When Willard "Mitt" Romney announced his intention to run for the Presidency of the United States, one might suppose that there was joy in Salt Lake City among the leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
I suspect that by now those leaders may be having some second thoughts.
For while it was a good thing for the American public to learn about the Mormon faith, Church leaders are now discovering that it is possible to have too much of a good thing.
The thirteen Articles of Faith of the Mormon religion enumerate a set of beliefs, some of which are quite consistent with traditional Christianity, and others which, while unique to Mormonism (e.g., the Book of Mormon), are not outlandish or immediately offensive to most ordinary Christians. (The Articles of Faith were written by the Mormon founder, Joseph Smith, to a Chicago publisher, John Wentworth, in 1842). The Articles say nothing about God once being a mortal human and being one among many Gods, about the brotherhood of Jesus and Satan, about God inhabiting a planet called "Kolob," or about the "magic underwear" that devout Mormons are required to wear, etc. Nor are you likely to hear about such things from the Mormon missionaries that might appear at your front door.
However, it now seems naive to have supposed that these and other bizarre Mormon doctrines would not be brought to light by Mitt Romney's political rivals.
Many faithful Mormons are surprised at the astonishment and derision that some LDS beliefs provoke among the general public. This surprise is likely due to the simple and universal fact that beliefs that are taught in childhood and shared in a community of believers are regarded by the faithful as "obvious" and "ordinary," while at the same time those same beliefs are considered, "from the outside," to be weird and outlandish.
I can testify to this fact, for I have experienced Mormon doctrine from both the inside and the outside. From childhood, through high school, I shared Mitt Romney's faith in the Mormon religion. Then that faith totally vanished during my freshman year in college – at Brigham Young University, of all places!
MORMONISM AND ME
If I might be permitted a few autobiographical remarks, this is how it happened.
My high school education was outstanding. I was among a few students selected to attend a "demonstration" school attached to a state teachers' college, where we were taught by college professors. There I acquired a precociously secular, scientific, and scholarly perspective on human history and institutions. At the same time, my parents (both graduates of BYU and both post-graduates of Columbia University) saw to it that my two brothers and I regularly attended LDS Sunday services. They accepted the conventional view that "Sunday School" was essential to a child's moral development – a view that I have since come to seriously doubt.
Accordingly, during my adolescence, I carried about in my head, a bifurcated mind. There was "the weekday mind" of ancient dinosaurs, of evolution, of American Indians as migrants from Asia, and above all, of skepticism, scientific discipline and critical thought. Then there was "the Sunday mind" of the Creation in 4004 BC, of the Garden of Eden and Noah's flood, of the Indians as migrant Israelites (the "Lamanites"), and of faith trumping "man's reason" – faith: "the substance of things hoped-for, the evidence of things not seen." (Hebrews, 11:1). I somehow managed the alternation of mind-sets from weekdays to weekends to weekdays again, without undue strain.
But at BYU the shifting of mind-sets from classroom to classroom to library to study hall proved to be untenable. At the end of my sophomore year, I transferred to the University of Utah and majored in Philosophy. Courses in geology, anthropology, new-world archeology, etc., pounded the final nails into the coffin of my childhood faith. In the words of the apostle, Paul: "when I was a child, ... I thought as a child. But when I became a man, I put away childish things." (I Corinthians, 13:11) In my mind, the Latter-Day Saints, formerly "us," became "them," and since then I have never looked back. (Accounts of this "de-conversion" may be found in my unpublished "A Peculiar People" and "Religion and the Schools: A Dialog").
Today, the polygamous man-God of Kolob, the magic underwear, the Hebrew-Indians, the translating peep-stones and the golden plates, the farm boy and the angel, "the curse of Cain" upon all people with any African ancestors, baptism for the dead (the Creator of the earth and all human souls being incapable of saving those souls all by himself), etc. – all this and more seem as bizarre to me as they do to most non-Mormons. (The essential tenets of Mormon theology are presented in this remarkable cartoon narrative of unknown origin. It is generally accurate, although there are a few identifiable minor errors. For example, Mormons do not believe that God and Mrs. God came to earth as Adam and Eve).
