974 --> 00:40:32.995

And to use attorneys to

00:40:33.035 --> 00:40:35.235

create policies to avoid

00:40:35.275 --> 00:40:36.835

them getting into legal trouble.

00:40:37.376 --> 00:40:39.216

Because they're a religion,

00:40:39.416 --> 00:40:40.896

so they get to claim

00:40:41.136 --> 00:40:42.617

religious belief anytime

00:40:42.637 --> 00:40:45.237

that their policies come up against,

00:40:46.098 --> 00:40:46.738

let's say,

00:40:48.754 --> 00:40:50.254

laws against discrimination and

00:40:50.294 --> 00:40:50.955

things like that.

00:40:51.355 --> 00:40:52.675

So they are very careful

00:40:52.835 --> 00:40:56.076

about the way that they word things.

00:40:56.196 --> 00:40:57.056

It's insidious.

00:40:58.951 --> 00:40:59.672

It's harmful.

00:41:00.472 --> 00:41:01.393

And what comes from an

00:41:01.513 --> 00:41:04.815

institution that is largely

00:41:04.855 --> 00:41:05.816

well-respected,

00:41:07.117 --> 00:41:08.598

certainly among its own people,

00:41:08.978 --> 00:41:10.959

but also in the global community,

00:41:11.099 --> 00:41:12.701

a lot of people see the LDS

00:41:12.741 --> 00:41:14.582

Church as a good organization,

00:41:16.943 --> 00:41:18.685

as a beneficial organization.

00:41:19.845 --> 00:41:21.126

They're not seeing these

00:41:21.166 --> 00:41:22.347

manipulative behaviors.

00:41:22.487 --> 00:41:23.688

And this is what I want to

00:41:23.728 --> 00:41:24.749

help people understand.

00:41:25.976 --> 00:41:27.877

I am committed to teaching

00:41:27.897 --> 00:41:29.358

people how to recognize

00:41:29.458 --> 00:41:30.859

manipulative behaviors and

00:41:30.919 --> 00:41:33.260

how to develop the skills

00:41:33.380 --> 00:41:35.261

to protect against those behaviors.

00:41:35.801 --> 00:41:38.282

I was in this church for over forty years.

00:41:38.582 --> 00:41:40.063

I bought every single word

00:41:40.083 --> 00:41:41.344

that was said from the pulpit.

00:41:42.486 --> 00:41:43.667

even though I disagreed with

00:41:43.707 --> 00:41:44.308

some of the things

00:41:44.348 --> 00:41:45.709

sometimes always in the

00:41:45.749 --> 00:41:47.651

back of my mind was that indoctrination,

00:41:47.991 --> 00:41:49.612

that these men are prophets

00:41:49.653 --> 00:41:51.694

of God and that I can trust

00:41:51.734 --> 00:41:52.695

them and that they're not

00:41:52.735 --> 00:41:53.676

going to lead me astray.

00:41:54.096 --> 00:41:55.578

And so any doubts that I had,

00:41:55.718 --> 00:41:57.139

I explained away by saying

00:41:57.600 --> 00:41:58.941

that God is never going to

00:41:58.981 --> 00:42:01.263

let his prophet lead his people astray.

00:42:01.763 --> 00:42:03.285

I never once stopped to

00:42:03.325 --> 00:42:06.848

consider that the possibility of,

00:42:07.048 --> 00:42:09.069

that these men were imposing

00:42:09.089 --> 00:42:11.050

their own agenda on the

00:42:11.090 --> 00:42:12.391

policies of the church.

00:42:13.112 --> 00:42:14.753

The thought never entered my mind.

00:42:15.133 --> 00:42:16.574

But now that I'm out of the church,

00:42:17.014 --> 00:42:18.595

and I can finally accept

00:42:18.635 --> 00:42:21.296

the reality that these men are just that,

00:42:21.656 --> 00:42:23.958

men who have their own ideas,

00:42:23.978 --> 00:42:25.158

their own thoughts and opinions,

00:42:25.178 --> 00:42:27.580

their own biases, their own prejudices,

00:42:28.240 --> 00:42:29.561

they're going to impose all

00:42:29.601 --> 00:42:31.402

of those things whenever

00:42:31.442 --> 00:42:32.843

they make rules about the church.

00:42:36.883 --> 00:42:38.524

the Mormon church teaches us

00:42:38.624 --> 00:42:40.406

that anytime we have a good feeling,

00:42:40.506 --> 00:42:41.387

it comes from God.

00:42:41.507 --> 00:42:43.028

And anytime we have a bad feeling,

00:42:43.148 --> 00:42:44.129

it comes from the devil.

