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Posted on 05/08/2008 5:04:47 PM PDT by Grig
I am posting this on behalf of many LDS freepers. They will post their own 'signature' to this in the comments below. --- Some of you have noticed lately a lot of LDS (ie: Mormon) threads here on FR. I'm going to tell you why.
For many years there have been several active LDS freepers here. We post to all the forums on relevant issues, and were happy to have a site where conservative values were so openly welcomed.
Those conservative values include faith in God, and freedom of religion. We fully respect the rights of all posters to express their opinions and views on religious matters, even when people choose to use those rights to express criticism of our own faith. We also support the ideas embodied in FR rules against religion bashing. There is no need for hostility and there should be no room for bigotry on FR. Every religion has it's miracles and mysteries. Every faith has things in it that are not or can not be proven, and things that run contrary to what secular science would have us believe. Someone mature and confident in their own faith generally doesn't feel the need to belittle the faith of others.
We have, to the best of our ability, conducted ourselves with civility and dignity. We do not feel that that respect has been returned by some posters (putting it mildly).
When Mormon missionaries were murdered, the moderators were kept busy pulling jubilant posts off the thread. When Elizabeth Smart was abducted from her home, we contended for months with posters who appeared to be motivated by religious bigotry doing all they could to smear the family and accuse the father. Several posters openly admitted their religious motivation in opposing Mitt Romney and confessed that no matter how conservative any Mormon was, they would never vote for one for President of the USA. When the Pope died, I don't think any Mormon poster posted anything unkind, yet the thread about the passing of our President recently needed many comments removed.
Nearly every thread having any connection with Mormons, or Utah winds up being hijacked by anti-Mormon activists who copy and paste the same false accusations over and over even when it has been clearly and factually pointed out to them on multiple occasions that they are bearing false witness against our faith. Everything possible is done by these activists to make FR a hostile place for Mormons, and for at least some of them, bashing Mormonism is all they do here. Their most recent project is trying to blur the fact that the polygamous FLDS is a separate and distinct religion from ours, just as Lutherans are a separate and distinct religion from Catholicism.
In our opinion, such poster do a great disservice to FR and to their fellow freepers by spreading disinformation and promoting hostility towards a people known for walking the walk of conservative values.
Why the moderators here don't see the behavior of these anti-Mormon activists as religion bashing is a mystery to us, but it is the moderators call to make and we respect their right to do so. That doesn't mean we have to be passive however. We have all spent many hours refuting the accusations leveled at our faith, but these wind up buried deep in a flood of comments, effectively shouting us down.
Recently some of us have decided to take a more proactive approach. Rather than try to wrestle the pig into taking a bath, we are just going to hose it down. We will actively define our faith here rather than just respond to accusations.
So expect to see lots of Mormon threads, now and for as long as we see fit to keep posting them (although probably not as many as there are Catholic threads). They will be about our basic doctrines and responses to common accusations. If you want to know what our faith is about, read the articles we post. We will post them as open threads and I encourage you to compare the difference in tone and spirit between what we post and what our critics say.
No, but it's bashing.
/s
I too have been here 10 years and we'll have to agree to disagree on this. Inter-faith sniping does take place here but I noticed no unusual amount directed at LDS until Romney presented himself as a serious candidate.
"I don't know what to think about those like you. Religion-bashing is apparently not your hobby."
- Illbay to yours truly, April 9, 2003
signed by DelphiUser
See my page by clicking my name to see refutations that were so common I just made a page at FR to address them.
Well, that explains it.
ROFLOL!!!!
Illbay? A previously banned FReeper?
Why is he posting in absentia?
I thought that was frowned on by the head honchos.
Lets just say he is no longer a Mormon.
He has received hateful freepmail from his former fellow believers. They don't like when someone leaves.
So, that requires an active “opt out”.
Sort of like someone sending unsolicited spam and saying that they can unsubscribe at any time.
Agreed...............
Are you going to be consistent then & "hose down" any & all FR challenges to Islam?
