Conference October 3-4, 2020


JohnsonJones
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Not sure if I'm just late to the scene, but is the sound byte that goes with the church logo new? The words that go along with it, though not spoken, are impressive.

After seeing the rest of Conference, I discovered that the sound byte is not played every time the logo appears. It was only played at the end of the conference session. I thought it sound byte was additional branding, but it appears not to be. It is the first 4 notes of "Come, Come Ye Saints". Being just the notes, members of the church would know the words just from the tune. I still think it was impressive.

Edited by brotherofJared
just adding new understanding
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1 hour ago, NeuroTypical said:

Elder Oaks making it clear where the church stands, and it's members should stand, on laws and lawbreaking, protesting and resistance and violence.

I'm going to put my tinfoil hat on for a moment.

Bednar: Trials, tests, etc.
Whiting: Become like Christ by carrying His cross and gain His attributes.  (Suffer... tremendously).  Learn how to deal with hardship because there is a higher purpose. Repent.  Change.
Craig: Learn who we are and learn to SEE spiritual things in our lives not the crude reality of mortality.  See PEOPLE, not things.  Look for opportunities to serve.  Then we will be like Him.
Cook:* Unity. Treat all people equally as children of God.
Oaks:  Don't get into riots.

*Note the 200 year periods Elder Cook mentions.

I'm wondering if this was focused on the more conservative crowd.  Trump is going to lose.  And there may be quite a bit of concern that the election was stolen.  In fact there will be tremendous evidence that such was the case.  But it will go through the courts -- even to SCOTUS.  And it will be determined that insufficient evidence exists to nullify the "official numbers."

We all know what the left would do in such a situation.  They've already shown us.  But what would the right do?  I know that most wouldn't get out and join the far right mobs that would be tearing things up and instigating a rebellion.  But I believe most would be armchair cheerleaders for it just as average liberals are doing with BLM and AntiFa today.

Both sides need to repent and accept the legally determine outcome after appropriate due process.  And we need to approach it with the understanding that the result will not go our way. We will go through trials.  We will be called upon to carry the cross and see others whom we can serve.  And even in the midst of persecution, we will be called upon to seek unity with those who persecute us, abuse us, and despitefully use us, and still recognize they are children of God.

Edited by Carborendum
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1 hour ago, Carborendum said:

I'm going to put my tinfoil hat on for a moment.

Bednar: Trials, tests, etc.
Whiting: Become like Christ by carrying His cross and gain His attributes.  (Suffer... tremendously).  Learn how to deal with hardship because there is a higher purpose. Repent.  Change.
Craig: Learn who we are and learn to SEE spiritual things in our lives not the crude reality of mortality.  See PEOPLE, not things.  Look for opportunities to serve.  Then we will be like Him.
Cook:* Unity. Treat all people equally as children of God.
Oaks:  Don't get into riots.

*Note the 200 year periods Elder Cook mentions.

I'm wondering if this was focused on the more conservative crowd.  Trump is going to lose.  And there may be quite a bit of concern that the election was stolen.  In fact there will be tremendous evidence that such was the case.  But it will go through the courts -- even to SCOTUS.  And it will be determined that insufficient evidence exists to nullify the "official numbers."

We all know what the left would do in such a situation.  They've already shown us.  But what would the right do?  I know that most wouldn't get out and join the far right mobs that would be tearing things up and instigating a rebellion.  But I believe most would be armchair cheerleaders for it just as average liberals are doing with BLM and AntiFa today.

Both sides need to repent and accept the legally determine outcome after appropriate due process.  And we need to approach it with the understanding that the result will not go our way. We will go through trials.  We will be called upon to carry the cross and see others whom we can serve.  And even in the midst of persecution, we will be called upon to seek unity with those who persecute us, abuse us, and despitefully use us, and still recognize they are children of God.

