A practical faith - social proof for Acts16 Dec 2018
Don’t tear down the Mormon faith without offering a better alternative first . Watch Todd White #ActsNow bring social verification in our time to the miracle claims of the Book of Acts.
https://www.facebook.com/ToddWhiteLC/videos/228925561338488/
0 CommentsIs Mormonism Polytheistic or Christian ?5/2/2017
You will be the judge:
Mormonisms claims:
1- God has a father who was married (presumably to many wifes by implication)
2- We have a heavenly mother
3- God has a physically begotten his son Jesus with Mary
4- All faithful temple covenant LDS will become gods in eternity
All future Gods will perpetuate the lineage in creating new gods. Some of these points are affirmed points of Mormon doctrine or at least they are an officially declared and cherished LDS belief. Other points are left open to interpretation and regarded somewhat speculative. As late as 2016 the belief in Heavenly parents / a mother was officially declared from the pulpit in the LDS general Conference. And the LDS website sustains the points I make at least in part, but NOT THE CONCLUSION. Check out …
https://www.lds.org/topics/mother-in-heaven?lang=eng&old=true
Labelling Mormonism as polytheistic does not mean equalling it with paganism in the classical sense of ancient fertility cults which where based on simultaneously worshipped multiple pre-Abrahamic historic deities, which was rejected by Judaism. The only way I could say NO, Mormons are not polytheistic is if I was to narrowly define polytheism as a strictly pre-abrahamic form of non linear pagan fertility based theism. Mormonism is very distinct from that, for example it does not accept temple prostitution while it does centre on Jesus Christ and the bible, just from a Mormon angle based on additional extra-biblical contradictory revelations. Mormon polytheism follows a lineage reaching from pre-mortal eternity to post mortal eternity.
Do I believe in one God only that may answer the prayers of those who pray to the wrong God or have a perception of God that is totally wrong (Mormons, Muslims, and their Heresy, Blasphemy). -YES
Can Mormons be Christians that qualify for heaven if their hearts and conduct is right and their feelings are cantered on Christ, Grace and the Holy Spirit in spite of them accepting heretical doctrines in their articles of faith ? –YES from me, who am I to be their judge. Do I share the historical gospel with them ? YES, but conviction is the work of the Holy Spirit.
Tearing up a Mormons faith before they are ready to receive our witness can be dangerous. Mere persuasion based on historical facts can demolish faith and will not automatically make converts as their new skills in critical inquiry will be unleashed on Christianity as well. This approach can be dangerous with a significant risk of total loss of faith in Jesus Christ. Hence the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the process is paramount.
Is Mormonism Polytheistic and hence a religion distinct from classical Christianity ?
0 CommentsMay 01st, 20175/1/2017
0 Comments
Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri
In my current post mormon phase I am still very pre-occupied with Islam and Islamic parallels that help us understand Mormonism and let us reach out to Mormons and Muslims. I came across a very interesting article from Gatestone Institute on the Muslim dilemma that very much parallels the Mormon dilemma. It relates to the necessity of using smokescreens to create the illusion of plausible deniability. In the internet age historical realities can no longer be fully concealed. Historical facts are now encountered with an attempt on plausible deniability, no matter how hopeless the case, faith must be defended and it works remarkable well. Here is Islams method for mitigating cognitive dissonance by means of concealment and creative argumentation and I quote:
"So what exactly is Qadri up to? He is concealing important information and distorting the Arabic vocabulary in order to drive home a narrative of Islam's deep connection to peace and security. His strictures against terrorism are sincere and valuable, yet his whitewashing of historical, legal and scriptural treatment of non-Muslims and the actual practice of jihad only serves to perpetuate a myth. Qadri and many others who adopt this position are, sadly, engaged in setting up a smokescreen. The tactic, as a comment explains, may be found online:
"To get people to believe in two contradictory beliefs, present them both as part of a larger belief system where it is more important to accept the whole system than question 'minor' inconsistencies within it."
That, surely, is exactly how Qadri and so many others (even members of America's left-leaning parties) come to function. It is crucial to be able to see and identify this smokescreen if we do not want to throw the baby (opposition to Islamic terrorism) out with the bathwater (whitewashing the truth). Nevertheless, it is vital to expose and to challenge it if we are ever to come to terms with the true nature of Islam as an expansionist, religio-political ideology.
Image source: ServingIslam/Wikimedia Commons
Text source: https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/10283/islam-facts
0 CommentsWhy the Mormon Church will survive & thrive4/26/2017
0 Comments
The Mormon Church has become a pillar of society and a defender of freedom and the constitution and yet since about 1995 when the internet became really widespread many have predicted its demise. And yet more than 20 years later the church runs steady as she goes. Some disillusionment has set in and a fair share of the members has settled for inactivity, disbelief and nominality. But there are only about 10 thousand activists online and at best a few tens of thousands completely leave each year by having their name removed from the membership record. This is not dramatic. So why is it not much more severe when there is overwhelming proof that the claims of the Mormons to historicity of their scriptures are being baseless ? The simple answer is faith trumps facts and facts and truth have been compartmentalized.
