How Can Glenn Beck Be Right on So Much and Yet Still Believe the book of Mormon? (serious question)

[Scythian]

I'm a huge Beck fan, in fact I'm listening right now here

http://www.ksfa860.com/common/gap_streamer.php

but something really confuses me. It takes the ability to use real critical thinking to know what Beck (and most of us know about the state of the country and where we are heading). That is, we have the ability to discover the truth no matter how much the media or conventional wisdom try to hide it. Yet on Mormonism, Beck is cleary wrong. Any Christian knows that the book or momonism is severely flawed and that Joseph Smith was no prophet. How can Beck cut through all the chaff of what is going on in our world and come to the truth and yet believe the writings of Joseph Smith? It doesn't make sense? I'm not saying he's up to something secret, not by any means, it's just that he's so right about so many things and completely wrong on the most important thing. Now, he just said on the air that he believes Jesus is the Savior of the world and that he is Mormon.

I also think that because he is Mormon he is not attacked near as much if he was a Evangelical Bible only believer. Anyway, am I nutz or does Beck being a Mormon seem bizarre?

[Elsie]

 

 So "written" is defined as a scribble from words dictated by a man looking into a hat claiming the words were being "translated" from golden plates that were "taken by an angel" into heaven as an explanation as to why the plates cannot be examined for authenticy and the world is to take the word of a handful of men who may or may not have actually seen these plates.

The "Caractors" are the only tangible evidence in existence related to Smith's story.

 

 No gold plates, no brass plates, no peep stones, no Urim and Thummim... only these "Caractors," not a single one of which is in the purported languages.

 

---

 

Smith's translation of the Caractors. According to Martin Harris (Joseph Smith - History, 1:64), "I went to the city of New York, and presented the characters which had been translated, with the translation thereof, to Professor Charles Anthon, a gentleman celebrated for his literary attainments. Professor Anthon stated that the translation was correct, more so than any he had before seen translated from the Egyptian. I then showed him those which were not yet translated,* and he said they were Egyptian, Chaldaic, Assyriac, and Arabic; and he said they were true characters."

Speak right up now in all truthfulness. Isn't it revealing how Smith started out making a stab at creating believable "caractors" but quckly gave up and produced nothing but squiggles, ending up wih a series of nothing more than crude little scribbles? Yet Professor Anthon supposedly translated them!

---

*Harris must have had two or three pieces of paper with him—one with characters and a translation of them (on the same paper or a separate one) and one with untranslated characters—quite likely the "Caractors." Some Mormon "scholars" have gone out on a limb, sawed it off, and knocked themselves out trying to translate from these true Egyptian, Chaldaic, Assyriac, and Arabic characters a segment that would correspond with a verse from 1 Nephi.

---

Modern-day experts in Egyptian, Chaldaic, Assyriac, and Arabic. In 1829, any knowledge of these languages possessed by U.S. scholars would have been rudimentary at best. Expertise in them has vastly improved since then. So go ahead, do it. Get any modern expert in these languages to identify which of these "Caractors" are Egyptian, Chaldaic, Assyriac and Arabic. Better still, accept the claim of Mormon apologists that Anthon did indeed so testify and that his appraisal of the Caractors was correct. (Op. cit, pp. 73-75)

Save your money! Samples of Assyriac/Aramaic and Arabic writing:

     .
 

     .
 

      .

 

What say you? Which of Smith's "Caractors" resemble the Assyriac and Arabic ones? No need to pay experts for their analysis. A child could accurately check this out. These writing systems have remained constant for well over 3000 years.

[Elsie]

 So "written" is defined as a scribble from words dictated by a man looking into a hat claiming the words were being "translated" from golden plates that were "taken by an angel" into heaven as an explanation as to why the plates cannot be examined for authenticy and the world is to take the word of a handful of men who may or may not have actually seen these plates.

---

                                                        (Which picture is a more ACCURATE illustration of fact?)

 

From a MORMON book for kiddies...

 

 

“Joseph Smith would put the seer stone into a hat, and put his face in the hat, drawing it closely around his face to exclude the light; and in the darkness the spiritual light would shine. A piece of something resembling parchment would appear, and on that appeared the writing. One character at a time would appear, and under it was the interpretation in English. Brother Joseph would read off the English to Oliver Cowdery, who was his principal scribe, and when it was written down and repeated to Brother Joseph to see if it was correct, then it would disappear, and another character with the interpretation would appear. Thus the Book of Mormon was translated by the gift and power of God, and not by any power of man.”

David Whitmer,  An Address to All Believers in Christ, Richmond, Mo.: n.p., 1887, p. 12

---

---

Funny that this isn't discussed more in the church...

[top 2 toe red]

Interesting...that you equate you/yourself to moron. [I know, you misspelled moron, I corrected it for you. ;^)]

[NautiNurse]

If they fit then where are they ???

They are in the New Testament, accessible via the same Bible Verse Locater you used to find the others.

BTW do you ever read some of the comments by mormons ???

Better than that, I have worked with several Mormons over the years. As stated before, every Mormon I have known personally has been a very diligent worker, bright, courteous and pleasant. I have been personally antagonized and insulted by one FReeper who happens to be a Mormon, and it wasn't related to religious discussion. I can assure you that no Mormon has ever threatened me with bodily harm.

On the other hand, I have been taunted, insulted and threatened with bodily injury by "Born Again" Christians on several occasions both in the workplace and in otherwise genteel social settings. I have found the hateful demeanor of some holier-than-thou folks repulsive, and I prefer to avoid their company.

