Saints & Sinners By Richard Markosian
econciling the strange world of living amongst one of the most dominant cultural/political/religious forces in the world as a “sinner” has been interesting. It was discovered over a decade ago that Utahns consumed more online porn than any other state. This became a serious problem. Surveys and polls showed that virtually zero LDS members admitted to viewing porn, but it was statistically impossible that the Saints were telling the truth. Something had to be done. A “Utah porn czar” was appointed, and suddenly, voila! Over the past ten years, if you believe the media, Utahns gradually stopped consuming porn and now we are in the 40th position among the states! I hate to burst this wonderful bubble, but there is another possibility: Utahns started using VPN (Virtual Private Network) services so that their digital cookie crumbs (IP addresses) could not be detected visiting porn sites. Fake news or reality? You be the judge. Living among the Latter-Day Saints all of my life, I’ve witnessed both some wonderful people with exceptional family values, along with some major hypocrites. Most LDS folks are awe-
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some! But let’s be honest, some are serious phonies. But there is a good reason for this, which I will get into later. Since leaving the Church, I’ve been reminded how terrible my sins are. If you weren’t already aware, the LDS Church expanded the list of sins about 120 years ago in a text known as the Word of Wisdom, to include alcohol, coffee and tobacco use. I love beer. I succumb to gluttony and the weakness of the flesh, and my love of fine food, especially creamy chocolate desserts. Let’s face it, most of us like to sin and it’s difficult to completely condemn the sins in which we all engage.
Consider The Seven Deadly Sins: Wrath (anger) – Isn’t it mentally healthy to express anger? Envy (covetousness) – What is the fuel of ambition/drive/economic success if not envy? Lust (wanting sex) – Could we survive as a species without it? Greed (money lust) – “Greed is good.” Like envy, most of us work for the want of money. Gluttony (overeating) – Over-consuming fat and sugar helps us to prepare for lean times.
ILLUSTRATIONS BY CHRIS BODILY
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