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Joey Smith joined the Freemasons and went to the top tier in one day...

he stole many of the Freemason secrets and incorporated them intro his home made religion...

He also told non-freemasons the secrets that he had ben sworn a blood oath not to...

Among the crowd outside the Carthage jail were Freemasons who were mad at Joey...

When he tried to shoot his way out of jail the Freemasons took the oppotunity to kill him...

Even though Joey had called to them for help, by starting the Freemasion distress call, “Is there any help for the widows son?”

Joey Smith would have agreed to his ignoble death...

After all when he started his religion that he called mormonism, he gathered a group of cutthroats around him that he called Danites...

Their job was to kill rob and steal from non-mormons...

and to kill mormons who had left, “apostates” “blood letting”

Joey got the idea of blood oaths from the Freemasons..

(and his “convert or die” at the point of a sword, from the Mohammadatans...)

Under Brigham Young the “blood letting” got worse...

It doesn’t to me.

You can also find much more info from the LDS community on the connection between Mormons and Masons here.

Masonic Influence:

http://www.fairlds.org/apol/ai181.html

“Nothing is new and this stuff is well-known”....so posting it shouldn’t cause any hearburn in the tummies of mormondom. ;)

Nothing is new. This stuff is well known, and the Church even addresses it in the Encyclopedia of Mormonism.

http://eom.byu.edu/index.php/Freemasonry_and_the_Temple

This connection has been long know and documented. So whats new?

Well, I haven't read the book. The article doesn't really shed any light on it. And what would be "new" would be for more Mormon writers (vs. non-Mormon writers) to actually acknowledge Smith stole much of his temple shenanigans after he became a Mason himself. And then to document that historically step-by-step in terms of what he initiated when.

This connection has been long know and documented. So whats new?

OK, there's nothing more telling about an article that portends to highlight a book exploring the similarities between Mormons & Masons -- and yet doesn't mention a single one!

[Perhaps those paragraphs didn't make it past the Daily Universe editor(s), eh?]

From the article: His interest in church history and doctrine came when he served a mission in Washington and was exposed to anti-Mormon literature, pamphlets and movies. “It raised the questions and I went to try and find answers and some of those answers were not forthcoming, so I spent many, many years trying to track them down myself,” he said.

From the article: “The problem is that Freemasonry is based upon mythology and so they have the big myth … [of] ‘We go back to Solomon’s temple.’ Today they understand that is not true,” Brown said. “So the question is: ... Where do they get it? And the answer is the Catholic Church.”

A meeting between the mormon leaders and the church's PR agency:

“to care for the poor and needy”
____________________________________________

When the LDS sell all they have...which is BILLIONS...

and give it to “to care for the poor and needy” ..

Until then its just so much business as usual..

The business of promoting their so called “faith”..

and nothing to do with the Jesus of the Bible..

What do you do? Or are you spared the work needed for a donation?

If you are really abiding in Christ, if you really understand the Love of Jesus, then you will automatically help others, it is part of Christ’s work in believers.

Amen

Defending is not boasting.

If I wanted to boast, I’m sure I could drum up lots more incidents like the Road Home and post them, including Red Cross, united Way, etc, that the Church gives to. Yo can search them if you like.

On an up note, I’m glad you’re reading the Book of Mormon. It will do you good. ;-)

The LDS Church is adding, "to care for the poor and needy" to the threefold mission of the Church, which is to teach the gospel to the world, strengthen the membership of the Church and perform saving ordinances for the dead.

The mormon cult would operate best to simply care for the "poor and needy" and bring a halt to anything related to the fake profit of Joe Smith. Anything else is just a waste of time. Focus on the "poor and needy"; that's all they need to do. Attempt to replicate what the Christian Churches have done for 100's of years.

“Neither Boast of Faith Nor of Mighty Works”

"“But Ammon said unto him: I do not boast in my own strength, nor in my own wisdom; but behold, my joy is full, yea, my heart is brim with joy, and I will rejoice in my God."

If you wanted, you could probably find the you the local fox news link when they did the story that day too. Same info.

but you are welcome to read the newspaper to give you just one example of many things the Church does in helping those in need not of our faith.

You won't respond to an "anti-mormon site", so you post an article from the mormon church-owned Deseret News.

“caring for the poor and needy” is more than a line on a tithing envelope.”

