No Love

So when the whole Prop 8 thing was going on I wanted to write something to express my feelings. But I didn't. I didn't want to offend or sound stupid. But I've come to realize that this is my blog, with my feelings, and I should just write what I think. I appreciate hearing other people's opinions and hope that this can be a way to respectfully discuss what's going on.


I'm sure if you live in Utah, or you're LDS, you've heard of the controversy with the show Big Love. I've never seen the show, I've only heard about it from others. I remember when it started though that everyone was really concerned that it was going to cast this bad light on Mormons. I too was concerned that even though they didn't call themselves "Mormons" that it would be assumed, because to those who don't really know us, they believe we're polygamists.


And now, it's becoming less subtle from the writers and producers that we are who they are trying to portray in this awful light. The show is starting it's 3rd season I believe and the big "shock" of the season is that they are going to show the inside of a "Mormon temple" and show the ceremonies we perform inside. (They say it's not about the shock value and is really an important part of the story line. Yeah right. It's a little for the shock value, in my opinion.)

I just want to get out some of my own feelings about this.

Some people think, 'Good, we deserve to see the inside of the temple.' Um, what are we doing right now in Draper? We invite people for months to come see the inside of our temples. We want people to come and feel the peace and spirit we feel in there as well.

Some people are interested in the "secret" things done in the temple. Our missionaries preach about these things every day! We make no attempt to deny that we do baptisms for the dead, we seal families together for time and all eternity, and perform other ordinances to help those who have gone before us. Our church is known for these things and we do not hide that we believe in them.

I think the main thing people misunderstand about the "Mormon" reaction to this show, is that it mocks not only us as a people, but those things we hold sacred. No one likes to be made fun of, but even worse, no one likes to have what they believe degraded and misrepresented. We are not trying to keep secrets. We're trying to keep the things we hold sacred, sacred. I think all people should be able to understand that. Whether it's your religion, or even just your family. You don't want that to be shown in the wrong light and you don't go around sharing all the intimate details with the whole world.

The church as always has come forward with a respectful response. Turn the other cheek. They have not called for the boycott that is going on through email chains (though I think it's a good idea) but they say to act responsibly and respectfully. A lot of things have happened in the past to try and show the Mormons in a bad light but has this slowed us down at all? Prop 8 happened and there are still tons of baptisms going on in California and all of the U.S. There was the rant during Mitt Romney's run for president, but did that slow down the church? No.

It's sad to say, but those to speak out against us or who try to show us in this bad light only come off looking worse for it. They look uneducated or narrow-minded. Sorry, but it's true. And the church knows it because they do not bother trying to fight back. Also, by trying to "expose" us, it only creates more interest in what we're doing and who we are. It gets people to ask questions and that's what we want.

We know that this work will continue forward and we will do all that we can to help. We don't have to appreciate what these people do, but we don't have to think that it will only have a negative affect.