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Mormonism is pretty prudish and puts sex up there as a major issue in our society. It also values humility and group orientation and respect for authority. Hollywood knows sex sells, and they open that up and push that constantly because they make money doing it. Its so competitive that personalities that are gregarious and individualistic seem to succeed.
The two clash.
I just read an interview with Jon Heder (Napoleon Dynamite) in which he was asked about being Mormon and a Hollywood actor. I immediately thought of this thread. Pretty good interview, Ray. So, the only active LDS in Hollywood are the really big geeks that people want to laugh at, not be like?
:geek: 😆 I think I would say that it’s hard to “work your way up the ladder” to where you can pick and choose your roles (and, thus, avoid explicit nudity or slasher horror films, for example) and still be an active Mormon. Heder started out as a star with Napoleon Dynamite, so he had the luxury of being an exception to the rule; Rick Shroder is a convert who was established already when he joined; Merlin Olsen was a Hall of Fame football player who didn’t need to compromise anything to get his television role in Little House on the Prairie; etc.
I think there are other ways in which we do not encourage talent. * One thing that gets my goat is how the hymn tunes have been simplified – this stifles musical skill IMHO.
* Our talent shows here are abysmal, and I’ve stopped going. Even if someone had talent, the broken down mike, lack of drapes etc here make it difficult for anyone to put on a performance.
* Our moral dilemmas are all black and white, there is little dramatic tension. You just do as you’re told.
* We’re not able to get into the minds of our enemies. If we could then we would be able to play them as characters, write about them etc.
* Our lack of diversity in clothing (for men) stifles individuality.
There are other things too.
SamBee wrote:* Our talent shows here are abysmal, and I’ve stopped going. Even if someone had talent, the broken down mike, lack of drapes etc here make it difficult for anyone to put on a performance.
Talent shows? You have talent shows in your area? I thought that was washed out by correlation a long time ago, along with road-shows, stake plays, and dance festivals.I was once in a priesthood leadership session in our stake with BKP — I was leading the music. Everything was extremely rigid and scripted. We were all told to be in our seats 15 minutes ahead of time and not say a word. As he walked in with the entorage of stake leadership, we stood silently. As he walked up to the podium, I offered my hand, and he shunned me as if I did not exist. I’m reminded of the description of a great white shark in Jaws:
Peter Benchley in Jaws wrote:Sometimes that shark he looks right into ya. Right into your eyes. And, you know, the thing about a shark… he’s got lifeless eyes. Black eyes. Like a doll’s eyes. When he comes at ya, doesn’t seem to be living…
In that meeting, someone asked a question about MIS the computer program only available in the Clerk’s office, how it would be so much more convenient it would be if ward and stake leaders could actually access the application remotely. BKP’s response, not hearing the question, said, “You know I hear people always asking for special things for their stake. That’s not how it works. We don’t make exceptions. The church is to be uniform everywhere, so that if we can’t do something everywhere, we’ll do it no-where.”There ya go: Correlation and “McChurch” summarized by the Cardinal of LDS Congregation on the Doctrine of the Faith.
I bet you were glad you went to that meeting. That’s one (of many) reasons I won’t go to those meetings anymore.
Your experience is not an isolated experience. It is way too common.
Our time is very precious on this earth.
I would prefer to spend what time I have left with family & friends instead of the “busy” work.
Just before I went inactive, we had a regional conference with the Prophet, etc in a major city close by.
It was a fun filled weekend for the whole family & we made a plans to attend.
Once we got there, we made the decision not to go to the meetings & instead did things that we wanted to do.
That was probably the beginning of my thought process change. I don’t regret at thing.
If I come back, it will be on my own terms or not at all.
Mike from Milton.
wayfarer wrote:SamBee wrote:* Our talent shows here are abysmal, and I’ve stopped going. Even if someone had talent, the broken down mike, lack of drapes etc here make it difficult for anyone to put on a performance.
Talent shows? You have talent shows in your area? I thought that was washed out by correlation a long time ago, along with road-shows, stake plays, and dance festivals.Yes, the youth organise them. It’s for people who can’t sing, dance or play, pretty depressing! A middle aged guy tried to work his way through the Blue Danube on a piano, but he kept on making mistakes… painful!
All good points. The stake I’m in doesn’t hold road shows anymore. That sucks. It hasn’t since I was a preteen. I believe the term is “less active”, BTW … just sayin’. “Less-active” is a misnomer for those who are “inactive”, just as “inactive” is a misnomer for those who are “partially active”. Fwiw, I’ve never liked “less-active” as a descriptor of anyone, since it explicitly is a measurement in comparison to someone else. I personally prefer “shows up occasionally, but who’s keeping track of how often in comparison to others who aren’t here all the time”
:crazy: – but I’m too lazy to write or say it consistently, so guess I’ll stick with inactive and partially active.
I prefer “semi-active”. I also wonder if there’s a kind of inbuilt philistinism in the church. The only thing we really “do” is music, and even a lot of that seems to be simplified, e.g. the hymnbook.
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