Mormon LGBTQ Persecution - A Modern Case of Lying for the Lord - Douglas & Brennen - 1613

Introduction

Elder Dallin H. Oaks stood before the Church in April 2019 and promised that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints would treat heterosexual and homosexual relationships "exactly the same." Five years later, that promise looks less like policy and more like a setup. The story of Douglas and Brennan, detailed in a recent Mormon Stories Podcast interview, reveals what "equal treatment" actually means for same-sex couples in 2024: bishops driving thirty minutes to hunt down inactive members, mothers deceived into giving up addresses, and disciplinary councils convened for people who have not darkened a chapel door in years. This is Mormon LGBTQ persecution in its modern form, dressed in the language of fairness but executed with the precision of a surveillance operation.

Background: The Policy and the Promise

To understand the cruelty of this moment, you must remember November 2015. That was when the Church implemented its exclusion policy, labeling same-sex marriage as apostasy and banning children of gay couples from baptism. The backlash was severe. In April 2019, the Church reversed course. Oaks declared the new standard: no more distinction between gay and straight relationships in terms of disciplinary action.

The reversal was supposed to end the era of harsh enforcement. Instead, it opened a new chapter of inconsistency. Some bishops interpreted "equal treatment" as permission to leave same-sex couples alone. Others saw it as license to treat them exactly as they would treat any member in a relationship they deemed sinful: with formal discipline, regardless of activity level or intent to participate.

Key Claims: The Mechanics of Modern Discipline