In a speech during a twice-yearly
conference, a top leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints (LDS) suggested that same-sex attraction was a phase for some
children.
Dallin H. Oaks of the church's Quorum
of the Twelve Apostles made his comments on Saturday.
“Our walk demands that we not
compromise on commandments but show forth a full measure of
understanding and love. Our walk must be considerate of children who
are uncertain about their sexual orientation, but it discourages
premature labeling because in most children such uncertainty
decreases significantly over time,” Oaks is quoted as saying by the
AP. “Our walk opposes recruitment away from the covenant path, and
it denies support to any who lead people away from the Lord. In all
of this, we remember that God promises hope and ultimate joy and
blessings for all who keep his commandments.”
Oaks, a former Utah Supreme Court
Justice, earlier this week said that gender assigned at birth is
eternal. Oaks said that the church's family proclamation, issued 23
years ago, states that “the intended meaning of gender … is
biological sex at birth.”
“God created 'male and female'” and
this “binary creation is essential to the plan of salvation,” he
said, according to a statement released by the church.
Laurie Lee Hall, a transgender woman
and senior vice president of Affirmation, an LGBT support group for
LDS members, told The
Salt Lake Tribune that Oaks' statement made it “a dark day
for transgender Latter-day Saints.”
“It will send shock waves through our
transgender community,” Hall said. “They are going to be
traumatized and damaged by this statement.”