Heart of the Matter: The LDS Attitude
Live from the "Mecca of Mormonism," this is the Heart of the Matter. Welcome to Show 14: The Attitude – Part I, March 25, 2008. I’m Shawn McCraney, your host.
Community Announcements
We're starting to get a little top-heavy on the community announcement section. For more information about what's going on in the State, please visit www.bornagainmormon.com. Speaking of Bornagainmormon.com, you can order our book, I Was A Born-Again Mormon, directly from our site. We receive numerous inquiries about what it means to come to the Lord through rebirth, especially as a Latter-day Saint. This book provides a better answer than I could ever give through email.
I Was a Born-Again Mormon is also available at the following locations: Christian Gift and Bible in Sandy, Gift of Grace Christian Supply in Springville, Utah Lighthouse Ministry by Franklin Field, and Oasis Books in Logan.
Spring is almost here, which means summer is close behind. Grab your paper and pencils for a few announcements. Ready?
Upcoming Event: War Camp
An all-male, two-day fishing trip getaway. When: June 2008. Where: Stream-side, not more than an hour or so from downtown Salt Lake City. Why: To fellowship and learn from the Word how to be better husbands, fathers, sons, and Christians. Who: Any males, any age, any beliefs, who want to come. Visit www.bornagainmormon.com to register or get more information.
Clarifications and Apologies
Last week, I misspoke. I said that Gordon B. Hinckley had been sealed to two women. I was wrong, and I apologize. I crossed information I read in an article where he attended a funeral of a General Authority who had been sealed to two women and applied it to him. Sandra Tanner notified me of the fact and provided a great link to an article about past LDS presidents who have been sealed to more than one woman. Thank you, Sandra. Visit www.UTLM.org to read this and many more wonderful articles.
Heart in the Park Renamed
Finally, Heart in the Park has been appropriately renamed to Burning Heart, with a stronger focus on revival and rebirth. It will be held Sunday, September ________ 2008. Please plan on joining us and watch for more announcements.
The LDS Attitude
So does it matter that Mormons believe God has a father who has a father who has a father? Does it matter that they believe Jesus was a created being, along with Satan and ourselves, or that there have been and will be many Gods? Does it matter they believe we existed as spirits in a pre-existent state, that matter couldn’t be created from nothing, that the Fall of Adam was a good thing, or that we are born without sin and automatically children of God?
Do these teachings create a “different type” of attitude within the heart of an LDS person, or are LDS people the same (or even better than Christians) as a result of such beliefs? I’m inclined to think that tonight’s show will bring about even more criticism than usual from the LDS because so much of it is NOT going to be based on recorded facts and written doctrine, but from my personal observations from being an active Latter-day Saint for most of my life.
Admittedly, “subjective analysis or interpretation” is limited in scope, so I do not offer what I am about to say as indisputable, but rather as an interpretation of my own observances as a Latter-day Saint. What may make our show tonight even more offensive to the LDS than usual is our topic – which I’ve titled “the LDS attitude.” When I say, “the LDS attitude,” it should be more than apparent that I am speaking “generally.” Not all LDS fit the mold. Stereotypes, while irritating and often unfair because they contain generalizations, are usually based – like it or not – on some sort of observable truth.
So generally speaking, a verifiable – if not almost tangible and palpable – LDS attitude exists among the majority of members who are active in the Mormon faith. After years of consideration, I personally think the most prevalent attitude in Mormonism – pride – is a direct result of their view on the ontology of God, Jesus taking a position as our Elder Brother, the fable of a noble pre-existence, the unconstructability of matter – even by God, Adam’s fall being positive, and the idea that all men and women are automatically, by birth, children of the most high.
LDS Beliefs and Christian Perspectives
the LDS attitude and explaining why I think it exists as it does, I intend on using the Bible to show that such attitudes are antithetical to how the God describes those who become His children by spiritual rebirth.
Before I share my views, let’s take a moment and quickly compare the biblical views Christians maintain toward these subjects. As we do, ask yourself, which teachings lead to humility, and which teachings lead to pride in the heart of Man?
