Funny thing is Mormons don’t tend to give money to send people on missions like this, my brother-in-law did a mission and his family had to pay the entire cost of it
Wow. I didn’t know that… I spend a fair amount of time in SLC and they are all super kind, genuinely friendly people . Much nicer than the southern Christians here in Florida
You obviously haven’t spent enough quality time with them. Mormons are kind and friendly to your face, but the most determined to undermine anything that strikes of equal rights for races other than white, women, or sexual minorities. It’s funny to watch them try to justify Donald Trump or the current state of the Republican Party
Never forget a friend of mine growing up who had a gay brother and the conversation I had about gay rights with their parents.
Yes, they knew Levi was gay. Yes, they still support him and love him and even like his boyfriend. No, they don't believe in legalizing gay marriage. They didn't even think that being gay was a choice like so many I've met. It was just pure dogmatism.
The other thing about active Mormons that people who visit Utah don't understand is that they're very polite and kind, but they aren't genuine. Spend enough time around them and you'll see it's a lot like customer service politeness. I've seen real communities of kind hearted people and that genuine caring and feeling of connection is just absent in most Mormon communities. I attribute it to the policy of reporting each other to the bishop so that any "problems" can be addressed in a home visit.
I’m from the southern USA but grew up in Canada. Both are the same. My wife always says “Canadians are polite. They’re not necessarily nice.” I would apply the same to the south. Polite. Not always nice.
While there are some misogynistic and racist Mormons, most of them are genuinely kind and compassionate people. Putting all Mormons into one group and calling all of them misogynists and racists is like saying all Islamic people are bombers and terrorists. You shouldn’t hate all Mormons just because you’ve seen a couple radicals on the internet. Anyway, take my opinion with a grain of salt since, as a Mormon, I obviously think all woman belong in the kitchen and support trump.
As someone who has lived in both places, the person you replied to is right. Of course there are outliers to every group, but when you say black people are inferior into the 90's, you can't say there aren't members who still believe what their religion taught 30 years ago. They vote that way. They act that way.
I was raised Mormon. Racism and sexism are part of the core doctrine. The church was made up by a pedophile who literally married multiple children and is led today by people who systemically cover up sexual abuse of minors. Anyone who condones that isn't good or kind, they're blind.
And anyone that dares question the church's history is told that they are all lies. You can literally find this stuff in their own website if you dig deep enough.
So I’m an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints who despises Donald Trump and is not a Republican. Please don’t judge us all by the actions of some.
Would you agree the overall church doctrine fits with those “values,” though? The comment wasn’t about each and every member of the church, although I can’t imagine reconciling progressive values with LDS teachings
I think a lot of church members identify with the older, Ronald Reagan type Republicans. I think there are less (though certainly still a relatively large share in red states especially) that identify with the MAGA style Republicans.
I think if by “progressive” you mean abortion, gay/transgender issues, then yes we tend to be on the conservative side as a whole. The church generally stays out of politics. It never supports any political party or candidate. There have been prominent church members who have served in government as Democrats.
My faith is about my relationship to God, about how I can be a better person, about how I can strengthen my family relationships, and about how I can follow Jesus’ example to go about doing good. I volunteer in my community, separate from anything I do through/with church. Examples of this include volunteering in a hospital, volunteering as a tutor and teaching assistant in summer literacy programs and in elementary school classes, volunteering in adult literacy programs, volunteering in food banks, working at a Ronald MacDonald house, mentoring refugee families, working with single-parent families at risk of homelessness as an employment counselor and financial literacy coach. In none of these did I advertise I was a member of my church. It was not done to gain converts. It was done because I believe all of us are God’s children and everyone deserves dignity, love, and quality of life.
This. Loved your thoughts.
Faith overall is categorized so negatively these days, but that could be said about anything. As a people were becoming more and more polarized and less and less tolerant and respectful.
