So I visited the Mormon Temple...

[why_me]

This is also a feature of the JW’S…IRONICALLY this cultish ‘rule/instruction’ is to me their greatest weakness , because human nature seeks truth. By forbidding members to even read ‘unapproved’ material they inadvertantly create a desire for the member to break this ruling ,because the subconscious tells the member that they are vulnerable and hiding something from him/her. Often the fear of being ‘found out’ is the main thing preventing the ‘victim’ from escaping from the cult !

This is not true but it is not encouraged.

However, isn’t it true, the catholic church forbids its members to read anticatholic literature? I saw this in a brochure when I visited my old parish church. And isn’t it something that one would need to confess? If true, is the catholic church a ‘cult’ or just a church that cares for its members?

 

[why_me]

Agreed!

Where are the ten commandments today? I thought Moses threw them down on the ground and broke them to pieces. Have they found the original stone carved commandments? I must have missed that piece of news.

 

[why_me]

I knew I should have double checked that! Sorry! It’s been 10 years since the Mormons came to give us “lessons”. I just found it fishy that the tablets disappeared, when they got to keep the 10 commandments.

See my post above about the ten commandments. Where are the orginal ten commandments as carved out by god?

 

[Allweather]

And then, if the lds is the true church, another explanation would be that satan does his utmost to lead people away from the faith. The temptations are strong. But that is not my opinion but it could be used.

That argument can be, and is, used in reference to ANY church organization. When I started moving away from the Protestants, people told me that it was Satan deceiving me. Every week in my bible study, someone would pull out some Scripture reading specifically intended to “wake me up” from my confusion. Meanwhile, I began to see THEM as deceived. So I think there are human confusions that we are all subject to, but not necessarily attributable to Satan’s personal intervention.

If you ask me, Catholicism teaches a much more demanding holiness than Mormonism does. Birth control, abortion, moderation (as opposed to abstinence) in foods and drinks, divorce, etc. Catholic teachings are very specific and very demanding. It takes a person willing to submit and obey in order to live a Catholic lifestyle.

However, mormons are good people who revere and respect god and to do god’s will. But it is not easy.

Holiness is never easy, and heck, it isn’t even POSSIBLE without God’s grace. God never asks the impossible. All of His commandments are within the power of men to obey, but not of their own effort and will. He demands obedience, and also provides the means for us to obey, and even triumph. Sometimes things seem weird. Like, for a Protestant or Mormon, the Immaculate Conception may seem weird and incomprehensible. Yet it is the teaching of the Church that Jesus founded, and has always been believed by Christians, for 2 millenia. Who am I to say, well, that is incomprehensible, I can’t believe it. I start with obedience, and pray for understanding.

 

[why_me]

If you ask me, Catholicism teaches a much more demanding holiness than Mormonism does. Birth control, abortion, moderation (as opposed to abstinence) in foods and drinks, divorce, etc. Catholic teachings are very specific and very demanding. It takes a person willing to submit and obey in order to live a Catholic lifestyle.

This is true. However as a cradle catholic I was never taught many things by my parents. I knew the bare basics. But yes, if one follows all the catholic teachings, one would lead a holy life. But the question remains: Is there pressure to do so. I do believe that most catholics do not know their faith. EWTN is doing a good job but how many catholics watch that station. In the lds church the education starts young and continues every sunday throughout ones life. It is in your face and hard to forget. But I cannot say this for most catholics.

 

[why_me]

That argument can be, and is, used in reference to ANY church organization. When I started moving away from the Protestants, people told me that it was Satan deceiving me. Every week in my bible study, someone would pull out some Scripture reading specifically intended to “wake me up” from my confusion. Meanwhile, I began to see THEM as deceived. So I think there are human confusions that we are all subject to, but not necessarily attributable to Satan’s personal intervention.

And the same would be true for a catholic who contemplates joining a protestant sect or the lds church. Satan is a sly devil.

 

[ALLFORHIM]

I was in Salt Lake City last week and walked around the outside of the Mormon temple while I was there. These two Mormons who worked there started talking to me, and we had a decent conversation. When we started to wrap things up one of them asked me if I would like a Mormon to stop by my house and give me a Book of Mormon. I always like to talk to people who I don’t see eye to eye with and saw it as an opportunity to get a free Book of Mormon, so I said yes. I’ve got a Mormon friend, and when I told him about this, he told be that my name is now stored in some database and the Mormons will never leave me alone now. He also said that I should expect two Mormons to come and teach me a series of six lessons. Has anyone else allowed the Mormons to come to their house? Am I basically going to be under Mormon watch until death now?

