RandyForRubio
Well-Known Member
Oh I completely agree. This whole thing is just very foreign to me, and I'm very intrigued by it. Thanks for your perspective.
LDS General Conference Fall 2015
- Thread starter colton
- Start date
Oh I completely agree. This whole thing is just very foreign to me, and I'm very intrigued by it. Thanks for your perspective.
My perspective on this, from the active Mormons I deal with anyways, is kind of an outlier. A lot of them talk about being inquisitive and it being ok to question, not challenge mind you, but then fail to really do so.
They will ask "why" but not be interested in an answer since they feel the Lord decided so why think about it. It leads over time to being a poor, uninformed member. Imo at least.
RandyForRubio
Well-Known Member
Oh it's not just a Mormon thing. It's a people thing. We don't want to question what we believe in, whether it be God, science or basketball.
Very true. But my main perspective is the Mormon church so I didn't want to say it is or isn't a problem in groups I have little to no working knowledge of.
Questioning does not have to mean challenging or rebellion. People have a hard time making that distinction.
RJF
Well-Known Member
In my experience, that is enough for members to effectively shun the questuioner. Its one of a handful of reasons I'm now only a member of record and in no way active today.
Personally, I don't disagree, but I am disappointed. I do believe the choices were inspired, but not in the sense that God hand selected them. I don't know the protocol any better than you do, but my lifetime amongst mormons leads me to believe it is more like, the FP and Qot12 make some selections and run them by God. God gives his okay. IMO, most of the leadership and policy decisions are probably made this way.
But again, I don't know.
Also, I'm a pretty sketchy active mormon.
It's a good point. Many people have a hard time with that for some reason. IMO, even if someone questions or challenges it's fine. How else are you to get to some solid footing and answers if you don't ask questions.
I think the key point should be that you are sincere and 100% open to whatever the answer is. Also families and friends should be more loving and patient with people that don't get the answer they want them to get.
The bottom line is to love and support each other, no matter what.
I know that's more of an ideal/utopia, but that's the goal even if it doesn't happen nearly as often as it should... but it does happen.
When I say I have major issues with mormon culture, this is what I'm talking about.
I had this convo with some family, during a discussion about my disappointment with the new apostles, and I mentioned that the Lord wants us to do or own work in addition to going to him. That I started the discussion in that light and that I wanted their opinions to see if there was something I had not considered.
ANd the majority of them acted like I was preaching heresy... what ever happened to personal accountability and a desire to seek the truth? ARe we not taught to study, discuss and ponder in addition to praying and asking the Lord.
Intended or not, one of the strongest messages the church (the membership, specifically, not the gospel itself) conveys is to never question church authority. In my adult life, I've never been comfortable with how many members will forfeit understanding "why" just so they don't feel like they're losing faith. I fully believe in having faith, but I don't believe God operates on the classic parenting strategy of "because I said so". In my experience, leaders such as bishops are not as judgmental about people with questions, but the general membership can be excruciatingly so. But I guess that's part of what you were getting at, Stoked...
I agree with much of this. But I will say it's also VERY location dependent. That type of thing is much worse here in Utah than it was in anywhere else I've lived, namely California, Maryland, and Wisconsin.
Yes, the average member. Not leadership.