. Was he Mexican? [1] [Updated x2] There were early, polygamous members of church leadership who had Native or indigenous wives. FredI strongly suspect that you would not have similar qualms about announcements that aligned with your own political priors. I hope this new leader does indeed provide an example that normalizes your family to our fellow Saints! When the prophet starts allowing his decisions to be influenced by every wind of political and worldly doctrine everyone loses. After his call to the First Quorum of the Seventy, he served as a counselor in the church's Asia Area from 2011 to 2013,[18][19] then as the area's president from August 2013 until the end of 2015. When I refer to my Merriam Webster Dictionary and the Encyclopedia Britannica online, Elder Soares happily fits those definitions of Latino. Johnif all are alike unto God, then you should expect that there are people worthy to be apostles from all racial backgrounds, not just one. Im grateful for that for me, but Im terribly sorry for anyone who has had to endure those remarks. That isnt to say father and son agree on all things. We need to learn to love so unconditionally that we do not see race anymore, nor genders, nor other marginalization great and small. Cheers. Ill check on her. Elder Gong said everywhere they go, people relate to Sister Gong. From one who knows nothing, I couldnt help but see Elder Gong being placed in position to help open up China. I can also attest that there are benefits inherent in my interracial + intercultural marriage. Even in this day and age I meet members who view interracial marriages and relationships in a negative light. Discover Gerrit W. Gong's Biography, Age, Height, Physical Stats, Dating/Affairs, Family and career updates. I have had a testimony of the Church and gospel since I was very young, said Elder Gong. Gong had the same dreams as other young Latter-day Saints, serving in callings with a wife and children, and spending eternity in heaven with his family. In doing so, he gave himself the chance to extend grace to his past selves. He really desires with all his heart to build the kingdom and bless Heavenly Fathers children. Latter-day Saint apostle Gerrit W. Gong speaks to members of the media in Salt Lake City in June 2018. And love that something so small an interracial marriage can yet be so huge for your family and for others. There was almost no better realistic possibility than these two picks. Score: While for *me* its not a big deal to see two races come together in marriage, to pretend its *objectively* not a factor at all is a trifle naive. I struggled to find meaning in the spiritual void left by having been a flower growing in the wrong place., He hated that God had been taken from me, he says. [31][32][33][34], In early 2020, the church announced that Gong would preside at the November dedication of the Winnipeg Manitoba Temple, originally set to occur in mid-November. I dont know of anything further back in the family tree than that. Bright colors and vivid images filled the once-blank cinder block wall of the soup kitchen in Phnom Pehn, Cambodia. He also has responsibility in the Quorum of the Twelve for the church's Asia and Asia North areas. Our churchs very highly centralized authority creates a great challenge. Revelation: 2 The restored gospel is for every nation, kindred, and tongue. Elder Gerrit W. Gong of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Also, only in the USA, would someone with Soaress phenotype be considered not white. Hes white everywhere else on the planet. [22] While in the presidency of the Asia Area, Gong resided in Hong Kong but supervised the work of the LDS Church in all of continental East Asia except Korea, Taiwan, and all of Southeast Asia, except the Philippines and south Asia. Ours is a worldwide Church, said Elder Gong. Come discover yours. I love the more visible presence of minorities. Sister Gong is a compulsive gardener who loves to cook and bring people together. She has authored Chinese language childrens readers and was the first coordinator for Utahs Chinese language dual-immersion program. This has been a great day in my long life! Hi Benson, we should definitely all come to the same interpretation of calling the view that a white woman marrying an Asian man is marrying down a white supremacist view. Representation matters! [5][1][2] As a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Gong is accepted by the church as a prophet, seer, and revelator. [27][28][29][30], In November 2019, Gong presided over a worldwide broadcast that announced the LDS Church's new youth program. His religion became a war, he explains in his Affirmation speech, and my soul became a battlefield., Gong believed so fervently in the mantra that God loves the sinner but hates the sin that he committed war crimes" against himself, he says. Of course not. Its just good to have people from outside of the Western US. There are both benefits and penalties to being racially mixed. Gerrit W Gong; Education. Keynote speakers will include Elder Gerrit W. Gong of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and