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To start things off I will state I am an exmormon. So a little about myself, I was born into the Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and when I was 19 I served a mission in North America. When I got home I got married in the temple had kids and did the usual stuff. I had 30 years in the church where I served in local leadership capacities. These included being a youth leader, sunday school teacher/president and when I left I was on the Bishopric of my ward (local congregation). I participated in all the temple ceremonies. If anyone has any questions on church history, mormon culture, missionary life, temple stuff I will be happy to answer.
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Sep 1, 2016 15:22
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The first, and to me most obvious, question is why are you an ex-mormon now instead of being a mormon? Second, how do you feel about the racism (black skin is literally the mark of cain, and that all black people were therefor morally inferior) that was inherent in the church prior to 1978? When you were still active, did it ever bother you that Joseph Smith was a known fraud and con man? Last, and most importantly, how do I get myself a sweet pair of magic underwear without actually becoming mormon? If I do manage to get a pair, will they retain their magic powers or will my godless heathenism nullify the effect?
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Sep 1, 2016 15:43
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When you left the church, what did your family think? Where did you go on your mission? What does the LDS church think of the play The Book of Mormon overall?
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Sep 1, 2016 15:50
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grumplestiltzkin posted:The first, and to me most obvious, question is why are you an ex-mormon now instead of being a mormon? Brainwashing in the church is real, you don't recognise it as such but its there all the same. You are effectively programmed from birth, you know what you are going to do in your life because its effectively all planned out for you. My brain started twitching in my teens, I used to do early morning seminary (scripture study from 6:30-7:30 each weekday from 14-18 years old) and I remember being taught about the hill Cumorah which is where Joseph got the Golden plates. Cumorah was also host to a massive battle, hundreds of thousands were supposed to have died there and since its just a small bumfuck hill I thought, "why doesn't the church just do an excavation". This is where mormon apologetics and distraction comes into play, I heard "the church wont do it because they want people to have faith in the church and not have solid proof!". Questions like this kept stacking up but I had to put it on an internal bookshelf because I ultimately had a belief in God and I thought the church was a force for good in the world. In my late twenties I had serious doubts but I still played the game, my family and friends are all active LDS. My entire social structure and life was based around the church so I kept plodding on. I seriously started investigated the church in my early thirties and it felt like a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders when I finally realised 100% it was all bullshit. Its embarrassing to think I stayed in the church for so long but there it is. Racism I always had problems with, I didnt agree with the treatment of black people before 1978 and it was one of the major shelf sitters throughout my life. I was taught that black people had been slackers in the war in heaven before we came to Earth, so they were cursed with the color of their skin as a punishment and hence the ban. Surprisingly the church does not teach that Joseph was a sexual predator and a con man. Brother Joseph had a few faults but he was one of the most righteous men to have ever lived, etc etc. Throughout my life in the church I was told to stay away from anything that wasn't published by the church. I think I have seen some listings on ebay for garments. They arent particularly comfy (sleeping without them on for the first time was bliss) and despite mormon folklore, they wont stop bullets and protect you from fire.
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Sep 1, 2016 16:00
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Cowslips Warren posted:When you left the church, what did your family think? Where did you go on your mission? What does the LDS church think of the play The Book of Mormon overall? They wont talk to me about it and wont acknowledge any of my issues and concerns. Right now we are in a mexican standoff where we pretend everything is fine and normal. I am intentionally being vague about where I live, where I served my mission and when. These motherfuckers are very real https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strengthening_Church_Members_Committee I may sound  but I don't want anything to be forwarded to my family (I personally know someone this happened too)."What does the LDS church think of the play The Book of Mormon overall?" Publicly the church is "Oh this play makes a little fun of mormons, we are so good natured and accepting that we dont have any problems with it at all!!!!". Behind closed doors they loving hate it. Triggered fucked around with this message at 16:10 on Sep 1, 2016 |
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Sep 1, 2016 16:07
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Triggered posted:"What does the LDS church think of the play The Book of Mormon overall?" Have you seen it yourself? If so, how accurate do you think the stereotypes are--are there any bits that they exaggerated past the point of believability (or, conversely, any craziness that they were really restrained about)?
