I am a member of a Facebook group called A thoughtful Faith. It is run by members of the LDS church. This group regularly produces podcasts and interviews about Mormonism and experiences of members of the Church. I have established a very strong connection with this group and enjoy hearing their stories, experiences, and perspectives.
Over the last week I listened to a podcast with Emma and Roy Han, a Scottish Couple living in Dundee with 15 children. They shared their experience of being the subject of a U.K. national television series, their experience working with the public relations of the church, and about the faith transition that they and many of their family members have gone through.
Emma and Roy spoke of how family members had left the church because they had found out things about church practices and history that they didn’t know and were not ok with. The Han’s and other voices I have heard on A thoughtful faith say that many within the church approach these people as non-believers, doubters or think that there is something wrong with them.
The Hans discussed the releasing of the essay on race and the priesthood, which was released by the church on LDS.org. It stated that any explanations or revelations given in regards to race and the priesthood was no longer “accepted as... official doctrine of the Church.” When these essays were produced Emma and Roy shared them with their family and friends to try and bring some comfort to their sense of being disenfranchised from their faith.
However, the Hans highlighted a vital point, which for me hit it right on the nose. They said that although it was great that the essays had been produced, there was no conversation about it and many didn’t even know about them. Why weren’t these essays read or discussed in church, why hadn’t the first presidency advised a ward, branch discussion or meeting about these essays, as there was more than one on several topics.
For the Hans, these essays also caused problems for them and many others as it shook their faith. The Hans and many others, who have set their entire lives around the church, found themselves at odds. Their lives had in someway had been set up around the reliance on true and faithful doctrine now they were told that what they had thought or believed was a lie. The lie for them, was their trust and belief in the prophet to reveal truth. I recall them stating that they were perhaps relieved that this believed doctrine was no longer valid, but the fact that doctrine coming from the prophet can be wrong was very disconcerting. One of the key points that the essays pointed out to me was that our prophets get it wrong. They are normal human beings who are not perfect and yet we seem to treat them as infallible, like we should obey every word they say, when imperfection is part of our existence. The prophets over time have stated themselves that they are not perfect and that they make mistakes. Just because someone is a spokesperson for God doesn’t mean they are God.
A conversation, why is there no verbal conversation. As a doubter these essays establish more doubt and the lack of conversation around them creates a furthers struggle. It makes church much harder, when there is all these events happening in the church, excommunications, essays being produced, ordained women, but we don’t talk about it. It's like they think it’s a plague that if we just avoid it it will go away. I feel like perhaps because these things are considered bad by the priesthood holders that we just avoid them, when there are people within the church who clearly have differing opinions on these things. I wonder if there was a conversation about these essays and other events in the church, that people would find a community of people to process these events and that perhaps they might stay “active” in the church.
The church published the essays and put them on their website. Some would say that is a conversation in itself. I’ll admit it is a step forward, but it is not a verbal conversation. I want and I don’t think I’m alone, to sit down with the members of my community in the pews we sit in and to have a discussion about how people feel and what they think about the current events and affairs within the church. Some people might say you live in New Zealand it doesn’t affect you, but if it effects my church experience and others I know then it effects me.
This group that I’m a member of has 1,994 members a small number in proximity to the church, but a number nonetheless. These people are in some ways like me, questioning, transitioning and yet the one place that others and I might feel like a conversation can happen isn’t present. Many say well if you feel that way then why don’t you just leave. This says there is no place for people like me, questions aren’t allowed here. Boyd K. Packer said many years ago, “homosexuals, feminists and intellectuals are an enemy to the church” (this is on lds.org). So are we just meant to be robots and do everything we are told?
As a community we need conversation, we need active thinking, especially if our prophets get it wrong. Diversity is a part of life, so we might as well embrace it and start freaking talking about it.
