TALKS
Allison Dayton’s presentation at BYU Women’s Conference 2023 (pdf version)
“This is the very best talk I’ve listened to on faith, fallibility, and honoring personal revelation. I am constantly asked how I navigate this space - the space between my faith and my LGBTQ child. Patrick Mason articulates the very process I go through, sometimes daily. He understands and honors the pain some must endure to exist in this church” - Allison
“As aspiring Christians but still imperfect Saints, we may not always understand the struggles of others or know how to help. But we can always love them, creating safe spaces where others—and often we ourselves—can struggle with the hard sayings in life” “Hard Sayings and Safe Spaces: Making Room for Struggle as Well as Faith” by Eric D. Huntsman, Professor of Ancient Near Eastern Studies, August 7, 2018. BYU Speeches.
THE BLESSINGS OF DIVERSITY - BRYANT JENSEN, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF TEACHER EDUCATION, BYU
Being unified in Christ doesn’t mean we all must be the same.
The 10th chapter of Acts gives us a series of events that dramatically altered the mission and scope of the early Church and further established the principle that all people—across socioeconomic status, race, and nationality—are invited to come unto Christ and “partake of his goodness”…. (continued)
"We believe that the core rights of citizenship should be protected for all people – for LGBT people, for people of all faiths and for everyone else. In essence, this means fairness for all. We condemn, in the strongest terms, bullying or harassment of any kind. Every person is a child of God. Everyone is entitled to love and respect. We may not agree, but we must never be disagreeable. The reason that the Church supported the LoveLoud festival, here in Utah County, was to send a strong message that LGBT youth or anyone else should never be mistreated and if any were troubled, they should seek help from friends, family members and trained professionals."
HOMOSEXUALITY IS ABOUT SURVIVAL - TED TALK - JAMES O’KEEFE
This passionate talk from Dr. James O'Keefe MD gives us a deeply personal and fascinating insight into why homosexuality is indeed a necessary and extraordinarily useful cog in nature's wheel of perfection.
“LOOKING TO THE MARGINS: CREATING BELONGING” - PHILLIP D. RASH, BYU SPEECHES“
“What do we see Christ do with the marginalized? As previously mentioned, He ate with them, He walked with them, He cried with them, He healed them, He validated them, and He listened to them…” (continued)
Ben Schilaty’s TedxBYU talk entitled “How Far Are You Willing To Love?: Including Isn't Agreeing”
If you’ve ever wondered: “How can I support the choices my loved ones make when those
choices go against my wishes?” “Should I be supportive of the relationships and events (like weddings) of my relatives, even if they aren’t in line with my own beliefs?” “What can I do to help marginalized people feel welcome in our church, even if we don’t always agree?”
Ben Schilaty’s TedxBYU talk entitled “How Far Are You Willing To Love?: Including Isn't Agreeing” addresses those very issues with helpful examples from his life and experiences as a gay Latter-day Saint…