Line upon Line

This article includes excerpts from The Heart of Our Covenants: Temple Principles that Draw Us unto Christ by Valiant K. Jones. Used by permission. See www.valiantjones.com or www.cedarfort.com.

While addressing the conflict between same-sex marriage concerns and Church doctrine in August of 2021, President Jeffrey R. Holland admonished the BYU community to do better in teaching our doctrine, encouraging them to find “better ways to move toward crucially important goals in these very difficult matters—ways that show empathy and understanding for everyone while maintaining loyalty to prophetic leadership and devotion to revealed doctrine.” He then spoke of a “need to define, document, and defend the faith.”[i]

This series of articles is intended as a faithful response to that request. The first three articles in this series focus primarily on “loyalty to prophetic leadership and devotion to revealed doctrine,” and the final two articles focus primarily on “ways that show empathy and understanding for everyone.”

See the previous article in this series here.

Implications of Our Doctrine

The previous articles have approached the doctrine of eternal families from several different angles, and they all converge in a consistent message: Eternal marriage can only be between a man and a woman because their natural differences make it possible for the union to be elevated to a godly level and because the biological nature of eternal procreation, like mortal procreation, requires it. These are not things that God or His Church can change. The many prophetic quotes that have been presented all support the same conclusion, providing a consistent and clear doctrine regarding eternal marriage. President Dallin H. Oaks reiterated this doctrine when he stated, “Exaltation or eternal life . . . is possible only through marriage for eternity. Eternal life includes the creative powers inherent in the combination of male and female—what modern revelation describes as the ‘continuation of the seeds forever and ever.’”[ii]

God is not like Pinocchio’s father, Geppetto, creating children from wood or clay. It is true that our mortal bodies are composed of elements from the earth and thus are said to come from dust, but that is not where we had our beginnings. As the poet William Wordsworth penned, “The Soul that rises with us, our life’s Star, / Hath had elsewhere its setting and cometh from afar.”[iii] His insight is consistent with the teachings of President Lorenzo Snow, who said, “We were born in the image of God our Father; he begat us like unto himself. There is the nature of deity in the composition of our spiritual organization; in our spiritual birth our Father transmitted to us the capabilities, powers and faculties which he himself possessed.”[iv] Our spirit bodies come from our heavenly parents, just as an acorn comes from an oak tree and has the potential to grow into a mighty oak itself. Likewise, our own eternal progeny will spring from the seed of our exalted bodies.

A false doctrine that arose out of the Great Apostasy is that the original sin of Adam and Eve was sexual intercourse and that all sexual behavior is bad and is only tolerated by God because it is necessary for procreation in our fallen world. As a result, much of the sectarian world has traditionally seen sexual intimacy as inherently evil[v] and the main reason children are born with original sin.[vi] With this view deeply embedded in the religious traditions around us, if we Latter-day Saints emphasize that procreation will continue in the eternities, we are seen as carnal and sex-focused. To avoid such accusations, our rhetoric has instead focused on the more agreeable “families can be forever” dialogue. However, the full implications are more personal.

It is important to understand that even though we believe that procreation is good, both on earth and in the eternities, we also believe that it should be kept private and sacred, as an intimate sacrament between a husband and a wife. Anyone who gets to know us as a people will observe that our Church culture strongly encourages modesty in dress, dialogue, and behavior. Chastity and virtue are standards we embrace alongside our belief in the rightness of procreation within the bonds of marriage.

Independent of religious dogma, the concept of sexual relations in the eternities can still be distasteful to some people, both within the Church and without, even though others may find the concept pleasing. It is important to acknowledge that we really do not know much about eternal procreation other than that it takes both a man and a woman to create eternal offspring. No Latter-day Saint sister needs to be worried that her eternal life will consist of endless pregnancies. As President Henry B. Eyring said, quoting an unnamed prophet of God, “You are worrying about the wrong problem. You just live worthy of the celestial kingdom, and the family arrangements will be more wonderful than you can imagine.”[vii]

In spite of discomfort surrounding the topic and in light of modern efforts to normalize same-sex relations, we may now find it prudent to emphasize our belief in the goodness of the intimate marital relationship between a husband and a wife and the role it will play in our eternal lives as resurrected beings. We may now be at a crossroads where the rise of same-sex marriage requires us to be bolder in the declaration of our doctrine regarding eternal marriage. We cannot be shy in explaining that we believe in eternal increase and that this requires a man and a woman as a simple, biological fact. We must become more open in explaining why our doctrine of the eternal family is physically incompatible with progressive LGBT+ philosophies.

