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LDS Church Battening Down Hatches (OPEN)
The Mormon Times ^ | Wednesday, Apr. 14, 2010 | Jerry Earl Johnston

Posted on 04/15/2010 8:56:50 AM PDT by T Minus Four

Think of the Salt Lake Temple as a designer bottle holding a one-of-a-kind fragrance.

Think of the gardens and buildings of Temple Square as bubble wrap around that container.

Think of the City Creek Center to the south, the Church Plaza to the east, the Conference Center to the north, and the Family History Library and Church History Museum to the west as a firm, sturdy box around all of it.

When something merits that much protection, you have to figure rough bumps and bounces are coming down the road.

I get a feeling the LDS Church sees turbulence ahead -- nasty weather -- and it is making preparations.

It's not about being defensive and keeping things out.

It's about being protective and keeping precious things safe.

When the chilly winds blow, forest creatures gather all that's life-sustaining about them.

Horses in the fields cluster together to stand against the hail.

I feel the LDS Church battening down the hatches for bad weather.

The Tabernacle Choir, which was performing musical versions of Robert Frost poetry and other secular works, now releases CDs filled with songs of faith, assurance and the need to rely on the Divine.

I feel protection is the point behind the long row of sentries -- those Mormon temples -- that stand along the Wasatch -- the new Brigham City temple, new Payson temple, the new remade Ogden temple and all the others.

I feel protect precious things is the point of the new mission statements of LDS businesses, the point for books that are picked for publication and the lessons selected for manuals.

Part of the world would divide and conquer.

The church would gather and protect.

Something uneasy this way comes. Not a vilent clash as in Jerusalem -- where cultures fight openly. We won't be seeing stone throwers in the streets of Salt Lake City.

The battle here won't be about territory.

It will be about choices -- about the advent of a bolder, more self-indulgent popular culture.

The church can see the writing on the wall -- often literally.

And graffiti on the temple will never do.

It's time -- as the old hymn has it -- to "safely gather in, ere the winter storms begin."

The plan is not to force people away.

The plan is to keep what's on the inside safe from harm.

And if that means putting up ramparts and watchtowers, so be it.

Even heaven, if you believe the stories, is a gated community -- not to keep people away, but to safeguard the gentle hearts of those who dwell there.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- E-mail: jerjohn@desnews.com Jerry Earl Johnston chronicles his take on the Mormon experience in his column “New Harmony,” which appears on MormonTimes.com on Wednesdays and Sundays.


TOPICS: Other non-Christian; Religion & Culture
KEYWORDS: inman; lds; mormon
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To: svcw

kiattt


461 posted on 04/16/2010 7:42:42 AM PDT by svcw (Habakkuk 2:3)
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To: restornu
 
Many have accused the LDS of being superior but who is doing the belittling towards the LDS faith.

 

