Could I convert to LDS w/out being strict about going to church and other activities?

[Eddie32]

I apologize in advance if this forum is only supposed to be for people who are LDS.

I'm considering applying at a college in Provo, Utah, and just about everyone there is mormon. I share their views on issues and think its wonderful how wholesome they are and enjoy being around them. I also believe in God but I'm just not that a religious person. In particular, I don't care much for all the rituals in organized religion.

I would also never want to send my kids to do missionary work overseas or force them to only live in areas with large mormon populations. Also, I'm concerned about that "marriage is forever" belief b/c what if your spouse cheats on you, becomes abusive, becomes an addict, or does something where it wouldn't make sense to stay married? In theory of course I'd love to find a woman with the idea that we'd love and be together forever, but I'd like to have an option out just in case.Do they not allow divorce or remarriage?

Aside from that, I'd really like to meet a girl with the values and morals that LDS girls have and obviously this would be a problem since I'm not LDS.

So could I convert without having to do anything I'm not comfortable doing?

[john doe]

Yeah, you could, but that would be a very empty conversion wouldn't it? Wouldn't you rather be true to your own values than fake it?

[ztodd]

Welcome Eddie- glad to have ya around. The forum is open to everyone.

There will probably be certain moral standards you'll have to abide by to attend college there, but you don't have to convert to LDS.

But if you're interested in learning more, we're more than happy to help out. :)

It is expected of young men in the church to serve a mission to where they are called- but you don't have to swallow that right away. It can be a scary thing for many parents to send their kids to some far off country. Sometimes the fear stops them from serving a mission. It takes great courage and faith.

Divorce is allowed in those cases, I would say even encouraged as the right thing to do sometimes. All cases are unique though- there's not a one size fits all answer.

Some girls won't date you if you're not LDS- and some parents won't allow their children to date non-LDS. To be honest, I personally would be real careful about letting children date non-LDS- it has to do with our beliefs about temple marriage, which is only available for members of the church.

[Eddie32]

Yeah, you could, but that would be a very empty conversion wouldn't it? Wouldn't you rather be true to your own values than fake it?

Glad to hear the forum is open to anyone.

I have the same basic values and live the same way as LDS members (no alcohol, I don't swear, saving myself for marriage, etc) so I wouldn't be faking anything if I decided to convert. I know a lot of people are baptist or catholics but they don't go to church every week or make a big deal over it.

So its not mandatory to send your kids to do missionary work or to take part in religious activities every week? Right now I believe in God, but I'm not sure about all the details of the LDS religion as they would apply what's required as a member. After visiting temple square and looking online I understand the basic beliefs, but I'm confused about what kinds of things would be necessary for me to convert other than what I believe. I certainly don't want to be considered faking it.

Aside from abiding by the standards of behavior, which I already do, what else is required in order to be allowed to have a temple marriage?

[john doe]

I think the best thing would be for you to meet with the missionaries in your area and they can explain the LDS church and its beliefs to you personally. They can give you a good introduction to the church and our teachings.

[ztodd]

Glad to hear the forum is open to anyone.

I have the same basic values and live the same way as LDS members (no alcohol, I don't swear, saving myself for marriage, etc) so I wouldn't be faking anything if I decided to convert. I know a lot of people are baptist or catholics but they don't go to church every week or make a big deal over it.

So its not mandatory to send your kids to do missionary work or to take part in religious activities every week? Right now I believe in God, but I'm not sure about all the details of the LDS religion as they would apply what's required as a member. After visiting temple square and looking online I understand the basic beliefs, but I'm confused about what kinds of things would be necessary for me to convert other than what I believe. I certainly don't want to be considered faking it.

Aside from abiding by the standards of behavior, which I already do, what else is required in order to be allowed to have a temple marriage?

John's right. The missionaries are a great bunch of guys. They'll tell ya all ya need to know.

One thing I hope you understand is that joining the church can mean a pretty big change, even when you're already obeying most of the commandments.

