Background of Prop 8
In 2000, 61% of California voters passed an initiative which defined marriage in California as a union between one man and one woman. In May 2008, the California Supreme Court voted 4-3 that the previous proposition violated the equal protection clause of the California Constitution, and stated that individuals of the same sex have the right to marry. In the November 2008 election, the state of California voted on Proposition 8. This proposition would amend the California Constitution to say: “Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.” If passed, same sex couples would still have all rights in regards to healthcare, housing, employment, etc. that they currently have. If proposition 8 does not pass, schools would have the right to teach same gender marriage to children, despite this being the right of parents to teach their children. Along the same lines, churches who do not marry same sex couples could be sued and/or lose their tax exemption status, and colleges that do not offer married housing to same sex couples who are married, could lose their university accreditation or money from the state.
Words of a Prophet
On June 20, 2008, the First Presidency of the Church distributed a letter about “Preserving Traditional Marriage and Strengthening Families,” announcing the Church’s participation with the ProtectMarriage Coalition. The letter was read in sacrament meetings throughout the state on multiple Sundays, asking that Church members “do all they can to support the proposed constitutional amendment.” We were asked to support the amendment financially and with our time and efforts.
My Experience
When I heard the letter read in sacrament meeting the first Sunday, I was a little confused. I wondered why we would be asked to support a political issue. I thought that the church stood back from politics. In the subsequent weeks, my bishop read this letter again and again. I still didn’t understand why this was such a big deal. In August, we were asked to go door to door getting voter opinions on Prop 8. At first I didn’t volunteer. I have people who are very close to me who are involved in same sex relationships and this was the last thing that I wanted to do. Plus I couldn’t see myself going door to door polling voters. I was scared that I wouldn’t know what to say or wouldn’t be able to defend the proposition. I had already donated money, which I figured would be my contribution for this proposition. When the third Sunday that we were asked to poll our neighbors came, I had really prayed and pondered my role in this. Basically, for me it came down to if I believed that there was a living prophet on the earth who speaks for the Lord, and if I believed there was a prophet, would I follow His counsel? Words of my patriarchal blessing came to my mind: “Above all heed the counsel and pronouncements of the living prophet. He certainly interprets the mind and will of God to you and your generation.” I had read those sentences multiple times, but never before had they jumped out of the page at me. Since I have come to know without a doubt that President Thomas S. Monson is our prophet on the earth, I knew that I needed to do all I could to support the proposed amendment. The following Saturday I went door to door polling voters. We went out in pairs, and I believe we spoke to around 100 households. I was so scared at first. We were given some papers which explained the proposition and gave examples of things that would happen if it did not pass. As people asked questions about the proposition, I was able to say without hesitation my stance and why I believed it should be passed. It did get easier as we continued on. People were appreciative that we were willing to volunteer to go door to door talking about it. Of course, there were people who were against the proposition and that was fine too. We were out doing all that would could to get the undecided voters to vote yes. By the time we were done with our houses, I no longer needed the papers that we were given with the facts. When I was done, I felt so good too. I had followed the counsel of the Prophet, and even though it was hard, it was such a great experience.
I figured that going door to door would be all that I would be asked to do. I should have known better. One month before the election, there was a special fireside given by Elders Cook and Clayton. In this fireside, they explained the importance of marriage and the church’s stand on this. Then they discussed what participation would be asked of the members in California. We were asked to hand out signs and talk to people explaining Yes on the proposition. Two weeks before the election, each YSA ward had a committee heading up our efforts. The chair of the committee had a conference call with the Brethren who said that the apostles are praying for us and our efforts daily. And they asked each member of the YSA wards to make 16 hours of calls in the last 16 days before the election. They wanted 1,000,000 people called in those 16 days. We were asked to log onto a call center, where the calls would be made from. We would ask those we called if they heard of Prop 8. If they hadn’t, we would explain what it was. If they had, we would ask them how they would vote if the election was held today. Depending on what they said we would thank them for their time, thank them for their Yes vote and support, or give them some more information on the importance of voting Yes.
