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Do not fill this in! ====LGBTQ+ individuals==== {{see also|Homosexuality and the LDS church|Gender minorities and the LDS church|Sexual orientation change efforts and the LDS Church|LGBT rights and the LDS church|LGBT Mormon suicides}} [[File:Prop8templeProtest.jpg|thumb|right|Protesters in front of the [[Newport Beach California Temple]] voicing their opposition to the church's support of [[California Proposition 8 (2008)|Prop 8]]]] The [[Homosexuality and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints|church's policies and treatment of sexual minorities]] and [[Gender minorities and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints|gender minorities]] have long been the subject of external criticism,<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Browning |first=Bill |date=December 21, 2021 |title=Utah billionaire leaves Mormon church with blistering accusation it is actively harming the world |url=https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2021/12/utah-billionaire-leaves-mormon-church-blistering-accusation-actively-harming-world/ |url-status=live |magazine=[[LGBTQ Nation]] |location=[[San Francisco]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211221140543/https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2021/12/utah-billionaire-leaves-mormon-church-blistering-accusation-actively-harming-world/ |archive-date=December 21, 2021 |access-date=December 25, 2021}}</ref><ref name="archive.sltrib.com">{{cite news|last1=Winters|first1=Rosemary|title=Mormon apostle's words about gays spark protest|url=http://archive.sltrib.com/story.php?ref=/sltrib/home/50434583-76/gay-church-packer-protest.html.csp|access-date=November 16, 2016|newspaper=[[The Salt Lake Tribune]]|date=October 19, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Bailey |first1=Sarah Pulliam |author-link1=Sarah Pulliam Bailey |title=Mormon Church to exclude children of same-sex couples from getting blessed and baptized until they are 18 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2015/11/05/mormon-church-to-exclude-children-of-same-sex-couples-from-getting-blessed-and-baptized-until-they-are-18/ |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151117084237/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2015/11/05/mormon-church-to-exclude-children-of-same-sex-couples-from-getting-blessed-and-baptized-until-they-are-18/ |archive-date=November 17, 2015 |access-date=November 12, 2016 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=November 11, 2016}}{{cbignore}}</ref> as well as internal controversy and disaffection by members.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Murphy |first1=Caryle |author-link1=Caryle Murphy |title=Most U.S. Christian groups grow more accepting of homosexuality |url=http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/12/18/most-u-s-christian-groups-grow-more-accepting-of-homosexuality/|publisher=[[Pew Research Center]] |access-date=March 12, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Levin|first1=Sam|title='I'm not a Mormon': fresh 'mass resignation' over anti-LGBT beliefs|journal=[[The Guardian]] |date=August 15, 2016|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/aug/15/mormon-church-lgbt-mass-resignation-protest-utah|access-date=December 11, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Hatch|first1=Heidi|title=Millennial Mormons leaving faith at higher rate than previous generations|url=http://kutv.com/news/local/millennial-mormons-leaving-faith-more-than-previous-generations-are-more-republican|work=[[KUTV]]|publisher=[[CBS Television]] |date=April 13, 2016}}</ref> Because of its ban against same-sex sexual activity and same-sex marriage, the LDS church taught for decades that any adherents attracted to the same sex could and should change that through [[sexual orientation change efforts]] and righteous striving.<ref name="Gay Rights">{{cite book |last1=Prince |first1=Gregory A. |author-link=Gregory Prince|title=Gay Rights and the Mormon Church: Intended Actions, Unintended Consequences |date=2019 |publisher=[[University of Utah Press]] |location=Salt Lake City |isbn=978-1-60781-663-8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XfnQuQEACAAJ |via= [[Google Books]]}}</ref>{{rp|25–30, 89–101 |via=[[Google Books]]}} The church provided therapy and programs for attempting to change sexual orientation.