Ben Schilaty: Therapist, Author, Podcaster
Books
For when your amazing therapist isn't around
I published a book!
President M. Russell Ballard counseled, "We need to listen to and understand what our LGBT brothers and sisters are feeling and experiencing. Certainly, we must do better than we have done in the past so that all members feel they have a spiritual home where their brothers and sisters love them and where they have a place to worship and serve the Lord" (BYU devotional, November 14, 2017). A Walk in My Shoes: Questions I'm Often Asked as a Gay Latter-day Saint invites readers to act upon that counsel by following the journey of Ben Schilaty, a licensed therapist and BYU Honor Code administrator, as he works to reconcile his faith with his sexual orientation. Each chapter in the book focuses on a question that the author is often asked, such as, "Were you born gay?" "Why do you stay in the Church?" "Why don't you marry a woman if marriage is about more than sex?" A Walk in My Shoes allows readers a glimpse into the life of a single, gay, active Latter-day Saint and provides guidance for how they can support and minister to their LGBTQ loved ones.
I published 8% of a book!
Deseret Book Co (August 21, 2023)
The Power of Proximity--Chapter 8
Prophets of all ages have amplified the same message: unity is of God and division is of Satan. Yet we see division on every hand—politically, culturally, socially, doctrinally.
As a people, we often fall short of the admonitions of the Lord and His servants to avoid contention and to earnestly seek unity—even oneness. Christ Himself was blunt in stating, “He that hath the spirit of contention is not of me, but is of the devil, who is the father of contention” (3 Nephi 11:29). His rebuke in our modern dispensation makes it clear that still we have not reached unity: “Cease to contend one with another” (D&C 136:23).
How can we achieve unity when we come from such a broad range of experiences, perspectives, and unique traits? In this collection of essays, you will learn how fourteen faithful and diverse thinkers address the problem of unity and division in the Church. Some of the essays focus on examining the issue, while others suggest possible solutions. All, however, invite us to view those with whom we disagree not as enemies or problems, but as additional perspectives and as our spiritual siblings. They remind us that in celebrating diversity and working for unity within diversity, we mirror the mind of God. Only through such efforts will we truly be able to live according to the words of Paul: “Be like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind” (Philippians 2:2).