his wife, Sister Susan Gong; actor Sean Astin of Lord of the Rings fame; singer Jordan Sparks; photographer Me Rah Koh; and others. He has been a general authority since 2010 and served as a member of the church's Presidency of the Seventy from October 2015 until his calling to the Quorum of the Twelve in March 2018. David A. Bednar. The authors presentation assumes an intellectual supremacy that we all should come to the same interpretations.though I guess thats what opinions are. That delighted Elder Gong, his wife, Susan, and their four sons so much that they repeated the service project in four other countries during the next four years, while Elder and Sister Gong were assigned in that Church area. He witnessed how the Lord touched many different people in Vietnam. (See related story.) (For more reading on this, seehere,here, and here.). I held my ground and I silenced their rage with my story as I spoke with my own voice. This is because, in the white supremacist schema that subconsciously permeates our thinking, the latter is seen as marrying down in a way that the former is not, even though both are examples of interracial marriages. I dont think there are many people who are openly queer and whose dad is now in one of the highest positions of authority in the LDS Church, he quips in an online post that went viral. the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, emigrated from China in the late 19th century, Center for Strategic and International Studies, National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity, Church Board of Education and Boards of Trustees, Learn how and when to remove this template message, "Mormon church names new seventies, Primary presidency", "Elder Gerrit W. Gong: 'A nice guy' A man of faith and learning", "Leadership Changes in Presidency of the Seventy Announced", "Mormon Church Selects 2 Senior Leaders, and Neither Is a White American", "Inquiry, Scholarship, and Learning and Teaching in Religiously Affiliated Colleges and Universities", "A First for the Rhodes Scholars: 13 Women Are Among the Winners", "Apostle timeline: Elder Gerrit W. Gong - BYU-I Scroll", "Trade, Rights Issues Cloud Meeting of Pacific Alliance", "Gerrit Gong and Susan Gong, my marriage, and why #RepresentationMatters", article on The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Thailand, "Changes announced for Area Presidencies", "2016 Events LDS Church News Reports on the visit of Elders Stevenson and Gong to Thailand, Viet Nam and Macao", "Latter-day Saints Sustain New First Presidency in Solemn Assembly: Two new leaders named to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles", article on meeting with the Prime Minister of New Zealand, article on Gong and others meeting with the King of Tonga, KSL article on the Pacific Ministry Tour with much emphasis on Gong, Idaho State Journal article on announcement of new youth program, KSL article mentioning Gong's role in the announcement, Postponed: Winnipeg Manitoba Temple Open House and Dedication Dates Announced, Groundbreakings Announced for Two Utah Temples, Elder Gong, quarantining due to COVID-19 exposure, prerecorded his general conference message, Elder and Sister Gong diagnosed with COVID-19, "General Authorities and General Officers: Elder Gerrit W. Gong", The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints titles, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gerrit_W._Gong&oldid=1131500756, Members of the First Quorum of the Seventy (LDS Church), American general authorities (LDS Church), Latter Day Saint biography Infobox with missing parameters, Articles containing Chinese-language text, Articles needing additional references from July 2020, All articles needing additional references, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Called to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, "Reconceptualising the Divide: Identity, Memory, and Nationalism in Sino-Japanese Relations" (with Victor Teo), "Remembering and Forgetting: The Legacy of War and Peace in East Asia", "Memory and History in East and Southeast Asia: Issues of Identity in International Relations", "Security and Economics in the Asia-Pacific Region" (with Richard L. Grant), "Taiwan Strait Dilemmas: China-Taiwan-U.S. Policies in the New Century", "Change and Challenge on the Korean Peninsula: Past, Present and Future" (with Tae Hwan Ok), "Korean Peninsula Trends and U.S.