But equally bizarre to me is the Catholic dogma of transubstantiation (the ritual cannibalism of God's body), the argument that birth control is contrary to "natural law," the protestant fundamentalist beliefs in biblical literalism, young-earth creationism, and the doctrine of "the rapture," the orthodox Jewish ban against eating shellfish or wearing mixed fabrics, and the Islamic belief that the Angel Gabriel handed the Koran to Mohammed. Much worse is the plain immorality of many traditional religious beliefs. These include the belief that the genocide, murder and mayhem chronicled in the Old Testament were condoned and even commanded by the Lord God, that God had ordered that disobedient children, blasphemers, unchaste young women (but not men), and those who toil on the Sabbath be put to death, and that a loving God created billions of souls, all but a few thousand of whom He has condemned and will condemn to eternal damnation and torment. Among those condemned are authentic "secular" saints and martyrs such as Socrates, Marcus Aurelius, Galileo, Voltaire, Gandhi, Jefferson, Sakharov, who somehow failed in their lifetimes to agree with Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell and to accept Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior.
A "RELIGIOUS TEST" FOR PUBLIC OFFICE?
We Americans are traditionally a tolerant people, who believe that one's personal religious faith should not disqualify one from public office. It is so stated in Article Six of our Constitution: "no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States."
Dr. Ernest Partridge is a consultant, writer and lecturer in the field of Environmental Ethics and Public Policy. Partridge has taught philosophy at the University of California, and in Utah, Colorado and Wisconsin. He publishes the website, "The Online Gadfly" (www.igc.org/gadfly) and co-edits the progressive website, "The Crisis Papers" (www.crisispapers.org). His book in progress, "Conscience of a Progressive," can be seen at www.igc.org/gadfly/progressive/^toc.htm .
Your amazing rant against the religion of your fathers betrays the fact that while you may have scaled the Olympian peaks of your chosen profession (philosophy) you have never bothered to "waste" much intellectual effort on a serious investigation of Mormonism. Your Loony-tunes summary of the "basics" sounds, in fact, like it was cribbed from some anti-Mormon site.
Perhaps your disdain for Governor Romney is because you know that he is a very intelligent and accomplished person and you feel threatened that he hasn't come to the same conclusions, philosophic, religious, and political, as you?
Romney's faith cannot be explained by stupidity. (Google [mormon education religiosity].) How could it possibly be that 75% of LDS scientists have a very strong belief that Joseph Smith was inspired by God, with an additional 12% having a "strong" belief? (For what it's worth, I'm among the 75%.)
As for the "great difficulty" of having your name removed from the records of the Church, google [mormon remove name] "I'm feeling lucky!" Yes, there are indeed plenty of ex-Mormons willing to support you in the Herculean task of composing, printing, and mailing a letter!
Before you mail that letter, however, I beg you to exercise your synapses a bit more and spend a few days seriously investigating the religion for which your noble great-great-grandfather, Edward Partridge made such great sacrifices.
You might start by googling [alma 36 chiasmus]. Don't believe in miracles? Surely it is a miracle that in 1830 an unschooled 29-year old farmer on the American frontier produced such a chapter -- and such a book!
If you find Alma 36 in any way intellectually stimulating, then take one more step. Try the suggestion of Nephi and "liken all scripture" unto yourself, for your "profit and learning." (1 Nephi 19:23). After all, your article does suggest that you are pretty much in the same path that Alma was in before his life-changing experience.
If you can put yourself in Alma's shoes, then perhaps the core of the message to his son, which is at the center of the "chi" (X), will sink deep into your heart:
"And now, for three days and for three nights was I racked, even with the pains of a damned soul.
"And it came to pass that as I was thus racked with torment, while I was harrowed up by the memory of my many sins, behold, I remembered also to have heard my father prophesy unto the people concerning the coming of one Jesus Christ, a Son of God, to atone for the sins of the world.
