Episode 476: Eli Wood, Recent BYU-Idaho Graduate, Gay Latter-Day Saint

Listen, Learn & Love Hosted by Richard Ostler

Richard Ostler

Religion & Spirituality

4.8 • 839 Ratings

🗓️ 10 November 2021

⏱️ 85 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

My friend Eli Wood shares his story for the first time publicly. Eli talks about growing up in an active Idaho LDS family and navigating his way as a gay Latter-day Saint. Eli talks about being happy but knowing he was different from other boys. Eli, who is currently a flight attendant, talks about trying to date girls and the emotional challenges of that road. Eli talks about his time at BYU-Idaho, including great experiences and very difficult experiences (hearing difficult experiences helps us do better). Here he learned part of the reason why he wasn't meant to serve a proselytizing mission and how God will use you where you are to accomplish your life mission. Eli talks about his deep, helpful and meaningful relationship with his Heavenly Parents and the personal revelation and hope he is receiving. Eli, who is planning on being a marriage and family therapist, talks about his hopes for the future and how we can better come together as the same human family. This is a powerful podcast. If you are an LGBTQ Latter-day Saint looking for hope, Eli's story will help you! If you are a parent or local leader, Eli's insights will help you--when we know better we do better. Thank you Eli for being on the podcast. You are a great man with a wonderful future. ** Please Check Out My Book At: ** Deseret Book: www.deseretbook.com/p/listen-learn-and-love-embracing-lgbtq-latter-day-saints Amazon: www.amazon.com/dp/1462135773 ** Want to develop church-supported LGBTQ activities in your local area? Please join our FB group: ** https://www.facebook.com/groups/1433556613672143

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome listeners to another episode of Listen, Learn, and Love, hosted by Richard Osler.
0:09.0	Before I introduce my guest, I just am thank you for listening to the podcast, thank you for
0:14.0	sharing with others, thank you for going to Apple and reviewing the podcast, thank you for the book
0:19.5	that I've written at Amazon and Desert
0:21.4	Book for leaving a review. Those are things you can help. You can't donate to the podcast. There's no
0:26.1	donation trail here. It's just a labor of love. But those things you can do to help. Purpose this
0:32.0	podcast, as you know, is to magnify the voices of those that we don't hear as much in our faith.
0:37.2	And so we can do better.
0:39.3	And I felt impressed the step in the space as an ally to amplify the voice of LGBTQ Latterty
0:45.4	Saints, and we've done hundreds of podcasts, and every podcast is different.
0:50.2	And I assume this podcast will be different today and helpful and insightful, and we pray that you'll feel the spirit.
0:57.4	My guest and I said a prayer, and our hope is that his story will help you.
1:01.6	If you're closeted, if you're out, if you're a parent, if you're a local leader, that just the things that my friend shares will be helpful.
1:09.0	So to introduce my friend, his name is Eli Wood.
1:13.5	Welcome to the podcast, Eli.
1:15.1	Hello, thank you so much for having me.
1:18.1	Eli is 22.
1:19.8	He's a gay Latter-day Saint.
1:21.5	He recently graduated from BYU, Idaho.
1:26.2	I'll let him talk about his career in a second. He's just going to share, since he's
1:30.8	younger, he'll share his story as a gay Latter-day Saint. And this is what really, I've known
1:38.3	of Eli, and we've traded messages for a while, but he hasn't been out broadly. So this in some
	...

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