Pilgrim in America

Before worship service: coffe hour. I talk to friends and meet Patrick. He is the music director at the Vancouver Church now.

Sermon: Rev. Preston Moore Minister in Residence: The Spiritual Crisis Everyone Calls a Financial One Enews: America's financial woes are not a matter of illiquidity, hyper-leveraging, or ill-considered deregulation. At bottom, they aren't even financial. As we approach the first anniversary of the stock market implosion, our leaders continue to skate across the surface of the problem. We need to look deeper. When will the churches begin to show leadership in addressing the spiritual crisis underlying the financial one?

Preston used to be a lawyer. His sermon includes a detailed financial analysis.

3 p.m.: organized by The Humanists of Greater Portland, Portland Hollywood Theatre: In the Shadow of the Temple, premier. Quote from the website:

The film documents the struggles of people who leave the Mormon church and the price they pay in their personal lives. This is not just a Mormon story. Any society, organization or system of belief that restricts freedom of thought and action exacts a toll on the human spirit. What price would you be willing to pay to have the freedom to say, “This is what I believe, this is how I want to live.”?

Room 3/4 full. First there is a historical introduction about Joseph Smith, his many wives and his Church, followed by interviews, personal stories. Sagas, dramas, disillusionments, inner conflicts. People tell about the price of belonging to the community, how the church limited their freedom. The struggles they had, and how they came to realize that the Church was "not true", and how difficult it was for them to leave it. "It was as if I had thrown myself in the Grand Canyon." - says a man. "But as I was falling I realized I had wings."

Afterwards the producer told about the story of the idea of the film, the hurdles they had to cope with in choosing the people and making the interviews. He answered questions. (It turned out there were many ex-momons in the theater, some who were still church members, and some who had a mormon partner and had difficulties.)

People's favourite line was the one told by an Afro-American woman, divorced from her husband: "I thought I was more for him than a mormon." The documentary featured a couple. The woman left the church while her husband remained a member. "Sometimes I feel I lie down with Joseph Smith" she says. Nevertheless they hang on to each other. The movie ends with him saying: "I believe over there we'll realize that we were all wrong..."