There has been a lot of praise and support surrounding the Washington Post article Amos and Andy and The Book of Mormon. However, with one* sentence he lost me.
We may laugh, but our grandchildren will shudder as decent folk do at “wits” of the last century whose favorite dance was to “jump Jim Crow.”
Mr Reynolds seems to be claiming that making fun of some of the "peculiar" aspects contained in the Latter Day Saint religion is similar to making fun of a minority ethnic group. I strongly disagree. I choose to be a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I was NOT born this way! In fact I continue to choose this way of life knowing that I could stop any day I wanted to. I venture to guess that our brothers and sisters who are mocked, teased, and sometimes still have their own lives cut short because of the color of their skin may agree that the comparison is a stretch, at best.
While I appreciate the attempt of a fellow Christian sticking up for one of his own...I think that if we are offended when the general public starts discussing "Mormons", and get it wrong, we are passing up an opportunity to talk to people about who we really are and what we really believe. We know we are peculiar. We are destined to seem even more peculiar as the morals and values of our society as a whole continue to erode.
I love this new billboard in Times Square. I wish I still lived in NYC because I would make a name tag to wear that says "I'm a Mormon". I am not ashamed, I don't think I'm crazy, and I know that living the principles of The Plan of Salvation brings me great joy and happiness and will continue to do so through eternity.
*There was actually another sentence that threw me for a loop.
I cannot know for sure without seeing the entire play.
But he was somehow able to make some scathing assumptions about the creators of the play.
If we assume the play a brilliant satire with PR unfortunate enough to release only the cruel and facile bits, then we are still left with two unfortunate truths about this play. First, the writers are cowards. They inflict pain and mockery on those already despised while going soft on the tired assumptions of their rich and powerful patrons. Second, in a pluralistic society they have targeted a group already misunderstood and discriminated against.
I haven't seen the play either but I've heard most of the songs and I can relate to them as a member of the church and as a former missionary. The profanity in a couple of them is unfortunate and they are the reason I won't be seeing this musical.
These 2 don't have any profanity and I have found myself humming or singing them at some pretty random times...very catchy and creative!
This post is not intended to persuade anyone to think or feel anything. Just my opinion...
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