7!

To me, learning by faith and reason means that we have to function just as well outside of the church as we do inside of it. Many people are content to just live their lives in the church, only associating with fellow members. On the other hand, many people push faith completely out of their lives. There is a way to have balance, and that is to seek learning from every facet within reason. I think the call to learn by faith and reason is nothing more than another reminder of the important scripture, “all things in moderation.”

I think the gospel can make me a better creator because it contains so many themes of hope, repentance, rebirth, love and mystery. It provides insights and answers that, when subtly used, can make for a very interesting, beautiful and most of all relatable stories. It also depends on what is meant by the word “better”. The Gospel will ultimately make me a better creator in the same way that it makes me a better person in general. The worldly things need not be focused on too much in our creations.

I think that the reading and viewing helped give me a sense of what is ok and what may not be. I really liked how the series presented these gospel truths without being preachy. Being preachy would have gotten them nowhere, since only Mormons would ever actually watch it. However, converting people to Mormonism isn’t the goal in the first place. It’s making a piece of media that is fun and can change people’s lives. That really isn’t too different an objective than most other Hollywood films, if you think about it. And there is nothing wrong with that.