Yet despite this attitude, and knowing full well that there is hypocrisy among the priesthood leaders who are saying do as I say (for their doing the opposite is their own closet secret) and knowing full well the age of 20 to 22 is an age of high sexual drive, the young men are sent on missions with admonition of not only being celibate but also no masturbation.
I remember British Mission President Selvoy J. Boyer in December 1949 at the mission orientation at London church headquarters known as “Ravenslea', talking to our group of about 15 new elders. His comment was that the English girls look pretty plain Jane at first but after awhile they will look much better and that no matter how warm it got we were to keep our pants zipped up! Of course there is always a small percentage who can't keep the code and generally are sent home in disgrace and excommunicated. (Unless the elder happens to be the son of a prominent Mormon family!)
This attitude and basic ignorance of church leaders in seeking to curtail not only improper sexual activity but also improper sexual thought, produces young bridegrooms who lack experienced understanding to properly make love with a Mormon bride. Just getting it on wham-bam to make babies leaves the poor bride empty, lonely and unfulfilled. This situation has been well described in Deborrah Laake's book, Secret Ceremonies (Amazon Books) . In her book she tells of parking her car alone, locking it and after getting in the back seat engaging in masturbation to find fulfillment of her own sexuality that is not experienced making “love” with her temple married returned missionary husband. She was even found by her in-laws in her car parked on a street in the process of self fulfillment-- not self abuse!
The wham bam approach is ignorant male selfishness at its extreme but fulfills the justification of making babies as perceived by the church elders as the only justification for sexual thought or activity. Most returned missionaries ( the author included at that age) fall into the category of being sexual retards. Being a virgin at 23 can be achieved but at what cost?
This is where the conflict arises in the apparent war by the church against Gays and Lesbians. Mormon Church leadership believes it has the authority of God to regulate human sexuality as to who may engage in it, how they may engage in it, where they may engage in it and when. Yet every now and again the secret sexual conduct of the leaders leaks out to the world. When that happens theres is denial and the leak is plugged to keep the fear of God mill going against the young singles of the church. The most recent was the expose' of late church president Gordon B. Hinckley after he was first ordained an apostle. The lies used to cover and deny it included those endorsed by current church president Thomas S. Monson who was a counselor in the First Presidency of the church at the time.
Since human sexuality in the minds of Mormon leaders is God restricted to procreation as its only justification, the terror that arises in their brainwashed minds that gay marriage will destroy the holy concept of marriage motivates their energy in stopping it at any cost. This presumed authority extends to the whole community not just Mormons. Hence the coupling with the Catholic Church to promote Proposition 8 in California.
Joining with the Catholic church is in itself a dilemma. On the one hand you have a married all male priesthood ostensibly monogamous but hoping for the day when they can again be polygamous (not really for making babies but to justify the joy of daily sex without regard to pregnancies, menopause or resorting to self abuse!) On the other hand you have a celibate all male priesthood who have no God approved personal experience of married/sexual life making them unqualified to even understand sexual activity except perhaps as homosexual pedophiles.
Yet both churches are doing their very best to overpopulate the earth by insisting that only pro creative sex is holy and justified, placing recreational sex, including masturbation, in the devil's sinbin . In doing this they are driving members and parishioners deeper into their closets,
This focus on sexual conduct ignores love for LOVE IS FOR NO OTHER REASON. Love attracts couples without regard to sexual orientation and is a phenomenon not understood by 'God's duly appointed' making them unqualified to judge. They would do well to re-read St. Paul's discourse on charity.
Mental health experts have been trying for years to teach the notion that masturbation is a normal healthy activity for humans, male and female. That sexual experiences aide the person in adjusting to a normal fulfilling life.
Society is benefited from the fact that normalized life brings peace and tranquility to the community.
The church on the other hand assumes control over the sexual activities of its members citing a duty to control it for God. Truth is that while God created sexuality as one of the greatest personal experiences of life, the regulation and control of it belongs to society not to churches using fear while pretending to act for God.
Social mores, absent fear, will be more effective in urging self control of one's sexual urges recognizing the individual is not “sinning” when those urges are properly accommodated within in a society which recognizes, and openly accepts sexuality as a basic human attribute while teaching respect and restraint for the benefit of all. Laws circumscribing sexual conduct to protect those who need protection and punishment /treatment to those who abuse their sexual freedom are and will always be appropriate. That is the way primeval tribes coped with sexuality with in their groups and that is how they survived for millenniums until subjected to God's fear by “Christianization”.
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