But their signs say JESUS CHRIST in the biggest letters so they HAVE to be Christian right??!!!
Posted on 01/28/2015 2:48:24 PM PST by Graybeard58
WASHINGTON (BP) -- The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will support civil rights for lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender people if religious freedom protections also are ensured, its leaders announced Tuesday (Jan. 27).
Southern Baptist leaders, however, said the Mormons' approach to the conflict between sexual rights and religious liberty is naive and unhelpful, as well as unacceptable to proponents of LGBT rights.
In a Salt Lake City news conference, Mormon leaders described their stance as "fairness for all" -- or a "balanced approach between religious and gay rights" that endorses protections in housing, employment and public transportation for LGBT people and, at the same time, safeguards the rights of religious institutions and people.
The Mormons' newly announced support for LGBT rights legislation throughout the country followed its endorsement of a similar Salt Lake City ordinance in 2009. Mormon leaders said they were able to support the city measure because it adequately protected religious freedom.
This approach does not represent a change in doctrine but a desire "to encourage mutually respectful dialogue in what has become a highly polarized national debate," Mormon leaders said. They included no mention of same-sex marriage in their comments, an apparent indication the Latter-day Saints will maintain their view of marriage as only between a man and a woman.
"I think the Latter-day Saints are well-intentioned but naive on where the reality stands today," said Russell Moore, president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission. "I do not think, in most instances, sexual orientation ought to matter in housing or employment, but of course the proposals to address these concerns inevitably lead to targeted assaults on religious liberty."
As he thought, the Mormons' announcement of a revised position "was greeted with hostility from gay rights organizations and disappointment from social conservatives," Moore said.
R. Albert Mohler Jr., president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, said on his Wednesday (Jan. 28) podcast, "[A]lmost anyone who understands the scope and scale of today's moral revolution will understand why such a proposal might be made. But if you're looking at the landscape of America today, this appears to be a proposal that comes rather too late to be genuinely helpful. And perhaps the response to the proposal yesterday helps to make that point more than anything else."
Mohler said, "[A]lmost immediately, it was clear that the leadership of the LGBT movement isn't going to buy this kind of bargain."
"[W]hat we're looking at," Mohler said, "is the LDS church basically asking for what almost anyone in the gay-rights movement would have been ready to grant as recently as two to three years ago -- certainly five to 10 years ago.
"What we are now witnessing is a radical acceleration of the movement to redefine religious liberty so that [it] means almost nothing," Mohler said, according to a transcript of the podcast.
Reaction demonstrated how unacceptable the religious freedom protections called for by the Mormons are to LGBT advocacy groups.
"The so-called religious exemption is the size of five Mack trucks. It entirely neuters their proposal," said Fred Sainz, vice president of communications and marketing at the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), according to The Washington Post. HRC is the country's leading LGBT organization.
The Mormons are "demanding broad and unnecessary religious exemptions that hurt LGBT people and families," said Sarah Kate Ellis, president of GLAAD (formerly the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation), in a written statement. "The 'compromise' is that the Mormon Church will support non-discrimination only if it won't have to follow laws that require equal treatment of LGBT people. This is not a 'compromise,' it's a compromising of fairness and basic respect for LGBT people."
The Mormons' announcement came as cities, and even smaller municipalities, increasingly are enacting ordinances expanding anti-discrimination protections to LGBT people in employment, housing and public accommodation, which covers hotels, restaurants and other businesses. The city councils of Houston and Plano, Texas, are among those that approved LGBT ordinances in 2014. At one point, the Houston government even subpoenaed the sermons of pastors who opposed the ordinance as part of a lawsuit before backing down.
Some Southern Baptists and other Christians who ascribe to a biblical sexual ethic have opposed the laws, contending they often infringe upon freedom of religion and conscience for individuals, churches and businesses.
In a written statement, Moore said, "As Southern Baptists, we believe gay and lesbian persons are created in the image of God and ought to be respected. We also believe that any sexual expression outside of marriage between one man and one woman is morally wrong. And we believe that freedom of conscience for those of us who dissent from the Sexual Revolution ought to be maintained."
Mormons have been strong allies with evangelical Christians and other social conservatives on such issues as marriage and religious freedom. Both Moore and Mohler have met with Mormon leaders on these matters.
