Posted on 08/02/2011 7:11:00 PM PDT by Feline_AIDS
I never said Mormons were bad people.
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Try to get a copy of “the Darker Side of Virtue” by Anson Shupe and you may change your mind on even that.
Part of the reason I converted to Mormonism was their public image of being ‘good, kind, patriotic, conservative, wonderful’ people. After I moved ‘behind the Zion curtain’ (Utah), I found out that it isn’t the case at all.
More stunt Mormons using the same old ‘pat answers’ that we respond to every day.
I really wish they would come up with some new material. At least the RLDS guy on the other thread gave some new talking points.
Excellent observations.
“I Will Be a Second Mohammed”
In the heat of the Missouri “Mormon War” of 1838, Joseph Smith made the following claim, “I will be to this generation a second Mohammed, whose motto in treating for peace was ‘the Alcoran [Koran] or the Sword.’ So shall it eventually be with us—‘Joseph Smith or the Sword!’ ”[1]
It is most interesting that a self-proclaimed Christian prophet would liken himself to Mohammed, the founder of Islam. His own comparison invites us to take a closer look as well. And when we do, we find some striking—and troubling—parallels. Consider the following.
Mohammed and Joseph Smith both had humble beginnings. Neither had formal religious connections or upbringing, and both were relatively uneducated. Both founded new religions by creating their own scriptures. In fact, followers of both prophets claim these scriptures are miracles since their authors were the most simple and uneducated of men.[2]
Both prophets claim of having angel visitations, and of receiving divine revelation to restore pure religion to the earth again. Mohammed was told that both Jews and Christians had long since corrupted their scriptures and religion. In like manner, Joseph Smith was told that all of Christianity had become corrupt, and that consequently the Bible itself was no longer reliable. In both cases, this corruption required a complete restoration of both scripture and religion. Nothing which preceded either prophet could be relied upon any longer. Both prophets claim they were used of God to restore eternal truths which once existed on earth, but had been lost due to human corruption.
Both prophets created new scripture which borrowed heavily from the Bible, but with a substantially new “spin.” In his Koran, Mohammed appropriates a number of Biblical themes and characters—but he changes the complete sense of many passages, claiming to “correct” the Bible. In so doing he changes many doctrines, introducing his own in their place. In like manner, Joseph Smith created the Book of Mormon, much of which is plagiarized directly from the King James Bible. Interestingly, the Book of Mormon claims that this same Bible has been substantially corrupted and is therefore unreliable. In addition, Joseph Smith went so far as to actually create his own version of the Bible itself, the “Inspired Version,” in which he both adds and deletes significant portions of text, claiming he is “correcting” it. In so doing he also changes many doctrines, introducing his own in their place.
As a part of their new scriptural “spin,” both prophets saw themselves as prophesied in scripture, and both saw themselves as a continuation of a long line of Biblical prophets. Mohammed saw himself as a continuation of the ministry of Moses and Jesus. Joseph Smith saw himself as a successor to Enoch, Melchizedek, Joseph and Moses. Joseph Smith actually wrote himself into his own version of the Bible—by name.
Both prophets held up their own scripture as superior to the Bible. Mohammed claimed that the Koran was a perfect copy of the original which was in heaven. The Koran is therefore held to be absolutely perfect, far superior to the Bible and superceding it. In like manner, Joseph Smith also made the following claim. “I told the Brethren that the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding its precepts, than by any other book.”[3]
Despite their claim that the Bible was corrupt, both prophets admonished their followers to adhere to its teachings. An obvious contradiction, this led to selective acceptance of some portions and wholesale rejection of others. As a result, the Bible is accepted by both groups of followers only to the extent that it agrees with their prophet’s own superior revelation.
Both Mohammed and Joseph Smith taught that true salvation was to be found only in their respective religions. Those who would not accept their message were considered “infidels,” pagans or Gentiles. In so doing, both prophets became the enemy of genuine Christianity, and have led many people away from the Christ of the Bible.
Both prophets encountered fierce opposition to their new religions and had to flee from town to town because of threats on their lives. Both retaliated to this opposition by forming their own militias. Both ultimately set up their own towns as model societies.