The Church’s General Handbook says that the law of chastity “means abstaining from sexual relations outside of a legal marriage between a man and a woman, which is according to God’s law.”[viii] It also describes that law, stating, “God has commanded that sexual intimacy is to be reserved for marriage between a man and a woman.”[ix] In spite of this, some people may suggest that the law of chastity should not be considered violated if a same-sex couple is married and both partners remain monogamous. They may say that same-sex couples should be allowed to be married for eternity in the temple, but to what end? Certainly, they could provide eternal companionship for one another, but they could never produce eternal seed between themselves, and that is clearly one of the primary objectives of eternal marriage.

Can you imagine a temple sealer giving a newly married same-sex couple the same directive that was told to Adam and Eve: “Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth” (Genesis 1:28)? That just won’t work. The laws of nature require the union of male and female for the creation of new lives. As Elder Joseph W. Sitati has said, “Marriage between a man and a woman is the institution that God ordained for the fulfillment of the charge to multiply. A same-gender relationship does not multiply.”[x]

On earth, a same-sex couple can adopt a child, or one partner can provide half of the “seed” for a child, but in the end, biology dictates that a female’s egg be fertilized by a male’s sperm in order for offspring to develop. In the celestial world, a man and a woman, married for eternity, will have only themselves with whom they can create eternal offspring. Same-sex eternal marriage simply will not work. It is against the eternal laws of nature—laws that even God must follow.

Even though modern legislation allows same-sex couples to join in civil marriage, these unions cannot produce offspring by themselves. Medical operations and hormone therapies can be administered to change some of a person’s physical characteristics so that they mimic a person of the opposite gender, but no amount of medical intervention will enable someone born as a woman to produce sperm or someone born as a man to ovulate and gestate a child. There are some natural laws that cannot be circumvented no matter how much people try. Even if a proposed uterine transplant becomes viable in the future, this would only be putting part of a donor female body into a male body, and it will not rise with the male in the resurrection.

We cannot get around the fact that the foundational doctrine of our Church regarding eternal families is in direct conflict with the concept of same-sex marriage. Some people may continue to advocate for a change in Church policy to allow temple marriage for same-sex couples; however, this would not only require a change in policy, but it would also require that we throw out our entire doctrine on eternal families, and “the whole earth would be utterly wasted at [Christ’s] coming” (D&C 2:3). That will not happen. God will not allow it. A change in policy would have no effect on the nature of the eternal world God has created.

In the celestial kingdom of God, eternal, natural laws will control the propagation of seed just as they do on earth. We cannot change these laws; we can only accept them and prepare to live within their boundaries. This preparation includes marriages on earth in relationships that most closely resemble the marriages that will exist in the eternities—marriages modeled after the relationship our heavenly parents share. “For strait is the gate, and narrow the way that leadeth unto the exaltation and continuation of the lives, and few there be that find it” (D&C 132:22).

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is not a democracy. Elder David B. Haight has said, “Conferences of this Church are far more than a convention where views are expressed or policies adopted by vote, but they are assemblies where the mind and the will of the Lord is manifest by His servants. The Church is not a democracy—it is a kingdom.”[xi] 168 It is the kingdom of God on earth, and Christ is the King. God sets the laws under which we fall subject, and these laws are based on eternal principles. We may not fully understand how the life experiences of those who experience same-sex attraction fit within these laws; however, we should remember that God has a history of giving requirements to His children without explanations (see Moses 5:5–6). Nevertheless, it is not humankind’s prerogative to change things to suit their limited understanding. As the prophet Isaiah wrote, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord” (Isaiah 55:8).

