Asked questions about my sexuality before serving a Mormon Mission #mormon #ldsmissionary #lgbtq

The Mission Interview Question: What the Historical Record Reveals About LDS Church Screening Practices for LGBTQ+ Candidates

When an 18-year-old prepares to serve a two-year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, they expect spiritual preparation. What some candidates have reported receiving instead are deeply personal questions about sexuality, inquiries so explicit that they raise serious concerns about screening protocols, pastoral training, and institutional accountability. These accounts, documented in sources like the Mormon Stories Podcast, reveal a gap between the Church's official guidance on handling sensitive topics and the lived experiences of vulnerable young people on the threshold of major life decisions.

The question is not whether these conversations happened, multiple witnesses have reported similar experiences across different time periods and geographic regions. The question is: what does this pattern tell us about institutional oversight, therapeutic boundaries, and the intersection of religious doctrine with mental health practice?

Background: The Evolution of LDS Mission Screening Standards

The LDS Church has historically used structured interviews to assess missionary readiness. These interviews, typically conducted by local ecclesiastical leaders (bishops and stake presidents), serve as gatekeepers to one of the Church's most visible and demanding programs. Young adults aged 18–21 have traditionally faced questions about worthiness, sexual history, and doctrinal understanding.

For decades, there was little formal guidance about how these conversations should occur. The Church's Handbook of Instructions provided doctrinal frameworks and general questions, but left room for significant variation in how individual leaders approached sensitive topics. This decentralized model worked adequately for mainstream cases but created vulnerabilities for LGBTQ+ candidates or those with complex sexual histories.