Both Mohammed and Joseph Smith left unclear instructions about their successors. The majority of Mohammed’s followers, Sunni Muslims, believe they were to elect their new leader, whereas the minority, Shiite Muslims, believe Mohammed’s son was to be their next leader. Similarly, the majority of Joseph Smith’s followers, Mormons, believed their next prophet should have been the existing leader of their quorum of twelve apostles, whereas the minority, RLDS, believed Joseph Smith’s own son should have been their next prophet. Differences on this issue, and many others, have created substantial tension between these rival groups of each prophet.
Mohammed taught that Jesus was just another of a long line of human prophets, of which he was the last. He taught that he was superior to Christ and superceded Him. In comparison, Joseph Smith also made the following claim.
“I have more to boast of than ever any man had. I am the only man that has ever been able to keep a whole church together since the days of Adam. A large majority of the whole have stood by me. Neither Paul, John, Peter, nor Jesus ever did it. I boast that no man ever did such a work as I. The followers of Jesus ran away from Him, but the Latter-day Saints never ran away from me yet.”[4] In light of these parallels, perhaps Joseph Smith’s claim to be a second Mohammed unwittingly became his most genuine prophecy of all.
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[1] Joseph Smith made this statement at the conclusion of a speech in the public square at Far West, Missouri on October 14, 1838. This particular quote is documented in Fawn M. Brodie, No Man Knows My History, second edition, (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1971), p. 230–231. Fawn Brodie’s footnote regarding this speech contains valuable information, and follows. “Except where noted, all the details of this chapter [16] are taken from the History of the [Mormon] Church. This speech, however, was not recorded there, and the report given here is based upon the accounts of seven men. See the affidavits of T.B. Marsh, Orson Hyde, George M. Hinkle, John Corrill, W.W. Phelps, Samson Avard, and Reed Peck in Correspondence, Orders, etc., pp. 57–9, 97–129. The Marsh and Hyde account, which was made on October 24, is particularly important. Part of it was reproduced in History of the [Mormon] Church, Vol. III, p. 167. See also the Peck manuscript, p. 80. Joseph himself barely mentioned the speech in his history; see Vol. III, p. 162.”
[2] John Ankerberg & John Weldon, The Facts on Islam, (Eugene, OR: Harvest House Publishers, 1998), pp.8–9. Eric Johnson, Joseph Smith & Muhammed, (El Cajon, CA: Mormonism Research Ministry, 1998), pp. 6–7.
[3] Documentary History of the [Mormon] Church, vol.4, pp.461.
[4] Documentary History of the [Mormon] Church, vol.6, pp.408–409.
(Decker, Ed, My Kingdom Come: The Mormon Quest for Godhood, Xulon Press, 2007)
You know you missed a couple...
Heres one for you...
Do Mormons believe in honor killing when a woman is raped...
Yes an equivilant of that...
They have a saying that goes something like
“If you are raped, come home in a pine box...”
In other words the woman should fight and die rather than be raped...
Like the Moslems, the Mormons believe that a girl loses her value if she is raped and thus loses her virtue and worth...
If thats not honoe killing what is..
Right after Elizabeth Smart was found, I remember reading something to the effect that ‘the first presidency has decided Elizabeth was not at fault for what happened and have determined her to be ‘pure’ before the Lord”.
My reaction was “SAY WHAT?!? Who the Hell are they to say who is ‘pure’ or not before the Lord!”
I remember getting into a fight with a guy at BYU who said if women were raped it was their fault if they didn’t fight to the death. I nearly punched him right in the middle of my Intensive Writing course.
Jesus thoroughly refutes the "All God's children" myth in John 8. That is why we contend for the faith with love, hoping and praying people will hear His words and respond to Him.
We are all created by Him, but we are not all in God's family: the Bible clearly teaches this.
Yes isnt that strange ???
and what regular Mormon girl would have been deemed worthy to go off on a mission ???
and about that , she wasnt given any time to heal emotionally or psychologically
In fact I think I remember reading or hearing that she didnt need any help because as a Mormon she was expected to be above such things and to gut it out and not be weak...
“get over it and get out on a mission...we can exploit you and your “event” for all the PR its worth”
Now that’s two I hope God has reserved a hot spot in hell for.
The depth of deception that exists in a person’s mind to believe that claptrap called Mormonism is just staggering.
"It is not fully comprehended why it was necessary that Jesus Christ should leave the heavens, ...and come upon the earth to offer himself up a sacrifice; ...why this should be, why it was necessary that his blood should be shed is an apparent mystery. ...what sins of the world did he take away? We are told that it is the sin which Adam committed."
