[not_your_mentat]

Watching the Tabernacle choir sing at Trump's inauguration was the act that broke my faith in the church. Since then, I've come to see the church as just another corporation. Too bad the corporation isn't governed by their own scripture, what with the "render unto Caesar that which is Cesar's" thing and whatnot.

From the articles of faith (canonized LDS scripture):

12 We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law.

13 We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul—We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things.

Everyone is playing the game of power. Some people are really good at it.

[not_your_mentat]

And the years after years of being told in General Conference that the church is being run according to best accounting practices and that everything is healthy and above board.

[dbrueck]

Another perspective: https://www.thetabernaclechoir.org/about/choir/history/histo...

[not_your_mentat]

So, they sing for morally bankrupt presidents who are looking for religious legitimacy.

[dbrueck]

"The Choir’s participation in these events is not an implied support of party affiliations or politics, but rather a demonstration of its support for freedom, civility and the peaceful transition of power."

[not_your_mentat]

Dude, I live in Springville. We had a regional conference in which a GA explicitly told people that not getting what you wanted in an election was not grounds for insurrection. You'll forgive me for believing that my neighbors strongly believe otherwise.

[dbrueck]

> Dude, I live in Springville.

Hey, neighbor, me too!

> You'll forgive me for believing that my neighbors strongly believe otherwise.

Oh, I know exactly what you mean, but how come what they think trumps (see what I did there, haha) what I think - why does their wacky opinion count for more than mine? Or even better, doesn't the organization's official stance count for something? I mean, the church also told people to get vaccinated, but the fact that some number of them didn't doesn't lead us to conclude that the church is anti-vaccine, does it?

[not_your_mentat]

Having a stance and taking a stand are, as we were both probably taught taught, probably from the same Aaronic Priesthood manuals, very different things. Vaccines were painfully, tragically, massively politicized from the getgo. I was guilty of being partisan on the issue. When Trump announced that he was responsible for developing the best vaccine, I was vocal about how there was no way in hell that something he was in charge of was getting injected into my veins. My tune changed when the current administration came to office. That was super inconsistent of me. It illustrates a thing though, because I don't think that everyone's an idiot or that people are fundamentally stupid. It illustrates that we take signals from our tribes and in turn propagate the signal.

When a church sings at a president's inauguration, there's a signal that's being given, regardless of statements that the church might be making to the contratry. When you are celebrating, you pull your allies to celebrate with you. Politicians don't take pictures with babies because the babies are super into policy. They take pictures with babies because a picture of your baby with the politician is a social bond. When your church's musical ambassadors sing for and are on the photographic record with a politician, that's a social bond.