[MHGinTN]

"If the LDS Church is not exactly what it claims to be, it will flounder and fail with or without your help." ... Don't you sometimes wonder how it is folks who make such comments as that fail to comprehend what is the responsibility of those 'in Christ'? I mean, if this poster overheard someone giving outright false characterizations about the BofM, would they just pass by and say to themselves 'if it ain't so telling it won't hurt anything because it ain't so.' HAH! If I do not oppose heresies during my lifetime when I come upon them, I am responsible before God for the souls I have eschewed making even a minor effort to help into the light. The Great Commission wasn't some pep rally the Apostles and followers of Christ could ignore with no consequence! Don't you just love it when Satan quotes scripture as his means to promote his heresies? I mean, the poster actually equates Mormonism's heresies with the Truth of the Gospel and expects we'll ignore it and move along!

When Gamaliel made that comment before the Sanhedrin, he was referring to the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ which the Jewish Sanhedrin sought to squelch because they were convinced the Rabbi Jesus was raised from the dead and that was what motivated Peter and the others to proclaim it so openly. He compared this new preaching to the zealot movements which had been squelched before by the Romans. Nearly two decades later these same Jews (well, many were still in the 70) killed James the 'brother' of Jesus for sticking to his claims of Jesus's resurrection and future return as Messiah. Would the poster have us believe that the advent of Joseph Smith was as significant as the resurrection of Jesus?

. . .

Come to think of it, perhaps he would, since Mormonism is based in a belief that without 'Christianity restored' through Joe Smith the believers in Christ for the previous 1700 years cannot enter into Heaven without Mormon proxy baptism for them!

[tantiboh]

~”I mean, if this poster overheard someone giving outright false characterizations about the BofM...”~

You make a valid point, MHG, but there’s a crucial distinction: I don’t go about trying to tear down your faith, and, generally speaking, my fellow Mormons don’t either. The closest you’ve ever seen me come is my saying things along the lines of “The LDS Church is the true Church of Christ, and yours isn’t.”

On the other hand, the LDS Church is regularly the target of some here, with the express objective of discrediting it. Our posture is defensive; the posture of the detractors of my faith is aggressive. You and CC are two examples of this.

Thank you, though, for pinging me when you spoke about me.