Most of my comments are of a political vein or in relation to human nature, but today I will take a short detour.
As a follow up to my previous entry, and being a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, I thought I would make a few comments regarding the recent PBS show about my religion.
I admit not watching the entire thing. I actually turned it on halfway through the first night so I don't know what went on in the first hour, but the second hour was what I would consider almost completely anti-Mormon. The only reason an episode like the Mountain Meadows Massacre would be featured for half an hour is to imply that the church itself, and not some rogue members, was responsible for the murders. It offered the idea that the president of the church ordered the killings. It implied that the church members are mindless automatons that will blindly do whatever the church says up to and including murder. Although they did not go so far as to imply it, the insinuation that follows is that mormons are one step away from hijacking jets and flying them into buildings. The last half hour of the first episode was about polygamy. There are a lot of things I could say about this practice, and it is part of church history, but I felt that it was extremely misleading to show contemporary people who practice it. These people do not belong to the church. They probably never were members. It has been over 100 years since anyone in the church has practiced polygamy. Showing people from an offshoot apostate group is simply continuing the misconception that this practice is being done by actual mormons. In my opinion, this was the very reason they were shown. After all, its what people expected to see, so the filmmaker gave them what they wanted. This would be like showing a group of people calling themselves Catholics selling indulgences and persecuting people for saying the earth orbited the sun. Just because they call themselves Catholic and practice something that the Catholic church did hundreds of years ago, doesn't mean they are really Catholic.
The second night I watched even less. I watched for about a total of half an hour. What I saw was an ex-mormon featured prominently. Ask yourself what motive an ex-member of anything might have. Would they be more or less inclined to make their former association look good. The part I watched had her talking about the high council and implying that members are subjected to some sort of inquisition and then unjustly kicked out. Now, as far as I know, the vast majority of members do not ever deal with sitting in front of the high council, and if she had been called in and then excommunicated, it was probably because there was a good reason, and she was unrepentant. I couldn't figure out the reason why she gave a description of the attitude the members of the council had towards her afterwards. She said that they all shook her hand and were impressed with her. Was she saying that even though they were impressed with her they kicked her out for some hidden, sinister reason? Was she calling them hypocrites because she was impressive and yet still got kicked out? Seems to me like the most Christian thing to do after you excommunicate someone is show love towards them.
Anyhow, it reminded me of one of the talking heads shows on CNN: a liberal host, three liberal panelists, and one conservative sitting around a table. Most of the time the one conservative is simply a moderate, or perhaps one who isn't very articulate. One point of view dominates the discussion, while the other is there as a whipping boy made to appear foolish, or at the very best cannot get their entire message out, and the parts they can squeeze in edgewise are rebutted four times with no chance of response.
The parts of "The Mormons" I watched were just like that. A 10 second clip of the current president of the church explaining to the world that polygamy is not practiced by the church and those who are caught are excommunicated. Follow that up with 15 minutes of so-called 'fundamentalists' practicing polygamy. What is the average viewer going to take away? Just what the filmmaker wanted them to.
Maybe I watched all the wrong parts before I couldn't stomach any more. Maybe the parts I didn't watch were glorious endorsements of the majority of the members of the church. Maybe one day I'll catch it on a rerun to see.
But as an example of what I am talking about, I want to post the text of an article written by a journalist writing in the Courier-Journal out of Louisville, Kentucky. He talks about Mitt Romney and the PBS show, and gets at least 4 basic facts utterly wrong.
This is what I expect will be the result of all the media attention given to Mormons. Ignorance on top of ignorance.
There is one thing I ask you. If you have questions about McDonalds, do you ask Burger King?
Depend on news stories, movies, or websites put together by non-members then expect to remain ignorant. If you want to know what mormons really believe, then go to www.mormon.org. If you want to hear about anti-mormon stuff, you'll find it and you will be satisfied because its what you want to hear.
As a follow up to my previous entry, and being a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, I thought I would make a few comments regarding the recent PBS show about my religion.