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Sep 1, 2016 16:11
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Gabriel Pope posted:Have you seen it yourself? If so, how accurate do you think the stereotypes are--are there any bits that they exaggerated past the point of believability (or, conversely, any craziness that they were really restrained about)? No I have never seen it, I really want to go but its about time at the moment. Missionary life is a mixed bag, there are some missions and mission presidents that are fairly chill. Some missions like mine like to practice something called "Exact Obedience", this involves following every single rule to the letter. Missionaries around my age had this https://www.lds.org/bc/content/ldsorg/topics/missionary/MissionaryHandbook2006Navigate.pdf On top of that you had another binder full of rules just for your mission, I had to memorise that entire pdf. To be honest I enjoyed my mission, I think it was beneficial in my life, thankfully the people who I baptised all left soon after I came home. There are some missionaries who are a bit more relaxed about things, I unfortunately must have been a major pain in the rear end for my companions. I wanted to do everything right and be all upbeat and enthusiastic. The church is full of insanity, if you want specific examples of craziness you have heard about I will no doubt be able to provide examples.
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Sep 1, 2016 16:21
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Do you think Mormons who aren't a part of the church hierarchy are generally honest / altruistic people or has the church perverted them in such a way they aren't very well adjusted? I remember reading in a Howard Hughes biography describing how he surrounded himself with only Mormons because he knew they could be trusted. Would be interesting to know if that is true or just a stereotype (albeit a positive one).
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Sep 1, 2016 17:04
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faarcyde posted:Do you think Mormons who aren't a part of the church hierarchy are generally honest / altruistic people or has the church perverted them in such a way they aren't very well adjusted? I remember reading in a Howard Hughes biography describing how he surrounded himself with only Mormons because he knew they could be trusted. Would be interesting to know if that is true or just a stereotype (albeit a positive one). Hmmm tough one this, yes I would say they are generally good people. Apart from being super nice to new people (so they can get converted), I dont think there is anything perverted or particularly sinister about your average mormon. Outside the church you may see them as being a bit naive and backward but the church creates its own sub culture separate from normal society. Someone you may see as a bit odd may be super cool and popular in church circles. Active members of the church are taught to keep their mouths shut, the temple ceremony is a big part of this. You arent allowed to talk about temple stuff outside the temple and I have seen this pretty much adhered too throughout my life (apart from exmos). Members are taught to be honest, if I ran a business I would have no problems employing one. Its the senior church leadership I get angry about.
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Sep 1, 2016 17:20
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There are two very young Mormon missionaries who moved into my neighbourhood. Well, I think they are Mormons. They seem absolutely miserable so I feel kind of sorry for them. Would it be a bad idea to invite them over for tea some night to cheer them up? AFTER telling them I have absolutely NO interested in joining their church at all, I am perfectly happy in my religion.
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Sep 1, 2016 19:35
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BattyKiara posted:There are two very young Mormon missionaries who moved into my neighbourhood. Well, I think they are Mormons. They seem absolutely miserable so I feel kind of sorry for them. Would it be a bad idea to invite them over for tea some night to cheer them up? AFTER telling them I have absolutely NO interested in joining their church at all, I am perfectly happy in my religion. Depends on the missionaries, some will be happy to come over if they know you arent interested, others may see you as a waste of time.
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Sep 1, 2016 20:08
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Your path to leaving Mormonism sounds very similar to mine - I was YM President when I left the church. I'm now a humanist and volunteer for a few skeptical/humanist organizations and couldn't be happier. Good for you!
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Sep 1, 2016 20:20
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Thanks dude, glad you have found a peaceful way out of the church.
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Sep 1, 2016 20:31
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Triggered posted:Thanks dude, glad you have found a peaceful way out of the church. Well, my family is hugely Mormon (80+ cousins, over a dozen aunts and uncles in Utah) so I'm not well viewed and my parents and sister don't really talk to me anymore because of my views - wasn't super easy, but definitely worth it. I still got out easier than some people I know. But thanks! I'm glad I managed to get out of the mission call - I joined the military because I was so concerned about going on a mission.
