Sexuality has an important role in Mormonism theology. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) teaches that gender is defined in premortal life, and part of the purpose of mortality is that men and women are sealed together, forming a bond that enables them to move forward. forever together in the afterlife. It also teaches that sexual intercourse within same-sex marriage is healthy, necessary, and ordained by God. In contrast to some orthodox Christian movements, sexuality in Mormon theology is not a product of original sin or "necessary evil." In accordance with the law of chastity, the doctrine of the LDS Church prohibits sexual activity outside of heterosexual marriage, and sexual offenses are considered second only to murder in seriousness.
Video Sexuality and Mormonism
Chastity
The LDS church teaches its members to obey the so-called law of chastity, which is a code of morality and modesty. Under this code, all members are taught to be "morally clean in their thoughts, words, and actions" and to stay away from pornography. Violations of this code include "adultery, without natural affection, lust, infidelity, incontinence, dirty communication, impurity, excessive affection, fornication, including all sexual relations outside of marriage - caressing, sexual aberration, and preoccupation with sex in the mind someone and talk. "Sex offenses are considered second only to murder in seriousness.
Although celestial marriage is the only form of marriage recognized as a sacrament, the church allows sex in government-recognized marriage unions, notable exceptions are same-sex marriage, marriage of common law, civil unions (in jurisdictions where marriage is available), and polygamy. The Church is sensitive about its historical relationship to polygamy, and getting into polygamous marriage, even where law, will result in mandatory church discipline and possible excommunication. Today, church teachings allow married couples to decide on appropriate sex behavior between them. The law of sainthood has also been interpreted to include various standards of decency, which vary according to the cultural norms of the time. Serious violations of the law of sanctity may result in church discipline, including the possibility of excommunication.
LGBT members of the church are expected to keep the law of chastity. The Church characterizes its church's discipline policy as being neutral about sexual orientation. If gay or lesbian members want to enter heterosexual marriage, they are advised to first learn to deal with their homosexual feelings; otherwise they must remain celibate. Gay or lesbian sex, in whatever form, whether the participants are married or not, is the basis for church discipline. Participation in "recurrent homosexual activity (by adults)" results in the First Presidency making permanent special annotations for a person's membership record. In most cases, gay or lesbian sex prohibits a person, permanently, from serving as a church missionary.
Maps Sexuality and Mormonism
Masturbation
On many occasions, church leaders have taught that members should not masturbate as part of obedience to the law of chastity. Prominent examples of this include church guides to stop masturbation produced in the 1970s. Another is the 1990 edition of the church youth guideline pamphlet stating that "God specifically forbids... masturbation" with the next two editions (including the most recent) alludes to it with a statement that forbids anything that "awakens" any sexual feelings. or emotion in one's own "body." Apostle Spencer W. Kimball, who later served as president of the church, warned of the "possibility of damage" and "danger" of this "general disobedience" on various occasions calling it a "growing sin of sin" with every practice. Apostle Boyd Packer gave a 1976 general conference address "To Young Men Only" warning youth not to tamper with their small factory (euphemism for their reproductive system) so as not to accelerate and become a habit of guilt and depression that encourages not easily denied. He provides powerful training as a method to help control the mind and break the habit of masturbation because it is a "disobedience" that "displeases God". The talks were printed as pamphlets and widely distributed by the church from 1980 to 2016. Since 1985 the church has provided guidance for parents to use in discussing sexuality with their children. This manual includes the statement that "the prophet has cursed [masturbation] as sin" and "a deviation from the lusts of the body" which causes a person to become "worldly". The most recent explicit mention of masturbation by top leaders in public discourse is by Tad R. Callister who states in a 2013 speech at BYU-Idaho that God "condemns self-torment" (euphemism for masturbation).
Kissing
Church leaders have stated that outside the marriage "passionate kiss", defined as "more intense and last [ing] longer than short kiss," and "prolonged kiss involving tongue and arousal" is "forbidden". For example, church president Spencer Kimball, called "soul kisses" as "abominations" leading to the neck, caressing, and "illegitimate babies". She further states that even when dating for a kissing time should be "clean, decent, without sex like a kiss between mother and child". He also stated that kissing during a regular date is "asking for trouble" and that kisses should not be "shared like pretzels". Apostle Richard Scott suggests that the physical expression of romantic feelings among unmarried individuals should be preserved on "those who are comfortable with your parents".