We are commanded to "meet together oft", which we interpret as attending church every week, plus even more than that. After joining, you'll be asked to "serve in a calling". It could be joining a committee to help plan activities, helping people with employment if they need it, typing up the weekly church program; stuff like that. If you're willing, they may even ask you to teach a small sunday school class to a certain age group, anywhere from nursery up to 16-17 year olds or even adults 18+.

We have activities during the week too; not just on Sundays. You might be asked to help with those.

[cyoung]

If you joined now you would be about like 5 million other members. Unconverted and uncommitted. This is a religion of commitment. You will get out of it much more than you will ever give.

[Maureen]

... or force them to only live in areas with large mormon populations...

Forgive me but I found this statement very funny. No need to worry there, Mormons are allowed to live where ever they want to live. :)

M.

[Prodigal_Son]

I second the commitment comment. This isn't a good-old-boys club. This isn't even about us Mormons. It's about Jesus Christ. It's about understanding why we're here on earth - and then applying that knowledge through a life of dedicated service to fulfilling God's purpose for us all.

Revelations 3:15 states, "I would that thou were cold or hot." This is a fulltime commitment. Lukewarm isn't a good position to take.

So learn some more, maybe it'll kindle a fire in your soul, and then you'll be ready for the next step.

Good luck!

[volgadon]

Glad to hear the forum is open to anyone.

I have the same basic values and live the same way as LDS members (no alcohol, I don't swear, saving myself for marriage, etc) so I wouldn't be faking anything if I decided to convert. I know a lot of people are baptist or catholics but they don't go to church every week or make a big deal over it.

So its not mandatory to send your kids to do missionary work or to take part in religious activities every week? Right now I believe in God, but I'm not sure about all the details of the LDS religion as they would apply what's required as a member. After visiting temple square and looking online I understand the basic beliefs, but I'm confused about what kinds of things would be necessary for me to convert other than what I believe. I certainly don't want to be considered faking it.

Aside from abiding by the standards of behavior, which I already do, what else is required in order to be allowed to have a temple marriage?

The core of our faith is NOT a lack of drinking, swearing and premarital sex, it is a conviction of the divinity of Jesus the Christ, his atonement and the restoration of his church through a prophet he has called and chosen. If you don't believe that, don't convert. If you have good values you'll find someone. If she is less-active in the church or isn't bothered about marrying a non-member, then I see no reason to convert. If church is important to her then you will make the pair of you and any children miserable.

In order to be baptised you have to answer truthfully a set of questions.

Here are a few. Tell me if you feel ok with answering them untruthfully.

1) Do you believe that God is our Eternal Father? Do you believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, the Saviour 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)When you are baptised, 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?

A temple marriage is a VERY serious affair. You covenant with God, that is make a solemn promise to Him. Don't enter into that lightly, because, quite frankly, God does not like being mocked. You will be miserable in this world and under condemnation from God in the next. If this sounds scary, that is because it is.

You won't recieve a temple recommend until a year from your baptism, during which you have to be active in church.

Do not join the church unless you are serious about it, that would be my advice.

BTW I live in a part of the world with less than 100 members and few are local. My branch averages about 8-10 people, so you don't have to live with a large concentration of Mormons.

[NeuroTypical]

Hi Eddie,

A few misconceptions:

You don't have to be LDS to go to BYU in Provo. You just need an "ecclesiastical endorsement" from an ecclesiastical leader of some kind. You can go to some "we don't believe in organized religion" church, and the Pastor there can sign one for you.

Mormons don't really have many "rituals", other than the sacrament, and stuff that goes on in the temple.

Being LDS does not mean you are forced "to only live in areas with large mormon populations." (I live out in the middle of nowhere, Colorado, for example.)

Nobody suckers you into getting married for all eternity - it's something you chose to do with your eyes as open as you choose to make them. People who are married in the temple can still screw up and sin, and ruin their marriages, and whatnot. We don't believe in a God who just shrugs his shoulders and says dumb stuff like "well, sorry, you guys are stuck together". Of course divorce and re-marriage happens in this church.

