Is the Book of Mormon Divinely Inspired?

[Marcus]

...Get off your smelly, stinking, judgmental high horse...

Given that you've called people here so many exceptionally offensive, stereotypical, and bigoted names for so many, many years, I'm surprised you can voice this opinion.

What do you call your "smelly, stinking, judgmental high horse"?

[toon]

...Get off your smelly, stinking, judgmental high horse...

Given that you've called people here so many exceptionally offensive, stereotypical, and bigoted names for so many, many years, I'm surprised you can voice this opinion.

What do you call your "smelly, stinking, judgmental high horse"?

Missionary service.

[Marcus]

Given that you've called people here so many exceptionally offensive, stereotypical, and bigoted names for so many, many years, I'm surprised you can voice this opinion.

What do you call your "smelly, stinking, judgmental high horse"?

Missionary service.

Lol. Good one.

[drumdude]

Missionary service.

Lol. Good one.

Is this where MG was sent on his senior mission?

[MG 2.0]

Given that you've called people here so many exceptionally offensive, stereotypical, and bigoted names for so many, many years, I'm surprised you can voice this opinion.

What do you call your "smelly, stinking, judgmental high horse"?

Missionary service.

I’m going to go along with Joseph Smith on this:

"We claim the privilege of worshipping Almighty God according to the dictates of our conscience, and allow all men the same privilege; let them worship how, where, or what they may."

In regards to this:

Joseph Smith was a strong advocate for freedom of worship and believed that individuals should be free to worship God according to their own conscience.

In other words, he believed that everyone should have the right to worship as they see fit, without interference or coercion from others. He also argued that defending the religious liberty of others was just as important as defending one's own religious liberty, and that true religious freedom could only be achieved if everyone was willing to defend the rights of religious minorities as fervently as their own.
Pi A.I.

Yeah, I was a bit irritated at what IHAQ was saying. With good reason in my opinion.

He seems to want to take Jesus out of the picture and look at him through the same eyes as anyone else he expects and/or sees to be more or less a charlatan.

I think he’s barking up the wrong tree. But I do allow for the fact that he is free to think what he wants.

Regards,
MG

[MG 2.0]

The Father gives (shares) what they have (not "had" because God isn't dead (sorry Nietzsche)) with His children who also have not earned it. This is no say, we are talking about a gift - freely given - available to all - having not earned.

I agree with this up to a point. For me, however, it doesn’t dovetail very well with the concept of eternal progression and becoming all that we can be. Character isn’t a gift, it’s an attribute that is attained through individual effort. I have a difficult time picturing an afterlife in which, figuratively speaking, we’re sitting around playing a harp and praising God.

I think there is MUCH more to it than that.

Jesus marked the path and prepared the way through his life, mission, and sacrifice/atonement for all mankind. But we play a HUGE part in our own personal development. In the here and now and in the hereafter.

My thoughts anyway.

Regards,
MG

[MG 2.0]

Is this where MG was sent on his senior mission?

We don’t have to commanded in all things.

Regards,
MG

[MG 2.0]

“Traditions such as Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism have all incorporated personal prayer into their religious practices for centuries, with roots often extending back thousands of years. The universality of personal prayer speaks to its fundamental importance in human spirituality across cultures and religions.”

Yes or no question: Was Jesus the first one among the sages of the world to teach his followers to pray to their Father in Heaven?

Jesus said that “he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father?”

The Father being in the likeness of a man.

I haven’t argued the fact, that various religions have worshipped their deities.

As I’ve repeatedly said, Jesus was different. First he claims to be the Son of God but then he teaches his disciples that:

1. Jesus is in the likeness of the Father.
2. They should pray to the Father.
3. God is their Father.

Up until Jesus came there wasn’t a complete understanding of who and what God was/is. Jesus changed that. Yes, the creeds later morphed things and we end up with many millions praying to the Holy Saints and Mary the mother of God.