Erotic touch
Church leaders also condemned erotic relationships outside of heterosexual marriage by using terms such as "neck" for common kisses and caressing areas outside of breasts, buttocks, or groin areas, and "caressing" to "caress a member of the opposite sex in areas that personal, personal, and sacred "either under or above clothing. The neck (a passionate kiss with an intimate touch) has been called a "dangerous practice" while petting is called "sinful" and "an abomination before God". Despite the policy of extramarital and romantic sex, a 2007 survey of over 1,000 BYU students showed that 4% of single women and 3% single men had participated in oral sex or sexual intercourse on dating. In addition, 54% of men and 46% of BYU female students reported "intense romance and kissing" on a date.
Oral sex
In the early 1980s the church explicitly forbade oral sex even for married couples because it was regarded as an "unnatural, impure, or unclean practice" that reflects the verbiage for indecent sexual behavior in the Church Handbook on Directive. In the First Presidency letter of 5 January 1982 to the bishops and other local leaders, it was explicitly stated that members who participated in oral sex were forbidden from the temple unless they "repented and stopped" this practice. The follow-up letter nine months later on October 15, 1982 states that the First Presidency has received many complaints from church leaders inappropriately "investigating sensitive personal issues" and directing leaders to never ask "explicit questions" about "things intimate relationship involving marriage ". The oral sex prohibition, however, is not deleted, modified, or clarified as the only additional clue to leaders is that "if the member has enough anxiety about modesty behavioral to ask about it, of course it is best to stop it.".
The ensuing discussion on marital sex warns against behaviors that the church deems unnatural, impure, and unholy, including Spencer Condie warning that when couples "participate in unholy practices" during their physical intimacy can be a "disruptive force" in their marriage. When discussing physical intimacy, a 2003 church manual on marriage quotes church president Spencer Kimball stating that the idea that "behind the bedroom door" is not true or forgiven by God and "if it is not fair, you do not do me". Prior to this more general ban, in a private letter dated May 17, 1973, Harold Lee's President of the Church called "oral sex" a "degrading" "perversion" that is "disgusting in God's eyes". In a popular book sold by church bookstores and written roughly by a BYU professor, the authors state that oral sex is inappropriate and impure for married couples. An LDS magazine publishes bishop teaching in 2013 that oral sex is prohibited. Two BYU graduates of the Mormon sex therapist, however, publicly stated in 2013 that oral sex is fine for married couples as did other LDS therapists in 2014.
Pornography
LDS church leaders have repeatedly condemned the use of literature and passionate visual material for decades. They have compared pornography with outbreaks or epidemics on various occasions. which is highly addictive like a hard drug like cocaine. They also claim that seeing erotic material can be an almost "impossible to solve" habit that can metaphorically "blast craters" in the brain. The Church holds meetings and has a website to help members who want to curb the consumption of their pornographic material, and have asked church members to attend an anti-pornography rally. Church leaders have also stated that women who dress modestly become pornographic for the men around them.
The Church Handbook for Leaders states that the three members of the bishopric should ensure that members from ages 12 to 17 are interviewed twice a year where they will discuss "the importance of keeping the commandments, especially... refraining from any kind of sexual activity, and restraint from viewing, reading, or listening to pornographic material. "It also states that the disciplinary board should not be called to members" who are struggling with pornography or self-harassment. "
Sociological studies on individual pornography and LDS have included a single BYU study showing 192 BYU male students ages 18-27, 100% of the samples considered to see pornography "unacceptable". However, 35% reported having used pornography in the past 12 months, with 9.2% of all samples reporting pornography at least once in the past month. No data was collected on female students. A national study of paid porn subscriptions shows that the predominantly LDS Utah state has the highest subscription rate from any state. State Gazette Governor Gary Herbert formally declared pornography a public health crisis in Utah in 2016. In 2017 the church school, BYU released a study using data collected online from nearly 700 unmarried married adults about the effects of religiosity on perceptions of addiction pornography and relationship anxiety. The results show that seeing yourself as an addiction to pornography produces negative results that are far more worrying and associated with individual embarrassment and in romantic relationships rather than the negative effects of consuming sexually explicit material. In addition, more religious individuals are more likely to consider themselves addicted to pornography regardless of their level of comparative use.
