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i, for one, am fascinated by blog culutre. i think there are pros and cons. for me, as i was encountering homosexuality, in my peers at school, the guys i was dating, and the women i found myself flirting with (that is to say, in myself), places like Northern Lights and the many many lds moho blogs i trafficked were of great help for me to sort through my thoughts, feelings, and experiences. when i felt trapped, like i was all alone and could never reveal to anyone in my life what i was really going through, i found great comfort in reading and listening to those same thoughts, feelings and experiences on other blogs. so in terms of building community and support for a social issue that has not yet been enabled to come out of the closet completely, especially in mormon culutre at large, i see that these blogs are most certainly good, and for some, necessary. the nature of this issue in particular calls upon anonymous global personal and social expression. i also like how the internet can be an equal playing-field. i find it refreshing that you can hear every side and angle with only a few clicks this has GOT to be beneficial, and completely unique to our generation!! i think i've watched everything Clark's put out there, months ago, and was captivated by the many details of his story i knew so personally. and in a way, by seeing where we diverged, he helped me find my own path. i don't think i would want to live in a world where Clark wouldn't be as free to share his beliefs and story as much as HiveRadical.this also brings to mind a question brought up by Jason Clark in a letter to fred and marilyn matis, posted on written in response to their co-authored book (with ty mansfield), in quiet desperation: In one of the most troubling passages of your account, you say, Although losing our son was difficult, it has been comforting to know that he was faithful to his temple covenants. (pg. 20). As a gay Mormon, what am I supposed to conclude from this statement? That I should kill myself rather than be sexually active? Your statement resonates with a troubling, oft-quoted anecdote by Marion G. Romney. According to Elder Romney's story, before leaving for his LDS mission, his father told him, We would rather come to this station and take your body off the train in a casket than to have you come home unclean, having lost your virtue (Conference Report, October 1952, pg. 34.). this issue has also become the concern of Don Alden on his youtube video blog, , which he started as a way of reaching out and letting you know that you are not alone and things will most certainly get better. We have been where you are. We know what you are going though. We also know life is beautiful, and for us lucky few, being gay is part of that wonderful experience. Look at us. We are happy, healthy, well adjusted guys living authentic lives full of joy. You can too. Choose life. to my knowledge, Don's interviews cover a variety of perspectives, and include an interview with Clark Johnson. i think this approach is healthy, though i know it troubles many. i think latter-day saints don't want to hear conflicting approaches bought and sold as the answer for anyone. we all want to see ourselves and our loved ones in the full light of the gospel, not shadowed in doubt or confusion. but the longer i live, the more i understand that opposition, that choice, as being at the heart and soul of what we're here for in mortality. though i too carry a heavy heart for the many physical suicides that have taken place as a result of this issue, i wonder if it is so bad for us to also carry a heavy heart for all the spiritual suicides as well. because, in a way, living the gospel and keeping covenants every day IS about life and death, every day. that is exactly what my summer was like, and most days it wasn't enough to choose my covenants and the Lord even once a day. i couldn't forget that i'd already promised to be willing to give up everything to have those covenants; in my mind i heard, where is your willingness now? And, no one can make that decision for me but me. so the best things i can receive from others are compassion, understanding, and love. love suffereth long, love is kind, love envieth not, is not puffed up, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, and rejoiceth not in iniquity but rejoiceth in the truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. love, i think, both embraces and encompasses all good and all evil it is not an absence of evil, no. because charity the pure love of Christ endureth ALL things, all heights, all depths, me in my highest heaven, and me in my deepest hell. in a way, i'm here to experience it all. in a way so, let there be choices! and many many blogging voices :-)
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(VISITOR) AUTHOR'S NAME
Hilaal
MESSAGE TIMESTAMP
17 december 2014, 06:40:16
AUTHOR'S IP LOGGED
117.169.1.79
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