1. Obedience/Free Agency : LDS teachings are based in the idea that we fought a war in heaven before we were born. The gist of this battle was whether or not we should be able to choose what we do of our own accord (God's plan) or whether we would be forced to be good in order to return to God's presence untainted by sin (Satan's plan). The originator of Mormonism, Joseph Smith said of his followers, "I teach them correct principles and let them govern themselves." It is a grand idea to understand and study an issue, then use your intellect to choose what to do in any given situation.
On the other hand, members are taught that free agency is given in order to choose righteousness, wickedness or any of the "gray areas" are not options if you want to be saved in the kingdom of God. You do not get to choose what personal righteousness is to you, either. Choosing the right means doing what the leaders of the church tell you to do. This is the exercising free agency, they teach. Proper exercise of free agency is choosing to obey everything the leaders of the church instruct members to do, even if it is wrong. Yes, you read that right. Even if it is wrong. As in the following example from General Conference in April 2002: "One of the sneaky ploys of the adversary is to have us believe that unquestioning obedience to the principles and commandments of God is blind obedience. His goal is to have us believe that we should be following our own worldly ways and selfish ambitions. This he does by persuading us that “blindly” following the prophets and obeying the commandments is not thinking for ourselves. He teaches that it is not intelligent to do something just because we are told to do so by a living prophet or by prophets who speak to us from the scriptures."
Somehow you are supposed to believe that unquestioning obedience is not blind obedience? What is unquestioning obedience? It is obeying without looking at the options, without considering the consequences. It is obeying without looking around. Like doing something with blinders on. What is blind obedience? It is obeying without looking at the options and consequences. Like doing something with blinders on. Sounds like the same thing to me.
"Always keep your eye on the President of the church, and if he ever tells you to do anything, even if it is wrong, and you do it, the Lord will bless you for it." --Heber J Grant
vs.
“We have heard men who hold the
priesthood remark that they would do anything they were told to do by
those who preside over them [even] if they knew it was wrong; but such
obedience as this is worse than folly to us; it is slavery in the
extreme; and the man who would thus willingly degrade himself, should
not claim a rank among intelligent beings, until he turns from his
folly. A man of God would despise the idea. Others, in the extreme
exercise of their almighty authority have taught that such obedience was
necessary, and that no matter what the saints were told do by their
presidents they should do it without any questions. When Elders of
Israel will so far indulge in these extreme notions of obedience as to
teach them to the people, it is generally because they have it in their
hearts to do wrong themselves.” --Joseph Smith. (Millennial Star, vol. 14, #38, p 593-595)2. Prophets are human and are therefore imperfect. They do not always speak for God. Members are required to obey the prophet in all his words.
"The Lord will never let his mouthpiece lead the people astray." --Heber J Grant
"When the prophet speaks the debate is over." --N Eldon Tanner, August 1979 Ensign
2. Tithing -- tithing has morphed from voluntary contribution to 2% of your increase (what's left over after necessities are paid) to 10% of income before feeding, clothing, and housing your family. What constitutes income varies by area and local leader's teachings and counsel. Most often it is paid on gross income. It is sometimes paid on welfare, social security, unemployment income, and gift monies.
4. The church will stay out of politics, but they will tell you how to vote if they think it is important (women suffrage, state lotteries, gay marriage, etc)
5. We are Gods in embryo. By living the gospel, men can become Gods in the afterlife, reigning on and creating their own planets, populating them with their own spirit children.
“As man is now, God once was; as God is now man may be.” --Lorenzo Snow
Q: …about that, God the Father was once a man as we were. This is something that Christian writers are always addressing. Is this the teaching of the church today, that God the Father was once a man like we are?
A: I don’t know that we teach it. I don’t know that we emphasize it. I haven’t heard it discussed for a long time in public discourse. I don’t know. I don’t know all the circumstances under which that statement was made. I understand the philosophical background behind it. But I don’t know a lot about it and I don’t know that others know a lot about it.
(Interview with Gordon B. Hinkley, August 4, 1997 edition of Time magazine)
6. Caffeine is forbidden, no it's not.
Various church magazine articles and conference talks reference how it is appropriate for Mormons to not partake of any drink containing caffeine (chocolate is conspicuously absent). Thus many Mormons grow up learning that caffiene is forbidden by the church. However, the following shows the church's official position.
“With reference to cola drinks, the Church has never officially taken a position on this matter, but the leaders of the Church have advised, and we do now specifically advise, against the use of any drink containing harmful habit-forming drugs under circumstances that would result in acquiring the habit. Any beverage that contains ingredients harmful to the body should be avoided.” -- Priesthood Bulletin of February 1972 (volume 8, number 1)
"While we are counseled against taking addictive substances or harmful drugs, the Word of Wisdom does not specifically prohibit caffeine. However, I believe that if we follow the spirit of the Word of Wisdom, we will be very careful about what we consume, particularly any substance that can have a negative impact on our bodies. This is true regarding any drug, substance, or even food that may be damaging to one’s health. This includes caffeine. Think of all the problems that excessive caffeine use causes that could be avoided by following this counsel." --(December 2008 Ensign "The Energy Drink Epidemic")
****This page will be updated as I have time/think of things to add.
No comments:
Post a Comment