I’m pretty sure he was talking about the riots that have been happening and are happening now. When everything was shutdown, did you see the conservative crowd riot? No. We protested peacefully. And if the election is stolen, I don’t imagine the conservatives would riot, because we don’t riot. If we were to take our country back due to a stolen election, we wouldn’t riot businesses and homes. That’s not how we do things. I don’t believe he was talking to the conservative crowd. He was talking to members of the church who have been in support of the rioting. 

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50 minutes ago, Jedi_Nephite said:

I’m pretty sure he was talking about the riots that have been happening and are happening now. When everything was shutdown, did you see the conservative crowd riot? No. We protested peacefully. And if the election is stolen, I don’t imagine the conservatives would riot, because we don’t riot. If we were to take our country back due to a stolen election, we wouldn’t riot businesses and homes. That’s not how we do things. I don’t believe he was talking to the conservative crowd. He was talking to members of the church who have been in support of the rioting. 

I used to think that way, but I’ve seen some real ugliness online over the past four years and now, over the past six months, in-person as well.  

I have no idea what the die-hard  Trumplings (or, in fairness, pretty much anyone on the left) will do if their boy isn’t inaugurated next January; and these conference addresses aren’t calming my nerves.

Food storage, folks.  Food storage.

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3 hours ago, Just_A_Guy said:

Food storage, folks.  Food storage.

We received 2 to 3 references today about food storage, a subject that has kind of been absent for a while. 

I agree, you can't eat money, take some of it and get your food storage. 

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7 hours ago, Carborendum said:

I'm going to put my tinfoil hat 

I hope your tinfoil is from the generic brand. Fingers still crossed here that we don't need to go down that dark path as a nation. 

With that said, all gun stores in our area are basically picked over. Ammunition for 9mm and AR15s is all gone and impossible to get. We will never join a riot, but we will never let a riot come to our home, family, friends or our business without defending it. 

Edited by NeedleinA
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2 hours ago, Vort said:

I think we have a pretty good idea of what the Trump-haters will do if their guy loses. We have four years of experience with it.

I am not sure I agree, my good friend @Vort.  If the Trump-haters guy looses what we have seen over the last 4 years is only what they have discovered that does not work.  And I am not suggesting that they will try becoming more forgiving and friendly.

 

The Traveler

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6 hours ago, Just_A_Guy said:

Food storage, folks.  Food storage.

2 hours ago, NeedleinA said:

We received 2 to 3 references today about food storage, a subject that has kind of been absent for a while. 

I agree, you can't eat money, take some of it and get your food storage. 

This is true. I had said it a while back (second hand - My MIL saw the actual Church video, I never saw it) that Pres. Hinckley said that they weren't going to do any more food storage sermons from the G.C. Pulpit for a while to allow the Lord to preach His own sermon.

I had no idea the sermon would last 15 years.  But maybe that was what it took to wake us up.

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On 9/28/2020 at 4:08 AM, prisonchaplain said:

I'm thinking more along the lines of "LDS culture" or "LDS event" vs. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints culture/event. Then again, I could just say, "Oh, you know...it's a Thirdhour.org thing." I'm sure most will get my meaning. :sparklygrin:

Well, we are discouraged to use the short form LDS. However, when you refer the people themselves, you can definitely say things like "Latter-day saint culture"... it even has lesser syllables than for example "evangelical culture" 😁

Reference:

"When referring to Church members, the terms "members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints," "Latter-day Saints,” "members of the Church of Jesus Christ" and "members of the restored Church of Jesus Christ" are preferred. We ask that the term "Mormons" and "LDS" not be used."

https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/style-guide

 

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if I heard him correctly, President Nelson just announced plans for a temple in Kiribati. For those who do not know, Kiribati is made up of a bunch of tiny specks of land amidst the South Pacific. I'm amazed to hear of plans for a temple in Kiribati, given how small it is, but I guess its remoteness and the poverty of the people make it hard to get to temples in Australia or New Zealand. The church website states that the first stake in the country was created by L Tom Perry in 1996, and that there are 16,659 members living there. 

https://pacific.churchofjesuschrist.org/ki/about-us

 

 

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I may have done a disservice to Pres. Oaks' talk.  I listened to it again and was reminded that there was much more to the talk. The greatest theme was loving our enemies.  But in the backdrop of the political climate today, he made some interesting statements.

