Ex-Mormon Turned Agnostic, Learning about Catholicism

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gazelam said:
and the sacraments/ordinances (baptism, confirmation, etc.) were no longer recognized as valid in Heaven.
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I have seen this of late, that the Mormon church equates their ordinances with our sacraments, thinking they mean the same thing. They do not.

They are so vastly different it’s not funny. Mormons don’t even pretend to the idea that grace is given in their ordinances.

The idea of both actual and sanctifying grace does not exist in Mormonism.
 
AngelaMarie said:
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gazelam:
and the sacraments/ordinances (baptism, confirmation, etc.) were no longer recognized as valid in Heaven.
Click to expand...
They are so vastly different it’s not funny. Mormons don’t even pretend to the idea that grace is given in their ordinances.

The idea of both actual and sanctifying grace does not exist in Mormonism.
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Do you care to elaborate? The whole idea of Latter-day Saint belief is to return to the presence of God forever, which isn’t something we believe we can do on our own. Your statement is not something I see at church or in the teachings of scripture nor Latter-day Saint leaders. We don’t believe we can sanctify ourselves without divine assistance.
 
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Thank you all so much for your amazing help (except for the active LDS apologists on this thread… 😒). I took the advice to pray to heart yesterday, and did so on my way home from work. I first prayed the rosary, as I like to do. I found it easier to ask Mary for help these past few years, mostly because I was afraid of what praying to God would reveal in me (anger, shame, etc.) and I needed her intercession. Once I finished my rosary I finally prayed to God for the first time in literal years.

I was completely surprised to find tears running down my face as soon as I spoke his name. I felt nothing but joy, and regret that I hadn’t reached out to him before then. I poured out all of my fear and apologies and worries and I felt an outpouring of love. I also felt gently chastised, but only for my hesitation to come to him. It was as if a warm blanket had dropped around me, and all my worries were replaced with certainty.

I am sure that Mary has interceded for me, but I also am sure that God would have heard me anyway. She is such a comfort to me, and going to her first helped me muster up the courage to pray on my own. Because of her, I was brought to Christ and to God.

My prayer yesterday confirmed to me that the Catholic faith is what I need and what God wants of me. I still am worried and unsure of a lot of things, but I’m no longer afraid to try.
 
I was at one time, but no longer. Even if it is to accept that I don’t know for sure, reaching out to him has brought me more peace than trying to prove he isn’t there.
 
Isn’t it amazing how Our Lady always leads us to her Son! God bless your journey home!
 
And for the apologists (@NeuroTypical and @gazelam come to mind), I knew my topic title would be inflammatory and would draw in LDS folks anywhere else, but I hoped there wouldn’t be many in this Catholic forum. I’m not here to debate the differences between Mormonism and Catholicism. My faith in Mormonism is dead - I shared the fact that I’m an ex-Mormon to shed some light on my religious baggage and my hesitance to convert to Catholicism. Further discussion and evangelizing is senseless. Please consider that those here have the least likelihood of converting of any forum you could be on right now.

Even though my records were removed from the church years ago, I still have scars from leaving the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Please don’t reduce my choice to leave to a simple misunderstanding on scriptural interpretation.
 
Thank you for this! I only thought of it as an outpouring of emotion, and didn’t realize it could be a grace. I’ll definitely check out the article.
 
G,

In fairness to you and other Mormons I did a quick engine search to see where Mormonism stands these days with the idea of grace since I have been out so long. I see that of recent past, it’s become more a part of the Mormon lexicon, though I don’t see it meaning the same thing as Catholics mean, and I didn’t find anything that either implied or stated that grace is connected to any of the Mormon ordinances.

I know you will correct me if I am wrong.
 
Thank you for sharing some of your story and you are in my prayers today. I’m always impressed with the quality of answers on these forums. I converted from Lutheranism back in 2004-05 and Catholic Answers was a big help to me (as well as the old Catholic encyclopedia). Although I knew that Luther wasn’t a paragon of virtue, I rejected his rupture with the continuous teaching of the Apostles, once I made an effort to trace the history of the magisterium, and not because of his all-too-human flaws. I’m curious if you felt something like this as well with the Latter Day Saints movement — that there is some deep historical inconsistency there and that it cannot be the Church of Christ. Truth cannot contradict truth. That is a deep, natural axiom one holds before assenting to (or dissenting from) any teaching based on authority, and revelation.

[As an aside, I read Pope Benedict XVI’s excellent book Jesus of Nazareth and there is a section where this question is discussed regarding the nascent church and whether or not the gospel is a continuation or a rupture with ancient Judaism. That is the core issue dividing us from modern Jews still.]
 
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Thank you for sharing your experience and your joy. God comes to meet us and Mary always leads us to God.

Luke 1:46-55
 
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@giddyromilly and @AngelaMarie

In the last few days I happened upon the following from St Francis de Sales; chapter XIII in particular illustrates a caution, in receiving and interpreting consolations, one being the grace of tears.

http://www.ccel.org/d/desales/devout_life

CHAPTER XIII. Of Spiritual and Sensible Consolations, and how to receive them.

Just wanted to share with you. It is never about the experience itself, always about strengthening the relationship with God.
 
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Yes, that is what the link I posted above said, too. Perhaps the priest who wrote the article I linked was getting his information from de Sales
 
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