I was always curious why Mormon youth seemed to be so much more devoted to their faith than protestant Christians of the same age. After tonight's reading of Almost Christian, I have a better idea of why that is.

To simplify what I read tonight of Kenda Creasy Dean's Almost Christian: What Faith of Out Teenagers Is Telling the American Church, the Mormon religion teaches devotion. Devotion to the practices of Mormonism are ingrained in the minds of young Mormons. It is a part of life for them, not just a mere suggestion of how things should be done.

The most telling story is that Mormon teenagers must attend Mormon Seminary which occurs at around 5:30 AM each day. This action is supported by the community, the family and the peers! Can you imagine suggesting that to the majority of Protestant youth today? Asking them to get up early in the morning so they can learn more about God's Word and why their parents do what they do and why it's important. Not only would the teenagers be opposed to this, I imagine that many parents would be as well.

 

This is obviously an oversimplification of the writing and research of Kenda revealed in her book, but it gives you the general idea.

Parent Pleasing or True Faith-based Action?

The other point drawn out by Creasy in her book is this:

Is this "commitment" to studying the scriptures and acting appropriately a way for these Mormon children to merely please their parents, or is it something they do because of the strong faith that they have?

That is a question that is obviously unanswerable, but one that must be thought through when looking at these findings. The same question can be asked of the teenage Christians that seem to be committed to studying the Bible. Typically those children come from homes where both parents have that faith and expect their children too.

These are questions we can never really have the answer to. I pose this question though,

Is the life that we live as followers of Christ worth imitating?

 

Posted via email from Chacko World