From A Mormon Who Supports Gay Marriage

In the past few months, gay marriage has become a hot topic. Proposition 8 in California has been a highly contested issue. As I'm sure most people know, Mormons have also been in the news lately. Most of this publicity has been related to the church's stance/actions for passing Proposition 8. While the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints does not typically get involved in politics, it did in California. The LDS church advocates democracy and does not espouse itself with any political party or candidate. It does, however, reserve the right to speak out on political issues it deems important. Gay marriage is apparently a very important issue. Church members in California were urged to donate their resources, money and time to an organization dedicated to passing Prop 8. Church leaders called their members forward urging action. Members responded. A NYT article titled, Mormons Tipped Scale in Ban on Gay Marriage, provided enough details to make obvious how strongly Mormons felt about this issue. In the end, Proposition 8 passed, ammending the Constitution to state that marriage should be between a man and a woman. This is what church leaders hoped for. I am a Mormon. Right now, I am a Mormon ashamed of my church. I realize that I am in the minority. I realize that there aren't many other members of my church who believe that marriage is not something that should only be afforded to heterosexual couples, but rather to all couples, same-sex or not. It is NOT MY RIGHT, nor anybody elses, to tell two women, both adults and in a consenting relationship, that they cannot get married. That is NOT UP TO ME. I would like to say, though, that "before it accepted the invitation to join broad-based coalitions for the amendments, the Church knew that some of its members would choose not to support its position" (from an official News Release put out by the LDS church). I may be in the minority, but that is my right. Members who disagree will not be excommunicated, etc. There are other people with whom I attend church here in Madison, who share my opinions on gay marriage. So I'm not the only one. We have discussed and dissected this issue until we were blue in the face. I have contemplated leaving the church, banning my children from attending. I have thought that maybe I'd just keep trucking along, hoping (blindly) that this would someday work out. What I've come to realize, though, is that if I stop going to church, if I stop my children from going, I will take away a tiny piece of diversity and difference that my views/my family provide to our church. I love the church. I love the foundation it gives my life, the hope it provides me for this life and the next. But I will not allow myself to hide in a corner. I may be one of the only ones, but I will share my views. I will speak out and advocate for gay rights, for what I believe is right. I will teach my children these same things. When I stand before my two aunts who are lesbian, my friends who are gay, I will not be ashamed. But I will tell them that there ARE Mormons who support them. I am one of them, and I am not afraid to say it out loud. I know that this is an issue that brings up deep emotions on both sides. These are my beliefs. I am entitled to them, just like those who disagree with me are entitled to theirs. Nobody should be punished or persecuted for speaking their mind, no matter which side of the issue they fall on. I welcome comments, but I ask for respect--please remember that we all feel strongly about this. I hope that friendship can rise above disagreement and that love and respect will prevail.