RayAgostini wrote:Darth J wrote:But if you think there is nothing special or superior about Mormon charity, then what was the point of your linking to an article alleging that Mormons give more charity than most (a headline not supported by the substance of the article)?
Because it's true. You want truth, don't you?
Okay, so it's true that Mormons are special or superior because they give more charity than most, but you don't think that Mormons are special or superior in their charitable contributions. Yes, that makes perfect sense. You're still stuck with the fact that your own precious study determined that Mormons primarily donate to "charity" by supporting their religious organization. So no, it is not true that Mormons give more to charity than most, if charity means needy people.
Sally Pearson is the number one female 100M hurdler in the world. She is white, and also Australian.
Does that make me:
1. Racist?
2. Nationalistic?
3. Superior?
That's not analogous to claiming that Mormons give more to charity than most, only to discover that "charity" primarily means giving money and free labor to a religious bureaucracy. For your random analogy to work, you would have to state that Sally Pearson is the number one female 100M hurdler in the world, and then have it brought to your attention that her title was based on racing other members of her own household.
Ray, all you've done in this thread is all you do in any thread. You make bold assertions that turn out not to be true, and you get called on it. Then you ignore the unfortunate fact that your assertions have been disproved (like the Red Cross not disclosing its overhead costs, for example, or Mormons primarily making charitable donations to maintain the Church itself), and try to cover your retreat from your mistaken assertions with a ridiculous tirade about how nobody is objective and everyone hates Mormons---invariably conflating "Mormons" with "the corporate body that is the LDS Church." Your standard routine is a very poor substitute for critical thinking. There is a reason why people like me have learned to dislike and distrust that organization, and it is that organization's behavior. What you are angry at is not a lack of objectivity, but your inability to impose your wishful thinking on rational people.
The fact is that when the LDS Church involves itself in helping the community at large, it mainly does so as an opportunistic PR exercise.
http://publicaffairs.LDS.org/eng/downlo ... -hands.pdfBuild Relationships with Opinion Leaders
Church Public Affairs exists to “build strategic relationships with opinion leaders who affect the
reputation of the Church of Jesus Christ.” Service is a powerful tool for influencing the beliefs and opinions
of prominent individuals. Mormon Helping Hands is especially effective in developing beneficial
relationships between Church leaders and government officials or other opinion leaders.
Enhance the Reputation of the Church
Mormon Helping Hands helps bring the Church out of obscurity and can greatly improve its reputation.
Local media interest in these projects helps spread the knowledge of the Church to many who would not
otherwise hear of it.The fact is that this organization can afford a $5 billion dollar shopping mall, but has its members sell the fillings from their teeth to pay for a trophy building where they can perform plagiarized Masonic rituals for dead people:
http://www.ldschurchtemples.com/portoalegre/The Porto Alegre Brazil Temple is the third temple to be dedicated in the nation of Brazil. The temple's location overlooks the city from the east toward a large river and port for which the city is named.
President Faust turned the ceremonial first shovelful of earth during the groundbreaking ceremony. After, he invited a young girl and boy to come help him with the digging. They not only came forward and assisted him, but the little girl also waited for him the next day at the Campinas regional conference to give him a hug of appreciation.
He emphasized the need to sacrifice for temple building and shared how members in Argentina found ways to donate during the construction of the São Paulo Brazil Temple. They gave the gold from their dental work to help pay for the temple. He said that he had purchased some of the gold fillings for more than the market price to share with congregations the nature of the sacrifice made by these members.The fact is that this organization kicks out poor families at Christmas time so the motel they were living in can be demolished and the land left vacant until some new commercial venture is thought of:
http://www.standard.net/topics/lds-chur ... oses-doorsSo, Ray, tell us all about where the Church's priorities are.