<ref>{{cite journal|last1= Galliher|first1=Renee |last2=Bradshaw|first2=William |last3=Hyde|first3=Daniel| last4=Dehlin|first4=John| last5=Crowell|first5=Katherine|title=Sexual orientation change efforts among current or former LDS church members|journal=[[Journal of Counseling Psychology]]|date=April 2015|volume=62|issue=2|pages=95–105|doi=10.1037/cou0000011|pmid=24635593|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/260873307 |via=[[ResearchGate]]}}</ref> Current teachings and policies leave homosexual members with the options of: attempts to change their sexual orientation, entering a [[Mixed-orientation marriage|mixed-orientation opposite-sex marriage]], or lifelong [[celibacy]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Fish |first1=Jessica N. |last2=Russell |first2=Stephen T. |title=Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Change Efforts are Unethical and Harmful |journal=[[American Journal of Public Health]] |date=Aug 2020 |volume=110 |issue=8 |pages=1113–1114 |doi=10.2105/AJPH.2020.305765 |pmid=32639919 |pmc=7349462 |quote=With substantial evidence of serious harms associated with exposure to [sexual orientation and gender identity change efforts (SOGICE)] particularly for minors, 21 states (and multiple cities and counties) have passed bipartisan laws or regulations prohibiting SOGICE. ... Furthermore, compared with LGBTQ youths with no exposure, those exposed to SOGICE showed 1.76 times greater odds of seriously considering suicide, 2.23 times greater odds of having attempted suicide, and 2.54 times greater odds of multiple suicide attempts in the previous year.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Phillips|first1=Rick|title=Conservative Christian Identity & Same-Sex Orientation: The Case of Gay Mormons|date=2005|publisher=[[Peter Lang Publishing]]|location=Frankfurt, Germany| isbn=978-0-8204-7480-9 |url= https://www.researchgate.net/publication/269701629 |access-date=May 31, 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170418092803/https://www.uvu.edu/religiousstudies/docs/msc_philips_conservative.pdf|archive-date=April 18, 2017|page=11}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Cook|first1=Bryce|title=What Do We Know of God's Will for His LGBT Children? An Examination of the LDS Church's Current Position on Homosexuality|journal=[[Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought|Dialogue]] |date=Summer 2017|volume=50|issue=2 |doi=10.5406/dialjmormthou.50.2.0001| s2cid=190443414|doi-access=free}}</ref>{{rp|20–21}} Some have argued that church teachings against homosexuality and the treatment of LGBT members by other adherents and leaders have contributed to their elevated rates of [[Post-traumatic stress disorder|PTSD]] and [[Major depressive disorder|depression]],<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Galliher|first1=Renee|last2=Bradshaw| first2=William|last3=Dehlin |first3=John|last4=Crowelle|first4=Katherine|title=Psychosocial Correlates of Religious Approaches to Same-Sex Attraction: A Mormon Perspective|journal=[[Journal of Gay & Lesbian Mental Health]]|pages=301, 304 |date=April 25, 2014|volume=18|issue=3|doi= 10.1080/19359705.2014.912970|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/273248065|s2cid=144153586|quote=The major findings from the study are that non-biologically based views regarding the etiology of SSA [same-sex attraction], remaining active in the LDS Church, remaining single, and engaging in mixed-orientation marriages were all associated with higher reported levels of internalized homophobia, sexual identity distress, and depression, and lower levels of self-esteem and quality of life. ... This study does affirm and extend the existing literature by suggesting that psychosocially based beliefs about SSA etiology active participation in non-LGBT-affirming churches, being single and celibate, and mixed-orientation marriage—all of which are common beliefs and/or practices within modern, active LDS culture—are associated with poorer psychosocial health, well-being, and quality of life for LGBT Mormons. Conversely, biological beliefs about SSA etiology, complete disaffiliation from the LDS Church, legal same-sex marriage, and sexual activity are all associated with higher levels of psychosocial health, well-being, and quality of life for LGBT Mormons.|via=[[ResearchGate]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Simmons |first1=Brian |title=Coming out Mormon: An examination of religious orientation, spiritual trauma, and PTSD among Mormon and ex-Mormon LGBTQQA adults |journal=University of Georgia Theses and Dissertations |date=December 2017 |page=99 |url=https://getd.libs.uga.edu/pdfs/simmons_brian_w_201712_phd.pdf| publisher=[[University of Georgia]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Williams |first1=Brian |title=Coming out Mormon |url=https://athenaeum.libs.uga.edu/handle/10724/38227 |website=uga.edu |publisher=[[University of Georgia]] |date=December 2017}}</ref> as well as suicide and teen homelessness.