I don't feel fulfilled.

I am once again having some issues with my Sunday religious activities. I don't know why but I am starting to feel really disenfranchised with the whole Sunday school thing. Here's what I mean: when sitting in said class I want to have a discussion. Not about what you did at girl's camp, scout camp, or how you were driving along and the spirit told you to turn before you normally do and you found out later that you missed a car accident. Good for you. I want to discuss the more philosophical points that religion brings up. I have been a member my whole life. I get bored hearing the same lessons over and over because the teachers are too lazy to come up with a new and creative way to teach a topic. I'm not saying I know everything there is to know about the LDS church, what I am saying is I keep hearing the same lessons week after week and that stereotypical seminary answer of read your scriptures and pray seems to apply to a lot of the questions that are asked. Last week in elders quorum the subject of speaking out against legislation that we find morally wrong came up. That's fine, whatever. My problem with that is we want to legislate morals. The only way to do that is to tread on the rights of others. Abortion, gay marriage, foreign wars, health care reform, just pick a hot button issue, no matter what the laws are you are going to infringe on others beliefs. So how do we fix this? We give everyone the choice to choose what they believe to be right. That's where I want the discussion in church to come in. We can do what we believe at that point but to take away that choice I have a problem with. 11th article of faith: "We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may." This is one of our fundamental beliefs. And no one thought to mention it. I have a history of ticking people off when I bring my opinions and thoughts to a religious discussion so I keep quiet in church. Maybe I should speak up. That could be interesting.

But this is more what I think Sunday school should be, a debate of what the scriptures mean, what the idea of a higher being means, what is morally right, what are the ramifications of our actions not just to ourselves but those around us. Those are things the elders of the church when it was formed would discuss. Not because they were trying to form a religion based on the thoughts of man but because they were trying to understand what had been put on their shoulders as priesthood holders. Any religion requires more than the ability to read the scripture. It needs to be interpreted by people who are educated in history, philosophy, ancient customs and traditions. Anyone who's read the Bible knows that it is a very difficult book to read. It is very easy to misinterpret what is written. Having the knowledge that the Bible was translated over and over and things were left out and other things added, plus they were written down from oral records that were already a hundred years old or more when they were written down, and the fact that they come from societies that are vastly different from ours makes it a little easier to understand why this knowledge needs to be possessed by those who are teaching it. We have to have that understanding or else we are just making it up as we go.

We have an advantage having a living prophet who is there for us to learn from. I am grateful that we have the teachings of the prophets books that are used as manuals. But with those it comes down to presentation. Let's have a little excitement people. Let's present something that we've actually put some time and effort into, something that you learned from the lesson. It's not that hard.

Maybe I'm asking too much. Let me simplify this. I want a discussion about not just the lesson but I want it to go in a more academic direction, if that makes sense. And I want it presented in a way that you keep my attention. If you don't keep my attention I'm going to be reading my comic books in church instead of listening to you drone on about how He sacrificed for our sins and loves us all and you need to repent to live in heaven again and you should love your family and remember to keep Christ in your heart at all times and go to the temple to receive blessings and pay your tithing and do your home and visiting teaching and love one another etc. etc. ad nauseum. Please give me something I can grasp onto. I'm at the point where I might just stop going to classes because I really don't get anything from them.