Our Doctrine on Gender and Sexuality

The Church has clarified our doctrine on gender in “The Family: A Proclamation to the World.” It is based on the principles explained above. This inspired document contains the following pertinent statements:

• “We . . . proclaim that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His ”
• “Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose.”
• “The first commandment that God gave to Adam and Eve pertained to their potential for parenthood as husband and wife”
• “God has commanded that the sacred powers of procreation are to be employed only between man and woman, lawfully wedded as husband and wife.”
• “We declare the means by which mortal life is created to be divinely appointed.”
• “The family is ordained of Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan.”
• “Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity ”[xii]

In addition, President Dallin H. Oaks has clarified, “The intended meaning of gender in the family proclamation and as used in Church statements and publications since that time is biological sex at birth.”[xiii]

The family proclamation was published in 1995, and some have suggested that it was merely a reaction to shifting social trends in the 1990s. However, the family proclamation is not the first time Church leaders taught about the eternal nature of gender. Similar statements were made in the early 1900s; however, in those earlier statements, the word sex was used to mean gender at birth. This was simply a matter of English usage, which has changed over time. In the 1913 edition of Webster’s Dictionary, the word sex has three definitions, all of which refer to the distinctive differences of male and female in animals or plants, with no reference to sexual acts.[xiv] A modern secular article states, “‘Sex’ . . . begins to appear in text in sexual terms in 1948, shortly after the Kinsey Institute released its initial reports on human sexuality.”[xv] Before that, it had the meaning we now attribute to the phrase gender at birth.

Elder James E. Talmage was one who taught about the eternal nature of what we now call gender at birth. In 1922 he wrote: “We affirm as reasonable, scriptural, and true, the eternity of sex [i.e., gender at birth] among the children of God. The distinction between male and female is no condition peculiar to the relatively brief period of mortal life. It was an essential characteristic of our pre-existent condition, even as it shall continue after death, in both disembodied and resurrected states. . . . [The] scriptures attest a state of existence preceding mortality, in which the spirit children of God lived, doubtless with distinguishing characteristics, including the distinction of sex [i.e., gender], ‘before they were [created] naturally upon the face of the earth’ (Moses 3:5).”[xvi]

Elder John A. Widtsoe likewise authored the following in a 1915 Melchizedek Priesthood manual: “Sex [i.e., Gender at birth], which is indispensable on this earth for the perpetuation of the human race, is an eternal quality [i.e., characteristic] which has its equivalent everywhere. It is indestructible. The relationship between men and women is eternal and must continue eternally. In accordance with Gospel philosophy there are males and females in heaven. Since we have a Father, who is our God, we must also have a mother, who possesses the attributes of Godhood. This simply carries onward the logic of things earthly, and conforms with the doctrine that whatever is on this earth is simply a representation of spiritual conditions of deeper meaning than we can here fathom.”[xvii]

The doctrinal teaching that gender is eternal is not new. The truth is that for most of the history of mankind, the immutability of gender was considered self-evident. When the family proclamation was first published in 1995, nothing in it was considered new doctrine; the proclamation merely consolidated our family doctrine into one clear and concise document. President Dallin H. Oaks said, “Those who do not believe in or aspire to exaltation and are most persuaded by the ways of the world consider this family proclamation as just a statement of policy that should be changed. In contrast, Latter-day Saints affirm that the family proclamation defines the kind of family relationships where the most important part of our eternal development can occur.”[xviii]

The Church’s policy on sexuality is described in the General Handbook. The section titled “Same-Sex Attraction and Same-Sex Behavior” begins by stating, “The Church encourages families and members to reach out with sensitivity, love, and respect to persons who are attracted to others of the same sex.” It distinguishes between same-sex attraction and same-sex behavior, affirming that, “Feeling same-sex attraction is not a sin,” while also declaring “God’s commandments forbid all unchaste behavior, either heterosexual or same-sex.”[xix]

The Handbook specifically condemns same-sex marriage, stating: “As a doctrinal principle, based on the scriptures, the Church affirms that marriage between a man and a woman is essential to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children. The Church also affirms that God’s law defines marriage as the legal and lawful union between a man and a woman. Only a man and a woman who are legally and lawfully wedded as husband and wife should have sexual relations. Any other sexual relations, including those between persons of the same sex, are sinful and undermine the divinely created institution of the family.”[xx]

The Church does acknowledge that “in extremely rare circumstances, a baby is born with genitals that are not clearly male or female,” and it makes accommodations for these situations.[xxi] However, they are not placed in the same category as people who experience same-sex attraction or identify as transgender.

