• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • About Towleroad
  • Towleroad on Social Media
  • Privacy Policy

Towleroad Gay News

Gay Blog Towleroad: More than gay news | gay men

  • Travel
  • Sports
  • Law/Justice
  • Celebrities
  • Republicans
  • Madonna
  • Books
  • Men
  • Trans Rights
  • Royals
  • Monkeypox
  • Sophia Bush’s girlfriend ‘proud’ the actress has opened up about coming out as queer
  • Mel B declares she’ll ‘always be open’ when it comes to her sexuality!
  • Megan Thee Stallion being sued for ‘forcing cameraman watch her having lesbian sex!’

Gays Cheered at Brigham Young University – Millennial Mormons are Increasingly Tolerant of Same-Sex Attraction

Taylor Petrey, The Conversation May 6, 2019 Leave a Comment

During a recent valedictorian graduation speech, student Matthew Easton came out saying he is “a gay son of God.” His admission was met with loud applause from the audience.

What makes this unusual is that Easton is a student at Brigham Young University, the flagship educational institution of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which forbids any form of same-sex intimacy.

What does this coming out as gay mean for the church and modern-day Mormonism?

Coming out at BYU

In recent times, coming out at BYU has been increasingly accepted, if not always cheered.

View this post on Instagram

I never planned on coming out as Cosmo the Cougar. I never dreamed I would one day have enough courage to come out publicly as gay. Today I did both in an article with Deseret News. I hope that by sharing some of my experience I can help start conversations that increase empathy and understanding between the LGBTQ community and members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Even more importantly, I wish to give hope to other people in my situation that may feel isolated and alone. Please check out the article and let me know what you think! Huge shout out to my teammates, coach, and BYU athletics for their love and support. I will forever bleed blue! 💙 (link in bio) #byu #gay #lds #lgbt #lgbtq #hope

A post shared by Charlie Bird (@birdmancharles13) on Feb 26, 2019 at 10:32am PST

Charlie Bird, who wore BYU's cougar mascot costume “Cosmo” from 2015 to 2018 and became the face of Brigham Young University, came out just a few months ago.

Last year one of BYU's official Instagram accounts was turned over to student Kyle Manwaring for one day, who talked about what it was like to be gay at BYU.

A student group at BYU, “Understanding Sexuality, Gender and Allyship,” has become a resource for many LGBTQ students there.

As a scholar of Mormonism and sexuality, I would argue that what made this possible was a change in the honor code in 2007.

The honor code at BYU since 2007 explicitly states: “Brigham Young University will respond to homosexual behavior rather than to feelings or attraction and welcomes as full members of the university community all whose behavior meets university standards….One's stated same-gender attraction is not an honor code issue.”

While still prohibiting homosexual “behavior,” this revised code is accepting of same-sex attraction.

Under this code, students could take on LGBTQ identities but not kiss, date or show other forms of physical intimacy that are allowed for straight members.

‘Don't say gay' policy

That the church has become accepting of LGBTQ labels needs to be seen in its historical context to understand how big a change this is from a previous era.

Historian Gregory Prince writes in his book “Gay Rights and the Mormon Church” that starting in the 1960s, LDS church leaders believed that homosexuality could be “cured” and that it had certain social and psychological causes.

By the 1970s, the gay rights movement was gaining a lot of ground nationally, and LDS leaders were afraid of its impact on the Mormon community.

Around this time, LDS church leaders came to believe that the use of the terms “gay,” “lesbian” and “homosexual” could contribute to same-sex sexual attractions. A 1981 church handbook advising local church leaders on how to counsel with young people advised: “Be careful not to label people ‘homosexual.' This both discourages them and tends to make them feel that they cannot solve their problems.”

These ideas held sway for a long time. In 1995, church leaders began to regularly speak in terms of a psychological condition that they called “same-gender attraction.” That was their alternative to the sociopolitical labels of “gay” and “lesbian.”

Change and resistance

Along with the BYU honor code change in 2007 came a better acceptance of Latter-day Saints identifying as gay, lesbian and queer. In fact, the church too uses these labels actively.

An official church website organized in 2012, MormonsandGays.org, and its update in 2016 MormonandGay.lds.org prominently featured Latter-day Saints who adopted these identities.

Not all church leaders, however, have welcomed these changes. In 2009, high-ranking church leader Bruce Hafen warned that “you feed the angry dog” of same-sex attraction when you “label yourself as gay.”

And in 2014, another top church leader, David A. Bednar, responded to a question about how to welcome homosexuals in the church, saying: “there are no homosexual members of the church.”

Mormon millennials and change

Even though same-sex erotic behavior is still forbidden at BYU, I argue that the cultural and policy shifts that allow for identifying as LGBTQ at BYU are important signals of larger shifts in Mormonism.

Scholar Jana Reiss' new book “The Next Mormons” documents that more than half of Mormon millennials support same-sex marriage.

A recent protest against the Brigham Young honor code has also called for changes to the way it treats LGBTQ students.

