Several years ago before I knew the truth, I had the most wonderful church job ever. I was in charge of getting families to scrub the toilets clean every Saturday. I remember this one Sunday where a member of the bishopric was there and this very nice looking female (about 35 years old) came into the building asking to meet with the bishop. She told me she used to attend church as a teenager, had not attended in years, her boyfriend had left her and she wanted to start attending church again with her child.

I introduced her to the bishop councilor that was there and they went down the hall to talk. After she left, the bishop councilor was so excited, he told everyone that was there that they would be holding a church court soon. There was no love for this woman, her child or them coming back to worship with the saints. There was such a feeling of an evil desire to punish and humiliate this woman.

It seems the Mormon god is more interested in more pain and more suffering than in blessing the lives of his followers.

Do you agree?

I couldn't agree more.

In my book, this is the EXACT OPPOSITE of Christianity's foundation.

Robotic, knee-jerk, cult behavior at work here.

But... but... where's the fun in letting someone off the hook?

I guess the LDSinc has the highest number of excommunications? PURE EVIL!!!!

Any mainstream Protestant or Catholic church would welcome her back with open arms and welcome her child too.

What's worse open guilt trips or passive aggressive guilt trips? God loves everyone...including the sinners.

Not even remotely close to the same. At least in the Christian/protestant church people don't claim to be perfect. It's understood and accepted that everyone sins.

This is where any work that is being done to provide alternatives to Mormonism for BICs, prospective converts/investigators, and decent people needing genuine fellowship and community is time and resources well spent.

Very accurate story, it is credible. Very horrible story.

"Court of Love!, We're having a court of Love!!"

It's so weird how quick they are to get rid of their own and then they go out and try so hard to bring in new converts. That makes no sense.

Maybe they think, "Fine, we'll get rid of you and bring in someone better."

I find it a rejection of the atonement of Christ. It puts fellowship and community over the whole atonement.

Shepherd leaves his flock to save the one, not the Mormons. The shepherds eat their lost sheep in front of other sheep for sport to let the other sheep know they must obey, this above all is the purpose of the flock. To obey the shepherd.

AMEN 1000%

well said.

I had a neighbor in Provo who was a member of the church, but was very inactive. She was living with a man (not married) and they were raising her two boys (from her previous relationship). The Bishop discovered that she had been baptized at 8 years old. He only lived a few doors down from her so he took it upon himself to knock on her door and proceed to tell her that she was living in an adulterous relationship. She told him that she no longer believed in the LDS church and told him that he had no right to come knock on her door. He came back a few days later with a paper informing her that she had been excommunicated.

B@stard.

Hester and Pearl in the twenty first century. Trust Mormons to be archaic.

Really. "Sinners in the hands of an angry gawd", Roger Williams and John Calvin are alive and well in Moism.

Their lust for judgments and punishments vastly outstrips their love of others. And the Mo gawd is the worst offender of all.

One more thing, I have a Christian friend who thinks that this is a strange way to help teach someone about forgiveness (excommunicating them). She feels the best way to help them overcome sin is by welcoming them with open arms. I see other posters on this thread feel similar.

Did she say she was a lesbian? Why would they excommunicate her?

This sounds like "You can't leave me, I'm dumping you!" but I don't know why they want to excommunicate her.

they are punishing her for being a naughty girl in the past

Don't think for a moment that mormonism is about love, forgiveness, or even compassion.

In my experience most of the leaders are like vultures. They will circle the crippled, and disabled waiting for the moment they're so weak they can't fight back. It is then that they will come in for the kill. They call it love and compassion. It's not. It's more like power and ego. They feel superior, and good while they are taking you out. They are using your brokenness to feed their ego. They are insatiable. They will hunt you, track you, and taunt you. They feel good while they are doing it.

Once you've been destroyed, they will attempt to play God and bring you back in a circumstance that has you completely bound to their rules and demands. There's no humiliation that's too much. If they succeed,they will take all of the credit. They will also drag you through the mud over and over. They will do all they can to make sure you are never strong enough develop and follow your own mind and will. Their goal is to Break you. You will never be acceptable until you are church broke. Even then, they will circle. Waiting, watching for the moment to dive in and feed off of you. As long as you are one f them, the circling never stops.

+100

Yes, absolutely, they will try to break you.

They call it a "Court of Love", but it is all about hatred and rejection and punishment.

The Mormons actually tell the victims that "it is for your own good." They say that an excommunication will give the sinner a chance to start over. They can be re-baptized and washed clean, and go from there. When I first moved into our Utah ward, there was a middle-aged couple down the street that had a history. She was very beautiful (envied by other women) and had been divorced all the years she raised her children. All those years, she had been in love with her handsome boss, and had seen him through two divorces of his own. When he was finally available again, they had sex (both single at the time), and confessed to the bishop, who had both of them excommunicated. The couple were advised not to get married until they were "square with The Lord", but they got married, anyway, and were married 30 years, until she died. The boss had to start over with his priesthood, and had had the humiliation of passing the sacrament with the Deacons, then blessing the sacrament with the Priests, then ordained an Elder in front of everyone--I mean, it was painfully embarrassing to watch!