Scripturally, critics of the Church would be hard-pressed to find anything that would condone same-gender sexual relations or same-sex marriage. Indeed, there are many verses that condemn such things.[xxii] However, there is one Old Testament story that has been interpreted by some people as supporting same-sex love: the story of Jonathan and David. The prophet Samuel recorded, “The soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul” (1 Samuel 18:1). Samuel also described an emotional departure where the two close friends “kissed one another, and wept one with another” (1 Samuel 20:41).

Some people have interpreted this as evidence that Jonathan and David had been engaging in a same-sex relationship. However, as scriptural scholar Jared Halverson has said, “There is nothing in the text that requires that kind of interpretation, and, in fact, there is so much in the text that would cast doubt on that interpretation.”[xxiii] This includes David marrying many wives (see 2 Samuel 3:2–5; 5:13) and lusting after Bathsheba (see 2 Samuel 11:2–4) as well as the fact that Jonathan fathered at least one son (see 2 Samuel 4:4). While it is possible that either man was bisexual and got married only out of social expectations, their behaviors with women do raise some doubts about claims of same-sex attraction, especially for David. However, even if one or both young men did experience such feelings, there is nothing in their story to suggest that God condones same-sex physical intimacy. In fact, if anything, it shows that a person can have strong feelings of love toward another of the same gender and not act on them sexually, for there is nothing in the biblical story saying that these two men did so.

Nothing in our scriptural canon supports same-gender sexual behavior. On the other hand, there are many scriptures that promote a heteronormative view of sexuality. For example, Jesus taught, “From the beginning of the creation God made them male and female. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife; And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder” (Mark 10:6–9; see also Matthew 19:4–6). And Paul declared, “Neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 11:11).

A Look at Two Historical Changes

Many advocates of same-sex temple marriage point to historical changes in the Church regarding plural marriage and race restrictions and suggest that these provide a basis for a policy change that would allow same-sex marriage. However, as we shall see, both of these historical changes moved us toward practices that are rooted in scripture and doctrine, returning us to earlier norms.

It is true that during the nearly forty-year period in which plural marriage was publicly endorsed in this dispensation, it was promoted by many Church leaders as an eternal principle, and many members were encouraged to practice it. However, after the practice ended, clear statements in scripture and by Joseph Smith were amplified to show that plural marriage is not required for exaltation and that “monogamy is God’s standard for marriage unless He declares otherwise” (Official Declaration 1, heading).

In the Book of Mormon, we read that the prophet Jacob told his people, “Wherefore, my brethren, hear me, and hearken to the word of the Lord: For there shall not any man among you have save it be one wife; and concubines he shall have none   For if I will, saith the Lord of Hosts, raise up seed unto me, I will command my people; otherwise they shall hearken unto these things” (Jacob 2:27, 30). Furthermore, Joseph Smith said, “I have constantly said no man shall have but one wife at a time, unless the Lord directs otherwise.”[xxiv] Polygamy scholars Brian and Laura Hales have documented statements from several contemporaries of Joseph Smith who confirmed that he taught that exaltation does not require polygamy.[xxv]

Even though the Church changed its policy from encouraging plural marriage to disallowing it, it is clear that the doctrinal foundation for monogamy had already existed. In fact, the halting of plural marriage was not a change in doctrine at all but rather a return to the norm of monogamy. Nevertheless, this change only occurred after the living prophet, who held the keys of eternal marriage, received a revelation that the change should occur.

