Mormon Reaction to the death of John Paul II

[flameburns623]

Here are a few thoughts from one LDS writer:

ldsmag.com/ideas/050408miss.html

Why I Miss Karol Wojtyla

To Catholics, the passing of John Paul II meant they lost one Pope — a beloved and popular one. But they know that they will soon have another. There is a long (and complicated) chain of succession going back to the early days of Christianity, and that sense of continuity will sustain them.
One Pope is gone, but Mother Church continues.

But I’m not a Catholic. According to my beliefs, the office of Pope holds no particular authority; I have no stake in the succession; Pope John Paul II was never the leader of my church.

And yet … I find that I mourn him and miss him.

Death Is No Tragedy

These feelings are not because of his fame or his common touch. He is not Princess Di, a celebrity we liked who died tragically young.

He died as a very old man, after a lifetime of real achievement. How can we grieve for a long life well-lived?

Yet I find, to my surprise, that his death moves me the way I was moved by the deaths of Anwar Sadat and Daniel Patrick Moynihan and Winston Churchill. I realized, with his passing, that he was a hero of mine. That I felt better and safer about the world because he was in it, and I feel that we are just a little worse off, in a little more danger, because he’s gone.

It is worthwhile to note also that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints held it’s semi-annual convention the same weekend that His Holiness passed away, and that there were expressions of sympathy from the LDS First Presidency on the news.

 

[tkdnick]

flameburns623:

It is worthwhile to note also that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints held it’s semi-annual convention the same weekend that His Holiness passed away, and that there were expressions of sympathy from the LDS First Presidency on the news.

That was very cool! And LDS friend of mine said the very first thing President Hinckley did when he got up to speak was to offer his condolences.

 

[BJ_Colbert]

Many of our LDS friends phoned to tell my husband how sorry they felt for the passing of his Pope. We as members of the LDS church all feel sadness at the passing of this great and never to be forgotten man. He was truly one of a kind and the next Pope will have a tough act to follow. I hope that he will also be someone to respect and honor as John Paul II is. Our prayers are with all of our Catholic friends as you go through this mourning period and with the start of a new day with a new Pope.
BJ

 

[tkdnick]

BJ Colbert:

Many of our LDS friends phoned to tell my husband how sorry they felt for the passing of his Pope. We as members of the LDS church all feel sadness at the passing of this great and never to be forgotten man. He was truly one of a kind and the next Pope will have a tough act to follow. I hope that he will also be someone to respect and honor as John Paul II is. Our prayers are with all of our Catholic friends as you go through this mourning period and with the start of a new day with a new Pope.
BJ

Thanks for your prayers! Amazing how many people are affected by the passing of our Pope. Who would have thought that basically the whole world would mourn the death of a Catholic? That’s pretty cool that you LDS friends called to express their condolences about the Pope.

 

[imroc]

I do not like cynical people for the most part, but I find myself developing a cynical attitude towards people outside of the Church right now. I was happy to see that people of all faiths and cultures expressing sorrow for the passing of Pope John Paul II. Now, after the secular world and non-Catholics have taken a deep breath, I’m afraid of what’s next. I do not feel that the media will let this die down and “let his soul rest”. I’m apprehensive and feel that there will be a lot of criticism and scrutiny to be dished out by the very people who covered the events. I pray that I’m wrong.

 

[jaydog77]

I hear what you’re saying. The media will let some aspects of this die down. The parts describing the immense loss much of the world expressed and what great things he accomplished will die down. What will increase as time goes on is the chorus (growing already) of people talking trash about the Pope because he didn’t appoint a lesbian post-op transvestite Cardinal who’s wife has had 4 abortions and is pregnant a 5th time despite having been on birth control.

Let me take cynicism a bit further and observe that Satan will never cease to try to tear down the faith and that is what we’re seeing here. An unbelieving world and unbelieving “Christians” (in name only) calling for the next Pope to be pro abortion, pro sodomy, pro gay marriage, pro woman ordination and anti-celebicy.

I never will understand why so many liberal “catholics” expect the Church to cave on these issues when there is already a denomination that fits their world view. The Unitarian and Episcopal “churches” ring a bell. Maybe I can state it plainly for them:

-If you believe in and support abortion, gay marriage and homosexuality you’re not really a Catholic, even if we don’t excommunicate people like in the good old days.

If I was a member of a group that didn’t reflect my views, I’D CHANGE GROUPS

Sorry for the rant. To keep it within the subject of the thread,

I talked to a Mormon friend of mine today about it and she shared the same feelings of how wonderful it was the whole world united on the topic and how he deserves it. If only they didn’t believe god lived on planet kolob and all blacks are cursed with the mark of Cain…

 

[cestusdei]

The LDS church teaches that the Catholic Church is an abomination. Also I checked and discovered the LDS church, without permission, has baptized many of our popes. Including Pius XII. Doesn’t sound like they respect us at all.