So why is it that faith trumps truth for any true believer ? It is because as humans we crave meaning and spiritual security. We sense we have an eternal soul and seek eternal truth to remove the fear and uncertainty of what happens after death. We naturally look for a life philosophy, belief system or faith that is valid beyond the grave. We also experience a degree of disillusionment with religion. And for up to a quarter of Westerners materialism is the answer. When we die it’s all over, so don’t worry, case closed. However the vast majority of mankind is either spiritually inclined or agnostic and hence open to inquiry.
Our need for spiritual security is being addressed by religions that sell a belief system designed to create spiritual certainty and community. They have discovered the usefulness of apologetics and propaganda and concluded that the end justifies the means.
Many have predicted the decline of Mormonism, some have even voiced its demise. They are all wrong. Yes, the internet did create a dent and is a game changer, but it is in no way fatal, because the defenders of a faith system will simply engage the new media as well. It is all about dominance. If you have the money and the will you can win the information war even if your position is inferior and intellectually harder to defend. You will just change the subject to spiritual and eternal values and argue that this is the only truth that ultimately matters in eternity.
Leaving the Mormon camp to revert to the Christian camp (yes I am a revert, not a convert) makes it fundamentally easier to defend the base line of my faith and maintain my intellectual integrity while pursuing spiritual integrity. To a larger or lesser degree this conflict will be manifest in any faith system, but for me severity of internal conflicts is a game changer.
If you don’t believe me just look at the resurgence of Islam. This is a religion much harder to defend than Mormonism. Mormonism is the youngest religion and it has learned from Islam (70 parallels). Being grounded in modernity and democracy it also has avoided the oppressiveness and extremes of Islam. For many Muslims community matters more than theology, hence they avoid facing the facts, it’s all about values.
So in summary my conclusion is that the Mormon church will never fail, because facts don’t matter that much, because salvation and eternal truth does trump facts. And there is always enough spiritual truth to keep going. The only question that remains is does Mormonism have enough eternal truth to continue to thrive ? This is up to the members. Our desire for certainty, security and peace of mind can deliberately be employed to reign in inquisition and balance our desire for certainty against a curiosity that could feed any doubt resulting from inquiry into truth.
Church membership at 15.9 million as of December 31, 2016.
CHURCH MEMBERSHIP
Total membership........................................................ 15,882,417
New children of record during 2016................................. 109,246
Converts baptized during 2016......................................... 240,131
MISSIONARIES
Full-time Missionaries ........................................................ 70,946
Church-service Missionaries............................................... 33,695
0 Comments
Don’t tear down the Mormon faith without offering a better alternative first . Watch Todd White #ActsNow bring social verification in our time to the miracle claims of the Book of Acts.
https://www.facebook.com/ToddWhiteLC/videos/228925561338488/
0 CommentsIs Mormonism Polytheistic or Christian ?5/2/2017
You will be the judge:
Mormonisms claims:
1- God has a father who was married (presumably to many wifes by implication)
2- We have a heavenly mother
3- God has a physically begotten his son Jesus with Mary
4- All faithful temple covenant LDS will become gods in eternity
All future Gods will perpetuate the lineage in creating new gods. Some of these points are affirmed points of Mormon doctrine or at least they are an officially declared and cherished LDS belief. Other points are left open to interpretation and regarded somewhat speculative. As late as 2016 the belief in Heavenly parents / a mother was officially declared from the pulpit in the LDS general Conference. And the LDS website sustains the points I make at least in part, but NOT THE CONCLUSION. Check out …
https://www.lds.org/topics/mother-in-heaven?lang=eng&old=true
Labelling Mormonism as polytheistic does not mean equalling it with paganism in the classical sense of ancient fertility cults which where based on simultaneously worshipped multiple pre-Abrahamic historic deities, which was rejected by Judaism. The only way I could say NO, Mormons are not polytheistic is if I was to narrowly define polytheism as a strictly pre-abrahamic form of non linear pagan fertility based theism. Mormonism is very distinct from that, for example it does not accept temple prostitution while it does centre on Jesus Christ and the bible, just from a Mormon angle based on additional extra-biblical contradictory revelations. Mormon polytheism follows a lineage reaching from pre-mortal eternity to post mortal eternity.
Do I believe in one God only that may answer the prayers of those who pray to the wrong God or have a perception of God that is totally wrong (Mormons, Muslims, and their Heresy, Blasphemy). -YES
Can Mormons be Christians that qualify for heaven if their hearts and conduct is right and their feelings are cantered on Christ, Grace and the Holy Spirit in spite of them accepting heretical doctrines in their articles of faith ? –YES from me, who am I to be their judge. Do I share the historical gospel with them ? YES, but conviction is the work of the Holy Spirit.
Tearing up a Mormons faith before they are ready to receive our witness can be dangerous. Mere persuasion based on historical facts can demolish faith and will not automatically make converts as their new skills in critical inquiry will be unleashed on Christianity as well. This approach can be dangerous with a significant risk of total loss of faith in Jesus Christ. Hence the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the process is paramount.
