LDS Church Prepares To Oust Gay Member

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) is preparing to take disciplinary action against one of its own for being involved in a legal marriage performed in another country. Lifetime member Buckley Jeppson married his spouse, Mike Kessler, in Toronto, Canada, where same-sex marriage is legal, and the couple now resides in Washington DC. The disciplinary council being convened by Washington DC Stake President Nolan Archibald, a lay leader in the Church who also serves professionally as CEO of Black & Decker Corporation, is predicted to lead to Mr. Jeppson's excommunication, perhaps the first such case in Mormon history.

Up to the summer of 2005, Mr. Jeppson had been actively and openly serving in his local LDS congregation until his marital status was officially reported to church authorities by his local bishop, Ross Davidson. Although President Archibald, the leader convening the disciplinary council, has encouraged Mr. Jeppson to resign his membership quietly, Mr. Jeppson says that he finds it unthinkable to simply walk away from his faith and heritage. He explains, "Being a member of the Church is not like belonging to a club. It is my history, my family heritage, my testimony, and the faith to which I have devoted the last 57 years of my life. I just want to worship quietly and peacefully in a place that is safe. I don't ask the Church to change its doctrines or practices. I just want us to be left alone."

Church members and friends under the banner of the Safe Space Coalition are banding together to send thousands of pink flowers to President Archibald and the leadership of the Washington DC Stake in support of the Jeppson-Kessler family and asking for the creation of more safe space for both straight and gay members within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This Safe Space Coalition has produced a declaration that reads, in part, "We have learned through experience, as well as through scientific research, that homosexuality is not simply a changeable lifestyle choice, but a deeply ingrained element of a person's created nature. We do not believe that God intends for some of his children to be treated differently than others, especially in the most significant matters of the heart. We stand for a Church that is a tolerant place, a society where a homosexual member's options are not limited to eternal silence, repression, excommunication, or suicide."

The LDS Church is an international body with more than half of its membership outside of the US. Because the Church's own Articles of Faith state that members believe in "obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law," this case is expected to produce an important precedent on whether the Church is willing to recognize legal marriages performed in other countries. The date of the disciplinary council is yet to be announced.