Hi,

I have had Mormons into my house and even went to their church/temple. I have never been bothered again. They gave me a book of Mormon and I threw it out. I wish I had kept it.

 

[why_me]

Hi,

I have had Mormons into my house and even went to their church/temple. I have never been bothered again. They gave me a book of Mormon and I threw it out. I wish I had kept it.

I don’t think that you went to their temple, unless it was only to see the outside of it. You went to their church most likely. The book of mormon can be had by visiting their church and asking for one. You take it and say thank you and go on your way. That should work.

 

[majick275]

Where are the ten commandments today? I thought Moses threw them down on the ground and broke them to pieces. Have they found the original stone carved commandments? I must have missed that piece of news.

perhaps you missed the part of the bible where he was instructed to place them in the ark of the covenant. That’s how it got it’s name. the tablets were the covenant and the ark held it. now much later the ark was lost. we don’t know what happened to it. I think the point was that if this was like Moses example then at some point Joseph would have shown the plates tot he church members and placed them in the temple once it was built. if at some later point they were lost, hidden, etc, that’s okay but to only have a few witnesses, all of which were close friends and/or family of Joseph and even then to have some doubt about whether or not they saw them physically or in “vision” appears to be different.

 

[majick275]

It is hard to verify the exact number but yes, people leave the Mormon church for various reasons. But this I know. It is not easy being a Mormon in today’s world. It is quite difficult in fact.

i think it depends on where you live. in many places this is true though. but it’s also not easy to be catholic. (or jewish or muslim).

For young mormons, abstaining from sex before marriage is taught. Today, this kind of moral teaching is swimming up stream. For a catholic, this is also taught but the pressure to abstain is not as strong.

i don’t agree. this is taught by many religions and in many the pressure is greater. (muslims) Catholics (good ones) have the same pressure. I think you will find LDS youth have about the same rate of success in being chaste as most Christians.

in Then, in the mormon faith, drinking alcohol is forbidden. Today in the world, the pressure to drink is quite strong.

well that holds true for a number of churches and the same could be said of drugs for all.

In the Mormon faith, modest dressing is encouraged in the youth,

so do many churches

plus seminary outside of school.

CCD, hebrew school, etc. then there’s daily mass, adoration and stations of the cross and rosaries for CAtholics.

In the world, modesty is not encouraged at all. In fact just the opposite and weekly religious instruction is an alien concept.

but MANY churches do encourage modesty and weekly religious instruction.

The lds church heads one way, the world heads another way. There will be many to follow the world as in the time of Paul.

I agree but many churches don’t follow the world. I would also have you think about 2 Peter, particularly chapter 2 in regards to Joseph Smith

And then of course, there are doctrine reasons also. However, if you were to take a poll of why they joined the lds church it would because they prayed about the book of mormon and received a witness of its truthfulness. And perhaps this is what happened to you, especially if you were a convert.

i don’t disagree with this but I I don’t think it’s a good point either. confused people wanting to believe join because of a subjective feeling. I don’t believe that is the Holy Spirit telling them to do so.

But what happens after that is another story. The lds church can demand much from its members. It is a lay church, where members are encouraged to teach sunday school, do hometeaching to other members homes, hold callings inside the church etc.

many churches ask this of the members. my wife teaches CCD. I do knights of columbus. there are many churches asking their members to help preach and teach and support the church

. The lds church has no professional clergy or vocations. It is not easy to be a Mormon.

that isn’t entirely true. the general authorities are all paid. look at their homes and they are well compensated. Boyd K. Packer has only worked for the LDs church in his whole life and he lives in a mansion. I don’t have a problem with this as I don’t think their compensation excessive but I think it wrong to overlook that this fact exists. if you go back in LDs history bishops and stake presidents used to get a cut of the tithing and patriarchs charged a fee for each blessing. seminary teachers and bishops and other callings in the LDS church have stipends to defray costs now. it’s not wrong or excessive in any way but i think it somewhat misleading to say it’s all unpaid ministry.

