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 (181775) and Parley P. Pratt (180757) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles delivered lengthy sermons demonstrating an accurate and balanced understanding of Islamic history and speaking highly of Muhammads 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 Muhammads teachings, asserting that upon the whole, [Muslims] have better morals and better institutions than many Christian nations. 9
Latter-day Saint appreciation of Muhammads role in history can also be found in the 1978 First Presidency statement regarding Gods love for all mankind. This declaration specifically mentions Muhammad as one of the great religious leaders of the world who received a portion of Gods 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 Wests 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 SaintMuslim interaction mentioned above, together with the Churchs 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.
We aim to please!
You tickle me. Which ones of you were MI?
Well, that’s a nonsense post.
I suppose this is the end of the line, then folks.
It was nice getting to know you ladies and gentlemen.
I’ll avoid the religion threads for a month or so to give you time to ponder and re-combobulate.
Unless of course your arguments are nonsense...
Hum...
No, don't misrepresent my statement 10 - that is blatantly dishonest. Isaiah is address to Israel and only portions of those chapters speak ABOUT, not TO Cyrus.
Greek philosophy also attacked this same theme as polytheistic and a return to archaic thinking.
Facepalm here junior. How would greek pagans - who were polytheistic to begin with - seek to ATTACK this as polytheistic.
Lurkers will note - 10 is making a claim that the Greeks were monotheists. His/her own words show the lack of credibility of this individual
Early Christians accepted that there were more than one God.
Still unproven by you oh fundamentalist christian. Testimony of the NT states otherwise. You have now fully discredited yourself 10. Your posts have been dishonest and deceitful. For a self named fundamentalist christian, you display no evidence of one person even remotely meriting the title of Christian.
Well at least it is further confirmed that no one need take you seriously...
Because my arguments stand on their own. Credentials are nonsense.
Search your heart and you’ll see your question for what it is - a power game.
My dear brother, take care.
Lurkers will note - 10 is making a claim that the Greeks were monotheists. His/her own words show the lack of credibility of this individual
AWESOME!!!!
well junior, you are the one who brought Athanasius into the argument to begin with. Stay on the porch if you can't run with the big dogs.
Furthermore, the LDS are not Arians.
Never said they were, they are polytheists.
The LDS consider Jesus along with all human beings or children of Heavenly Father as eternal. Which is uncannily Biblical or is it becoming the norm?
There is nothing biblical about it, as you've made evident in your posts.
We don’t, Q; we don’t.
Religious arguments stand on their own ONLY if those making them stand behind them...
Otherwise they are so much smoke.
What is even more of a problem is what is there to hide, what do you fear?
For such a great mind as you seem to think you have, for one who is seeking to "educate us" unenlightened folks, this should be an easy concept to understand...
Unless there is a reason for the continued obfuscation of course...
Same old MORMON lie...
Gee!
That's kind of them!
John 6
28. Then they asked him, "What must we do to do the works God requires?"
29. Jesus answered, "The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent."
(Of course; NOW you have to figger out just what is meant by 'one'.)
We’ll be waiting...
Damn!
THAT was a short month!
-Denial of the Trinity
-The stance the the Bible has been corrupted
-Sex for eternity
-Polygamy
-Child Brides
-And what has been described in Scripture as the message of the anti-Christ; that of works righteousness
And what might be the most controversial 'round these parts:
-September 11: Mountain Meadows Massacre
-September 11: Well, we all know that one....
It seems to me that Mormons and Mohammedans are spiritual kin folk.
Ill avoid the religion threads for a month or so to give you time to ponder and re-combobulate.
I glossed over the "...and so forth." qualifier.
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