On Sunday, an anonymous source released 15 videos on YouTube under the name "Mormon Leaks."
The videos, according to the Salt Lake Tribune, show "presentations made to members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, the second-highest governing body of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints."
One of the videos shows former U.S. Sen. Gordon Smith (R-Ore.) addressing the panel. Smith, whose family owns a Pendleton frozen food business, served in the U.S. Senate from 1997 to 2009, losing his seat in 2008 to now-U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.).
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Ralph Hardy, the Mormon elder who introduces Smith in the video, notes at 4:20 that although Smith's Senate staff was light on Mormons, it was "church broke"– i.e., very attentive to church needs.
"In fact, not many months ago, his legislative director called on the phone and he said 'Ralph, you haven't called us for six weeks—what are we supposed to be doing?'"
At 5:22, Smith compares the relative significance of the panel he's addressing to his former Senate colleagues and presidents of the United States.
"Brethren, I'm honored to be in your presence," Smith tells the panel at 5:20. "My parents, Milan Smith and Jessica Udall, raised me with a fundamental principle—and that is to follow the brethren."
"So while I'm somewhat accustomed to speaking with U.S. Senators and even presidents of the United States, I stand humbly before you because I know who you are and I know my covenants and I know the role you play in this world."
He refers to himself at 8:25 "as one who regards his temple recommend as more important than an election certificate."
Or Should all Mormon senators now be required to reaffirm the oath of office, explicitly stating that their election certificate takes precedence over their temple recommend?
“When we are confronted with evidence that challenges our deeply held beliefs we are more likely to reframe the evidence than we are to alter our beliefs. We simply invent new reasons, new justifications, new explanations. Sometimes we ignore the evidence altogether.” (Mathew Syed 'Black Box Thinking')
I have a question wrote:Or Should all Mormon senators now be required to reaffirm the oath of office, explicitly stating that their election certificate takes precedence over their temple recommend?
Looks like a witch hunt. If it was known that there was some kind of Mormon conspiracy where a bunch of senators got together to overthrow the government with a theocracy then there might be something. Otherwise it would be a case by case basis.
If Smith did divulge classified information I could see the FBI poking around and asking questions of what else he said, and since it looks like these types of meeting were recorded who knows? But apparently all you have to do is destroy evidence these days and the FBI will leave you alone.
We accept the reality of the world with which we're presented. It's as simple as that. ~ Christof
As a senator of the USA, he alreAdy has health insurance for life. Now he is trying to earn a spot on the corporate board of the church so he can have all of his living expenses paid for, too. Sounds like a great retirement strategy. I have not read any of the other posts, yet, but I do not think all lds senators should resign. All citizens have the right to serve in politics, even those who serve for the wrong purpose until they are found out. For some reason, I don't see Harry Reed with the same relationship with church leaders as this turd. There are some people who are of the church, but not of the church. However, this assclown has probably ruined it for the current and future lds public servants.
“The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the dedicated communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction, true and false, no longer exists.”
― Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism, 1951
I think Smith should apologize to the citizens of Oregon. Or at least explain what he meant by those statements.
"Jesus gave us the gospel, but Satan invented church. It takes serious evil to formalize faith into something tedious and then pile guilt on anyone who doesn’t participate enthusiastically." - Robert Kirby
Beer makes you feel the way you ought to feel without beer. -- Henry Lawson
cwald wrote:Or at least explain what he meant by those statements.
Is there any doubt that he meant exactly what he said?
"Finally, for your rather strange idea that miracles are somehow linked to the amount of gay sexual gratification that is taking place would require that primitive Christianity was launched by gay sex, would it not?"
cwald wrote:Or at least explain what he meant by those statements.
Is there any doubt that he meant exactly what he said?
No.
But I would love to see him try to justify it.
"Jesus gave us the gospel, but Satan invented church. It takes serious evil to formalize faith into something tedious and then pile guilt on anyone who doesn’t participate enthusiastically." - Robert Kirby
Beer makes you feel the way you ought to feel without beer. -- Henry Lawson