tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6910497790985764751.post2855963168780223583..comments2023-06-11T06:04:33.281-07:00Comments on Life by List: No love for Big LoveEmmaNadinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11813648613912843721noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6910497790985764751.post-20866402086210528932009-03-12T10:51:00.000-07:002009-03-12T10:51:00.000-07:00My comments were not aimed at proving other faiths...My comments were not aimed at proving other faiths wrong. They were aimed at garnering respect for ordinances and covenants initiated by Jesus Christ. These temple ceremonies were not invented in the 19th Century!<BR/><BR/>I'm sorry you didn't recognize my intent.Mormons Are Christianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12665992248493805022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6910497790985764751.post-25136055253468131162009-03-12T10:42:00.000-07:002009-03-12T10:42:00.000-07:00Spammy comments about why the Mormons are right an...Spammy comments about why the Mormons are right and everyone else is ignorant get deleted. If I'm talking about respecting other faiths, then that lesson starts at home.EmmaNadinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11813648613912843721noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6910497790985764751.post-19696825151684216502009-03-12T10:22:00.000-07:002009-03-12T10:22:00.000-07:00I'm not expecting anyone outside of the tradition ...I'm not expecting anyone outside of the tradition to regard the temple ceremony as sacred. However, my biggest source of discomfort with the representation that I saw online is the mocking and ridicule that was part of the discussion. And I might add that the ridicule started with the Mormon faith and went on to include most, if not all, Christian traditions. So I'm concerned with rituals that other faiths regard as sacred that I don't. <BR/><BR/>I'm definitely not saying that Mormons should run around killing people who reveal the temple ceremony, or that the government should punish in any way those who do so. I'm not asking for government intervention of any kind. I guess what I am hoping for is that people will not openly mock traditions that they are not a part of. Religions should be open to discussion and critique, but I think it's unhelpful to do it out of a position of "You're an ignorant moron to believe that." Like I said in the post, I've never watched an episode of Big Love in general, and the episode in question in particular, so my comments were directed at the public discussion of the episode more than anything.<BR/><BR/>That's one of the things that I find particularly interesting about your blog, Anastasia. I love seeing you explain a faith tradition that is different from my own. <BR/><BR/>I'm wondering if it is possible to treat as sacred traditions that are not sacred to you? And if not, can we at least afford our fellow citizens respect for their beliefs?EmmaNadinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11813648613912843721noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6910497790985764751.post-82126262474298822742009-03-12T10:21:00.000-07:002009-03-12T10:21:00.000-07:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Mormons Are Christianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12665992248493805022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6910497790985764751.post-9982282268919242182009-03-12T10:18:00.000-07:002009-03-12T10:18:00.000-07:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Mormons Are Christianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12665992248493805022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6910497790985764751.post-2315213613598108412009-03-12T09:47:00.000-07:002009-03-12T09:47:00.000-07:00The problem with religion in America is that the t...The problem with religion in America is that the temple ceremony is not sacred....to me. It isn't any more sacred to me than the elevation of the host at a Catholic Mass is sacred to a non-Catholic or non-believer in the real presence of Christ at the Eucharist. <BR/><BR/>Now, how do we manage that? Does mutual respect mean that I must observe as sacred the things that other religions find sacred, in addition to keeping my own? And how do you enforce that? I work on one of those pre-Christian secret initiations, actually, and in that context, those who disrespected or revealed the secrets contained therein were put to death. To. death. By the government. That was the means for enforcing the secrecy, not some kind of underlying cultural norm. The norm was there, yes. But the enforcement of that norm was the government's job.<BR/><BR/>It seems to me it would take that level of enforcement of a mutually agreed upon set of boundaries in order to preserve the absolutely sanctity of every religious tradition. At that point, the government has to become involved, which violates the principle of separation of church and state--for real, not just in the sense of mixing religion and politics.<BR/><BR/>In other words, I am tempted to conclude that religious freedom and religious diversity means all religions are fair game. In order for something to be truly sacred and secret, that secret must be kept from all outsiders at all costs. That's what the masons do.<BR/><BR/>So I don't know if I think it's a degradation of the concept of sanctity per se, so much as a characteristic of the American religious landscape that religions are open to scrutiny and ridicule of all kinds. I do think there are strong social norms against violating certain things we hold sacred in common--the flag, the national anthem, the festivals of our civil religion--but even those are not enforced and violating them is protected under the freedom of speech.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com