The eleventh article of faith reads:
We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.If we are to allow others to worship according to the dictates of their own conscience and standards then shouldn't we allow them to have their life, liberty and pursuit of happiness according to the dictates of their own conscience and standards rather than holding them to our standards rather than our own?
- "The very purpose of religion is to control yourself, not to criticize others. Rather, we must criticize ourselves. How much am I doing about my anger? About my attachment, about my hatred, about my pride, my jealousy? These are the things which we must check in daily life."
I agree with this quote from the Dalai Lama. The purpose of our faith is to control ourselves it is not to control or criticize others.Criticizing other families that are different from your own, families that are foreign to you does not make them counterfeit. It only makes them different or even foreign.It is repugnant to me to degrade others in such a way. Because to call what we all hold so dear, our families, counterfeit is saying that these families do not count. It is saying they are not good enough for you or our church. It is the reason LGBT members of our church are committing suicide at such an astonishing rate.Because these members most of all are being told they don't count unless they fit the mold, unless they meet our status quo. And they can't fit in, maybe because they were born to stand out. But these talks and points make all of us with gay family members and friends feel that we don't matter. That our families don't count. That our families aren't good enough.I have another quote I would like to share because it echoes my own experiences from childhood on.“I'm a supporter of gay rights. And not a closet supporter either. From the time I was a kid, I have never been able to understand attacks upon the gay community. There are so many qualities that make up a human being... by the time I get through with all the things that I really admire about people, what they do with their private parts is probably so low on the list that it is irrelevant.” -Paul NewmanI guess what bothers me most is the fear, the shaming and the vitriol against those who are different, those whose beliefs, faith, lifestyles and families are so different that they are foreign to so many others being told they and their families are counterfeit.But anything counterfeit has a different maker than what is genuine. So who made all these LGBT people and families that are supposedly counterfeit?Because as I see it God made us all and none of us are truly counterfeit. All of us matter, all of us are beautiful in Gods eyes. All of us count.God created us all so who can call His creation counterfeit? Who can belittle and dismiss any of His children? A family being different or foreign is not sufficient to prove they are fake.What makes a family a family? From all the families I have been a part of I have to say that love, sacrifice and commitment are what truly make the bond of families hold true. And name calling does not diminish those families, it dismisses the accusers and shows them to be foolish and hateful.I wish we could include all rather than exclude so many. I wish we could love one another as He loves us. I wish we could pay due respect to children of God whom He loves that some demean and call counterfeit. I wish we could all see that we were are created in His image.That's the thing; those who are attacking have made God in their image so that their God hates who they hate. And they feel that their God hates those who are different and considers them counterfeit.Controlling oneself refines and purifies us. Controlling others or seeking to by coercion leads to tyranny.Counterfeit love is not about being gay, it's about making your "love" conditional. Because love based on conditions is not the love Christ has for us.
