Since I was a kid, the story of Joseph in Egypt has always been one of my favorite in all of scripture. Even now as an adult, I find it intriguing, powerful and multi-layered. One layer that I became aware…
Category: Faith/Practice
Jane Manning James as a Model for Gay and Lesbian Mormons
By Alasdair Ekpenyong As contemporary gay and lesbian Mormons come to terms with their sexuality and perhaps choose to pursue same-gender relationships, they at times find themselves cut off from the sacrament and other priesthood ordinances that had previously been…
The Power of Empathy
By Diane Oviatt There are some in this life who would seem to be naturally endowed with the ability to readily empathize with the struggles of others. In fact, my own patriarchal blessing mentions this as a gift worth expanding…
The Gift Of The Holy Ghost & The Second Great Commandment: Implication For A Gay Mormon
By Jim Best The rock upon which the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was established is continuing revelation or leadership and instruction by the Spirit or Holy Ghost also called the Comforter. After baptism, each member of the…
Not My Job–Thank Heavens!!!
By Teresa Noel Hislop (also posted at her blog www.lifeisthestoriesyoucantell.com) Top Ten Lists: FUN!! There are top ten lists for nearly everything you can think of and many things you would not think of……“Top Ten Toughest Characters in the Bible”, “Top Ten People…
A Garden in the Desert
For the LORD shall comfort Zion: he will comfort all her waste places; and he will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the LORD; joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the…
All Are Enlisted: The Mission of the LGBT Mormon
Talk given on April 27, 2013 at “All are alike unto God” Mormon/LGBT Conference in Phoenix, AZ (also posted at http://mitchmayne.blogspot.com/) Like pretty much everyone in this room, I suspect, I learned early on how important missionary work was to our church. I remember…
Living with Doubt
Doubt, I’ve learned, is a facet of life and of learning. When I was an active member of the Church, I wrestled with doubt in relation to my testimony. As a teenager (like many Christians throughout the ages) I wrestled…
The Year Of The Caterpillar
In 1977 (1 A.D. Star Wars) my father worked two jobs to pay for a trip for our family to go to his home country of the Netherlands (Holland), the land of tulips and windmills, to visit my grandmother and…
Three Identities, One Person, and One Soul: An African‐American Gay Mormon Perspective on the 1978 Priesthood Revelation
By Frederick Bowers (Admin note) No More Strangers is a new forum seeking to advance the dialogue regarding LGBT people and Mormonism. As such, it has the good fortune of having bloggers who have made significant contributions to Latter-day Saint…