happy valley

once again, here comes another entry complaining about this little spot of heaven we call happy valley. my friend amber and i had a great discussion about this place. and then a few minutes later, my friend brooke came over and i got to hear from her the same grievances that i was previously venting. to some it up in one sentance, i guess i would say that i am getting sick of the ultra-conservative, pharisaic, and conformist mentality that exists here in happy valley. what do i mean by this? this is what i mean...

ultra-conservative - this has several aspects.
---blind obedience. when the prophet has spoken, the thinking has been done. this never has, nor never will be a doctrine of the church. i could give quote after quote after quote from general authorities stating that this is not the case, but people here tend to believe just that. and what if i don't blindly follow? i'm a heretic
--popular doctrine. another trend in the world of happy valley ultra-conservative life is the quick and reasonless acceptance of popular doctrine. elder so-and-so said it so it must be true. the scriptures tell us we are to search, ponder, and pray. it's almost heretical to ponder here. why pray about something elder so-and-so said, he's infallible. and what is there to search for. i have the quote from elder so-and-so right here. think differently about a doctrine...heresy. think differently about the nature of scripture/revelation...heresy. think differently about how the church hierarchy works...heresy.
--slippery slope. this is the logical falllacy such that steps are unrecognized in differentiating two levels. x is sin, y may lead to this sin, so y is a sin also. example. pre-marital sex is a sin. you need to be alone with someone to have sex. therefore being alone with someone is a sin. nobody says it's a sin to be alone with someone!! you say. the stake presidency here has practically called it one. the same works with movies, dating, beverages, and almost every other potential lead to sin in happy valley

conformist - as my friend amber said, (paraphrasing) the church teaches unity, not uniformity. here in happy valley, it's almost expected for us to come from the same cookie cutter as everyone else. being different is practically discouraged. thinking differently is a heresy. dressing differently is taboo. if you don't fall over in joy everytimes someon mentions they are going to watch the princess bride, something is seriously wrong with you. push your beliefs and morals on everyone else. in happy valley, everyone is the moral police. if you think someone is sinning, you let them know. be sure they know you disagree with what they did or are doing.

pharisees - people here focus on the little do's and don't they create for themselves instead of the most important aspect of the gospel...love. happy valleyians measure righteousness by how many holes are in your ear, what you drink, what you watch, what you say, what you think, what calling you have, how often you do this-and-that in the organizational church. the measure that christ gave for righteousness condemned the nit-picking and focused on love. it's not how many holes are in your ears, it's how you treat others. it's not if you watch rated r movies, it's if you helped the poor. it's not about caffeine, but charity. love and don't condemn. the example for how we need to be was not made with the pharisees who did the small things and lived the perfect organizational life, but of the good samaritan. the one on the left. the guy looked down on by the others. the one who got down on his knees and took care of the downtrodden.

this was going to be much longer. i had a lot of specific things i wanted to vent about, but i got bored trying to remember all of them.

what am i to do? a part of me wants out of here. a part of me says i can do much good if i stay. a lot of it comes down to what happens with school. i at least know that i want out of this apartment complex.

there is plenty of good out here and plenty of people that i am sure agree with me. i just need to find them and have them help me with my crusade


finally... am i perfect? hell no. but i'm working on it