As far as Neon Trees' Tyler Glenn is concerned, his ties with the Mormon Church are over. His recent strong statement against the Mormon Church is quite the opposite of the comment he made two years ago when he said that he is equally proud of being gay and a practicing Mormon.
But ever since the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints issued a restrictive and conservative stance on same-sex marriages and relationships, Glenn found it difficult to remain a member of the church. He even wrote the song "Trash" to describe his "violent relationship" with the church.
"My entire life and perspective on God, the afterlife, morals and values, my self-worth and my born sexual orientation [have] been wired within the framework of this religion that doesn't have a place for me," he told the Rolling Stone. "I served [this church]. I was the square peg trying to fit into the round hole. I believed it till six months ago."
"I always tried to make being gay and being Mormon work," he said. Glenn even thought of serving as the church's ambassador for progressive thinking. But instead, the church opted to excommunicate him and other members who are engaged in same-sex relationships. Now, Glenn wants to become a different kind of ambassador.
"The big problem here is that they claim it's the only truth," he said. "There have been over 40 suicides within the church as a result of this policy. These aren't just grown men and women. Many are children. It's backwards. It's not of God. I needed to make this statement to artfully show the pain of a faith crisis and the darkness of doubt, but also that there's ways to reclaim what is yours."
"Trash" is a solo endeavour for Glenn, but he said he will continue working with Neon Trees in the future. "I do love them and hope that this record doesn't change things negatively, but other than that, I feel fearless about it," he said.
