Sacrifice – to give up, to forgo,
to forfeit, to surrender, to let go
Wednesday was Ash Wednesday, which kicks off the Lenten Season. But, wait a minute here, Brooke! You’re Mormon! Mormons don’t observe Lent!
Yes, officially, that is true.
However, I’m not exactly sure why because the entire idea behind Lent, a
season of sacrifice preparing us for Easter and the celebration of Christ’s
Atonement and Resurrection, fits perfectly into our doctrine and
teachings. We fast from food for 24
hours once every month and use the money we would have spent on food to donate
to the poor. We fast from food when we
are seeking answers to questions, when someone is sick or afflicted in some way,
when we simply want to feel closer to Heavenly Father. Fasting should always be coupled with prayer
and meditation, giving one the opportunity to feel the whisperings of the Holy
Ghost.
Okay, back to Lent. John is the
one who taught me about Lent. Growing up
Catholic, he’s observed it for as long as he can remember. When he and I began to date again, I decided
that I would join him in observing this season.
There are a couple of rules:
1.
You may not consume meat on Ash Wednesday or on
Fridays. From my understanding, this is
supposed to be done in remembrance of times of famine. It used to be that you abstained from meat
for the whole 40 days, but that was later changed.
2.
You are supposed to sacrifice something in your
life for 40 days. John clarified this
for me a few years ago that you may also add something good to your daily
routine (in essence, sacrificing your time).
I know I’m missing details, but the point is to sacrifice something for
the Lord since He has made the ultimate sacrifice for us. I think it’s beautiful. This year, John and I have committed to
diligently reading our scriptures every day, without fail, in honor of
Lent. This is a goal of ours generally,
but we typically fail. Lent gives us the
perfect opportunity and motivation to really stick with it.
This serendipitously coincided with my reading of a book for the book
group I attend once a month. This month’s
book was No More Goodbyes: Circling the
Wagons around Our Gay Loved Ones by Carol Lynn Pearson. Let me start off by saying that EVERYONE should read this book! Ms. Pearson is Mormon, and the book primarily
focuses on being homosexual in the Mormon culture, but it certainly applies to
anyone of any faith who wants to understand more; who wants to empathize with
something they don’t quite understand and in the process become a better
Christian.
The books is a series of true stories, some tragic and some triumphant.
The description found on the back of the book is as follows:
In No More Goodbyes, Pearson revisits the
challenging subject of religious people relating to their gay loved ones who
are often condemned by their church and – many believe – by God. Through stories gathered from the microcosm
of Mormonism, it becomes clear how this emotional earthquake affects families
of all faiths
Being a Mormon and having a gay brother (and many other gay loved ones
in my life) has been a confusing tightrope walk. On one hand, I love my faith! I choose this faith and I have never regretted
that decision. On the other hand, I love
my brother more than words can express and watching him feel as if he is being
torn in two is heartbreaking and crushing.
It took me some time to realize that I don’t have to choose between the
two! I can have dissenting feelings
about some of the Church’s strategies and decisions, support my brother in his
struggle to find and acquire the life that he feels is right for him and remain
loyal to both!
I personally believe that there is no detriment to the traditional
family or our society by allowing gay individuals to marry. Denying marriage licenses is not going to
keep gay couples from building lives together, forming families, and being a
part of our communities. Coming from a faith
with a history of non-traditional marriages (i.e. polygamy), I feel Mormons
should be most understanding of all.
There is one thing that is completely clear to me, regardless of your feelings
about this issue, regardless of your religious beliefs or sexual orientation:
the anger and the bitterness has to stop (I say this to heterosexuals and
LGBTQIA individuals alike)! The
alienation has to stop! The taking of
one’s life because they feel unworthy, and out of place or rejected HAS TO
STOP! Life is a precious gift given to us by our Heavenly
Father and we need to band together to help everyone make the most of this
gift. And by doing so, we will make the most
of our lives. Love and making the effort
to understand, even if you don’t ultimately agree, is always constructive. This applies to religious people who disagree
with those who act on their homosexual feelings and to those who do not agree
with someone’s religious beliefs.
I think this entire issue also assumes that LGBTQIA individuals are not
and cannot be religious. That they don’t
love God and that they don’t want to follow a faith. This is preposterous! There are many faithful and religious people
with different sexual orientations and I know for a fact that Heavenly Father
loves them all unconditionally.
I believe that people should have the right to choose the life they
wish to lead; what they feel is right. Many
people disagree with the Mormon Church, but I believe that it is true and this
is the right lifestyle for me. I want
others to be able to make this choice for themselves as well because I believe
in free agency. I believe every person
should feel welcome in any faith tradition since, at the foundation of every
tradition, is the Golden Rule. That we
should strive to love individuals because they are Children of God and, as
such, are our brothers and sisters.
I join my plea with that of Ms. Pearson: no more sacrifice of families,
of people and of life. I am committed to
this and I hope you will be too.
On a lighter note, here are some pictures of L and S playing at the See
Science Center in Manchester, NH!
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| Chef L (I know, my camera stinks) |
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| Chef S |
