Lots of press has been given over lately to the Book of Mormon, a new Broadway musical mocking the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but today The New York Times decided to give space to some other Mormons. A Mormon couple, Jill Fernald and Geddes Munson, were the subject of today’s Vows column:
The couple both come from pioneer Mormon families that settled in Utah in 1847—one of Ms. Fernald’s forebears arrived with Brigham Young—and both are deeply committed to their faith.
I have written elsewhere about how the Mormon church has made inroads in the Northeast in recent years. And certainly church members have made it to the highest echelons of education and business. But making The New York Times wedding section—well there’s a boundary broken. And one senses that the Times might realize what kind of milestone this is. The piece goes to great lengths to explain Mormonism and marriage to readers:
Marriage is a central tenet of the Mormon faith, and, the couple said, the “sealing” of a woman and a man is a necessary step for the potential of the couple to be an eternal family.
Ms. Fernald graduated from Brigham Young University in 2002; that year, 50.4 percent of the 6,435 seniors were married before graduation, a figure that was about average, a university spokeswoman said. On April 2, in fact, Thomas S. Monson, the president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, admonished Mormon men to stop postponing marriage.
I wonder for what other wedding announcements the Times has offered such interesting background information. No matter. Congrats to the happy couple.
