A postcard from Salt Lake City

It sure will be curious to see the reaction in Salt Lake City when the Unitarian Universalists arrive at the end of June for their annual General Assembly. You've got UUs on one end of the spectrum and Mormons on the other!

Monson brought a BOYCOTT of Utah tourism by his handling of prop 8, which effects Mormon and non Mormon UT residents. The 85% Mormon legislature SPIT on every gay/lesbian and progressive in Utah when they gutted EVERY Human Rights bills, effecting housing and employment discrimination, and even hospital visitation.
When Utah's youths (gay and straight) migrate from Utah, thank Monson, he packed their bags and bought their plan tickets.

btw. Mr Paulson,
I've read in Deseret News, how the Mormon hard line folks think you are unqualified to be a journalist covering Mormons, since you stated your expertise isn't in LDS. GOD FORBID a non Mormon criticize them, they immediately go into their Century old "poor pitiful picked on us" ACT...which never gets STALE, or TIRED.

Thank goodness, mark, that all Mormons aren't hard line, and I think Paulson does a fine job. I've enjoyed your coverage of the USU conference and of your time in Salt Lake. Look forward to more.

Get over it Mark

Mark is an angry gay man who scours the internet looking for stories about Mormons. No matter what the story is about Mark seems to know how to turn it into a negative. Don't believe me? Google search ''mormon'' and you'll see Mark's pathetic bigotry. Get a life Mark.

Comments like Mark's only serves to make himself look ignorant and bitter. Definitely not Christian qualities. As SVB said: get over it.

Welcome to Utah Mr. Paulsen. I hope you enjoy a positive, eye-opening experience out West. I have no doubt the Mormons in Utah will be welcoming and kind. I hope you share those feeling with your readers.

Mark has very negative feelings about the laws of God, not of men. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints will stand for truth, and virtue, now and through eternity.
This article was well balanced. We "saints" do not object to good reporting, whether or not it is written by an LDS, or non LDS , reporter.
My husband, and I thoroughly enjoyed this conference in NH.

The fact that Mr. Paulson went to Salt Lake and observed, first hand, what goes on at Welfare Square, Temple Square, at General Conference and got to talk to mormons in the "trenches" as it were, puts him so far ahead of 99.8% of religion writers out there that I applaud the work I've read thus far (I haven't read much, mind you). His reporting on the church's annual general conference and his piece about mormon progressives at the UVU Religion Seminar illustrate his relative objectivity. When I say relative objectivity, I mean that when he does banter (it is almost impossible for any religion writer NOT to speak with some condescension when reporting on the LDS church. I think there is a tacit opinion amongst most non-mormon religion columnists that mormonism, on its face, is absurd and deserves at least some ribbing when it is the subject of a news/op-ed column), his banter is light-hearted, infrequent and quite benign. Sure, he does not gush about Welfare Square and the scope of the LDS church's welfare work, but do we really need the constant reassurance of journalists telling us how well we are doing? I'd much rather have accuracy and understanding rather than weak op-ed or uber-sensationalism, which is mostly what the church gets now.

Once you accept Gay marriage, then you pretty much don't believe in the bible. Gay's are persecuting Mormon and other Christian churches for not being for Gay marriage (these churches just believe in the bible like millions before them), similar to the persecution others have given Christians in times past. Sending mobs and possible anthrax to their places of worship are the modern forms of persecution.

Thanks for visiting us. We know we are different. It is our heartfelt hope that different is good and we appreciate you giving us an objective look see.

@cbk
Just as when you don't believe in SLAVERY, then you pretty much don't believe in the bible.
btw NO ONE has been charged or convicted of sending a white harmless powder, (NOT ANTHRAX), and as often as Mormons play the victim, it isn't out of the realm of possibility it was sent by an LDS member.
DON'T blame anyone until you have proof who sent it.

