Benson — who was contacted by E&P for this story — said journalists have basically given Romney a free pass on the “fundamental contradiction” between being an observant Mormon and a U.S. president. “Most journalists don’t know about actual Mormon teachings and practices,” noted the cartoonist, adding that they instead see the religion as perhaps “strange” but “rather benign.”
Romney “needs to face an informed member of the media with ‘cojones’ who has a working and perhaps personal experience with Mormonism,” said Benson. “It would be harder for Romney to do his well-practiced duck and dodge.”
You can read more here.
Hat tip: Brian Culver
Some questions:
-What are your thoughts on Mormonism?
-Do you think Benson is correct when he says that Romney cannot seperate his religion from his politics?
-Do you think one should keep his/her religion from influencing his/her politics?
-Is Mitt Romney obligated to adhere to the teachings of Mormonism by way of covenant or is he free to rule this country how he sees fit?
11 comments:
Interesting article. thanks for the link J razz and Brian.
I'll tell you my fundimental belief about Mormonism; practicing mormons are not Christians. They don't believe in the Trinity and that effectively makes Jesus' death on the cross useless. Without that death to save them, thier sins are left unforgiven. That's gonna hurt someday.
I definately advocate letting them in when they show up at your door. These people need to hear the true gospel message. I had two or three that would come back every single week. They stopped coming about three months ago when they realized that I wasn't converting.
Benson is not too well thought of out in Arizona by mormons. He is one that a person would think would be just itching to follow Joseph Smith since his granddad was a prophet. Gee, do you suppose that since he knew his granddad personally, that he saw through the hoax?? I found an interesting site talking about Polygamy and how supposed revelation came telling mormons to stop the practice.
Regarding the question "What do you think about Mormonism?", to me Mormonism is a religon that teaches the basic doctrines of the gospel of Jesus Christ found in many other Christian churches. Although diffences in doctines exist, the basic and core beliefs are the same; that we were created by God, He loves us, and we are His children; we know God sent his son Jesus Christ to pay the price for sin and death, so we can return to Him someday. As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (a Mormon), these fundamental beliefs in Jesus are constantly on my mind and in my heart. These principles help me feel peace everyday, because I know who my Father is and that he loves me. The only things that distances me from God are my own mistakes and weeknesses, because otherwise, He is always there by my side.
What I think about Mormonism is that there is no other belief system that has brought me more peace, knowledge about God and His Son, and gospel teachings that I can pass on to my family for their eventual peace and happiness.
Thanks for your time, --Eric
Although diffences in doctines exist, the basic and core beliefs are the same; that we were created by God, He loves us, and we are His children; we know God sent his son Jesus Christ to pay the price for sin and death, so we can return to Him someday.
Not true! the basic and core beliefs are not even close. The mormons have changed the meanings of so many Christian words so as to confuse you. Here is what I mean.
yes, churches do say we were created by God. The question lies in this...who is God? What is His nature? What are His attributes? Is He eternal or a created being?
yes, churches do say God sent His Son, Jesus Christ to pay the price for sin and death. Again, the question lies in this...who is Jesus? Is Jesus eternal or was he once a man who ascended to godhood of his own planet? Is his blood "sufficient" to cover ALL sins (Mormon doctrine says no!), was Jesus born of a miraculous virgin birth or was he conceived by a sexual relationship between an angel and mary?
God does love those who are His. You are following a false Christ, one that is not eternal. Your prayers are not being heard by Him because you have not accepted the One and Only True Jesus Christ of the Bible. You have denied the inerrancy of God's Word in the Bible because your doctrines are extremely contrary to the Word of God. Be not deceived, for many false prophets will arise. If just one prophecy does not come true, that man is a false prophet. The prophecies of Mormonism that have not come true are so numerous and yet, people blindly follow them even though the Bible says not to!
Eric,
In light of what you posted, what would you say to these charges?
Thanks for your comment and I look foward to your reply.
j razz
Brian, I respect your opinion, because you are fully entitled to believe how you choose. My point in sharing my thoughts about Mormonism was just that, to share what I believe and what I've experienced. I don't expect you to agree with everything I say, but I only hope that my story gets heard, because I've found more peace and joy in the way I live than I've ever felt before.
