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Over Thanksgiving weekend, I spent a good deal of time reading a book and listening to podcasts on Mormons and Masonry. One of my best friends is a very high level mason, but doesn’t talk to me about it at all. So it has interested me for a while. As I studied, it seems in my head, I can logically see how Joseph Smith may have had some kind of spiritual experiences, but was highly influenced by his environment leading to what he produced. Masonry was much more prevalent in his day than I previously realized. I could surmise that in trying to teach some truths he was enlightened to…he found masonry as a great way to borrow ideas from, which explains many things about the temple and scriptures like the Pearl of Great Price. In my mind, I was trying to fit together scenarios that Joseph Smith was sincere in his efforts, but clearly being influenced by 19th century protestantism and masonry all throughout New York, Ohio, Missouri and Nauvoo, many of these factors and details are pretty unknown to most people today, especially in our own church. My theories seemed to make sense to me logically, that Mormonism could be less a restoration of specific things like scripture and ordinances from times past, and more about borrowed and innovative explanations to religious truths to start a movement for which people in Joseph’s day were longing for and hoping to find, and evolved over time into the church we now know and see. In other words, the literal teachings may be exaggerated…but the symbolic/metaphoric teachings are powerful nonetheless.
As this was on my mind, I felt a great need to take my family to the Joseph Smith Memorial building at Temple Square on Saturday. We watched the movie about Joseph Smith: Prophet of the Restoration. As I watched…I could see the slant the movie makes, showing Joseph a humble servant willing to teach, and wicked persecutors seeking to destroy for no good reasons other than to show evil fights against good. I knew from my studies that it was not a historically accurate story. Even still, there were many times when Joseph taught of love, and forgiveness, and being obedient to his conscience on what he thought was right. In my heart, I felt the Spirit. I felt as if the Spirit was testifying to me again that Joseph was a prophet. Even if I knew he wasn’t perfect, and the story wasn’t so neat and tidy about all the details, and the story left out many controversial subjects like polygamy, Nauvoo Expositor, masonry and other things…still…in my heart, I felt good about the things Joseph was trying to do and to teach, and the amazing results we are blessed with today (a global church, Book of Mormon, temples, and wonderful family teachings, etc).
After the movie, our family talked. I was surprised how much my teen-age kids LOVED the movie, and the experience. We shared experiences of how the movie helped us feel good, and my kids said it is good to know God is there, and he cares about us enough to send the Spirit to speak to us individually. It made them want to do better, and be better. It meant a lot to them.
I find it an interesting paradox. There are times the teachings and the stories from the church are not as logical as other explanations I can come up with, and there are times when it seems we have historic facts that contradict what we are taught at church. However, there is still a feeling that moves me when I go to church, and when I expose myself to Mormonism. A feeling that my family is better off in the church, than without the church.
It seems I experience Mormonism differently at times, in my heart, and in my head. And I have no explanation for it. It just is that way for me.
I can’t quite explain it. But that was my experience I wanted to share.
Does anyone have any ideas to help me keep building on these ideas, or other experiences you’ve had with this kind of thing?
Heber-ji, i couldn’t agree with you more. Joseph Smith, like so many other founders of great religions committed a lot of pious fraud, yet in spite of that, or maybe
becauseof it, he was able to legitimize his teachings and gain a significant enough of a following to do a lot of good. I remember years ago as a NOM I was the GD teacher, and really getting into trying to be accurate and factual about the history of scripture, and what the stories actually meant. I loved to stimulate; except that every week people were complaining to the bishop. I think it hit a peak during the Monica Lewinski scandal that I was teaching about Judah and Tamar, Onan and the whole smear, and took a copy of the Washington Post and wrote on it in Magic Marker, “Sex, Lies, and Genesis”. Ah, more complaints.
I was working at an office in DC at the time, and the office director was a part time African Methodist Episcopal preacher. I sat down with him to get some insight on some of the Old Testament stories from his vantage point, and told him of my ‘stimulating’ lessons. He said to me that I was doing the wrong thing — I wasn’t edifying my class. He used the terms, you’re not preaching, you’re not teaching. He taught me a valuable lesson. People come to church mostly to be fed and provided something comforting from the challenges of the world. They want to feel the spirit, and they want to feel good about themselves. Making them uncomfortable because of my own dissonance does not preach, does not teach.
The fact is that nearly all LDS who have lived the church long enough, or been converts, have had a spiritual experience with the material. That spiritual experience was a real thing, with real physical manifestations, the indians call “Kundalini”. It is a very good thing — it is healthy and edifying to the soul. Frankly, the goal of a good class or talk should be to affirm the spiritual experience, and to help people be edified. As much as I think it important to embrace the truth of history, some of the uglier historical truths simply do not make me feel better about the fact that my entire family of origin, as well as the majority of my children, are active, practicing LDS. Staying is dissonance, as well as leaving. It’s all dissonance in one way or another for me. So the question is, where do I go for strength?
I think you have identified an anchor. While the church may resemble McDonalds in so many ways — it’s bland uniformity, it’s inability to address its historicity, it’s stifling of anything creative — the church serves a very good spiritual meal — and I have tried at this point almost all spiritual cuisines, and there are a number i really like. But, if I want to enjoy the meal with my family, I’m afraid McDonalds will have to do. The key is to select from the McDonalds menu the things that I find most edifying — the service, the temple, the fellowship, and some of the better points of the theology that are consistent with my understanding of the universe and the Way.
I think there is room for this thinking. I will bristle, question, and annoy the crap out of leaders, but I believe it’s worth it.
Thanks wayfarer. Perhaps McDonalds will do for a time when my kids benefit from that. Perhaps it will not always need to be that way, but for a time, it will do.
Isn’t it wonderful that Episcopal preachers and Masons and those around us outside of Mormonism can teach us what we need to know to be better Mormons? I find it is.
Heber13 – I very much agree with you. My experiences in Mormonism often touch me and inspire me spiritually, yet what I know contradicts a lot of what I feel and experience. I do see a big disconnect between experience and knowledge, and ultimately experience is why we go. John Dehlin used to use a metaphor of eating soup with a hammer. A hammer is a great tool. If you need to drive a nail in, a hammer is very handy. But if you are eating soup, a hammer doesn’t work too well. Thanks wayfarer, I think I understand why I can make it through Sacrament meetings but have a hard time with SS & PH meetings. Mike from Milton
Wonderful insights, everyone. Thank you.
Thanks Heber and I agree. You also reminded me how much I would LOVE to see a Joseph Smith movie made in the flavor of Bushman’s RSR!
Orson wrote:You also reminded me how much I would LOVE to see a Joseph Smith movie made in the flavor of Bushman’s RSR!
Yes, Orson…I’d LOVE to see that movie too…but I suspect my kids wouldn’t enjoy it as much as I would.hawkgrrrl wrote:Heber13 – I very much agree with you. My experiences in Mormonism often touch me and inspire me spiritually, yet what I know contradicts a lot of what I feel and experience. I do see a big disconnect between experience and knowledge, and ultimately experience is why we go.
That’s the sticky part. What do you trust and in the end can you trust anything?
Quote:People come to church mostly to be fed and provided something comforting from the challenges of the world. They want to feel the spirit, and they want to feel good about themselves. Making them uncomfortable because of my own dissonance does not preach, does not teach.
I just wanted to revisit this quote from Wayfarer. This is truly profound to me.
:thumbup:
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