Called To Serve
Remember this? The time has come!
Evan and I flew down to Texas on Thursday to spend the last few days with Christian and my family before he leaves for the Missionary Training Center this Wednesday. The thing I love about my little brother is that he is 100% completely genuine with everyone, everywhere. He's never met a person he didn't like and as far as he's concerned he's also never met a person who didn't like him! I felt so lucky to get to hear him sing "How Great Thou Art" with his friends in Sacrament meeting and then speak on the only reason he is going on his mission, because he loves the gospel. So we are wishing him the very best of luck in his efforts to share the most important thing to him with the people of Mexico City. We can't wait to start hearing from you in your letters!
As I have been preparing to say goodbye to him over the past couple of weeks, I have been thinking about all of the noise going on in the media about our religion. Between Mitt Romney's possible Presidential run, The Book of Mormon Broadway musical cleaning up at the Tony's, and Bentley on the Bachelorette apparently making quite a jerk out of himself, I'm feeling like its time to talk about this. So in honor of my wonderful little brother leaving on his mission, I'd like to do on a post on what I really do believe, as opposed to what Newsweek magazine informs me that I believe.
Here's the plan: I know a lot of people who read my blog share my faith, but I also know there are some of you who don't. So its time to ask some questions! Honestly, it's absolutely none of my business whether or not you vote for Mitt Romney, but I do hope people will be basing that decision on his politics and not discrediting him because of their misconceptions about his religious beliefs. So let me help you out :) Leave a comment on my blog with a question, or questions you have about the LDS church and what we teach. Maybe you've heard a rumor about something (for example, someone once informed me that I was not allowed to cut my hair because I was Mormon...oops, never heard about that one), or maybe your pastor has taught something in your own congregation (another friend asked me if we really drink actual blood during the Sacrament. Seriously? I know the author of the Twilight series is LDS, but that's quite a stretch), or maybe you're just curious. You can leave the comment anonymously, you can email it to me, or you can message it to me on facebook if you don't want anyone else to read it. I'm teaming up with my friend Sallie on this little experiment so if you want you could also post your comments here on her blog. If you do share my faith, feel free to leave comments as well. You can post questions you've gotten from friends or family members that you felt were hard to explain, or that you think are common misconceptions, or just something you think I should write about. I don't have a PhD in religious studies or any kind of leadership position in the church that designates me as an official authority on the subject. However, I am a member, I have spent my entire life studying the gospel, and my husband and I are building and will continue to build our lives around it. So I think that give me at least a few of the qualifications I need to share a little bit of it with you.
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| Photo by Missy Saunders |
As I have been preparing to say goodbye to him over the past couple of weeks, I have been thinking about all of the noise going on in the media about our religion. Between Mitt Romney's possible Presidential run, The Book of Mormon Broadway musical cleaning up at the Tony's, and Bentley on the Bachelorette apparently making quite a jerk out of himself, I'm feeling like its time to talk about this. So in honor of my wonderful little brother leaving on his mission, I'd like to do on a post on what I really do believe, as opposed to what Newsweek magazine informs me that I believe.
Here's the plan: I know a lot of people who read my blog share my faith, but I also know there are some of you who don't. So its time to ask some questions! Honestly, it's absolutely none of my business whether or not you vote for Mitt Romney, but I do hope people will be basing that decision on his politics and not discrediting him because of their misconceptions about his religious beliefs. So let me help you out :) Leave a comment on my blog with a question, or questions you have about the LDS church and what we teach. Maybe you've heard a rumor about something (for example, someone once informed me that I was not allowed to cut my hair because I was Mormon...oops, never heard about that one), or maybe your pastor has taught something in your own congregation (another friend asked me if we really drink actual blood during the Sacrament. Seriously? I know the author of the Twilight series is LDS, but that's quite a stretch), or maybe you're just curious. You can leave the comment anonymously, you can email it to me, or you can message it to me on facebook if you don't want anyone else to read it. I'm teaming up with my friend Sallie on this little experiment so if you want you could also post your comments here on her blog. If you do share my faith, feel free to leave comments as well. You can post questions you've gotten from friends or family members that you felt were hard to explain, or that you think are common misconceptions, or just something you think I should write about. I don't have a PhD in religious studies or any kind of leadership position in the church that designates me as an official authority on the subject. However, I am a member, I have spent my entire life studying the gospel, and my husband and I are building and will continue to build our lives around it. So I think that give me at least a few of the qualifications I need to share a little bit of it with you.
First of all, let me take a second to congratulate you on your engagement and wedding. Secondly, I'd like to thank you for being so open about your faith and your willingness to share it should encourage anyone of any religion in their own walk. Without further ado I'll get to my questions, I guess there's really three things that I've heard and am curios about.
ReplyDeleteFirstly, do you really have to lead a perfect life three times by getting into the seventh level of Heaven each time to get your own planet?
Secondly, if that's the case how do you know that your life incarnate right now isn't someone else's reincarnation?
Lastly, is it true that when a couple is wed in the LDS church, they are called to consummate the marriage before God immediately after? If so, does the congregation just wait or are there no receptions post LDS church marriages?
Let me reassure you, these are all things I've heard word of mouth and I'd prefer to fight ignorance with factual evidence from someone like yourself than to believe it simply from hearing it 3rd party through blind faith in my peers.
Thanks for your time and thank you again for the act of faith it took to step out and defend your beliefs.
wow i cant believe your little brother is all grown up that is so wonderful!!! congrats to him! :)
ReplyDeleteI can't believe he's going on his mission!!! Well, I can believe he is serving, but not that it's already time!! That's so exciting!!
ReplyDeleteAnd I love that y'all are speaking out!! I wish more of us were that strong!! (Mainly referring to myself)