Is Mormonism's Poor Image Due to Public Misunderstanding?

[_DrW]

I realize there are millions of people out there who will peer down their noses at any religionist for believing, thinking, essentially, that the religionist is off his/her rocker for believing. I don't think this is anywhere near a uniquely Mormon thing.

I agree that it is not uniquely a "Mormon thing".

But you will have to admit that (with the possible exception of Scientology) the Mormon Church does 'off their rocker beliefs' better than any organized religion in America.

[_stemelbow]

An enormous older lady got on the train today just after the station I boarded. She came down the aisle looking for a place to sit and as luck would have it there was one seat next to me. I realize she'd have half her right buddocks sitting on my lap, but whatever. Just as she approached the train took off again and she fell backwards. I reached otu and grabbed her and my minimal weight training, designed to keep myself in shape rather than to build any sort of muscle, was unable to keep her upright. She tumbled backward as I felt her sausage fingers slip through my grasp. She sat for a second completely embarrassed, with about 20 people witness to the whole affair and another 40 or 50 looking at her as they realized what had happened. It was a pitiful sight for sure. Anyway, it'd be easy to eek out a convenient quip or sarcastic piece to garner a few laughs from the on-lookers. But I took the moral high ground helped her to her feet and let her sit on my lap anyway as she recovered with some hefty breaths.

This thread puts me in her shoes a little. Perhaps we're viewed as the large old lady who fell down on the train. perhaps its easy to laugh at us. But who cares.

I figure we're all anonymous so I can rehearse this story and cause no concern.

[_subgenius]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f6lcOSFnhW0
if schoolhouse rock could not destroy it what chance does Google have?
If anything i can emphatically state that access to more information actually influenced my conversion to an "organized religion".

Are you sure you have the right link here? If so, then I fail to see any relevance whatsoever of the short video to the topic of the OP or this thread.

i assume the inference made by "information age" was one of knowledge is power and that by that power organized religion will be "threatened".
other than that, the simple answer to this protracted topic is the tried and true "there is no such thing as bad publicity"

Besides, you have yet to prove that there actually is a "deteriorating public image" of Mormonism. (shocking!)

[_DrW]

An enormous older lady got on the train today just after the station I boarded. She came down the aisle looking for a place to sit and as luck would have it there was one seat next to me. I realize she'd have half her right buddocks sitting on my lap, but whatever. Just as she approached the train took off again and she fell backwards. I reached otu and grabbed her and my minimal weight training, designed to keep myself in shape rather than to build any sort of muscle, was unable to keep her upright. She tumbled backward as I felt her sausage fingers slip through my grasp. She sat for a second completely embarrassed, with about 20 people witness to the whole affair and another 40 or 50 looking at her as they realized what had happened. It was a pitiful sight for sure. Anyway, it'd be easy to eek out a convenient quip or sarcastic piece to garner a few laughs from the on-lookers. But I took the moral high ground helped her to her feet and let her sit on my lap anyway as she recovered with some hefty breaths.

This thread puts me in her shoes a little. Perhaps we're viewed as the large old lady who fell down on the train. perhaps its easy to laugh at us. But who cares.

I figure we're all anonymous so I can rehearse this story and cause no concern.

Stem,

You certainly did the right thing in the case you describe. Anyone who made fun of the two of you in such a situation would not be acting appropriately. Her falling down on the train was not a considered decision on her part, but an accident. And you were absolutely right to help her.

For most adults, Mormonism is not an accident, but a considered decision. Continued belief in the foundation truth claims in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary often based on willful ignorance or poor understanding of the facts. And in many cases it also involves an unwillingness or inability to stand up to family and a peer group and tell the truth.

I hope you can appreciate the important difference between your absolutely appropriate actions on the train and situation that the Mormon Church finds it in as public scrutiny is focused upon it.

[_DrW]

Besides, you have yet to prove that there actually is a "deteriorating public image" of Mormonism. (shocking!)

This assessment comes directly from recent polls and the resulting articles in Mormon publications and on Mormon websites.

