How does the Mormon Church handle excommunication for LGBTQ+ members?
Executive summary
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter‑day Saints treats sexual activity outside its teachings as a potential disciplinary matter, with penalties ranging from probation and “disfellowshipment” to excommunication; whether LGBTQ‑identified members face excommunication depends on behavior, repentance, and local leaders’ application of church rules [1]. The church’s formal posture shifted sharply after 2015 (when same‑sex marriage was labeled apostasy in practice) and again in 2019, when leaders said same‑sex marriage was a “serious transgression” but would no longer be treated as apostasy for discipline — a change that reduced the explicit threat of excommunication for married same‑sex couples [2] [3].
1. How disciplinary processes are structured and what excommunication means
Discipline in the LDS Church is guided by its Handbook and can include probation, disfellowshipment (temporary exclusion from sacraments), or withdrawal of membership — the latter commonly called excommunication — actions intended to follow a process of repentance and restoration where possible [1] [4]. Excommunication removes formal membership privileges, can bar temple attendance and ordination, and is administratively overseen by local priesthood leaders using guidelines in the handbooks [4] [5].
2. The 2015 policy: apostasy, family ruptures, and its practical effects
A 2015 policy implementation effectively categorized members in same‑sex marriages as apostates and imposed restrictions on their children’s rites, a move that, according to reporting and subsequent accounts, led to resignations, fractured families, and some instances of disciplinary action including excommunication [1] [6] [7]. Critics and advocacy groups said the policy increased fear and exclusion and that many who faced disciplinary councils and “refused to repent—or insisted that their feelings are integral to who they are—almost always were excommunicated,” as one summary noted [1].
3. The 2019 reversal: what changed and what stayed the same
In April 2019 church leaders announced that same‑sex marriage would no longer be treated as apostasy for disciplinary purposes, and children of same‑sex couples could be baptized without special approval — a rollback meant to “reduce the hate and contention” and to remove an explicit path to excommunication for being in a same‑sex marriage [2] [3]. The church, however, continued to describe same‑sex sexual relations as a “serious transgression” under its moral code, signaling that sexual behavior, rather than identity alone, remains the central disciplinary trigger [2] [8].
4. Local discretion, continued discipline, and real‑world outcomes
Despite handbook clarifications and the 2019 change, local leaders retain considerable discretion in convening disciplinary councils and interpreting repentance, and scholars and former members report that some leaders have continued to discipline or excommunicate LGBTQ people — sometimes citing apostasy or other grounds — meaning practice can vary by region and leader [9] [10]. The church’s public releases and the 2020 combined handbook sought transparency and standardized terms (e.g., “withdrawal of membership”), but they do not eliminate discretionary judgments at the ward or stake level [4].
5. Historical context: decades of shifting doctrine and practice
The church’s approach to same‑sex attraction and same‑sex relations has evolved over many decades — from past eras when even celibate gay members faced excommunication to a softer rhetoric and reduced calls for orientation‑change therapy in recent years — but doctrinal teachings have consistently reserved marriage and temple blessings for cisgender, heterosexual unions, which has shaped disciplinary norms [11] [10]. This history helps explain why policy shifts like 2019 provoked both relief and calls for further restitution from LGBTQ members and allies [7].
6. Disputes, critics, and limits of available reporting
Advocates and some LGBTQ members press for reversals of past excommunications and formal apologies, while church leaders emphasize doctrinal boundaries and pastoral intent; reporting documents both institutional changes and continued complaints about uneven enforcement and harm [7] [9]. Available sources document policy texts and high‑profile shifts through 2019–2020 and firsthand accounts of continued disciplinary actions, but do not provide comprehensive, up‑to‑date statistics on how frequently LGBTQ‑related excommunications occur today or how many past excommunications have been formally reversed [4] [9].
7. Bottom line
Excommunication for LGBTQ people in the LDS Church is not automatic on the basis of identity alone according to current public policy: disciplinary action typically targets sexual behavior or public advocacy contrary to church teachings, and the 2019 reversal removed same‑sex marriage as a formal apostasy category, yet local leaders’ discretion and historical practices mean LGBTQ members still sometimes face councils and, in some cases, excommunication — a contested, evolving terrain that remains both pastorally sensitive and politically visible [2] [1] [9].