American's don't have to choose "between" their own cultural heritage and the American Heritage.  We can have both.  But it is the understanding that we are united under the Constitution while allowing ourselves all the diversity of culture we may want.

I'm going to guess that this is most applicable to the far left.  Wanting to defund police and to get rid of the Constitution.  There can be a "black culture" or "latino culture" or "asian culture" as long as it accepts the Constitution as a governing document for civil interaction.

I'd believe I'm a fairly good example of that.  I'm always talking about Korean stuff.  I'm proudly of Korean heritage.  But I absolutely believe the US Constitution to be divinely inspired.  And the more we stray from it, the closer we get to a dark age.

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Wow, all conjecture aside. Several talks hit home for me. Some on a 'macro what we should do as a people, as a church culture scale' and then Elder Hollands brought it in up and personal between us and the savior.

I really appreciated several talks, and got some great spiritual insights and confirmations these two days!

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Elder Oaks, telling us what to do about antifa, nazis, the hard left, the alt-right, the proud boys, the BLM movement, and that one guy who wants to vote for Biden:

Quote

We live in a time of anger and hatred in political relationships and policies.
Some went beyond peaceful protests, and engaged in destructive behavior. 

In a democratic government, we will always have differences in proposed candidates and policies.  However, as followers of Christ, we must forego the anger and hatred with which political choices are debated or denounced in many settings.  

[Christ] "I say unto you, love your enemies.  Bless them that curse you. Do good to them that hate you. And pray for them that despitefully use you and persecute you."  For generations, Jews had been taught to hate their enemies.  And they were then suffering under the domination and cruelties of Roman occupation.  Yet, Jesus taught them Love your enemies and do good to them that despitefully use you.  What revolutionary teachings for personal and political relationships!  But that is still what our Savior commands.  

[Christ] "He that hath the spirit of contention is not of me, but is of the devil, who is the father of contention.  And he stirreth up the hearts of men to contend with anger, one with another."

We are to follow the laws of men (render unto Caesar) to live peacefully under civil authority.  And we follow the laws of God toward our eternal destination.    1:31

[how do we learn to love our enemies?]  The Savior's teaching, not to contend with anger, is a good first step.  The devil is the father of contention, and it is he who tempts man to contend with anger. He promotes enmity and hateful relationships among individuals and within groups. 

[Kimball]: "No one can make us angry, it is our choice"

We move toward our enemies when we avoid anger and hostility toward those with whom we disagree.  It also helps if we're willing to learn from them. 

When we are trying to understand and relate to people of a different culture, we should try getting to know them. In countless circumstances, strangers, suspicion, or even hostility, give way to friendship or even love when personal context produce understanding and mutual respect.  An even greater help in learning to love our adversaries and enemies, is to seek to understand the power of love.
- Joseph Smith: It is a time honored adage that love begets love.
- Howard W. Hunter: "The world in which we live would benefit greatly if men and women everywhere, would exercise the pure love of Christ, which is kind, meek, and lowly.  It is without envy or pride.  It seeks nothing in return.  It has no place for bigotry, hatred, or violence.  It encourages diverse people to live together in Christian love regardless of religious belief, race, nationality, financial standing, education, or culture.
- Nelson: "expand our circle of love to embrace the whole human family."

An essential part of loving our enemies, is to 'render unto Caesar' by keeping the laws of our various countries.  Though Jesus' teachings were revolutionary, he did not teach revolution, or lawbreaking.  He taught a better way.