The other significant shift in Church policy that some people point to when advocating for same-sex marriage is the change that occurred in 1978 when race restrictions for priesthood and temple participation were lifted. However, those restrictions were found to have a shaky foundation. Historical research pointed to early statements and actions by the Prophet Joseph Smith that confirmed that he had ordained a few Black men of African descent to the priesthood. The Church essay “Race and Priesthood” explains, “During the first two decades of the Church’s existence, a few black men were ordained to the priesthood. One of these men, Elijah Abel, also participated in temple ceremonies in Kirtland, Ohio, and was later baptized as proxy for deceased relatives in Nauvoo, Illinois. There is no reliable evidence that any black men were denied the priesthood during Joseph Smith’s lifetime.”[xxvi]

In addition, the Book of Mormon decries discrimination, stating, “And he [the Lord] inviteth them all to come unto him and partake of his goodness; and he denieth none that come unto him, black and white, bond and free, male and female; and he remembereth the heathen; and all are alike unto God, both Jew and Gentile” (2 Nephi 26:33).

For many years, Church leaders sought revelation to confirm that the priesthood and temple restrictions should be lifted. This revelation was finally received, and it was announced on June 8, 1978. Official Declaration 2 confirms that the lifting of the priesthood restriction was not a doctrinal change but an arrival to a previously prophesied state: “Aware of the promises made by the prophets and presidents of the Church who have preceded us that at some time, in God’s eternal plan, all of our brethren who are worthy may receive the priesthood, and witnessing the faithfulness of those from whom the priesthood has been withheld, we have pleaded long and earnestly in behalf of these, our faithful brethren, spending many hours in the Upper Room of the Temple supplicating the Lord for divine guidance. He has heard our prayers, and by revelation has confirmed that the long-promised day has come when every faithful, worthy man in the Church may receive the holy priesthood, with power to exercise its divine authority, and enjoy with his loved ones every blessing that flows therefrom, including the blessings of the temple” (Official Declaration 2; emphasis added).

Similar to the issue of polygamy, there was a preexisting doctrinal basis for the change whereby priesthood and temple restrictions on race were lifted. With both issues, the changes had a doctrinal foundation in scripture and in the teachings and practices of our founding prophet, Joseph Smith.

If we were to predict future changes in doctrine or policy toward same-sex-attracted Saints based on these two past changes, then the new changes would have to have a similar preexisting foundation. However, as seen in the earlier sections of this series of articles, our doctrine has no such foundation—not in scripture nor in the teachings of any Church leaders—that would justify a change in policy to allow same-sex marriage. In fact, to the contrary, we have seen clear and consistent teachings that in the celestial kingdom, families will consist of a husband and wife along with their eternal offspring who will come forth in a natural way as seed from their own resurrected, celestial bodies. Their eternal children will come as spirit offspring in the same way we are spirit offspring of our heavenly parents. Such children can only come from the union of a male and a female in the eternal realms, just like on earth.

Irrevocable Doctrine

President Dallin H. Oaks referred to the Church’s 1995 family proclamation and declared, “Those who do not fully understand the Father’s loving plan for His children may consider this family proclamation no more than a changeable statement of policy. In contrast, we affirm that the family proclamation, founded on irrevocable doctrine, defines the kind of family relationships where the most important part of our eternal development can occur.”[xxvii]

Similarly, President Nelson has said, “Marriage between a man and a woman is God’s pattern for a fulness of life on earth and in heaven. . . . The doctrine of the Lord regarding marriage and morality cannot be changed. . . . While we are to emulate our Savior’s kindness and compassion, while we are to value the rights and feelings of all of God’s children, we cannot change His doctrine. It is not ours to change. His doctrine is ours to study, understand, and uphold.”[xxviii]

The symphony of prophetic statements that has been presented in this series of articles bears witness that this doctrine is true. However, we must also recognize that this doctrine can be difficult to accept for Saints who experience same-sex attraction or related challenges. They may question whether there is a place in the Church for people whose life experiences do not seem to align with these doctrines. For this reason, we must embrace these brothers and sisters in Christ with empathy, love, and understanding. (This will be addressed in future articles.)

Eternal truth cannot be changed. Truths revealed through prophets must be acknowledged, and then we can grapple with how to make sense of life experiences that do not fit the ideal template that these truths present. Elder Joseph W. Sitati said, “[The] timeless constancy of the onset of day and night is one daily reminder of realities that govern our lives that we cannot change. When we respect and align what we do with these eternal realities, we experience internal peace and harmony. When we don’t, we are unsettled, and things do not work as we expect.”[xxix] So it is with all truth.

