I went to an LDS missionary farewell this weekend for one of the sons of a good friend. Honestly, it was fun to hear and experience all the LDS lingo and culture again. As a former Mormon with 40 years in the church, an LDS mission, Elder's quorum president, and High Councilor, I speak LDS quite fluently.
The meeting was the typical LDS approach as of lately, where the Missionary no longer owns the meeting, but is just one speaker in the line-up, with a youth speaker and a High Council speaker.
The only thing that bothered me in the meeting was during the closing prayer, where an older gentlemen launched into a little diatribe about the evil people in the world who would seek to weaken this country and the constitution, and make this nation a fallen and unrighteous nation. Upon his launch into this, I opened my eyes, raised my head, and stared him square in the face. I was front row, he was merely a few feet away. I hoped he'd open his eyes so I could playfully mouth the words "No No No!" while shaking my head, but he never did. So I sat there staring at this man as he spewed a little hatred in his prayer until the words Amen. The prayer was over long before that in my mind. At a certain point my heart hurt and my adrenal glands kicked up a little adrenaline sauce. I had a mild desire to walk up to the pulpit and open his eyes, maybe by a slap in the face, or by hitting him over the head with a stale baguette, which would be very hard to come by in the situation, but I'd settle for a hymn book. When I hear what I would term a religious zealot pray or worry about the "evil people in the world", it makes me wonder who these people are in their minds ... Atheists? Liberals? Democrats? Gays? Hookers? Motorcycle Gangs? The Illuminati? Government? I would have loved to go ask him who he meant, but I'm sure his brain would take this as an affront, and I'd instantly be one of them evil doers in his mind. I left it alone. Would he think me, an agnostic liberal, an Evil Person who deserves god's wrath and destruction, as he had prayed and wished for? Indeed, there are some bad human players at this game called life. It just bothers me to blanket whole groups of people, in an Us vs Them mentality, with such a vague categorization of "Evil People" ... We all do this Us vs Them thing to some degree ... It's certainly an ape thing to associate a whole group of people as one thing or another, which severely discounts the individual in the group or category. My experience has shown that there are good (and evil) people from all walks... but on the bright side of "categorization", it is useful to narrow down your estimation and esteem of a person by what they ascribe to. For example, although they may well be a good and decent person, when someone tells you they think the Earth is flat, you can rest assured they; are an idiot, have severe reasoning flaws, are mentally ill, or all of the above. I think the same thing about people who are religious zealots, they have a mental illness.
Hell, I was a Mormon zealot. My mental illness WAS Mormonism. I didn't see it as such at the time, but in retrospect, given my current mentality - boy howdy!!!
P.S. I've been struggling with sciatic nerve issues in my lower back and down my left leg for six months now. I voiced this to my brother at the farewell party. After things died down, he and my friend agreed to give me a blessing. I was curious if it would have any effect, given that the placebo effect works, even when you know it's a placebo ... At this point I'll try anything. The reason I bring this up is that I wanted their wives to stand in too, since according to Mormon Doctrine, the women hold their priesthood through the husband, I explained ... but I got a quick NO about this.
Technically, I also still hold the LDS priesthood, am as worthy as any other Mormon to officiate in it, and so, I, with my son who is a deacon, consecrated a bottle of Patchuli Oil to be used for the blessing. I am also an official Minister of Dudeism... This was nixed as well. Can't blame a dude for trying... however, before the annointing of the oil prayer was given I took out my oil and dabbed it in my head (and under my ears). Their stickling to the rules reminded me of how the Jews are/were about rules and laws and things only being able to be done a certain way ... Jesus was a rule breaker in their eyes.
