“Muskets and Rainbows”: Why a Mormon Leader’s BYU Speech Failed, Metaphorically
The use of metaphors in religious rhetoric can be persuasive, inclusive, and edifying. They can also be belligerent, harmful, and divisive. This paper investigates the backlash against the use of a “muskets” metaphor in a recent speech by a prominent Mormon leader which targeted LGBTQ+ members, in t...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
2023
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| In: |
Critical research on religion
Year: 2023, Volume: 11, Issue: 1, Pages: 13-32 |
| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
USA
/ Mormon Church
/ Bible
/ Metaphor
/ Speech
/ LGBT
/ Sexual minorities
|
| IxTheo Classification: | AD Sociology of religion; religious policy CB Christian life; spirituality KBQ North America KDH Christian sects NBE Anthropology |
| Further subjects: | B
Metaphors
B Religion B Mormon B Identity B LGBTQ+ |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | The use of metaphors in religious rhetoric can be persuasive, inclusive, and edifying. They can also be belligerent, harmful, and divisive. This paper investigates the backlash against the use of a “muskets” metaphor in a recent speech by a prominent Mormon leader which targeted LGBTQ+ members, in the wider context of a traditionally fraught relationship between the Church and its LGBTQ+ membership. This paper argues that the speech represents an act of authoritarianism, reliant upon the institutionally-situated power of a Church leader. Critics have interpreted the speech’s use of violent metaphor as an unwarranted attack on some of the most vulnerable members of the Mormon community, paradoxically at a time when the Church was seen as moving towards a more inclusive position in doctrine and policy. |
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| ISSN: | 2050-3040 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Critical research on religion
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1177/20503032221148475 |