731: Meg and Jake Abhaus Meeting with D. Todd Christofferson about LGBT Issues

Published: April 24, 2017, 9:55 p.m.

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As part of our series on meetings with Mormon General Authorities, we interview Meg and Jake Abhau as they relay the story of their September 2013 meeting with Mormon Apostle Elder D. Todd Christofferson. \\xa0

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Meg and Jake appeared on episodes 508-510 of Mormon Stories discussing their experiences in early 2013 when their 13 year old son, Jon, came out to them as gay while they were living as committed, orthodox Mormons. \\xa0During this period Meg and Jake met Tom Christofferson, brother of Mormon Apostle D. Todd Christofferson. \\xa0At the time Meg and Jake met Tom he was an excommunicated gay Mormon man living in a committed relationship for over 18 years. \\xa0After hearing the Abhau\\u2019s story, Tom graciously offered to arrange a meeting between them and his brother, Elder D. Todd Christofferson.

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In this episode Meg and Jake recount in detail their 1+ hour with apostle D. Todd Christofferson, which included:

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  • Elder D. Todd Christofferson acknowledging that the LDS Church may not be a safe place for our LGBT youth,
  • Elder Christofferson acknowledging to Meg and Jake that personal revelation trumps revelation from Mormon leadership \\xa0(but that he would never be able to admit this publicly to church members), and
  • Meg informing Elder Christofferson that he and other LDS leadership had/have \\u201cblood on their hands\\u201d for the way that they have mishandled LGBT issues, contributing to a modern wave of LGBT youth suicides.


Meg and Jake also express their disappointment with Elder Christofferson\\u2019s role in speaking as the representative for the LDS church during the November 2015 policy decision denouncing same-sex couples as apostates, and disallowing their children from being baptised into the Mormon church. \\xa0They also discuss their respective decisions to leave the Mormon church after decades of orthodox membership.

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