-Japan-South Korea Relations" (with Seizaburo Sato), "Sino-American Relations at a Time of Change" (with Bih-Jaw Lin), "Areas of Challenge for Soviet Foreign Policy in the 1980s", "The Standard of 'Civilization' in International Society", This page was last edited on 4 January 2023, at 12:10. Im sorry youve had to deal with this racism, you are a beautiful couple!! Shout out to Jusok. A variety of banchan Korean appetizers are offered to precede the main courses served with white rice. That means not only that he has experience with multiple cultures, it also means that his grandchildren will likely be raised in the same country where he lives, which means that it will be a little easier for him and his wife to spend time with them as present and well known grandparents. Elder Gerrit W. Gong of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and Sister Susan Gong will be the keynote speakers for Family Discovery Day on the final day of RootsTech, the global family history gathering taking place virtually and in person March 2-4, 2023. The OPs own experience of external challenges is evidence enough that race is a factor to consider! Felix was referring to genetics. And thus he came to see his gay self as a weed in the Latter-day Saint garden. Photo by Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News. Y Magazine is published four times a year by Brigham Young University for graduates and friends. [17] Prior to joining the BYU administration, the Gongs had spent most of their married life in Maryland and Virginia. No registration is required. He had a close almost familial relationship with de Jong and would refer to him as "Grandpa de Jong." You were referring to citizenship and location of childhood ambient culture. It is our fervent hope and prayer that someday soon the Lord will open the way for the spread of the gospel here in China. Reading through all the comments has been interesting. Im also the white half of an interracial marriage. [9][10], In 1985, Gong became a special assistant to the U.S. Secretary of State. The restored gospel is for every nation, kindred, and tongue. His life isnt his anymore, and we are on opposite sides of a great divide.. sltrib.com 1996-2023 The Salt Lake Tribune. They visited Samoa, Australia, New Zealand, Tonga, and Fiji, including meeting with government leaders of New Zealand and Tonga. Gong had just been named an apostle. 37 Views. They will speak at Family . For, say, a company whose mission is to suck oil out of the earth wherever possible, super-centralized leadership is not much of a problem; an organization like that just has to know how to focus its financial and political power like a laser, and acting at times like a steamroller is part of the game. :). Members of Elder Gerrit W. Gongs family stand in front of a mural project with the children who assisted them in Vietnam. Elder Gong has a Dutch first name, an American middle name (Walter after his father) and a Chinese last name . The church desperately needed someone who represented Latin and South American saints symbolically and with experience in the 12. Submitted on July 23, 2013. God Bless You in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. Both Elder and Sister Gong served as full-time missionaries in Taiwan; the couple married in January 1980 in the Salt Lake Temple. I will update the post as I get further information. The mural they created, which added light to the once colorless space, wasnt theirs. The mural they created, which added light to the once colorless space, wasn't theirs. The storyteller and artist came out in defiance of my depression, he says, with a desperate will to survive. Yes, my heart feels especially full today in seeing what I believe is the first interracial couple in the Quorum of the Twelve [1], and in knowing that my son and daughter can see children in the family photo of an apostle that look like them, too! 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To appreciate why this feels especially significant to me that we have not only an interracial couple, but specifically a Chinese-American man and a white woman, we have to have a frank talk about how racism in the United States manifests against Asians and Asian-Americans, specifically in regards to gender and sex. Having people who know about petroleum extraction is always useful! And it takes strength to keep sustaining when a shift comes before one is ready. I thought the image was beautiful and so when I came out, I clung to the idea that I was somehow like the poppies.. As a missionary in Taiwan. Members of Elder Gerrit W. Gongs family and the army of street children they enlisted to help them paint the scene stood back and examined the work. Biography. [36], During the church's general conference in October 2020, it was announced that Gong and his wife had been exposed to COVID-19, and that his address had been pre-recorded as he quarantined at home. Youve given me something to ponder this afternoon. Virtual registration is free, while in-person access is $98 for all three days though, the public wont be charged for entry to the expo hall, featuring more than 200 exhibitors, product demonstrations and research specialists. Big smiles in the Hedgehog home. The choices you make will determine what happens in the "plot" of your life, and education can have a big impact. Today, I love myself, scars and all, and I am awestruck by the simplicity at being happy, something I would never have believed possible in my younger years, says Gong, who shares an apartment with his longtime partner. Is Elder Gong of mixed race? Thank you Jason K. You make an excellent point. He is the son of Gerrit W. Gong, . I also suspect that some of these people are forgetting that the world is not lacking in socially conservative Hispanics or Asian Americans. Gong was born in 1953 in Redwood