Is Mormonism Polytheistic and hence a religion distinct from classical Christianity ?
0 CommentsMay 01st, 20175/1/2017
0 Comments
Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri
In my current post mormon phase I am still very pre-occupied with Islam and Islamic parallels that help us understand Mormonism and let us reach out to Mormons and Muslims. I came across a very interesting article from Gatestone Institute on the Muslim dilemma that very much parallels the Mormon dilemma. It relates to the necessity of using smokescreens to create the illusion of plausible deniability. In the internet age historical realities can no longer be fully concealed. Historical facts are now encountered with an attempt on plausible deniability, no matter how hopeless the case, faith must be defended and it works remarkable well. Here is Islams method for mitigating cognitive dissonance by means of concealment and creative argumentation and I quote:
"So what exactly is Qadri up to? He is concealing important information and distorting the Arabic vocabulary in order to drive home a narrative of Islam's deep connection to peace and security. His strictures against terrorism are sincere and valuable, yet his whitewashing of historical, legal and scriptural treatment of non-Muslims and the actual practice of jihad only serves to perpetuate a myth. Qadri and many others who adopt this position are, sadly, engaged in setting up a smokescreen. The tactic, as a comment explains, may be found online:
"To get people to believe in two contradictory beliefs, present them both as part of a larger belief system where it is more important to accept the whole system than question 'minor' inconsistencies within it."
That, surely, is exactly how Qadri and so many others (even members of America's left-leaning parties) come to function. It is crucial to be able to see and identify this smokescreen if we do not want to throw the baby (opposition to Islamic terrorism) out with the bathwater (whitewashing the truth). Nevertheless, it is vital to expose and to challenge it if we are ever to come to terms with the true nature of Islam as an expansionist, religio-political ideology.
Image source: ServingIslam/Wikimedia Commons
Text source: https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/10283/islam-facts
0 CommentsWhy the Mormon Church will survive & thrive4/26/2017
0 Comments
The Mormon Church has become a pillar of society and a defender of freedom and the constitution and yet since about 1995 when the internet became really widespread many have predicted its demise. And yet more than 20 years later the church runs steady as she goes. Some disillusionment has set in and a fair share of the members has settled for inactivity, disbelief and nominality. But there are only about 10 thousand activists online and at best a few tens of thousands completely leave each year by having their name removed from the membership record. This is not dramatic. So why is it not much more severe when there is overwhelming proof that the claims of the Mormons to historicity of their scriptures are being baseless ? The simple answer is faith trumps facts and facts and truth have been compartmentalized.
So why is it that faith trumps truth for any true believer ? It is because as humans we crave meaning and spiritual security. We sense we have an eternal soul and seek eternal truth to remove the fear and uncertainty of what happens after death. We naturally look for a life philosophy, belief system or faith that is valid beyond the grave. We also experience a degree of disillusionment with religion. And for up to a quarter of Westerners materialism is the answer. When we die it’s all over, so don’t worry, case closed. However the vast majority of mankind is either spiritually inclined or agnostic and hence open to inquiry.
Our need for spiritual security is being addressed by religions that sell a belief system designed to create spiritual certainty and community. They have discovered the usefulness of apologetics and propaganda and concluded that the end justifies the means.
Many have predicted the decline of Mormonism, some have even voiced its demise. They are all wrong. Yes, the internet did create a dent and is a game changer, but it is in no way fatal, because the defenders of a faith system will simply engage the new media as well. It is all about dominance. If you have the money and the will you can win the information war even if your position is inferior and intellectually harder to defend. You will just change the subject to spiritual and eternal values and argue that this is the only truth that ultimately matters in eternity.
Leaving the Mormon camp to revert to the Christian camp (yes I am a revert, not a convert) makes it fundamentally easier to defend the base line of my faith and maintain my intellectual integrity while pursuing spiritual integrity. To a larger or lesser degree this conflict will be manifest in any faith system, but for me severity of internal conflicts is a game changer.
If you don’t believe me just look at the resurgence of Islam. This is a religion much harder to defend than Mormonism. Mormonism is the youngest religion and it has learned from Islam (70 parallels). Being grounded in modernity and democracy it also has avoided the oppressiveness and extremes of Islam. For many Muslims community matters more than theology, hence they avoid facing the facts, it’s all about values.
So in summary my conclusion is that the Mormon church will never fail, because facts don’t matter that much, because salvation and eternal truth does trump facts. And there is always enough spiritual truth to keep going. The only question that remains is does Mormonism have enough eternal truth to continue to thrive ? This is up to the members. Our desire for certainty, security and peace of mind can deliberately be employed to reign in inquisition and balance our desire for certainty against a curiosity that could feed any doubt resulting from inquiry into truth.
Church membership at 15.9 million as of December 31, 2016.
CHURCH MEMBERSHIP
Total membership........................................................ 15,882,417
New children of record during 2016................................. 109,246
Converts baptized during 2016......................................... 240,131
MISSIONARIES
Full-time Missionaries ........................................................ 70,946
Church-service Missionaries............................................... 33,695
0 Comments
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