LDS Prophet John Taylor, Journal of Discourses, Vol. 10, pp. 114 - 115, 1863
Note: From http://www.ondoctrine.com/1mormo03.htm
"What is being taught by LDS Apostle John Taylor is that the death of Christ was only sufficient and able to take away the sins of Adam and Eve as personally applied to them only. The sins of the world, and every individual after Adam and Eve, cannot be taken away by the death of Jesus Christ. His death is not adequate to accomplish the task. The Bible teaches a doctrine that is clearly opposite to Mr. Taylor, and despite his claims to the contrary, the Biblical teaching is very complete, clear and understandable"
You may want to clear that with SLC there JA, especially as a non Mormon. Being polytheist is not in the sales brochures for a reason, it scares the straights...
“One of your professors was an idiot. Mormonism is not even close to having the slightest resemblance to Islam, unless both having a prophet makes them similar. Mormons are not monotheistic, They believe God The Father is God, they believe that Jesus Christ is God and they believe that The Holy Ghost is God. The three Gods are not one God but three individuals, each with their own body and own responsibilities.
This is about the most lame hit on Mormons I have ever seen. It is sick, irresponsible and written like a 5th grader. I hope some Mormon will sign on and refute it line for line. The Mormons are good people and this person has made them out to be deluded and evil.”
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On the contrary, the similarities between Mormonism and Islam are far greater than you care to admit to, although, I can see why you’d want to distance yourself from Islam.
It’s not just one tiny piece of their theology of the divine. Yours is just a lame defense of the indefensible. The rest of us can see it clearly. It’s not the professors who are the idiots....
Islamic And Mormonism Similarities: Similarities Between Joseph Smith and Muhammad
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2647707/posts
Mormons and Muslims? How do you all see each other?
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/religion/762997/posts
Why scholar thinks Mormons should support Ground Zero Mosque (OPEN)
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2688191/posts
This is about the most lame hit on Mormons I have ever seen. It is sick, irresponsible and written like a 5th grader. I hope some Mormon will sign on and refute it line for line. The Mormons are good people and this person has made them out to be deluded and evil."
I notice the area of the attack of this article is not the content but rather that you claim it's written like a 5th grader.
You're a fine one to be criticizing literary style. Perhaps you meant to say that it was written as if written by a 5th grader.
This is about the most lame hit on Mormons I have ever seen. It is sick, irresponsible and written like a 5th grader. I hope some Mormon will sign on and refute it line for line. The Mormons are good people and this person has made them out to be deluded and evil."
Why don't you refute it line by line? You are claiming it's all washed up. Why wait for a Mormon to sign on and refute it? Or don't you really know all that much about Mormonism to shoot your mouth off after all?
Amen.
How so?
But Mormonism as a theocracy was a danger to those who disagreed. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mormonism_and_violence Of course, you have Rome being the same as a theocracy, and early Protestantism who learned it from them, both being in contrast to the early church. (Jn. 18:36; 1Cor. 5:13; 2Cor. 10:3; Eph. 6:12; 1Pt. 2:13,14)
As regards being a creation of God, then all are God’s offspring, (Acts 17:28)in that sense, but not spiritually, which is what really matters. And if you read it, (Jn. 8:44; cf. Eph. 2:3: “children of wrath”) you should see that being the children of the devil is opposed to being the children of God, and thus the need for a spiritual birthday, (Jn. 3:3) in conversion.
Amazing what the mind can conceive and 'believe'.....
If an individual 'wants' to belive something that's not true you can be certain if it distracts them from a true relationship with Christ, or can interfer with that, or derail their search for truth, the enemy of men's souls will arrange counterfeit "experiences" to keep them from the real truth....
At issue is do they 'believe' what they are seeing and hearing. If they do it is a certainty they will soon find themselves departing Christianity as it truly is....others will note this before they do for they are being deceived. Often they ignore the warnings from those who attempt to steer them straight.
Most parents wouldn't consider bringing a "drifter" near their children, regardless of what they might imagine a "good deed". They would instead refer the man to the organizations who are expereinced in dealing with the downtrodden.
God gives us common sense....Smarts weren't very smart concerning hiring this guy...and they put their daughters in peril by taking him on.
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