Over at Beliefnet, our resident philosopher Bill was responding to something I wrote about taking the heat off of Cafeteria Mormons. His answer was so good, that I think it stands as a preamble to some guidelines for Cafeteria Mormons:
It's impossible to be anything but a Cafeteria Mormon. If everything taught by Church leaders - and scripture - were laid out like a buffet, your plate would be full of mixed messages and contradictions. If there is "opposition in all things," you'll certainly find it in the statements of Church leaders and scripture. Cherry-picking is not an option; it's the only game in town. It's just that some groups pick a little more of this while other groups pick a little more of that. I say, if you're going to cherry-pick, at least be guided by a sense of humanity.
"Surely he knows that DCP, The Nehor, Lamanite, and other key apologists..." -Scratch clarifying my status in apologetics "I admit it; I'm a petty, petty man." -Some Schmo
The Nehor wrote:I prefer the guidance of the Holy Ghost myself.
So, tell me in your own words about this guidance of the Spirit? What does it feel like when you're being guided? How do you know when you're being guided by this Spirit?
The Nehor wrote:I prefer the guidance of the Holy Ghost myself.
So, tell me in your own words about this guidance of the Spirit? What does it feel like when you're being guided? How do you know when you're being guided by this Spirit?
Paul O
When I experience pure intelligence entering my mind from outside of myself.
"Surely he knows that DCP, The Nehor, Lamanite, and other key apologists..." -Scratch clarifying my status in apologetics "I admit it; I'm a petty, petty man." -Some Schmo
When I experience pure intelligence entering my mind from outside of myself.
That's not much of an answer, The Nehor. It's a given that the Spirit/God who possess all intelligence is outside of yourself because YOU aren't God. So you tell me that this intelligence just so happens to enter your mind. Not much of an answer. What is pure intelligence? That leaves a lot to be argued. How do you feel when you experiences this "pure intelligence"? How do you know when you are being guided by "pure intelligence" that is for absolutely sure from an outside source such as God and not of your brain or some other being who is not God?
Darth J wrote:Nehor, what are some of the false teachings by Presidents Monson, Hinckley, Hunter, or Benson that the Holy Ghost has revealed to you?
I for one have never heard any of those prophets bear testimony of the Explanations given by Joseph Smith of Facsimile No. 3. Therefore, I have reason to believe that those men do not believe the Explanations of Facsimile No. 3. I don't believe that President Monson believes that the artist who drew Anubis thought of him as a slave. President Monson does not have a testimony of the Explanations of the Facsimile. He has not and will not bear one.
Bill's point is that so many contradictory things have been said both in the scriptures and by various LDS leaders, that one must choose among these thoughts to make sense of it all. I would hope that the choice to be guided by a sense of humanity can be congruent with a feeling of being guided by the Holy Spirit. When it is not, you might ask yourself if it truly is the Holy Spirit or whether you have somehow channeled Elder Bruce McConkie directly.
When I experience pure intelligence entering my mind from outside of myself.
That's not much of an answer, The Nehor.
Of course it isn't. It doesn't help you so it must be insufficient.
It's a given that the Spirit/God who possess all intelligence is outside of yourself because YOU aren't God. So you tell me that this intelligence just so happens to enter your mind. Not much of an answer.
If you say so.
What is pure intelligence?
You have to have experience with the diluted kind to recognize a pure source. I recommend trying to experience some immediately.
That leaves a lot to be argued.
Not really, I don't need to argue about it.
How do you feel when you experiences this "pure intelligence"?
Enlightened.
How do you know when you are being guided by "pure intelligence" that is for absolutely sure from an outside source such as God and not of your brain or some other being who is not God?
Magic.
"Surely he knows that DCP, The Nehor, Lamanite, and other key apologists..." -Scratch clarifying my status in apologetics "I admit it; I'm a petty, petty man." -Some Schmo
Darth J wrote:Nehor, what are some of the false teachings by Presidents Monson, Hinckley, Hunter, or Benson that the Holy Ghost has revealed to you?
Not sharing. Get your own Holy Ghost.
"Surely he knows that DCP, The Nehor, Lamanite, and other key apologists..." -Scratch clarifying my status in apologetics "I admit it; I'm a petty, petty man." -Some Schmo