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Sep 1, 2016 20:38
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What are the craziest or most destructive practices, in your opinion? What are the best?
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Sep 1, 2016 21:40
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I dated a Mormon girl for a while, and she was great in every respect except for her fanatic mormon-ness (which wound up the cause for our breakup, which I still regret), so I gave the religion a fair shot. But holy poo poo the Mormon bible was loving horrifying. Check out this poo poo from Nephi 1-4. For those of you who haven't clicked the link the story is: NEPHI: Gee, my brother is rich and successful, huh? Too bad he thinks my new religion is bullshit. GOD: GO TO HIS HOUSE. NEPHI: Sure! *Arrives* Oh, gee, Laban's passed out drunk. GOD: YOU SHOULD MURDER HIM NEPHI: Wait, what? No! He's my brother! GOD: KILL HIM. TRUST ME. IT'S COOL. NEPHI: But what about that whole thou-shalt-not-kill poo poo? Those are your rules! GOD: BETTER ONE MAN DIE THAN A NATION, AMMIRIGHT? NEPHI: Good point *brutally murders his own unconscious brother* GOD: MAKE SURE TO STEAL HIS GOLD. And it just goes on like that. God commands Nephi to do hosed up atrocities and he does them without thinking. He gets everyone together and he leads them on a death march across Europe. When the people eventually are like 'gently caress this, this is weird, let's get out of here' God withers their limbs By the end of it I was like, 'are you sure that was God speaking to you and not that other guy?' I've always wondered what the gently caress actual Mormons think of that story.
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Sep 1, 2016 22:24
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im confused how someone can give a religion "a fair shot" without actually talking to its practitioners about questions they have. then again the posts in this thread so far have me thinking we could be going down in flames pretty quickly here op, what do you think of other lds denominations? the "community of christ" sounds a lot more chill and cool than the one you were in. however i don't know a lot about lds/mormonism
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Sep 1, 2016 23:02
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Lutha Mahtin posted:im confused how someone can give a religion "a fair shot" without actually talking to its practitioners about questions they have. then again the posts in this thread so far have me thinking we could be going down in flames pretty quickly here I did! The answers were vague and unsatisfying and I'm wondering if it was just this weird missionary family or Mormons more generally.
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Sep 1, 2016 23:04
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oh, the wording of your post threw me off. also i a usually start with the assumption that goons read a few scripture verses on the internet, hit ctrl+w, reach up to stroke their beard, and say "heh". its me im being the goon itt
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Sep 1, 2016 23:17
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Do Mormons consider themselves to be Christians, or how in general do they perceive the broader Christian community? What is the Mormon understanding of what happens to non-Mormon Christians after death? Lutha Mahtin posted:oh, the wording of your post threw me off. also i a usually start with the assumption that goons read a few scripture verses on the internet, hit ctrl+w, reach up to stroke their beard, and say "heh". its me im being the goon itt authentic Lutherposting
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Sep 1, 2016 23:18
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how do infertile women get into the good heaven. does it make any difference whether the infertile one is the woman vs. her husband. are there distinctions between different reproductive problems, such as a couple who can't conceive vs. a woman who keeps having miscarriages. what happens if a childless woman is presented with the choice by her doctor of "you are going to die unless we perform surgery on you, but the surgery will make it so you can't have kids".
