Police negotiated with an armed student outside the Provo Temple yesterday as he threatened to kill himself. Turns out he had just been through a Mormon “court of love.” Oh to be subjected to such love…
Courts of Love
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Oldies but Goodies: Testimony of a Dissident
A while back another blogger asked me to submit an essay about my Mormon experience. Probably, for good reasons he changed his mind and never published it. Since it is already written and might shed some light on my argument at Times and Seasons, I might as well publish it…
Nobody expects the excommunication of Natasha Helfer!
No, I have to admit, I was actually surprised when I heard that the CoJCoL-dS excommunicated Natasha Helfer. And then I was immediately surprised that I was surprised. She fits the triple-criteria-set that is a guaranteed path to excommunication: She has a large following, She publicly corrects the wrong statements…
These words come to mind …
Matt — that’s a good point, and one that’s backed up by the Bible: what you should feel towards God is a love built on fear…
Crazy guy with a gun threatens people and public suicide, and it’s just automatically the Mormons fault is it?
Cute.
Seth — good to see you back to help us temper our natural instinct to blame everything on the Mormons. 😉
Are you still having speed/performance problems loading this site?
Seth, I’m sure there are other factors involved – not everyone who gets ex’d pulls a gun on him/herself. But do you really think this is just a coincidence and that the court of love had nothing to do with it?
That’s like saying Stuart Matis shot himself at a Mormon chapel because he was depressed and just happened to be near a Mormon chapel. Did it have nothing to do with the fact that he was depressed because he was Mormon and gay and the religion considers his sexual identity an abomination? Is the Mormon Church absolved of blame on this because he was depressed and suicidal?
Why was he depressed and suicidal? Mormonism caused his depression. His depression caused his suicidal thoughts. His suicidal thoughts lead to his suicide. Ergo, Mormonism caused Stuart Matis’s suicide. Directly or indirectly, it played a role.
I don’t know the details on this other case, but I’m guessing the “court of love” played role, whether direct or indirect.
Sure. Getting served with a warrant for arrest often provokes suicidal tendencies too.
I see no need whatsoever to draw any connections.
And I think I am still having speed problems on various computers. But beats me what it is.
Thanks, Chanson! BTW — wanted to tell you this before but — congrats on hitting the BIG time. Bad Astronomy forever.
Seth, dude. Of course you don’t see any need to draw connections. I remember very well what it was like to believe that anything that might appear to be bad about the church was in fact just human failing. It’s a harsh belief but I appreciate that many believe it.