Families and FHE

As I was driving today, I noticed a car with a bumper sticker which said something to the effect of, "No Greater Joy: Family Home Evening".

That got me thinking. Practically the only aspect of the LDS church that is not under ex-Mormon scrutiny is the idea of FHE. Why? Because it's a good thing. They encourage families to set aside a specific time to spend it with each other. That's wonderful. They play games, have a lesson, a treat, and just use that time to be with each other.

As we all know, the LDS church claims to be family oriented, and they are, at least in theory. However, I know someone personally who's husband was so devoted to the church, that he missed the first seven years of his son's life. Due to economic difficulties, the wife lived with her parents. Her husband lived in a different city and would not come be with his family because of his duties as a bishop. It was only until she threatened to divorce him that he got a dose of common sense, resigned from his position, and moved to be with his family. They were in that position for about seven years.

Now, if the church truly was family oriented, what would they have told this husband? Would they have told him to keep at his calling and never see his family, or would they find another bishop and encourage him to go be with his family? The very fact that the church would choose to keep him as a bishop and keep him away from his family says a lot!

And I'm sure that this is not the first time it has happened. In words, the church is family oriented, but in deeds, they don't really care, just as long as you keep conforming and, most importantly, keep paying. I guess they figure that, while family might be important, free labor from them is even better. Families are important, but the only thing that is more important, is... la iglesia (the church).

This is no new concept. The church encourages people from all over the world to join them even at the cost of their entire family. Many people join the church very much against the will of their families, and are disowned. The church then praises these people for their faithfulness. Now, if the church truly was family oriented, then they would only baptize families together.

And then, if the church is so family oriented, why do they separate them into classes of worthy and not worthy? A not worthy family member is not allowed into the temple to witness a marriage of a worthy family member. Many people outside of the LDS religion are absolutely shocked by this. Why would any church forbid family members from witnessing a special ceremony like a wedding?

If Jesus really was running the show, do you think that he would turn away family members? Absolutely not! He would welcome them and love them. If I was a non-member family member in that position, there is no way in hell that I would ever consider joining such a heartless church!

So, it would be really nice if there was even one aspect of Mormonism that didn't backfire in their face. It would be nice if I could talk about families and not have a reason to criticize the church for it. It would be nice if there was just one thing that they were not total hypocrites about.

LDS church, the walk is different than the talk.