Playing the “Sacred” Card
Posted on Apr 7, 2014 by Trevor in Religion
The participants of Ordain Women once more sought entrance to the Priesthood session of General Conference. In response to an anticipated media firestorm, the church imposed a a ban on reporters during the event. Church spokesman Michael Otterson, in defense of the unusual ban, called conference “a sacred church gathering”.
“Is nothing sacred anymore?” goes the famous lament. But apparently the opposite is increasingly true.
“Sacred”? Otterson just played the “sacred” card. This is the first time I’ve ever seen it used to describe a conference session. I’m accustomed to hearing the term used as a differentiator when Mormons hesitate to talk about what goes on inside our temples. “It’s sacred, not secret”, you’ll hear them explain.
I’ve been thinking a little more about that common conversation ender in light of Otterson’s comment. See, I think that the “sacred” card is often played when the card player is uncomfortable about the current situation and needs an easy exit.
Take the temple, for instance. I think many Mormons, despite wanting to treat the temple ordinances with reverence, concede that they are actually pretty strange. “Pretty weird, huh?” my uncle whispered to me only somewhat facetiously after I’d been through the temple for the first time on my own.
What exactly goes on inside those lavish buildings is a matter of great mystery to outsiders, naturally. Especially given some of the wild rumors that often fly around about what Mormons do in secret. So outsiders, or even other Mormons who haven’t been through the temple themselves, might inquire about temple activities. And, for those of us who’ve been through the temple, it can be a tough spot. Lacking any other context with which to compare the temple ordinances, we might truly lack the words to describe them, even superficially. And what we could describe to an outsider would admittedly sound very, well, strange.
“Oh, so it’s kind of a hush hush thing,” the outsider will reason, somewhat disappointed.
“Oh, no, it’s not secret. It’s just… sacred. Too sacred to talk about.”
And of course, it’s very rude to intrude on someone else’s sacred space, so the outsider will drop the matter. Awkward conversation over.
To the point I’m making with this blog post, I want to go further and criticize this evasive tendency. It cripples honest, reverent discussions about what purposes temple attendance can actually serve. I believe it also reduces so-called “temple preparation” courses to superficial fluff that doesn’t actually prepare anyone in any meaningful way. In summary, it stymies a lot of the spiritual growth and maturity that we could gain from having open, seeking conversations.
That’s not to say nothing is sacred, of course. But is the “sacred” card often just an evasion? A dodge? Yes, I think so.
So let’s consider an event like General Conference–an event that is freely broadcast online in high definition video, showed in thousands of buildings around the world, and attended by dozens of thousands of people in a bustling conference center, two times every. Is an event like this actually “sacred”?
I think Otterson is unsure how to deal with Ordain Women, and I think the major PR fumbles that his department has been making recently provide plenty of evidence for that. Not that I’m saying it’s an easy situation to handle, but still… I think attempting to classify conference as “sacred” betrays a larger agenda.
Ordain Women are first (and maybe even foremost) seeking to foment a desperately needed discussion on female authority and priesthood. Yes, it’s an awkward discussion for many. Unfortunately, observers like me see the church’s response over the last year as a constant attempt to shut down that conversation. To Brother Otterson I would like to give some unsolicited advice: if you’re going to try to take the easy out, at least don’t be so transparent about it.