00:42:44.609 --> 00:42:45.430

So these men,

00:42:45.970 --> 00:42:47.011

when they think about

00:42:47.492 --> 00:42:50.354

imposing restrictions on LGBTQ membership,

00:42:51.028 --> 00:42:51.749

and when they say that

00:42:51.769 --> 00:42:53.370

they're okay with denying

00:42:53.390 --> 00:42:55.171

blessings to people who are

00:42:55.632 --> 00:42:58.194

legally married and keeping

00:42:58.234 --> 00:42:59.375

the law of chastity, like,

00:43:05.033 --> 00:43:06.533

A gay couple who is legally

00:43:06.573 --> 00:43:07.374

married and they're

00:43:07.414 --> 00:43:08.574

faithful in their marriage

00:43:08.654 --> 00:43:09.414

should be able to

00:43:09.474 --> 00:43:10.735

experience all of the other

00:43:10.775 --> 00:43:13.215

blessings that other members experience.

00:43:13.555 --> 00:43:15.056

But when these men put these

00:43:15.096 --> 00:43:16.316

policies into place,

00:43:16.716 --> 00:43:18.017

it just shows us that it's

00:43:18.057 --> 00:43:19.697

their own confirmation bias.

00:43:20.117 --> 00:43:20.877

And this is one of the

00:43:20.917 --> 00:43:22.378

rabbit holes that sent me

00:43:23.578 --> 00:43:24.799

finding out information

00:43:24.919 --> 00:43:26.594

about the church that was so harmful.

00:43:27.006 --> 00:43:28.107

I believed that the brethren

00:43:28.367 --> 00:43:30.208

got it wrong about denying

00:43:30.388 --> 00:43:31.308

priesthood blessings and

00:43:31.348 --> 00:43:34.390

temple blessings to black people.

00:43:34.410 --> 00:43:35.290

They changed their mind in .

00:43:35.410 --> 00:43:38.532

I believe that now they're

00:43:38.552 --> 00:43:39.612

getting it wrong about the

00:43:39.672 --> 00:43:40.913

LGBTQ community.

00:43:40.993 --> 00:43:42.053

And I believe that they will

00:43:42.073 --> 00:43:43.434

change their minds at some point,

00:43:43.814 --> 00:43:44.795

but how many years,

00:43:45.795 --> 00:43:47.516

how many more people have to suffer?

00:43:48.076 --> 00:43:49.437

How many more people will

00:43:49.477 --> 00:43:50.197

take their lives?

00:43:50.337 --> 00:43:52.258

How many more people will be

00:43:52.298 --> 00:43:53.259

estranged from family

00:43:53.279 --> 00:43:54.339

members and lose family

00:43:54.359 --> 00:43:55.500

relationships forever?

00:43:56.093 --> 00:43:57.893

because of these kinds of policies.

00:44:01.034 --> 00:44:01.814

Make no mistake,

00:44:01.914 --> 00:44:02.894

the Church of Jesus Christ

00:44:02.914 --> 00:44:04.275

of Latter-day Saints is not

00:44:04.535 --> 00:44:05.315

about families.

00:44:05.775 --> 00:44:06.915

They are not about keeping

00:44:06.955 --> 00:44:07.835

families together.

00:44:08.536 --> 00:44:10.516

They are about keeping LGBTQ

00:44:10.536 --> 00:44:12.316

family members away from

00:44:12.396 --> 00:44:13.537

faithful family members.

00:44:14.577 --> 00:44:16.197

They are about dividing

00:44:16.237 --> 00:44:17.637

families when those

00:44:17.657 --> 00:44:19.338

families don't agree with

00:44:19.358 --> 00:44:20.378

the policies of the church

00:44:20.598 --> 00:44:21.638

or when one of those family

00:44:21.678 --> 00:44:23.519

members is not adhering to

00:44:23.539 --> 00:44:25.219

the commandments as they set them forth.

00:44:25.869 --> 00:44:26.770

This church has made it

00:44:26.830 --> 00:44:30.173

clear that they don't want LGBTQ members.

00:44:30.814 --> 00:44:32.455

They want people who are

00:44:32.475 --> 00:44:34.096

going to conform to what

00:44:34.116 --> 00:44:35.117

they consider to be the

00:44:35.157 --> 00:44:36.098

standard because it's

00:44:36.118 --> 00:44:37.259

what's comfortable for them.

00:44:37.840 --> 00:44:39.181

They are making the policies

00:44:39.381 --> 00:44:40.302

that are going to continue

00:44:40.342 --> 00:44:41.403

to keep them in power.

00:44:41.703 --> 00:44:42.464

And I promise you,

00:44:42.744 --> 00:44:44.526

that's the only thing they care about.