This month's New Era has an article about a convert going through intolerance when she joins the mo church.

http://lds.org/new-era/2011/08/i-chose-baptism?lang=eng

Quote: "My parents took back my credit card, my cell phone, and my car. They ignored me for a few months and would not let me speak to my brothers. My sister also found it difficult to accept me for a while."

Mormons find this behavior by gentiles disturbing, but also evidence of their truth (the persecution syndrome).

But when they ostracize and rail against those that leave, they are justified and not persecuting.

My son at 8 chose not to get baptized. The ex and her mom hammered on him and were angry. They took away his game system, scolded and punished him for being rebellious. (To relieve this stress, I wrote a letter to his bishop forbidding the baptism. The anger diverted to me thereafter and my son is better off now.)

The other thing I have pointed out, and for which I get no thoughtful answer--If Joseph Smith had been compelled to be baptized at 8 into methodism or some other church, and told that doubt & fear are of the devil, would he have questioned enough to go to the woods to pray about which church to join? Shouldn't we let our 8-year-olds have a chance to mature before deciding for them?


Also, there's this quote:

"That moment of peace at my baptism has guided my life. Every big decision I make must have that peace, or I cannot live with it."

As if there're no grays in life. Typical splitting of cultish minds.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 08/31/2011 09:21AM by Jesus Smith.

I'm still happily married to my TBM wife and I'm not sure how I'm going to handle the situation when our son turns 8. I really don't want to start my son down the road I was sentenced to.

weaverone Wrote:
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> I'm still happily married to my TBM wife and I'm
> not sure how I'm going to handle the situation
> when our son turns 8. I really don't want to
> start my son down the road I was sentenced to.


I added a statement above you may not have seen the first time:
If Joseph Smith had been compelled to be baptized at 8 into methodism or some other church, and told that doubt & fear are of the devil, would he have questioned enough to go to the woods to pray about which church to join? Shouldn't we let our 8-year-olds have a chance to mature before deciding for them?

Also, I have my youngest turning 8 in a couple of weeks. I spoke with him about it, and told him whatever he chooses, he is allowed to choose differently when he is older. Not to let others tell him that it is a life decision that can't be undone later.

After all, I said to him, you don't have to decide right now what college you will attend, your political affiliation, what house you'll live in as an adult, what car you'll drive for the rest of your life, who you might marry or not, what kind of hair style you'll have for life, etc. So why should you have to choose what you believe in now, for the rest of your life? You don't.

He seemed consoled by that.

Sorry, I didn't see that. That's a great hypothetical situation. He's only 5 right now, so I have some time to get ready to help him understand that HE is the one who decides what he believes. Not us, not his primary teachers, but him and him alone.

I think it's sad when parents punish kids for having the presence of mind to want to choose what they believe. I understand why parents do it, but it's still sad.

After reading this article, I wonder how it was that I somehow survived college without having a credit card, a cell phone, or a car. Neither did I have a portable music system, a stereo, nor any other gizmo. I didn't feel persecuted about it, either!

I notice that Ms. Ence is a part-time English teacher at Dixie State University. This New Era article is going right onto her resume.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/31/2011 09:34AM by summer.

If the story is true, I can see the parents being hard-core Catholics, Seventh Day-ers, and the daughter just switching her brain's religion center over to a new focus. I can also see the daughter giving the High'N'Mighty treatment to the family without realizing how she's tearing their hearts out and also not realizing that she fell for the cult tactics and possibly hormonal conversion.

It was a little like this around our house at conversion time, but things settled fairly quickly.

This, of course, is assuming this article is real and not a FPS. It reads like it was manufactured.

P.S. The kid's in college? She oughta own her own car by now...

...how Mormonism worked, I saw several cases of, "It's bad when someone else does it, but it's good when we do the same thing, because we're on the Lord's side." I couldn't get comfortable with the idea that the supreme moral authority would sanction, or even require, morally questionable tactics and behavior. We were supposed to do what was right and let the consequences follow, knowing that truth and righteousness would triumph, right? But it was okay to do some ugly crap as long as it was for the right team? Ummmmmm, no, I couldn't buy that.

In Mormonism, the "right thing" is whatever advances the purposes of Mormonism.

Stray Mutt Wrote:
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> In Mormonism, the "right thing" is whatever
> advances the purposes of Mormonism.


+1 +1 +1 +1 +1 +1 +1 +1 +1

I also noticed this "OK when we do it, bad when anyone else does" attitude. This uncomfortable observation went on my shelf, but was there to strike me on the head (along with many other things) when the shelf came crashing down!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/31/2011 01:26PM by WiserWomanNow.

Stray Mutt Wrote:
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> ...how Mormonism worked, I saw several cases of,
> "It's bad when someone else does it, but it's good
> when we do the same thing, because we're on the
> Lord's side."

I have always thought that the motto on Utah license plates should be "But That's Different."

Cant be sure wht the LDS position is.

What I find interesting is there is a "false prophet" who endorses qnd supports the anti-Christ, mentioned in the Book of Revealations. Only the LDS Church, breakaway LDS groups, and some small cults have a living man they call "
the prophet" today.

oooops ! Above comment meant for LDS AntiChrist topic. Too many windows open.

...If it is I just may have to organize the first Family Home Evening at my home in ten years!

It'll be a lesson hypocrisy and this little article will be the main example.

They are all very legendary about converts who are persecuted when they joined the church.

After leaving though, I think the worst things I have seen as persecution comes from the Mormon side.

Sweet sexmas side salads they hate dissent.

Raptor Jesus Wrote:
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> After leaving though, I think the worst things I
> have seen as persecution comes from the Mormon
> side.

I've never been shouted down as I have on FB for just quoting from an ensign article and posting a link to the article on LDS.ORGy. No comment was necessary. Just my name associated with that link is enough for some Mos to go off like after-church Sunday spooge. (trying to speak in Raptor's language here.)

That was good of you Jesus to divert the anger away from your son towards you. My kids live in a predominantly Mormon area and they know well that they can always use the "dad won't let me" excuse. The biggest thing that helps them is that both parents are exmos.

Thanks, Alex. I get a lot of crap for doing that in other circles, but it's good to have the support here. We're not alone in our struggles.