Church backs away from conversion therapy

[Brent]

https://www.abc4.com/news/local-news/ld ... 1797382868

Hmmmmmm,...why are they taking all those vitamins?

[Hagoth]

"We have repeatedly stated the church denounces any conversion or reparative therapy that subjects individuals to abusive practices, not only in Utah but around the world,"

Who exactly is the "we" referred to here? Dallin Oaks oversaw electroshock and vomit aversion therapy at BYU, but he also said: “While we have no position about what the medical doctors do, we are conscious that there are abuses and we don’t accept responsibility for those abuses.”(https://www.mercurynews.com/2011/03/17/ ... e-therapy/)

See what he did there? He didn't deny having perpetrated those abuses, he merely refused to accept any responsibility for them. Remember he's the guy who says that the church neither offers not accepts apologies. This is why I love him so much.

[Anon70]

"We have repeatedly stated the church denounces any conversion or reparative therapy that subjects individuals to abusive practices, not only in Utah but around the world,"

Who exactly is the "we" referred to here? Dallin Oaks oversaw electroshock and vomit aversion therapy at BYU, but he also said: “While we have no position about what the medical doctors do, we are conscious that there are abuses and we don’t accept responsibility for those abuses.”(https://www.mercurynews.com/2011/03/17/ ... e-therapy/)

See what he did there? He didn't deny having perpetrated those abuses, he merely refused to accept any responsibility for them. Remember he's the guy who says that the church neither offers not accepts apologies. This is why I love him so much.

It’s so frustrating. And yet TBMs love him. Hero worship was in full force when he visited nearby recently.

[moksha]

Opinions differ among Mormons on the use of aversion therapy.

San Francisco writer Donna Banta, 51, attended BYU from 1976-1980 and never heard of aversion therapy. She left the church in 1998 and has since learned about it from other ex-Mormons.

“The LDS Church is all about secrets,” she says. “I’m amazed now by what I didn’t know.”

This failure to know about the practice stems from members not reading the Salt Lake Tribune or the Salt Lake Weekly.

[Not Buying It]

”We have repeatedly stated the church denounces any conversion or reparative therapy that subjects individuals to abusive practices, not only in Utah but around the world," Stephens told ABC4 News.

"We appreciate the willingness of the sponsors to work with us to make sure that counseling that is in alignment with the church's standards such as abstinence before marriage does not come under the definition of conversion therapy," he said.

"The church does not oppose this legislation in its current form," Stephens added. "We hope that those who experience same-sex attraction find compassion and understanding from family members, professional counselors, and church members."

So many thoughts on this. As Hagoth notes, the Church didn’t “denounce” conversion therapy while it was done at BYU, nor did it “denounce” it while it was being practiced on members by private therapists for literally decades. As a matter of fact, seems to me that the Church is a Johnny-come-late to denouncing conversion therapy. Does “repeatedly” mean repeatedly in the past several weeks or something?

The “abstinence before marriage” section is very misleading - the Church’s standard for gays is really “abstinence forever”, because it opposes gay marriage and excommunicates anyone who practices it.

And finally, why the hell should anyone care what legislation the Church does or does not oppose? Doesn’t the fact the Church spokesman even mentions how the Church feels about legislation say something very troubling about the power of the Church is Utah politics? In most places in the world this would send up huge red flags, but Utah is like the freakin’ Twilight Zone.

[Brent]

Venture a guess...do the words the spokesman says happen by accident? Could the “abstinence before marriage" be a way of readying folks for the eventual gaslighting that will come with acceptence of gay marriage? Just as Nelson spoke of women already having priesthood power?

[moksha]

As Hagoth notes, the Church didn’t “denounce” conversion therapy while it was done at BYU, nor did it “denounce” it while it was being practiced on members by private therapists for literally decades.

I think what made aversion therapy popular with the BYU administration was the movie A Clockwork Orange. It seemed like a workable means for the Church to ensure obedience from its members.

And finally, why the hell should anyone care what legislation the Church does or does not oppose?

What this means in Utah is that legislation can be discussed within the respective committee. To ensure legislative passage there must be an active endorsement from the Church.