Hmong examine role of traditions in gospel life
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FRESNO, CALIF.
"Choose You This Day" was the unifying theme for more than 600 Hmong Church members as they gathered at the Fresno California North Stake Center for the 13th Annual Hmong Conference on Saturday, Aug. 2.
The day included workshops and lunch of traditional Hmong cuisine with entertainment of traditional Hmong dances and singing by the youth of Fresno's Pioneer Park (Hmong) Ward. The conference ended with sharing of testimonies.
Conference participants broke into age groups for various workshops. Each workshop focused on the scriptural theme found in Joshua 24:15, and the choices many of the Hmong Church members face as they work to blend their new LDS culture and beliefs with their traditional Hmong culture and customs.
Conference chairwoman Christine Lor, Young Women president in the Pioneer Park Ward, said some of the traditional Hmong customs are in conflict with true gospel principles, such as customs surrounding marriage, one of which requires a man and woman to live together before marriage.
Often, Sister Lor said, as Hmong Latter-day Saints choose to follow the gospel teachings and forgo a traditional custom, it is hard for their non-LDS family members or for some of the older LDS Hmong members to understand and accept.
"The younger generation has an easier time understanding the differences between the gospel and our LDS beliefs and our traditional Hmong customs," she said.
She added she has learned, growing up with the gospel, to look at gospel teachings and a Hmong tradition together. If the tradition is in conflict with the gospel principle then she knows to let the tradition go.
Learning of the Church may be the first time for some Hmong to have heard of Jesus Christ, Sister Lor said. "For many of the older Hmong people, who come from a non-Christian culture, they may have believed in a God higher than us, but did not know of Jesus or of Heavenly Father," she said.
Nhia Bee Lor (no relation to Sister Lor), first counselor in the Pioneer Park Ward bishopric, drew similarities between the struggles and the migrations of the Hmong people to that of the Israelites in ancient Egypt. In a workshop session, he said many of the older Hmong generation lived through persecution and killings in China, Laos and Vietnam. Just as the Israelites were led to a new land, he said, he and many of the Hmong people were brought to the United States after living for months in a refugee camp in Thailand.
He said that what seemed to be the darkest and loneliest time in his life has been a great blessing for him. He was placed with a foster family in Idaho, was introduced to the gospel and gained a testimony. He served a mission and is married and raising his five children in the Church.
Brother Lor said for many of the Hmong people, the hardships endured for so long has given them strength. In gatherings such as this annual conference, the Hmong members can build and renew friendships, remember their heritage and strengthen each other.
Brother Lor added, "It helps the people to commit to living the gospel more fully in their daily lives."
Conference organizers said this year's was the largest in attendance, with members coming from as far away as San Diego in Southern California and Oroville in Northern California. Most attendees came from the Fresno, Sacramento, Modesto, Stockton and Merced areas.