Where Mormons say God has a father who has a father, Christians say God is the first and the last, the beginning of all things, the end of all things. Where Mormons say God is subject to eternally existing principles and laws He DID NOT create, Christians believe God created all things – all. Where Mormons believe God could only create the universe out of pre-existing material, Christians believe God created everything out of nothing. Where Mormons believe God and His wive spiritually sired Jesus Christ and the rest of us, Christians believe Jesus is God – the alpha and the omega, who created all things, and was not Himself a creation.
Where Mormons believe human beings lived in a spiritual pre-existence where each of us achieved a certain level of righteousness, Christians believe God’s breath into Adam initiated life on earth, which has been propagated forth in the lives of all human beings. And where the LDS believe that Adam’s fall was a fall upward, thereby opening a way for Adam and Eve to procreate, Christians believe that Adam and Eve could have remained obedient, could have bore children in the garden, and could have been faithful to God’s will.
I propose to you that because of these respective beliefs, Christians see themselves for what the Bible says they are –
- Broken, fallen sinful creatures in need of spiritual rebirth –
. . . and Latter-day Saints see themselves for what their doctrines proclaim them to be – God’s spiritual seed who lived righteously in the pre-existence and now, by their goodness and accomplished progression, are headed toward His desired end – Godhood. The first perspective, when truly examined, leads to humility. The second, when merely observed, leads to pride.
Questioning Mormonism
It was perhaps the “LDS attitude” that first got me wondering if Mormonism was as “true” as it claimed it to be. I remember reading the New Testament gospels and trying to figure out why the Jesus of the New Testament wasn’t anything like the model presented to me in the Church – either by the men and women around me or the Jesus they described.
Yes, people were polite like they taught me that Jesus was polite. Yes, people were generally kind and considerate – like the pictures of Jesus I was shown in Sunday School. And yes, truly, I was taught to believe that:
“Jesus wants me for a sunbeam, To shine for Him each day. In every way try to please Him, At home, at school, at play.”
Yet I also recognized that in every ward and every stake there was always this core group of LDS families who were sort of the “embodiment” of all things Mormon, which naturally placed everyone else in a position to either imitate them or to mock them.
It doesn’t take long once you have moved into a ward to know who they are. They were the ones who were generally placed in the most prominent leadership roles . . . The ones who were always asked to give the important talks at Stake and ward Conferences, at Easter and on Christmas. Somehow these “perfects” always bore the strongest testimony at the meetings, which typically served to set everybody straight when things appeared to be a bit off course locally. These are the defenders of the faith, the ardently committed – the stalwarts.
I looked and listened to them closely, wanting to know what drove them to this level of performance? Without exception – without exception – the center of their lives, the focal point, the locust, the median, the foundation – was THE CHURCH and their performance in it. It was NEVER Jesus or a relationship with Jesus. Ever. Heavenly Father? At times. Joseph Smith – frequently. Modern prophets – quite often. The Book of Mormon – always. Never, ever a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
Observations on LDS Leadership
I’ve tried to step back and study these “upper echelon folks and their families.” They intrigue me. In general, I find them to have achieved the lion’s share of temporal success. And the more “professional” this success, the more elevation, responsibility, and honor they tend to receive in their callings.
Doctors, dentists, lawyers,
The Mormon Attitude
And corporate icons were almost always chosen over tradesmen, blue-collar workers, and artists – aside from the occasional and token aberration which served to appease the intellectuals inquest. Those who experienced financial success always seemed to have a place at the head of the line or were more esteemed than those with financial difficulties, and those with higher educations (if they maintained outward humility) were always “ahead” of the dropout or lowly high school grad. This doesn’t mean you couldn’t climb the LDS ladder as a lowly uneducated hayseed. You could. But only up a few rungs. Naturally, successful family men and women would always lead over the divorced, the unmarried, and even the widowed. “But what drives these dedicated souls?” I used to wonder. “What is at the core of their motivations and why are they so spiritually, oh, what’s the word, ‘smug?’” “Why do men and women of seeming intelligence and accomplishment accept this stuff? What is the draw?”
The Purpose of the LDS Church
On November 4th of 2003, my wife and I were having a discussion with one of these “high performance” Mormons who was serving as her Stake President at the time. We were talking about Church programs and he made a startling statement which I recorded in my day-notes after the meeting: He said:
“the whole purpose of the Church is to prepare people to become Gods.”
