[net.religion] Alistair Cooke on the Mormons

lew@ihuxr.UUCP (08/29/83)

I composed this last Aug 18 and didn't post it, but since Jon White
wonders if anybody is paying attention to the Book of Mormon debate,
I guess I'll go ahead and  post it.

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I happened to watch "Alistair Cooke's America" on PBS last night, and
about ten minutes of the show was devoted to the Mormons. They showed
some murals from a Mormon visitor's center depicting the persecution
of the first Mormons and the death of Joseph Smith. They also showed
Alistair Cooke walking around the vicinity of Salt Lake City.

The closest Cooke came to commenting on Mormon theology was a reference
to Joseph Smith as a "visionary". He referred to Brigham Young's rule
as a dictatorship, and described the harshly inflexible division of
land with its do-or-die (literally) implications. The Mormon segment
finished with a shot of a jet taking off with some young Mormons aboard.
They were embarking on the missionary phase of their religious commitment.
Cooke mentioned that this missionary work was done all over the world,
and wrly remarked that these particular youths had set off to convert the
heathens of [some English-sounding names which I forget].

Cooke represents a common form of religious toleration. He seemed
to have the utmost respect for the Mormons' incredible tenacity and
material success. As his closing remark showed though, he found their
religion a bit amusing.

		Lew Mammel, Jr. ihuxr!lew