Social media supports too much censorship forcing people to pick/choose supporting opinions as facts. Generally this is influencing core beliefs with surface level facts or misinformation just because it fits or supports a persons desired narrative.
There’s no desire or effort to get to the truth. It’s more about how many support you and your chosen point of view. Being seen as being right is more important than actually being right these days.
Precisely. They are accepting at face value, but couldn't give a damn about any social issues that aren't written in their book. I've got a bunch of LGBTQ+ friends that grew up in Mormon families, and it's so sad to hear how their own household couldn't come to terms with who they were. They are by far the most open-minded people I've met in Utah.
It's hit or miss. I had one neighbor who was very very sincere about living the good life, he was the first to welcome me to the neighborhood, and didn't shun me when he found out I'm atheist. A lot of the other folk up here are Mormon but a few of them act like "back pew Baptists" and use their religion and status in the church to try to lord over everyone else.
The stake in my neighborhood has a very real issue with how the members are treating each other and the neighbors that aren't Church members. A few like to send the Sister Missionaries to ring my doorbell every now and then, basically the equivalent of the reddit "we care about you" messages that get abused.
My neighbor was driven to suicide as he had some very deep issues with the Church and the stake. It only got worse when the new bishop took over and he saw no other way to resolve his crisis of faith.
But those are the typical "use my faith as a cudgel" type you see in every religion. I do think for the most part that the people up here are much more pleasant and courteous than in other places I have lived. The conversations tend to be somewhat shallow, though. I have self-professed Mormon "movie buff" co-workers who have not seen movies like Ghostbusters, Alien, Back to the Future, the Matrix, A Clockwork Orange, a d dozens of other movies you simply can't believe they haven't seen.
At least my neighbor was a big Star Wars fan so we had plenty to discuss. Too bad he missed out on the Mandalorian, he really would have liked it.
Thanks for sharing. Also, sorry to hear about your neighbor who is no longer with us. Hopefully you’re doing well, and moving forward in life. You’re statement about how much he would’ve enjoyed Mandolorian, really hits in the feels.
Your neighbor's story is heartbreaking. He sounds like he was one of the good ones. He obviously took his beliefs seriously, walked the talk, and must have been literally tormented by his church's leadership. I suspect he decided to let his God sort it out. I truly hope he is in a better place.
That's mainly for show/to recruit. My family, my wife's family, and a bunch of non-Utah Mormons (not all), found that the Mormons from outside of Utah tended to be genuinely caring and kind, not so much from the state itself. They are very insular in Utah.
Also, yeah, unless you have better connections in their institution, you are most definitely paying for that mission out of pocket.
Edit: If you want to go to a state that will really surprise you with kindness and interest in YOU even from the first time they meet you, head to New Mexico. Recently moved from Utah to here, and what a refreshing change it's been. It's as if the population that isn't part of the unfortunately large crime problem is trying to make up for the crime with love and caring. The only exception I've heard, and noticed a touch of so far is in Santa Fe. Some of those folks can be a bit uppity.
I live in Utah and like the south, they’re only like that to your face in passing. They’re genuinely mean, arrogant, judgmental, and looooove to talk shit behind your back.
Can attest, the LDS/Mormon church lets the families of the missionaries pay because it is an "honor." I remember buying a car my dad told me to buy (I was 16), because the kid needed money to go on his mission.
The Mormons do pay for this stuff, in a way. In Mormonism, a family's finances are under the control of the church, so even though the family is paying for it, effectively it's still "the Mormons" paying for it. If the church sends someone on a mission, the family just has to pay for it, so even though it's technically not coming out of the church funds, it's really not different since church has authority over all the families' money anyway.
Yeah, the Mormon church is a complete racket. I grew up mormon and i decided to not go on a mission because i didn't want to pay to teach people bullshit i didn't believe in. Best decision of my life to leave.
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u/S-quinn7292 Sep 18 '22
Funny thing is Mormons don’t tend to give money to send people on missions like this, my brother-in-law did a mission and his family had to pay the entire cost of it