Free Republic

An atheist professor said Tuesday that it's acceptable to criticize Christians but not Muslims, because he does not "fear" retaliation from Christians. "I know what keeps me from critiquing Islam on my blog is just fear," Phil Zuckerman said at a discussion on religious liberty at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. "I've got three kids. "So I know I can say anything about Christianity or Mormonism, and I'm not living in fear, which is a testament to Christianity and Mormonism, and that's wonderful. Thank you," said Zuckerman, who is a self-described atheist and professor of secular studies at Pitzer College...

Situated at the heart of Salt Lake City, Utah, Temple Square is the spiritual, cultural and administrative center of the Mormon faith. This ten acres plot of land includes a Temple, a domed tabernacle and numerous buildings, monuments and memorials. While this place may seem holy and wholesome, a closer look at the structures reveal the presence of occult, pagan and masonic symbols. A deeper study of those grounds only adds to the controversy regarding Mormonism and reveals the disturbing truth about its real god.This article's intent is not to condemn Mormonism as a faith, but rather to analyze the...

MORMONISM IS IN LOCKSTEP WITH FREEMANSONRY,OCCULT MYSTERY SCHOOLS AND ISLAM BUT AT THE HIGHEST CONTROLLING LEVELS...

The evidence of Joseph Smith's close connection to occultism and Freemasonry, and how this influenced the origin and development of the LDS Church is not well known outside of scholarly circles. This article summarizes the evidence for Joseph's personal involvement in both Freemasonry and occultism, and their influence on the Mormon religion. "There is absolutely no question in my mind that the Mormon ceremony which came to be known as the Endowment, introduced by Joseph Smith to Mormon Masons, had an immediate inspiration from Masonry." — Dr. Reed Durham, LDS Historian Mormonism's Link to OccultismBoth Joseph Smith and his father...

Evil Spirits from the spirit prison and from Hell. Elder Parley P. Pratt described the difference in appearance between these spirits and the righteous spirits which dwell in paradise. Persons who have departed this life, and have not yet been raised from the dead are spirits. These are two kinds, viz.--good and evil. These two kinds also include many grades of good and evil.The good spirits, in the superlative sens of the word, are they who, in this life, partook of the Holy Priesthood, and of the fulness of the gospel.This class of spirits minister to the heirs of salvation,...

People who have died are very important to members of the Mormon Church. The dead are a very important aspect of the Mormon gospel. The sixth President of the Church, Joseph F. Smith, taught, “We will not finish our work until we have saved ourselves, and then not until we shall have saved all depending upon us; for we are to become saviors upon Mount Zion, as well as Christ. We are called to this mission. The dead are not perfect without us, neither are we without them [see D&C 128:18].” (Teachings of the Presidents of the Church, Joseph F....

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - The Utah attorney general's office is invoking jailed polygamous leader Warren Jeffs as proof that plural marriage should be illegal in Utah. The state argues in a filing Tuesday to an appeals court in Denver that Jeffs' actions shows what polygamy can look like. Jeffs is serving a life sentence in a Texas prison for sexually assaulting underage girls he considered wives....

The CW this week is that McCarthy’s Benghazi gaffe was a gift to Hillary Clinton but it’s also a gift to House conservatives who are looking for a foothold in electing Boehner’s successor. You won’t convince the centrists in the caucus that McCarthy’s too squishy to rule but you might convince them that he’s a political liability whom the GOP can’t risk having as a major spokesman during next year’s death match with the Clintons. All tea partiers need to mount a challenge is a candidate. Hensarling won’t do it, Jordan won’t do it, Ryan won’t do it. Jason Chaffetz?...

A Secret Service official’s allegedly deliberate decision to embarrass Rep. Jason Chaffetz could “give pause” to other lawmakers who have applied for federal jobs, cautioned former House Judiciary Chairman Jim Sensenbrenner, R-Wis.

Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz will run for speaker. The Utah Republican announced his decision on Fox News Sunday, citing support from colleagues who “recruited” him to challenge the establishment favorite, Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. “We don’t want to fight internally,” Chaffetz told Fox News anchor Chris Wallace, “but realistically we can’t vote to promote the existing leadership. “Kevin McCarthy’s a good man,” Chaffetz said, “and he’s a reason we have such a solid majority. But things have changed, and there’s really a math problem.” Chaffetz granted that McCarthy may have the majority of votes to...