MORMON
ATTITUDES OF SUPERIORITY
 

  1. I’m Superior; I have a special gift of the holy Ghost -- you don’t!
  2. I’m Superior; I have God’s true priesthood power -- you don’t!
  3. I’m Superior; I can go in God’s secret Temple -- you can’t!
  4. I’m Superior; I’ve been Endowed with special Gifts and Knowledge -- you’re just normal!
  5. I’m Superior; I’ll have my family with me in heaven -- you’ll be with strangers!
  6. I’m Superior; I’m becoming a God -- you aren’t!
  7. I’m Superior; My women know their place as servants of man and yours don’t.
  8. I’m Superior; YOUR creeds are wrong because they come from man - mine comes from God (you can find each one printed in our Scriptures).
  9. I’m Superior; I don’t HAVE a creed - I’ve got 13 Articles of Faith.
10. I'm Superior; I have 4 "Bibles"-- the standard works (5 if you count the JST) -- you've only got one: in as far as it is translated correctly.
11. I’m Superior; I can lie with impunity about such things as church membership, church growth, church doctrine, church history, church influence, etc. —                           -- You can’t.
12. I’m Superior; I am right (everybody knows) when I say 'evangelical' Christians are lunatics --                            -- You’re a hideous narrow-minded bigot, who is persecuting me by practicing discrimination by saying I'm not a Christian.
13. I'm Superior; I have a testimony about a prophet -- you don't.
14. I'm Superior; I have a Scripture-producing Amos 3:7 prophet -- you don't
15. I’m Superior; I have a Living Prophet who talks to god every day -- you have a dim-witted hireling of Satan who only talks to himself.
16. I'm Superior; I have my calling & election made sure -- you don't.
17. I’m Superior; I have magic underwear to protect me from the bogey man -- you don’t.
18. I’m Superior; I have secret clasps and grips to give the angel so I get admitted to the celestial kingdom -- you don’t ;so you can’t.
19. I'm Superior; I know secret handshake codes for afterlife entrances-- you don't.
20. I’m Superior; I will see Joseph Smith setting on the right hand of GOD, when I get to Mormon heaven, and he will recognize me and judge me favorably                              -- You’re on your own; when you get to wherever you’re going!
21. I’m Superior; I’m going to hie to Kolob -- you’re going to who knows where.
22. I’m Superior; I get to have a harem and act like a celestial stud for time and all eternity -- you don’t.
23. I’m Superior; I have sun stones, moon stones, sky stones, cloud stones, Saturn stones, and the evil eye of Osirus guarding my temple                            -- all you have is a stupid cross.
24. I’m Superior; My church has billions in assets stashed away -- yours has taken a stupid vow of poverty.
25. I'm Superior; Last - we have the power to keep a whole race out of our priesthood if we wanted to reinsert our 148-year legacy  (we ARE still keeping an entire GENDER at bay!)
 
Revision 46.1
Semi-Official creed of the EXclusive club of Freeper Flying Inmans.
All rights liable to be abused.

Why can't the RESTORED gospel be found in the Book of MORMON; like Salt Lake City SAYS that it can?

462 posted on 04/16/2010 7:42:52 AM PDT by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: SZonian

In order for your claims to stand, you must have faith that what JS said is above reproach

***

who among us is perfect except Jesus Christ.

We know little about the other servants of the Lord outside of the Bible we really have no journals nor to know what those who opposed had to say.

We all it seems are easily distracted and have myopic focus seldom do we step back and look at things in the scheme of things.

Many times if not careful one can be easily lead and can lose our testimony for some fantasy concept of how things should be and not how things really are.

Joseph Smith stresses many times “he was only a prophet when acting as a prophet’, the rest of the time he was like anyone else in the test of trial and tribulation.

Did not Jesus say, he who is without sin cast the first stone


463 posted on 04/16/2010 7:44:00 AM PDT by restornu (For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself;)
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To: Normandy; Godzilla

However his work not completed until he had lived on earth, carried out the great atoning sacrifice and been resurrected.
_____________________________________

How did He do that ????


464 posted on 04/16/2010 7:45:02 AM PDT by Tennessee Nana
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To: Elsie
Hey!


465 posted on 04/16/2010 7:45:09 AM PDT by Utah Binger (Mount Carmel Utah, Twelve Miles East of Zion National Park)
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To: Godzilla; Tennessee Nana; Normandy

And here we see that this Momron is fully in line with the pronouncement of Hinckley, that Jesus was duped and that caused the Cross. Yes, Mormons see the Jesus who dwelt among us as a feckless one, not a Savior, not God The Word dwelling among us. But of course, this poster, Normandy, is yet more evidence that Mormons are unable to see the blasphemy they support and promote.


466 posted on 04/16/2010 7:46:13 AM PDT by MHGinTN (Obots, believing they cannot be deceived, it is impossible to convince them when they are deceived.)
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To: Elsie

Many have accused the LDS of being superior
_______________________________________________

Oh I would say that...

Snooty and stuck up but not superior...


467 posted on 04/16/2010 7:46:50 AM PDT by Tennessee Nana
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To: Godzilla

Well you seem stuck in the mud

Have a good day!


468 posted on 04/16/2010 7:46:56 AM PDT by restornu (For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself;)
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To: Elsie

you seem stuck in the mud

Have a good day!


