First, you write exceptionally well. I only today found your blog, and am very much enjoying your thoughts. In particular I appreciate your comments on the whole Prop 8 mess. Wow, that was surreal and passage of that crap sure was misguided. Part of the reason why I moved abroad so long ago was the stifling I felt regarding civil liberties. Things have become much much better in the States since the 1980s, but sadly there are still freer places for me to live the way I want to.

Your thoughts on the Mormon church are also interesting to me. I would love to resign from the Jewish faith (don’t believe in any religions) but I don’t think it’s possible. Jews would tell me it’s a race thing, and you don’t simply resign. Hahahah.

Actually, it was your family and a few others back where we grew up in Calif that gave me my first introduction to the Mormon faith. I remember your mom in particular was quite patient with all my idiotic questions, and she spent some time and energy filling me in. Until this Prop 8 episode which I found quite distateful, I have to say I considered the Mormon church to be a positive community and benign.

Hard to explain…

I don’t know how to contact Ted. I would of course like to give him my condolences regarding the loss of Cooper and also to catch up. If you see this message from me, please do let him know I can be found at jason_kendy at ml dot com.

PS. In another post on your site you mentioned Burning Man. I have no idea why but I recently have been thinking about doing it! Am I entirely nuts?

Of course folks who have absolutist beliefs all believe theirs is the sole truth about God. Which is, in my opinion, why it’s easier for them to focus on gay people than each other. Because they’d have the same conflict with each other…all those different “absolute” beliefs.

Really well written post Jode. Honest. That gives it power.

love.

I love communicating with you and chatting about this process. I value and embrace how you express where you are.

And…I watched Religulous last night. Which is a fascinating movie, if a bit too “Starring Bill Maher” to be the movie it might be. (Meaning, I think it’s supposed to generally be about the impact of religion on society and an overall, potential downward trend toward global self-destruction due to deep-seated, wide-spread belief in impending Armageddon. Whew!)

It was worth the potential sleep-time I spent on it to help me in my current process of closing the door on that world at last.

Also? It shows garments.

The strangest thing that came out of the meeting was his bemused question (after I told him of my atheist leanings), “but, what makes you happy?” It was my turn to be stunned at his ignorance and naivitae. I explained I had friends and family I loved and loved me as well as fulfilling work. I then hinted that perhaps this was all he had too, but that’d he’d just imagined someone overlooking all of it. He seemed to still be shocked when I left.

I received my letter, just like yours, a couple of weeks ago and besides being struck by the shortness and clinical tone to it there was nothing else. I’d long ago left the LDS Church in everything but name. I’d gone through being angry with what happened on my mission and the feelings of betrayal by my friends and family in the church, I’d moved on. The letter sounded as if the church had too.

Which I’m okay with I’ve never been happier in my life. Despite the ’sinful’ life I am so very much enjoying now. Thanks for being an example and inspiring me.