Mormon bishops hold less and less power.

They are like the apartment managers who keep the irate tenants from contacting the owners. Sometimes they refuse to reveal who the owners are because it is their job to placate complaints --not resolve them, just shut them up.

Our apartment manager quotes from the manual as an answer to questions. Section and verse.

Evicting people and re-renting apartments is the one area where the apartment manager has power. Likewise, recommending people for excommunication and baptizing is what the bishop is free to do without checking with Salt Lake.

Since baptisms have dwindled, the "Courts of Love" are on the increase. Gotta show that power somehow.


Anagrammy

I saw this very thing happen in San Angelo, TX. We had a pretty and young inactive LDS girl who was in the Air Force who had decided to re-activate. She was going to marry another military guy she had met, and he was going to be baptized. I served an entire day with her in a ward budget activity, back in the budget days (I think we were doing inventories for 7/11) or church cleanup activity or something. Whatever the case, I talked with her a lot. Her boyfriend was there, too. She was happily telling us all how he was going to be baptized soon, and they would get married in the temple some day. Then the very next Sunday the bishop stood up in priesthood and announced that she had been excommunicated for pre-marital sex with her boyfriend, but that her boyfriend was being baptized that same day in the chapel. He asked that we support the two of them. I gamely went to the baptism, and both the young man and young lady were tearful and crying throughout.

I left the ward soon after. I have no idea what became of them.

(Take note how it used to be, too, how that the bishop would announce to the body of Melchizedek priesthood holders the excommunications and disfellowshipping of members, even saying why. I remember that in the 1950s they were still announcing excommunications from the pulpit in sacrament. In DW's ward, a member of the bishopric was excommunicated for adultery, and when his excommunication was publicly announced, he had to come up and apologize to the ward. Mormons have come a long way. Or have they?)

But... but... but..... it's a court of LOVE, right?

Can you honestly think of a more barbaric method, (except for burning at the stake), to impose FEAR as the core of your cult than to threaten with a scarlet letter and eternal damnation and separation from your only perceived source of love? These "LOVE" courts are nothing but an equalizer for continued male domination using "THE PRIESTHOOD", as the mask of terror.

I never experienced it, but I have a sister that did. Her rendition of the event was nothing short of ultimate humiliation at the hands of stereotypical misogynists with advanced egos, PARTICULARLY at the expense of women. I believe her. The process assisted in her finally waking up to the fraud of it all and walking away.

ANY ORGANIZATION THAT USES PUNISHMENT, IMMEDIATE OR PERCEIVED ETERNAL, TO ENSURE COMPLIANCE IS GUARANTEED TO EXPERIENCE MOMENTS OF EXHILARATION BEFORE THE AWFUL TRUTH BECOMES OBVIOUS TO THE MASSES. LOOKING AT THE FRANCHISE HISTORY OF MORMONISM, ALONG WITH THE AVALANCHE OF PROOF OF IT'S FRAUDULENT BEGINNINGS AND FOUNDATION, THE TIME WILL COME IT WILL SUFFER THE SAME DEMISE IT USES ON OTHERS!

I'm looking forward to that day. It is coming. The evidence is insurmountable and will eventually have the effect the church dreads......THE TRUTH!

I would venture to say that most mainstream Christian churches would consider this behavior very odd indeed. Why immediately ex someone who is just coming back to church? And why be so excited about it?

I'd imagine there will be an internal struggle within bishops to figure out if the want the power of excommunicating someone or the extra numbers on their rolls as people keep dropping off the radar.

Also. I just had a horrifying thought. In college, my roommate faithfully attended the campus single's ward and confessed all kinds of shenanigans to the bishop. He was a nice old man, and he never "punished" her any more than not taking the sacrament, I think. . . do you mean to tell me that all the RM's in there knew what she was up to because the bishop told them in priesthood meeting? wow. that's terrible! They are essentially her peers and her dating group. . .

From my experience as a bishop, few bishops enjoy excommunicating anyone unless it is seen by the individual as the first step on the "road to recovery." Bishops genuinely think that you have to kick out someone to start them back on the right path.

Of course it's absurd, and of course keeping someone in an institution would be a more compassionate way of dealing with behavior the organization thinks unacceptable, but they are convinced otherwise.

But it's all done in Love....... and allows for one more chance of control, fear,and craziness in Mormondum.

Not knowing when they already have it good, and then going for more, that is the MORmON way.

I had friend that they could not wait to Ex com because he did not kiss the ass of the stake pres and bishop enough to suit them as they gave him some really stupid advice. They did manage to dis fellowship him. A few months later facts prevailed that proved he was not guilty of the grounds used to dis fellowship him.
They told him: Good news! you are going to be reinstated sooner than scheduled, and your new baby is going to be considered BIC.
Guess what he told them? -tell some one who might care!

That was the end of his MORmON church affiliation.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/02/2013 10:09PM by lucky.