The Mormons

The Mormons

My first experience with the Mormons.

Here is an article about my introduction to Mormonism.  On Sunday, I went to afternoon service at my local Mormon Church then to an inspirational program held at the Visitors Center next to the Big Temple for my area later that evening. 

The Mormons are an experience.  They do have a 'holier than thou attitude' but it appears they practice what they preach.  I went to the website and gave them my address so I could get a "free" copy of the Book of Mormon.  Of course getting a freebie was not all that it entailed.  They took too long to send me my copy so I got one from the library and read that one.  Just when I finished, they showed up at house the same day however, I wasn't home.

They came the following day and proceeded to "minister" to me and finally did give me a copy of the book.  The missionaries where two young guys, one from Samoa and the other from Utah.  They seemed really friendly and of course I am skeptical about everything so I was a bit weary.

I attended church on Sunday and I'll have to admit, I liked it.  Service was broken up into three parts.  The first was in the sanctuary and time was given to each participant to give his or her testimony.  The second part was in a classroom and another church member expounded on what it meant to be a Mormon and how "real" the book of mormon was.  The third part, was back in the sanctuary and was lead by two missionaries.  

After service, they invited me to attend an inspirational gathering to be held at the visitors center at the big temple for the Washington DC area.

I got a ride home from a latino guy and his white wife from L.A.  They just moved to the area and they felt really genuine.  

Later I got a ride to the visitors temple and that was mind blowing.  While the local church that I attended earlier was a racial mix of about 50% black and 50% white, the majority at the big temple was white.  I assumed that the church in my area was mostly black due to the fact that it is in a low income area.  The big temple is in a much more affluent neighborhood therefore the mix is skewed toward white people who live there.

Of course I am walking with my own prejudices and cynicism so I was not prepared for what I got at the center.  I expected a whole load of racist white people pretending to like me.  

Half of the people there were missionaries and they have a strict code of conduct.  They cannot participate in worldly affairs, keep their hair cropped short and wear a shirt and tie as their uniform.  Not only were they clean, but they looked great.  

It is interesting to note that missionaries are not paid, they have to pay for their own missionary activities for the two years that they are on their mission.  

They took me around the visitors center which was really plush and shinny.  It had a big statue of Jesus with open arms in the middle.  The program consisted of musical selections, testimonials, readings, and video.  

While there I was struck by their no nonsense approach and how clean they looked.  Additionally I was impressed by the diversity of the crowd.  There were people from Utah, Germany, Samoa, Miami, China, South Africa, and the Philippines to name a few.  

All in all I was impressed with the fact that it appears they practice what they preach.  

They came over today with another guy to tell me about being baptized, the Vow of Chastity, and the Word of Wisdom which is: no sex, alcohol, tobacco, coffee or tea, illegal drugs, or other harmful or addictive substances.  I told them I could do the no sex, no alcohol, and no drugs but I wasn't sure about no coffee.  I appreciate what they are attempting to do and I am going to let them run their program.  

I asked them some serious questions like: What about homosexuality? And they gave the classic church answer "its wrong."  

I want to know about the more obscure teachings and philosophies of the Church such as:  the Adam is the angel Michael teachings that the prophet Joseph Smith never told anyone about publicly.  Or the fact that they consider those who are part of the Mormon Church as Jews while everyone else who isn't is considered gentile . . . and a whole host of other things.  However I don't think I will get such discourse at this the introductory level.  My only recompense is to ride it out until I get the answers I seek.  

One thing I appreciate about Mormonism is that it is distinctly American.  The Book of Mormon teaches about Justice, Liberty, and Freedom which is what America is supposed to stand for.  I was under the impression that America had little to offer the world by way of Spirituality. However, Mormonism proves me wrong.  Its adherents are blue eyed, blond midwesterners who smile a lot. 

They remind me of the Quakers, who were the only so-called Christian group who claimed to follow Christ who didn't have slaves while mainstream America said it was ethical and acceptable to profit from it.  

Conversely, some Fundamentalist Mormons practice polygamy, 

OK  . . . whats that about?  

Go figure.  At any rate, we will see . . . 

EL-Daoud



(c) 2013 ADAM EL DAOUD THE FATHER KING™