View Single Post
Old 04-22-2008, 04:58 PM   #4
UtahDan
Senior Member
 
UtahDan's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: The Bluth Home
Posts: 3,877
UtahDan is on a distinguished road
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by myboynoah View Post
The lesson was going along fine until someone tries to make a point on unrighteous behavior by comparing Utah Mormons to the rest of The Church.

Utah Mormons = complacency = unrighteousness

The guy (who has held many Stake positions) was serious; it was no FM troll job. I express my disillusionment to my wife and get a lecture on not getting offended. That was nice.

This is a common theme that I've heard throughout my experience outside of Utah (from the pulpit, in the halls, from instructors). WTF is this all about?
I think I know the answer to this. People who have lived both in and out of Utah make unfair comparisons between the Mormons in each place because outside of Utah you get a skewed view of the local LDS community. In Utah, you see the whole range of LDS because they all live in your neighborhood. That includes the best to the worst.

Outside of Utah you encounter basically those LDS who are at church and engaged at a high level. The lower ends of the spectrum are invisible and you might not ever even meet them.

I think this leads to an apples and oranges comparison.

Second, there are things about LDS culture that are distasteful that are amplified in Utah because of the sheer numbers. I think this also contributes to a dim, but unfair, view of the Utah saints.
__________________
The Bible tells us how to go to heaven, not how the heavens go. -Galileo
UtahDan is offline   Reply With Quote