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Sep 2, 2016 22:14
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Thanqol posted:I dated a Mormon girl for a while, and she was great in every respect except for her fanatic mormon-ness (which wound up the cause for our breakup, which I still regret), so I gave the religion a fair shot. But holy poo poo the Mormon bible was loving horrifying. Check out this poo poo from Nephi 1-4. Your Nephi story is close but isnt quite right. Nephis dad Lehi has a vision that Jerusalem will be destroyed, he tells his family to pack up and leave. They all escape but gosh darn it they forgot the brass plates that has the old testament on it!!!!!! Lehi tells Nephi to get the plates from wicked nasty Laban (who is Nephis cousin if I remember correctly). Laban tells Nephis brothers to piss off so Nephi goes back that night and luckily finds Laban drunk on the floor. A voice in Nephis head tells him to hack off Labans head and go get the plates. After the no doubt bloody decapitation Nephi takes his clothes and tricks Labans servant to get the plates. Nephi is one of the biggest Mormon heroes.................................................... Lutha Mahtin posted:im confused how someone can give a religion "a fair shot" without actually talking to its practitioners about questions they have. then again the posts in this thread so far have me thinking we could be going down in flames pretty quickly here Community of Christ are chill now, they were formally known as the Reorganised Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. The best thing about the reorgs was this little doozy: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_Lot_Case Whats so good about it was that the reorgs were like "nu uh, Joseph Smith did not practice polygamy!", then Brigham Young came along and said "lol heres written testimonies of some of his wives stating that he screwed them!". This was a dream for exmos, the church constantly tries to project that Joseph was just married to Emma, then Brigham comes along and just puts a stick of dynamite in the whole thing. I have no doubt if the modern leadership of the church had a time machine that they could only use one time, they would go back and kill Brigham Young. Fundamentalist Latter Day Saints (FLDS) are the ones you see in the news when they have had their compounds smashed into by government agencies. They got pissed when the mainstream branch stopped polygamy in 1890 (although they were still doing it in secret into the 1900's) and made their own sect. These are the really really crazy mormons. Pellisworth posted:Do Mormons consider themselves to be Christians, or how in general do they perceive the broader Christian community? Yes they consider themselves to be Christian, they believe that the only way to exaltation is through Jesus Christ. Born agains of course dispute this (I still cant stand them either), but just like mormons they make poo poo up as they go along. To mormons other Christian sects have a portion of the truth but the LDS church is the only true church on the Earth. Its the only one with the correct authority to perform ordinances such as baptism and giving the gift of the Holy Ghost. One thing I like about mormonism is that its afterlife is fairly forgiving. Everyone who has not had an opportunity to learn about mormonism will get the chance to learn about it when they die. If they accept it and lived a good life they can get to the top heaven. Thats why temples are important to mormons. They are performing ordinances such as baptism for people who have died. They believe everyone willl need it so thats what they do for them. There is no traditional fire and brimstone hell in the mormon afterlife. Pretty much every single person who has lived will gain some manner of reward, the shittiest kingdom in heaven where the rapists and murderers will go is still far better than anything you can get here on Earth. There is a place you would consider hell that is reserved for those who rebelled against God in the pre Earth life. This is called outer darkness. You can get there if you have lived on Earth, but you need to have seen God and Angels and stuff and then denied it all and rebelled.
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Sep 2, 2016 22:45
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Pixelante posted:What are the craziest or most destructive practices, in your opinion? What are the best? poo poo sorry I wrote a long rear end reply to you and it disappeared when I submitted the reply, I will come back to you. Lutha Mahtin posted:how do infertile women get into the good heaven. does it make any difference whether the infertile one is the woman vs. her husband. are there distinctions between different reproductive problems, such as a couple who can't conceive vs. a woman who keeps having miscarriages. what happens if a childless woman is presented with the choice by her doctor of "you are going to die unless we perform surgery on you, but the surgery will make it so you can't have kids". Anyone who has problems with their bodies will receive a perfect one in the eternities. No distinction is made between a woman and man when it comes to infertility. She will get the surgery, she will no doubt be made to feel like an inferior woman for the rest of her life. For mormons, a womans only role is to have kids. Thats the end game and the most important thing they are taught to do.
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Sep 2, 2016 22:48
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How are your wife/kids handling leaving the church?
