Do you agree with these assertions?

[Anonymous]

Well, I’ve been in the air on a business trip all day, and succumbed to an article in the June 13 & 20 issue of Newsweek. It’s called “The Mormon Moment” and features the prevalance of Mormonism in our society at this time — The Book of Mormon Musical, Mitt Romney, Elizabeth Smart’s faith in overcoming her ordeal, Harry Reid, The president of Jet Blue, Huntsman, and a few notable actors/acresses on the scene…etcetera.

In the article, they make a number of assertions; I wonder whether you agree with any of them, and why or why not. I’ll steer clear of the political statements that sprinkle the article:

1. [referring to extermination orders, persecution in the early days]…”Today, the legacy of that marginalization continues to mark the Mormon outlook on the world”.

2. “Despite the sudden proliferation of Mormons in the mainstream, Mormonism itself isn’t any closer to gaining mainstream acceptance.”

3. “Social and cultural insecurity has also served as a goad to Mormon productivty and achievement”.

4. “More than many other faiths, the Mormon Church prepares its members to engage intelligently with the broader culture and the wider world”.

5. [regarding our belief that we can become like God]…”This doctrine explains a lot about the Church’s drive toward economic achievement”.

Do these typify your experience regarding our Church? Frankly, none of it does for me, except number 2 regarding our inability to be considered mainstream.

[Anonymous]

SilentDawning wrote:

1. [referring to extermination orders, persecution in the early days]…”Today, the legacy of that marginalization continues to mark the Mormon outlook on the world”.

Yes, I’d agree with this, although I’m not sure what they are assuming Mormons outlook is on the world, but if the point is being made we view ourselves as a peculiar people and take pride in that, then yes, I think that is true…yet I often squirm in church when this is emphasized…not sure why.

SilentDawning wrote:

2. “Despite the sudden proliferation of Mormons in the mainstream, Mormonism itself isn’t any closer to gaining mainstream acceptance.”

Agree. Have discussions at work all the time about it that confirm this. We are not mainstream, and often don’t want to be (see comments above about point#1).

SilentDawning wrote:

3. “Social and cultural insecurity has also served as a goad to Mormon productivity and achievement”.

Yes, I agree. Sometimes motivations can come from odd sources, but they’ll use ’em if they produce.

SilentDawning wrote:

4. “More than many other faiths, the Mormon Church prepares its members to engage intelligently with the broader culture and the wider world”.

Yes, I think so because as Elder Oaks mentioned…we seek personal revelation. I would just add the caveat, that we are prepared by the church to engage intelligently with the world in order to show them we’re right (which is not always the most open-minded intelligence), but doctrines such as free agency, light and truth, intelligences before the world was, and eternal progression (especially the intelligence we gain in this world we take with us in the next) all prepare us to pursue truth and seek answers. In some cases, it is a false sense of security for members when they do venture into the real world, and find others that have intelligent things to say or more rich cultures we can learn from, when the missionary assumed s/he was supposed to enrich their cultures and then be eternally thanked for doing it. The Church doesn’t prepare people for that CogDis. But the statements doesn’t say the church does it perfectly, just that it is better than MANY other faiths…and I agree with that (certainly not better than ALL, however).

SilentDawning wrote:

5. [regarding our belief that we can become like God]…”This doctrine explains a lot about the Church’s drive toward economic achievement”.

Hmmm…I was not expecting “economic” to appear in that sentence. It is a drive for a lot of things…economic? That I can’t see from my experience. Perhaps I need to see that statement in more context.

[Anonymous]

Quote:

1. [referring to extermination orders, persecution in the early days]…”Today, the legacy of that marginalization continues to mark the Mormon outlook on the world”.

Yes, although it’s not always positive. In the case of Mormons who live where Mormons are a minority, they become adaptive. In the case where Mormons are in the majority, I think it can create an unhealthy persecution complex that is no longer relevant. Ironically, Mormons who are used to being in the majority can be very exclusionary and dismissive of others.

Quote:

2. “Despite the sudden proliferation of Mormons in the mainstream, Mormonism itself isn’t any closer to gaining mainstream acceptance.”

I disagree with this. I think it’s true among evangelicals perhaps, but Catholics and mainline or liberal Protestants don’t have a beef with Mormons in my experience.

Quote:

3. “Social and cultural insecurity has also served as a goad to Mormon productivty and achievement”.

Yes, I think this is true, but only for those who experience it (e.g. live where Mormons are misunderstood).

Quote:

4. “More than many other faiths, the Mormon Church prepares its members to engage intelligently with the broader culture and the wider world”.

That’s not a very specific claim (“many”), but I think it’s true on the whole because 1) we have a lot of converts (again, especially where the church is a minority), 2) many members help teach investigators in their homes, and 3) those who serve missions learn first hand how to relate to other cultures and faiths, often with success.

Quote:

5. [regarding our belief that we can become like God]…”This doctrine explains a lot about the Church’s drive toward economic achievement”.

I think in the context of the article (IIRC), this made more sense. I think it was linked to the idea of self-reliance and personal accountability to progress to our potential or something like that. I do think this is an accurate observation on the whole. When the author made this comment, I realized it was written from an insider perspective. I believe the author is perhaps a lapsed convert, but one who at least has a finger on the pulse in a way a never-Mormon could not.

[Anonymous]

Quote:

“Despite the sudden proliferation of Mormons in the mainstream, Mormonism itself isn’t any closer to gaining mainstream acceptance.”

Surely this depends where you are… in Utah and Idaho, Mormons must be pretty mainstream, they’re just part of the landscape.

[Anonymous]

My answers are pretty much what Hawk said.

[Author]

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