Drifting wrote:This from Infymus's blessing is known as the 'get out clause':
Continue in righteousness and obedience to the commandments and covenants of the Lord and all of the desires which you possess shall be accomplished, for the Lord loves those who are true and faithful and who have a great desire to serve and build His earthly kingdom.
Blessing didn't come true? Weren't righteous or faithful enough.
Everything in Mormonism hinges on obedience - and it all starts with tithing. If anything is wrong in your life be it bills, depression, job loss, etc - it all starts with: Have you paid a proper tithe? Because only then can the windows of heaven flood your basement if you are paying God his filthy lucre.
The whole blessing is nothing more than fortune telling. Blaa blaa blaa, seed of Ephriam, blaa blaa blaa as long as you obey, blaa blaa blaa generalities, blaa blaa blaa.
Like I said, you could piece the whole thing together with a dozen or so fortune cookies.
It is rare to get a second PB these days. You have to get special permission. I've only heard of it happening once because a guy got a very short (paragraph or two) negative one.
In the olden days people may have gotten one, two or even five. They would have meetings for them. You would pay the Patriarch to record it (a clerk would write it as the Patriarch stated the blessing). For example, I have 3 ancestors who received theirs on the same day one after the other (a couple and daughter).
People can order their ancestors PB's online now. I have requested them for several of my ancestors. They are very interesting to read!
~Those who benefit from the status quo always attribute inequities to the choices of the underdog.~Ann Crittenden ~The Goddess is not separate from the world-She is the world and all things in it.~
Spektical wrote:Joining with Infymus: a patriarchal blessing is nothing more than the Mormon version of a psychic reading.
Joining Infymus and Spektical, this Mormon practice employs the same techniques as your garden-variety psychic reader at a carnival.
On the whole, though, Mormon stake patriarchs are very nice, gentle old men. Most just didn't quite have their feet planted in the middle of the steps on the Mormon leadership ladder. Stake patriarch, at least when I was a TBM, was a leadership advancement cul-de-sac for them.
~Those who benefit from the status quo always attribute inequities to the choices of the underdog.~Ann Crittenden ~The Goddess is not separate from the world-She is the world and all things in it.~
Hey Ceebs, I gotta run but I will say this quickly:
I worked up the guts after years of worry to go confess my sins to my bishop. This took lots of tears and gusto to do it. Anyway, my dad found out I was visiting with the bishop and right before I go into the bishop's office, he calls me on the church phone (clerk's office) - "Why are you meeting the bishop? Is something wrong?"
"Uh... no. I'm uh... getting a patriarchal blessing."
"Oh, you are such a good boy."
I felt terrible. But this is how I decided to get the blessing. I was a guilty character as the patriarch interviewed me and so he had to mention in my prayer things like, "be aware of your thoughts and stay worthy to go to the temple."
I still have a lot of bad feelings about this whole 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)
zeezrom wrote:Hey Ceebs, I gotta run but I will say this quickly:
I worked up the guts after years of worry to go confess my sins to my bishop. This took lots of tears and gusto to do it. Anyway, my dad found out I was visiting with the bishop and right before I go into the bishop's office, he calls me on the church phone (clerk's office) - "Why are you meeting the bishop? Is something wrong?"
"Uh... no. I'm uh... getting a patriarchal blessing."
"Oh, you are such a good boy."
I felt terrible. But this is how I decided to get the blessing. I was a guilty character as the patriarch interviewed me and so he had to mention in my prayer things like, "be aware of your thoughts and stay worthy to go to the temple."
I still have a lot of bad feelings about this whole thing.
Oh my god, zee. The church was really so bad for you. :(
~Those who benefit from the status quo always attribute inequities to the choices of the underdog.~Ann Crittenden ~The Goddess is not separate from the world-She is the world and all things in it.~
zeezrom wrote:Hey Ceebs, I gotta run but I will say this quickly:
I worked up the guts after years of worry to go confess my sins to my bishop. This took lots of tears and gusto to do it. Anyway, my dad found out I was visiting with the bishop and right before I go into the bishop's office, he calls me on the church phone (clerk's office) - "Why are you meeting the bishop? Is something wrong?"
"Uh... no. I'm uh... getting a patriarchal blessing."
"Oh, you are such a good boy."
I felt terrible. But this is how I decided to get the blessing. I was a guilty character as the patriarch interviewed me and so he had to mention in my prayer things like, "be aware of your thoughts and stay worthy to go to the temple."
I still have a lot of bad feelings about this whole thing.
Please forgive me for not being able to give your personal perspective/experience a deeper and more worthy reply than the very little I can come up with at this moment.
I do appreciate you sharing this with me/us though.
