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Ultimately I find myself more willing to “endure to the end” for meetings, but if the bishop says hello, I feel I can slip out the door early since he saw me. The bloggernacle has helped considerably, because I have great things to read, in case I forget my Harry Potter or Dan Brown book.

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When I was a little kid, sacrament was looooong and booooring and unbearable. The seeming length and unbearability was kinda like the unbearability of waiting for Christmas to come on Christmas Eve. I enjoyed prayers (good chance to close my eyes), and I enjoyed songs. I enjoyed the actual eating/drinking of the sacramental bread and water (because who doesn’t like food?). My parents never allowed other snacks or other books or anything but “paying” attention, so there was no escape like that (on the other hand, plenty of speakers came to my parents after some meetings and would say, “Your kids are so attentive during sacrament! What great parenting,” etc.,

It’s funny. I would DREAD when songs would be skipped (e.g., like how there are only 3 songs on fast sunday).

I always had great teachers during CTR classes, and they got better for the Valiant classes.

Growing up changed things a bit. Christmas became less of a big deal. Sacrament became less “long.” It didn’t really become interesting in the sense of the theology ever becoming interesting…but rather, it became less boring in terms of my understanding the social dynamic of the ward. Fast Sundays were fun, because I could think, “Now, what the heck happened in Sister So n’ So’s life.” I glossed over when people said they were “edified” or whatever. Didn’t know/don’t know what that means.

Classes changed too. Like Seth, I was the one saying the controversial stuff. I made it more of a game than anything, and what I liked more was the stupid things the other kids would say (that had nothing to do with the lesson). THAT’S entertainment.

Same thing with priesthood classes. It was more social than anything else.

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I admit I thought of a few names to call the guy, but I reminded myself that after all, this is SETH R, a guy who, when asked to give a talk, makes the effort to “prepare something rather hard-hitting and informative”–he’s no slacker who just reads a passage from Especially for Mormons or a back-issue of the Ensign–no, his talks are “rather hard-hitting and informative.”

And on rare occasions, when he simply must say something that “he knows this isn’t going to be well-received,” he might take the time to “say a quick prayer to help him avoid offending people, or hurting people’s feelings (a real risk with him).”

A bit of advice: Seth, say that prayer more often, and make it longer and more substantive in the future.

And then, consider the possibility that what you think is “rather hard-hitting and informative” might strike others as poorly reasoned, pompous and trite.

And consider the possibility that if you don’t see the validity in a view point that doesn’t help you maintain your own self-satisfied view of the world, it’s because you’re simply not putting enough effort into gaining wisdom and understanding. They’re not just something you can expect God or the blogosphere to simply dump on you.

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Why do people enjoy yoga?

I recently started taking yoga classes, and I’ll tell you — if there were someone leading us all in stretches while we zone out the talks, it’s true that I’d probably like Sacrament Meeting.

It’s just something I’ve observed that the people who bitch the most about how boring Church is are often the people who aren’t really contributing much.

People just sit in class like a lump, and wait for “fun” to come waltzing around the corner and kick them in the face. Then they wonder why the experience was so boring.

Just a wild guess, but probably because they – as people… were boring.

It’s one thing to say that if our task is, for example, to write and perform a play of our own devising. Then if it’s boring, whose fault is that? But with Sacrament Meeting, it’s a strictly-choreographed event where people are required to carry out an elaborate farce of learning something while the rules prevent new things from being presented. Most members have no control over it (and if they attempt to contribute something sincere and relevant that deviates from the script, they can get escorted to the door, see here).

When the bishop loosens the rules a bit (@24), it can help, but but even if the bishop wants to make allowances for his cogregation, there’s not much he can do. (And if your bishop is a real stickler for every memo that comes from the bretheren, then as a ward member, there’s nothing you can do about it.)

p.s. @28, we prefer to avoid name-calling at MSP, even if it’s just punctuation marks.

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