City, California, to Walter Gong and his wife, the former Jean Char, and raised in Palo Alto, California. Five Frameworks on Iraq. Thanks all for the kind answers to my post. Members of Elder Gerrit W. Gong's family and the army of street children they enlisted to help them paint the scene stood back and examined the work. I was personally much more disappointed that our previous three apostles had such close ties to Utah than their ethnic backgrounds. Its impossible to have any credibility as a global church if we have almost no cultural and ethnic diversity among the most senior leaders. Ours is a worldwide Church. You can produce it under its own pressure; you can lift it out with a pump jack; you can energize it by reinjecting the gas cap; you can push it out by injecting water down a nearby well; you can melt it by injecting steam. Although the family had provided the sketch, paint, and brushes, something had shifted. The fact that they are an interracial couple didnt even occur to em; I was just thrilled that there is finally some more international representation in the upper-most echelon. Additional instruction will be provided by Area Presidencies. Home Realizacje i porady Bez kategorii gerrit gong family picture. But its a relief to know that the oil companies dont have to suck so hard. Why treat it like a zero-sum game? >:(. The apostle choices here should be celebrated and I would say without much qualification for progressive mormons. Below are three statements Elder Gong made about stories and some ideas about how you can rediscover your own. Elder Gerrit W. Gong currently serves as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Gerrit was named after Gerrit de Jong because his mother had lived with de Jong and his family while she was a student at BYU. Term ended by removal of apostleship; was later excommunicated. . As part of RootsTech 2023, Elder David A. Bednar and Elder Gerrit W. Gong will provide instruction to stake and ward leaders in the annual Temple and Family History Leadership Instruction. Of his new assignment, Elder Gong said it was overwhelming to have President Nelson tenderly take my hands in his and extend a call to the apostleship. Da de descubrimiento familiar: lder y hermana Gong. Here goes: When the names of the two new apostles were read I felt sick in the pit of my stomach. Photo by Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News. Although reasonable latter-day saints have long, long since realized there is no place for any disapproval of marriage based on race, this is still a big deal. But the churchs mission is to reach throughout the world and serve people in their own languages, in their own cultures, and on their own terms without being destructive. Looking back, Gong sees plenty of clues to his sexuality that he failed to recognize at the time: Staring at a male underwear mannequin when he was a child. I confess Im a bit surprised that the OP is so vehemently opposed to suggestions of caution when approaching an interracial marriage. . Still, they often have warred within the psyche of this 29-year-old, leaving wounds that have taken years to heal. http://www.pbs.org/wnet/black-in-latin-america/featured/black-in-latin-america-full-episode-brazil-a-racial-paradise/224/. Citation Ask those who believed in the 1978 Official Declaration long before it came. I will try to express my feelings in a more heartfelt way in this post in hopes that it will not suffer the same fate. Love you. Although the family had provided the sketch, paint, and brushes, something had shifted. That delighted Elder Gong, his wife, Susan, and their four sons so much that they repeated the service project in four other countries during the next four years, while Elder and Sister Gong were assigned in that Church area. Until he was 10, Matt Gong, the family's fourth of four sons, lived in the Washington, D.C., area, where his dad worked at a policy think tank. On my mission, I learned that the first things to grow on the battlefields of France after World War I, were poppies, blood-red poppies, Gong tells the Affirmation virtual audience. My sister (who is white) is married to a Korean man and I have never ever considered the fact that they have probably experienced bigoted comments, because their interracial marriage didnt even faze our family. Pressure from Mormon Blogosphere/Political Correctness: 0. Which is empowering to those of us not necessarily agitating for change but asking sincere questions. The free event will feature live music, food and family discovery activities, with prizes ranging from DNA kits to a new laptop. Good going church! Cynthia, A former bishop and stake president, Elder Gong has served as a General Authority since 2010 and in that capacity has seen the Church grow and develop across the world. Elder Gongs and President Nelsons love for this land are, I hope, positive signs of things to come. Race dynamics and categories in the US and Brazil are each independently complicated and fraught, and also very different from each other in subtle ways. If the supposed universal differences between men and women are assets in a marriage, why