Suppose your daughter found out that her husband was not who he claimed. Rather than having the job he claimed, he was actually running a Ponzi scheme and had been since before she met him. He had used their children as salespeople in the Ponzi scheme for a period of 18 months for her daughters and 24 months for her sons.

Her husband claimed to have been paying ten percent of his income to charity but had actually taken that ten percent and invested it in real estate and business ventures. He also had her and the kids participate in a ceremony on a regular basis that he claimed was a revered family tradition. She finds out it was actually a pledge ritual he learned in his frat house while in college.

Would that make your daughter angry? I mean, her husband is a great guy and she feels good whenever she spends time with him. Dishonesty to that extent is not that big of a deal is it?

In reality I think she would be furious. Divorce and a public smear campaign to let everyone know his devious nature would likely be the result. In the parable, and the case of Mormonism, the fraud is not minor nor is it merely an accidental and temporary slip. It is a calculated fraud with many layers of deception actively perpetuated over the course of decades.

It is the same reason many people are furious when they find out about ongoing fraud such as Bernie Madoff or Enron. It was not a temporary lapse in judgment or a brief moment of passionate anger. It was cold and calculated crime, cared out daily over the course of many years. It reveals a very disturbing devious character that resides at the very core of those who start and knowingly perpetuate the crime.

I can see how some people would have a personality that would allow them to not get angry at being thus wronged. However, I would think that extreme caution would be warranted in all cases. Someone may be obtaining benefits from church membership at the present time. However, it may prove to be damaging at some latter date or it may be harmful to family or friends.