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700054363/Mormons-need-to-work-to-increase-favor.html

"At the recent FAIR conference in Utah, some interesting data were shared. Guess what? People don’t like us. No, let me rephrase that: people really don’t like us.

According to the polling firm which gathered the data, LDS people have an unfavorable to favorable rating of 5 – 1. For every person who thinks well of us there are five who do not.

To compare, notice that Jewish people have a favorable rating of 7 – 2 (seven likes for every two dislikes) and Catholics have a favorable rating of 2 – 1. Where are we going and how did we get in this handbasket?"

from: http://puremormonism.blogspot.com/2010/08/why-dont-they-like-us.html

The emphasis is mine.

[_Some Schmo]

Are you kidding? This is the best thing that could happen to the church. Members now get to re-up on their persecution claims. What could be better? It's yet another opportunity to make false statements about the supposed causal relationship between getting laughed at and their truth claims. The LDS church is the Comedy Central of religion, and somehow, that makes it even truer. Lucky for them.

It's win-win for all involved.

Your argument is based on the hypothesis that some humans are endowed with a very high capacity for paranoia, imagined persecution and overall self-delusion.

Well sure... I grew up LDS and that is exactly what I observed.

While this capacity may indeed be high in some, I do not believe that it is unlimited.

No, I hear ya... I just think that if they're going to maintain belief in the face of what's happening, they're going to have to tell themselves something. The persecution route is tried and true; that's all (and admittedly, I was expressing something I think is true in a slightly exaggerated way... something I'm apt to do regularly).

And if these first few months are any indication, these limits are going to be sorely tested for many during this campaign.

I'd love to think that this latest exposure will test members' resolve. I have just learned not to underestimate the power of ignorance inducing faith.

[_bcspace]

Is Mormonism's Poor Image Due to Public Misunderstanding?

Most, if not all, public misunderstanding is due to antiMormon yellow journalism. Evangelical and otherwise.

[Guest]

--- the simple answer to this protracted topic is the tried and true "there is no such thing as bad publicity"

This is what individuals and organizations that attract and generate bad publicity like to tell themselves and others. And for some interim period, it may well be true. However, over the long haul, consistently bad publicity is corrosive to any person or organization.

This is why the LDS Church is trying to buy its way to public acceptance with massive amounts of paid-for PR.

Whether this outpouring of brand advertising will actually work for the LDS Church is an open question. When the underlying product or service is of value to the public, this advertising strategy often works well (think Tylenol after the poisonings). When the underlying product or service is of little or no value, then the strategy can backfire (think Ford Pinto), even when the best PR firms are involved.

I fear that, regardless of the magnitude of their PR spending, the leaders of the LDS Church are looking at some hard times ahead. Their brand is on the ropes and the quality of their product is certainly not helping matters.

[_DrW]

Is Mormonism's Poor Image Due to Public Misunderstanding?

Most, if not all, public misunderstanding is due to antiMormon yellow journalism. Evangelical and otherwise.

Did you watch the video?

If you did, what was "yellow" about the description of Mormonism's foundational truth claims?

[_MCB]

Anyway, it'd be easy to eek out a convenient quip or sarcastic piece to garner a few laughs from the on-lookers. But I took the moral high ground helped her to her feet and let her sit on my lap anyway as she recovered with some hefty breaths.

This thread puts me in her shoes a little. Perhaps we're viewed as the large old lady who fell down on the train. perhaps its easy to laugh at us.

I think that is an excellent analogy. Perhaps if more people were to take a good look at their own belief systems, with the myriad of Mormon belief systems as an example, non-Mormons would learn more and be less harsh. That is the essence of positive humor and negative humor. It is the old "we are good, you are evil" syndrome. I mean, LDS internalize whatever aspects of LDS beliefs and culture are in tune with their own predispositions. If their own predispositions are less than admirable, then they are the epitome of whatever is wrong with Mormonism. And if they are hefty tithe-payers, no-one calls them on it.


And, personally, ridiculing DP for his weight problem is just TOTALLY inappropriate. There are a lot more things he does and says that can be ridiculed in an appropriate manner.