I couldn’t agree more.

Instead of just the link, I’m going to post a bit of the article, that I think gets right to the point.

“The truth is the LDS Church has helped the shelter for decades, but now the church’s Deseret Industries and Bishop’s Storehouse will also assist the Road Home in getting homeless people into permanent housing and back into the community — and that includes people of any faith.

The LDS Church also made a separate $250,000 cash donation to the shelter Friday.

When people are ready to move out of the shelter and into permanent housing, they need basic household furnishings, bed and bath linens, dishes, kitchen utensils and food. Road Home case workers can now provide qualified recipients with vouchers to let them shop for free, according to their needs, at Deseret Industries (furniture and household goods) and pick up a two-week supply of food from the Bishop’s Storehouse.

In addition, the church has donated a truck to be used as a Road Home moving van to help people move food and furnishings to a new home.

...

But Matthew M. Minkevitch, Road Home executive director, said this is far from Bishop Burton’s first visit, and he said the church has been helping

the center since its beginning. This is just another milestone in its continued assistance.

“You come (here) so many times, so quietly,” he said. “We never had enough of everything we needed. Running a furniture warehouse is not what we do best. . . . The shelter is not a destination — it’s the starting point on the road home.”

The Road Home, a nonprofit group formerly called the Travelers Aid Society, which was started in 1923, offers Utahns who are struggling with homelessness the support they need to get off the streets and into warm housing and self-sufficiency. Its staff of 87 serves some 3,000 people a year. It relocated 193 households from the shelter last year and hopes to do the same for at least 200 more this year.”

I'm not going to respond to an anti mormon site, but you are welcome to read the newspaper to give you just one example of many things the Church does in helping those in need not of our faith.

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4188/is_20030215/ai_n11378160/

I didn't come here to fight. Do what you will.

The Church welfare and humanitarian systems do indeed help those not of the LDS faith. They aren't exclusive to LDS members. The Church gives generously to the homeless shelters and food pantries in the communities. It's donations to the Salvation Army, the Road Home shelters, Catholic Charities, etc. in SLC are large. The humanitarian efforts in devastated areas of the world are a whole different topic. The work goes on. There is good on all these organizations, from all these organizations and faiths. Working together to help the poor is a common goal we all share.

I completely agree with you that it is not in the jurisdiction of the Government to do these things, but rather as individuals and churches.

One of the President's of the LDS Church, Ezra Taft Benson said it pretty clear:

http://speeches.byu.edu/reader/reader.php?id=6162

“Americans have always been committed to taking care of the poor, aged, and unemployed. We have done this on the basis of Judaic-Christian beliefs and humanitarian principles. It has been fundamental to our way of life that charity must be voluntary if it is to be charity. Compulsory benevolence is not charity. Today's socialists—who call themselves egalitarians—are using the federal government to redistribute wealth in our society, not as a matter of voluntary charity, but as a so-called matter of right. One HEW official said recently, “In this country, welfare is no longer charity, it is a right. More and more Americans feel that their government owes them something” (U.S. News and World Report, April 21, 1975, p. 49). President Grover Cleveland said—and we believe as a people—that though the people support the government the government should not support the people.

The chief weapon used by the federal government to achieve this “equality” is the system of transfer payments. This means that the federal governments collects from one income group and transfer payments to another by the tax system. These payments are made in the form of social security benefits, Medicare and Medicaid, and food stamps, to name a few. Today the cost of such programs has been going in the hole at the rate of 12 billion dollars a year; and, with increased benefits and greater numbers of recipients, even though the tax base has been increased we will have larger deficits in the future.

Today the party now in power is advocating and has support, apparently in both major parties, for a comprehensive national health insurance program—a euphemism for socialized medicine. Our major danger is that we are currently (and have been for forty years) transferring responsibility from the individual, local, and state governments to the federal government—precisely the same course that led to the economic collapse in Great Britain and New York City. We cannot long pursue the present trend without its bringing us to national insolvency.”

“caring for the poor and needy” is more than a line on a tithing envelope.

See also post #15

Ping to #15 as to why I no longer support LDS charity work.

But this is nothing new. It's a core doctrine of the LDS to care for the poor, not only of their own, but to any in need.

How about some hard statistics relating the "care". Percentage of church income per capita solely dedicated to humanitarian causes?

