Tyme

I agree the church is in favor the Constitution, against communism and for freedom. As am I. Communism and socialism aren't antithesis to freedom and the Constitution. It's an economic system that has never worked. It didn't even work when JS implemented it through God. It was a disaster. But stating that the United Order and city of enoch aren't communism-esque is you in denial. Like MormonGator said you don't want to believe it because it goes against your personal beliefs.

You guys have to understand the city of enoch and the early saints both practiced a form of communism in the purest sense of the word. The difference between historical communism and what early saints practiced is the type of government. They practiced theocratic communism. The major communist nations you are talking about and trying to separate the church from has combined political ideology of mostly authoritarian with communism. It must be noted that communism in its purest form is an economic system not a political system. All the quotes you shared show that the church was trying to distance itself from communism during the red scare. They needed to move far away from anything that looked like communism. It has just stuckk with the church since then. I know it seems like a hard concept for some to grasp.

I gotta tell you I really love Joseph Smith Jr. He's not that far off from Jesus Christ for me. The song is too good to get rid of. It was written by W.W. Phelps who threw JS in Liberty jail. The song seems to be Phelps way of righting a wrong. If I could I'd write Praise to the Man version 2.0 about Prophet Monson.

Let me guess you’re the arbitrator of what is right and wrong to force.

I want to apologize that was not christ like of me. It seems like you are a smart, spiritual and reasonable fella. That means you would probably be a great Bishop. I just don't understand why anybody would want to be a Bishop. When I was young I pictured my self as a leader in the church and of the free world. It was rather grandiose dreams. Now I don't want any type of leadership in anything.

Can I go in a hoody, running shorts and flip flops or is that frowned upon?

You would be a real treat as a Bishop.

Sexual questions that go beyond have you violated the law of Chastity. The ones you hear about where the Bishop asks for details. It should be a flat, "have you violated the law of chastity." A Bishop should go no further than that.

http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/11/09/how-latinos-voted-in-2018-midterms/ Statistics on Latinos voting in 2018. ^^^ The only hint of truth in your second and third paragraphs is about the old guard. They are going to fight like heck. I just don't think they will crown a candidate like they did with Clinton. That means there will be a lot of candidates in the primary. There only hope is to all pick one. I don't see that happening. That leaves a straight shot for Bernie to get to the general. I don't understand what you mean by "Kavanaugh him." Booker voted against Kavanaugh to become a Supreme Court Justice.

The interesting thing about the 2016 primaries is that Trump never had 50% of the vote until the end. That means if the other candidates would have coalesced around one candidate the odds would have been better. It could even be argued that the one against Trump would have easily won. That leaves an opening for one candidate to enter in 2020 and be the anti-trump candidate. With that said, I believe Trump has coalesced voters around him this time around. That would make it harder for the anti-trump to win. I just wouldn't count out the person who goes against Trump just yet. As far as the economy, it is going to be a strong factor in 2020 and should have been this year. If Trump would have stuck to the economy I think the primaries would have turned out a lot different. Instead he insisted on demonizing migrants. That caused the Latino community to come out in droves. With that said, I don't think the economy necessarily means Trump is going to automatically win. You can look at 2012 as an example of that. There was something floating around that said a President has never been re-elected with the unemployment as high as it was in 2016. Well, we all know how that turned out -- Obama won a second term(Christ Christie). There are always firsts for everything. The interesting aspect of 2020 is going to be the rise of Progressives. If Bernie Sanders wins the primary Trump doesn't stand a chance. Most people agree with what Bernie is saying. That's according to polls at least. I must say that I think polls are full of crap most of the time. The reason I'm so confident that Bernie is going to win the Democratic primary is because he is going to do it the same way Trump did. There will be like 10 candidates in the primary most with just left of center views. That means they will split the vote and Bernie will always carry about 35% of the vote. Now there is always that chance a charismatic rock star separates from the pact. If I had to choose that would be Cory Booker.

I agree with you Jane_Doe. That's some sage advice. The only problem is that a Bishop is different than a friend. A Bishop is somebody people in the church are taught to look up to, always have answers and be reverent towards. It's a lot harder to stand up to a Bishop than a friend. That's especially true for kids 13 and under.

I'm not particularly concerned about them being abused per se. My concern is them getting an intrusive line of questioning. I think even a well intentioned Bishop can ask unnecessary and intrusive questions.

It's not that all or even most Priesthood leaders are deviants. There is that 1/100,000 chance that a Priesthood leader is an abuser. That is enough right there to necessitate changes. Like I was reminded by Antaness in another post to paraphrase, "just because somebody is a member of the church doesn't make them a good person." I'm going to add -- just because somebody is a Priesthood leader doesn't mean they won't abuse your kid.

Let me guess, Harry Reid is of the devil and Obama is the anti-christ.

You need to watch Frozen. "Let it go"

I hope that was meant as a joke. That was the most logically inconsistent post I've ever read.

There are plenty of good discussions to be had on this forum. I don't think the LGBT one is spirit inducing or productive.

The point I'm trying to get across when discussing this with everyone is way different than you might think. My point is that this issue runs deep into peoples souls and hearts. People can't be convinced one way or the other by a simple talk or arguing on forums. That's why the churches stance on ex-communicating or not allowing members in who disagree with their stance will never work. This issue goes just as deep as religion. It's like when members say the church is true with the full conviction of their hearts. I know nothing is wrong with LGBT with the full conviction of my heart. There is nothing that will change that accept revelation from the spirit. I've received and always believed that LGBT will be solemnized in the Temple EVENTUALLY. The spirit has whispered to me that God loves all his children, wants them in the church and wants them to have joy. I also know that the Prophets are receiving revelation from God on this matter. That when the church is ready LGBT will be allowed full fellowship. I'm going to try to refrain from engaging in these discussions on this forum for that very reason. The reason is that nobody is going to change their mind. It's a fruitless endeavor. I along with 50% of the youth of the church have received whispers from the spirit that there is nothing wrong with LGBT. Then there are members who have received whispers that LGBT is of the devil and will never be allowed in the church. That doesn't mean one group is necessarily wrong. It just means we're at different stages in our discipleship. It will be interesting to see how the spirit directs each group in the future.

Bernie Sanders is like 100 years old. I wouldn't call leftists unwise in their youth. Just because Alexandria has became prominent doesn't mean they're all young.

The moment you answer mine. If you want to broaden your horizons go to a gay forum and argue about LGBT. I don't claim to be an expert.

If your brain pathology shows you're man then you are. It's not like a biological male just wakes up one day and goes I want to be a female. They are or they aren't.

She's only 8 that means she's at the will of her mom and leaders.

I just hate having to worry about the fact that my daughters are going to be interviewed alone repeatedly. It's really one of my main concerns for my daughters. I've heard too many horror stories.

That's a good idea. Have at least two people present during the interviews. That way a child could still share stuff that he/she wouldn't feel comfortable sharing around parents.