Let’s get political for a second… sort of.
I’m a fan of the conservative blogger Andrew Breitbart.
I didn’t agree with him on every issue and I certainly not a fan of what his blogs have become since he died and his coworkers took them over.
But I do like him.
The main reason why is because he understood something important that most people on his side of the political aisle don’t understand.
He understood how important culture was.
Once in an interview, he was talking about how much the country needed to change and turn back to its conservative roots.
(DISCLAIMER: I’m trying to illustrate a religious point not a political one)
The interviewer said something along the lines of, “But conservatives have Fox News, which is the most popular news station in the US and they obviously have control of talk radio, what more do they need?”
Breitbart said that it wasn’t enough. He went on to explain that the heart and soul of a country is in the arts.
If the music, movies, paintings, comedy and literature of a country say a certain message, than that is where the heart of the country is. That isn’t to mean the Kardashian’s are America’s moral compass. One needs to look at the big picture after all. Breitbart’s argument is you can’t say one side is winning because they have a big news channel and a bunch of AM radio shows.
And I agree with him.
And it applies to the religious world too.
Forget about conservatism and think about Mormonism.
If you ever heard someone in church say anything along the lines of, “Especially in these last days with how the world is …” you’ll understand what I’m getting at.
A lot of the time the “world’s” views do not line up with the church’s views.
We think that we have Christ’s gospel and therefore we’re the happy ones and everyone else is simply suffering through life , not knowing where to find happiness.
And we sit in our chapels and pass judgment on it as if there is nothing we can do.
But there is.
The doctrine of the church is spiritual but whether or not culturally agnostic members like myself like to admit it, there is a cultural aspect of the church.
There is a spiritual aspect of Mormonism but there is also a secular part.
We need to be able to show people not only that Mormonism has something to offer spiritually, but culturally.
The problem is a lot of our current culture kind of stinks.
Go on an art walk in the summer and Provo and you’ll notice that 90% of the art is boring landscapes.
Go and look at Mormon music and most of it is rehashed hymns.
Uninspiring. Not innovative. Boring.
We need more Alex Boye and less Jericho Road.
More Brandon Sanderson and less John Bytheway. (Sorry John)
More Free Town and less Best Two Years.
More Lindsey Stirling and Imagine Dragons and less Mormon Tabernacle Choir.
That’s right, I said it. Less moTab. Put the Mumus down.
Culture can be changed. We just need to ditch the boring landscapes and rehashed hymns for something better and more innovative.
Most people think of missionary work as sharing the Gospel and trying to get non-Mormon or less-active friends to go to church.
Sure, that’s a part of it.
But there’s another part.
Celebrating family, friends, community and life in general.
We can make secular art that does that.
Why should Mormons be equated with people sitting in pews on Sunday singing hymns at funeral-march cadences when we could be seen as writers, poets and musicians?
The heart and soul of the world is found in its art and culture.
If we want to help people have the happiness that we have, we need to invite them to Christ but we also need to invite them to live.
And one or two singers or a novelist or two won’t be enough.
So maybe next time you want to do some missionary work you could do something a bit differently. Do a five-minute stand-up bit at a local comedy club. Write a poem and recite it at a poetry reading. Do something to let people know that you love life as much as you say you do at church.
The most important doctrine in Mormonism is that Christ atoned for our sins, so if we follow him, we can be saved. So lets get a little excited about life outside of the three-hour church services and do something different.
You don’t need to become a famous writer. You just need to write.
You don’t need to become a famous singer. You just need to sing.
You don’t need to convert everyone to Mormonism. You just need to show them that you love life and there is something that makes you love it.
Supposedly Mormonism brings everlasting happiness that the world is missing.
If only we tried to show that in all aspects of our lives and not just through our religion.
Sure the world doesn’t agree with us on a lot of stuff. But culture has changed before and we can change it again.
Featured image by Laughing Spinning Dancing