HBO vs LDS

Is it surprising that the HBO series "Big Love" is causing an uproar among the members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, commonly known as the Mormon Church? I have received many forwarded e-mails this past week, but had assumed it was only making headlines among Church members. That was until I was watching Good Morning America, and it was one of their lead stories! I was surprised this story followed "Bernie Madoff Goes to Jail".

First, in full disclosure, I have never seen "Big Love". We don't have a subscription to HBO. And I have no desire to see it or subscribe. I've followed some of the controversy surrounding this series, especially in regards to my Church. With one hand, "Big Love" creators ease the Church's concerns of tying them in with polygamists (who have not been members of our Church since the 1890's); and then with the other hand smack us across the face with constant connections, blurred lines, and complete factual inaccuracies. I have grown accustomed to the naive assumptions made about our Church, questions if I have "sister-wives", among other Mormon myths. I guess this is why the concept of the show "Big Love" really didn't bother me.

However, in the attempt to capture ratings and press attention, the writers decided to make it "crucial to the plot line" to include a ceremony performed in an LDS temple. This ordinance is considered sacred to the members of our Church, so much so that we don't discuss it outside the temple. Although HBO refuses to remove any scenes depicting the endowment ceremony, they assured us that "obviously, it was not [their] intention to do anything disrespectful to the Church, but to those who may be offended, we offer our sincere apology". According to producers, "the dramatization of the ceremony was vetted for accuracy by an adviser familiar with temple ceremonies". If they were stressing the need for accuracy, two contradictory and very inaccurate concepts occured to me.

First, many of the break away sects of the LDS Church (which the characters are apart of) have their own temples, with similar ordinances performed. From what I understand, they are different from what the mainstream Church practices although similar in nature. If the main family are apart of the breakaway sect, their temple scenes would be vastly different to what the Mormon Church performs, not needing a former Mormon to check for accuracy. They would need a former Fundamentalist LDS member to check for accuracy. Second, someone such as the main character in "Big Love", who according to HBO, "goes through the endowment ceremony as she faces losing her membership in the Mormon church" by the standards of our Church would not be allowed to perform in any temple ordinances while practicing polygamy or if her membership is in jeopardy. So in either contradictory case, HBO is being anything but "accurate".

Do I believe it is coincidental that HBO finally crossed this offensive line at this time? Absolutely not. During the Proposition 8 uproar, Tom Hanks, actor and executive producer of "Big Love" made disparraging remarks specifically towards the LDS members, which he later retracted. Is it coincidental that one of the guest-writers for "Big Love" is Dustin Lance Black, Oscar winning writer for "Milk" and former Mormon, who in his acceptance speech spoke about the Mormons? I believe the writers and producers of "Big Love" have been planning this disrespectful exploitation of our beliefs, and was waiting for the right time.

Why do I believe this has caught some media attention? I believe it is because many American's don't attend a Church who still practices sacred ordinances. The concept of "sacredness" has escaped many religious services, in the hopes of becoming "relevent" or "acceptable" or "mainstream". Even something as sacred as Christ's crucifixion has become materialized into ornate crosses or grusome pictorials. Our personal relationship with our Savior should never be exploited, idolized, or carelessly depicted for an HBO series. It is abhorrent to do so to any religion, and I would hope I would be as outraged if it was happening to the Catholics, Jews, or Muslims. I even hesitated voicing my opinion on this topic, not wanting to give HBO their desired goal, free publicity and higher ratings. Yet, I felt since I obviously have an opinion on this issue and a place to share it, I took advantage of that. I believe the Church leaders who issued an official statement regarding this topic were absolutely correct. "There is no evidence that extreme misrepresentations in the media that appeal only to a narrow audience have any long term negative effect on the church." Here is the Church's response in it's entirety. If you would like to voice your opinion to HBO, here is a link.