Here is The Church, Here is The Steeple, Open The Doors And There's All The People.

Today's rant is a little churchy. So if you are not interested in being preached too, then this is actually aimed right at ya'.
My high school was considered the "rich" school. Many of the wealthy neighborhoods in the area happened to be in the school boundaries. So, whenever people from other schools would find out what school I was attending I would instantly be labeled a rich snob. You ask, "what's wrong with being rich?". Nothing. BUT, we were not rich. In fact we were the opposite of rich. What's the word? Oh yeah, poor white trash. As I think back, only one of my friends families could truly be labeled as rich. The rest of us had sufficient for our needs, but not a lot more than that.
So I am not complaining about our financial status. The point I am trying to make is that as far as the people not from our school were concerned we were all rich snobs. It's not that the label was unfounded, there were a few rich snobs in our school. But it was not fair to classify the masses, or the school, that way because of a few individuals.
Here comes the preachy part. If you believe in God, Allah, Buddha or any other deity that teaches love for your fellow man then how can you call yourself a true believer and judge another? Especially those of another religion where they too worship.
Rampant in the news are stories of terrorists and suicide bombers. People killing and dying in the name of Allah. Just because these individuals are Muslim, does that make all Muslims terrorists? If you answered "yes" to this question, then you should probably stop reading and hurry to your clan meeting. For the rest of you, you know that the Islamic religion is one of peace and faith. To judge the religion because of the actions of its followers is wrong.
Allegations of sexual abuse have been filed against several Catholic priests. Even when the charges are true, does that mean all Catholic priests are child molesters? Does it mean the Catholic church encourages and teaches child molesting? Catholicism teaches faith in Jesus Christ. To judge Catholics because of the misdeeds of a few leaders is unchristian.

I belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, yep, I'm a Mormon. I am sure you have all met a Mormon that offended, annoyed, judged, or otherwise displeased you. Especially if you have ever lived near Utah. It is even possible to find a whole group of such Mormons. For those of you that do not know anything about Mormons, we believe, like all other Christians, that Jesus is our Savior and that we must live his teachings to return to live with him. I am not ignorant to the fact that there are an unfortunately large number of members of the church that do not practice the teachings we believe. This does not mean that all Mormons are this way. Quite the opposite. I have been to Mormon churches in both hemispheres and on either side of the planet. I have lived as far away from Salt Lake as possible. The only thing that remains the same in all these places is that the church teaches of Christ and his gospel. In my experience the gossip, judgments, hypocrisy, one-upmanship, and all the other issues that are seen amongst too many Mormons are typically isolated to the communities with a large percentage of Mormons. It's the law of averages. The more of a specific group you have in an area, the more prevalent the "exceptions" become. Much the same way you will find proof for racial stereotypes in neighborhoods largely populated by that race. It doesn't make the stereotype true, it just means there are people that live up to (or down to) that image. This is not me giving an excuse for people to act this way, it is just an observation I have made.
I am not perfect, by any stretch of the word. But I believe in Jesus Christ and his teachings. I do my best to follow him, to be a good person and to love everyone. I know what you are thinking right now, and like I said, I'm not perfect! But don't judge me and my beliefs because of someone else's actions. Especially someone that the only thing we may have in common is our membership in the same church, and one of us obviously isn't living up to our beliefs.
A related complaint, I know many former Mormons, baptized members that no longer go to church. I do not judge anyone for their decisions. Out of five children I am the only one that has chosen to continue going to church. I don't love my brothers any less for this. But I do have an issue with someone that blames the actions of others for their decisions. Believe, or don't believe, that decision is up to you. But own it. If you truly believe in something then you cannot be swayed by the actions of some ignorant people. And to say a religion and all its followers is bad, based on the actions of some of its members, is as un-Christlike as those members that are acting against the teachings of their religion. Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. (Matthew 7: 1-2)

So bash me, hate me, do what you want with me. But remember this is my rant and nobody made you read it. And just because my words may anger you, doesn't make them any less true. I love you, well, most of you. Again, I'm not the perfect one. =)

Cya in 7

Next Week: "007 License To Breed"