Again, you can believe how you would like, I won't try to change your mind. You may feel that I'm lost, but I very much feel found in the arms of my Savior. I hope you feel the exact same way. Christ's sacrifice is real; I know you believe that, because you are a Christian.
J razz, sorry I didn't get to your thoughts yet. My family and I are driving to celebrate Christmas with my wife's relatives, and I need to go. I hope you too understand my purpose is to share my thoughts and feelings with you about Mormonism, and I hope that in discussing these things we can find some common belief; because I know common beliefs between you and I exist.
Take Care, --Eric
Eric,
Thanks for stopping back by. Please feel free to come by anytime. Know that I am not hostile towards you and I would very much like to have some dialogue on this topic if you so choose.
Once you get back please do stop back by and comment again on the link I gave. I would very much like to hear your thoughts on the topic. Thanks,
j razz
I agree, Eric, I am not hostile towards you either. I have to tell you that while I was a mormon, I too felt great peace, comfort and a sense of being right with God. Life was good for me. I had loving people around me who truly cared for me. I was encouraged to walk with Jesus and to be set apart from the world. I felt I was doing everything right and was very happy. It wasn't until I saw the errors and my common sense told me to check them out, that everything started to change. no one within the church, or the hierarchy in Salt Lake City, could answer my questions without flipping their stance. That was not logical to me. If it was from God, it should never change as we are told in the Bible. God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. He is eternal and has existed for all eternity. We cannot become a god. Do a study on masonic lodge rituals and see how much of that has infiltrated the mormon church/temple rituals. Why? Because it is widely known that Joseph Smith was a mason. Why is that important to know. The Masonic Lodge has a time of prayer, but when they pray it is not to the God of the Bible, and it is not "in the name of Jesus" but rather it is to a general all encompassing god to satisfy everyones beliefs. There are some excellent links that show you word for word what Joseph Smith taught and how his teachings have changed over the years. God's Word does not change. The message from the beginning of the Bible to the end of the Bible is in perfect harmony. The Mormon doctrines are in complete disharmony with Scripture. We care about your eternal destination. Feeling good in church is not what we are called to do. And it is not a sign of authenticity.
Brian and J Razz, I wrote a draft response to your previous posts, but it is not finished yet. In the meantime, I just found an interesting article regarding the Mormon worldview (see the link below)
http://newsroom.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/eng/commentary/a-mormon-worldview
I highly recommend this short article because it encourages those with questions about Mormonism to focus on what inspires members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons). While differences exist between Mormon doctrines and those of other religions, what I find is the most interesting part of Mormonisn is how it answers the fundamental questions of whence, why, and where (see the link above).
Take Care, --Eric
it's not about what inspires a mormon to be a mormon. It is about who Jesus is and the difference between mormons and Christians is too great a divide. It can not be stated enough times, Jesus is not the brother of Lucifer!
Above all, the main purpose of God’s numberless creations is to allow his children to be happy.
I would disagree with this statement based on scripture. Scripture (The Holy Bible) teaches that God's main purpose of his creation is to bring glory to Him. Thus, it is God-ward focused, not man-ward focused.
Getting at the heart of Mormonism is best undertaken not by narrowly focusing on controversy and getting mired in esoteric theological debates, but through a more imaginative examination of the worldview that inspires its members.
Eric, I struggle with the above statement because of these reasons:
1. That statement fails to answer this question adequately: How does one come to know God? The LDS document states we know Him via an imaginitive examination of the worldview of mormons.
2. The document you cite says that one should look imaginatively at the worldview of the collective mormon people. That is subjective. That feeds into pluralism and results in one saying "believe what you will and you shall be saved". There is no source by which a standard can be erected, by which one can turn to even begin to shape that worldview that your citation states one should look.
3. Biblical Christianity would turn one to an objective standard. That standard being contained in scripture, which is God-breathed and the way in which one comes to know their God. Sola Scriptura.
Thanks for coming back by Eric. I look foward to your finished draft in response to the paper I cited above.
j razz
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