tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32960447.post581722125163382324..comments2024-03-24T03:21:55.744-06:00Comments on Life On Gold Plates: "They forget they are in Zion's ship": Circumstances and CharacterBHodgeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01751807169882645742noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32960447.post-48132539666457078422008-06-18T15:27:00.000-06:002008-06-18T15:27:00.000-06:00I agree that things are more nuanced than as prese...I agree that things are more nuanced than as presented by Brigham as presented in this post. This is where I would refer any and all to Eugene England's "Why The Church is as True as the Gospel." And a few former posts, such as this:<BR/>http://tinyurl.com/5tum6gBHodgeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01751807169882645742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32960447.post-74938595055520299492008-06-18T15:15:00.000-06:002008-06-18T15:15:00.000-06:00Is this post secretly dedicated to me?My co-worker...Is this post secretly dedicated to me?<BR/><BR/>My co-worker and I were just speaking on this topic today. She is from Japan and has found it very difficult to live here and to attend her ward. There were many reasons she gave, and I won't go into them all. But I personally feel that those who don't feel quite at home in "Zion's Ship" may not be only experiencing your explanation of "gliding along" - there's a lot else that is involved: frustration with members, cultural differences, feeling like "air" (as my co-worker described it), lack of family-like ties that exist in branches but usually not in wards. <BR/><BR/>I can relate to much of this. Having experienced life in small branches, I know what it is that she misses here in "Zion's Ship". We share many of the same sentiments. It's also interesting though to think that the mass gathering of saints in Utah is exactly the goal of saints scattered throughout the world. They hope for stakes and temples and masses of members in their own lands. Yet when it happens, some precious things are inevitably lost. I guess that's the time when you really need to clutch on to the gospel of Christ as opposed to your own comfortable idea of what church is and should be.<BR/><BR/>The grass is always greener. Growing up in an area with a smaller LDS population, I yearned to move to Utah. When I did, I wanted to go back. When I move again, I'll probably somewhat miss the days of all my neighbors being in my ward. This in no way means I don't want to move!<BR/><BR/>So agency and attitude do make the difference. Also, I don't think it's a negative thing necessarily to desire to be "among the wicked" in order to "preserve [one's] armor bright".KHodgeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06142845886742358579noreply@blogger.com