Hope? or rebellion? Part 1/4
Part 1 of a 4-part series about hoping for change for the LGBTQ/LDS intersection.
In an interview about Saints, vol. 4, Aubrey Chaves asked the editors a question that her husband/co-host Tim Chaves called “one of the best questions that has ever been asked in the history of Faith Matters” (1:15:00). The context was the Black priesthood/temple ban which was reversed in 1978. There are important differences between that ban and LGBTQ/LDS issues today, but also important similarities — namely, second-class Church citizenship because of an innate, God-given characteristic.
Here’s the question Aubrey asked:
Something that was new to me [in reading Saints, vol. 4] was hearing these incredibly beautiful stories of people across the world who had so much faith, energy, patience, acceptance, and hope around this change, [saying] that it's a matter of time. And they were right, and it changed. Now we look back and see their faith . . . Darius Gray was in the middle of it and he was agitating, but in a way that looks like sustaining. He was showing up, saying “I see a problem and I want to be part of the solution. Here are ideas, and here’s another idea, and here’s another idea, and I will do work.”
In this volume, that [attitude] is framed in the most beautiful, faithful way. All those people were sustaining their leaders by raising their hands, speaking up, being creative sometimes, and having hope. But I'm not sure that their ward would have talked about it that way. My experience is that before the change happens, hope looks like rebellion, disobedience, being unfaithful, and not trusting – but I didn't get that vibe in the book.
You were in those [original] sources; what was the experience on the ground? Were their leaders saying, “Thank you for being so faithful,” or was there a feeling of being edgy by being hopeful? (Aubrey Chaves, “Our Beautiful, Messy, Unfolding Story - A Conversation with Lisa Olsen Tait & Scott Hales,” FaithMatters podcast, November 16, 2024, starting at 59:45, edited for clarity and length).
We leave the question for the reader to ponder — but for now, I say keep hoping for change, no matter what others think.
Parts 2-4 in this series about hoping for change are coming soon.
-Marci