What if evangelicals repented to LDS?


prisonchaplain
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Provo is my hometown. I grew up near there and attended college and met my husband in that city! I am so touched by this. My heart, for many years, has been so very concerned about how to bridge the frustrating gap between my faith and my neighbors of different faiths. So often the strained interactions have nothing to do with religion -- just people trying to do their lives together.

This article...I don't even know what to say. Beautiful thing.

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How might this look in other places? The church was a small minority, and yet sincerely repented to the majority culture.

1. Social conservatives repenting to Hollywood for blatant and hostile stereotyping?

2. Republicans believers for sometimes only half-jesting about GOP = God's Own Party?

3. People of faith in the Pacific Northwest confessing of our unfair pejoratives towards the "godless majority culture."

We often read that those easily seen as powerful and wrong would repent. White pastors washing the feet of African-American pastors, American Christian peace activists repenting in Hiroshima, etc. What struck me with this article is that the repenters were a small minority, that they had experienced some slights from the larger community, and yet, they chose to look within and find the ungodly amongst themselves. Done in sincerity, contrition and repentence are powerful spiritual weapons.

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Guest mormonmusic

I served my mission in a very anti-Mormon part of the world, and my father is an evangelical....I've been steeped in a lot of anti-Mormon literature, and I saw first hand how many investigators we lost due to the lies that are spread about us by unfriendly groups.

To see that factions within the Evangelical/Protestant, and possibly Baptist churches feel some remorse for misrepresenting us to the world is refreshing. My whole family is against the Church because of the actions of these people, so it's touching when I see the anti-mormons repent.

In 2004, a group of BYU professors invited two prominent Evangelicals to speak at the Tabernacle as part of "An Evening Among Friends". One of the evangelical speakers made a comment that "we have sinned against you and have misrepresented your beliefs". It was in the Deseret news if you want the details.

I sent it to my father and he's been a lot kinder since then when the Church comes up -- which is rarely, actually.

There are times when I marvel at the fact that so many people are against us, when we are the only purely American religion in this country....such is the power of tradition.

Edited by mormonmusic
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In 2004, a group of BYU professors invited two prominent Evangelicals to speak at the Tabernacle as part of "An Evening Among Friends". One of the evangelical speakers made a comment that "we have sinned against you and have misrepresented your beliefs". It was in the Deseret news if you want the details.

That incident was a source of more than a little controversy amongst us evangelicals. However, over time, many have come to see the wisdom of President Mouw's confession. Given that he was president of one of the most prestigious evangelical seminaries, he knew his words would be both impactful, and would carry some serious repurcussions. Yet, he spoke the truth, and probably did more for evangelicalism in the LDS community than all the "street preachers" have in the many years they've rabble-roused.

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Jadams...so true and so hard. I wish we could engage in passionate debate, and then shake hands at the end of the day, and consider our adversaries "loyal opposition." I'd like to think I really do. But such an approach usually means simply being quiet in the face of louder, more insulting commentary.

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.. when we are the only purely American religion in this country....such is the power of tradition.

Some would say that the scope was pan-galactic, but there are other faith traditions that have sprung from the boundaries of the USA as well. For instance, the Wikipedia says that The Assemblies of God has its roots in the Pentecostal revival of the early 20th century. This revival is generally traced to a prayer meeting held under the leadership of Charles Parham, at Bethel Bible College in Topeka, Kansas, on January 1, 1901.

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While Moksha is right, since the Assemblies of God is perceived as a denomination within evangelical Christianity, and your church is indeed seen as a new religious movement by sociologists, it is often said that Mormonism is the first major world religion to have been birthed in the United States.

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I came over here from a forum that is very hostile to the LDS. And while it isn't exactly the same thing, I can say that hearing about any situation where we and the other Christian churches can learn to get along better is a good thing. My thoughts on the matter has always been that they, and we, are following the Lord in the way that makes sense to us. There is no need to be critical of someone who is doing that. As someone famous once said - Can't we all just get along. (Or something like that.)

