The Book of Mormon... The Broadway Musical.

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The new musical is meeting with rave reviews as well as hurt feelings by the targets of the parody. As a Mormon, I'm as indifferent to the musical as I am to "Big Love" and other pop culture references to my church. Why? Because I'm not going to get all bent out of shape every time someone decides to take potshots at my beliefs. Mostly though, because as much as they like to pat themselves on the back for their originality, it's really nothing new. Mormons have been mocked and parodied since the 1830s. But there is one thing I'd like to take the opportunity to point out. In the 7 years the writers, producers, actors and others were working on this Broadway masterpiece, parodying two Mormon missionaries in Africa, real Mormons in Africa were making a difference. Writing for the Washington Post, Michael Otterson sets the record straight. It's pretty enlightening.. if not as entertaining. •According to church records, in the past seven years, more than four million Africans in 17 countries have gained access to clean drinking water through Mormon humanitarian efforts to sink or rehabilitate boreholes. •More than 34,000 physically handicapped African kids now have wheelchairs through the same Mormon-sponsored humanitarian program. To see a legless child whose knuckles have become calloused through walking on his hands lifted into a wheelchair may be the best way to fully understand the liberation this brings. •Millions of children, meanwhile, have now been vaccinated against killer diseases like measles as the church has sponsored or assisted with projects in 22 African countries. •More than 126,000 Africans have had their sight restored or improved through Mormon partnership with African eye care professionals in providing training, equipment and supplies. •Another 52,000 Africans have been trained to help newborns who otherwise would never take a first breath. Training in neonatal resuscitation has also been a big project for Mormons in Africa. •Then, of course, there is the tragedy of AIDS. A couple of weeks ago I attended a dinner where the Utah AIDS Foundation honored James O. Mason, former United States Assistant Secretary of Health. When he was working for the Center for Disease Control in 1984, a project to research the epidemiology and treatment of AIDS was established at the Hospital Mama Yempo in Kinshasha, Zaire. After visiting the hospital and examining the children and adults with AIDS, Mason described the death rate and the associated infections from AIDS as “horrific.” Mason, a Mormon, knows quite a bit about AIDS and a great deal about Africa. •None of this includes responses to multiple disasters, like the flooding in Niger, where the Church provided clothing, quits and hygiene items to 20,000 people in six inundated regions of the country. What people don't realize is, when we send our 19-21 year old young men and women on missions, they learn the languages and culture of the people in the areas they work. Then they spend 18 months to 2 years living among the people, serving them and working with them. They get to know the people in ways few outsiders ever get the opportunity. So, while you are laughing (and no, I don't see anything wrong with laughing, after all, it's a parody, it's supposed to be funny!), get to know the facts behind the laughs. http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/on-faith/post/why-i-wont-be-seeing-the-book-of-mormon-musical/2011/04/14/AFiEn1fD_blog.html