zeezrom wrote:I miss the days when I could ask the same question here and there - then look at the results. I don't miss being on that board but would like to compare all the answers. Many of the people on MAD are like the people I interact with in real life.
You should have been more tame here with your antimormonisms. But you seemed to buy into many of what the critics here said. I never thought that you were comparing answers. You wanted to hear what you wanted to hear and threw away the rest. Did you really believe the answers that you got from MAD as you did here? No.
That's because the answers here bear the badges of reason and logic, not fantasy--the key to "answers" on MAD.
To be honest, there was a time when a comment from a guy at MAD really made me think. I paused for a while, went home and read, pondered and prayed. I realized there could be a way for me to believe. It was a turning point for me.
Ironically, it was a comment from Will Schryver. I think it was a thread on Lucy Walker where he said something that in essence threw God under the bus to save Joseph. Something about how God does things we don't understand and what might seem right and good today may not be right and good tomorrow.
I came to my own conclusion but it was good for me to think about this.
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:To be honest, there was a time when a comment from a guy at MAD really made me think. I paused for a while, went home and read, pondered and prayed. I realized there could be a way for me to believe. It was a turning point for me.
Ironically, it was a comment from Will Schryver. I think it was a thread on Lucy Walker where he said something that in essence threw God under the bus to save Joseph. Something about how God does things we don't understand and what might seem right and good today may not be right and good tomorrow.
I came to my own conclusion but it was good for me to think about this.
Lucy Walker was interesting. She has been described as a stubborn scotch-irsh woman who refused Joseph. It was only after receiving her own powerful witness of polygamy did she say yes. She is unlikely to have married him without this powerful spiritual experience after praying.
But of course, it is easy to deny her spiritual experience but she remained faithful to it.
I intend to lay a foundation that will revolutionize the whole world. Joseph Smith We are “to feed the hungry, to clothe the naked, to provide for the widow, to dry up the tear of the orphan, to comfort the afflicted, whether in this church, or in any other, or in no church at all…” Joseph Smith
Why do you want to post on MAD again? Is it simply because you can't, or because you honestly hope to gain something there that you can't here.
If you really do have serious questions to ask, Dan Peterson is a poster here. I really can't think of a more knowledgeable TBM.
He checks his PM's regularly. If you have a sincere question for him, he will respond. He has also started participating more in the Celestial Forum.
As much as I really have no use for Will Schryver, he is also a poster here, and does pick up his PM's. I mention Will specifically because you said that you gained some insight from him.
I admit it might be a pride thing. It has something to do with being banned I suppose.
Another reason is because many people at MAD are just like people in real life (my RL).
What I really need is to move out of Utah, take a long break from religion, then maybe come back if we wish to be close to family again. You might not believe it but I think I could break from the board if I could just get away for a while. Or maybe I should make an announcement to my family/community: don't mention religion around us any more- but we still love you!
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)
Just out of curiosity, when did the no masturbation thing start? Did it begin with Boyd K. Packer? Wouldn't that have been a better option for men with sick wives who either couldn't or wouldn't perform? The gap in sex drive between women and men is part of why I see open and honest polygamy as possibly being a part of a better world.
Growing up where masturbation is verboten, I could see how when I was 18 years old if a girl had decided to start me up and then back out at the last second, I'm not sure I could have stopped. The drive is pretty powerful and it gets extremely powerful when you can't masturbate and you're 18-21. In a way I kind of agree with the Church's strict rules on dating that try to keep situations like that from ever occurring, because when you're young and you've found a mutual attraction, it's pretty hard not to. You really have to decide before you ever get in the situation. You can't just stop on a dime.
Joseph and Emmma's marriage didn't seem to be producing many healthy offspring. Could that have had something to do with it as well?
And when the confederates saw Jackson standing fearless as a stone wall the army of Northern Virginia took courage and drove the federal army off their land.
I admit it might be a pride thing. It has something to do with being banned I suppose.
Another reason is because many people at MAD are just like people in real life (my RL).
What I really need is to move out of Utah, take a long break from religion, then maybe come back if we wish to be close to family again. You might not believe it but I think I could break from the board if I could just get away for a while. Or maybe I should make an announcement to my family/community: don't mention religion around us any more- but we still love you!
Would your job allow you to move?
I'm telling you, Zee, Utah Mormons are a whole different breed. The Church really has more normal people out there in different states.
I know. I used to live in CA when my kids were really small. I was in the same ward as the FAIR Pres.
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)
why me wrote:Lucy Walker was interesting. She has been described as a stubborn scotch-irsh woman who refused Joseph. It was only after receiving her own powerful witness of polygamy did she say yes. She is unlikely to have married him without this powerful spiritual experience after praying.
But of course, it is easy to deny her spiritual experience but she remained faithful to it.
I don't think anyone denies her spiritual experience. I might have a similar experience if I were a 17 year old girl and a prophet of God gave me a 24-hour ultimatum; she was up all night praying. Having a powerful witness is what you expect someone to have in that situation. See for example, "When Teens Pray: Powerful Stories of How God Works" for some stories of how other teens got answers to prayers that didn't involve sleeping with a middle-aged married man.
I'm telling you, Zee, Utah Mormons are a whole different breed. The Church really has more normal people out there in different states.
I did it the other way around: I apostatized and then moved to Utah. It just seems a little much to me to change jobs and move just because you don't want to deal with Mormons. Unless you've resigned, they'll know where you are and you will hear from them. And your family still has email and phones. Moving to Utah has made Mormonism more noticeable in the broader culture, but it's no more intrusive in my life personally than it was in Texas.
The bottom line for me: I try to make choices based on what I feel is best for myself and my family. I can't imagine proximity to Mormons being a huge factor in any decision in my life.