September 15, 2020

Hi, I’m Jill

Posted 6 years ago Tagged Allies Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Homophobia Kindness LoveBetter

Hi, I’m Jill Mortensen. I’ve been sitting on this post for a while now, not knowing how to appropriately express the full emotional impact of this incident. It shook me to my core. But, because I have personally seen and … Read the rest here

Latter Gay Stories

Real Stories. Real Talk. Real People
IN or OUT of Mormonism.

Latter Gay Stories

9 hours ago

We’ve all heard of FOMO—the fear of missing out. It’s that dinner with friends, the girls’ trip, the concert in the park. We convince ourselves that if we don’t go, everyone else is going to make memories without us, and somehow we’ll be the only one left out.

Somewhere along the way, though, I discovered JOMO: the joy of missing out.

Turns out there are quite a few things I enjoy missing. Family dinners where homophobic Uncle Hal is feeling especially inspired. Church lessons that assume every happy ending includes a husband, a wife, and 6.5 children. Family group texts that start with vacation plans and somehow end with a conference talk.

The older I get, the less interested I am in showing up out of obligation. If something continually leaves me feeling smaller, drained, or like I have to pretend to be someone else, I’m perfectly happy to let it happen without me. JOMO.

Missing out isn’t always a loss, it’s exactly where the joy is.

Try some JOMO today. You’ll love it. ❤️ ... See MoreSee Less

View on Facebook

Latter Gay Stories

1 day ago

Jacinda Ardern was 25 years old, raised in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the small farming town of Morrinsville, New Zealand, when she found herself living in an Auckland flat with three gay men. She continued attending the Mormon church, but the contrast between the faith she had grown up in and the people she cared about became increasingly difficult to reconcile.

Years later, Ardern said she realized she was “either doing a disservice to the church or my friends,” because she could not reconcile a religion that did not fully accept LGBTQ people with the kindness and humanity she saw in those closest to her. In 2005, she left the LDS Church and has identified as agnostic ever since. Although she has spoken positively about the values of service she learned growing up Mormon, she has said the Church’s teachings on LGBTQ people ultimately became impossible for her to accept.

Ardern became New Zealand’s prime minister and many of the policies that defined her government reflected the convictions she says were shaped during that period of her life.

In 2018, Ardern became the first sitting New Zealand prime minister to participate in Auckland’s Pride Parade, cutting the ceremonial ribbon to open the event.

Her government later passed the Conversion Practices Prohibition Legislation Act, banning conversion practices. The law created criminal penalties of up to five years in prison when conversion practices cause serious harm. Parliament approved the measure by a vote of 112-8, with every vote against coming from members of the ACT Party.

Her government also enacted changes to New Zealand’s Births, Deaths, Marriages, and Relationships Registration Act, allowing transgender and non-binary New Zealanders born in the country to update the sex marker on their birth certificate through a statutory declaration rather than a Family Court process. The legislation passed Parliament unanimously without a single vote in opposition.

Despite leaving the LDS Church more than two decades ago, Ardern has not described her departure as the result of a dispute with Church leaders, and while serving as prime minister she met cordially with former Church President Russell M. Nelson during his 2019 visit to New Zealand.

Arden has consistently described her decisions as a matter of conscience, saying she could no longer reconcile the Church’s position on LGBTQ people with her own beliefs. ... See MoreSee Less

View on Facebook

Latter Gay Stories

2 days ago

If you have to call a core part of someone "the sin" before telling them you love them, don't be so shocked when they don't experience that as love. ... See MoreSee Less

View on Facebook

Hi, I’m Jill

Latter Gay Stories

Featured In:

Resources