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Sep 2, 2016 23:02
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n8r posted:How are your wife/kids handling leaving the church? Wife resisted at first but eventually wanted to leave as well. Kids were too young to care so I got off pretty lucky. Its still difficult though, all my kids cousins are active LDS. I was almost tempted into getting them baptised so they could at least have that same right of passage with them but
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Sep 2, 2016 23:07
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Thanqol posted:By the end of it I was like, 'are you sure that was God speaking to you and not that other guy?' Since God is commanding it, it is inherently right. Is that not the whole concept of religion? *IF* you accept that particular religion as valid, then this is the framework within which you operate. You might as well apply your same objections to Christianity or the other older religions.
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Sep 3, 2016 06:19
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Are you in the Utah area at all? I've got a friend who lives somewhere in Utah and he's stuck in a "I want to leave the church but if I do then my small business will die because literally everybody here is Mormon and they will stop hiring me" trap. Have you had to deal with anything like that?
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Sep 3, 2016 06:33
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Khizan posted:Are you in the Utah area at all? I've got a friend who lives somewhere in Utah and he's stuck in a "I want to leave the church but if I do then my small business will die because literally everybody here is Mormon and they will stop hiring me" trap. Have you had to deal with anything like that? No I thank my lucky stars I was not born in Utah. I spent time there but I didnt settle. The church is entirely reliant on social pressure to keep members in check. When the majority of the boomers die off I think you will see a massive drop in participation from members. I was going to wait for my parents to die before leaving the church but it got to the point where I couldnt take it anymore. I have not been in the job situation like that but I have heard too many similar stories. Your boss is Mormon and if you are unlucky enough he might be your ecclesiastical leader as well. Mormonism is members whole identity, their life is built around it, their entire social structure is based on it. When you say you dont agree with Mormonism anymore members take that as an attack on them personally. If you reject the doctrines of the church you reject them because thats who they are. This obviously creates conflict, people end up feeling trapped and decide to go with the flow because its the path of least resistance. This is why I think the church is a cult, not a kool aid drinking one but a cult all the same. The church continually builds up an "us versus them" conflict in relation to non members which is toxic.
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Sep 3, 2016 08:44
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What is the grassroots feeling in the LDS about polygamy? Basically it was a central principle within the first decade or so and only abandoned when Utah wanted to be recognised as a state. I know splinter churches practice polygamy openly or secretly. Is there a feeling by average Mormons that polygamy is a) morally wrong, b) morally right but technically illegal or c) really to be aspired to in emulation of the church founders?
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Sep 3, 2016 15:22
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Triggered posted:Yes they consider themselves to be Christian, they believe that the only way to exaltation is through Jesus Christ. Born agains of course dispute this (I still cant stand them either), but just like mormons they make poo poo up as they go along. Many Christians have similar beliefs about salvation and the afterlife, myself included, see C.S. Lewis in The Great Divorce. "Hell" is the absence of God's presence and Heaven is to be fully in God's presence, the dead (even if never having heard the Gospel) can come to accept God's grace and become closer to Him. Does Mormon theology fit with the Nicene Creed? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicene_Creed quote:I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible. My understanding was that LDS beliefs were pretty distinct from (little-o) orthodox Christianity. The vast majority of Christians (Catholic, Protestant, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox to include Coptic, Ethiopian, and Armenian Churches) are on board with the Nicene Creed. What does a Mormon worship service look like, if you can share details? Is there a set order of ritual, prayers, and music (liturgy)? Do Mormons celebrate Communion/Eucharist? Pellisworth fucked around with this message at 16:10 on Sep 3, 2016 |
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Sep 3, 2016 16:06
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Pellisworth posted:What does a Mormon worship service look like, if you can share details? Is there a set order of ritual, prayers, and music (liturgy)? Do Mormons celebrate Communion/Eucharist?
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Sep 3, 2016 16:13
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photomikey posted:I believe you can attend as a visitor. In high school, my (non-denominational Christian) bible study class visited a bunch of other faiths. I remember being unenthused to go to the LDS church, and I remember being surprised at how similar it was to basically every other service. Yeah I'm mostly curious about comparisons to broader Christianity. I could attend an LDS service I suppose, the most "different" service I've been to is an Eastern Orthodox Divine Liturgy and I'd love to check out an Armenian one sometime. They're hardcore, like almost three hours long. The biggest divide seems to be Western vs. Eastern Christianity and I'm wondering how much Mormonism fits in the Western tradition.
