How does fear function in our church teachings, culture, conversations, and relationships? If fear doesn’t work to change hearts, why do we continue to try it as a motivator? Can it fuel personal growth? A favorite talk by Dieter F. Uchtdorf provides the starting point for a discussion of what we might gain individually and collectively by leading with love rather than fear.
Steven Parkin
Curiosity replaces Fear; I like and apply that. Over recent years, I’ve taken every opportunity to visit other churches in my community, particularly when non-Mormon neighbors do their special events such as christenings and baptisms, marking their commitment to their church ideals. In a noted case, their adult study group spent months discussing the doctrines and policies of community churches not their own; (i.e., Amish, Mennonite, others). Their roster listed four weeks to study Mormonism. These are honest and sincere people who wanted to know how best to interact with “the other”. As source material, they discussed Helen Whitney’s PBS documentary, “The Mormons”; and they invited me, as their active LDS neighbor, to give insight during several of their group meetings. I was delighted when their members offered up strange and uncomfortable details from the history of their own church as they saw oddities in early Mormonism. It was a wonderful experience for all to see historical progression in both churches. Too often, fear prevents a LDS person from such interactions; I’m glad when my Curiosity trumps Fear.
Susan Hinckley
Hi, Steve — Thanks so much for sharing this experience! Fear stands in the way of so many things, in the Church and in our individual lives, I think. I love that they invited you to weigh in and were willing to share in exchange. Understanding is the antidote to fear, but without making room for curiosity we never get to understanding. Thanks for listening to the podcast, and for taking time to reach out. — Susan
Katrina
Yeah where the “the world is at the most wicked point NOW!” idea came from has been something that has bugged me since taking AP History (more so US) in high school. (In the late aughts) My mom strongly believes in it, but more in a hope that the second coming will be coming soon, at least. 🙂 So it was weird for me to expect to see levels of evil-ness increase since 1830 and not see that at all. There are periods of people acting worse, but it does seen like things have definitely progressed as time goes by.
During Joseph Smith’s time he talked about how evil the world was and that the second coming would be soon. It doesn’t make sense that it’s worse now. 🙂 People who abuse or hurt people are a LOT more likely to be held accountable today than then, especially for women and minorities.
So I’m not sure if that was a tradition that has continued from then, or if it is influenced by religious right “tenets of belief” combined with differences in how news (and “news”) gets consumed. 2020 was not a fun year, but I find it kind of hard that it was the pinnacle like a lot of people believed, and was way worse than ugly things happening say in the 50s, like social problems that had persisted until the civil rights movement to McCarthyism.
Anyways definitely agree that moving away from using fear is much better in so many ways. Also, I don’t remember the specifics, but the church training for leaders about abuse, I think the fear mongering (because it’s used to control) was something that was talked about as unacceptable. I don’t know how well that would come across to everyone, especially those well intentioned moments.