"Now, as my mind caught hold upon this thought, I cried within my heart: O Jesus, thou Son of God, have mercy on me, who am in the gall of bitterness, and am encircled about by the everlasting chains of death.
"And now, behold, when I thought this, I could remember my pains no more; yea, I was harrowed up by the memory of my sins no more.
"And oh, what joy, and what marvelous light I did behold; yea, my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pain!" (Alma 36:16-20)
I don't know how much religiosity is programmed into Edward Partridge's Y-Chromosome, but since that chromosome is contained in every cell of your body, you have the potential to undergo a powerful physical and spiritual transformation.
Edward Partridge lives on in the spirit world, of course, and surely he is aware of you, and praying for you. May the spirit of Elijah yet work its wonder on you and turn your heart to the promises made to your fathers. (Malachi 4:5-6, 3 Nephi 25:5-6, Joseph Smith History 1:38-39, D&C 110:13-16)
With sincere best wishes,
Tracy Hall Jr hthalljr'gmail'com
by
Tracy Hall jr (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 10 comments)
on Wednesday, December 19, 2007 at 6:49:53 PM
Well meaning devout Mormons who wish to point out wayward errors of former believing Mormons are completely ineffective because they fail to understand that their arguments have no fulcrum. This is because they preach from a platform of fiction known to ex-Mormons.
FACTS THAT ONLY THE IGNORANT DISPUTE:
There never was a race or civilization of people who inhabited the ancient Americas as identified in the Book of Mormon (BOM).DNA has proven it.
Despite archeological searching for over 178 years, not one physical trace or artifact of such people has been uncovered.
The obvious conclusion is that the BOM is a work of fiction.
Since it is fiction, it can not be validly used to engage in religious discussion.
Since it is fiction, the names contained in it are fictitious.
Since the names are fictitious so are the events.
Since the characters are fictitious there never was a Mormon or Moroni or Alama.
Since no Moroni then Joseph Smith (J.S.) lied about the plates.
Since he lied about the plates his story of the translation from plates is a lie.
Since there was no translation from non existent plates he lied to cover his source.
Since he lied to cover the source, the work, being fiction, was crafted by another.
Goodbye Book of Mormon for scriptural fulcrum of the gospel.
The Pearl of Great Price (POG) is another scam as the Egyptian scrolls from which taken has been proven to be a funeral record of an Egyptian named HOR.
The POG being a scam, the Books of Moses and Abraham are fiction.
Since they are fiction they may not be used to prove history or the gospel.
The Doctrine and Covenants while created to codify theJ.S. Jr. scam of the “Restoration” by way of the two proven scams (BOM) (POG) is itself a scam for J.S. placed words in the mouth of his “God” to give credence to his “Mission”and make himself look good.
Last and not least. The First Vision Story is a scam. Early missionaries had onlyThe BOM to sell their story of the restoration. Not until 1842 was the story of the first vision created. If it had been a true fact in chronological order (first event) it would have been written and used as the foundation of the restoration story before 1842 as it has been since that time. It too is a J.S. scam.
So the best advice to give yourself is not to preach and give advice to others but remain silent or better yet do some real digging for your own search of truth. If you do this with pure motive you will become like so many hundreds of thousands (especially returned missionaries) who no longer use Joseph Smith’s lies for crutches in their lives.
NO we don’t want to hear it! If you want to learn we’ll help otherwise … stay ignorant! Or get smart on your own and Google it! Truth is just that close!
by
Doug Wallace (6 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 14 comments)
on Friday, December 21, 2007 at 1:10:11 PM
I regret that this is not a prompt reply to your response to my essay. I have been away from home and computer for the past few days.
The vituperation and sarcasm of your note are unworthy of you, so I will ignore them. And most assuredly I will not respond in kind.
Without citation, your statistic that "75% of LDS scientists have a very strong belief..." doesn't impress me very much. Who conducted this study? What was the sample, and sampling method? As you state it, this statistic is strangely circular. An "LDS scientist" would, almost by definition, be assumed to have such a belief. I would be much more interested to find out how many scientists have, as a result of their scientific education, left the Church. Unfortunately, I know of no such study. I am personally acquainted with many such persons, but of course, anecdotal evidence is also not very impressive.
