I bought it last night after Scott and I ate out, just the two of us. We went to a local book store to roam for about 40 minutes before picking the kids up from church. While I was browsing, I found a tiny section of books on the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormonism).
I make it a habit to read other people's searches and experiences with religion and spirituality on a fairly regular basis. I do this in an effort to gain a more complete, well-rounded understanding of the teachings of other faiths. Critics of a belief system have a tendency to over-simplify and exaggerate its teachings. Proponents and advocates of a philosophy or faith are prone to leaving details out that might be troublesome or off-putting. I am vary wary of taking either of these descriptions as 100% correct on their own. But taken together, I have found a much more real perspective on the approach in question and find I can have much more real conversations about it with those who follow or practice it.
So my freebie for today: Don't only read apologetic books on a religion, and don't only read myth-busting books on it either. Make sure you give both sides a fair shake. Any philosophy or religion worth its salt will stand up to critical review.
Anyway, back to my book-in-a-day story.
I was drawn to the Mormon books partly because two young LDS missionary men came to our door about a month ago and promised to return. Whenever possible, I try to engage these people in conversation and get them to return -- the more time they spend talking to me, the less time they will spend with other more vulnerable people and the more I have opportunity to reach out to them. I had a Jehovah's Witness coming to my house every 2-3 months for a couple years before we moved. I read every copy of the Watchtower that she left and saw for myself in their own publications the truly bizarre things they believe. (For example, they have predicted the return of Christ three times so far, all have been incorrect, and numbers were recalculated. Now they say he returned about 30 years ago but not bodily -- that will come later -- another date that will doubtless be proven wrong but mysteriously not bother any of the followers.)
So these men came to the door sometime before Christmas. I have to confess... I could barely conceal (and probably didn't conceal at all) my utter amusement at the ridiculous scene -- two earnest young men trying to convert an already-married woman to possibly the most oppressive male-dominated religion in the United States. (Being married to a "Gentile" man means that even if I converted to Mormonism, I would never attain the highest level of heaven. LDS women must be married to a devout LDS man to ascend that high.)
Knowing that they may return (though if they're smart, they could tell that I knew far too much about their religion to be duped), I have been preparing what I might say.
A title popped out at me from between the Complete Idiot's Guide to Mormonism and The Book of Mormon.
"Leaving the Saints: How I Lost the Mormons and Found My Faith" by Martha BeckI picked it up and within minutes was plopped down in a chair, hooked. (My mom used to say that I "fall into a book." She would call my name for dinner and I honestly wouldn't hear her, so engaged the story was I.)
Scott wandered over and we decided to each buy a book -- a rare treat for us in these budget-conscious days.
I read the book from cover to cover today, and found it contained more than I could ever hope for to refute both the historical claims of the LDS church and its approach to dissent and the sins of its people (specifically the sexual sins of its men). The writer believes that the scandal currently rocking the Catholic church would pale in comparison to the depth and breadth of abuse initiated and protected by the Mormon church.
The author is the daughter of an extremely-well-respected man in the church, an apologist charged with defending the church from attack. She writes in a shockingly-loving and forgiving tone about him, her family, the church, and the childhood she endured. It is an agonizing and yet uplifting account of a journey through hell on earth, and how she emerged on the other side.
I finished it with a whole new attitude towards those caught in the snare of this religion. I will not laugh at those young men should they return to my home. They are deceived and controlled to an extent almost unfathomable in this country, founded on principles of religious freedom and free speech.
But don't get me started on that -- that is another soapbox for another day.