Indeed, LGBTQ BYU students still report alienation, loneliness and judgment. But, at the same time, the cheers for Matthew Easton's graduation speech show that a significant change is happening.The Conversation

Taylor Petrey, Associate Professor of Religion, Kalamazoo College

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Topics: Coming Out, Religion, towleroad More Posts About: Brigham Young University, BYU, Matthew Easton, Mormons

Related Posts
  • Religious Coalition Including Mormons Support New Bipartisan Arizona LGBTQ Anti-Discrimination Bill (Checks Calendar. Not April 1. )
  • BYU Bans Protests In Response to Rainbow School Logo; Clay Aiken Running For Congress Again; France Ends Gay Blood Ban: NEWS ROUNDUP
  • Tech Billionaire Resigns From Mormon Church, Donates $600,000 To LGBTQ Advocacy Organization
  • Mel B declares she’ll ‘always be open’ when it comes to her sexuality!

    Mel B declares she’ll ‘always be open’ when it comes to her sexuality!

    Published by BANG Showbiz English Mel B will “always be open” when it comes to her sexuality. The Spice Girls singer, 48, who reunited with her bandmates including the group's ex-singer Victoria Beckham for the fashion …Read More »
  • Megan Thee Stallion being sued for ‘forcing cameraman watch her having lesbian sex!’

    Megan Thee Stallion being sued for ‘forcing cameraman watch her having lesbian sex!’

    Published by BANG Showbiz English Megan Thee Stallion is being sued for allegedly creating a hostile work environment and forcing her cameraman to watch her having lesbian sex. The 29-year-old ‘Savage' rapper faces the salacious claims …Read More »
  • Mean Girls star Jonathan Bennett recalls the moment his life ‘changed forever’

    Mean Girls star Jonathan Bennett recalls the moment his life ‘changed forever’

    Published by BANG Showbiz English Jonathan Bennett's life was “changed forever” by his role in ‘Mean Girls'. The 42-year-old actor starred as heartthrob Aaron Samuels in the 2004 cult classic – which followed Lindsay Lohan, Rachel …Read More »
  • Sir Elton John sent Lance Bass gift basket to celebrate coming out

    Sir Elton John sent Lance Bass gift basket to celebrate coming out

    Published by BANG Showbiz English Sir Elton John sent Lance Bass a gift basket after he came out as gay. The 44-year-old NSYNC star revealed the legendary singer showed his support when Lance decided to reveal …Read More »
Previous Post: « Documents Shed Light on Pete Buttigieg’s Military Service
Next Post: 390 Prosecutors Sign Statement Saying Trump Would Be Indicted if He Weren’t President »

Primary Sidebar

Most Recent

  • Sophia Bush’s girlfriend ‘proud’ the actress has opened up about coming out as queer

    Sophia Bush’s girlfriend ‘proud’ the actress has opened up about coming out as queer

  • Mel B declares she’ll ‘always be open’ when it comes to her sexuality!

    Mel B declares she’ll ‘always be open’ when it comes to her sexuality!

  • Megan Thee Stallion being sued for ‘forcing cameraman watch her having lesbian sex!’

    Megan Thee Stallion being sued for ‘forcing cameraman watch her having lesbian sex!’

  • Mean Girls star Jonathan Bennett recalls the moment his life ‘changed forever’

    Mean Girls star Jonathan Bennett recalls the moment his life ‘changed forever’

  • Sir Elton John sent Lance Bass gift basket to celebrate coming out

    Sir Elton John sent Lance Bass gift basket to celebrate coming out

  • Relationship status influences heterosexual women’s sexual prejudice towards lesbians

    Relationship status influences heterosexual women’s sexual prejudice towards lesbians

  • JoJo Siwa had a challenge transitioning to new grown-up image

    JoJo Siwa had a challenge transitioning to new grown-up image

  • Liz Hurley defends lesbian sex scene in new movie that was directed by her son

    Liz Hurley defends lesbian sex scene in new movie that was directed by her son

Partner Links

  • OMG, WATCH: Google’s Veo 3 turns the “Distracted Boyfriend” meme to life in new AI video
    Google‘s Veo 3 has summoned the fires of Hell, wasted oceans-full […]
  • Two-time Tony winner Donna Murphy publicly support LuPone-bashed Audra McDonald and Kecia Lewis
    I’m a tremendous Patti LuPone fan as readers of this blog […]
  • On the Rag, Vol. 859
     This week's rag 'n' mag roundup features Vlad Parker, Ashley Parker, David […]
  • OMG, WATCH: Charli xcx wants a Final Destination series with ‘It Girls’
    @charlixcx just a thought.. ♬ original sound – Charli XCX Charli […]
  • OMG, new music: Lorde releases video for ‘Man Of The Year’
    The second single from the forthcoming album is “an offering from […]

Most Commented

Social

Twitter @tlrd | Facebook | Instagram @tlrd

About

  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • About Towleroad
  • Towleroad on Social Media
  • Privacy Policy
[towleroadmr] [towleroadtn]

Footer

Ptown Hacks 2018

Read

  • Travel
  • Film
  • Law – LGBT Rights
  • Columns
  • Specials

About

  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • About Towleroad
  • Towleroad on Social Media
  • Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2025 · Log in

×
×