End quote. For some reason this statement served to officially bridge and “seal” all the gaps I had in my brain regarding the “Mormon attitude” I had witnessed my whole life . . . especially in comparison to the Christian attitude the Bible says everyone should possess.
“The whole purpose of the LDS Church is to prepare people to become Gods.”
“The whole purpose of the LDS Church is to prepare people to become Gods.”
“This what I am seeing being played out all around me,” I thought, “people who actually believe they are going to become Gods? This is what drives them. This is what moves them. The promise of celestial glory, Godhood, eternal increase of trillions upon trillions of children and kingdoms and planets and stars.” And it came to me:
The whole biblical idea of us sinners just getting into heaven by the skin of our teeth is altogether foreign to them. They actually believe they deserve it and have earned it.
The LDS Perspective
Now defenders of the faith will cite all manner of LDS verses that warn about being proud and maintaining humility. And though the LDS certainly teach about being humble, it’s sort of like teaching Marines that they can’t enjoy killing people, but they had better get out there and do it.
Imagine that there is a church that teaches that God is a perfectly fit body-builder. He has enormous muscles and is in perfect physical condition, in addition to His being humble and just and kind. And let’s say this religion also taught that men and women would someday, if they lived right, also become muscle-bound body builders too – just like God. Got the premise?
Because the end-goal of becoming a muscle-bound God has been revealed to them, it would not take very long for the members of this false religion to begin to adopt and present the outward characteristics of their promised future state! Soon, the more heavily muscled and fit people of the organization would automatically – and naturally – be recognized as being more “godlike” (and therefore of more value) than those with less muscle mass and/or physical fitness. In the end, the frail and sickly would be greatly discounted (yet encouraged to have “hope” for the future) and the fat and out of shape would be held in altogether disdain.
The point and parallel is, those who embodied the end-goal “most” while living on this earth would naturally be held in the highest esteem. So it is with Mormonism. And with this “esteem of men” a type of pride that can even present itself as humility.
The late Prime Minister of Israel, Golda Meir once said:
“Stop being so humble, you’re not that great.”
Understanding Christian Humility
What is Christian humility? Like pornography, I can’t define it, but I know it when I see it. This being said, I know Christian humility would never include the audacious idea that
Jesus is my elder brother.
Or that I am ever “worthy” or anything.
Or that God was once a man.
Or that I am righteous.
Or that I am going to become a God.
The problem with the system and its resultant attitude is antithetical to the Bible’s description of a true follower of Jesus. He seeks and uses the lowly. The unlearned. The weak things.
Jesus' Apostles and Their Significance
Who were Jesus apostles? Captains of industry? Lawyers? Doctors? Men of worldly accomplishment? Or did He choose lowly net fishermen? Tax collectors. Even a traitor who killed himself! Why did He build on such a foundation? Because Jesus teachings weren’t geared to “prepare people to become Gods.” They were simply trying to save us sinners from hell. This leads to a big difference in attitude, doesn’t it?
Where temporal status plays a major role in the icons of Mormonism today, the Lord speaks to the people of Laodicea in Revelation and warns them, saying:
Revelation 3:17 . . . thou sayest, “I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing;” and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.
Respecting Persons and Christianity
James warns explicitly in chapter two of his epistle against “respecting persons,” saying:
James 2:1 ¶ My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons. 2 For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment; 3 And ye have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing, and say unto him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool: 4 Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts? 5 Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?
Teachings on Humility
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said:
Matthew 5:3 ¶ Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
The Prophet Isaiah said:
Isaiah 57:15 For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.
When achieving Godhood is the goal, power, progressiveness, business acumen and the acquisition of wealth become the standards by which men are admired and praised. And placed in positions as shepherds. All of which are antithetical to the descriptions of a “Christian” in the Word of God.
Let’s open up the phone lines: (801) 973-TV20 (801) 973-8820
EMAILS
CONCLUSION
For events going on in the State: www.bornagainmormon.com
Lordsword www.lordsword.org
Up and coming events, including:
Traveling Pastor April _____ at Jim’s Family Restaurant in American Fork (with baptisms following)
War Camp (for Men) This Coming June
And in September . . .
Burning Heart A State Revival
Go to: www.bornagainmormon.com for more information.
God bless, and we’ll see you next week, here on “Heart of the Matter.”