:)

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[quote name=mormonmusic;446671

There are times when I marvel at the fact that so many people are against us' date=' when we are the only purely American religion in this country....such is the power of tradition.

Actually, the LDS church isn't the only one started in America. Other American churches are Christian Science, Jehovah's Witnesses, Scientology, Seventh Day Adventists, United Church of Christ, and the Unitarian Universalists to name a few.

Source:

Religion in the United States - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Guest mormonmusic

Prisonchaplain -- I just wanted to say that after reading that article, I feel touched deeply. For years, evangelicals and anti-Mormons have treated me as some kind of satanic deceiver. They have misprepresented what I believe to the point my own non-member parents wouldn't believe my when I explained what we truly believed. My parents didn't write to me for the full two years I served a mission, and my Dad told me he was ashamed that the word of my mission call was published in our local newspaper.

I would work long hours to find investigators as a full-time missionary in California, only to find hostile youth pastors, or members of the Ex-Mormons for Jesus from other religions at our next discussion, who wouldn't let me speak, would speak angrily at me, to try to pull educational rank on us, etcetera. Their whole attitude was one of disrespect.

Often the investigators would invite us back afterwards to apologize for the behavior of the anti-Mormon people they had invited to our discussion.

As a recently-released priesthood leader locally, I would visit new-move-ins to our congregation, and often find they had been completely turned against us due to jaded interpretation of our beliefs they were exposed to shortly after their baptism. And they wouldn't listen to me to try to correct them, the extent of their negative, false indoctrination was so great.

As you can see, the impact of the misrepresentations of our beliefs has caused me great hardship personally, and has created a huge rift between myself and my family on matters of religion.

One day, I told my father about the many abuses I'd suffered at the hands of these people (he's a member of the Christian Missionary Alliance Church), and made one comment that seemed to resonate with him -- that if I ever became disaffected with the LDS Church, the LAST place I would turn to, as my next religion, would be to an Evangelical-based religion that educates their membership against us in such malicious way -- and in my experience to that date -- in a way that was so un-Christlike.

To read that article above, touches me deeply because next to the Evening Among Friends event at the Tabernacle, it's the first time I've seen truly Christian principles directed toward me from a historically antagonistic religious audience. It elevates my esteem for Evangelicals as Christians, particularly when the pastor of this congregation in the article you cited said he was reaching out to Mormons because he wanted to be right with God, and no other reason.

Anyway, I have tears running down my face right now as I see the love and kindness that was shown by the group described in your article, in stark contrast to the hardship such groups have caused me in the past. To the point I need to stop writing and get control of myself......

Edited by mormonmusic
clarity, spelling and grammar
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"Angry evangelism" (I don't know what else to call those who yell and use words like "liar") is based on an assumption of intentional deception. Whatever my opinions about specific doctrines, I'm quite satisfied that the LDS I meet here and at the jail (we have volunteers) are sincere and open-hearted.

Mormonmusic, you, in particular, came here very recently, with all those experiences, and yet daily prove yourself humble, open, and yet knowledgeable. Kudos!

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prisonchaplain, I liked the article very, very much.

One aspect I'd like to add is that Pastor Jackson seems to have help purify his own flock. I found it interesting that the response of one couple that stopped attending his church when he began preaching repentance to the Mormons said

"Well, Pastor, you can't spend your whole life hating people and then be told that now you have to start loving them. It's just not that easy."

In the end, his congregation consisted of people who agreed with him that their cruel actions towards the Mormons were "between [them] and God"- people who were really willing to utilize the teachings of Christ.

I think it was awesome that Jackson's church was tested financially, but they kept on going. It seems that, besides promoting a feeling of goodwill and respect, Jackson succeeded in helping his flock purify themselves of a major sin- which is a very admirable accomplishment.

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