Madi Thoele, 4th Period: 1,500 Mormons Resign After New Rules Are Put In Place

Summary: 1,500 people are resigning from the Mormon church after a new same-sex policy was issued. The Mormon church released new guidelines for their church leaders, called "Handbook 1", that stated same-sex couples are apostate and that their children aren't allowed to be baptized. The policy does not affect children already baptized. People who want to resign have brought their letters to attorney Mark Naugle on Saturday, and he is to help them resign. He will deliver the resignation letters to the church's headquarters in Salt Lake City, Utah on Monday. The LDS (Latter Day Saints) doesn't want anyone to leave the church, but it doesn't seem like they will change their mind about the new policy.

Analysis: The Mormon church has opposed same-sex marriage for a long time, but it has officially implemented its opposition into the handbook for the church leaders. The authors of this article, Susanna Capelouto and Ralph Ellis, published it on Sunday, November 15th. The article is not biased because both the lawyer and the LDS are quoted, so they have included both sides of the conflict. This incident is like the founding of Mormonism. After Joseph Smith, founder of the religion, was assassinated, Brigham Young, the new leader, led a migration of Mormons to Salt Lake City, Utah. Now, Mark Naugle will take the resignation letters to Salt Lake City. The first journey was great for the religion because it established a place that was heavily Mormon (and still is), and the Mormons could feel safe with people of the same religion. Now, this second journey will not benefit the religion because people are leaving it and these new rules are causing bad publicity.

Link: http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/14/us/mormon-mass-resignation/index.html