Posted by:
Nightingale
(
)
Date: May 14, 2013 01:47PM
RPackham Wrote:
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> I certainly agree with the BP's endorsement of the
> statements by Brigham Young and Joseph Smith about
> searching for truth, wherever it may be found. No
> ex-Mormon should "cringe" at a suggestion that
> some Mormon prophet said something good or
> praiseworthy, or that there are some truths and
> uplifting things in Mormon scripture.
I was one who said I cringed and what I meant by that was that I wouldn't hold a statement made by JS or BY as my life's motto or inspiration. As a Christian, I would perhaps choose a scripture from the Holy Bible - eg: Paul's words to the Philippians (4:8):
"... whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things." (NIV, 2011)
Others choose lines of poetry or verses of song or even family mottos as their watchwords for life.
With the greatest respect,I think that nobody can say what ALL exmos should say or feel or think or do. Yes, I would cringe to hear the words of JS or BY as my "inspiration" every day. I don't care if they're true or not - and if they are they were probably said by somebody else.
I can understand that a Mormon would still find them powerful, even a questioning Mormon. But I do not. And I'd guess that many here feel the same.
I also meant by my 'cringe' comment that you can find those same powerful statements elsewhere so I would strongly recommend that Mormons, and other believers, not base their membership solely on such shaky foundations.
Even as a convert, I did that for a while with JS. I found that blanking out everything else and just holding onto one statement from a particular period of time did not serve me well overall. And since all my reading on RfM and finding out that JS was a serial adulterer, at best, and was perhaps knowingly involved in multiple abortions*, and that BY was involved to at least some extent in MMM, to borrow a phrase from Bill Maher, that is all you need to know about the both of them.
So, yes, I would cringe to use the words of either one of them for any reason other than to convict them at the very least of being incapable of upholding truth and goodness and of being world class liars with it.
*Disclaimer: I am pro-choice but against abortion the way JS apparently did it, not giving the many women involved a choice in the matter and, as usual, he did it in secret. Ugh. Source: Deconstructor's material found here:
http://www.i4m.com/think/Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 05/14/2013 01:50PM by Nightingale.