And then, if the lds is the true church, another explanation would be that satan does his utmost to lead people away from the faith. The temptations are strong. But that is not my opinion but it could be used. However, mormons are good people who revere and respect god and to do god’s will. But it is not easy.

catholics could claim this and Jews especially. I think the Holy Spirit leads people to the catholic church but i think we can all experience the touch of God whenever we turn to him. That in my mind explains why we feel the spirit when we pray. that goes for any church. But I believe that only the catholic church do you have all of the valid sacraments and thus all available grace to help us deal with this life. many mormons are good people who try very hard to do gods will. I just think they are misinformed as to what that is and I feel that mormonism encourages a spiritual pride based on their concept of who/what God is and what they will become. I think it manifests as a lack of WORSHIP in their services. Truly worshiping God and doing his will isn’t easy for anyone. I think we can agree though that it’s worth it.

 

[Allweather]

This is true. However as a cradle catholic I was never taught many things by my parents. I knew the bare basics. But yes, if one follows all the catholic teachings, one would lead a holy life. But the question remains: Is there pressure to do so. I do believe that most catholics do not know their faith. EWTN is doing a good job but how many catholics watch that station. In the lds church the education starts young and continues every sunday throughout ones life. It is in your face and hard to forget. But I cannot say this for most catholics.

Alas, I must agree with you that the state of catechesis in the United States and western Europe is terrible. If you’d been properly catechised and raised strongly Catholic, you’d have been immune to the allure of a false religion. Again and again, we find lapsed Catholics and other Christians tell their conversion stories, and start out exactly as you did above. The defect isn’t in the religion, but in the catechesis. Parental malfeasance. Plain and simple. My fiance is a perfect example of this. Same with my parents, but at least they weren’t pretenders to any religion… they were simple pagans who believed almost nothing, and so I was taught… almost nothing. Only by the Grace of Almighty God did I yearn for Him, and look for Him in the Church that Jesus came to establish.

This situation, though, is very complex, and fluid. There is a renewal in process. I wish you’d join us, why me. We need people with the fire of love for Jesus and His Church.

 

[Allweather]

And the same would be true for a catholic who contemplates joining a protestant sect or the lds church. Satan is a sly devil.

Well, Satan gets far too much credit for sin. By far most sin is our own fault. At Mass during the penitentiary rite, we say, “I confess to Almighty God and to you, my brothers and sisters, that I have sinned through my own fault, in my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done and what I have failed to do. And I ask Blessed Mary, ever virgin, all the angels and saints, and you, my brothers and sisters, to pray for me to the Lord, our God.” No mention in there of Satan at all.

It isn’t that Satan doesn’t exist, but his powers are extremely limited compared to God. We are bedazzled by the new and different; often a new and different religion promises things that we aren’t finding where we are. Now, if we would just stop, dig down a little deeper, we could find those things we are missing. And I would say the same to you about your Mormon faith. Dig down and see if what you find there satisfies your deepest desire to know and love God, and be known and loved by Him. If so, then you are where you need to be. If not, your search is well-justified.

 

[DB_AND_ALI]

This is not true but it is not encouraged.

However, isn’t it true, the catholic church forbids its members to read anticatholic literature? I saw this in a brochure when I visited my old parish church. And isn’t it something that one would need to confess? If true, is the catholic church a ‘cult’ or just a church that cares for its members?

I grew up in a family that is half catholic / half presbyterian and have had many examples of ‘christ like’ christians , from both sides. Nobody in my family has ever tried to prevent me from reading any material whatsoever ! I LIVE IN A DEMOCRATIC COUNTRY]. For me being catholic means being fully human…and free. I am strong in my faith and have no problem in reading anti-catholic literature , particularly as i can then check the www to see if the things they say are true !!! Please check on the four [4] main elements required for an organisation/church to qualify as a cult…the catholic church is not and will never be a cult .

 

[MariaG]

This is not true but it is not encouraged.

However, isn’t it true, the catholic church forbids its members to read anticatholic literature? I saw this in a brochure when I visited my old parish church. And isn’t it something that one would need to confess? If true, is the catholic church a ‘cult’ or just a church that cares for its members?

No. This is not true.

While Catholics may be discouraged from reading anticatholic literature, it is not true that we are forbidden from reading it. One would need to know ones own faith well. If one is shaky in their faith, one should avoid things that will hurt their faith. That will vary from person to person.

Catholics ARE encouraged to read the bible. If one is searching for the truth, One usually finds the truth by reading truth instead of cluttering up thier minds with lies.

