Timeline of LGBTQ Mormon history in the 2020s

This is a timeline of LGBTQ Mormon history in the 2020s, part of a series of timelines consisting of events, publications, and speeches about LGBTQ individuals, topics around sexual orientation and gender minorities, and the community of members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church).

Timeline

2020 January – Gay Latter-day Saint Crossroads was published by Evan Smith, a Latter-day Saint bishop, and edited by Marci McPhee. The book addresses LGBTQ questions from a scripture-based Latter-day Saint perspective. January – The Utah Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing implements a statewide ban on conversion therapy for minors, with public support from the church. A previous version of the ban was proposed and received public opposition from the church, which in a public statement said that the ban “fails to protect individual religious beliefs and does not account for important realities of gender identity in the development of children.” February – A Walk in My Shoes by Ben Schilaty was published by Deseret Book. The author, a gay therapist and former Brigham Young University (BYU) administrator, answers questions frequently asked of him as a gay Latter-day Saint. February – The church released the new version of its leadership handbook, General Handbook: Serving in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It defines gender as "biological sex at birth" and states that any kind of gender transition—whether that includes a change of name or pronouns, "elective medical or surgical intervention," or even gendered dress—will bring about "Church membership restrictions" until the person ceases their gender transition. Transgender people may enter temples and attend meetings, but certain restrictions will apply, such as the ineligibility of transgender men for the priesthood. At the same time, the handbook reflected the previously announced policy regarding children of same-sex couples, now allowing these children to be blessed and baptized without limitations that previously existed. February – BYU released an updated honor code intended to align with the church's new handbook. The previous honor code specifically noted prohibiting hand-holding and kissing between same-sex couples. The updated honor code does not contain the section about "homosexual behavior." The school, however, clarified that "Even though we have removed the more prescriptive language, the principles of the Honor Code remain the same." The clarification prompted large protests by BYU students. March – A chapter of Affirmation was established by students and faculty at BYU–Hawaii. Later that year Iese Wilson, a music education major at the school and vice president of the Affirmation chapter, met with president John S. K. Kauwe III and Student Life Vice President Jonathan Kau to discuss the experiences of LGBTQ students on campus. This conversation was followed by a social media post by Wilson, which sparked greater conversation about the LGBTQ experience at BYU–Hawaii. March – Homosexuality Reframed: Growth Beyond Gay was published by Thomas Pritt, a Latter-day Saint therapist. The book discusses how someone who identifies as gay can move past their current sexual orientation. March – Questions from the Closet, a podcast hosted by Ben Schilaty and Charlie Bird, was launched. The podcast addresses common questions about LGBTQ issues in the church. April – On the Record: A Chronology of LGBTQ+ Messaging within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints had its first release by Latter Gay Stories host Kyle Ashworth. The document provides a timeline and sources for the progression of church messaging about LGBTQ people. May – John Gee wrote a book titled Saving Faith: How Families Protect, Sustain, and Encourage Faith, which was published through the BYU Religious Studies Center and Deseret Book. In it, he suggested that victims of sexual abuse “are more likely to become sexual abusers of children” and that “homosexuality is related to childhood sexual abuse.” To draw this conclusion, Gee used data from a book by Jana Riess, who later said that Gee mischaracterized the data. The RSC pulled this book from publication over the controversy. FAIR continued to sell the book afterwards, and an Interpreter article written by Louis Midgley said it was a “truly remarkable book” and that “Gee’s words were lifted out of context and twisted by those who felt threatened by his use of data.” May – Emmaus LGBTQ Ministry was established as a nonprofit support group for LGBTQ Latter-day Saints. The group was founded by Mormons Building Bridges founder Erika Munson and former Affirmation executive director John Gustav-Wrathall. It was founded as an alternative group to Mormons Building Bridges, due to a difference in priorities. June – Dog Valley had its initial showing at the Kanab Film Festival. The documentary recounts the 1988 murder of Gordon Church, a young gay man in Millard County, Utah. It was later released on streaming services. June – Tabernacles of Clay by Taylor G. Petrey was published. The book examines LDS Church teachings on sexuality and gender through the lens of gender theory and modern American religion. July – Dr. Allen E. Bergin, a former BYU psychology professor and former member of the church's general Sunday School board, offered a public apology for past teachings on same-sex attraction. Among them were suggestions that gay people were sexually promiscuous and that they could overcome their sexual orientation by entering a mixed-orientation marriage. The apology came in response to his being quoted in the On the Record document by Kyle Ashworth 2 months prior. July – Same-Sex Attracted, a documentary by LGBTQ BYU students, debuted at the Salt Lake City LGBTQ film festival. July – Without the Mask by Charlie Bird was published. The book recounts Bird's coming out as gay after performing as Cosmo the Cougar, the mascot at BYU. While it was originally published by Deseret Book, Charlie requested in 2023 that it be removed from their catalog shortly before he married his husband. August – Former bishop Richard Ostler published Listen, Learn, and Love. The book, based on his podcast of the same name, explores ways to better support LGBTQ Latter-day Saints. In 2022, Ostler published a follow-up book titled Listen, Learn, and Love: Improving Latter-day Saint Culture. In 2023, he published a third book titled Listen, Learn, and Love: Building the Good Ship Zion. While all 3 books were published by Cedar Fort, they were sold at Deseret Book for a time. This changed in early 2024 after several orthodox LDS apologists complained over Ostler's books being at Deseret Book; they were removed from the store's catalog afterwards. August – Matthew Gong, son of apostle Gerrit W. Gong, was interviewed on the Human Stories podcast about his experience being queer. A month later, he shared his experience leaving the church in an article published by the Salt Lake Tribune. September – The Lift + Love podcast was launched with Allison Dayton and Jenie Rae Hunter as hosts. The podcast discusses faith in the church and being part of a family with LGBTQ members. October – The Kim & Terry Turner Encircle home was opened in St. George, Utah. November – The Raising Family podcast was launched with an accompanying website. The platform, which later became a nonprofit called the Skyline Research Institute, publishes content in support of the Family Proclamation, which includes teachings about heterosexual marriage, traditional gender roles, and fixed gender identity.