Boehner was the lesser of two evils. But not by much. You had Obama on the one side and Mr. Spray Tan on the other, and the hatred of one did not mean the love of the other. And for five years he failed. Handed the speakership by a pissed-off public, he did nothing with it. He didn't figure out how to handle Obama, he didn't figure out how to handle Reid, he was clueless with Pilosi and rudderless with the Republicans. He could neither command nor cooperate. Nor could he speak. As half the population was left without a...

If you're one of those rare people who think one spouse is not enough, your prayers may be answered. After the Supreme Court decision in favor of gay marriage, conservative critics spotted sister wives on the horizon. "Polygamy, here we come!" tweeted Weekly Standard editor William Kristol. Some members of the Supreme Court agree. Dissenting Chief Justice John Roberts argued that "much of the majority's reasoning would apply with equal force to the claim of a fundamental right to plural marriage." In 1996, Justice Antonin Scalia claimed the court had put itself on the path to upholding the rights of...

SALT LAKE CITY — The Church issued the following statement Friday: "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints acknowledges that following today's ruling by the Supreme Court, same-sex marriages are now legal in the United States. The Court's decision does not alter the Lord's doctrine that marriage is a union between a man and a woman ordained by God. While showing respect for those who think differently, the Church will continue to teach and promote marriage between a man and a woman as a central part of our doctrine and practice."

In 2001, 1 in 7 Americans accepted polygamy as a "family" form (7%); by 2015, it's jumped to 1 in 6 Americans (16%). Source: Shocker: Morality Goes Out the Window, Americans Embrace Social LiberalismAs of last week, three of the dozen "apostles" of the Mormon Church – 1 in 4 -- were well ahead of that cultural curve and indeed, per Mormon doctrine, were headed for eternal polygamy.Allow me to explain: Seven years ago this Spring, the Salt Lake Tribune published an article that mentioned how "Three of the church's current apostles, for example, were widowed and remarried. Each will...

...Latter-day Saint literature to a Mother in Heaven...Since the 1840s, this cherished doctrine has been an important, although relatively obscure, part of the Latter-day Saint understanding of the premortal origins and divine nature of mankind... As Elder Erastus Snow (Quorum of the Twelve, February 12, 1849–May 27, 1888) avowed: “What,” says one, “do you mean we should understand that Deity consists of man and woman?” Most certainly I do. If I believe anything that God has ever said about himself...I must believe that deity consists of man and woman...There can be no God except he is composed of the man...

BANGKOK, Thailand -- Nearly 50 years after Mormons opened small churches here converting Buddhists, animists and other Thais, they have now announced plans to construct their first big temple in Thailand, enabling their families to be "sealed" together for eternity, posthumous weddings for dead ancestors and other "highest sacraments."

Chapter 38: Eternal Marriage [SNIP] Eternal Marriage Is Essential for Exaltation• What is the Lord’s doctrine of marriage, and how does it differ from the views of the world? Many people in the world consider marriage to be only a social custom, a legal agreement between a man and a woman to live together. But to Latter-day Saints, marriage is much more. Our exaltation depends on marriage...[SNIP] Heavenly Father has given us the law of eternal marriage so we can become like Him. The Lord has said: “In the celestial glory there are three heavens or degrees; “And in order...

Requirements for Exaltation[SNIP] To be exalted, we first must place our faith in Jesus Christ and then endure in that faith to the end of our lives. Our faith in Him must be such that we repent of our sins and obey His commandments. He commands us all to receive certain ordinances: ... 3. Brethren must receive the Melchizedek Priesthood and magnify their callings in the priesthood. 4. We must receive the temple endowment. 5. We must be married for eternity, either in this life or in the next.In addition to receiving the required ordinances, the Lord commands all of...

...let me say just a bit more about...marriage. This may sound a little bit bold to urge marriage for those...past the marriageable age;...we are shocked to know that some men are delaying marriage until their later thirties or into their forties, and they have never talked of marriage. [SNIP] ...I have a letter here from a sister that pinpoints something...these girls are going through...There is a man who has been dating her for years and he comes especially at meal time... Here is another one who says, “I am a 40-year-old single woman.” Another one says, “I am a 30-year-old...

This is the third and final post on B. Carmon Hardy’s Doing the Works of Abraham: Mormon Polygamy: Its Origin, Practice and Demise (Arthur H. Clark Co., 2007). The simple story of the end of LDS polygamy is that it ended in 1890 with the Manifesto. The not-so-simple story involves a Second Manifesto in 1904, which raises the obvious question, “If the First Manifesto ended polygamy, why the need for a Second Manifesto?” The First Manifesto did not end the officially sanctioned LDS practice of polygamy. In fact, it took twenty years to fully execute that momentous institutional change of...