469 posted on 04/16/2010 7:47:51 AM PDT by restornu (For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself;)
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To: restornu

Poor Resty, you continue to missuse Bible passages. To whom did Jesus say this? What was the context of Him saying this? And what was the result of His saying this to those He addressed? ... You really should try reading the Bible by itself, without FAIR and FARMS instruction. Perhaps God’s gentle voice will begin to resonate with your ailing spirit and you will be BORN AGAIN to His deliverance.


470 posted on 04/16/2010 7:48:53 AM PDT by MHGinTN (Obots, believing they cannot be deceived, it is impossible to convince them when they are deceived.)
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To: MHGinTN

It seems you are stuck in the mud

Have a good day!


471 posted on 04/16/2010 7:49:07 AM PDT by restornu (For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself;)
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To: Utah Binger

A few steps I can handle; just step out of the chair and roll it ahead of me. Climbing flights of stairs is not my idea of vacationing, lugging the chair up the flight.


472 posted on 04/16/2010 7:50:25 AM PDT by MHGinTN (Obots, believing they cannot be deceived, it is impossible to convince them when they are deceived.)
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To: MHGinTN

Still stuck in the mud how sad...


473 posted on 04/16/2010 7:50:31 AM PDT by restornu (For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself;)
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To: restornu
So if one does not like the answer the next best thing to do is to demonized the messinger and throw a tantrum.

Joseph Smith (pbuh) didn't like the ANSWER he got from Christianity; so he listened to the demonized messengers and threw himself into creating his OWN religion.

474 posted on 04/16/2010 7:52:17 AM PDT by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: MHGinTN
... (and Elsie in particular)...

...as well as THOUSANDS of his pretties!

475 posted on 04/16/2010 7:53:16 AM PDT by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: Tennessee Nana
His baby was dead and had gone to Abraham’s Bosom (Heaven) ..

Does one read about this in the MORMON Book of Abraham?

476 posted on 04/16/2010 7:54:24 AM PDT by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: restornu
"Joseph Smith stresses many times “he was only a prophet when acting as a prophet’, the rest of the time he was like anyone else in the test of trial and tribulation."

Can you not see the duplicity here? JS is saying that one must ignore his unethical and immoral behavior when "he's not acting as a prophet? Yet everything else he said and did is supposed to have merit?

When did he turn it on and when did he turn it off?

Since you weren't there, you can't know because there is no indication by him when he was supposedly doing so.

Therefore, it is all suspect.

477 posted on 04/16/2010 7:56:06 AM PDT by SZonian (We began as a REPUBLIC, a nation of laws. We became a DEMOCRACY, majority rules. Next step is?)
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To: Normandy
It’s clear to me from what has been revealed that Christ was the Only Begotten Son of God from the beginning. He is the creator of all things — so certainly divine. However his work not completed until he had lived on earth, carried out the great atoning sacrifice and been resurrected.

Again, in your side-stepping, you continue to contradict the teaching and doctrines of mormon prophets and scriptures. You expressly contradict book of abraham where it states that the gods created. The bible expressly states Jesus created. Why is Jesus a "God" as a spirit child - an event that only can occur after being a human. Since spirit children are 'begotten', you further run into contradictions in lds theology - as satan was begotten as a spirit child too.

478 posted on 04/16/2010 7:56:33 AM PDT by Godzilla (3-7-77)
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To: MHGinTN

Acid, mud ...Joey Smith through threw lies at Chrsitianity...

Joey Smith hated the Jesus of the Christian Bible because Jesus cramped Joey Smith’s playboy style

Joey Smith fancied himself the Hugh Hefner of the 19th Century...

He even had a Playboy mansion in Nauvoo..

Briggy Young later had his Beehive and Lion house to hold his stable of concubines..


479 posted on 04/16/2010 7:57:03 AM PDT by Tennessee Nana
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To: MHGinTN
The headquarters building shown in that picture has a straight shot in the door from the parking lot.

The living history museum is on about fifty acres with easy access from the front gate.


480 posted on 04/16/2010 7:57:03 AM PDT by Utah Binger (Mount Carmel Utah, Twelve Miles East of Zion National Park)
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