Posted on 08/15/2010 2:44:17 PM PDT by greyfoxx39
One of the noteworthy examples of the Latter-day Saint commitment to treasure up true principles and cultivate affirmative gratitude is the admiration that Church leaders have expressed over the years for the spiritual contributions of Muhammad.
As early as 1855, at a time when Christian literature generally ridiculed Muhammad as the Antichrist and the archenemy of Western civilization, Elders George A. Smith (1817–75) and Parley P. Pratt (1807–57) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles delivered lengthy sermons demonstrating an accurate and balanced understanding of Islamic history and speaking highly of Muhammad’s leadership. Elder Smith observed that Muhammad was “descended from Abraham and was no doubt raised up by God on purpose” to preach against idolatry. He sympathized with the plight of Muslims, who, like Latter-day Saints, found it difficult “to get an honest history” written about them. Speaking next, Elder Pratt went on to express his admiration for Muhammad’s teachings, asserting that “upon the whole, … [Muslims] have better morals and better institutions than many Christian nations.” 9
Latter-day Saint appreciation of Muhammad’s role in history can also be found in the 1978 First Presidency statement regarding God’s love for all mankind. This declaration specifically mentions Muhammad as one of “the great religious leaders of the world” who received “a portion of God’s light” and affirms that “moral truths were given to [these leaders] by God to enlighten whole nations and to bring a higher level of understanding to individuals.” 10
In recent years, respect for the spiritual legacy of Muhammad and for the religious values of the Islamic community has led to increasing contact and cooperation between Latter-day Saints and Muslims around the world. This is due in part to the presence of Latter-day Saint congregations in areas such as the Levant, North Africa, the Persian Gulf, and Southeast Asia. The Church has sought to respect Islamic laws and traditions that prohibit conversion of Muslims to other faiths by adopting a policy of nonproselyting in Islamic countries of the Middle East. Yet examples of dialogue and cooperation abound, including visits of Muslim dignitaries at Church headquarters in Salt Lake City; Muslim use of Church canning facilities to produce halal (ritually clean) food products; Church humanitarian aid and disaster relief sent to predominantly Muslim areas including Jordan, Kosovo, and Turkey; academic agreements between Brigham Young University and various educational and governmental institutions in the Islamic world; the existence of the Muslim Student Association at BYU; and expanding collaboration between the Church and Islamic organizations to safeguard traditional family values worldwide. 11 The recent initiation of the Islamic Translation Series, cosponsored by BYU and the Church, has resulted in several significant exchanges between Muslim officials and Latter-day Saint Church leaders. A Muslim ambassador to the United Nations predicted that this translation series “will play a positive role in the West’s quest for a better understanding of Islam.” 12
A cabinet minister in Egypt, aware of the common ground shared by Muslims and Latter-day Saints, once remarked to Elder Howard W. Hunter of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles that “if a bridge is ever built between Christianity and Islam it must be built by the Mormon Church.” 13 The examples of Latter-day Saint–Muslim interaction mentioned above, together with the Church’s establishment in 1989 of two major centers for educational and cultural exchange in the Middle East (Jerusalem and Amman), reflect the traditional attitude of respect for Islam that Church leaders have exhibited from earliest times. These activities represent tangible evidence of Latter-day Saint commitment to promote greater understanding of the Muslim world and witness an emerging role for the Church in helping to bridge the gap that has existed historically between Muslims and Christians.
LOL.
Those Mormons...who will they love next!?
Hi SZ,
I would naturally consider women included as joint-heirs with Christ.
1 Corinthians 11:11 “Neither is the man with without the woman, or the woman without the man, in the Lord”
Normandy
Worth repeating, at least twice. ;-]
There fixed it. ;-] You need a surgeon not a butcher. Ham-handedness can be cured.
Well there is certainly an indication of more than one involved in the creation in Genesis 1:26
By any definition JS is a false prophet.
For example, by Biblical Definition Smith was a false prophet.
Accurate enough for God and delivered by him, more than good enough for me and the rest of us concerned about the truth and ties it up rather nicely.