 

[oat_soda]

The LDS church teaches that the Catholic Church is an abomination. Also I checked and discovered the LDS church, without permission, has baptized many of our popes. Including Pius XII. Doesn’t sound like they respect us at all.

the mormon church doesn’t know what it teaches. they constantly change thier beliefs when convenient. i think they are trying to sound more main-line “Christian” these days. but, i’m sure there are many sincere mormons who respect the pope, and probably many others who could care less. i wonder if mormons were present at the asisi ecumenical meetings?

 

[Irish_Melkite]

How nice of folks to hijack a thread in which Mormon condolences were being offered for the repose of Pope John Paul and turn it into a Mormon-bashing. How very Christian, how very Catholic, how very charitable. That a priest chose to throw his two cents in sort of frosts the cake.

 

[Fergal]

Well done Irish Melkite. My thoughts exactly. I read this thread from the top and was very moved that the Mormons had kept the Holy Father’s passing in mind. The world is mourning the passing of the Holy Father. Yes we are lucky to have had him as spiritual leader but he belonged to the people of the world. We may feel a little jealous of the fact that his passing is being mourned by non-catholics and non-christians but in reality we should be very grateful for all condolences received.

To usurp a genuine thread like this saddens me and I am sure saddens the Holy Father who strove to break down barriers.

Now I wonder just how much of this did our fellow ‘catholics’ with the above thoughts really take on board? Are their sentiments only ones of pure emotion?

I wonder.

 

[Tmaque]

The LDS First Presidency (The President and his two counselors), along with hundreds of other LDS attended the funeral Mass held at our cathedral here in Salt Lake City for the Holy Father. I think that’s quite impressive.

 

[Paul_Stephens]

How nice of folks to hijack a thread in which Mormon condolences were being offered for the repose of Pope John Paul and turn it into a Mormon-bashing. How very Christian, how very Catholic, how very charitable. That a priest chose to throw his two cents in sort of frosts the cake.

I agree. Keep the thread on topic or it will be closed.

---

Paul Stephens
Moderator

 

[cestusdei]

I have had Mormon missionaries target my parishioners. They are clear about the real Mormon view of Catholicism. As a priest it is my job to protect the flock. My perspective is that the LDS church will give some nice sound bites, but will continue to attack the Catholic Church and convert our people. Ask a Mormon if he has ever heard this: “we had more power than the pope in our little finger.” Basically my response was that I don’t not believe them and that this is just a PR move. You may not agree and that is your perogative. But I speak as one who has had to try and rescue Catholics who are proslytized by them.

Here is a joke from one of their magazines and helps explain my mistrust. By the way it is the SAME magazine that is linked in the first post:
"True Church
My friend was driving her daughter and her daughter’s friend home from pre-school, and passed by a church building of another faith. Her friend’s daughter observed, “That is not the true church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is it?” My friend confirmed that it was not. The preschooler continued, “So we don’t go to that church, do we?” My friend answered no. After a moment of thoughtful reflection, the young girl concluded: “I think it is the great and abominable church.”

Barbara O…
Midland, Michigan"

 

[BDawg]

Hi Cestus,

I am a Mormon, so I thought I would chip in my 2 cents on this. Here it is:

Mormons think their religion is better and more complete than any of the others, so they proselytize people, including Catholics. However, they still recognize that other religions can have a good deal of truth, and so we ought to support each other in areas where we agree.

Catholics think their religion is beter and more complete than any of the others, so they proselytize people, including Mormons. In fact, Catholic Answers recently published a book called “When Mormons Call” which gives instructions on how to try to get Mormon missionaries and acquaintances to question their faith. However, they still recognize that other religions can have a good deal of truth, and even recognize the baptisms performed in some of them.

Why would any of this prevent a Mormon from admiring JPII as someone who fought for good in the world? As someone who would agree with us on more than most, and who was courageous in acting on his beliefs? As someone who tried to promote peace? For heaven’s sake, by your logic I’m not allowed to admire Ghandi or Martin Luther King, Jr.

I understand your frustration when your parishioners are proselytized by other faiths, but I think the spirit of bitterness you exhibit is unbecoming a priest. After all, don’t you try to convince others to become Catholic? Who cares?

And for what it’s worth, the little “joke” you posted was obviously not meant as a joke. It was meant as a “cute” story about the naive things little kids say. Big deal. Even so, I didn’t think it was funny.

BDawg

 

[BDawg]

cestusdei:

Ask a Mormon if he has ever heard this: “we had more power than the pope in our little finger.”

Never heard of it, and whoever said it is an arrogant jerk.

