The LDS Church is calling on Mormons to get involved in the debate
surrounding a proposal to legalize gay marriage in Hawaii.
According to The
Salt Lake Tribune, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints told congregations in a letter dated September 15 to “study
this legislation prayerfully and then as private citizens contact
your elected representatives in the Hawaii Legislature to express
your views about the legislation.”
LDS leaders said that members should first study the church's The
Family: A Proclamation to the World, which strongly suggests that
allowing gay and lesbian couples to marry will lead to the end of
civilization.
“The family is ordained by God,” the document states.
“Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan.
Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to
be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with
completely fidelity.”
“We warn that the disintegration of the family will bring upon
individuals, communities and nations the calamities foretold by
ancient and modern prophets.”
The letter, read to congregations across Hawaii, asked members to
push for “a stronger exemption for people and organizations of
faith” that would protect individuals, businesses and groups “from
being required to support or perform same-sex marriages or from
having to host same-sex marriages or celebrations in their
facilities; and protect individuals and small businesses from being
required to assist in promoting or celebrating same-sex marriages.”
(Related: Hawaii
could legalize gay marriage by November 1.)
In 2008, the church was heavily involved in passage of Proposition
8, California's now-defunct gay marriage ban, raising millions of
dollars through volunteers for the “Yes on 8” campaign. Gay
rights activists reacted by staging large demonstrations outside
Mormon temples in California and Utah.
Hawaii has the highest concentration of Latter-day Saints of
states that do not border Utah.