On Being a “Weird Mormon”

Here I am, ready for Church.

A few weeks ago, I read an article in a well-known national publication about a best-selling fantasy author. In this article, this author was summed up as a “weird Mormon.” (https://www.wired.com/story/brandon-sanderson-is-your-god/)

 

That hurt, not only because I happen to like that author, but because I am a “weird” Mormon myself, or rather a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This treatment was not exactly surprising though, since members of my church seem to be the last group that people can laugh at, from the straightlaced two-faced “Mormon” in movies to the ever-popular Broadway musical lampooning “Mormon missionaries.” 

 

These days, while it is unthinkable to ridicule Muslims or Native Americans or Hindus or Catholics or Jews, it seems it is totally OK to mock my faith. 

 

Why? All I can think of, is people don’t understand us. So today, I want to take you on a little tour of my life as a “weird Mormon.”  I don’t want to talk about doctrine or try to convert you. I just want to tell you about us, as people. Then you tell me if we deserve mockery.

 

If you were to enter my church service on a Sunday morning, the first weird thing you might notice is that the person conducting the meeting is the same person who teaches at the local school, or works at the local Walmart, or fills cavities in your teeth. The main leader of a congregation, called the bishop, is just an ordinary member. He leads our worship, teaches the youth, counsels the troubled, and provides assistance to the poor. He will serve for about five years, and then someone else has a turn. My husband has been a bishop. 

 

How does one person do this, when he has another full-time job and a family to care for? He has a lot of help. 

 

In fact, every member of the congregation is called a “minister.” We all help each other. Members serve as leaders (men and women both) over the women, the men, the children, and the youth. Every person in the congregation has two or three specific people to watch over, to call or text or visit so that we know what they are going through. This way, ideally, no one feels alone. If a person is sick, or struggling emotionally, or having a financial crisis—we help.

 

Also, the lay bishop doesn’t give the sermon every week. We do. Every week, two or three members get to give a 10–15-minute sermon (or talk). Everyone has a chance to do this. This means some talks are better than others. This also means every week we hear our friends’ personal experience with trying to follow Jesus. And, every once in a while, each of us gets to think deeply about our faith and share that understanding with the congregation. I gave a talk just last week.

 

Because we love our faith, we want to share. We say, “let us know if you want to know more about our church.” We send our young sons and daughters off to share the good news all over the world, funded by our own money. Barely out of high school, these youngsters give up dating, movies, and listening to popular music to live in a strange culture, often trying to speak a foreign language. This is scary and hard. But these boys and girls do it cheerfully and willingly.

 

We not only sacrifice our time to share our faith, but we also sacrifice our money. We give ten percent of our income to the church. This tithing money is used to build and maintain churches, support higher education (including an on-line program available worldwide), and provide service. Last year the Church donated over 1 billion dollars to humanitarian projects all over the world.

 

The church has been in the news lately because the funds have piled up. We are ready for future needs. We are not misusing the funds. Even the general leaders of the church who work full time` receive only a modest income. No one is getting rich off the church.

 

Those are some of the “weird” parts of our faith. We also do a lot of good things which we know others do as well. I’ll just mention a few to fill in the tour of our faith.

 

We help others. From helping the widow down the street with her yard to mucking out basements devastated by hurricanes, Mormons are great at organizing and serving. We love to help. My congregation has a quilt-making activity every Tuesday morning, donating the quilts to women’s shelters, refugee centers, and anybody in need. I know of a congregation that regularly makes cookies for the local LGBTQ club. Often congregations make bag lunches for the homeless.

 

Like others, we try to be good people. When we make mistakes, we believe we can repent and change. When those around us make mistakes, we believe they can do the same, and we forgive them. We respect the free will of others and don’t try to change them. We teach, but we allow others to find their own path. We try to accept and love all of God’s children. We believe deeply that the greatest commandments are to love God and to love each other. 

 

We study the word of God daily. We pray. We try to do what God wants us to. 

 

Of course, these are ideals. Being mortal, we often come up short. Some members of our faith do not seem to follow these ideals. All of us mess up from time to time. Don’t judge the faith or the Church by the mortals who are in it. 

 

Yes, the Mormon faith is different, maybe even weird. But does that mean we should be mocked? We who belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we are just trying to do good and be good.