The Mo’ Boy Doctrine - Halloween and Cub Scouts

A few days ago, Mo’ Boy celebrated it’s 8th anniversary.  That’s right - Eight Years!  That makes it one of the longest-running blogs in the Mormon blog world.  Unfortunately, that alone doesn’t make it the most consistently posted, nor the most frequently read.  But still...

There are a few issues that I’ve been stewing over lately, and it suddenly occurred to me that I’ve been alternatively laughing at them, and angry about them.  I thought, “It’s a great time to dust off the ol’ Mo’ Boy Doctrine for some good ol’ invokin!”

For the unfamiliar, the Mo’ Boy Doctrine came to be after I once wrote about our President Monroe, and his Monroe Doctrine.  A friend suggested I make my own.  So, I did.  It’s clear, and it’s simple.  I hasn’t changed the world, yet.  It contains two very important and complimentary parts.  It is this:

   1. Everyone should just not get so bent out of shape.
   2. If that bothers you, read it again.

And the first recipient of the invoking of the Mo’ Boy Doctrine is:  Saturday Trick-or-Treating vs Sunday Trick or Treating.  Honestly people, I can’t believe this is even an issue. Can we get over ourselves, here? 

Here’s how we, as a family, are dealing with it.  First of all, we’re doing our own family Halloween celebrations on Saturday.  Most of our neighbors are also church members, since we live in a small town in Utah, so I imagine that many of them will also choose to do that.  Second, we’ll leave our lights and our pumpkins lit on Sunday, and we’ll have extra candy for those kids that decide (for whatever reason) to do their celebrations on that day.  They’ll come and yell to our door, and we’ll open it, and fuss over their costumes, and give them their candy, too. 

...And it will still be fun!  Even on the Sabbath!

Also, the irony of having Christians debate the celebration of an essentially Pagan holiday (celebrating death and scariness) is not lost on me at all...

Next, we have this story of a Mormon family denied the opportunity to serve in a Cub Scout Pack because they’re *GASP* not Christian! This is another story to not get bent out of shape about.  In spite of this, there’s been a lot of blogger and news buzz.  The noise has ranged all the way from “How can they be so unChristian as to deny the offer of service from fellow souls...” to “It’s about time those Black- and Gay-hating Mormon bigots get a taste of their own medicine!”

It’s time to get real people.  First of all, I support the right of any privately-owned and run group to choose their own members and leaders.  So, if they don’t want to have Mormon volunteers, they don’t have to.  Second, as I was growing up in the Mormon youth programs, which included Church-sponsored Boy Scout Troops, I always had Mormon Scout leaders.  The Church youth program and scouting were seamlessly integrated.  What’s the big deal?

Although, I have to say, based on my experience as a scout leader in our own Church-sponsored Cub Scout pack, I have seen non-mormon and inactive mormons serve side by side with active Church members in scouting leadership capacities.

But in any case, my point still stands. I think that it’s not something that anyone, Mormon or not, should waste their time and ink getting bent out of shape about.

So, I hereby invoke the Mo’ Boy Doctrine on these two issues.  May they rest in peace.  But they probably won’t.

Whatevs.





Mark has a lifelong testimony of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (the Mormon Church). Mark also has other sites and blogs, including MarkHansenMusic.com and his Dutch Oven blog.

Mark's Other Blog Posts: Progress on the Mormon Scripture Game, Small Dutch Oven Turnout, Utah County Election Resources, LDS Music Today Podcast