Resurfaced memory - Lying Sunday School Teacher

[azflyer]

All the discussion of Nelson and his airplane and stories and exaggerations and lies has caused me to recall a memory, and I wish for all to receive it.

I was probably about 10 years old. There was a knucklehead kid in our Sunday School class, and his dad came in to be our teacher. I vividly remember the lesson he shared with us one Sunday. He told a story about how he played on a championship baseball team. The team had done well all year and won a low level city or regional championship. They were then invited to the next level tournament to play. But that tournament was held on a Sunday, and so he decided that he should not play. I don't recall exactly what happened to the team, but he did share that he knew he made the right choice to not play in the game on Sunday. To my little 10 year old (give or take) brain, this story made perfect sense, and I was glad to know that my teacher had made the right choice, and had helped all of the know what the right choice was to make.

Then... Next year... We must have been using the same lesson manual as the year before. Because the next teacher told the exact... same... story... Except this time it wasn't Brother "knuckle head's dad" teaching the lesson. It was just the next poor schmuck that had to teach the the rowdy bunch of now 11 year old (or however old we were) boys. And when I tell you the story was the same, I mean it was exactly the same. The kid in the story the second time around played the exact same position. It was the same championship. It was the same next level championship. The kid felt exactly the same way when he decided not to play on Sunday. Except the new teacher just straight-up read it right out of the manual.

I do have to give Brother Whatever-his-name-was credit though. That sonofabitch memorized that whole story. And he told it well. He told like it was him on that baseball team. And all of us 10 year old boys ate... it... up...

Remind me again why I'm giving Nelson so much leeway on the other thread??? Oh well...

[Res Ipsa]

No idea. What a weird thing to do to kids. Or anyone.

[Moksha]

No idea. What a weird thing to do to kids. Or anyone.

Due to it being the Sabbath, you think they would refrain from telling lies. If you have a tall tale, let Sheri Dew know on a Wednesday or Thursday.

[malkie]

The first Sunday School teacher, Bro Paul Dunn, went on to become a well-known General Authority. (j/k)

[dastardly stem]

What if these two grownups were on the same team?

I don't know how many times I've heard a story of a Mormon being into sports and deciding to sit out a game that was to be played on Sunday. It was always a very important game. I suppose theoretically it could happen quite often. I think my dad told one of those. I don't think he was lying.

[Res Ipsa]

What if these two grownups were on the same team?

I don't know how many times I've heard a story of a Mormon being into sports and deciding to sit out a game that was to be played on Sunday. It was always a very important game. I suppose theoretically it could happen quite often. I think my dad told one of those. I don't think he was lying.

As I understand the story, the second guy wasn’t claiming that he was the kid in the story. He read it out of the manual. And it was the same story the first guy told as if he were the kid in the story.

Same story told twice. One by a guy who pretended the story was about him.

[dastardly stem]

yeah...oops. Still its all possible. The guy the year before could have played on a team, and the important game for region or state came on a Sunday and he sat out. I mean it's had to have happened a few million times. The added component is someone sat out due to it being on a Sunday. Again, not a surprising possibility.

No big deal...I get the suspicion. I also don't think it's worth accusing anyone of lying over.

[kairos]

The insistence from the church that BYU teams refrain from sunday practices and competition is well known. even the NCAA basketball selection committee allows BYU teams to be entered in the non-sunday competition bracket. so it is possible BYU could win a ncaa basketball title. this BYU "policy" has filtered to individual Mormon boys and girls who are left to decide whether to compete on sunday or not. parents often decide for their kids but some leave it to the kid. the kid usually gets church kudos for refraining from competition and often the kid can feel guilty for playing to support their team.

Often Mormon boys and girls choose BYU for college athletics rather than a scholarship from Stanford or Harvard or Oregon for runners because at the other schools athletes train, go to meetings and participate in competition on sundays and the Mormon kid who would not participate in those activities on sundays are likely to catch lots of flak and verbal abuse from the non-Mormon athletes. few Mormons kids i know would welcome that kind of an environment.

imho such activities on sunday can actually glorify God by the athlete becoming the best he/she can be - by the way God has yet to strike johnny miller or steve young with lightning strikes for playing professional golf or nfl football on sunday- in fact the church in its hypocrisy applauds such celebrities.
k

[azflyer]

What if these two grownups were on the same team?

You never now, right? And isn't it crazy that the text of the lesson manual actually matched their story perfect? Such a coincidence. The church must be true.
/s

[azflyer]

Same story told twice. One by a guy who pretended the story was about him.

Yes, this.

The first guy basically memorized the story, and made it sound like the story typed in the lesson manual was about him.

The second teacher (who I think was female) just read us the story from the manual.

Of course, this was 30+ years ago, and my memory could be failing. So the church must be true.