Mormon financial clerks

I am all for church sponsored charity. In fact, I think that the churches should be responsible for helping the poor rather than the government.

I used to wholeheartedly support the LDS welfare system, even after I left, until I saw that it was a PR thing and that it was exclusive to LDS members.

My last church (before we moved) did amazing work helping the poor and needy, either in larger scale (food banks building an orphanage in Mexico or central America) or smaller scale (going around to poor neighborhoods and just offering to help mow lawns, paint houses whatever). It is hands on rather than just having people write a check.

As my pastor says “Oh we need money too, but we also need your time and your talents”

There are never any press conferences held, and the only time it is brought up at church is when they need more volunteers. It is never a “look at us” thing. We don’t require those receiving help come to our church, be “members”, or even listen to a salvation message. Witnessing IS part of it but is not “you must watch a 90 minute video on Jesus before we paint your house”. It is also not just about witnessing, it is about showing the love of Christ.

We do it to help others and show the love of Christ.

The LDS welfare system, I am thinking of the Bishop’s storehouse in particular, requires work (”volunteer hours”) in exchange for food.

That is NOT charity, that is wages.

Other LDS welfare progams are (perhaps not officially, but in practice) limited to members, and/or based on “worthiness” of the members. It is almost like they have an attitude of “don’t cast your pearls before swine”, the “swine” being Gentiles (everyone NOT LDS) and less “active” LDS. There are exceptions, I am sure, but not that many.

IMO, it is sad that they have to remind their members to care for the Poor and Needy. It becomes just one more “to do” on their list for the Celestial Kingdom and Godhood.

BTW, before an LDS says “well the Missionaries help non members”, that may be true, but what is their motivation? Is it to get more people to take the discussions? I strongly suspect so.

I know of a couple of missionaries who were reprimanded by the Mission President for spending more time helping others than tracting (btw, both of those missionaries have since become Born Again Christians and left the LDS)

If you are really abiding in Christ, if you really understand the Love of Jesus, then you will automatically help others, it is part of Christ’s work in believers.

I agree.

Sure sounds like the Church knows the need will increase dramatically, and is making an even greater effort to address the issue. With the Obamanation, all people and faiths need to have charity in their hearts and come together to take care of those in need. Not as a nation, but as individuals.

But this is nothing new. It's a core doctrine of the LDS to care for the poor, not only of their own, but to any in need.

This from the Book of Mormon:

16 And also, ye yourselves will succor those that stand in need of your succor; ye will administer of your substance unto him that standeth in need; and ye will not suffer that the beggar putteth up his petition to you in vain, and turn him out to perish.
17 Perhaps thou shalt say: The man has brought upon himself his misery; therefore I will stay my hand, and will not give unto him of my food, nor impart unto him of my substance that he may not suffer, for his punishments are just—
18 But I say unto you, O man, whosoever doeth this the same hath great cause to repent; and except he repenteth of that which he hath done he perisheth forever, and hath no interest in the kingdom of God.
19 For behold, are we not all beggars? Do we not all depend upon the same Being, even God, for all the substance which we have, for both food and raiment, and for gold, and for silver, and for all the riches which we have of every kind?
20 And behold, even at this time, ye have been calling on his name, and begging for a remission of your sins. And has he suffered that ye have begged in vain? Nay; he has poured out his Spirit upon you, and has caused that your hearts should be filled with joy, and has caused that your mouths should be stopped that ye could not find utterance, so exceedingly great was your joy.
21 And now, if God, who has created you, on whom you are dependent for your lives and for all that ye have and are, doth grant unto you whatsoever ye ask that is right, in faith, believing that ye shall receive, O then, how ye ought to impart of the substance that ye have one to another.
22 And if ye judge the man who putteth up his petition to you for your substance that he perish not, and condemn him, how much more just will be your condemnation for withholding your substance, which doth not belong to you but to God, to whom also your life belongeth; and yet ye put up no petition, nor repent of the thing which thou hast done.
23 I say unto you, wo be unto that man, for his substance shall perish with him; and now, I say these things unto those who are rich as pertaining to the things of this world.
24 And again, I say unto the poor, ye who have not and yet have sufficient, that ye remain from day to day; I mean all you who deny the beggar, because ye have not; I would that ye say in your hearts that: I give not because I have not, but if I had I would give.
25 And now, if ye say this in your hearts ye remain guiltless, otherwise ye are condemned; and your condemnation is just for ye covet that which ye have not received.
26 And now, for the sake of these things which I have spoken unto you—that is, for the sake of retaining a remission of your sins from day to day, that ye may walk guiltless before God—I would that ye should impart of your substance to the poor, every man according to that which he hath, such as feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and administering to their relief, both spiritually and temporally, according to their wants.
27 And see that all these things are done in wisdom and order; for it is not requisite that a man should run faster than he has strength.

