A couple have insisted that they’re happily married despite the husband admitting that he’s gay three weeks into dating.
Mormons Nicholas and Jordan Applegate, both 23, are devout members of the Church of Jesus Christ and Latter-day Saints and the pair married in a church ceremony last November, just months after Nicholas confessed that he’s attracted to men.
The couple, from Arizona, insist that they have a normal and happy marriage and are even expecting their first baby together next month.
Information systems student Nicholas has chosen to put aside his sexuality in order to stay committed to the church. The pair were school sweethearts who rekindled their romance last year and despite Nicholas confessing his feelings to Jordan, she decided to stand by him.
Nicholas made a brave declaration on Facebook about his sexuality and why he chose to marry Jordan and the post has since racked up almost 12,000 likes, shares and comments.
Nicholas and Jordan Applegate on their wedding day (in different outfits) say they have a ‘normal and happy marriage’
The pair revealed they are expecting their first baby together soon, adding they are both ‘really happy, with Nicholas saying he ‘wouldn’t change his decision’
Nicholas says the pair have a lot in common, revealing ‘we both love music, we love to sing, watch TV together, go to the movies and go out to eat’
Married couple Nicholas and Jordan Applegate, both 23, are devout members of the Church of Jesus Christ and Latter-day Saints – despite Nicholas being gay
The couple celebrate their wedding day last November just months after Nicholas confessed that he’s attracted to men
Nicholas said: ‘We’re both really happy and I wouldn’t change my decision. It’s definitely a happy and normal marriage.
‘We have a lot in common, we both love music, we love to sing, watch TV together, go to the movies and go out to eat. We communicate very well so it’s a very intimate and emotional relationship.
‘A lot of people at the church were quite surprised when they found out that I’m gay but they were mainly impressed at the sacrifice I’m making.’
Nicholas and Jordan are expecting their first baby in October and hope to have more children in the future.
Software company worker Jordan added: ‘My life has never been better than it has been married to Nick. He is the sweetest man I have ever known, loves me unconditionally, and is the best partner I could have asked for.
‘When we started talking about having children, we both got so excited to think that we would be starting our own little family.
‘With our baby just two months away, we couldn’t be more ecstatic. This is the life we both have prayed for, and it is the one we choose.’
Childhood sweethearts, Nicholas and Jordan, met at high school and rekindled their relationship in March 2020. By August, Nicholas had proposed and the couple were married three months later.
Nicholas says many of his fellow church-goers were ‘surprised’ to learn he is gay, but ‘they were mainly impressed at the sacrifice I’m making’
The extremely religious couple, who are devout members of the Church of Jesus Christ and Latter-day Saints, pray together
Nicholas admits that at one point he genuinely struggled with whether he would be able to remain in – and be an active part of – the church, due to his sexuality
He says he realised he was gay at the age of 12 and admits he was nervous to tell Jordan the truth.
Nicholas said: ‘It wasn’t a topic that we talked about. I was still really young so it wasn’t really a big thing at the time. When I started growing up, I started to realise how it would impact my life but I decided to ignore it.
‘In the church, we don’t start dating until we’re older and we believe in no sexual relations before marriage.
‘I decided that before I started dating that I wanted to stay within the church and follow the principles. I was really nervous and I didn’t know how Jordan was going to take it.
‘She was definitely shocked and wasn’t anticipating it but I wanted to make sure that Jordan knew the situation before we went further emotionally.
‘After I told her, I asked her to go away and process it on her own rather than in front of me so she went and talked it over with her parents. Then she decided that she was ok with it because she just wanted someone who would commit to her.’
However, he now says that ‘at the core of himself’, he is not a gay man, but instead is a child of God. He says according to his church, acting on homosexual urges is a sin
Jordan admitted that neither of the couple knew exactly how things would work out – but that they are now happily married and expecting a child
Jordan says she felt lost when she leant Nicholas was gay, and tried to find any stories of others in a similar situation, but she knew it was ‘right’ to get married
Nicholas says his wife was ‘ok’ with him being gay because ‘she just wanted someone who would commit to her’
The couple say that friends and family support their decision and Nicholas says he’s happy to make the sacrifice if it means he can remain part of the church
Jordan added: ‘Neither of us knew exactly how things would work.
‘I remember feeling lost and trying to find any stories of others in our similar situation but we knew that it was right to get married, despite our opposing sexual orientations.’
The couple say that friends and family support their decision and Nicholas says he’s happy to make the sacrifice if it means he can remain part of the church.
Nicolas said: ‘My friends and family know that I’m gay and people are quite progressive even if they don’t agree with my choice, they are still supportive. Anyone can come to church and participate but if you don’t follow the principles, you can’t have responsibilities or enter the sacred buildings like the temples.
‘If I’d made another choice, I don’t think I would have lost friendships but they would have been different and I wouldn’t be able to fully participate in the church which means a lot to me.’
In his Facebook post, Nicholas said he was happy to answer any questions people may have about his choices – but asked people for respect and consideration
Nicholas’s post read: ‘I am a gay man married to a wonderful wife, and I openly support The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, its doctrines, and its leaders.
‘However, at the core of myself, I am not a gay man; I am a child of God, a priesthood holder, a husband, and a father. I am not denying my true self by living the tenets of the Church. I would be denying my true self by not living the gospel and leaving the Church to live a gay lifestyle.
‘I saw in my life that as difficult as it might be to be a gay man not living a gay life, it would be more difficult to live a gay life that did not include active and worthy membership in Christ’s church.
‘The Church has always been clear, in my lifetime anyway, that it is not attraction to men that is sinful, but acting on those desires. I always understood that if I chose to either live a celibate or a heterosexual life, my standing within the Church would never be in question.
‘I decided essentially as soon as I realized I was gay that I would follow the law of chastity and not engage in a relationship with a man.’