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Perceptions of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) are changing as the Internet provides new opportunities for faithful Mormons to share their lives and faith online.
If you’re wondering if you can really make a difference by coming off the bleachers and entering the field, we hope to settle it in your mind and heart that your voice is needed.
Let me share with you comments made in an on-the-street survey of random individuals approached by a Public Relations firm eleven years ago to find out what they knew about us as a Church and people. As you read these remarks, I’d invite you to ask yourself: “Do I have anything to say on these issues?” “Would I not eagerly respond to questions like these if I could?” If the answer is, as I imagine it will be, a resounding “Yes,” then I invite you to begin to participate in the online conversation about us on the Internet. For ways to do that, please contact us at email(at)moregoodfoundation(dot)org or km(at)moregood.com. We’ll show you how you can help.
“You know, on family issues and stuff like that; they have good values, it seems like.”
“As a minority, I don’t know of any minorities or blacks that are Mormons. Maybe because I haven’t been around.”
“I might be wrong, but I believe it was a religion originated in probably the 1800s by someone on the East Coast. I thought they uncovered some written material and developed a religion around that.”
“The first thing that comes to mind is that they are allowed to have multiple wives.”
“They give a certain percentage of what they earn to the Church right off the top. I think it is called, ‘tithy’”
“I don’t know about Latter-day Saints, but I was very much interested in the Mormons, and I liked the fact that they were very close and supportive of each other.”
“Very strict, rather conservative in their outlook, and very patriarchal as far as the church structure is concerned.”
“Up until recently, they practiced bigamy.”
“I know a bit. I mean, joseph Smith was the town drunk. Had a vision…. He wnet out West, took the whole thing with him. They lynched him there because they thought he was nuts… They’re really rich; I mean, they know what they’re doing. They live a nice clean life….”
“Something was found in a cave, I believe, by Mr. Smith.
“Caring, open.”
“I know that they’re based in Utah. I know that they have very strict guidelines, that there are not a lot of female priests. I know that Brigham Young University is sort of breeding ground for Mormons.”
As you can see, these interviews–conducted in New York, Washington D.C. and Chicago–reveal much fiction and misunderstanding in the public mind, mixed with a few accurate observations about our morality and lifestyle.
If you feel stirred by these comments, I’d invite you to follow the nudge to participate in sharing your voice online.
Heya! Great thought, but will this really work?
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