What Positive or Good things are in the LDS (mormon Church)?

[PattyPryor]

I am in a world religions class right now and I have come to the belief that although I may not believe that a certain religion is something I would follow that there is good in all of them. I have come to this conculsion after much though and conversation with people about their faith.

So not to start an arguement (although I’m sure this will cuz it seems it always does) What positive things do you see in the Mormon Church and perhaps for the Mormons posting here what positive things do you see in other religions?

 

[jmcrae]

Mormons are very clean-living - they are very sober, and very family oriented. They also take really good care of each other - if a father becomes unemployed in their community, they don’t allow the family to go on welfare - the Temple itself will provide for the family until the father gets another job.

 

[LAMBOFGODGIRLY]

What positive things do you see in the Mormon Church

My husband…(who is LDS) and his family, are some of the positives. LDS are very big on family! They are very sincere in their religion, and are extremely faithful to it. They are taught EVERYTHING there is to know about their religion. I would never switch my religion though. I know the Catholic faith is the only faith that can trace they’re teachings directly to Jesus’ teachings to Peter. Us Catholics may have a few down falls in certain areas…(nothing doctrinal), but we are The True Church of Jesus. Every religion has certain areas for improvement. That is my opinion. Needless to say, I am completely in love with my Faith!

 

[RebeccaJ]

The mormon church teaches people to have a very innocent, child-like faith. It is very endearing, to me, anyway. Probably because it reminds me of my mom.

 

[ohioszo]

BYUTV has some good television in Jerry Yarnell’s painting show, which my mother enjoys; dance shows of BYU’s young adults show the world how young adults should be and their dances cover all cultures… and the dances are pleasant to watch during special times of the year. LDS’ interest in ancestors has made them important for genealogy research, although, I honestly cannot elaborate on their contribution since my ancestors were *not *in their databases. (I found my ancestors simply by looking at sites put up by Europeans who had genealogy database websites.) One might think well of them, with respect to the mandatory? missionary work required of their young men. That could very well be simply irritating to the rest of us, with the door-to-door proselytizing. What they do, in essence, is remind us that we should have respect for our heritages, we should have respect for other’s heritages, and acknowledging our and the other person’s antecedents’ roles in the building up of America.

 

[ParkerD]

Lamb of God Girly and Patty Pryor,
I only look at this website once in a while lately, but I noticed your conversation on two threads and felt it was important to add a personal insight. I appreciate “meeting” someone like the two of you who ask sincere questions.

I assume we all believe that God knows the heart of every person, regardless of what church they belong to or where they live in the world. He loves everyone unconditionally, always. I assume we all acknowledge that this life is a learning process, happily so.

With those three basic premises, would it not be logical that a person moving in the direction of becoming more Christ-like (more loving and charitable, less argumentative and demanding, less angry and selfish, etc.) is moving in the direction that God wants them to move?

When the LDS speak of the fullness of truth in our church, it is because of our belief in on-going revelation that living prophets united with apostles receive from God. They guide us in moving in the direction of becoming more Christ-like, but that is not to say that anyone has “arrived”–“all come short of the glory of God” (far short). We all need grace, and we all also need patience with each other as we all move along encountering different aspects of truth in our lives that we can incorporate to help us become more Christ-like.

So I would say that many Catholics have much truth, and are moving in the same direction that I am moving, seeking to become more Christ-like. We LDS feel that the ordinances (like baptism by immersion for the remission of sins we have committed in life, and the gift of the Holy Spirit to be able to become sanctified) and covenants of the fullness of the gospel strengthen our focus and our innate ability to help in that process of becoming more Christ-like. We feel that the Holy Spirit really does guide our everyday life–in how we treat others, in how to live providently, in what field of work to go into, what education to pursue, perhaps how to make the connection that gets us a job we will enjoy–real, daily guidance in things that are not trivial for us personally.

But as Catholics move in the direction of becoming more Christ-like, then obviously there would be more similarities between a certain Catholic and a certain LDS person because they are moving toward the same goal, though perhaps at different rates of change and with the possibility of “wandering off” because of discouragement, temptations, or what have you (for either religious person). Becoming Christ-like is Bible-centered, Bible-taught, and I don’t think it’s necessarily measurable by what church a person belongs to.

Having said all that, I would say that what attracts people to the LDS church is that when they attend the LDS services, they find people who really do connect with the Holy Spirit in receiving guidance as I mentioned, so they find people who are really joyful, really committed to living Christ-like lives as best they can, while still making mistakes along the way and feeling acceptance anyway. It that exclusive to the LDS? Probably not. But in my very limited experience, it improves the odds. 'Hope that helps.

 

[RebeccaJ]

Lamb of God Girly and Patty Pryor,
I only look at this website once in a while lately, but I noticed your conversation on two threads and felt it was important to add a personal insight. I appreciate “meeting” someone like the two of you who ask sincere questions.

proselyting spam now?

 

[jmcrae]

Another thing I like about the Mormon Church is the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. They are probably the best choir in the whole world - even with so many voices blending together, they are all perfectly on pitch, and perfectly united in one voice - you can understand the words!