[Tennessee Nana]

I can assure you that no Mormon has ever threatened me with bodily harm. ....On the other hand, I have been taunted, insulted and threatened with bodily injury by “Born Again” Christians on several occasions both in the workplace and in otherwise genteel social settings.
___________________________________________

Must be quite a talent you have there to be able to tell the difference...

Are you saying that someone told you that they were a Christian and therefore they felt justified when they “taunted, insulted and threatened (you) with bodily injury” ???

I havent had that happen to me...

BTW you do know that mormons claim to be “born again Christians” dont you ???

In fact they claim to be the only real Christians...

with a so called “restored” gospel and church...

To them the rest of us are apostates with abominable beliefs and practices...

[Tennessee Nana]

BTW Jesus was “taunted, insulted and threatened with bodily injury”

So anyone wanted to be “Christlike” would not mind being treated like Jesus was...

In fact they killed Him...

[NautiNurse]

You can play games until the day you die. I don't care.

When you espouse your-way-or-the-highway dogma with seething hatred toward all people of a different faith, it's an easy decision. I'll take the highway.

You are the weakest link. Goodbye.

[aMorePerfectUnion]

“I imagine the Lord isn’t too pleased (IMHO).”

You imagine wrong, Reno. God tells Christians that
deceitful workers, false apostles and heresies will come.
He also tells Christians not to participate in those heresies,
but instead, to expose them.

“For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.

“And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.

“Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.

- Apostle Paul II Corinthians 11:13-15

“Have nothing to do with the useless works that darkness produces. Instead, expose them for what they are.”

- Apostle Paul (Eph 5:11)

That includes the false apostles and prophets of mormonism,
as well as the deceitful workers they send throughout the
world (and on FreeRepublic). Warning against such heresies
is Biblical, is commanded by God and serves to warn
Christians and non-Christians who might be swept up into
a cult.

[SkyPilot]

When you espouse your-way-or-the-highway dogma with seething hatred toward all people of a different faith, it's an easy decision.

That intolerant Yeshua from Bethlehem! I mean, just LOOK at the statements he made!

Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

John 14:6

What a "my-way-or-the-highway" dogma! And he didn't even mention Joseph Smith!

[NautiNurse]

So if some people came to your house with wooden crosses and the intent to nail you and your family to them, you wouldn’t mind?

[Tennessee Nana]

When you espouse your-way-or-the-highway dogma with seething hatred toward all people of a different faith,
___________________________________________

Ya know Joey Smith started this type of thinking with his homemade religion he called mormonism...

A whole religion based on “(my)-way-or-the-highway dogma with seething hatred toward all people of a different faith”

Whatcha think about that ???

Are there any posts from you about condemning that type of belief ???

That belief caused his followers to murder people just because they were not mormons...

That belief caused his followers to hate black people and talk ugly about them...

That belief caused his followers to mistreat women...

That belief caused his followers to get drunk, commit crimes, treat women like cattle, rob, and kill non-mormons, and plot against the United States government...

[Tennessee Nana]

Did that happen to you ???

The wooden crosses ???

[ejonesie22]

LOL

Oh SNAP!

[Tennessee Nana]

Joey Smith, “Which church should I go to? Which way leads to God?”

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

[mlo]

"You're either retarded or insane."

And you're a jerk, but calling names doesn't make an argument.

"Huh? Oh, really? Says who(m)?"

The question would be, who says they did? It's a fact that there is no independent evidence that apostles of Jesus actually wrote the gospels. They appear decades after the events from unknown anonymous authors.

"You can't try to parse your way out of your nonsensical posts or win the argument by changing what I said. And I notice you ignored my Josephus reference."

You are confused. I didn't "parse" anything and I'm not changing what you said. I simply pointed out that the gospels AND Josephus were not contemporaneous sources. That's a fact. And I didn't ignore Josephus, I addressed it in my first post.

"A former Muslim and scholar of Islam could find no evidence that Mohammed ever existed. That "some people say Jesus never existed", has nothing to do with anything."

Really? Seems like pretty much the same statement.

[NautiNurse]

Do you always answer questions with questions?

[Tennessee Nana]

I take that as a

“No Nana, it didnt happen to me”

Well it did to many black perople...

And the racism and hate fromn the mormons didnt help the black people...

Mormon doctrine of hate and racism emncouraged rather than dispelled murders and ill treatment of blacks...

The mormon doctrine on blacks equates to those “people (who) came to your house with wooden crosses and the intent to nail you and your family to them” that you mentioned...

Until the mormons were forced to change their doctrine against blacks in 1976, the mormons were still discriminating against people just becasuse they looked different...

The Civil rightsd Act was passed in 1964...it took the mormons 14 more years to give lip service to the law...

Such is the mormon “seething hatred toward all people of a different” color ...

Even now, 33 years later, there are still no blacks in leadership...

But there is a black president...so I guess that makes up for something...

[Elsie]

...misrepresentations, distortions, out of context, lies...

Please!

Point some out so I can see them!

[Elsie]

 

 They interpret the scriptures as giving them license to do what they do...

 

 

 

THE ARTICLES OF FAITH
OF THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS

 

11.   We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.

 

 Joseph Smith

 

Unless you don't LIKE it??

[Tennessee Nana]

Point some out so I can see them!
____________________________________________

Here use the glasses and the rock-in-the-hat...

Joey’s not using them...