The doctrine proclaimed in the family proclamation is with us for eternity. It is a doctrine that will bring eternal fulfillment and happiness to all who abide by its principles. However, we must remember that this eternal family doctrine is made possible because of Jesus Christ, for, as President Nelson has said, “Jesus Christ is at the center of the Abrahamic covenant.”[xxx] So we might say that the doctrine of eternal families is subordinate to the doctrine of Christ. On the other hand, Christ’s Atonement exists in order to make it possible for us to have eternal families. The doctrine of the eternal family and the doctrine of Christ go hand in hand. In God’s eternal plan of happiness, we cannot have the full benefits of one without the other, for without eternal families, formed through the sealing ordinances and covenants of the temple, “the whole earth would be utterly wasted at [Christ’s] coming” (D&C 2:3). As President Nelson has said, “The earth was created and this Church was restored so that families could be formed, sealed, and exalted eternally.”[xxxi]

The doctrine of Christ is also called the gospel of Jesus Christ (see Jacob 7:6), and the doctrine of eternal families could also be called the gospel of Abraham.[xxxii] In the scriptures, the term gospel is used in reference to only these two objectives: the gospel of Jesus Christ and the gospel of Abraham. These two doctrines of good news are eternally linked with one common purpose: “to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man” (Moses 1:39). Both are made possible through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. No wonder Sister Julie B. Beck declared, “Any doctrine or principle . . . that is antifamily is also anti-Christ.”[xxxiii]

Understanding, accepting, and following the doctrine of eternal families will draw us nearer to Jesus Christ. We need to have hope in Christ, not hope in a change of policy or doctrine. Through Him and the power of His Atonement, we can eventually experience the joy of eternal family bonds, no matter what challenges we face.

President Henry B. Eyring taught, “Of all the gifts our loving Heavenly Father has provided to His children, the greatest is eternal life (see D&C 14:7). That gift is to live in the presence of God the Father and His Beloved Son forever in families. . . . For some, that eternal joy may seem a faint or even a fading hope. . . . To all of those whose personal experience or whose marriage and children—or absence thereof—cast a shadow over their hopes, I offer my witness: Heavenly Father knows and loves you as His spirit child. . . . With the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ working and with the Holy Spirit guiding, you can feel now and will feel in the world to come the family love your Father and His Beloved Son want so much for you to receive.[xxxiv]

Those who struggle with the doctrine of the family are invited to lean on its sister doctrine, the doctrine of Christ, and the hope it brings. President Nelson said, “What does it mean to overcome the world? . . . It means trusting the doctrine of Christ more than the philosophies of men.”[xxxv] The next articles in this series will discuss how following the doctrine of Christ can bless those who experience same-sex attraction.

As Latter-day Saints, we should all strive to help one another progress along the covenant path until that day when God will welcome eternal families into the celestial kingdom. There, all who qualify will receive the blessings of the Atonement of Jesus Christ that come from the gospel of Jesus Christ along with the blessings of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that come from the gospel of Abraham. “And God shall wipe away all tears from [our] eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain” (Revelation 21:4).

To be continued…

Valiant K. Jones is the author of The Heart of Our Covenants: Temple Principles that Draw Us unto Christ. For more information, see www.valiantjones.com or www.cedarfort.com.

[i] Jeffrey R. Holland, “The Second Half of the Second Century of Brigham Young University,” ibid.

[ii] Dallin H. Oaks, “Two Great Commandments,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2019, 74.

[iii] William  Wordsworth,  “Ode  on  Intimations  of  Immortality from Recollections of Early Childhood,” Academy of American Poets,  accessed  Oct.  20,  2024,  https://poets.org/poem/ ode-intimations-immortality-recollections-early-childhood.

[iv] Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Lorenzo Snow, 84.

[v] See, for example, Arthur Frederick Ide, “Woman as Priest, Bishop and Laity in the Early Church to 440 A.D.” (1984), published in “Women and Sex in Early Christianity,” Wijngaards Institute for Catholic Research, accessed Dec. 10, 2024, https://womenpriests.org/articles-books/ ide-07-women-and-sex-in-early-christianity/.