God Bless,
Maria

 

[PaulDupre]

I personally have never been discouraged from reading anti-Catholic literature. In fact, in our parish bible study, we have “apologetics night” on the first Thursday of each month. That’s when we take an anti-Catholic tract or book and disect it, learning how to defend our faith against such attacks. These, not surprisingly, are the most well-attended bible studies. We have looked at Loraine Boettner’s Roman Catholicism, the mother of all anti-Catholic tomes, JW and SDA tracts about the RCC, and even Jack Chick comics. Then we explore the biblical texts that debunk that garbage.

The February session was about the rapture. It was one of the best ever.

Our pastor has encouraged us in this pursuit. He says it is like a vaccination against error.

God love you,
Paul

 

[colliric]

No. This is not true.

While Catholics may be discouraged from reading anticatholic literature, it is not true that we are forbidden from reading it. One would need to know ones own faith well. If one is shaky in their faith, one should avoid things that will hurt their faith. That will vary from person to person.

Catholics ARE encouraged to read the bible. If one is searching for the truth, One usually finds the truth by reading truth instead of cluttering up thier minds with lies.

God Bless,
Maria

In fact, Karl Keating in his book “Catholocism and Fundamentalism” urges budding Catholic Apologists who are intensly embedded in the defense of the faith to read, order and even subcribe to Anti-Catholic material so that we know in advance what these people will use to argue against us, and know what we should do and how we should respond to these arguments. Although yes he says we must be well schooled in our own faith and it’s basic Apologetics before reading anti-catholic material.

 

[MariaG]

In fact, Karl Keating in his book “Catholocism and Fundamentalism” urges budding Catholic Apologists who are intensly embedded in the defense of the faith to read, order and even subcribe to Anti-Catholic material so that we know in advance what these people will use to argue against us, and know what we should do and how we should respond to these arguments. Although yes he says we must be well schooled in our own faith and it’s basic Apologetics before reading anti-catholic material.

Yes, a person should be well schooled. The people who “may be discouraged” from reading anti-Catholic material are ones who others probably feel are not solidly grounded in Catholic theology. For these people, reading the catechism hand in hand with the Bible should be encouraged rather than the reading of lies and attacks.

Although neither is “forbidden” no matter what ones level of knowledge is.

God Bless,
Maria

 

[why_me]

I grew up in a family that is half catholic / half presbyterian and have had many examples of ‘christ like’ christians , from both sides. Nobody in my family has ever tried to prevent me from reading any material whatsoever ! I LIVE IN A DEMOCRATIC COUNTRY]. For me being catholic means being fully human…and free. I am strong in my faith and have no problem in reading anti-catholic literature , particularly as i can then check the www to see if the things they say are true !!! Please check on the four [4] main elements required for an organisation/church to qualify as a cult…the catholic church is not and will never be a cult .

Actually, when I was in a catholic church last summer looking over their brochure table, I saw a brochure that advised catholics to stay away from anticatholic literature. Also, when a member of Opus Dei was instructing me on what makes a good confession, I saw in his paper that one should not attend a non-catholic church and if one did, it was a sin. This was only recently. And so, I think that you are mistaken on this. You should check with your priest.

 

[why_me]

No. This is not true.

While Catholics may be discouraged from reading anticatholic literature, it is not true that we are forbidden from reading it. One would need to know ones own faith well. If one is shaky in their faith, one should avoid things that will hurt their faith. That will vary from person to person.

Catholics ARE encouraged to read the bible. If one is searching for the truth, One usually finds the truth by reading truth instead of cluttering up thier minds with lies.

God Bless,
Maria

You should check on this. As I just wrote, the brochure was advising catholics not to read anticatholic literature. Also, I remember as a boy that one must not go into a non-catholic church. That was also a sin. You can check with your priest on this to see if I am correct.

 

[why_me]

Well, Satan gets far too much credit for sin. By far most sin is our own fault. At Mass during the penitentiary rite, we say, “I confess to Almighty God and to you, my brothers and sisters, that I have sinned through my own fault, in my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done and what I have failed to do. And I ask Blessed Mary, ever virgin, all the angels and saints, and you, my brothers and sisters, to pray for me to the Lord, our God.” No mention in there of Satan at all.

It is our own fault that we submitted to satan. I cannot blame satan but I can blame myself for submiting to his power. When I was a young catholic boy, satan was described as this big red monster with horns and a tail. I certainly did not want to go to hell to see him.