Dancing
Today and in the past LDS church leaders have banned dancing that includes full body contact or sexual behavior. One youth guide stated that this unacceptable movement is considered vulgar including shaking shoulders or hips, body jerking, squatting, slumping, and turning back.
KB and abortion
In the past the use of family planning methods including artificial contraceptives was explicitly denounced by LDS church leaders. Beginning in July 1916, the apostles were quoted as stating that birth control is a "destructive doctrine" and that "limiting the number of children in the family... is a sin". The first time that any approval of the non-abstinent fertility control method is openly expressed occurred in the article 19A of the Enhancement Era in which Apostle John Widtsoe mentions the method of rhythm as an acceptable means of distance to the children. In his influential treatise in 1956, the Doctrine of Salvation, the apostle Joseph Fielding Smith called birth birth controlling evil that led to the curse and caused the fall of the nations. He further stated that LDS couples who deliberately prevent themselves from having more children after their second or third child are guilty of crimes to be punished. The 1958 edition of McConkie's popular book, Mormon Doctrine states that all who use condoms or other artificial contraceptives "rebelled against God and were guilty of grave crimes." The BYU Honor Code in 1968 stated that "the Church does not approve of any form of birth control." In 1969, the first and only First Presidency statement about birth control was released by reiterating that "contrary to the teachings of the Church artificially to limit or prevent the birth of children", although, for the first time there is a clarification that men should consider "preserving" the "health and strength" of their wives when planning a family because they bring "greater responsibility" to childbearing and raising children. Recently in 2003 a church manual was published containing excerpts from late church president Spencer Kimball stating that the church does not "approve or approve" a very "family-limiting" contraceptive measure.
The establishment of the church today is that "decisions about birth control and the consequences of that decision are entirely dependent on married couples" and that they should consider "the physical and mental health of mothers and fathers and their ability to provide basic life needs. they "when planning a family. However, in teaching children about sexual morals and birth control, Mormon parents have ranked among the lowest in the comfort of discussing this topic with their children among US parents of all religious affiliations. In discussing other methods for family planning, the church "is very reluctant" to perform surgical sterilization such as vasectomy and tubal ligation and only allow it for serious medical conditions after discussing it with a bishop. The LDS Church opposes elective abortion "for personal or social comfort" but states that abortion may be an acceptable option in cases of rape, incest, harm to health or maternal life, or where the fetus has been diagnosed with "severe disability that will not allow the baby to survive after birth. "
Wedding
From the 1830s, marriage has become a central and distinct component of Mormon theology. The teachings of Mormon on marriage begin with the conviction that, if done by someone who has the necessary priesthood authority, marriage may continue in the afterlife. Such marriage is called "celestial marriage" or "temple marriage", and is a specific example of "sealing" that binds people together in the afterlife. Celestial marriage is considered a requirement to enter into the highest "degree" of the celestial kingdom (the highest level of heaven in Latter-day Saint theology), and is thought to enable participants to continue to have spirit children in the afterlife and become gods. According to Mormon belief, the continuation of celestial marriage in the afterlife depends on the surviving spouse. In rare cases, the glorification of spouses can be "confirmed" through a second anointing ritual.
In the 1800s, the practice of celestial marriage included plural marriage, a form of polygamy. According to the consensus of historians, the practice of plural marriage was taught by Joseph Smith, founder of the Latter-day Saint movement, and after Smith's death was officially recognized in 1852 by Brigham Young, the leader of the LDS Church. This practice became famous during the 19th century when it was opposed and banned by the US federal government, resulting in intense legal conflicts, culminating in LDS President Wilford Woodruff who published the 1890 Manifesto, which officially halted the creation of new plural marriages. in the church shrine. However, unofficial marriage continued in the LDS Church after 1890 for several years, often in Mexico. In 1904, the church issued the Second Manifesto, which stopped official practice worldwide and established excommunication as a possible punishment for offenders. These manifestos do not automatically separate the existing plural union, and some couples in the LDS Church continue to live together as a plural family until the 20th century, with the final polygamous marriage in the LDS Church ending in 1954 when one of the two Edward Eyring wife died.
The LDS Church now includes monogamy and nuclear families. Members found in or welcome for polygamous marriages or associating with polygamy groups are now subject to church discipline and possible excommunication. Beginning at the end of the 20th century, the LDS Church began to support political and legal measures to restrict legitimate marriage to one man and one woman.
