Sunday, December 29, 2013

Same-Sex Marriage in Utah...Worst Case Scenario for the LDS Church

Much has been made of what same-sex marriage means for the LDS church.  There is a lot of fear being spread around many circles.  Can the government force the LDS church to recognize same-sex couples?  Can the government force the LDS church to perform temple sealings for same-sex couples?

The short answer is no.  Your question is, hasn't this been done before?  And the answer is no.

In the late 1800s, the Federal Government pressured the LDS church to drop the practice of polygamy.  Andy many of you will tell me that the Federal Government succeeded.  That is not exactly the truth.  The LDS church, in 1890 agreed to stop plural marriage in the United States.  However, in Mexico and Canada, plural marriage continued for another 14 years.  Plural marriage ended when it was time.

You might say that the LDS church also caved to political pressure in 1978 when they decided to give the priesthood to all male members.  The church simply was not under the same kind of political pressures in 1978 at all.  There were no government threats at all.

As far as same-sex marriage is concerned, what will happen.  Initially, nothing.  SSM has been legal in a number of states for many years.  In spite of rumors of lawsuits, there has been little pressure from on the church to recognize it.  In the United States religion is a choice.  So someone sues the church to force a Bishop to perform their ceremony, how far does that lawsuit go?  It's not like there are not hundreds of other churches to choose from.

But if it does get that far, you probably won't see the federal government attempt to seize property or dis-incorporate the church as you did in the late 1800s.  First of all, it's not like the LDS church doesn't exist in other countries around the world.  If the US church organization is broken up in the United States, it's not like the church can't reorganize in Brazil or Mexico or in a country more favorable to church doctrines.  It could happen in the blink of an eye in this day and age.

The likely worst that the government can do to the LDS faith or to any faith in this day and age is to remove their tax-exempt status.  This would provide a little bit of a windfall, initially, along the Wasatch front, particularly in Utah County where there are 4 temples, BYU, the Provo MTC and around 150 LDS stakes.  So in my ill-faded attempt to 'steady the ark' here is how the LDS church could deal with this new expense.

First, the church could double up on their chapels.  Turn the part of each church that is now called the cultural hall into a second chapel.  In meeting houses that now hold 2 or 3 wards, you could house as many a 8 with minimal remodeling.  All that would needed to be added to the chapels that would continue to be used is an extra wing for new office space and an extra wing for new classroom space.  The other half of the chapels in the church could be razed, and the land sold.  Areas that now hold bowries and softball fields could be turned into parking lots.  Members could also be encouraged to walk, carpool and take public transportation to their weekly meetings. 

This type of construction has already happened in big cities such as New York, Denver and San Francisco where land is expensive and difficult to come by.  The church could save significant amounts of coin, if they were taxed, by trying this type of construction along the Wasatch Front.

Let's say that in the future the government says that they can no longer recognize marriages that are performed in temples as binding.  How does the church react.  Couple will simply be married civilly before having their marriages later sealed in the temple.  If this were to happen, the best case scenario is that the couple is married at the county courthouse in the morning, officiated by a justice of the peace or a notary public.  Then the couple could have their temple ceremony in  the afternoon.

At worst, that sealing would take place years later, when the Stake President determines that the marriage has been sufficiently tried and the couple has earned the right and the likelihood of divorce is minimal.  Averages tells us that this time is 7 years, but perhaps this will be later.  Perhaps enough time will pass that the children will remember and appreciate the experience.  There are some countries, such as Brazil, that do not recognize religious marriages, and couples are required to be married civilly before going to the temple.

The bottom line is that if you are LDS and worried about the church being forced to recognize something that you don't believe.  Don't.  Remember who is in charge and trust in a positive outcome.