[vi] For one interesting review of these traditions, see Daniel Kohanski, “Why the Catholic Church Is So Conflicted About Sex,” TheHumanist.com, Dec. 27, 2018, https://thehumanist.com/magazine/january-february-2019/features/ why-the-catholic-church-is-so-conflicted-about-sex/.

[vii] Henry B. Eyring, “The Hope of Eternal Family Love,” Ensign or Liahona, Aug. 2018, 5; see also “A Home Where the Spirit of the Lord Dwells,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2019, 22–25.

[viii] General Handbook, 7.2.

[ix] General Handbook, 2.1.2.

[x] Joseph W. Sitati, “Be Fruitful, Multiply, and Subdue the Earth,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2015, 127.

[xi] David B. Haight, “Successful Living of Gospel Principles,” Ensign, Nov. 1992, 74.

[xii] “The Family: A Proclamation to the World,” Gospel Library.

[xiii] “General Conference Leadership Meetings Begin,” Oct. 2, 2019, newsroom. ChurchofJesusChrist.org; see also “How Does the Church Define Gender?,” Life Help | Transgender, Gospel Library.

[xiv] Websters 1913 Dictionary, s.v. “sex,” accessed December 10, 2024, https:// www.websters1913.com/words/Sex.

[xv] Jillian Kramer, “A Brief History of the Word Sex Over the Past Two Centuries,” Glamour Newsletter, July 21, 2015, https://www.glamour.com/ story/history-of-the-word-sex.

[xvi] James E. Talmage, “The Eternity of Sex,” Millennial Star, Aug. 24, 1922, 539, https://catalog.churchofjesuschrist.org/assets/ bc02d406-b283-411c-926e-3f0f9d55ba09/0/0.

[xvii] John A. Widtsoe, Rational Theology: As Taught by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Published for the Use of the Melchizedek Priesthood by the General Priesthood Committee (1915), 64–65, https://gutenberg.org/cache/ epub/35562/pg35562-images.html.

[xviii] Dallin H. Oaks, “The Plan and the Proclamation,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2017, 29.

[xix] General Handbook, 38.6.15.

[xx] General Handbook, 38.6.16, formatting modified..

[xxi] General Handbook, 38.7.7.

[xxii] See Leviticus 18:22; Leviticus 20:13; Romans 1:27; 1 Corinthians 6:9.

[xxiii] Unshaken, “Come Follow Me—1 Samuel 8–31, Part 2 (chapters 18–31): Bound in the Bundle of Life,” YouTube, June 8, 2022, 32:39, https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=rNGwfMVQ7nM.

[xxiv] Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 324.

[xxv] See “Does Exaltation Require Polygamy?,” Joseph Smith’s Polygamy, accessed July 1, 2022, https://josephsmithspolygamy.org/common-questions/ polygamy-exaltation/.

[xxvi] Gospel Topics Essays, “Race and the Priesthood,” Gospel Library.

[xxvii] Dallin H. Oaks, “Divine Love in the Father’s Plan,” Liahona, May 2022, 103, emphasis added; see also Dallin H. Oaks, “Kingdoms of Glory,” Liahona, Nov. 2023, 27.

[xxviii] Russell M. Nelson, “Decisions for Eternity,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2013, 108; emphasis added.

[xxix] Joseph W. Sitati, “Patterns of Discipleship,” Liahona, Nov. 2022, 86.

[xxx] Russell M. Nelson, “The Everlasting Covenant,” Liahona, Oct. 2022.

[xxxi] Russell M. Nelson, “Celestial Marriage,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2008, 93.

[xxxii] The gospel of Abraham refers to the Abrahamic covenant, the blessings of which are bestowed upon a couple during their temple marriage. For a full discussion of this, see Valiant K. Jones, the Heart of Our Covenants, Cedar Fort, 2025, p.36.

[xxxiii] Julie B. Beck, “Teaching the Doctrine of the Family,” Ensign, Mar. 2011, 15.

[xxxiv] Henry B. Eyring, “The Hope of Eternal Family Love,” Ensign, Aug. 2018, 4–5.

[xxxv] Russell M. Nelson, “Overcome the World and Find Rest,” Liahona, Nov. 2022, 96.