<ref name="Gay Rights"/>{{rp|4, 288–301}}<ref>{{cite news|last1=Fletcher Stack|first1=Peggy |author-link=Peggy Fletcher Stack |title=Suicide fears, if not actual suicides, rise in wake of Mormon same-sex policy|url=http://www.sltrib.com/news/lds/3473487-155/suicide-fears-if-not-actual-suicides|access-date=November 29, 2016|newspaper=[[The Salt Lake Tribune]]|date=January 28, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Greene |first1=David |author-link1=David Greene (journalist) |title=Mama Dragons Try To Prevent Suicides Among Mormon-LGBT Children |url= https://www.npr.org/2016/07/07/485058737/mama-dragons-try-to-prevent-suicides-among-mormon-lgbt-children |access-date=November 29, 2016 |publisher=[[NPR]] |date=July 7, 2016}}</ref> The church's decades-long, political involvement opposing US same-sex marriage laws has further garnered criticism and protests.<ref name="Gay Rights"/>{{rp|2–3, 162–163}}<ref>{{cite news|last1=Bates|first1=Karen Grigsby|title=Gay-Marriage Ban Protesters Target Mormon Church|url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=96756702|publisher=[[NPR]]|date=November 7, 2008}}</ref> Baptismal candidates considering gender-affirming surgery are not allowed to be baptized, and those who have already had one need special clearance from the [[First Presidency]] through the local full-time [[mission president]] before baptism.<ref name=Regulation>{{cite journal |last1=Gedicks |first1=Frederick Mark |author-link1=Frederick Gedicks |title=Church Discipline and the Regulation of Membership in the Mormon Church |journal=Ecclesiastical Law Journal |date=July 31, 2008 |volume=7 |issue=32 |page=43 |doi=10.1017/S0956618X00004920 |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |s2cid=143228475 |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/ecclesiastical-law-journal/article/abs/church-discipline-and-the-regulation-of-membership-in-the-mormon-church/4402CB9CD8D94750B2EC6D52BB03403A}}</ref><ref name="Handbook 2010">{{cite book|title=Handbook 1: Stake Presidents and Bishops|date=2010|publisher=LDS Church|location=Salt Lake City, Utah| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171115192147/https://www.lds.org/manual/handbook-1-stake-presidents-and-bishops/ordinance-and-blessing-policies/ordinance-and-blessing-policies?lang=eng| archive-date=November 15, 2017 |url=https://www.lds.org/manual/handbook-1-stake-presidents-and-bishops/ordinance-and-blessing-policies/ordinance-and-blessing-policies?lang=eng |quote=The mission president must conduct an interview and receive authorization from the First Presidency before a prospective convert may be baptized and confirmed if the person ... Has undergone an elective transsexual operation. ... A person who is considering an elective transsexual operation may not be baptized or confirmed. ... However, [persons who have already undergone an elective transsexual operation] may not receive the priesthood or a temple recommend.}}</ref>{{rp|145}} Undergoing a "trans-sexual {{sic}} operation," including [[gender-affirming surgery]] like chest surgery (i.e. [[Sex reassignment surgery (female-to-male)|top surgery]])<ref>{{cite web|title=The Trans Mormon Who Won't Let His Church Excommunicate Him|url=https://broadly.vice.com/en_us/article/xwvd3w/the-trans-mormon-who-wont-let-his-church-excommunicate-him|website=Vice.com |publisher=[[Vice Media]]| location=New York City|date=December 7, 2017|quote=Broadly follows Claren as he risks complete excommunication from the Mormon Church for undergoing breast removal surgery ....}}</ref> may imperil the membership of a current church member.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Allen|first1=Samantha|title=Mormon Man Risks Excommunication By Sharing His Transition|url=http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/03/16/mormon-man-risks-excommunication-by-sharing-his-transition.html|access-date=December 9, 2016|website=[[The Daily Beast]]|date=March 15, 2016}}</ref><ref name="Guardian">{{cite news|last1=Levin|first1=Sam|title=Transgender and Mormon: keeping the faith while asking the church to change|journal=[[The Guardian]]|date=March 28, 2016|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/mar/28/transgender-mormon-lgbt-rights-emmett-claren|access-date=December 9, 2016 |location=London}}</ref> Ordinances after baptism such as receiving the priesthood and [[Endowment (Mormonism)|temple endowments]] are only done according to birth sex.<ref name=Publishes>{{cite news|title=LDS Church publishes new handbook with changes to discipline, transgender policy|url=https://www.sltrib.com/religion/2020/02/19/lds-church-puts-new/|newspaper=[[The Salt Lake Tribune]]| location=Salt Lake City|date=February 19, 2020|author1-last=Fletcher Stack|author1-first=Peggy |author1-link=Peggy Fletcher Stack |author2-last=Noyce|author2-first=David}}</ref> Members that gender express through clothing or a pronoun change differing from the sex assigned at their birth will receive membership restrictions and a notation on their membership records.<ref name=Publishes/> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. 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