When our bishop asked us to make these calls, I knew that I had to continue to do all I could to support this proposition and follow the Prophet. I made all of my 16 hours of calls on my own. Since I do not have a lap top, I couldn’t go to the calling groups that my ward had. As I started making my calls, I was so scared. I had no idea what to expect. During my first week of making the calls the response was about 50-50, but I did get a lot of people who didn’t want to talk to me. I had people yelling at me and calling me names. Of course this is what I feared I would hear, but I couldn’t stop calling because I said that I would do 16 hours and for each hour I was on the phone that was one less hour I had left to do. On Friday night October 24th, I had volunteered to make two hours of calls. What I really wanted to do this night was go to a regional costume party and dance in Los Angeles. But because I needed to make my calls, I didn’t go. And because I was home in my room making these calls alone, I was feeling sorry for myself. To top this off, my wireless internet connection wasn’t working. So all I could think was that I was doing something that I was asked to do, and had said I would do. I’m missing doing something fun, and I can’t even make the calls because my internet wouldn’t work. At this point, I said a prayer asking for help to make my calls and just letting my Heavenly Father know how I felt about this situation. Eventually, my internet started to work and I was able to make my two hours worth of calls. The whole time I was making my calls, even up until I hung up the phone, the internet icon on my computer showed no signal. I know that this was an answer to my prayer. I was heard and I was blessed for following the prophet.
During the second week of making the calls, those who said Yes seemed to be more than the No’s. I had multiple people who thanked me for calling and said to keep it up. Every time I heard this, I got energized. These positive responses made it easier to continue calling. One of the calls that I made was to a family up in northern California. When I said “Hi my name is Nicole and I’m calling as a volunteer for the Yes on 8 campaign”, I heard screaming in the background. I couldn’t tell if this was a scream in my favor or against it. Then I heard the man say that he and his family just got back from standing outside for two hours in the rain holding up their Yes on Prop 8 signs. He then passed the phone around and I talked to his family. His wife said to keep calling, we need to do all we can to help this proposition pass. They thanked me and I thanked them for their work. I can’t tell you how much I needed to hear this. It was such an amazing experience. I knew that I was doing the right thing. I knew that my prayers were being answered. I knew that my Heavenly Father had heard me. He knew how difficult this was for me to do, and I felt His love for me.
We were told that Elder Ballard believes that the YSA’s in California have been given an opportunity to develop the skills necessary to lead the Church going forward, and what he is witnessing is the raising of that next generation of leaders. What an amazing thing to be a part of. Our bishop had the opportunity to meet and talk with Elder L. Tom Perry after a BYU football game (this was a few days after the protests at the LA Temple began). Elder Perry said to tell us thank you for our work on Prop 8. He also said to tell us not to worry, that all will be well, that the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles were still praying for us. Once again, we were given words of comfort, something we so desperately needed during this difficult time. Just when we thought we had done what was needed and the proposition passed, we were again met with opposition, and the Lord blessed us by answering our prayers again.
From this experience, I have learned so much about myself and about the world. I realized that I can carry out and be successful doing things that are difficult for me to do. I also realized how important it is to follow a prophet’s counsel. Once I decided to follow that counsel, I learned that I must still do all that I can to follow his words. Since the passing of Prop 8, I have seen the opposition that has come again against the church. I have seen people defend the church and I’ve been able to defend the church. I have had people who are not members of the church ask me if they can stand guard at the Los Angeles Temple or at church buildings if the leaders of the church ask for help. I’ve been able to express to my family and friends my reasons for following the Prophet. I am very grateful that I was given the opportunity to serve in this manner. I feel that we had such a tremendous responsibility in following the words of the Prophet and I am so grateful that I was one of the few that did so. I don’t know what will happen in the future, but I assume that we will be standing up for truth and righteous many times to come. I feel so blessed that I have been able to prove to my Heavenly Father that I can stand up for Him. This experience was probably the most difficult, yet most rewarding that I have been a part of, and knowing what I do now, I would never have changed my involvement in it.
Nicole Ognibene, daughter of Georgia Ognibene, Jamestown Ward
