I was watching the Today Show this morning and they said that letters with white powder had been sent to LDS temples. I felt like I was watching Weekend Update on SNL, and that any minute Seth and Amy would come out and say "Really?!" as they do with other unbelievable headlines that come across their news desk.
I am baffled. Not by the protests, and not by the fact that they're being directed at the LDS church, but what is it exactly that protesters hope to accomplish by concentrating their efforts on the "mormons?" What can the people in the temples or the church as a whole do to overturn the proposition? I think their energy could be better spent working on coming up with a new idea.
"Mormon bashing" has been going on since the beginning of the church. This tradition of ignorance as to what the church is really about is nothing new. I say ignorance [the condition of being uneducated, unaware, or uninformed.] because of the signs I've seen at the protests outside of the Los Angeles temple: "You have 3 wives, I want 1." "Bigots" and something about "Magic Undies." Let me tell you, the only thing magic about my undies are that they never ride up and I never have to worry about panty lines. Bigotry is the complete intolerance of ideas and beliefs that don't align with one's own. The LDS church states that it supports rights for same sex couples "so long as these do not infringe on the integrity of the family or the constitutional rights of churches and their adherents to administer and practice their religion free from government interference." Bigots, I think not. I hope that anyone reading this realizes the foolishness in the first sign I brought up. The LDS church does not condone polygamy. I don't know if that will ever fully sink in with society as a whole.
Bigotry, however, is when the idea of tolerance is skewed to mean you're either with us or against us, period. The backlash is out of hand. It's aimed at the wrong crowd. It turns my stomach to see images and read accounts of vandalism, obscenities, and physical abuse against the LDS church and its members who, as a whole, are some of the most peaceful people in the world.
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I totally agree! But I fear it is just the beginning! You should read our letters to the editors. There is a whole lot of ignorance going around! Today a guy made a comment wondering how the church would like it if the were persecuted for their beliefs. I was like, hello! You need a church history lesson! I think people have misread the churches reasons for stepping in on this whole thing!
ReplyDeletePeople would rather jump on the bandwagon than think/educate themselves.
ReplyDeleteI laughed about the underwear.
You can't fight bigotry with bigotry. And that is exactly what the protest against the mormons is. I hope protesters realize that. Gays and Mormons have a lot in common as far as being persecuted goes, so it's interesting that this protest has gone on. Can't we all just get along?
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