dblagent007 wrote:How about this as a hypothetical. What if I sincerely believed in God and sincerely believed that God wanted me to kill my brother's wife and child because they were hindering God's work? What should I do?
I think the answer is obvious. If I believed that I would be a crackpot, no matter how sincerely he believed. Joseph Smith's polygamous practices fall within the same realm. Ask yourself whether you would condemn any other religious leader who practiced polygamy in the same way Joseph Smith did. Or would you simply shrug and say that David Koresh, Wayne Bent, etc. were caught between a rock and a hard place because they sincerely believed God commanded them to act in this manner?
They may have been sincere. How am I to judge that?
There are a lot of possibilities Scottie. Being sincere, though, is one of them. It would be inappropriate to acknowledge otherwise. Note however, that sincerity does not necessarily equate to correct.
There are a lot of possibilities Scottie. Being sincere, though, is one of them. It would be inappropriate to acknowledge otherwise. Note however, that sincerity does not necessarily equate to correct.
That's why I don't care whether Joseph Smith was sincere in his belief that he had to practice polygamy the way he did. His sincere belief may explain why he did it, but it does nothing to legitimize what he did. Just like the sincere belief of Koresh, Lafferty, Bent, etc. does nothing to legitimize what they did.
dblagent007 wrote:That's why I don't care whether Joseph Smith was sincere in his belief that he had to practice polygamy the way he did. His sincere belief may explain why he did it, but it does nothing to legitimize what he did. Just like the sincere belief of Koresh, Lafferty, Bent, etc. does nothing to legitimize what they did.
I'm not saying his sincerity legitimizes the practice. I think it's up to you (and me) to take this up with God ourselves.
dblagent007 wrote:That's why I don't care whether Joseph Smith was sincere in his belief that he had to practice polygamy the way he did. His sincere belief may explain why he did it, but it does nothing to legitimize what he did. Just like the sincere belief of Koresh, Lafferty, Bent, etc. does nothing to legitimize what they did.
I'm not saying his sincerity legitimizes the practice. I think it's up to you (and me) to take this up with God ourselves.
How can I trust personal revelation from God when so many of these people did the same thing and look at what they ended up doing? This is actually one of the reasons I don't feel like I can trust personal revelation much anymore. Personal revelation (and a lot of arm twisting) is what caused so many otherwise sensible women to marry Joseph Smith. Personal revelation is what caused the Laffertys to kill their sister-in-law and her child. Personal revelation is what caused Bent's followers to marry him polyandrously. How do I know my personal revelation is any better than theirs?
Last edited by Guest on Wed Jun 16, 2010 9:20 pm, edited 1 time in total.
dblagent007 wrote: How do I know my personal revelation is any better than theirs?
That is, of course, the ultimate conundrum.
And one of the reasons I think faith in God cannot readily be distinguished from faith in one's self.
But I think you would agree that acknowledging some "personal revelation" may not be from God does not mean that all "personal revelation" does not come from God.
Unless one starts from the proposition that there is no God or that he gives no "personal revelation."
All the Best!
--Consiglieri
You prove yourself of the devil and anti-mormon every word you utter, because only the devil perverts facts to make their case.--ldsfaqs (6-24-13)
consiglieri wrote:what would you do if you also sincerely believed that the kind of life God wanted you to live involved taking plural wives?
I would flip Him the bird and live in hell in peace knowing I did the right thing.
Oh for shame, how the mortals put the blame on us gods, for they say evils come from us, but it is they, rather, who by their own recklessness win sorrow beyond what is given... Zeus (1178 BC)