BDawg

 

[imroc]

Irish Melkite:

How nice of folks to hijack a thread in which Mormon condolences were being offered for the repose of Pope John Paul and turn it into a Mormon-bashing. How very Christian, how very Catholic, how very charitable. That a priest chose to throw his two cents in sort of frosts the cake.

I’m not saying that it wasn’t a kind gesture. I was simply stating that I am growing reluctant. All the great people of the world, secular society & religious persons of all faiths commenting about the death of Pope John Paul II is great! I’m simply stating that the world is beginning to end their mourning and the comments and criticism are beginning to shine through. If you want to stay blind and sit back, so be it. But I will not. Then again, it could be that you are unconsciously becoming part of the problem by condemning my OPINION that I thought I’d share with you. While the devil tries to show people that secularism and self-righteousness are beautiful goals for individuals, it is in fact a form of tyrany against the faitful Catholics. Please reconsider your words, as I NEVER bashed the Mormons.I find that to be a waste of time. I find that waking fellow Catholics more important.

Besides, I am sticking to the topic: " Mormon Reaction to the death of John Paul II". No where in the topic does it say, “Mormons show wonderful respect towards the death of Pope John Paul II and we should cherish this”.

 

[snowgarden]

Tmaque:

The LDS First Presidency (The President and his two counselors), along with hundreds of other LDS attended the funeral Mass held at our cathedral here in Salt Lake City for the Holy Father. I think that’s quite impressive.

I agree. I worked at the Wilkenson Center at BYU when John Paul I died and the reaction was quite disheartening. It sounds like they have come a long way and it is encouraging.

 

[BDawg]

imroc,

Personally, I didn’t take your comments as “Mormon bashing.” My impression was that Irish Melkite was talking about the comments of cestusdei and oatsoda.

BDawg

 

[imroc]

BDawg:

imroc,

Personally, I didn’t take your comments as “Mormon bashing.” My impression was that Irish Melkite was talking about the comments of cestusdei and oatsoda.

BDawg

Oh, sorry. I took it personal, as I’m taking all of the recent events so personal. I nearly lost my composure today at Mass as I looked onto the picture of John Paul II and began to cry. Last weekend I was in joy for his soul has taken on the new life of being in Heaven, but now I’m quite apprehensive of what the future holds. Please forgive my emotional status.

I can’t remember where I got this quote, but I’ll use it here:

From Christianity’s beginnings, the Church has been attacked by those introducing false teachings, or heresies.
The Bible warned us this would happen. Paul told his young protégé, Timothy, “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own likings, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander into myths” (2 Tim. 4:3–4).

 

[flameburns623]

Irish Melkite:

How nice of folks to hijack a thread in which Mormon condolences were being offered for the repose of Pope John Paul and turn it into a Mormon-bashing. How very Christian, how very Catholic, how very charitable. That a priest chose to throw his two cents in sort of frosts the cake.

Thanks IrishMelkite. A death is a time NOT to dredge up differences and diagreements but a time set aside such differences; to mourn together; and to thank God for the memories of the one departed from this life. It is bad manners and a sad example of Christian charity to impugn expressions of sympathy or to make such expressions another opportunity to make divisive comments. I am an Anglican and a former Mormon. I have no sympathy for the false teachings of the LDS Church. However, CetusDei appears to have opted to use the sad occasion of the loss of his Pope NOT to graciously accept what appear to be genuine heartfelt expressions of sympathy even from those with whom he holds substantive theological differences; but rather to lend new meaning to what the Book of Mormon in various and sundry places deems as ‘priestcraft’. No want of threads exist upon which to post regarding one’s criticisms of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; nor are there any restrictions of which I am aware upon starting new threads on the subject. A very sad display of poor taste and perhaps an indication of the depth of CetusDei’s relationship with the Lord he professes to serve in the stead of. Many thanks to the intervention of the moderator.

I do by the way join with the millions of other non-Catholics in extending my own expressions of sympathy for the loss of John Paul II. I would also note that the funeral mass of the just-departed Pontiff was tastefully done and displayed just the sort of ecumenical unity of which CetusDei is so bereft. . I was obliged to listen via radio, and this mainly by way of secular news outlets–there is a local 24-hour EWTN affiliate at 95.9 FM but it comes in very poorly. It’s sister station, 1080 AM, is a daytime-only station. The announcers and translators on the secular stations seem uniformly to have called the officiants of the rites at the end of the funeral mass ‘Eastern Orthodox’–was this in fact true, or were these actually Eastern-Rite (‘Uniates’, no insult intended) Catholics?

Though I am admittedly biased by the fact that his is the only name I actually recognize, I would note that your College of Cardinals could do worse than Cardinal Ratzinger, who gave the sermon, as your next Pope. Though I hear good things as well about an African bishop–Arinze? and about a Cuban who was incarcerated by Fidel Castro. In any case, may God doubly bless you in the selection of the successor to Pope John Paul II.