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Sep 3, 2016 16:22
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John Smith posted:Since God is commanding it, it is inherently right. Is that not the whole concept of religion? A monk was walking alone down a road one morning when an angel appeared to him. The spirit said "I am an angel, sent by God. Your good deeds have earned you the right to command me as you wish". The monk replied "I didn't do anything to deserve an angel... you must be a demon." The monk continued on his way, and the demon disappeared. Pellisworth posted:Does Mormon theology fit with the Nicene Creed? My understanding was that LDS beliefs were pretty distinct from (little-o) orthodox Christianity. The vast majority of Christians (Catholic, Protestant, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox to include Coptic, Ethiopian, and Armenian Churches) are on board with the Nicene Creed. The creeds are a big sticking point for me when people say that the LDS movement is like 99-100% the same as the more traditional Christian groups. Catholics, Orthodoxers, and most(?) Protestants profess the creeds, and even some of the Protestants who don't accept the texts of the creeds still profess all or most of the doctrines laid out in them. Then I look at some concepts in the LDS movement, like how a bunch of denominations (including the biggest) are non-trinitarian, or the idea that Jesus took a vacation to America during his stint in hell, or that we should baptize Einstein and Hitler by posthumous proxy, and I don't understand how that squares with the creed I can still recite from memory (the Apostle's) because we read it at almost every one of the hundreds of services I attended before my age contained two digits. Also, I didn't know this before, but according to the book of Wikipedia, some LDS groups reject both the traditional apostolic succession and the priesthood of all believers. So I guess my dad, who is a divorced Lutheran pastor serving in a denomination with both of these doctrines, is like Double Secret Moroni'd or something.
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Sep 3, 2016 19:23
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Josef K. Sourdust posted:What is the grassroots feeling in the LDS about polygamy? Basically it was a central principle within the first decade or so and only abandoned when Utah wanted to be recognised as a state. I know splinter churches practice polygamy openly or secretly. Is there a feeling by average Mormons that polygamy is a) morally wrong, b) morally right but technically illegal or c) really to be aspired to in emulation of the church founders? Like I have mentioned previously (or that might have been when I replied to someone and it didnt come up) polygamy is alive and well in the mainstream church. Although its Earthly practiced at least, the mainstream LDS sect still believes in eternal polygamy. A man can still be sealed to more than one woman in the temple if he has been widowed or had a divorce. When you get a civil divorce that does not cancel your temple sealing. That can only be authorised by the first presidency of the church. Its a mixture of A and B now, although I am sure if you asked the women in the church A would be picked by a large margin. Pellisworth posted:Many Christians have similar beliefs about salvation and the afterlife, myself included, see C.S. Lewis in The Great Divorce. "Hell" is the absence of God's presence and Heaven is to be fully in God's presence, the dead (even if never having heard the Gospel) can come to accept God's grace and become closer to Him. No the church rejects the Nicene creed. Mormons believe the Father, Son and Holy Ghost are three seperate personages. God has a perfected body of flesh and bone and Jesus received his perfect physical body after his resurrection. Mormons believe a little while after Jesus Christ was killed the church he setup fell into apostasy. All priesthood authority was lost off the Earth, Catholic baptism and whatever authority protestants claim is worthless. The priesthood (authority to act in the name of God) was given to Joseph Smith by Peter, James and John. Christs only true church was restored by Joseph in 1830. The Sunday service is standard across all congregations around the world. You can have a lesson on a Sunday in Utah and you can have the follow up lesson in Thailand the following week. This can be altered by the Bishop of the congregation but the full Sunday service is a 3 hour block. What you would consider communion would be the first hour. You sit in the Chapel and have an opening hymn and then prayer. Announcements and business is conducted by one of the bishopric. The top leadership in the congregation is held by three men called the Bishopric (technically there are more but its not too important), this comprises of a Bishop and his two councilors. There is no paid leadership positions in the church until you get to a very very senior level. Anyway business is done and then the sacrament is blessed and handed out by the young men in the ward (12-17). This consists of bread and water that represents the body and blood of Christ. Note this isn't transubstantiation. After that members of the congregation will give assigned talks (speeches) to the congregation. When that is done its closing hymn and prayer. Second hour is Sunday school, it runs on a 4 year cycle, Old Testament, New Testament, Book of Mormon and Church History. There is an adult and youth Sunday school. <12 will go to the primary organization where they are further split down according to age. Third hour the sexes seperate. Adult men go into Priesthood which is further split into Elders and High Priests. 12-17 will go to Young Mens. Women go to their part called Relief Society, 12-17 girls go to Young Womens. A lesson is taught in this hour.
