The bed in the temple

Comments on a news item about the raid on the FLDS community in El Dorado, Texas.

April 10, 2008

It is so sad that our news sources are so devoid of real information. The revelation that there was a bed in the FLDS temples is a good example. For a building 80 feet tall and a half block in size, you would think there might be more distinctive features. For instance, did the building have large rooms with seating? Did it have intermediate size rooms for instructing? Were there any ceremonial artifacts such as alters, podiums or baptism fonts? Was there a residence room for custodians and security personnel? Is that where the bed was?

Let us suppose details of the bed. How did it differ from an alter? How big was it? Did it have pillows? How was it placed in the room, in the middle, against the wall? Did it have a fancy headboard, or was it like an army cot? Were there other furniture in the room, such as dressers and tables? Were there bath and closet features? Might this be a honeymoon suite with privacy like you would expect from a hotel, say in Las Vegas?

On another tack, would this room be suitable for caring for a nursing or crying baby or dressing a bride in her wedding clothes?

What would clue you to the fact that one occupant of the room would be over 17 and the other would be under 17? Might this be a place where lawfully wedded couples might retreat from a busy, noisy household?

The absence of detail on this news report screams hypocrisy.

I was born and raised in Texas, and happiness was seeing El Paso in my rear view mirror.