tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2632066603779000512.post309869651499118652..comments2023-08-16T00:25:03.236-07:00Comments on have me pompeii your town: In or out.Chris Almondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13107791774450498377noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2632066603779000512.post-4423993508870310982010-05-16T12:40:59.184-07:002010-05-16T12:40:59.184-07:00It was the church that taught me to see the world ...It was the church that taught me to see the world as black and white, but it was art school that finally helped me get past that, which is what I guess kept me in much longer than I would have. Studying art gave me a love for ambiguity and the church is chocked full of it. It was interesting to me how things could be true and not true at the same time.rickyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01827221653664145239noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2632066603779000512.post-62363229092346270322010-05-15T13:28:44.162-07:002010-05-15T13:28:44.162-07:00I also think about this quite a bit. It also took ...I also think about this quite a bit. It also took me a while to jump off of my fence-sitting role. I think a big factor for me was my family's pioneer roots and firm devotion on my mother's side(Parley P. Pratt. His daughter - my Great^3 Grandma Olivia - was one of the first settlers of Pleasant Grove).<br /><br />This will be fragmented. <br /><br />Growing up, I was bored with church, but liked the social opportunities it gave me. I went on my mission a year late, and with a little hesitancy. It never clicked with me the way it clicked with others. Many in my family equated my oratory skills at the podium for a strong testimony when it should have been considered more of a strong giving of a testimony. <br /><br />Many things that were perceived as "deep" or "strong" that to me were quite surface level. This is a thought I need to flesh out a bit before expounding.<br /><br />I tried hard to find a way for the church to be right for me, but roadblocks popped up everywhere I searched for these things. <br /><br />I have no doubt that the church makes my parents and family happy. But it made me feel fake, insincere and emotionally lacking. I felt some of the religious feelings described by devotees in music for instance, or well-written works.<br /><br />So in trying to place all the ducks in a line, the church quacked its way away from me.Jack W.https://www.blogger.com/profile/08145238245760290309noreply@blogger.com