That there are some accomplished scientists that are also devout Mormons is also a known fact, which I will freely stipulate. I've known a few of these also. Dr. Harvey Fletcher, a pioneer in stereophonic sound technology, was a member of our New Jersey ward, when I was a child. Dr. Henry Eyring, as Dean of the University of Utah, signed my Masters Thesis. The Dean who signed my Doctoral Dissertation, and coincidentally also served on my dissertation committee, was an agnostic "social Mormon," Dr. Sterling McMurrin. (McMurrin once remarked to me, "if you want your child to have a graduate education but also remain true in the faith, then have him study the physical sciences or engineering. But be sure he stays clear of the social sciences, and above all, history.") But all this is moot. I don't base my fundamental convictions on the testimonials of others.
Reports and summaries of extensive scientific studies, on the other hand, I take very seriously. And the reports from new world archeology, physical anthropology and linguistics have convinced me that the Book of Mormon is not authentic. All claims to the contrary are from LDS sources. In "Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought," Summer, 1973, new world archeologist Michael Coe wrote: "as far as I know there is not one professionally trained archaeologist, who is not a Mormon, who sees any scientific justification for believing the [the Book of Mormon accounts] to be true,... nothing, absolutely nothing, has ever shown up in any New World excavation which would suggest to a dispassionate observer that the Book of Mormon... is a historical document relating to the history of early migrants to our hemisphere." (pp.42, 46)
Coe's report is corroborated by a statement by the Anthropology Department of the Smithsonian Institution: Smithsonian archeologists see no direct connection between the archeology of the New World and the subject matter of [the Book of Mormon]... Certainly there were no contacts with the ancient Egyptians, Hebrews, or other peoples of Western Asian and the Near East." Perhaps you are aware of this statement. If not, you should be.
The Smithsonian Institute statement reports that "American Indians had no wheat, barley, oats, millet, rice, cattle, pigs, chickens, horses, donkeys, camels before 1492." (New world camels and horses became extinct about 10,000 years ago). In addition, "iron, steel, glass and silk were not used in the New World before 1492." The Smithsonian might have added that the wheel and axle had no practical application in the New World, and are only found as Inca toys.
Steel, iron, wheat, horses, chariots, etc. are all mentioned in the Book of Mormon. Yet not one steel artifact, not one chariot wheel, not one pre-columbian horse bone has been uncovered in the New World. Surely, if wheat and other near-east plants had been cultivated prior to 1492, they would have survived the extermination of the Jaredites and the Nephites. Yet, not a grain nor a leaf is in evidence. Add to all that, the DNA studies which have conclusively established the Asiatic origin of the American Indian.
Presumably, you can set all this aside and base your conviction on something called "faith." I can not, for I am fully aware that other "faiths," of equal strength, conflict with yours: faith in Catholicism, in Islam, in the "inerrant Bible," etc. So instead, I turn to evidence.
I do not share your conviction that it would be a "miracle" for Joseph Smith to produce the Book of Mormon. Smith was clearly an extraordinarily intelligent and creative individual. But even if you were to convince me that Joseph Smith could not have written the Book of Mormon, it does not follow that the book is authentic. Oliver Cowdery and Sidney Rigdon, for example, were well educated, and talk of the Indians as "lost tribes of Israel" was commonplace in the mid-nineteenth century American revival. The Book of Mormon is astonishing, but less than "miraculous."
While I have focused my attention on question of the authenticity of the Book of Mormon, it is only a small part of the inventory of reasons that I can no longer believe the claims of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I have never written out an extensive account of these reasons. However, I have more to say about my solitary journey away from Mormonism in the unpublished works mentioned in my essay: "A Peculiar People," and "Religion and the Schools: A Dialog."
Sincerely,
Ernest Partridge
by
Ernest Partridge (92 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 11 comments)
on Saturday, December 22, 2007 at 2:42:32 AM