Mohler has spoken at Brigham Young University -- a Mormon school in Provo, Utah -- on two occasions, making clear both times "there is a great theological chasm between biblical Christianity and the LDS church," he said on his podcast. "As I said in both of those lectures, I don't believe we are going to heaven together, but I do believe we're at risk of going to jail together. It's that second concern in some sense that drove the announcement coming from the LDS church yesterday."
The Mormons' announcement could be an attempt to aid Mitt Romney in a 2016 presidential campaign, said R. Philip Roberts, former director of the North American Mission Board's interfaith witness department. Romney lost as the Republican nominee for the White House in 2012 and has sent signals he may run again.
Citing sources he is familiar with, Roberts said the Mormon approach could be intended "to defuse the center and some of the left against criticizing him for his moral views and soften his approach and increase his appeal to those elements in the political spectrum. ... [T]here's no other reason for them to be doing this at this point in time, unless it is to help Romney."
Roberts is director for international theological education with Global Ministries Foundation in suburban Memphis.
Though he questions the Latter-day Saints' approach, Moore said he looks forward "to working with Mormons and others on protecting religious liberty for everyone in the years ahead."
In the Jan. 27 news conference, Jeffrey Holland cited several examples of the kinds of institutional and individual religious rights for which Mormons are seeking protection. Among these were the freedom of churches and other religious groups to teach, express their views publicly, choose their leaders, hire employees and use their property according to their beliefs. Individuals should have the right to live out their religious convictions, he said. For instance, a Mormon doctor should have the right to refuse to conduct an abortion or perform artificial insemination for a lesbian couple and a Catholic pharmacist should not be coerced into providing the "morning-after" pill, said Holland, one of three members of the governing Twelve Apostles who spoke alongside a female leader to reporters.
While Mormons are known for their pro-family and socially conservative views, their beliefs contradict Christian teaching on such doctrines as the person and work of God the Son, salvation and the sufficiency and authority of the Bible.
The spread of same-sex marriage also has imperiled the religious liberty of Christians and others with conscientious objections. Florists, photographers, bakers and others who provide services for weddings have been especially vulnerable to efforts to force them to contradict their beliefs.
Gay marriage is now legal in 36 states –- nearly tripling the 13 states where it was legal just 18 months ago –- and the District of Columbia. The U.S. Supreme Court announced Jan. 16 it would review a lower-court decision on same-sex marriage, signaling it likely will determine by late June whether states can define marriage as only between a man and a woman.
[T]here's no other reason for them to be doing this at this point in time, unless it is to help Romney."
There you have it.
Ping to the real reason Mormons are sucking up to the homos (pun intended).
Our first mistake is to assume that they are Christians. Everything else follows from that. They’re 19th Century Scientologists with a veneer of respectability due to their “born-on” date, the choir and the short memory of the public.
I would add forced tithing.
Homosexuals as a group have the largest disposable income.
But their signs say JESUS CHRIST in the biggest letters so they HAVE to be Christian right??!!!
Read the sentence again
Well, I think the Mormon Church has multiple motives at play; the Romney angle is one...and could be #1.
Just two months ago, the Mormon Church released an "essay" on Joseph Smith's polygamy, acknowledging that he may have had up to 40 wives...that a significant percentage of these wives were already wives to other men & remained married to two men simultaneously...and that Smith married a 14 yo and several other young teens.
Think about the timing of all of this:
2nd week of November: essay on Smith polygamous unions released
Less than 2 months later, Romney "seriousfies" 2016 POTUS intentions...
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Other potential secondary factors at play?
Now that the state of Utah has said it's not enforcing prosecution vs. polygamists, the Mormon leaders...who have LONG provided hidden cover to polygamists well after 1890...realize that if they're going to quietly sanction one alternative "sexual orientation"...polygamy...then all is "fair" in lust & war across the board!
This is all rooted in the Lds general authority knee-jerk reaction to the crit the church unfairly rec'd after supporting onemanonewoman marriage in 2008.
I guess they realized how political posturing in the name of "we're not polygamists anymore" made them a cultural target & effected their "comfort zone."
But then...