After my friend gave me a beautiful blessing he then asked about what I was doing, and then showed me six or so daily excersizes that I could perform and told me it would take about 6 weeks... Now that! is what will most likely fix this... but I believe in blessings, oils, rituals, and most of all placebos ;)
The only thing that bothered me in the meeting was during the closing prayer, where an older gentlemen launched into a little diatribe about the evil people in the world who would seek to weaken this country and the constitution, and make this nation a fallen and unrighteous nation. Upon his launch into this, I opened my eyes, raised my head, and stared him square in the face. I was front row, he was merely a few feet away. I hoped he'd open his eyes so I could playfully mouth the words "No No No!" while shaking my head, but he never did. So I sat there staring at this man as he spewed a little hatred in his prayer until the words Amen. The prayer was over long before that in my mind. At a certain point my heart hurt and my adrenal glands kicked up a little adrenaline sauce. I had a mild desire to walk up to the pulpit and open his eyes, maybe by a slap in the face, or by hitting him over the head with a stale baguette, which would be very hard to come by in the situation, but I'd settle for a hymn book. When I hear what I would term a religious zealot pray or worry about the "evil people in the world", it makes me wonder who these people are in their minds ... Atheists? Liberals? Democrats? Gays? Hookers? Motorcycle Gangs? The Illuminati? Government? I would have loved to go ask him who he meant, but I'm sure his brain would take this as an affront, and I'd instantly be one of them evil doers in his mind. I left it alone. Would he think me, an agnostic liberal, an Evil Person who deserves god's wrath and destruction, as he had prayed and wished for? Indeed, there are some bad human players at this game called life. It just bothers me to blanket whole groups of people, in an Us vs Them mentality, with such a vague categorization of "Evil People" ... We all do this Us vs Them thing to some degree ... It's certainly an ape thing to associate a whole group of people as one thing or another, which severely discounts the individual in the group or category. My experience has shown that there are good (and evil) people from all walks... but on the bright side of "categorization", it is useful to narrow down your estimation and esteem of a person by what they ascribe to. For example, although they may well be a good and decent person, when someone tells you they think the Earth is flat, you can rest assured they; are an idiot, have severe reasoning flaws, are mentally ill, or all of the above. I think the same thing about people who are religious zealots, they have a mental illness.
Hell, I was a Mormon zealot. My mental illness WAS Mormonism. I didn't see it as such at the time, but in retrospect, given my current mentality - boy howdy!!!
P.S. I've been struggling with sciatic nerve issues in my lower back and down my left leg for six months now. I voiced this to my brother at the farewell party. After things died down, he and my friend agreed to give me a blessing. I was curious if it would have any effect, given that the placebo effect works, even when you know it's a placebo ... At this point I'll try anything. The reason I bring this up is that I wanted their wives to stand in too, since according to Mormon Doctrine, the women hold their priesthood through the husband, I explained ... but I got a quick NO about this.
Technically, I also still hold the LDS priesthood, am as worthy as any other Mormon to officiate in it, and so, I, with my son who is a deacon, consecrated a bottle of Patchuli Oil to be used for the blessing. I am also an official Minister of Dudeism... This was nixed as well. Can't blame a dude for trying... however, before the annointing of the oil prayer was given I took out my oil and dabbed it in my head (and under my ears). Their stickling to the rules reminded me of how the Jews are/were about rules and laws and things only being able to be done a certain way ... Jesus was a rule breaker in their eyes.
After my friend gave me a beautiful blessing he then asked about what I was doing, and then showed me six or so daily excersizes that I could perform and told me it would take about 6 weeks... Now that! is what will most likely fix this... but I believe in blessings, oils, rituals, and most of all placebos ;)
Yes, If you dance to the left with a brown chicken feather, instead of to the right with a white goose feather, then you surely are evil,....and if you chant with your eyes at 75 degrees instead of 90, there a special place in hell for you.
ReplyDeleteI'm an Atheist, but I leave the religious people alone. Their stuff doesn't bother me or hurt me in any way. I don't care what the gays do, just don't park it on my lawn and claim I owe them my support. I don't care about Democrats trying to infect the system with policies that were never intended to be part of the system, just quit telling everyone else that I am wrong for adhering to the policies that WERE intended to be etc. etc.
I have my own ideas about what is acceptable to me and if the gays can post their preach in every public space available, then a nativity scene, or a sculpture of Robert E Lee should be acceptable too. Abortion?..Ok, but killing viable babies so people don't have to have to live the consequences of their own behaviors is bullshit...
Just quit FORCING anyone who disagrees with you to embrace your spoon feeding of personal baggage as their obligation and let people be themselves and own the products of their own actions.
........Oh yeah, and dance the proper dance with the right color of feather or I will send you to hell...lmao