"Gay's are persecuting Mormon and other Christian churches"
Posted by cbk16 April 6, 09 03:38 PM

Now THAT'S funny! Apparently I missed the bit on the news that Mormons are now prohibited from practicing their religion and that even the Mormon Tabernacle Choir has to change its name to the Salt Lake City Gay Mens' Chorus! Must be that damned Globe again, never letting the rest of us know about those poor persecuted Mormons and Christians - having to share a world with gays. And liberals. And secularists. And women who don't know their "rightful place". Oh, the persecution of it all.

Here's what, cbk - if they don't want a justifiably hostile reaction, which has consisted of demonstrations and boycotts (there was no anthrax, so you can knock that bit off) from those whose basic human rights they spent money and time to undercut, then they should consider not trying to interfere in the lives of others.

Thanks for coming -- we enjoyed your visit, enjoy your reports, and look forward to more. Come back anytime!

An open and honest review of the LDS way of life should be encouraged. Of course, to those not of the LDS faith there will be questions, perhaps raised eyebrows and the occasional light-hearted joking about some of the beliefs. Our response is that we feel it is worth you taking a little bit longer and really finding out the basis for those beliefs that amuse.
The gay issue is tough - it causes distress to many inside the Church as well to know that so many of our brothers and sisters suffer - but the bottom line is that we believe that God is in charge and that his will must be followed.

mark mentions Mormons "Century old "poor pitiful picked on us" ACT..."...then he picks on them.

Mr. Paulson. Thank you for coming out to Utah. I enjoyed your speech, presentation, and Q&A with the other news representatives present. I want to respond to your comment about the lack of diversity. I think this is a reflection of the largely homogenous population of the Provo/Orem metropolitan area rather than the LDS Church at large. Most Latter-day Saints live outside of the US with millions living in Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina, not to mention Asia, Africa, and Europe. It is always comfortable and easy (and lazy) to view Latter-day Saints as simply a bunch of American white people, however this position would be inaccurate and arrogant. The LDS Church and its membership is more international than it is white or American.

Is this a big deal? Not really, but it is a problem for Utah and the Provo/Orem metropolitan are rather than the LDS Church. What is interesting about your observation is that you noticed there is a diversity of ideology and opinion within the faithful. Both the D-News and the SL-Trib have noted recently some pushback against traditional suspicion of liberal political positions. In my experience, the only positions that separate most Utahns from the Democratic party is its often misunderstood positions on Abortion and Gay-rights (others would claim fiscal responsibility, but the out-of-control spending of the Bush administration proves this wrong). This, however, is only characteristic of the residents of Utah and the Intermountain West rather than the US and World at large where Latter-day Saints are just as ideologically diverse as the citizens of their surrounding community.

Again, thank you for coming. I was just another one of several ugly white guys sitting in the corners of the very open, glass-walled room you gave your presentation in. I appreciate and value everything you said.

Mr. Paulson commented on the lack of (ethnic?) diversity at the seminar at Utah Valley University, while noting that, at the Conference Center, he saw dozens of people translating the sermons for satellite broadcast to millions of Mormons worldwide. Esoterica about the LDS Church tends to be a preoccupation of more upper class Utah Mormons, who reflect the British/Scandinavian heritage of the 19th Century Utah settlers,, while the modern LDS Church is over half non-American and non-English-speaking. Mr. Paulson might not be aware that many of the people attending the General Conference were church leaders from all over the world.

Western WASP = MORMONS
No coincidence they call themselves the beehive state. I have half my extended family as LDS members who lived in territorial Utah. they are Scots, Icelandic, and Brits...whitest of the whites.
ALL the international Mormon members the LDS claims are 80% BOGUS.
Of the number of people Mormons baptise, 80% a couple years later have left the faith.

Mr. Paulson is free to talk to students at BYU who are from outside the US, as well as to students who served as missionaries all over the world. For that matter he could go down to Temple Square and talk to guides who are from all over the world and ask them about the LDS Church in places like Nigeria, Mongolia, Japan (where I served as a missionary), Tonga, Brazil and Ukraine. He could go to the Church magazines division and get copies of the magazines printed every month in dozens of languages.