Mormon Apologist motives

[msnobody]

My heart goes out to you PL. I agree that it is multi-faceted. I imagine too, how difficult it would be to come to the realization of these things after one had worked so hard to defend the church, as once were some of our own posters.

As an outsider, it has seemed to me that there are stages of grief that set in when someone realizes the church isn’t all they once thought it was. I’d say, take your time and it is going to be okay. There are knowledgeable and caring people on the discussion board.
Hugs,
Msnobody

[Moksha]

I cannot sit on my high judgmental horse and cry foul without accepting at least a measure of the blame.

Hey, we've all watched Fox News on the TV at some time in the past. Now that we can see the patterned lack of fairness and balance does not condemn our TV watching as some ghastly inner failing. I mean, it takes a lot of effort to find the remote behind the cushion. Our knowing better now is what counts!

[Rick Grunder]

Welcome, PrincessLeia - So glad you could join our group!

[Dr Exiled]

Welcome PL!

I think of the apologists as like so many partisan political pundits who downplay or lie about their side's dirty laundry while over-exaggerating the dirty laundry of the other side, or mischaracterizing what is said or done to score political points. It's part of politics and why I think independents are a huge percentage of the population. The Mormon apologists lie, exaggerate or mislead because they think the ends justify the means. They had a feeling and by god their side or team must prevail and so the line moves into the unseemly side to support what they think is faith.

[Physics Guy]

In my line of work one often sees bad, bogus proofs of correct conclusions. People know what the answer is, and working to prove it is hard, so they declare victory and quit as soon as it looks to be done. You can only count on people to keep looking carefully at things when they keep getting answers they know are wrong. The old invalid deduction is always tempting, “A implies B and B is true, therefore A must be true.” Seeming to lead to the right conclusion makes the argument seem sound.

In my examples the conclusion that people believe usually really is true and there usually really is a good proof, even if few people can actually explain it properly. Whether or not confidence is really justified, though, confidence in a conclusion easily makes for sloppy arguments.

[Res Ipsa]

The more I see of the human mind's amazing capacity to rationalize almost anything, the less I feel qualified to assign motives to those with whom I have no significant interaction. I have an uncle who is in his 90s and has been a faith LDS member all his life. He taught in the CES system for most of his career, and has been pretty familiar with the major arguments and evidence presented by critics. He firmly adheres to the "shelf" theory (although I think he calls it "pigeonholes." I think he genuinely believes in LDS doctrine, and I would never describe his arguments about controversial issues as "lying for the lord." Just as he pigeonholes certain issues, I pigeonhole the issue of what motivates him. I have much more direct experience with him than I have with any LDS apologist.

[PrincessLeia]

Thank you again for your thoughtful and wise responses! I can see I am going to really benefit from being part of this discussion group.

Grief is a good description of what I’m going through. It’s as though someone I love has betrayed me. I need to allow myself time to go through all the natural steps of grieving.

You’ve helped me to see the complexity of the motives of apologists. Thank you. It’s rather axiomatic, but I wasn’t seeing it. We all are complex creatures, aren’t we? I feel like I’ve spent a lifetime trying to figure out myself.

Thanks again!!!

[msnobody]

From what I’ve observed over the years of my participation on discussion boards, is the Mormon apologists tend bolster one another’s testimony, and when one’s testimony finally crumbles, the others attack, perhaps because it makes it difficult to continue with their own testimony of the truth claims of the church. That has to be a very difficult position to be in, not only for that reason but the faith crisis itself. That’s just my opinion.