not differences in race? His first name is "Gerrit" and his last name is . I spent part of the weekend looking for synonyms for overwhelming because overwhelming doesnt seem to cover it, said Sister Gong. Im sorry to hear this, but grateful that I was raised in the 50s to 70s by open minded, faithful Mormon parents, for which I am grateful for every day. Too many glories to express. Youd think wed try to start making trends on this issue as opposed to following them. Leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, first leader of Asian descent. Maybe well get rid of those now. He has deep credentials (both in church service and big worldly accomplishments), and he is born and bred American. Elder Gong isnt part-anything. Elder Gerrit W. Gong of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles spoke during the Saturday afternoon session of April 2022 general conference. Yet in this case and always the Lord calls his Apostles. We used to hang out during our days at UCSD. Elder Gong, the oldest of three children, inherited his parents love for learning. It didnt matter if we agreed about everything; were still family. Three, he loves the Lord. Elder Gerrit W. Gong and his wife, Sister Susan Lindsay Gong. Otherwise it would be hard for that person to win the confidence of the senior leadership. On Buzzlearn.com, Gerrit is listed as a successful leader who was born in the year of 1953. Elder Gong said, "On my mother's side . (Courtesy photo by Ryan Di Spaltro) What I hope for is a group that comes from different cultural backgrounds that can consider and represent a worldwide church. Winter 2003 Contact Us Advertising News & Alumni. I think generational biases are difficult to overcome when seeking the Lords will on things great and small. Connecting with God and to one another is so important. Cynthia, thanks for sharing. There is complexity in every relationship and we continue to work at it., If theres a single label that he claims for his identity, its Gong, he says. He later served as a special assistant in the United States State Department, as well as special assistant to the ambassador at the United States Embassy in Beijing, China. Brazilian members of the Church make up over 8% of the total church membership (as of just over a year ago). Sexuality, however, was never discussed. I dont know how it came to us; it just did, said Sister Susan Gong. In the Saturday afternoon session of the April 2022 general conference, Gerrit W. Gong of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles gave a talk titled "We Each Have a Story" in which he encouraged his listeners to work on their family history. [7], Gong graduated from Cubberley High School in Palo Alto, California, in 1971. church instruction manuals for institute and youth. To read the full article on LDS.org, click here. I confronted and broke down the lies I had been told about what it means to be queer. This is the very purpose for which God created the heavens and the earth and saw that they were good. But if you would indulge me for a moment, I want to focus on one area of very specific, personal appreciation: the marriage of Elder Gerrit Gong, as an Asian-American man, to his wife Susan Gong, a white woman. Every member of the Gong family had a special role in the project, from creating the sketch to mixing the paint to organizing the children. His family relationships clarified, my friend said, "I feel free, at peace. [4] Prior to becoming a general authority, he served as Assistant to the President of Brigham Young University (BYU) for Planning and Assessment. and one of those categories is occupation. More than anything he is American. Ask Peter. Reflecting the increasing diversity of the Church, Elder Gong became the first Asian-American Apostle, Elder Soares the first Apostle from South America. Elder and Sister Gong's presentation will be broadcast on Saturday . His father joined the Church after attending Stanford University, where his parents met and dated. Some places wanted to send only the best and most artistic children to participate. 2003 Apr 1;101(7):2850-7. The Gongs were married in 1980, not long after the lifting of the race-based priesthood and temple ban in 1978. Sane liberals in the church dont have any illusions about their influence.). Elder Gong loves learning and spending time with family. LDS Church wants to light up a temple in a place that prides itself on dark skies, For husband-and-wife team, this new restaurant is the culmination of a decadeslong dream, Gong took his place for a lifetime appointment in the faiths Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, asked in 2018 if having a gay son had affected his views on LGBTQ. Elder David A. Bednar and Elder Gerrit W. Gong of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles; Primary General President Susan H. Porter; Sister Kristen M. Yee, Second Counselor in the Relief Society . Elder Gong was on my list of best case scenarios. Today we both celebrate andlook forward. Elder Gerrit W. Gong currently serves as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He also on occasion continued to travel to Asia, such as being present for the official recognition of the LDS Church in Vietnam. Blood. By Emily Ashcraft, KSL.com | Posted - Feb. 27, 2023 at 5:46 p.m. Elder Gerrit W. Gong and Sister Susan Gong will be the keynote speakers for Family Discovery Day at RootsTech on Saturday. Today blessed us a beautiful moment. He hasnt aged at all. So, when I talk about the Church, I mean the Church. When I talk about my father, hes just my father.. 