...(1) the media started running "Big LOVE" polygamous "reality" shows to get the culture to soften up on it...
...(2a) it's been cited on FR DOZENS of times since 2008's Prop 8 backing how Lds "apostles" (like Bruce McConkie) taught that polygamy would be reinstituted on earth when the Mormon Jesus returned...
...(2b) and how their teaching that marriage is eternal means ALL kinds of Mormons from EVERY century would then become eternal polygamists...
...THEREFORE, I think the Mormon Church has realized that since it's untenable for them to run away from their sanctioning of polygamy on the sly that they might as well carve a way to get EVERYBODY to accept EVERY "sexual orientation" under the sun...if not morally, then in every other way.
Mohler has spoken at Brigham Young University — a Mormon school in Provo, Utah — on two occasions, making clear both times “there is a great theological chasm between biblical Christianity and the LDS church,”
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Oh noez..
an evil anti-Mormon..
a secret FI...
:)
The Mormons’ announcement could be an attempt to aid Mitt Romney in a 2016 presidential campaign,
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Ah yeppers..
after all Willard is the father of homosexual marriage and has publically called for “gay rights” including homosexual boy scout leaders, as early as 1994..
got to cover the butt of the golden headed boy ...
Inman ping.
I said essentially the same thing yesterday.
The mormons are pandering in hopes that the lgbt crowd will leave them alone...
As evidenced by another thread on FR posted earlier today, it didn’t take long for their hopes to be dashed by the lgbt crowd.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3251525/posts
If it’s an attempt to help Romney, well then, I can’t explain stupid.
* Romney 2016 run: Providing 'cover' for his pro-homosexual policies
* Boy Scouts' sexual orientation policies & need to align with them
* Lds general authorities almost ALL businessmen & retired businessmen who filter things thru "public relations" & "marketing" eyes
* Lds' own roots of promoting alternative "sexual orientation" lifestyles -- and finally beginning to "come clean" about how wild that actually was...so this is seen as being less "hypocritical" on their leaders' part...
* Internet world unveiling how Lds believe they are actually practicing "eternal polygamy" (men marrying women in serial fashion in temple marriages + historic polygamists supposedly living as such on other planets)...so if Mormons can embrace distinctive "sexual orientations," they realize, "Who are we to comment negatively on ANY alternative sexual orientation?"
* Internet world unveiling how some Lds general authorities (McConkie) taught that polygamy will be reinstituted on planet when Mormon jesus returns...so this is an extension of last reason given above...
Hey Just because we believe that Jesus Christ is the literal Son of the All Mighty God the Father .....
...instead of your Nicene version of Jesus being the second person of a god with a three-way multiple personality/identity crisis....
Doesn’t mean were not Christian.
Plus ..... I don’t recall Jesus ever making you the judge of who acceptably worships him!
...what I do recall is Christ saying “judge not that YE BE NOT JUDGED”
...so according to Christ’s words....your harsh judgement damns you not me as an LDS member!
I am a former Catholic and I never heard the Trinity described in that manner. Nice way to insult other FReepers.
I’m sure L. Ron Hubbard would say something similar, were he here today.
That alone disqualifies it from being considered Christian.
...instead of your Nicene version of Jesus being the second person of a god with a three-way multiple personality/identity crisis....
Doesn’t mean were not Christian.
Oh Lordy!! Millions of Christians across the world for centuries had it all Wrong!!!!
We just needed a Peep Stone Prophet with a Pecker Problem, who banged anything that bent over, to fable up us a new testament, so we can all ignore the True Gospel, and ride our way to hell with celestial babies popping out like a pez dispenser...
Thank You, Teppe!!! Planets and Magic Undies for everyone!!!!!
Be sure to have your tithes in by Friday!!!!
Doesn’t mean were not Christian.
Well, yes, if you pervert the nature of God, denying His eternal deity and make Him into a created being, you have an idol you call "Jesus".
Finally, we do not base Christ's eternal nature and deity and preexistence on the Nicene Creed. We base it on God's revelation about His Son.
LOL
All you need now is a few illustrators, a web & more Christian-based version of Charlie Hebdo, & you're in business!
The Mormon church, with its storied history & laugh-worthy doctrinal beliefs, basically invites itself to be lampooned.
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