Religious leaders say HBO overstepped bounds
 
By Lynn Arave
Deseret News
 
Some local religious leaders and experts believe Hollywood overstepped some tacit bounds in depicting sacred rites and beliefs in Sunday night's episode of "Big Love" on HBO. The show included a portrayal of a temple ceremony considered sacred by members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

That portrayal is discussed at length in a piece titled "Publicity Dilemma" in the "Newsroom" section of www.lds.org.

"Certainly church members are offended when their most sacred practices are misrepresented or presented without context or understanding," the church's statement says.

Rabbi Benny Zippel of Chabad Lubavitch of Utah and Brigham Young University religion professor Kent P. Jackson said Hollywood would do well to have some standards in how it depicts sacred rites of any faith.

"Of course it would offend me" if a TV show or movie focused on sacred Jewish rites or beliefs, Zippel said. He feels sacred beliefs should be protected as much as possible.

"Every religious group has the right to have certain areas that are set apart as special and sacred," BYU's Jackson said.

Jackson and Richard Wolf, an elder with the Jehovah's Witnesses in Davis County, said Hollywood likes to be sensational.

"Everything is game to Hollywood," Jackson said. "Hollywood is in the business of making money."

With regard to sacred religious rites, Wolf said, "They shouldn't do that."

Wolf said his faith has very simple and very public meetings, so Hollywood wouldn't find much to sensationalize.

Jackson said the main thrust of some of his religion courses at BYU is teaching students to respect what is sacred in other religions. The HBO showing of the LDS temple ceremony clearly crosses that boundary of respect, he said.

Last week, HBO issued an apology.

"Obviously, it was not our intention to do anything disrespectful to the church, but to those who may be offended, we offer our sincere apology," HBO said in a statement issued Tuesday

"In approaching the dramatization of the endowment ceremony, we knew we had a responsibility to be completely accurate and to show the ceremony in the proper context and with respect," said series creators Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer.

Jackson said it's not so much about accuracy as it is about respect. "It's a question of being sacred and honoring (others' beliefs)."

Sunday's penultimate episode of "Big Love's" third season has drawn a lot of attention, but it was by no means the first time the show has created discussion about respect for people of faith. For example, an earlier episode showed members of the LDS Church in a locker room wearing clothing considered sacred by faithful members of the church. Another showed a deceased polygamist woman in her casket, attired in what appeared to be LDS temple clothing.

"Big Love" is about a Utah polygamist family. The LDS Church officially discontinued the practice of polygamy 119 years ago. In Sunday's episode, one character (Barb, played by Jeanne Tripplehorn) faces excommunication from the LDS Church because she's in a polygamous relationship. She recalls her own experiences in an LDS temple — and the portrayal of those scenes lies at the center of the discomfort many Mormons and other people of faith have with the show.

HBO is a pay-cable network, so "Big Love" is not held to the same ratings standards as a show on a broadcast network. (HBO makes money from subscribers, not advertisers.)

Viewership has improved dramatically this season, starting off at 1.2 million and doubling to 2.4 million for the March 1 episode. When you add in those who watch replays on various HBO networks and HBO On-Demand, along with those who DVR the show, that number rises to about 5 million.

By means of comparison, a show such as "Pushing Daisies" — which drew 6.75 million viewers per episode — was canceled by ABC because of low ratings.

The Roman Catholic Church has had some of its religious rites, such as confession and mass, depicted by Hollywood — more than perhaps any other religion. The local Catholic Diocese declined comment on the issue, citing freedom of speech.

However, many Catholics were offended by the movie "The DaVinci Code," which suggested that fictional church leaders could be involved in criminal activities and that Jesus had children whose progeny still exist. A very public controversy raged around both the movie and the book upon which it was based.

The LDS Church posted a lengthy explanation of its position on the issue at lds.org.

According to the Encyclopedia of Mormonism, "Even among themselves, Latter-day Saints do not talk about the details of the temple, because they are sacred."

"The ordinances and ceremonies of the temple are simple," President Boyd K. Packer of the Quorum of Twelve once said and most recently restated in a November 2007 Ensign Magazine article. "They are beautiful. They are sacred. They are kept confidential lest they be given to those who are unprepared. Curiosity is not a preparation. Deep interest itself is not a preparation. Preparation for the ordinances includes preliminary steps: faith, repentance, baptism, confirmation, worthiness, a maturity and dignity worthy of one who comes invited as a guest into the house of the Lord."

Contributing: Scott Pierce

E-MAIL: lynn@desnews.com
 
DeseretNews.com
Originally published Sunday, March 15, 2009
 
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