LittleWorthen wrote:no it wouldn't matter to me. i've thought about this before. honestly, if it ever turned out to be all untrue, i'd still be a happy and proud member. honestly, even if God ended up not existing, i'd still be happy where i am. treating others with love and compassion and service and loving and honoring your wife/husband and being close to your family are all thing's i think people should aspire for even without religion. The Church just gives me additional motivation to strive to do better in these aspects.
How, specifically, does the Church do that?
Are you looking for: coercion, intimidation or guilt?
Albion wrote: A major separation of those churches from Mormonism is the idea you appear to suggest that "being good to go" on judgement day is all dependent on you actions.
Think that depends upon both the denomination and the individual church. Those that do not use the phrase, "God breathed" in referring to the Bible would probably be willing to entertain the notion of loving God and Man through actions ahead of any profession of faith as being sufficient.
LittleWorthen wrote:i'm new here so forgive me if it shows.
i was just reading a lot of the posts on this site. there are a lot of honest questions, which are great! and then there are a lot of people who are just trying to vent their discontentment towards the church onto its members or the other people with honest questions. Let me just say, i think that it is sad. It is sad that so many people try to discredit the church and take every misconception or mistake or action of one or few and use it against a happy, content group of people.
Do the recent demonstrations by "Mormons Building Bridges" and "Ordain Women" and the fact that less than 40% of the claimed membership are in the pews on a Sunday, suggest to you that the Church is a happy, content group of people? You should also know that a lot of the posters on here are active members of the Church, do they sound happy and content with the organisation?
You seem to be advocating against the following statement: “If we have the truth, it cannot be harmed by investigation. If we have not the truth, it ought to be harmed.” Are you arguing against it?
You seem to be suggesting that groups such as "Heaven's Gate" should be left alone and not investigated if they appear to be a "happy, content group of people". Are you suggesting that?
That said, with the Book of Mormon, we are not dealing with a civilization with no written record. What we are dealing with is a written record with no civilization. (Runtu, Feb 2015)
Bazooka - calling for the investigation of happy content groups of people since 2013
Seek freedom and become captive of your desires...seek discipline and find your liberty I can tell if a person is judgmental just by looking at them what is chaos to the fly is normal to the spider - morticia addams If you're not upsetting idiots, you might be an idiot. - Ted Nugent
Albion wrote: A major separation of those churches from Mormonism is the idea you appear to suggest that "being good to go" on judgement day is all dependent on you actions.
Think that depends upon both the denomination and the individual church. Those that do not use the phrase, "God breathed" in referring to the Bible would probably be willing to entertain the notion of loving God and Man through actions ahead of any profession of faith as being sufficient.
I would pose the question as to whether a person can love God and man without an element of faith. Also, can you name any Christian church that puts works ahead of faith as the reason for salvation? There may be many adherents of churches who might subscribe to such an idea but I don't know of any churches where such a proposition is enshrined in doctrine. Perhaps you do?
I might add that I am in no way disparaging "good works"....when done through faith in Christ they are the mark of that faith....but a fulfilling and living out of that faith and not the means to earn it in the first place.
Albion wrote:Little Worthen, did you have any church affiliation before you joined Mormonism? I think that most Christian churches offer the things you admire so much in the Mormon Church but few, if any, would subscribe to the idea you suggest above that even if what they believe is wrong that on judgement day "I will be fine". A major separation of those churches from Mormonism is the idea you appear to suggest that "being good to go" on judgement day is all dependent on you actions. You appear to be sincere in your support of Mormonism but I would hope that you have also made a sincere effort to compare the teachings of Mormonism with Biblical Christianity.
yes, i was catholic before i joined the LDS church
I would pose the question as to whether a person can love God and man without an element of faith. Also, can you name any Christian church that puts works ahead of faith as the reason for salvation? There may be many adherents of churches who might subscribe to such an idea but I don't know of any churches where such a proposition is enshrined in doctrine. Perhaps you do?
i don't put works before my faith. my faith in God is strong. so is my faith in the church, but pertaining to the question i was asked, if somehow the church turned out to be wrong, i would still feel confident in the fact that i'd be fine.
You appear nonetheless to be suggesting that works are more important than your faith in Mormonism and its version of god. How else could you suggest that even if its doctrine proved false ( doctrine which includes a different version of God from traditional Christianity) you would still be okay for salvation....presumably because your intent and good works will make it so.
LittleWorthen wrote:i'm new here so forgive me if it shows.
i was just reading a lot of the posts on this site. there are a lot of honest questions, which are great! and then there are a lot of people who are just trying to vent their discontentment towards the church onto its members or the other people with honest questions. Let me just say, i think that it is sad. It is sad that so many people try to discredit the church and take every misconception or mistake or action of one or few and use it against a happy, content group of people.
Do the recent demonstrations by "Mormons Building Bridges" and "Ordain Women" and the fact that less than 40% of the claimed membership are in the pews on a Sunday, suggest to you that the Church is a happy, content group of people? You should also know that a lot of the posters on here are active members of the Church, do they sound happy and content with the organisation?
You seem to be advocating against the following statement: “If we have the truth, it cannot be harmed by investigation. If we have not the truth, it ought to be harmed.” Are you arguing against it?
You seem to be suggesting that groups such as "Heaven's Gate" should be left alone and not investigated if they appear to be a "happy, content group of people". Are you suggesting that?
Bump
That said, with the Book of Mormon, we are not dealing with a civilization with no written record. What we are dealing with is a written record with no civilization. (Runtu, Feb 2015)
