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They are such a derivative that they take the LDS church out of the umbrella of Christianity. And don't kid yourself, I'm also no fan of the evangelical, "born again" crowd, either, but I accept them as Christians, because they try to run their lives by the New Testament.
They are such a derivative that they take the LDS church out of the umbrella of Christianity. And don't kid yourself, I'm also no fan of the evangelical, "born again" crowd, either, but I accept them as Christians, because they try to run their lives by the New Testament.
Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn. I've got news for you, robertpolyglot... When I stand before God to be judged, He's not going to be asking you whether or not you accept me as a Christian. As my favorite Catholic (Mother Teresa) once said, "For you see, in the end, it is between you and God. It never was between you and them anyway."
Like I actually care what you think? I've got news for you, robertpolyglot... When I stand before God to be judged, He's not going to be asking you whether or not you accept me as a Christian. As my favorite Catholic once said, "For you see, in the end, it is between you and God. It never was between you and them anyway."
I'm not saying you won't get there. I just hope you and I won't be floating around on the same cloud.
I also don't think it'll be like court or "The Wizard of Oz," where you'll be sitting there all by your lonesome, trembling, and having to defend what you did and didn't do.
I'm not saying you won't get there. I just hope you and I won't be floating around on the same cloud.
God wouldn't be so cruel.
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I also don't think it'll be like court or "The Wizard of Oz," where you'll be sitting there all by your lonesome, trembling, and having to defend what you did and didn't do.
You may be surprised. On the other hand, I don't think we'll be there alone, either. The scriptures tell us Jesus Christ will be our Mediator. One thing for sure... we won't be judging one another then, so go right ahead and get it out of your system while you still can. Personally, I'd prefer to not have to try to explain to God why I was always bashing religions other than my own.
Except that Kolob isn't the Mormon name for Heaven. It's simply the name of a star mentioned in "The Pearl of Great Price."
I know it's not the name for heaven... but isn't it the highest place one could hope to go? Others will go to other places that could be compared to purgatory or limbo? (Correct me if I'm mistaken..!)
Why does a Mormon or any other denomination have to explain themselves to other Christians? Do non-Mormons feel so insecure that they think exposure to Mormons will cause them to change?
If one is going to proselytize their faith wouldn't it be better to do so by example than to point out what they think are flaws in another person's belief?
You may be surprised. On the other hand, I don't think we'll be there alone, either. The scriptures tell us Jesus Christ will be our Mediator. One thing for sure... we won't be judging one another then, so go right ahead and get it out of your system while you still can. Personally, I'd prefer to not have to try to explain to God why I was always bashing religions other than my own.
Three things:
1) There are a lot of religions I don't mind, including Muslims, for example, because they respect boundaries and can make good friends with whom religion is a non-issue
2) Not liking a religion does not mean disliking ALL of its people, and that they won't be saved
3) I don't think any exclusionary behavior is Christ-like, and not just based on my experiences, but those like that of an adult Protestant man with children who had to pack it up and leave SLC because of a "glass ceiling" problem for which he was readily able to get a job at the same level elsewhere in the Intermountain West, and from which he raised his kids and retired
All your responses involve obfuscation and trying to make your religion aligned with Christianity. Part of growing and being progressive is questioning what a religious body is doing right and wrong, and allowing its members to do the same.
Imagine a sheet of paper that had sixteen tiny holes in it. How many needles would be needed to simultaneously fit through all sixteen separate holes? If you said, “sixteen,” you are thinking in terms of "ontological omnipresence.” Fold the paper in such a way that the needle can be inserted through all sixteen holes at once. This represents “functional omnipresence.” God’s power can extend everywhere throughout the universe simultaneously, even though He is physically in heaven. Even though He occupies physical space, He is functionally omnipresent because He has the power to be so.
The Holy Spirit is the third member of the Godhead. As His name implies, He is a person comprised solely of spirit, unlike the other two members of the Godhead (the Father and the Son). He is the means by which we communicate with God, our Father in Heaven. The scriptures say that we must worship Him in spirit and in truth. Since we are physical beings, the only way we can worship Him, communicate with Him or learn from Him is Spirit to spirit. The Holy Spirit testifies of truth. This is the means by which Peter came to realize that Jesus was, in fact, the Christ, Son of God. The Holy Spirit is also the Comforter Jesus promised to send in His absence. Unlike the Father and the Son, both of whom are functionally omnipresent, the Holy Spirit is ontologically omnipresent. It is because of this characteristic, unique to Him alone, that He can simultaneously dwell in our hearts and throughout the universe. In other words, God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ are physical beings who (though the Holy Ghost) function as if they were present everywhere at once, even though they are ontologically not.
Very interesting explanation. While I never thought of God as occupying physical space, I like your analogy of folding a paper and putting the needle through all 16 holes at once. I would say that all Christians and most other religions would agree with that... whatever name one decides to call God, his power can be thought of as being everywhere at once.
I know it's not the name for heaven... but isn't it the highest place one could hope to go? Others will go to other places that could be compared to purgatory or limbo? (Correct me if I'm mistaken..!)
No. Nobody's going to Kolob. Nobody. It's simply a star said to be the closest to Heaven. We don't believe in purgatory or limbo, either. (I don't mind at all discussing the LDS concept of the afterlife, but it should probably be on a new thread, though, since it has absolutely nothing to do with Kolob. )
Why does a Mormon or any other denomination have to explain themselves to other Christians? Do non-Mormons feel so insecure that they think exposure to Mormons will cause them to change?
If one is going to proselytize their faith wouldn't it be better to do so by example than to point out what they think are flaws in another person's belief?
I agree with you, Woodrow. As a non-Mormon, I will say that the LDS church tends to have a negative stigma among non-Mormons. It is portrayed in a very negative light by the mass media - especially since we have a Mormon candidate running for president. It is human nature to hate what is not understood or mysterious. The media portrays Mormonism as being "cult-like", very mysterious by bringing up temple rituals, and even tries heavily to imply that Mormons aren't Christian therefore they should be "hated". I've never heard so much "hubbub" about the LDS church than I have the past year because of the media's obsession with Mitt Romney's religion.
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I would say that all Christians and most other religions would agree with that... whatever name one decides to call God, his power can be thought of as being everywhere at once.
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