Thursday, February 01, 2007

Why Is Religion Relevant?

My father's recent email with "proof" of Joseph Smith's authenticity along with reading Richard Dawkin's "The God Delusion" has caused a lot of thoughts to run through my head.

I responded to my father's email and clearly articulated how I received it and how it made me feel. His response confirmed that he'd sent it hoping I'd have a Saul on the road to Tarsus moment and be overwhelmed by the obviousness of how wrong I am and how obvious it is that Joseph Smith was God's inspired messenger. He also agreed to leave me alone about the church.
I understand that he feels like I need saving. But why and from what? At a very basic level, what does religion in general and Mormonism specifically have to offer me that I would want and that would make my life better?

Can someone please help me? Why should religion be relevant for me? I could make a list, but they would be easy to dismiss or else would be available to me without having to subscribe to any religious dogma or supernatural assumptions.

So, why? What does Mormonism have to offer that's so important?

6 comments:

Sister Mary Lisa said...

The Mormons would tell you that it offers you celestial glory, and eternity with the ones you love.

Sigh.

Anonymous said...

I thought religion gave you some common ground on which to connect. How are you connecting to your family nowadays?

Threads of the Divine said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Bull said...

Sorry about deleting the comment. I think that anonymous is someone who knows me quite well and might have been offended by your choice of words. Contact me offline by email if you want to discuss it further.

Threads of the Divine said...

My bad. I may have over stepped. There are lots of ways to connect with family members and have wholesome relationships without religion. I don't think that differences in beliefs should have much to do with family relationships.

Sideon said...

Mormonism offers:

conformity
mind-numbing obedience
sexual sterility
jello salads
funeral potatos
narrow world vision
new malls built with tithing earnings

I can get more "spirit" from a bottle of Corona than I could ever feel in the cloister of an LDS church.