In his speech Saturday at The Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' 188th Semiannual
General Conference, Dallin H. Oaks called on the faithful to oppose
same-sex marriage and transgender rights.
Oaks, first counselor in the governing
First Presidency of the Mormon Church, said that such topics are in
conflict with eternal truths.
“Our knowledge of God's revealed plan
of salvation requires us to oppose many of the current social and
legal pressures to retreat from traditional marriage,” Oaks said,
“or to make changes that confuse or alter gender or homogenize the
difference between men and women.”
Oaks, 86, asserted that “gender is
eternal” and that God's plan requires opposition to gay and lesbian
relationships, gender transition, abortion and euthanasia.
“Our positions on these fundamentals
frequently provoke opposition to the church,” he added, according
to The
Salt Lake Tribune. “We consider that inevitable.
Opposition is part of the plan. And Satan's most strenuous
opposition is directed at whatever is most important to God's plan.”
The Mormon Church has long opposed
marriage equality. It helped fund campaigns to prohibit its
recognition in several states, including California and Hawaii.
The church's “November policy,”
released in November, 2015 following the Supreme Court's landmark
Obergefell ruling striking down state marriage bans, states
that gay married Mormons are considered apostates, which could lead
to excommunication. Additionally, the children of parents in gay or
lesbian relationships, married or cohabiting, cannot join the Mormon
Church until they turn 18 and then only if they are no longer living
with their parents, disavow same-sex relationships and receive
approval from the church's highest leaders.
(Related: Elder
D. Todd Christofferson: Gay marriage not a right that exists in the
Mormon Church.)