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Part 2 of the RFM General Conference Post Mortem is now up.

http://www.mormondiscussionpodcast.org/ ... 17-part-2/

It covers the Sunday morning session, with a particular focus on Elder Hallstrom's talk in which he almost seems to be providing a response to the RFM episode about Elder Bednar's 2013 Young Adult Devotional in which Elder Bednar teaches the important doctrinal principle of having faith NOT to be healed.

Elder Hallstrom seeks to redefine the word miracle in order to claim that we have lots of them.

Lots of other fun stuff also included.

Enjoy!

--Consiglieri

It has been reassuring to me that all my life when I thought that miracles were exceedingly rare watershed moments, and reserved for the truly elect, I can now see that my expectations were simply much too lofty.

It is interesting that these lowered expectations would be frowned upon by church leaders if a member aspired to the examples given and said to his Bishop: "I believe powerfully that my assigned families have the faith NOT to be home taught."

I feel sorry for those that complain they hate podcasts and always just want the written script.

God wrote:"Oops he stepped off the cliff"

Full belly laugh. I love listening to you. Your voice, your sarcastic sense of humor, but mostly your unique way of dissecting things which my Mormon heritage ears simply allow to pass, unfiltered and unthinking.

It's best heard.

Thank you RFM.

reflexzero wrote: "I believe powerfully that my assigned families have the faith NOT to be home taught."

I like it! I like it!

RockSlider wrote:Full belly laugh. I love listening to you. Your voice, your sarcastic sense of humor, but mostly your unique way of dissecting things which my Mormon heritage ears simply allow to pass, unfiltered and unthinking.

Thanks so much, RS!

As you know, I have taken less and less to editing out the sound of my own laughter when something is so preposterous it just makes me laugh out loud.

Bill texted me after listening to it and said the place where he laughed out loud was where I was talking about the kid with the double-ear infection, and then inserted into the narrative that his dad laid his hands on him and blessed him by the power of the Holy Melchizedek Priesthood and he was healed immediately.

Except that the real story is that the kid wasn't healed and the mom had to stay home with him while the dad (the GA speaker) went on the pre-scheduled trip to Hawaii with the rest of the family.

General Conference really can be a mine of comedic material.

consiglieri wrote:Except that the real story is that the kid wasn't healed and the mom had to stay home with him while the dad (the GA speaker) went on the pre-scheduled trip to Hawaii with the rest of the family.

Proof positive Mom's are a miracle!

Thanks for this. I had noticed Hallstrom referencing Elder Bednar's "faith not to be healed" stuff too. It is so sad that they are using miracles to mean nothing, while speaking as though there are amazing other worldly things happening.

Stem wrote:Thanks for this. I had noticed Hallstrom referencing Elder Bednar's "faith not to be healed" stuff too. It is so sad that they are using miracles to mean nothing, while speaking as though there are amazing other worldly things happening.

Here is the list I came up from General Conference as to new definitions of "miracles":

1. Somebody falling off a cliff.
2. Coincidences that tend to favor an already critically injured Mormon.
3. Disaster Relief, or just helping others.
4. Being born.
5. Dying after a Priesthood Blessing, which now requires more faith than to actually be healed.

Conference was replete with examples of each of the above five redefinitions of miracles.

But no actual miracles were mentioned.

I have no problem with this in principle.

The only problem I have is with leaders redefining miracles to be non-miraculous while still claiming the power to perform actual miracles.

consiglieri wrote:

Stem wrote:Thanks for this. I had noticed Hallstrom referencing Elder Bednar's "faith not to be healed" stuff too. It is so sad that they are using miracles to mean nothing, while speaking as though there are amazing other worldly things happening.

Here is the list I came up from General Conference as to new definitions of "miracles":

1. Somebody falling off a cliff.
2. Coincidences that tend to favor an already critically injured Mormon.
3. Disaster Relief, or just helping others.
4. Being born.
5. Dying after a Priesthood Blessing, which now requires more faith than to actually be healed.

Conference was replete with examples of each of the above five redefinitions of miracles.

But no actual miracles were mentioned.

I have no problem with this in principle.

The only problem I have is with leaders redefining miracles to be non-miraculous while still claiming the power to perform actual miracles.

I think I'll off to Church on Sunday for the sole purpose of taking a poll about whether Mormons think miracles are happening in the church. I'd guess 99.5% will say yes. The rest will be lost in the question and not understand, seeing as the leaders have been trying to trick them about what a miracle is. "uh...well yes miracles happen...my cousin fell off a cliff in 1967. we prayed and felt better about him dying. that there is at least two miracles--he fell off a cliff (just as Hallstrom) and we feel better about it than we used to."

consiglieri wrote:
Thanks so much, RS!

As you know, I have taken less and less to editing out the sound of my own laughter when something is so preposterous it just makes me laugh out loud.

Bill texted me after listening to it and said the place where he laughed out loud was where I was talking about the kid with the double-ear infection, and then inserted into the narrative that his dad laid his hands on him and blessed him by the power of the Holy Melchizedek Priesthood and he was healed immediately.

Except that the real story is that the kid wasn't healed and the mom had to stay home with him while the dad (the GA speaker) went on the pre-scheduled trip to Hawaii with the rest of the family.

General Conference really can be a mine of comedic material.

I would have bought the claim of miracle if he looked at his mother-in-law, feeling all romantic and, well, you know...But as he did his faith was so great she turned into his wife in the process and they ended up with one more child--a BY turns into Joseph type of thing. Or in the process his mother-in-law had another child, like unto Sarah of old.

I got a chuckle too, when I got to that point of your show.