Since I’ve never lived outside of Utah for more than three months, I’m about as Utah Mormon as they come–that is as far as geography. I grew up in one of those cities south of the Mormon curtain (the point of the mountain) that is close to 90 % LDS. Nevertheless one of my best friends and next door neighbors wasn’t a member. “Jamie” came to primary with me. In those days, primary was right after school on Tuesdays, and everyone simply walked from the school to the church house. I didn’t think anything about her coming. She came simply because it was something to do–not because she had any interest in the church. Besides primary was fun back then. And we got these really cool green bandalos to wear with great looking icons glued onto them. She decided that since she came to my church, that the fair thing would be for me to go to hers, and so she invited me. Her church was called the Community Church of Christ, (I think.) I must’ve been around ten. Continue reading ‘Every member a friend?’
Archive for April, 2008
As scholar Karen Armstrong accepts her 2008 TED Prize, she talks about how the Abrahamic religions — Islam, Judaism, Christianity — have been diverted from the moral purpose they share to foster compassion. But Armstrong has seen a yearning to change this fact. People want to be religious, she says; we should act to help make religion a force for harmony. She asks the TED community to help her build a Charter for Compassion — to help restore the Golden Rule as the central global religious doctrine.
Watch Karen Armstrong’s talk here
I’d heard once that Sister Camilla Kimball had said that when there was something about the gospel she didn’t understand, she put that on a shelf. I liked the idea. I envisioned a shelf full of food storage and canned goods, and I started piling up my issues–stuff that I didn’t understand. Polygamy—that’s a big one—about a fifty pound bag of flour. Next, the priesthood being barred from blacks—another 5O pound bag of flour. Already my shelf was starting to sag pretty heavily in the middle, but I was doing okay. I could move forward. I still had a testimony. In spite of what people say, about a never-changing church, I was more than okay with the church changing. Nothing is perfect in the early fledging years—so I told myself. We are better now. Polygamy has publicly been labeled a “blip” That “blip” has caused considerable heartbreak, abuse, and misunderstanding—some are still being victimized. Look at Texas. But I could keep that on the shelf.
In today’s Salt Lake Tribune is an op-ed piece I wrote about polygamy, copied below. Some people will say I’m overstepping my bounds, and others will say I don’t go far enough. I simply hope it makes people think about the church’s connections to polygamy. The present policy - relying on the Associated Press and other news organizations to clarify who is and who is not Mormon - seems bound to fail, as the public doesn’t consult the AP Style Guide when they talk about such things.
Continue reading ‘Moving Forward: The LDS Polygamy Question’
When I moved 15 years ago to this small corner of Georgia, Bill was one of the first people I met. He greeted me with a broad smile and a twinkle in his eye, and there was never a moment that I doubted he genuinely cared about me. Some people have that gift.
My next memory of him is when I gave my first talk in Sacrament meeting. Our branch met in a tightly-packed “phase 1″ building, so I had plenty of opportunity for eye contact. His are the eyes I remember best from that day. As I gave my talk, I quickly learned that I could count on him for feedback that told me that I was being heard. Really heard. He smiled, nodded his head, and then took time afterwards to discuss my talk and to welcome me again to the branch.
A few days ago he had an accident at home, and now he is gone. The viewing was this evening; the funeral tomorrow. I will miss him and his smile. There have been days when I missed church, whether because I was out of town or just not in the mood, or I didn’t want to sit through three hours with lighting that can trigger my migraines. On those days, I may not have missed the lesson I disagreed with, heterodox guy that I am, but I certainly missed Bill and his smile.
While at the viewing, a friend tried to make sense of his death. She believes that the accident was God’s way of “bringing Bill home”. Another friend suggested that his wife, who died a few months ago, needed him. Maybe the universe works that way, with a God that intervenes, causing accidents that take lives when our “time is up”. Maybe, but I’m more inclined to think deaths like Bill’s happen for reasons other than divine intervention. Accidents happen, and the laws of physics cause trauma to our bodies. Life is fragile that way.
We look for answers, for reasons to explain the events in our lives. We seek those answers when it comes to explaining death as well. Whichever answer we arrive at, we find comfort in it. If the answer includes God taking care of us and then calling us home, the comfort seems obvious. But it also leaves us to explain why God’s intervention appears unreliable.
If the answer is more like mine, comfort comes in different forms; for me it comes in the sense of connection with humanity through a shared engagement with life. And there is comfort, too, in knowing that the memory of Bill’s smile, and the many good things he did, lives on. My friends and I may disagree over the question of divine intervention, but we agree on our connection to a fellow traveler and to each other. For me, that’s enough.
Not here! There are threads going already at Mormon Matters, Messenger and Advocate, Our Thoughts, Mormon Mentality, Times and Seasons, and By Common Consent.
We may not have a lot of action here, but we’re not redundant.
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