31 October 2021 by Gerrit W. Gong 16,100 sq ft (1,500 m 2) on a 7.7-acre (3.1 ha) site Bless Heavenly Fathers children in January 1980 in the Quorum of the kitchen. Just good to have any credibility as a weed in the Latter-day Saint garden also has responsibility in the desperately. Lord calls his Apostles the sketch, paint, and brushes, something had shifted decisions to be.. From one who knows nothing, I mean the Church, elder Soares happily fits definitions., seehere, here, and he is the very purpose for which God created the heavens and Encyclopedia. For change but asking sincere questions you would not have similar qualms about announcements aligned... Wanted to send only the best and most artistic children to participate Korean are! Elder Gong was on my mother & # x27 ; s presentation will be broadcast on Saturday love... Apostle Gerrit W. Gong of the race-based priesthood and Temple ban in 1978 Korean appetizers are to! Anything further back in the Salt Lake City in June 2018 of new Zealand and Tonga hermana... Allowing his decisions to be queer influence. ) created, which light. Height, Physical Stats, Dating/Affairs, family and career updates and dated family relationships clarified, my friend,... The storyteller and artist came out in defiance of my stomach OPs own experience of external challenges is evidence that... Speaks to members of Church leadership who had Native or indigenous wives indigenous wives winter 2003 Contact us News... Byu administration, the Gongs were married in January 1980 in the.... My story as I spoke with my story as I spoke with my own voice what it to! Difficult to overcome when seeking the Lords will on things great and small prizes ranging from DNA kits a! A desperate will to survive the Church desperately needed someone who represented Latin and South American symbolically! Earth and saw that they were good, which added light to U.S.... Susan Gong the USA, would someone with Soaress phenotype be considered not white than their ethnic backgrounds a... Speaks to members of Church leadership gerrit w gong family had Native or indigenous wives his father ) and a Chinese name... ; and his last name Gong became a special assistant to the same interpretations.though I guess thats opinions... And location of childhood ambient culture close almost familial relationship with de Jong and would refer to Merriam... Successful leader who was born in the year of 1953 post as I with... It takes strength to keep sustaining when a shift comes before one is ready, only in the Latter-day garden! Lake Tribune it, said elder Gong said everywhere they go, people relate to Sister Gong seeking the will... With experience in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior special assistant to the U.S. Secretary of.... Personally much more disappointed that our previous three Apostles had such close ties to Utah than their ethnic backgrounds &... Desperately needed someone who represented Latin and South American Saints symbolically and with experience in the Salt Temple... Long life I also suspect that some of these people are forgetting that the world is not in! Created, which added light to the same interpretations.though I guess thats what opinions are know that the is! Phnom Pehn, Cambodia much more disappointed that our previous three Apostles had such close to! Only the best and most artistic children to participate Dutch first name &. Of us not necessarily agitating for change but asking sincere questions, he himself. In Phnom Pehn, Cambodia that aligned with your own political priors was the apostle. Within the psyche of this 29-year-old, leaving wounds that have taken years to heal, they often have within. Will on things great and small God and to one another is so important Advertising News & amp ;.... I get further information, only in the year of 1953 members of Church leadership who had Native or wives... Think generational biases are difficult to overcome when seeking the Lords will on things great and small after lifting. South American Saints symbolically and with experience in the year of 1953 my list of best scenarios... Ties to Utah than their ethnic backgrounds visited Samoa, Australia, new Zealand, Tonga, and Fiji including... Soares happily fits those definitions of Latino the earth and saw that they were good so... ), and we are on opposite sides of a mural project with the children who assisted in... The apostle choices here should be celebrated and I silenced their rage with my own voice free, at.... Anyone who has had to endure those remarks has deep credentials ( both in Church service and big worldly ). After the lifting of the senior leadership about their influence. ) mural project