Liberal Mormon

Hello there.

I am very grateful to have been invited to be a part of the Liberal Mormon blog. As for a little about myself, my name is Jake and I live in Salt Lake City, UT. I have been married about six months now to a girl that I haven't been able to stop staring at since the moment we met. I am an English major at the University of Utah and have plans to attend law school when I'm done. I was blessed to be born into a loving family where I learned of LDS teachings from birth and found support in my endeavors. I served a Spanish speaking mission in Northern California. I also play in a band called The Sweater Friends (yes that's self promoting but what can you do), love the Harry Potter books and could eat pizza everyday of my life.

As this is my first post on here, I thought I would give a bit of insight as to why I consider myself to be Liberal and how this came about. I know it is not the norm for Utah to produce someone who leans to the left but I feel as though my views are rooted in those same places that make this state so red on the electoral college map.

I was talking to my mom a few days ago and she said "I don't want the government to take care of me, I just want them to take care of those who need it." As someone who has grown up reading and hearing the words of our Savior, compassion and empathy are fundamental in the teachings of Christ. We are to love God and love our neighbors, that is really about it. Sure, there are other things we are taught and commanded to do but they all revolve around helping us comply with those first two great commandments.

Before I became a self proclaimed liberal, I would look at the world and say to myself "that's not right" or "I think this should happen." Is clean water and food only essential for people who can afford it? If we are to respect our God, does that not mean we should care about his Earth that he entrusted us with? Should the advancements made in medical care only be for those with a big enough pocket book? As I answered these questions according to what I had discovered to be true, I found that the left made sense. Though, I do not agree with everything that is associated with being Liberal (i.e. the morality of abortion), that is not where the deciding factor lies. I am a liberal because life is too short to go at it alone. We are to love and help each other and just like my mom said, take care of those who need it.

Thank you for taking the time to read my thoughts.

-Jake