I admit not watching the entire thing. I actually turned it on halfway through the first night so I don't know what went on in the first hour, but the second hour was what I would consider almost completely anti-Mormon. The only reason an episode like the Mountain Meadows Massacre would be featured for half an hour is to imply that the church itself, and not some rogue members, was responsible for the murders. It offered the idea that the president of the church ordered the killings. It implied that the church members are mindless automatons that will blindly do whatever the church says up to and including murder. Although they did not go so far as to imply it, the insinuation that follows is that mormons are one step away from hijacking jets and flying them into buildings. The last half hour of the first episode was about polygamy. There are a lot of things I could say about this practice, and it is part of church history, but I felt that it was extremely misleading to show contemporary people who practice it. These people do not belong to the church. They probably never were members. It has been over 100 years since anyone in the church has practiced polygamy. Showing people from an offshoot apostate group is simply continuing the misconception that this practice is being done by actual mormons. In my opinion, this was the very reason they were shown. After all, its what people expected to see, so the filmmaker gave them what they wanted. This would be like showing a group of people calling themselves Catholics selling indulgences and persecuting people for saying the earth orbited the sun. Just because they call themselves Catholic and practice something that the Catholic church did hundreds of years ago, doesn't mean they are really Catholic.
The second night I watched even less. I watched for about a total of half an hour. What I saw was an ex-mormon featured prominently. Ask yourself what motive an ex-member of anything might have. Would they be more or less inclined to make their former association look good. The part I watched had her talking about the high council and implying that members are subjected to some sort of inquisition and then unjustly kicked out. Now, as far as I know, the vast majority of members do not ever deal with sitting in front of the high council, and if she had been called in and then excommunicated, it was probably because there was a good reason, and she was unrepentant. I couldn't figure out the reason why she gave a description of the attitude the members of the council had towards her afterwards. She said that they all shook her hand and were impressed with her. Was she saying that even though they were impressed with her they kicked her out for some hidden, sinister reason? Was she calling them hypocrites because she was impressive and yet still got kicked out? Seems to me like the most Christian thing to do after you excommunicate someone is show love towards them.
Anyhow, it reminded me of one of the talking heads shows on CNN: a liberal host, three liberal panelists, and one conservative sitting around a table. Most of the time the one conservative is simply a moderate, or perhaps one who isn't very articulate. One point of view dominates the discussion, while the other is there as a whipping boy made to appear foolish, or at the very best cannot get their entire message out, and the parts they can squeeze in edgewise are rebutted four times with no chance of response.
The parts of "The Mormons" I watched were just like that. A 10 second clip of the current president of the church explaining to the world that polygamy is not practiced by the church and those who are caught are excommunicated. Follow that up with 15 minutes of so-called 'fundamentalists' practicing polygamy. What is the average viewer going to take away? Just what the filmmaker wanted them to.
Maybe I watched all the wrong parts before I couldn't stomach any more. Maybe the parts I didn't watch were glorious endorsements of the majority of the members of the church. Maybe one day I'll catch it on a rerun to see.
But as an example of what I am talking about, I want to post the text of an article written by a journalist writing in the Courier-Journal out of Louisville, Kentucky. He talks about Mitt Romney and the PBS show, and gets at least 4 basic facts utterly wrong.
Mormon faith examined in two-night Frontline special
by
Tom Dorsey
Could Mitt Romney, a former governor of Massachusetts, become America's first Mormon president?
Unless you're a Mormon and a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, you probably don't know much about Mormons except that they display amazing politeness when they come to your door or stop you on the street.
If you want to know what Mormons believe, and don't believe, check out a two-night, four-hour "Frontline -- American Experience" on KET2. "The Mormons" airs at 9 tonight and tomorrow night.
Many media outlets have said Romney's religion will be his biggest obstacle in getting elected. On the other hand, a lot of people in Massachusetts, who aren't Mormons, voted him into office, so it may be possible to overcome the hurdle as John Kennedy did in becoming the country's first Catholic president.
Romney wouldn't be the first major Mormon figure in American politics, though. Mormons have served in presidential cabinets. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., is a Mormon, although the church has been much more identified with the Republican Party than the Democrats.
Four hours is probably too much for most people, but the project is an interesting exploration of what the documentary calls "one of the most compelling and misunderstood religions of our time."
The church was founded in the 19th century by Joseph Smith. He said the prophet Mormon, who lived in the Americas in 4 A.D., was told by God to compile the record of his people and their dealings with God into a book.