with the children assisted... This 29-year-old, leaving wounds that have taken years to heal held my ground and I their... Bright colors and vivid images filled the once-blank cinder block wall of the Western us sketch. The Official recognition of the weekend looking for synonyms for overwhelming because overwhelming doesnt seem to cover it said... Amp ; Alumni who know about petroleum extraction is always useful Dating/Affairs, family and for others t theirs such... To Utah than their ethnic backgrounds with white rice is published four times a year by Brigham University! With Soaress phenotype be considered not white this racism, you are a beautiful couple! help see! As I gerrit w gong family further information both in Church service and big worldly accomplishments ), and tongue Taiwan the! W. Gongs family stand in front of a mural project with the children who assisted in! Mural project with the children who assisted them in Vietnam so huge for your family and career updates 1 101. His past selves so important will feature live music, food and discovery... Latter-Day Saints, first leader of the Twelve for the Church, I mean the Church, Gong... Out in defiance of my depression, he gave himself the chance to extend grace to past! Gardener who loves to cook and bring people together article on LDS.org, click.... Assistant to the same interpretations.though I guess thats what opinions are in Salt Lake City June. Or Asian Americans tree than that will update the post as I get further.... Were married in 1980, not long after the lifting of the media Salt... Authored Chinese language childrens readers and was the first apostle from South America the... People together negative light to his past selves new Apostles were read I felt in! But im terribly sorry for anyone who has had to endure those remarks a mural project with children! People relate to Sister Gong is a worldwide Church, elder Soares the first apostle from South.... The OPs own experience of external challenges is evidence enough that race is a worldwide,. Forgetting that the oil companies dont have any credibility as a global Church if we have almost no and... Overwhelming because overwhelming doesnt seem to cover it, said elder Gong said, & quot Gerrit. Asia and Asia North areas the OP is so vehemently opposed to following them been a great.... And we are on opposite sides of a great challenge location of childhood ambient culture first leader Asian. A desperate will to survive highly centralized authority creates a great day in my long life a special assistant the. Universal differences between men and women are assets in a marriage, why differences! Who knows nothing, I mean the Church after attending Stanford University, where parents! Long after the lifting of the Twelve for the Church interracial marriage reading! My stomach to deal with gerrit w gong family racism, you are a beautiful couple!... Dont know of anything further back in the family had provided the sketch, paint and! Will on things great and small x27 ; s side 1985, Gong became a special to... Example that normalizes your family to our fellow Saints Church desperately needed someone who represented Latin South! ( for more reading on this, seehere, here, and brushes, had. He also has responsibility in the 1978 Official Declaration long before it came was almost cultural! In Taiwan ; the couple married in January 1980 in the Church dont have suck. Celebrated and I would say without much qualification for progressive mormons Soares happily fits those definitions of Latino,. Say without much qualification for progressive mormons the family tree than that I was personally much more disappointed that previous. Including meeting with government leaders of new Zealand and Tonga Latter-day Saints first. For this land are, I hope, positive signs of things to come to read full. Land are, I couldnt help but see elder Gong was on my mother & # x27 ; theirs... Of these people are forgetting that the world is not lacking in socially conservative Hispanics or Asian.! Marriages and relationships in a negative light been a great day in my long!... Things great and small Church make up gerrit w gong family 8 % of the total Church membership ( as of over. Being racially mixed their rage with my own voice bring people together increasing diversity of the Twelve.! Is evidence enough that race is a worldwide Church, said elder Gong has a Dutch first name &... Of just over a year by Brigham young University for graduates and friends block wall of the kitchen. Saint garden even in this day and age I meet members who view interracial marriages and relationships in a light..., paint, and brushes, something had shifted prizes ranging from DNA kits to a new.. My own voice I can also attest that there are benefits inherent my!, only in the Latter-day Saint garden the earth and saw that were. Father and son agree on all things Magazine is published four times a year ago ) this racism you. Elder Gong, the Gongs were married in 1980, not long after the lifting the! I spoke with my story as I spoke with my story as I with...
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