Coggins7 wrote:The whole thing just shows what a scam the church court system is because it has nothing to do with the person's attitude but has to do with the personality of the stake president or the bishop.
But in arguing this with someone who understands neither the court system or Church doctrine in general, where can this go? Excommunication has much to do with the attitude and circumstances of the sin, not just the sin itself. I've been intimately involved with this process and I'm telling you, in all candor, that you do not know what you are talking about.
The disposition of a church court case is mediated by the Spirit. Without that, and Priesthood authority,the church court could not exist at all.
The truth is, is that the Church can't handle the truth. The Church does not discipline people as harshly if that person has stopped doing what they did, waits a whilel and then confesses. So if an RM is having sex with his girlfriend, stops for one year and then confesses, he is dealt less severely then if he was truthful about his behavior when he was doing it.
If you tell the Bishop about last friday night, and then two weeks later tell him about last saturday night, and then two weeks later tell him about last sunday night. That person will be dealt with more severely than a person who has sex twenty five times in six months, stops and then confesses it a year later. The fact that the first person is more truthful and is living more of a chrisitan ideal by confessing his sins doesn't matter to the church. I was the former and was excommunicated. My friends were the later doing it for six months, stopping and then telling a year and a half later, and then being disfellowshiped or put on probation. But if they had monthly meetings and told the truth they would have likely been excommunicated. Being truthful to the church when you are a young adult is not always the best thing when you are there for a alot social things. The fact that the more truthful are dealt with more severely shows that it is a scam. You can test the priesthood and see if they walk their talk with patience and long suffering and then find out they can't. Their lips say one thing but there heart does something else. The truth is that they can't handle the truth and don't want to be around a person that is sick even though it is christan philosophy that we are all sick. This wasn't one stake president. This was three in a row from 75 to 85 in the Cypress stake. This is how it was done. My friend the BYU football player was an RM had oral sex with a non member girl one time. The stake president told him that if it happens again they would have to hold a high council court. Later when he got engaged to an LDS girl he told me things were kind of getting carried away but told me he was not ready to talk to our stake president about it. He was working the system. The more honest you are the more severely you are dealt with - it's sad as one person here posted that this church makes good people do bad things meaning that only in the church culture are young adults so afraid to talk about what is really going on in their life for fear of punishment. They fear the Church more than the Christan God.
As to your experience is different from mine: if I tell you I was on normandy in june 1944 and all hell was breaking loose. And you tell me you were on normandy in june 1944 and came in and it was peaceful and tell me I don't know what I am talking about who is telling the truth.