His son buried the work and then returned 1,400 years later as an angel telling Smith where to find it in 1827. Smith founded the religion, which had many controversial beliefs, not the least of which was that a man could have many wives.
The film points out that 19th-century Mormons suffered persecution, including the burning of their homes, the raping of their women and the confiscation of their property in Ohio, Illinois and Missouri. After Smith was assassinated in 1844, Brigham Young became their leader.
They later moved to Utah to establish their home base. The church has changed over the last two centuries and especially since World War II, when it began missionary work to expand its message.
The program says it is one of the fast-growing and richest churches in America per capita. Each member must give 10 percent of his or her paycheck to the church. There are close to 13 million Mormons worldwide, most of them in this country.
But Mormons remain a mystery to many of their countrymen and are still treated as outcasts by some out of ignorance. People love to hear the Mormon Tabernacle Choir sing Christmas carols, but church members remain an object of suspicion if not persecution.
Much of their image problem can be traced to plural marriage, which the church officially denounced long ago but which some members still practice. Rules that say only men can be ordained have been a hang-up for feminists, but that's a criticism they share with other faiths. So is their opposition to gay relationships.
The documentary suggests that the Mormon church, like other religions, may have to evolve to remain relevant and to expand while retaining its beliefs and identity.
by
Tom Dorsey
Could Mitt Romney, a former governor of Massachusetts, become America's first Mormon president?
Unless you're a Mormon and a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, you probably don't know much about Mormons except that they display amazing politeness when they come to your door or stop you on the street.
If you want to know what Mormons believe, and don't believe, check out a two-night, four-hour "Frontline -- American Experience" on KET2. "The Mormons" airs at 9 tonight and tomorrow night.
Many media outlets have said Romney's religion will be his biggest obstacle in getting elected. On the other hand, a lot of people in Massachusetts, who aren't Mormons, voted him into office, so it may be possible to overcome the hurdle as John Kennedy did in becoming the country's first Catholic president.
Romney wouldn't be the first major Mormon figure in American politics, though. Mormons have served in presidential cabinets. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., is a Mormon, although the church has been much more identified with the Republican Party than the Democrats.
Four hours is probably too much for most people, but the project is an interesting exploration of what the documentary calls "one of the most compelling and misunderstood religions of our time."
The church was founded in the 19th century by Joseph Smith. He said the prophet Mormon, who lived in the Americas in 4 A.D., was told by God to compile the record of his people and their dealings with God into a book.
His son buried the work and then returned 1,400 years later as an angel telling Smith where to find it in 1827. Smith founded the religion, which had many controversial beliefs, not the least of which was that a man could have many wives.
The film points out that 19th-century Mormons suffered persecution, including the burning of their homes, the raping of their women and the confiscation of their property in Ohio, Illinois and Missouri. After Smith was assassinated in 1844, Brigham Young became their leader.
They later moved to Utah to establish their home base. The church has changed over the last two centuries and especially since World War II, when it began missionary work to expand its message.
The program says it is one of the fast-growing and richest churches in America per capita. Each member must give 10 percent of his or her paycheck to the church. There are close to 13 million Mormons worldwide, most of them in this country.
But Mormons remain a mystery to many of their countrymen and are still treated as outcasts by some out of ignorance. People love to hear the Mormon Tabernacle Choir sing Christmas carols, but church members remain an object of suspicion if not persecution.
Much of their image problem can be traced to plural marriage, which the church officially denounced long ago but which some members still practice. Rules that say only men can be ordained have been a hang-up for feminists, but that's a criticism they share with other faiths. So is their opposition to gay relationships.
The documentary suggests that the Mormon church, like other religions, may have to evolve to remain relevant and to expand while retaining its beliefs and identity.
This is what I expect will be the result of all the media attention given to Mormons. Ignorance on top of ignorance.
There is one thing I ask you. If you have questions about McDonalds, do you ask Burger King?
Depend on news stories, movies, or websites put together by non-members then expect to remain ignorant. If you want to know what mormons really believe, then go to www.mormon.org. If you want to hear about anti-mormon stuff, you'll find it and you will be satisfied because its what you want to hear.
No comments:
Post a Comment