A petition campaign demanding a halt to the LDS Church’s practice of closed-door, one-on-one interviews by bishops with children — sometimes including inquiries about sexual matters — had collected 11,493 signatures as of Thursday.
At a news conference, organizer Sam Young, a former Mormon bishop, said the petition will be presented March 30 at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ downtown Salt Lake City headquarters.
But Young, a Houston businessman who describes himself as an active Mormon, told a crowd of about 75 that “top church leaders” should “not wait for the petition” to “immediately, today” order an end to these explicit, private interviews.