Converting without believing, is a way of (in your case) lying to people so you can go to BYU. And yeah, we believe lying is wrong.

Happy choosing!

LM

[applepansy]

I apologize in advance if this forum is only supposed to be for people who are LDS.

Everyone is welcome here.

I'm considering applying at a college in Provo, Utah, and just about everyone there is mormon. I share their views on issues and think its wonderful how wholesome they are and enjoy being around them. I also believe in God but I'm just not that a religious person. In particular, I don't care much for all the rituals in organized religion.

Are you talking about specific rituals?

I would also never want to send my kids to do missionary work overseas or force them to only live in areas with large mormon populations.

We don't force members to live in areas with large mormon populations. We also don't force our children to go on missions. (I'm sure there are some who felt pressured by their parents to go on a mission but that's different than forced.) Your son would have a choice of whether or not he served a mission. The young man/woman has to start the paperowork.

Also, I'm concerned about that "marriage is forever" belief b/c what if your spouse cheats on you, becomes abusive, becomes an addict, or does something where it wouldn't make sense to stay married? In theory of course I'd love to find a woman with the idea that we'd love and be together forever, but I'd like to have an option out just in case.Do they not allow divorce or remarriage?

Eternal marriage is based on our righteousness. Just because we're sealed for all eternity doesn't mean the sealing will be binding in the next life if we haven't lived up to our covenants. So if your spouse became abusive, an addict, etc. and didn't repent, it would be highly unlikely that Heavenly Father would force you to be married to that person for eternity. He wants us to be happy.

Yes divorce is allowed but is highly discouraged depending on the circumstances. A cancellation of the temple sealing is a bit more difficult to get.

Aside from that, I'd really like to meet a girl with the values and morals that LDS girls have and obviously this would be a problem since I'm not LDS.

I'm sure you'll meet girls in Provo with LDS values and morals. Marrying one may be a problem though IF she is set on a temple marriage.

So could I convert without having to do anything I'm not comfortable doing?

Of course you can...but why? All you need to do to become a member is be baptized. The baptismal covenant (a convenant is a two-way promise) is that you promise to: 1. To service the Lord and keep his commandments (which include); repent of sins, pray to the Lord, Obey church leaders, keep the Sabbath holy, teach other about the church and to love others. The Lord then promises to: forgive your sins, give you the gift of the Holy Ghost, and to give you eternal live.

If you're not willing to live up to the baptismal covenant why would you want to be baptized. If you don't want to take on further convenants nobody forces you to. However, marrying an LDS girl who is expecting you to be a Priesthood holder and lead your family in spiritual things would be disappointed, and rightly so.

You really can't have your cake and eat it too. You can't have the blessings without the sacrifices. That's just a universal principal.

Don't be baptized until you're sure you can commit.

Edited June 14, 2009 by applepansy

[pam]

Awesome post apple

[mnn727]

Eddie

Welcome, we are always glad to meet people who share our values. Becoming LDS is not like becoming Baptist or Methodist or something. The LDS Religion is about making Covenants with God, we are a Covenant making people just like Israel of old was. Someone not willing to follow those Covenants should not make them as God will hold you accountable.

I think (like others) you need to learn more of what we believe as it appears you are only seeing the surface and not understanding the real essence of our beliefs.

Welcome to the forums and feel free to ask about our beliefs.

[StallionMcBeastly]

Don't convert unless you have a testimony of the truthfulness of it.

If you have a testimony of it, then you'll want to participate in the activities whether or not you like organized religion, IMO.

[Dravin]

Right now I believe in God, but I'm not sure about all the details of the LDS religion as they would apply what's required as a member. After visiting temple square and looking online I understand the basic beliefs, but I'm confused about what kinds of things would be necessary for me to convert other than what I believe. I certainly don't want to be considered faking it.