 

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Quote

God does not love one race more than another. . .
Your standing before God is not determined by the color of your skin.  Favor or disfavor with God is dependent upon your devotion to God and His commandments, and not to the color of your skin.  I grieve that our black brothers and sisters the world over are enduring the pains of racism and prejudice.  Today I call upon our members everywhere to lead out in abandoning attitudes and actions of prejudice.  I plead with you to promote respect for all of God's children.  The question for each of us, regardless of race, is the same.  Are you willing to let God prevail in your life? Are you willing to let God be the most important influence in your life? . . . Will you allow His voice to take priority over any other?
- Russell M. Nelson

Did anyone else notice that President Nelson didn't say that black people the world over are victims of racism?  I tend to believe the brethren are very calculated in their remarks as they seek to navigate a path that will enable the greatest quantity of people to come unto Christ with as few stumbling blocks as possible.  As he spoke of abandoning attitudes and actions of prejudice, what comes to my mind is the prejudice that is being perpetrated via education and indoctrination about "white privilege".  Notice how immediately before speaking about pains of racism, he spoke of the choices and individual agency we each have, and that our devotion to God is what determines His favor.  I see our black brother's and sisters suffering because they are being taught that they are victims and that the white skinned men and women in their society will look down upon them and treat them differently just because of the color of their skin. They are being deceived into supporting movements such as BLM, where the foundational principles are not based in achieving equity of opportunity and treatment, but equity of outcome, via dismantling the USA, families and free market society.  The war against our black brothers and sisters comes from the Amalickiah's of our day.  All who will allow God's voice to take priority over any other voice, will be led to the truth and able to escape both the temptation to act with prejudice as well as the pains brought on by seeing the world through the lens of prejudice.  We thank thee oh God for a prophet!  I am grateful for his words and I sincerely hope and pray that all brethren and sisters in the Church will be guided by the Spirit to read between the lines of the great talks given at this General Conference.

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26 minutes ago, person0 said:

Did anyone else notice that President Nelson didn't say that black people the world over are victims of racism? 

Thanks for taking the time to read between the lines and share 'pains vs. victims'.
After I heard that statement by Pres. Nelson, " I grieve that our black brothers and sisters the world over are enduring the pains of racism and prejudice.  Today I call upon our members everywhere to lead out in abandoning attitudes and actions of prejudice. " I honestly got frustrated, started to zone out and didn't want to watch the rest of the session. I'm 100% on board with your perspective @person0 if that was the intended message. I apparently didn't read between the lines and only heard the equivalent of 'victims' of racism. I instantly shifted over to thinking, "Are we as a church now promoting race guilt?". Race guilt is one of the driving forces of BLM attracting non-blacks to their cause. Because of the tensions around, I would appreciate a little less of reading between the lines right now and giving it to us straight.

Both my wife and I were semi frustrated by some of the safe dancing in the early talks Saturday morning. Almost instantly upon vocally airing our frustration to each other, Elder Oaks then gave his remarks = boom, answer to prayer.

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33 minutes ago, NeedleinA said:

I would appreciate a little less of reading between the lines right now and giving it to us straight.

I too would love it if we had more of that.  Though, once I get to thinking about the implications, I start to feel that just might make it too 'easy'.  Christ so often taught in such a way that many could be benefited by His words, while some could truly hear.  I sincerely believe that in our ever more divisive climate, "He who hath ears to hear, let him hear, " is the teaching method that will prevail from the brethren.

Edited by person0
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Notice how the Church has chosen to frame President Nelson's remarks.  People are hyping the comments on race, but that was ancillary to the real meaning and intent of his words.
https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/president-nelson-october-2020-general-conference

Edited by person0
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1 hour ago, person0 said:

Notice how the Church has chosen to frame President Nelson's remarks.  No mention of race at all.  Why?  Because that was ancillary to the real meaning and intent of his words.
https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/president-nelson-october-2020-general-conference

I don't understand what you're pointing to.  This was quoted under the section "Are you willing to let God prevail in your life?"

“Let me be clear, brothers and sisters, any discrimination because of race is morally wrong and contrary to God’s plan of happiness for His children. It is also contrary to His very purpose of the gathering.”

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