I want to be Mormon

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I felt this way when I spent a week with a friend who is an Orthodox Jew. I loved the emphasis on family, resting and reflecting and not using any electricity (or electronics) on the Sabbath as opposed to running around like a maniac, having other religious neighbors over and really feeling like a community. I think covid is making everyone a little lonely and craving community again, and that's a role that religion feels. I'm a terrible rule follower and there are a lot of rules that bother me in every religion, so I wouldn't be able to pull it off, but it's a good sign that we should slow down a bit and focus on neighbors, relatives, friends, the simple things. It also gives a sense of order when the world is in chaos. I bet a lot of people turn to religion when this is over, or even now.

Interesting: when I was in college I knew many Mormons who were friends and housemates with Orthodox Jews. The Mormons helped the Jews with stuff on Saturdays and the Jews handled things on campus for the Mormons while the Mormons went on their missions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I felt this way when I spent a week with a friend who is an Orthodox Jew. I loved the emphasis on family, resting and reflecting and not using any electricity (or electronics) on the Sabbath as opposed to running around like a maniac, having other religious neighbors over and really feeling like a community. I think covid is making everyone a little lonely and craving community again, and that's a role that religion feels. I'm a terrible rule follower and there are a lot of rules that bother me in every religion, so I wouldn't be able to pull it off, but it's a good sign that we should slow down a bit and focus on neighbors, relatives, friends, the simple things. It also gives a sense of order when the world is in chaos. I bet a lot of people turn to religion when this is over, or even now.

Interesting: when I was in college I knew many Mormons who were friends and housemates with Orthodox Jews. The Mormons helped the Jews with stuff on Saturdays and the Jews handled things on campus for the Mormons while the Mormons went on their missions.

Missions are the creepy part of Mormonism
Everyone who doesn't marry by a certain age has to do it for 2 years. You do not have a say as to where you will be sent. Contact with family is not allowed.
Mormonism is divided by class. You are assigned a church. Rich and poor do not belong to the same congregation. Rich get nice mission destinations like France, poor are sent elsewhere

[Anonymous]

Fun fact about Mormons and Ashkenazi Jews:
Leta Hollingworth did research into IQ in early 1900s. (This later turned into the Stanford ability project). She was particularly interested in kids above 180 IQ.

In fact, she wrote a book called Children Above 180 IQ. They found the highest incidence of geniuses among Mormons and Ashkenazi Jews - and similar average IQs in these groups.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Fun fact about Mormons and Ashkenazi Jews:
Leta Hollingworth did research into IQ in early 1900s. (This later turned into the Stanford ability project). She was particularly interested in kids above 180 IQ.

In fact, she wrote a book called Children Above 180 IQ. They found the highest incidence of geniuses among Mormons and Ashkenazi Jews - and similar average IQs in these groups.

Average IQ for both these groups was 115-120 as opposed to 100 in rest of population.

I've seen it hypothesized that both religions require a lot of specific and complex beliefs. Both also have a high attrition rate (people leaving Judaism and Mormonism at higher rates than leave other forms of Christianity or Islam)

[Anonymous]

Who are these adults who think other people have “perfect” lives based on shallow externalities? This kind of thinking is what I’d expect of an eighth grader. No one’s life is perfect, even a blond haired, blue eyed, Mormon mommy blogger. All you’re seeing is a facade.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Who are these adults who think other people have “perfect” lives based on shallow externalities? This kind of thinking is what I’d expect of an eighth grader. No one’s life is perfect, even a blond haired, blue eyed, Mormon mommy blogger. All you’re seeing is a facade.

I mean I'm sure there's hidden issues but by and large they have happy marriages, kids, careers and their kids seem to turn out well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Who are these adults who think other people have “perfect” lives based on shallow externalities? This kind of thinking is what I’d expect of an eighth grader. No one’s life is perfect, even a blond haired, blue eyed, Mormon mommy blogger. All you’re seeing is a facade.

I mean I'm sure there's hidden issues but by and large they have happy marriages, kids, careers and their kids seem to turn out well.

How do you know they have happy marriages, kids, etc? Because you see it on Facebook?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Who are these adults who think other people have “perfect” lives based on shallow externalities? This kind of thinking is what I’d expect of an eighth grader. No one’s life is perfect, even a blond haired, blue eyed, Mormon mommy blogger. All you’re seeing is a facade.

I mean I'm sure there's hidden issues but by and large they have happy marriages, kids, careers and their kids seem to turn out well.

Don't mormon women have an incredibly high rate of prescription pain med us?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Who are these adults who think other people have “perfect” lives based on shallow externalities? This kind of thinking is what I’d expect of an eighth grader. No one’s life is perfect, even a blond haired, blue eyed, Mormon mommy blogger. All you’re seeing is a facade.

I mean I'm sure there's hidden issues but by and large they have happy marriages, kids, careers and their kids seem to turn out well.

Don't mormon women have an incredibly high rate of prescription pain med us?

And plastic surgery. And the porn searches in Utah are the strangest in the US. But sure, Instagram said it's all Norman Rockwell, so it probably is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Who are these adults who think other people have “perfect” lives based on shallow externalities? This kind of thinking is what I’d expect of an eighth grader. No one’s life is perfect, even a blond haired, blue eyed, Mormon mommy blogger. All you’re seeing is a facade.

\

Mormon women have an extraordinarily high rate of depression compared to everyone else.

https://universe.byu.edu/2018/02/05/mental-illness-1/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Who are these adults who think other people have “perfect” lives based on shallow externalities? This kind of thinking is what I’d expect of an eighth grader. No one’s life is perfect, even a blond haired, blue eyed, Mormon mommy blogger. All you’re seeing is a facade.

\

Mormon women have an extraordinarily high rate of depression compared to everyone else.

https://universe.byu.edu/2018/02/05/mental-illness-1/

Maybe they treat it earlier. I feel like half the women I know are on antidepressants, and I'm not Mormon

[Anonymous]

Beneath the cheery surface, there is a tremendous amount of fighting over/stressing over money in Mormon families, even *seemingly* affluent ones. You have a culture where women are encouraged not to work and stay home and couples are encouraged to have a lot of kids at an early age. That means that a Mormon man is often supporting a family of 5+ in his 20s and many struggle to do so. But even if they're struggling and fight a lot about money, they'll pretend to have it together.

That's also why so many women are so susceptible to the lure of MLMs which promise them that they don't have to work outside the home but they can make money to help out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Beneath the cheery surface, there is a tremendous amount of fighting over/stressing over money in Mormon families, even *seemingly* affluent ones. You have a culture where women are encouraged not to work and stay home and couples are encouraged to have a lot of kids at an early age. That means that a Mormon man is often supporting a family of 5+ in his 20s and many struggle to do so. But even if they're struggling and fight a lot about money, they'll pretend to have it together.

That's also why so many women are so susceptible to the lure of MLMs which promise them that they don't have to work outside the home but they can make money to help out.

That's interesting. Though SLC has a very low cost of living so they benefit there.

[Anonymous]

My MIL is Mormon and FIL is not. Never understood how that works. She goes to temple or whatever every Sunday (pre-pandemic, now it's virtual). He does not. He also loves to drink beer and obvioulsy she does not. She doesn't seem *too* hardcore, as she will buy alcohol for others and allows it in her home.

I have met some mighty fine Mormon men from Utah through them.

[Anonymous]

Me too! My peer group is typical coastal "elite" liberals, very career focused, and I feel so out-of-place because I love being a SAHM, doing stuff around the house, have 2 kids and want more. I just think if I were Mormon I would feel normal instead of like some weird throwback freak.