Others have covered this already but I felt like chiming in.

Yes you will be faking. In fact you will have to out right lie to become a member if you don't have a testimony of Joseph Smith and the current Prophet and if you don't intend to keep the covenants and commitments you'll be making at baptism and later on. Volgadon covered some of those.

Additionally, if some gal (I realize you are a guy, I'm making things more applicable to me) converted and we dated and it came out that she misrepresented herself as a faithful member of the Church when in fact she only joined so she could date LDS boys and never had nor has a testimony, well misrepresenting is putting it nicely. She's quite accuratly be called a liar, and not only did she lie to the people around her (the Missionaries and the like) she lied to God. Why on earth would I want to continue to date somebody who is not only willing to lie to people around them to represent themselves as somebody they are not but is willing to mock God by making promises they have no intention of keeping? And if I married such a person, disappointment, hurt and betrayal is putting it mildly.

Such behavior is not something espoused by my standards or religion. If you want to join the church that's awesome, but do it for the right reason. False pretenses are only going to get people hurt in the end.

P.S. I know I'm probably coming crossed as super harsh here, but this is a very serious matter, we aren't talking about joining chess club when you'd rather play checkers.

Edit: You say you believe in God and I'm assuming you are Christian, if not you'll have to lie about the first question in the interview as shared by Volgadon and adds more the the pile so to speak.

Edited June 28, 2009 by Dravin

[its_Chet]

I'm not trying to put words in your mouth, or make any judgmental assumptions about you, but I get the impression that you kind of view the Church more like a country club than what it truly is: The Church of Jesus Christ.

The Church of Jesus Christ is the Kingdom of God on earth. It was organized before the earth was popluated by mankind and was first established here in the Garden of Eden. It has been given to mankind, taken away because of apostasy, and given to mankind again many times. Each time it's here on earth it's called a "dispensation". There have been at least seven that I know of, and we are in the final one now. This is why the Church of Jesus Christ is known in this dispensation as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, to identify it as the old Church in the last dispensation.

The purpose of the Church is to teach mankind what we need to know and do in order to return to live with Heavenly Father in the Celestial Kingdom for eternity. If we do not do all that He expects us to do, we will not spend our eternity there, and I believe that would of necessity mean that eventually we would have an eternity of regret and "what if" to look forward to (my definition of hell). As you can see, membership in the Church means far more than membership in any other organization. The results of my attempts (or failures, if I don't repent) to obey the laws and ordinances of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which is revealed to us only by Propehts within the true Church of Jesus Christ, will last for the rest of eternity.

I can join a country club in order to schmooze with people who can give me things I want, but joining the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is an incredibly more significant proposition. I'm in this Church because I know it's the best way to honor my Heavenly Father and my Savior, and it's my only ticket to an eternity void of regret and sorrow. I don't want to make the ultimate failure, the one that cannot be undone, because of a test I can never re-take. This is very serious.

I don't mean to scare you away from the Church, but it would be a disservice to you if I didn't make it clear that joining the true Church of Jesus Christ isn't like joining some other religious organization which does not have authority from God to speak or act in His name, or the power to save souls. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints transcends other churches in importance the same way a Ferrari transcends a pair of roller skates, if you'll pardon the analogy.

It would be in your own best interest to join the Church, but you should do it because you love your Father in Heaven and your Savior Jesus Christ, and you want the opportunity to spend the rest of eternity trying to repay Them for what They have done for you, and because you are willing to obey all the laws and ordiances of the Gospel They place before you, even if they don't compliment any preconceived ideas you could possibly have about what is "orthodox". The true Gospel of Jesus Christ requires that we adapt to it, rather than adapting to us. And if it did try to adapt to one person, it would be unfair to everyone else, never mind that a "gospel" that is subject to some "authority" other than God cannot be the Gospel of Jesus Christ. You will not find the true Gospel of Jesus Christ anywhere other than in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.