The LDS and the Cross

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To me the ideal Mormon symbol would be a rock. A big one. Because that is where Jesus atoned for humans sin was at the agony in the garden. At least what they teach.
 
Chris-WA said:
My friend if you really believe that than you have completely missed the point of the crucifixion. Your LDS training has robbed you of something very important, and that is sad. The cross/crucifix is the ultimate symbol of Christ’s self-sacrifice for the good of all mankind. It is this sacrifice that paid the debt for sin once and for all. It restored the relationship between God and man that was broken by Adam and Eve. The cross and the resurrection are two sides of the same coin. Death by crucifixion was the most humiliating, excruciating death one could suffer, and Christ did it WILLINGLY, giving Himself totally and completely for the good of the world. Mormons may minimize its importance, and are taught to even be repulsed by it, but this is a great mistake and misunderstanding of the most holy symbol in Christianity. If you have been trained to be repulsed by a crucifix, you have been badly misled. It is a symbol of total and complete love, love to the point of being willing to lay down one’s life of for the salvation of others. We are all called to die to self for the good of others, and the cross/crucifix is a constant reminder of this. What you have been trained to be repulsed by is actually a symbol of incredible beauty.
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👍

Beautiful.
 
Chris-WA said:
My friend if you really believe that than you have completely missed the point of the crucifixion. Your LDS training has robbed you of something very important, and that is sad. The cross/crucifix is the ultimate symbol of Christ’s self-sacrifice for the good of all mankind. It is this sacrifice that paid the debt for sin once and for all. It restored the relationship between God and man that was broken by Adam and Eve. The cross and the resurrection are two sides of the same coin. Death by crucifixion was the most humiliating, excruciating death one could suffer, and Christ did it WILLINGLY, giving Himself totally and completely for the good of the world. Mormons may minimize its importance, and are taught to even be repulsed by it, but this is a great mistake and misunderstanding of the most holy symbol in Christianity. If you have been trained to be repulsed by a crucifix, you have been badly misled. It is a symbol of total and complete love, love to the point of being willing to lay down one’s life of for the salvation of others. We are all called to die to self for the good of others, and the cross/crucifix is a constant reminder of this. What you have been trained to be repulsed by is actually a symbol of incredible beauty.
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I think also, Mormon theology also misses the mark in understanding of how Christ sacrifice fulfills the old law. Where the Law of Moses demanded that an unblemished lamb be sacrificed for our sins, Christ became the Ultimate Lamb that was slain on the Cross for our sins.

Thus the requirement for animal sacrifices was no longer needed, because Christ became the Lamb Himself.
 
andrewstx said:
To me the ideal Mormon symbol would be a rock. A big one. Because that is where Jesus atoned for humans sin was at the agony in the garden. At least what they teach.
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This is (or at least was) true.

Its a failure of understanding of the New and Old Covenants, and Christ fulfilling the old.

Christ didn’t die in the Garden. That is not where the actual sacrifice occurred. It occurred on the Cross.

He became the Ultimate “Lamb of God”. This Hebrew God-Man became the utlitmate sacrifice for sin. And it wasn’t achieved in the Garden

Animals sacrifices were required no more.
 
Marie5890 said:
I think also, Mormon theology also misses the mark in understanding of how Christ sacrifice fulfills the old law. Where the Law of Moses demanded that an unblemished lamb be sacrificed for our sins, Christ became the Ultimate Lamb that was slain on the Cross for our sins.

Thus the requirement for animal sacrifices was no longer needed, because Christ became the Lamb Himself.
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I am aware that LDS emphasize Christ’s suffering in the garden over His death on the cross. I forget why this is the case though I suspect it’s true origin lies in an effort to separate their doctrine from the rest of Christianity.
 
Marie5890 said:
This is (or at least was) true.

Its a failure of understanding of the New and Old Covenants, and Christ fulfilling the old.

Christ didn’t die in the Garden. That is not where the actual sacrifice occurred. It occurred on the Cross.

He became the Ultimate “Lamb of God”. This Hebrew God-Man became the utlitmate sacrifice for sin. And it wasn’t achieved in the Garden

Animals sacrifices were required no more.
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This reminds me of a beautiful prayer said during the Maronite Divine Liturgy:

You, O Lord, are the pleasing oblation,
who was offered for us;
you are the forgiving sacrifice,
who offered yourself for us to the Father.
You are the Lamb of sacrifice,
and yet also the priest who offered himself for us.
May our prayers be like incense in your sight
as we present them through you and with you to
your Father.

Amen!
 
dcana said:
This reminds me of a beautiful prayer said during the Maronite Divine Liturgy:

You, O Lord, are the pleasing oblation,
who was offered for us;
you are the forgiving sacrifice,
who offered yourself for us to the Father.
You are the Lamb of sacrifice,
and yet also the priest who offered himself for us.
May our prayers be like incense in your sight
as we present them through you and with you to
your Father.

Amen!
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That is so Beautiful!!!
Thanks for sharing. 🙂
 
jane_doe said:
Mormon theology has nothing against using the symbol of the cross. Amongst Mormon culture though, it’s far from the most popular symbol though, favoring pictures of the living Christ (resurrected with Mary, teaching, etc).
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No, I think it’s more than that. It’s not that LDS* favor* one over the other. They really just don’t want anything to do with a cross. In fact they kind of despise it. Mormon theology may not specifically ban the symbol the of the cross, but you will not find the cross pretty much anywhere in Mormondom–not in the temple, not in a chapel, not on any document or magazine article or poster or in their homes. If a Mormon shows up for church wearing a cross, they won’t be wearing it for long because they will get dirty looks and comments from people in their ward. In Mormondom, the symbol of the cross is really looked down upon–you just don’t do it. That’s more of an institutional mindset than just culture. It seems more like LDS have gone out of their way to* not *have the cross as part of their religion.

LDS have always tried to separate themselves from Christian denominations and I suspect this is just another way they wanted to set themselves apart, in addition to some anti-Catholic bias as explained in other posts on this thread.

On the lighter side, I only know of two groups that are repulsed by the cross—vampires and Mormons.
 
Chris-WA said:
No, I think it’s more than that. It’s not that LDS* favor* one over the other. They really just don’t want anything to do with a cross. In fact they kind of despise it. Mormon theology may not specifically ban the symbol the of the cross, but you will not find the cross pretty much anywhere in Mormondom–not in the temple, not in a chapel, not on any document or magazine article or poster or in their homes. If a Mormon shows up for church wearing a cross, they won’t be wearing it for long because they will get dirty looks and comments from people in their ward. In Mormondom, the symbol of the cross is really looked down upon–you just don’t do it. That’s more of an institutional mindset than just culture. It seems more like LDS have gone out of their way to* not *have the cross as part of their religion.

LDS have always tried to separate themselves from Christian denominations and I suspect this is just another way they wanted to set themselves apart, in addition to some anti-Catholic bias as explained in other posts on this thread.

On the lighter side, I only know of two groups that are repulsed by the cross—vampires and Mormons.
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There are many stories of converts to Mormonism who tried to continue wearing cross jewelry and stopped because of pressure and comments from other Mormons, including a woman who was told to take it off by a temple worker the first time she went to the temple. The CTR logo is quite popular, though.
 
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