Mormonism talks about having priesthood power and authority, granted by God to act in his name. Actually, it's just trumped up justification for bossing people around. It's as bogus and self-serving as the divine right of kings.

After all, authority is completely unnecessary if you don't want to control people. And the "power" part is just a tool get people believing you might actually have some authority. "Oooo, I can make magic happen for you -- if you obey me. And I have the authority to demand that, thanks to the invisible man, who speaks only to me."

My partner recently located her patriarchal blessing and it says... remember to always heed the counsel of "THOSE WHO HAVE AUTHORITY OVER YOU". WTF???

Kind of like Oaks saying in the PBS special. "Never criticize those in authority over you, ever ,even if you are right"- at least that is really close , I just sat and thought , "Are you kidding me?" It seems to me that Oaks thinks of himself as a god, because that statement, at least for me, is just so self serving pompous, self righteous and ridiculous. The guy really has a superiority complex that never ends.

BTW, do any of you remember the talk he gave in GC a year ago last fall? It was about how God does NOT love his children unconditionally, that we must be obedient to obtain his love. And that we in turn need not love our children or other family members that do not keep the commandments. It was just unreal, and there were a lot of complaints here on RFM about it.

Well, I fairly recently looked up that talk for some reason and guess what? I was not even all that surprised. It has been completely revised and changed, though much of it is the same. All the stuff about no need for unconditional love for disobedient family members is gone. No talk about God loving us ONLY if we obey. They MADE him change it, just as they did Poolman a few years back when he spoke about agency, and I am sure many others have been changed over the years as well, when they do not like what they say. Well, I for one, was glad they made him redo it. Apparently they put him in front of the pulpit, dim the lights and have him do it over with a laugh/cough tract so they can put it on video online.
And I always was told when they spoke at GC, it was the same as scripture and prompted by the HG. Unbelievable, except I know it is true.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 06/11/2011 11:29PM by think4u.

That every person who ever told me God was speaking to me was actually telling me to do something that was in their own best interest, I had a problem. The CogDis started to grow a lot faster at that point.

I think Phil Collins states it best:

"I've been talking to Jesus, and he knows I'm right...and he's been telling me everything's gonna be alright."

He told me in a dream. Snap to it! Then the toilets.

Rodger that.

Over Overt.

Rodger Rodger.

Realizing that is a huge step in recovery from Mormonism!

NO human being has spiritual authority over another!

I love that last line there WWN. Sooooo true.

If a person has the power of God they can say to some one "be healed" and they will be healed.
No BS.
NO conditions.
If a person cannot do that the do nod have the power of God!!

yes desert rat, that is the crux of it.

I joined a church that claimed the NT gifts of the spirit. That was interesting and exciting to me.

But in many decades of looking, I could not find any one actually operating the gifts of the spirit. Much was made over a speaking assignment, wherein a person might "feel the spirit", or be "inspired by the spirit to speak the truth", but there was rarely a mention of any other "gift" in operation, and little visible examples of it either.

The most obvious gift of the spirit would be the ability to heal another with a blessing by god's authority. But rare has been the case when anyone would claim a divine healing, or even less, where evidence of divine healing was readily visible to all.

For example, my first son, an RM and TR holder, has been ill since just after his mission, over twenty years, with fibromyalgia and related illness, and he has been given priesthood blessings. But year by year, his health declines further. His wife was given many priesthood blessings for her illnesses, but she declined for years, and passed away at 50.

I've seen many die under priesthood blessings.

In my experience, this is typical of most member illness. There are many who feel blessed to recover from a cold or some other small complaint, but never a healing for a major illness or debilitating crippling disease or injury.

Where's the gifts of the spirit? Without them, can there be a restoration of the NT church?

Growing up TBM, isn't it a power thing to go through the "ranks" to get to the next level? Didn't you feel speshul when you got to the next rank?

I would think this is a form of control and to keep one drinking the Kook-Aid to get to the next level, i.e., if I do xyz, I can receive the Melch. priesthood and marry in the temple, etc. Then once the TBM does all the "right" steps expected of him, he is a young RM TBM with a family and is STUCK on the hamster wheel of the cult.

One of my big realizations was that no matter how high on the ladder I climbed, I would always have someone over me. Even if I became a god, I'd only get there and remain there via obedience. I'd only be a franchisee of a very rigid parent company. That's where Mormonism's carrot on a stick leads.

guys like Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, Heber J. Grant, etc., would rank just slightly below Jesus and Big Daddy Elohim...and they would have authority over us...FOREVER.

The more I learned about these guys, the more I realized that having such guys as your bosses for all eternity really doesn't seem like a good idea.

That, plus it seems like there's a fundamental problem with the whole notion that any place populated by highly enlightened beings of perfect integrity and goodwill needs a rigid heirarchy and chain of command fully staffed with authority figures whose approval and authorization are required for everything. Sounds more like a totalitarian nightmare. The Mormon plan of salvation sounds more like a preparation for learning to love being an obedient cog in a glorified eternal dicatorship.

Mormonism has always been, at its core, an organization dedicated to promoting heirarchy as an ideal.

Gorspel Dacktrin Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> guys like Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, Heber J.
> Grant, etc., would rank just slightly below Jesus
> and Big Daddy Elohim...and they would have
> authority over us...FOREVER.
>
> The more I learned about these guys, the more I
> realized that having such guys as your bosses for
> all eternity really doesn't seem like a good
> idea.
>
> That, plus it seems like there's a fundamental
> problem with the whole notion that any place
> populated by highly enlightened beings of perfect
> integrity and goodwill needs a rigid heirarchy and
> chain of command fully staffed with authority
> figures whose approval and authorization are
> required for everything. Sounds more like a
> totalitarian nightmare. The Mormon plan of
> salvation sounds more like a preparation for
> learning to love being an obedient cog in a
> glorified eternal dicatorship.
>
> Mormonism has always been, at its core, an
> organization dedicated to promoting heirarchy as
> an ideal.

I told my family the Mormon heaven is my idea of hell. Why knock yourself out and waste your life to get a reward you don't want. Also, ever notice the Mormon trip is all about obedience to the leaders of the church period? There is nothing about empowering the individual. I love how they say we can become gods but the church leaders will still be over us in the god realm. I'm sorry but if I'm a god, I don't want any of these priesthood idiots over me.

I wouldn't even want to be in the same room as "these guys" unless it was just to watch them for a while for my own amusement.

Can you imagine living for eternity in the presence of "these guys?"

Great analogy. I am so happy more and more people are opting out of this "corporate" scheme!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/11/2011 10:29PM by FreeRose.

I remember how ridiculous it was when my little brother turned twelve and got the priethood. He let me know that he now had "authority over me" his big sister. He was totally serious. hahaha! freaked me out at the time, but now I know how stupid it all is.

I've even seen Deacons raise their arm to the square and overpower an entire room of adults....

....Yes, after sitting in 2-3 hours of meetings wearing shirts that have not been washed for days, the underarm stench can be that powerful! You disregard their awesome power at your peril.

where I walk into a priesthood session in my old stake house, and blaspheme the BOM, JS, etc, and then challenge the stake prez and/or his possey to strike me down with their penishood. Would love to see their faces when someone tries and nothing happens.