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Sep 3, 2016 21:32
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Pellisworth posted:Yeah I'm mostly curious about comparisons to broader Christianity. I could attend an LDS service I suppose, the most "different" service I've been to is an Eastern Orthodox Divine Liturgy and I'd love to check out an Armenian one sometime. They're hardcore, like almost three hours long. This is a good question and something I've been thinking about as well. I think Mormonism fits into Protestantism pretty well from a historical perspective. It arose during the 2nd Great Awakening in America and you see a lot of similarities in worship services, for example, to other radical Protestant groups that were operating in America at the time. Pellisworth posted:Does Mormon theology fit with the Nicene Creed? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicene_Creed quote:What does a Mormon worship service look like, if you can share details? Is there a set order of ritual, prayers, and music (liturgy)? Do Mormons celebrate Communion/Eucharist?
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Sep 3, 2016 21:33
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Pixelante posted:What are the craziest or most destructive practices, in your opinion? What are the best? Ok back to this. I will start with the good first. The church does a good job of looking after their own, you genuinely feel part of one big family. You should note its easy to fall out of this family however. The church encourages its members to develop their talents and show them, it also gives kids a good start in speaking in front of others. This is an easily overlooked positive but it can get you remarkably far in life. I consider myself a shy person but that was beaten out of me through growing up in the church. A mission takes it to the next level, you are constantly forcing yourself to speak to new people and having to think on your feet. Now I could get up and give a presentation to 500 people and not break a sweat. This is probably the only thing that makes me want to have my kids to through church. Bad things: I have mentioned it before but like the piece of turd that wont flush, polygamy is still intertwined in the churches beliefs. I think its a disgusting practice when used in a religious setting. The rampant sexism in the church, women are little more than baby makers, there is no position for women in the church that is not overseen by a man. In the home the man is the final authority. In the temple man makes his covenants with God that he will follow the commandments. Women covenant with God that they will follow their husband. In the good old days women didnt even covenant with God, they would make the promise directly to the husband. Chastity, girls have been told its better to fight to the death than lose their "virtue". Prosperity gospel, the richer you are the more righteous you are. This is not officially taught in the church but its ingrained into the culture.
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Sep 3, 2016 21:52
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Wait, wait. The church thinks it's cool for a man to have a bunch of wives. But because wives are only for making babies...they have to be his wives only, right? So where do they expect the extra women to come from?
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Sep 3, 2016 23:08
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Domus posted:Wait, wait. The church thinks it's cool for a man to have a bunch of wives. But because wives are only for making babies...they have to be his wives only, right? So where do they expect the extra women to come from? From what I've read about polygamous cults in British Columbia, it's standard for a lot of the boys to be pushed out as teenagers, while the girls are taught to be frightened of the outside world.
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Sep 3, 2016 23:13
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Then how did Mormonism get so big? It's hard to grow your cult if you're pushing out 40 percent of the population.
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Sep 3, 2016 23:29
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Domus posted:Then how did Mormonism get so big? It's hard to grow your cult if you're pushing out 40 percent of the population. Polygamy stopped for the mainstream LDS in the early 1900's, Mormons have been very against birth control up until the 1990's. There is your answer.
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Sep 3, 2016 23:32
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