"sadness overwhelmed me"

Here is an interesting biographical essay by a gay Mormon convert (via the General). It seems odd to read now about how accepting his local leaders were before the Church laid down the party line on gays and lesbians. Of course, I don’t really know what the practice is now at the ward level—if there is a consistent position—since I haven’t been to church regularly for almost 10 years. My roommate during my first semester at BYU was a grandson of Elder Packer. He was smart and unassuming, and he preferred that people not know who his grandfather was. I get the impression—again, having been out of the loop for quite some time—that Elder Packer is looked to as a leader among the apostles. He certainly seems to have taken the lead on the Church’s position on LGBT members, and that is too bad.