Are all of those challenges to Islam as you put it, "religion bashing?"
Is "any" "negative" comment about Islam "bigotry?"
Are you or will you be encouraging Muslim thread-posters to have had it & post millions of pro-Muslim threads? (And do you expect few challenges to such content?)
Do you expect that when your faith labels as "Scripture" verses from the Pearl of Great Price that describes our faith as 100% credally "abominable" to your god as something to be acclaimed?
Are we remiss for not giving a standing ovation to Joseph Smith?
Or when the same verses describe the "professors" of all Christian sects as 100% "corrupt" are we to conclude, "Boy, keep those 'Scriptures' coming. We just LOVE the way they slam us!"
Their most recent project is trying to blur the fact that the polygamous FLDS is a separate and distinct religion from ours, just as Lutherans are a separate and distinct religion from Catholicism.
I am a Protestant. And no, Catholicism is NOT a different "religion." They are branches of the same faith, Christianity. Even LDS official writings (contemporary) will tell you that LDS do NOT consider themselves a branch of Protestantism.
Why is it "OK" for you & other Mormons to impose your definition of "religion" upon me & others, but you scream bloody murder when we establish distinct boundaries between Mormonism & Christianity?
Why is it you are able to have the gall to tell us that our faith expressions, though distinct, are totally different religions when in fact most of the Christians I know see Catholicism & Protestantism as one in the same basic faith with key distinctions?
Why is it on these threads that so many Mormons have insisted to our face that they want to label all Christian sects simultaneously as both "apostates" of the faith but at the same time say to us, "You know, we're 'Christians,' too." (Well, which is it?
Are we 'apostates' or 'Christians?').
If you're 'Christians,' too and we're 'apostates' to you, then what are you?
Why is it that we are demonized when we try to draw faith boundaries between 'Christians' and 'Mormons,' and when Mormons insist they are "one" in Christ that's OK?
But if a Christian sees fLDS as a distinct denominational affiliation of the overall 'Mormon' faith, that Christian is anathematized? (What? We're now to blame for the reality that fundamentalist Mormons are Mormon?)
Why is it that LDS posters like Edward Watson can say on these posts that "Of course, LDS is Christian" and that it's a branch of Mormonism, and I don't see any other LDS contending with him on that...but dare a Christian say the latter portion of that, and look out!!!
WHERE'S THE CONSISTENCY???
When Pope John Paul died, the thread were awful.
Now I don’t know the religious beliefs of every person who posted but there were lots and lots of posts pulled.
This “I’m a victim” theme gets old. All faiths get ridiculed.
**Anyone got any Ellen G. White anecdotes?**
I do! I do!
Went to an adventist natural foods store last week. There in the book section they had books proclaming E.G. White to be a TRUE PROPHET OF GOD!
Now, can there be TWO true prophets of God at the same time teaching conflicting doctrines? E. G. White vs J. Smith! Ringside seats everyone!
Fine by me, and best wishes and all that. I sometimes read LDS Caucus posts and find inspiration.
Tax-chick (Catholic)
Freep-mail me to get on or off my pro-life and Catholic List:
Please ping me to note-worthy Pro-Life or Catholic threads, or other threads of interest.
I understand how you feel, but I see so many different religions on here claiming they are victims. Let’s face it, Catholics don’t Protestants, and visa versa, etc. etc. I do not get all upset when I read that I am wrong because I am a Protestant, and perhaps we all should just consider the source and go on. I am opposed to the bashing, so I don’t do it. Those that do have to answer for themselves, but I am not going to let it ruin my day.
And I was so nice on that thread!
To: Wolfgang_Blitzkrieg
Your links have some jaw-dropping stuff. People actually believe that stuff?
But perhaps this is not the thread to discuss misguided theology.
A man did lose his life. May he rest in peace.
48 posted on Tuesday, January 03, 2006 12:25:14 AM by JRochelle
Signed by reno232
I can’t think of a thread that nails it right on the head as this one does.
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