Yet the LDS Church continues to recognize some theological aspects of polygamous doctrine. Although men and women can enter a celestial marriage with just one partner at a time, a man can be sealed to more than one woman. If his first wife died, he could enter another celestial marriage, and be sealed both for his surviving wife and his dead wife or wife. A woman, however, can only be sealed to one man during her lifetime. This leaves room to believe that all these marriages will last in eternity and the husband and all his sealed wives will live together in the hereafter as a polygamous family. In the 1950s, one influential church leader wrote that plural marriages would be "clearly" replaced after the Second Coming of Jesus.
Though it is incompatible with the theological significance of the celestial marriage, the LDS Church does recognize civil marriages or marriages committed in other religious traditions. In the 1870s, a prominent Mormon author wrote that Mormons regard such marriages as "not married at all." Today, however, non-celestial marriages are respected and acknowledged as lawful by the church, but such marriages must be legitimate according to the government in which marriage is made, and should not be same-sex marriage, polygamous marriage, common law marriage, or non- other ceremonies in non-common law countries. Moreover, such marriages are supposed to last only for mortal life, and not to the next life. In countries where the church's celestial marriage is not recognized by the government, the church requires that civil marriage be preceded.
In the United States, the LDS Church has expressed support for constitutional prohibitions on same-sex marriage and polygamy and has stated that it "supports measures that define marriage as a union of men and women and who do not give legal status to other sexual relationships." The position of the church is the government's recognition of such rights will "undermine the divinely created family agency".
Sexual orientation
The Church acknowledges and officially welcomes gays and lesbians as members on the condition that they seek to live the moral code of the church. The Church teaches that homosexual feelings, different from behavior, sometimes seem to be born, and that although these feelings are sometimes undesirable, they can and should be controlled. The law of holiness of the church forbids sex homosexuals in all contexts. Consistently violating the law of chastity may result in excommunication. However, Latter-day Saints who identify themselves as gay or lesbian can still stand well in church, without branching, if they distance themselves from homosexual relationships.
In addition to opposing gay and lesbian sex, the LDS Church also opposes and campaigns against the expansion of marital rights for gay and lesbian families who, in his opinion, will undermine heterosexual monogamous marriage traditions. Since the 1990s, same-sex marriage has become one of the main concerns of the church.
In 2008, the church participated in a campaign to support California Proposition 8, which proposed limiting the definition of marriage to the union of one man and one woman. It mobilizes many of its members to contribute time and money to the initiative. The political organization ProtectMarriage.com, the official proponent of Proposition 8, estimates that about half the donations they receive are from Mormon sources, and that "eight to ninety percent" early volunteers who go door-to-door are members of the Church LDS. The Church was criticized for its involvement by non-members and by some of its members, and in 2010, public authority Marlin K. Jensen personally apologized to church members in California for the role of the church. In December 2012, an important website "Mormon and Gay" was launched specifically for the topic of homosexuality.
Gender
Identity and gender roles play an important role in Mormon theology that teaches the strict spiritual gender binaries as literal descendants of divine parents. Part of today's Church meetings is shared by biological sex, and for most of the 1800s church presidents Joseph Smith and Brigham Young have men, women and children sitting separately for all Sunday meetings. The expression and identity for sexuality and gender are "separate, but related" aspects of a person and derived from similar biological origins. As far as gender minorities, Church leaders have stated that they have an unfinished business in teaching on the difficult and sensitive topics of transgender individuals. In the past, church president Joseph Fielding Smith, declared that he believed that those who did not reach the celestial kingdom in the afterlife would be "both men and women, only eternal beings".
In the church, there are also some unofficial statements about gender. For example, "Strengthening Our Family: A Deep View of the Proclamation of Family" (a book compiled by the School of Family Life at Brigham Young University), "Although we do not fully understand the eternal nature of gender, we must recognize its meaning and purpose, the heart seeks to understand and appreciate the nature of divine gender differences in God's plan for His children. "This book also states:
God created us men and women. This is not a mistake or a variety of genetic or hormonal opportunities. What we call gender is an important characteristic of our existence before our birth. Gender is part of our eternal identity and essential to our eternal progress. While we may not know all the reasons why, we know several reasons why gender is important to our eternal progress. To achieve our exaltation, an eternal marriage between a man and a woman is required.... The sexual union between married men and women is, among other things, the ways that God has set to bring his spirit children into mortality, which is an important step in the plan of salvation.
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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