Mormon advertising

I was watching YouTube today, waiting for a video to load, when an ad came up that really bothered me. Why? Because when it started, I thought I was going to see something inspiring about science or technology – things I like. Instead, I got an ad for religion – something I don’t like. The opening images point to the future and to achievement, while religion is fixated largely on the past. This contrast plays throughout the ad, switching between Jesus in communal baths and modern humans with subways and germ theory. It plays throughout the Mormon faith, with LDS members being 70% against abortion in most or all cases (compared with 43% of Americans), 68% against homosexuality (40% of Americans) and 75% against evolution (45% of Americans). Mormon families are also twice as likely as the national average to have three or more children at a time when natural resources are growing thin.

Therein lies the heart of my disappointment with this ad: It tries to align itself with human accomplishment when it advocates for a religion that stands largely in opposition to progress. In short, the way forward for humanity is with lab coats, not magic underwear.

Okay, that's it for this anti-religious rant. Thanks for listening.