Mormon Church bars children of same-sex couples from sacred rites

Church official says amendment in leadership guidelines aims to protect children from ‘conflicts that can injure their development’

Members of the Tabernacle Choir (AP)

The Mormon Church has ruled that the children of same-sex couples cannot participate in Mormon rites without the approval of church officials, sparking an outcry from some community members.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints earlier this week announced an amendment to its “Handbook 1,” a manual for church lay leaders, mandating that the children of same-sex couples could not be blessed or baptized without approval from top leadership.

Those children are also ineligible to go on mission, a practice in which church members – typically before marriage or latter in life with their spouse – are sent to proselytize, often internationally.

Church Elder D Todd Christofferson, of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles – the church’s second-highest governing body – defended the measure Friday as being in the children’s interest.

The move was designed to prevent the children from being “placed in a position where there will be…conflicts that can injure their development in very tender years,” Mr Christofferson said in a video released on the church’s website.

“We don’t want the child to have to deal with issues that might arise where the parents feel one way and the expectations of the Church are very different,” Mr Christofferson said.

Following a firestorm of criticism from opponents, a press release published with the video said that it aimed to help “the public better understand the context and purpose of the changes, which have been discussed extensively in the news media, on social media and elsewhere.”

One local newspaper, The Salt Lake Tribune on Friday published the reactions of community members to the amended church doctrine.

“This policy is so hurtful to gay members who love the gospel (and many do). To do this intentionally does not seem reflective of Christ's mission," Nikki Packer, who has worked in the church’s children programmes told The Tribune.

Some agreed with the measure. Jeff Stenquist, former president of the church’s elder quorum, told the newspaper the decision seemed “logical.” “Participation in the church for minor children is always subject to the approval of their parents. It seems the church wants to make sure children are freely choosing a different path than their parents in order to obtain church membership,” he said.

Utah, the western state where the church’s headquarters are located, in May amended anti-discrimination law to bar employment and housing discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) residents, after years of dialogue LGBT rights advocates and church leaders, which play a powerful role in local politics. But critics underlined that the law exempts church-affiliated entities in a state where the church owns a large share of schools and hospitals.

Same-sex marriage is legal in Utah after the US Supreme Court refused the state’s appeal in October 2014.