2021 January – Shane Carpenter publicly came out as one of the first openly gay missionaries. He was later asked by his mission president to train other missionaries on being inclusive in their teaching. Since then, other missionaries have come out publicly as LGBTQ and shared their experiences. February – The Peace Out podcast was started by Sally and Lena Osborne, two Latter-day Saint women who divorced from their husbands, married each other, and left the church. In June, 2022 a series was released for streaming on Hulu titled Mormon No More that told their story. February – Craig Call, a grandson of apostle Richard G. Scott, was interviewed on the Latter Gay Stories podcast. He talked about his experience going through a divorce, as well as being bisexual and polyamorous. He also related how Scott gave a general conference address in October 2009 on pornography and told him that the address was directed at him. March – Hunter et al v. Department of Education was launched as a class-action lawsuit by LGBTQ students and alumni of various religious schools in the United States. Among them was Ashtin Markowski from BYU, as well as Chandler Horning and Rachel Moulton from BYU-Idaho. The plaintiffs argued that these religious schools had performed discrimination against them and their Title IX protections. The complaints were dismissed in January, 2023 shortly after the federal Respect for Marriage Act was passed. This decision was later upheld in August, 2024 by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. March – Students at BYU lit up the Y on Y Mountain with colors of the pride flag to show support for LGBTQ individuals. BYU officials responded that the lighting was not authorized. April – Alec and Irene Barrow were interviewed on the Listen, Learn, and Love podcast. Alec, one of the first openly gay seminary teachers in the church, talked about his experience growing up gay in the church and marrying his wife, Irene. April – BYUtv told Toronto's NOW Magazine that it will start having more openly LGBTQ people in their shows. This came in response to Canadian writers and producers expressing concerns over BYUtv's unwritten exclusion of LGBTQ people. April – Natasha Helfer, a Latter-day Saint and licensed sex therapist, was excommunicated by the church for “conduct contrary to the law and order of the church.” Helfer had publicly supported same-sex marriage, counseled that masturbation was not a sin, and insisted that pornography use should not be treated as an addiction. April – Austin Haymore, a gay BYU student, was retroactively suspended hours after his graduation. Haymore claimed to have met a man years before who stalked him and reported him to the Honor Code Office for being on a gay dating app. April – Hank Smith, a popular Latter-day Saint speaker and BYU religion professor, referred to gay BYU student Calvin Burke on a Twitter thread as “Korihor”, a name commonly seen as synonymous with an anti-Christ. The comment came after an exchange between Smith and others regarding the excommunication of Natasha Helfer, where Burke made comments that were critical of Smith and far-right DezNat affiliated accounts in the same thread. After receiving backlash for the post, Smith removed it and offered an apology. Months after the exchange, Burke claimed to have been repeatedly harassed by the DezNat community online, to the point of them offering a reward to get Burke expelled from BYU. Burke transferred out of BYU during his senior year due to not feeling safe on campus. May – As part of the In Re Gray and Rice case, the Utah Supreme Court upheld the right of transgender people to change their name and sex on birth cirtificates and other state records. May – The first devotional about the LGBTQ experience on the BYU–Hawaii campus was held, with the Mackintosh family and Iese Wilson as speakers. May – Tad R. Callister, a previous Sunday School general president, wrote a Church News article in which he stated that the biggest national problem to date was the breakdown of traditional family values. Part of the article states that same-sex marriage and abortion are tools used by Satan to destroy the nuclear family. Several months later, Callister published America’s Choice: A Nation Under God or Without God, where among other topics, he discusses how gay people's sexual orientation can change.