Latter Day Saints pray to the Father in the name of Jesus (yes, as do many other Christians) knowing that they are praying to a Being who is in the likeness of Jesus Christ. A being in whose image we ourselves are created.

All of the examples you had your A.I. list were either deities or gods that did not have the attributes of God in which Jesus taught his disciples to pray to. Somewhat amorphous.

I’m not sure why this is so difficult to grasp. We’ve been at this a while now.

Regards,
MG

*bump

[Morley]

“Traditions such as Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism have all incorporated personal prayer into their religious practices for centuries, with roots often extending back thousands of years. The universality of personal prayer speaks to its fundamental importance in human spirituality across cultures and religions.”

Yes or no. Was Jesus the first one among the sages of the world to teach his followers to pray to their Father in Heaven?

No.

I answered this on page 39.

Yes.

Morley, knowing that you are one of those folks IHAQ is describing, would you help me out? All of these other ‘sons of gods’. Are there examples of these folks way back when addressing their Father in Heaven in prayer and teaching others how to do so?

I’m not saying that there may not have been some that did…but could you go into a bit of detail and demonstrate this to be so?

An example of a son of god praying to and addressing his Heavenly Father. As it is, this seems like the supreme act of humility.

Regards,
MG

You're being ridiculous.

This was your claim that I was responding to:

He made the claim of being related and/or associated with his “Father in Heaven”. And He taught that we should worship and obey this same Father God.

Then you said that Jesus was the only one to have done this.


Look at the Old Testament:

Isaiah 63:16

"You are our father, for Abraham did not know us, neither did Israel recognize us; You, O [YHWH], are our father; our redeemer of old is your name."

Do I need to also show you where, in The Old Testament, it says we should worship and pray to this same God?


Even in your own cannon, the Book of Mormon prophets who preceded Jesus taught the God is the Father and that we should worship him. This stuff didn't begin with the earthly ministry of Jesus.

Other religions have God the Father, have prophets with a relationship with God, and have exhortations to pray to God. You maintaining otherwise makes you look like you've never read a book in your life. You cite Karen Armstrong. Go back and read what she has to say on this.

By the way, go back and read Manetho. He answers you quite well on all of this.

Judaism, while seeing God as a father, does not associate their ancient tradition of personal prayer with Jesus.




On page 40, I also brought up the Zoroastrians.

Zoroastrianism is a couple of thousand years older than Christianity. It's always had a tradition of personal prayer to a creator god.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoroastri ... %5D%5B3%5D

Jesus did not introduce the idea of personal prayer, as you have suggested. Personal prayer is ubiquitous across time and culture.

And though you have subsequently tried to qualify your assertion as prayer to God as father, Jesus did not introduce that concept, either. It's as old as concepts of God.

[Morley]

Yes or no question: Was Jesus the first one among the sages of the world to teach his followers to pray to their Father in Heaven?

Jesus said that “he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father?”

The Father being in the likeness of a man.

I haven’t argued the fact, that various religions have worshipped their deities.

As I’ve repeatedly said, Jesus was different. First he claims to be the Son of God but then he teaches his disciples that:

1. Jesus is in the likeness of the Father.
2. They should pray to the Father.
3. God is their Father.

Up until Jesus came there wasn’t a complete understanding of who and what God was/is. Jesus changed that. Yes, the creeds later morphed things and we end up with many millions praying to the Holy Saints and Mary the mother of God.

Latter Day Saints pray to the Father in the name of Jesus (yes, as do many other Christians) knowing that they are praying to a Being who is in the likeness of Jesus Christ. A being in whose image we ourselves are created.

All of the examples you had your A.I. list were either deities or gods that did not have the attributes of God in which Jesus taught his disciples to pray to. Somewhat amorphous.

I’m not sure why this is so difficult to grasp. We’ve been at this a while now.

Regards,
MG

*bump

You're impatiently bumping, two hours after you post?