Monday, April 30, 2007

Who are the Champions of Tolerance?

I'm sure you guys are getting really sick of me hammering this issue home, but that's ok, I'm going to do this post anyway so there. How do ya like them apples? As the congregation sang "In Humility, Our Savior" this week in Sacrament meeting, I paused on the line "fill our hearts with sweet forgiving; teach us tolerance and love". I was contemplating how I need to forgive the enemies of the church, because it doesn't really matter what they say or what kind of lies they propagate, the Savior will be victorious in the end! I was telling myself I need to forgive people like Rosie O'Donnell and try to love them. Just when I thought I got myself to that point, Rosanne Barr calls Mitt Romney the "Devil himself." She didn't stop there it only got worse. It was so outlandish that I was laughing the whole way through it.
Reading her diatribe, its clear that homosexuality is the issue that kindled her anger, causing her to abandon reason and truthfulness. She made a lot of wild and irresponsible allegations. I think its obvious that she is extremely ill-informed or extremely dishonest, but if its not to some, how do we know who is right? Galatians says that the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, long suffering, gentleness, goodness, and faith and Ephesians says that they are goodness, righteousness and truth. These traits incidentally together comprise true tolerance, not the tolerance that is a modern euphemism for "love the sin, pretend to love the sinner and despise the good."
For those who might be wondering what the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints REALLY teaches about homosexuality and not what Rosanne says the church teaches, here it is in a nutshell:
"We encourage Church leaders and members to reach out with love and understanding to those struggling with these issues. Many will respond to Christlike love and inspired counsel as they receive an invitation to come back and apply the atoning and healing power of the Savior (see Isa. 53:4–5; Mosiah 4:2–3)."
These qualities are all fruits of the spirit as told in Galatians and hence true tolerance. If we read the things that Rosanne said, there is not an ounce of true tolerance or is there seemingly ever in Hollywood or in mankind these days.
"By their fruits shall ye know them"
I hope people are thinking about these things before they take Hollywood's word for it when they say "tolerance, tolerance, tolerance". If they say it enough, amazingly somehow it sticks, but people rarely stop to think "are they really tolerant?" Its amazing to me how little meaning there really is behind the words.
They say love, love, love, but what they mean is selfish lust.
They say tolerance when they mean, agree with us and we'll accept you.
They say happiness when they really mean fleeting excitment and longterm misery.
Examine the lack of meaning behind the words and you'll be suprised at how shallow this world really is and how profound the Gospel of Jesus Christ is.

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