Lol indeed, re world leaders. Elder Cook is playing fast and loose with the truth. Remember Nelson’s meeting with the Pope? From the thread here discussing it:
Lemmie wrote:This, including the links, was posted on md&d:
Pope to Cyclists: Athletes bear witness to potential of the human being
Pope Francis on Saturday meets with those participating in the Annual Congress of the European Cycling Union, telling them they bear witness “to the potential of the human being, created in the image and likeness of God.”
Addressing the participants in the Annual Congress of the European Cycling Union, which on this occasion is also hosting the Assembly of the African Cycling Confederation, Pope Francis noted the strong relationship between Sport and the Church. He also emphasized how sport can foster excellence because it teaches perseverance, sacrifice, and self-denial. The Pope continued by saying that, “sport often becomes an opportunity to express with enthusiasm the joy of living and the true satisfaction of having crossed the finishing line.”
Cycling and its virtues
Turning his attention to the discipline of cycling, Pope Francis described how it is one of the sports that, “places emphasis on some virtues, such as patience, integrity, altruism and team spirit.” Indeed, he said, “if we consider road cycling – one of its most common forms – we can see how the whole team works together during the races.”
Sporting Values
During his address, the Pontiff alluded to the many cyclists who have given of their best in their careers combining the qualities of determination and solidarity. They have borne witness, the Pope underlined, to “the potential of the human being, created in the image and likeness of God, and the beauty of living in communion with others and with creation.” Athletes, he said, “have this extraordinary opportunity to communicate to everyone, especially young people, the positive values of life and the desire to devote it to the pursuit of high and noble goals.”
Pitfalls
But the Pope also drew attention to the fact that when the opposite happens “and sport becomes an end in itself, and the person an instrument at the service of other interests such as prestige and profit, then distortions appear that taint it. I am thinking, he said, of doping, dishonesty, disrespect for oneself and one’s opponents, and corruption.”
Concluding his words, Pope Francis stressed the importance of listening to and accompanying new generations, “without losing sight of the healthy traditions and popular culture that, in many countries of the world, accompanies cycling and its champions.”
Other leaders recognize that the Pope is the Pope, meaning the leader of the Roman Catholic Church, they may not recognize any claims about ecclistiastical authority, or that he has any valid claim to speak for god, but he is the leader of that organization. In the same way other leaders recognize "the prophet" as the leader of the Brighamite cum non polygamist branch of the LDS church. The Prophet being the title of the leader of the church, as the Pope is the title of the leader of the Roman Catholic Church.
One of these two leader's organization claims near a billion members. The other 15million.
It is better to be a warrior in a garden, than a gardener at war.
Some of us, on the other hand, actually prefer a religion that includes some type of correlation with reality. ~Bill Hamblin
"Religion is about providing human community in the guise of solving problems that don’t exist or failing to solve problems that do and seeking to reconcile these contradictions and conceal the failures in bogus explanations otherwise known as theology." - Kishkumen
SteelHead wrote:Other leaders recognize that the Pope is the Pope, meaning the leader of the Roman Catholic Church, they may not recognize any claims about ecclistiastical authority, or that he has any valid claim to speak for god, but he is the leader of that organization. In the same way other leaders recognize "the prophet" as the leader of the Brighamite cum non polygamist branch of the LDS church. The Prophet being the title of the leader of the church, as the Pope is the title of the leader of the Roman Catholic Church.
One of these two leader's organization claims near a billion members. The other 15million.
Recognition is one thing, but Cook’s statement didn’t seem to be referring to recognition of a title assigned by an organization:
“They leave having felt like they were with a prophet,” Elder Cook said.
They likely believe he's a nice old guy who seeks piety, like any other religious person they meet. To Cook that just means prophet (he knows prophets don't really prophecy. They just act nice and try to sound like they are the bestest people in the world). For some reason Cook doesn't realize that the way they see Nelson is no different than the way they see every other religious leader out there. With that said, to clarify I wouldn't doubt some world leader runs into some religious leader and thinks, "Woe that guys a dick" (somebody out there after having met Nelson, under the right circumstances may even think Nelson's a dick). But no doubt with the tiny window of time they see each other, and all that they try to be nice, appear magnanimous and try to share some level of a "I'm particularly special" vibe--too much has a deleterious effect I'm sure.
Last edited by Guest on Thu Dec 12, 2019 8:21 pm, edited 1 time in total.
The Pope said the athletes “bear witness to the potential of human beings,” but he had no comment on whether he considered Nelson a “prophet.”
As someone who used to race bikes, often averaging 200 to 300 miles per week in training, I can safely say I've had more spiritual experiences cycling that in 50+ years of church.
Also interesting to note that competitive cycling, both professional and amateur, is a notoriously shady sport. But apparently one that is more noteworthy than a visit by Nelson.
Does this really have to be verified? Elder Cook should be allowed some leeway for hyperbole when speaking to his own troops.
Lemmie wrote:The Pope said the athletes “bear witness to the potential of human beings,” but he had no comment on whether he considered Nelson a “prophet.”
It could be that the adversary erased any statements about President Nelson being a prophet in L'Osservatore Romano, or perhaps there was a shortage of electrons for the online edition that day.
Does this really have to be verified? Elder Cook should be allowed some leeway for hyperbole when speaking to his own troops.
Not when he’s making the public claim that the Pope and other leaders believe Nelson is a Prophet as Mormons understand the term.
“When we are confronted with evidence that challenges our deeply held beliefs we are more likely to reframe the evidence than we are to alter our beliefs. We simply invent new reasons, new justifications, new explanations. Sometimes we ignore the evidence altogether.” (Mathew Syed 'Black Box Thinking')