If you found me in a crowd, your tendency would be to guess that as a white male, I've never dealt with being in a position as a minority, and could construe that, having lived a full life as part of the majority, I've always had a voice and never seen bias due to who I was. Yet that's not true.Both as a Mormon (common name for members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints) and as a Mac user, I've always identified myself with a small minority of the population, a visible minority, commonly misunderstood, and all too often, dismissed or even despised.In both cases, the experience from one aids the other, as our community can both try to help others understand why we are the way we are, that we're not as "strange" as believed from the outside, and we're both aided by a vocal, evangelizing base.Below's one take on how my two "religions" match up, by no means complete:
| Topic | Apple | LDS/Mormon |
| U.S. Marketshare: | 6.1% (IDC) | 2-3% (Mormon.org/US Census) |
| Large Installed Base: | 22 million (est.) | 13 million members |
| Growing Membership | 37% growth y/y | Cited as 2nd-fastest growing religion in the U.S. |
| Worldwide Translation | 18 Mac OS X Languages | Church materials in 178 languages |
| Focus on Conversion | Get A Mac Campaign | 50,000 active missionaries |
| Monotheistic Culture | Steve Jobs | Jesus Christ |
| Corporate Face | Steve Jobs | Gordon B. Hinckley |
| Extended Leadership | Board of Directors | The 12 Apostles |
| Retail Locations | More than 200 Apple stores | More than 120 LDS temples |
| Annual Meetings | 2 (MWSF & WWDC) | 2 (Semi-Annual General Conference) |
| Second Coming | Steve Jobs (1997) | Jesus Christ (still waiting) |
| Some Think It's a Cult | Wired: Cult of Mac | Mormoncult.org |
| Vocal Detractors | Microsoft, Linux | Southern Baptists, Evangelicals, Fundamentalist Christians |
| Standard Uniform | Black Turtleneck, Blue Jeans | White Shirt and Tie |
| The Color White | Mac Books, iPods, etc. | White Shirts, Temples, etc. |
| Music Sources | iTunes | Mormon Tabernacle Choir |
| Youthful Actors | Justin Long | Jon Heder |
| Presidential Candidates | Steve Jobs (unofficial) | Mitt Romney (not church-endorsed) |
| Large Cash Reserves | $15.4 billion | $30+ billion (estimated) |
| Controversial History | The Newton, Apple III, Licensing | Polygamy, Priesthood, Martyrdom |
| Stance on Cloning | Against | No position on stem-cell research |
| Stance on Tithing | One new OS X Release a Year ($129) | Members pledge 10% of income |
| Ongoing Revelation | Next Macworld! | General Conference, Doctrine & Covenants |
| Common Misconceptions | No Microsoft Office, Lacks Software, Not Good for Business | Plural Marriage, Not Christian, Book of Mormon Used Instead of the Bible |
| Actual Reality | 15 Reasons You'll Love a Mac | The Articles of Faith |
Mac users are misunderstood. People assume what choosing Mac over Windows means for us as people, just as people even more often have a belief in their mind about what it means to be Mormon. I am just as passionate about being Mormon as I am about being Mac (although you don't hear it as often). And there are people out there who are extremely opposed to the church and my OS. I've accepted that. I've seen misinformation campaigns for both. I've had to take a deep breath and explain the truths of both, and I know it will always be this way. But I will always answer questions and try to help. That's part of being Mormon and it's part of being a Mac fan. Who knew they were so similar!