Lock stock and barrell

[AndrewCothran]

i have heard conflicting answers from members some have told me you must accept everything the lds teaches entirely before you join ..others say no its not that way at all

im not certain what to think ..The former puts me off because i can think for myself the latter makes more sense to me and it does not seem like anyone is pressuring me to do anything .

Edited September 30, 2008 by AndrewCothran

[mnn727]

There were a number of things I didn't believe and after 15 years there are still a couple things I have my own opinions on.

[AndrewCothran]

There were a number of things I didn't believe and after 15 years there are still a couple things I have my own opinions on.

so it really is ok to be in this position ?

[prisonchaplain]

IMHO, the idea that the Church and its leaders, especially when speaking prophetically, are not always right, or that there is a good deal of room for interpretation and personal opinion/reflection is quite...well...PROTESTANT. :-)

[Guest ceeboo]

i have heard conflicting answers from members some have told me you must accept everything the lds teaches entirely before you join ..others say no its not that way at all

im not certain what to think ..The former puts me off because i can think for myself the latter makes more sense to me and it does not seem like anyone is pressuring me to do anything .

Hi Andrew,

I am not LDS but I thought I would offer you my Catholic perspective ( for what it's worth )

I know VERY VERY few Catholics that do not " struggle " with some of what our Church teaches.

I would add that if you show me a Church where " you MUST accept everything it teaches entirely before you join", I will show you " A VERY EMPTY Church".:)

God bless,

Carl

[mnn727]

so it really is ok to be in this position ?

Its worked for me. Its worked for my wife. and we both consider ourselves TBM's

I don't know of anyone that always agree's 100% with everything.

[bytor2112]

There is a pre-baptism interview.......the missionaries ask you a set of questions....among these questions are things like do you belive that Joseph Smith is a prophet, etc. I have forgotten what all the questions are.....maybe a recent returned misionary could help out....

[Guest ceeboo]

I don't know of anyone that always agree's 100% with everything.

Hi Mnn,

Well, other than ceeboo and Islander, yes :lol::lol::lol:

[MaidservantX]

IMHO, the idea that the Church and its leaders, especially when speaking prophetically, are not always right, or that there is a good deal of room for interpretation and personal opinion/reflection is quite...well...PROTESTANT. :-)

LOL.

Andrew, there are 13 million Mormons all across the world. As you can tell Mormons love discussing, debating, seeing things from angles, and not necessarily having a rote answer. This is how it is for us!!! Ha ha. Love it. You cannot get the exact same answer from all the mortal people you are talking to. You need to get the answer for yourself from your Heavenly Father. That's the only information you need. You can trust what you hear from the missionaries and from the prophet. Baptism is a gateway to a lifetime of learning and experiencing, sowing, nourishing and harvesting the principles of the gospel. Someone mentioned that there are baptismal interview questions that you need to be able to answer specifically and truthfully.

I will tell you from the Preach My Gospel (used by full time missionaries) what the qualifications of baptism are, and what the Baptismal Interview questions are.

Qualifications:

Humble themselves before God.

Desire to be baptized.

Come forth with broken hearts and contrite spirits.

Repent of all their sins.

Be willing to take upon them the name of Christ.

Have a determination to serve Christ to the end.

Manifest by their works that they have received the Spirit of Christ unto a remission of their sins.

Make changes in their lives to qualify as commanded in D & C 20:37

Develop faith in Christ.

Repent of transgressions.

Live the principles of moral worthiness.

Live the Word of Wisdom.

Commit to pay tithing.

Receive all the missionary lessons.

Meet the bishop or branch president.

Attend several sacrament meetings.

Questions:

1. Do you believe that God is our Eternal Father? Do you believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, the Savior and Redeemer of the world?

2. Do you believe the Church and gospel of Jesus Christ have been restored through the Prophet Joseph Smith? Do you believe that Thomas S. Monson is a prophet of God? What does this mean to you?

3. What does it mean to you to repent? Do you feel that you have repented of your past transgressions?

4. Have you ever committed a serious crime? if so, are you now on probation or parole? Have you ever participated in an abortion? a homosexual relationship? [by the way, none of these 3 things may keep you from the church, but you may have to speak to additional leaders to consider your current state]

5. You have been taught that membership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints includes living gospel standards. What do you understand of the following standards? Are you willing to obey them?

a. The law of chastity, which prohibits any sexual relationship outside the bonds of a legal marriage between a man and a woman.

b. The law of tithing

c. The Word of Wisdom

d. The Sabbath day, including partaking of the sacrament weekly and rendering service to fellow members

6. When you are baptized, you covenant with God that you are willing to take upon yourself the name of Christ and keep His commandments throughout your life. Are you ready to make this covenant and strive to be faithful to it?

By the way, Andrew, you will notice that The Church places more conformity in the way a person behaves (chastity, tithing, word of wisdom, accepting callings, etc.) than they conform people's thinking and beliefs. Of course, there are some essential beliefs as shown in these questions. But you can see the emphasis is changing how you live your life through the atonement and your faith in Jesus Christ.

[Hemidakota]

i have heard conflicting answers from members some have told me you must accept everything the lds teaches entirely before you join ..others say no its not that way at all

im not certain what to think ..The former puts me off because i can think for myself the latter makes more sense to me and it does not seem like anyone is pressuring me to do anything .

Not the case. We first must learn to gain our own testimony based upon the truths received. Not all truths received at first may not be added to our own edification. Only way it is added to our personal edification is when the Holy Ghost confirms it to us. Then over time when you become more spiritually mature, the Holy Ghost will teach more truths. Perhaps those subjects that did not make sense in the beginning.

You only receive those truths base upon your own pace of understanding and no faster. The only pressure we feel is our own with learning everything we can in this life that is permissible.

Good luck and may the Lord bless you in your learnings. :)

[Misshalfway]

God teaches all of us line upon line and precept upon precept. We enter in at the gate (baptism), but that gate doesn't open into the kingdom of heaven. It opens to a path. We all must follow the path and learn truth here and there along the way.

Gaining a testimony of this gospel in order to join isn't really meant to be a gaining knowledge of everything. But it is a knowledge that this is the right gate and the right path. I think that vision and testimony is essential before one is baptised. But then we all walk by faith on many fronts until we gain knowledge in this thing and then that thing and our faith becomes dormant in those things and we need the process of walking the path for our faith to grow up in these ways.

I really hope that just made sense. It is early in the morning and my eyes aren't quite focusing yet. :)