No need of fixing - God already set the standard -
"But the prophet who shall speak a word presumptuously in My name which I have not commanded him to speak, or which he shall speak in the name of other gods, that prophet shall die.’ 21 "And you may say in your heart, ‘How shall we know the word which the Lord has not spoken?’ 22 "When a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord, if the thing does not come about or come true, that is the thing which the Lord has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him," (Deut. 18:20-22).
You have to drink a lot of kool-aid to understand otherwise.
More cults of a feather.
How many gods in “let us”...
Embrace the false Polytheism with both arms.
BTW, hint, go study Heavenly Hosts, angels and such for the “us”...
That way maybe you can avoid all the non biblical polytheism stuff...
What does a dictionary say about that "Big Difference"?
glo·ri·fy (glôr-f, glr-) tr.v. glo·ri·fied, glo·ri·fy·ing, glo·ri·fies 1. To give glory, honor, or high praise to; exalt.
To glorify is to exalt. Whoops! Szonian lay off a bit. The rest of this post is not to you, OK?
*****************************
Hi Resty, just call me next time Bible Camp let's out. ;-]
You have to understand that they haven't even a basic idea about the nature of God or who Jesus Christ is.
They cannot answer the simplest questions about Heaven, Hell, the Trinity, etc.
They have a bastardized understanding of salvation because they broke away from the Catholic Church, but took some of the traditions with them and mingled them up with silly philosophies.
See this page for more clarification: Glorification
You'll see there Resty, that it is more form over substance than any real difference.
What the LDS challenge is to Protestantism is it points out its vacuity. They have no leadership, no authority and they ignore the Bible when it contradicts what they want to believe.
Reformers are essentially a form of anarcho-Christianity and a break-away Catholic sect. The Eastern Orthodox consider them a Catholic problem and ignore them completely.
This kind of "combat" occupies them, but amounts to nothing. I cannot believe it is a form of agape as it is conditional, cruel and wrong.
Not really norm - you are viewing it through boa 4:1, 26-7. Your interpretation is also invalid in light of Isaiah 40:12-28, 43:10, 44:6, 8 and 24 (among other Isaiah passages) that clearly indicate that God creates everything outside of Himself. That is, He creates alone.
There are two better views in light of Isaiah (Three times in Isaiah 45 alone, He states: “I am the LORD, and there is no other; there is no God besides Me” (vv. 5,6,18)), God is speaking in the plurality of majesty or He is speaking within the Trinity. Since Elohim in hebrew is plural - the Trinitarian explanation is favored. Further, John 4:24 indicates that God is spirit. Luke 24:39 tells us that a spirit does not have flesh and bones. Since God is spirit, he does not have flesh and bones.
You mean like when Isaiah was sawed in half or when Stephen was stoned to death? Peter? Paul? LOL. Really weak.
Ping me tomorrow afternoon once camp lets out. Bring your notebook! ;-]
There is a cure for ignorance, but one has to be in the right mood for it.
Ping me tomorrow. I love a good laugh!
By “any definition”? Then just pick one and we’ll discuss it tomorrow, OK?
It can be a Biblical reference or just your opinion, either one will do.
Can we cover other topics as well?
Was Isaiah slain for being a false prophet (btw, that is a talmud custom, not necessarily supported by the bible) - no
Was Stephen slain for being a false prophet - no
Was Peter slain for being a false prophet -no
Was Paul slain for being a false prophet - no
What is REALLY weak is the attempt to link the order in Deuteronomy to these other deaths. I'll bring my crayons for you.
As compared to the mormon definition which is to say all the things one wants to 'thus saith the lord', regardless of the fact that they never come to pass. Some people bring happiness wherever they go; you bring happiness whenever you go.
I'll bring my Zeus lunch box and my Hercules back pack...
I hope you are planning on schooling us on all that babble in post 212, I am especially eager to hear how we don't use the Bible that we post from all the time or understand salvation and as one who has attended both Orthodox and Protestant churches how the Orthodox, who gladly accepted my Methodist Baptism for their membership needs, ignore/dismiss Protestantism and see it as a Catholic problem.
I also want to here a supposed non LDSer defends Smith and why, so a little personal/professional background on the teacher please, it builds a basis on how to gage their instruction...
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