05-01-2007, 02:55 PM | #1 |
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Thought the PBS Doc was very good
Some of the poetry about the redness of Utah's terrain conditioning a violent culture I thought was a little weird, but all in all I was impressed.
There was a fair representation of faithful Mormon scholars like Bushman, Givens, Madsen, and Flake, the only ones I can think of right now. I'm sure there were more. Though there will inevitably be complaints about the fairness of this show by members, I wonder how it could have gotten any fairer. The presentation on the MMM, for example, showed very different takes on the level of BY's involvement by historians who have studied it for years. MMM is what it is, and unless you'd prefer that scholars ignore the whole thing, which they can't and shouldn't do, then the best you can hope for is a very fair treatment of it. That is what this show offered. And for polygamy, the show barely even touched on the uglier aspects of polygamy. It didn't even mention the several young women (younger than 18) that Smith was involved with. The youngest woman mentioned was, I believe, 19 years old. Frankly, I was surprised at how balanced it was. |
05-01-2007, 02:58 PM | #2 |
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Many of the people on this site come from the perspective of at least having heard of the "wart-ier" aspects of Mormon history. For those that have not heard of these things, I can see how they would be offended.
Mormons are familiar with the legends of the church, but less informed about the history. The poet guy with the beard, I think I have actually been to a reading of his. I enjoyed the fact that they used a poet. |
05-01-2007, 03:20 PM | #3 | |
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05-01-2007, 03:28 PM | #4 |
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I thought it was very good and fair. It could have been much more provocative on some points, but steered clear of those. To mention a few: There was no discussion of the Masonic influence, or J.S. using the Masonic distress call at Carthage. The Danites, Council of Fifty, and Rigdon's inflammatory Salt Sermon could have been in there. Authorized Post-Manifesto Polygamy was stepped around. It probably was something of an historical innoculation for some Church members, though, and more than a few may be coming down with a fever.
Some of my colleagues said they would watch it and I look forward to discussing it with them.
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"Do not despise the words of prophets, but test everything; hold fast to what is good; " 1 Thess. 5:21 (NRSV) We all trust our own unorthodoxies. Last edited by Sleeping in EQ; 05-01-2007 at 03:32 PM. |
05-01-2007, 03:44 PM | #5 | |
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05-01-2007, 03:52 PM | #6 | |
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I wondered if they would look at racial aspects of the early church. |
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05-01-2007, 04:19 PM | #7 |
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They'll hit up racism and the temple tonight, no doubt.
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05-01-2007, 05:12 PM | #8 |
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Probably, but after reading that David O. McKay biography, I don't know how to legitimately defend the claims of racism in the church in the 70's and prior except to say that the church leaders were products of their time.
The fact is, most of the church leaders at that time were, indeed, racist.
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Get your stinking paws off me, you damned, dirty Yewt! "Now perhaps as I spanked myself screaming out "Kozlowski, say it like you mean it bitch!" might have been out of line, but such was the mood." - Goatnapper "If you want to fatten a pig up to make the pig MORE delicious, you can feed it almost anything. Seriously. The pig is like the car on Back to the Future. You put in garbage, and out comes something magical!" - Cali Coug |
05-01-2007, 05:15 PM | #9 | |
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Not to speak evil of the Lord's annointed, mind you-- I simply wonder if there was a job to be done, and He was looking for the guy who was going to get it done.
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05-01-2007, 05:34 PM | #10 |
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I really enjoyed it, and to a large degree I found it very moving. It reminded me of why I am a Mormon, and always want to be a Mormon. Our religion is beautiful and I thought that came through. Yes, its sometimes ugly as well, but somehow that all adds to the beauty for me. Our religion is so American, and yet at the same time its not. Its a product of the 19th century, but not really. Its grand, bold, and theologically audacious, and sometimes it is intellectually embarrassing. In short, we're beautiful and I thought that came through.
Last edited by pelagius; 05-01-2007 at 07:15 PM. |
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