Mosiah 4

I always considered these donations simply as us trying to do what Christ would expect us to do

- - - - - - -

Would Christ expect you to hold a press conference about it? Or do it in secret?

A thought or two...

Is this a fund raising effort ???

Much of the tithes, offerings of the members goes into business coffers to build malls, “temples” etc...

both money making concerns...

right now the Morg is too syingy to even pay their own janitors and staff...

and they demand that their members give 40+ hours every week to work for them without pay...that’s slavery...

Since they have the spare funds, resources they need to pay the people who serve the top “worthies”

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Maybe not...

There’s no PR in that...

Thee LDS Church has always cared for the poor and needy. For the 38 years that I have been a member, there has been a line on the donation slip for donations to the Church’s welfare system. Recently, the Church’s Humanitarian Fund was added to the standard form (I’m not sure how long that particular fund has been in existance, just that there was a tremendous donation back in the time of the Ethiopian famine.)

I always considered these donations simply as us trying to do what Christ would expect us to do. If the Church leadership believes that other members needed more of a wake-up call by making it “official”, then so be it.

Well this is something new...and quaint...

Its not strange that the Christian Churches who do real charity work dont hold press conferences about it...

BTW will the LDS be selling their Mall and all their businesses, land etc and give the proceeds to the poor, now ???

Or will their members be strong armed to cough up to pay for this latest PR thingy ???

Doing The Most Good in All Times Of Need

Even as we support the survivors and first responders of floods, fires and other disasters across the world, we are finding a new level of need in our nation as the economy affects us all.

In addition to our disaster services, The Salvation Army is seeing an increase in the need for the most basic of necessities.

• Rising food costs are resulting in increased appeals for access to Salvation Army food pantries.

• Home foreclosures have driven up the numbers of families requesting rental and housing payment assistance or entering the Army's shelter system.

• Many of our thrift stores, while reflecting a downturn in donations, are seeing an uptrend in sales, suggesting that more people are in need of the low-cost items we provide.

These difficult truths reaffirm our commitment to serving all mankind.

In this economy, that commitment means that not only are the homeless and disenfranchised seeking our aid, but so are the displaced and broken-hearted.

We are fortunate that your generosity enabled us to serve through two World Wars, the Great Depression, and many other difficult times in our history.

And we believe that your same generosity will help us to meet the many needs of the broken-spirited among us now.

Please give to your local Salvation Army with time, money or goods. To find out more, or , visit www.salvationarmyusa.org

 

I would have been impressed if the statement had read "poor and needy, regardless of church affiliation" myself.

In my personal experience the much praised "welfare program" of the mormon church has for many years been mainly for members, and in some cases, members are vetted for "worthiness" before receiving help.

I see this as a PR move...there was a quote on another website stating "This will do more to convince others that Mormons are Christian than just using a bigger font for Jesus Christ in their name...."

I’ve always commended the LDS Church on their charity work. My disputes with Mormonism has always theological. They need to heed Paul’s warning about a different “gospel” delivered by an angel (Galatians 1:8).

“poor and needy”
I can not speak of other communities only the one I live in.
It is very rural. Only about 5000 people over hundreds of square miles.
Around late October the local churches: a Catholic, Baptists, Assembly of God, Seventh Day Adventists, Nazarene and non Denominational all gather together at the local community hall and start collection clothing and food items for distribution in November and December. It is a joint venture.
The local lds do not participate but have their own drive / distribution ONLY for attendees of their ward.
I find the claim to help the poor and needy by lds to be amusing.

I notice they don’t mention that they are doing this
to work their way to “the highest level of heaven”
and become god of their own planet...

wonder why?

The more local the support the better, be it a church or other private charity.

Church-sponsored charity has always made sense to me.

Better the church take on this task, rather than government.

Ping

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Those guys in the white sheets remind me of something.