Robert F. Smith

So, is it a fact that FAIR and other such organizations get tithing money from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints?? If so, how much?

Thanks Calm, I may just have to prevail upon you to get permission, if all else fails. On messages here, I just save a bunch of them on a document which I save for future reference. Bob

Hi Calm: Your message box is full. I need to message Robert Messick, the new Book of Mormon editions guy. I cannot recall his handle. Can you help? Bob

Genetic diversity (as in melanin and pigmentation of skin) is a normal function of earth-bound biological evolution -- survival of the fittest -- and has nothing to do with our true eternal nature as one family of humankind.

Modern transportation and modern technology make long foreign stays less necessary.

Yep. The Fiscal Year.

Online proselyting has long been the most efficient mode, since it winnows out the wheat from the chaff -- for the missionaries who make the crucial contact and lessons leading to baptism.

One major effect of the COVID experience has been in technology: So many were introduced to Zoom of necessity, aside from families who began having sacrament meeting in the home -- with daddy blessing and passing the sacrament.

Would you ask any of these questions of someone who had just finished a session at your local LDS temple? Of course not. If you did, they would look at you funny. We are all adam & eve in every endowment session. Liturgy is not to be taken literally. Eve was not created from a rib, and she did not eat an actual fruit. The Brethren have been very clear on the figurative nature of it. It is the oaths and covenants which are primary and meant to be taken literally. The Restoration has not always been smooth. After all, we are dealing with humans.

Yep. The Garden is a temple. Gen 1 - 4 is an endowment liturgy, with all manner of figurative expressions. It is not a literal, historical narrative. Nibley covers that generic liturgy well in his Message of the Joseph Smith Papyri.

Yes, but some cases are ultra-sensitive for Latter-day Saints, such as China, Russia, and Israel.

Just stating the facts to MDDB, not you. You already get it that this is wrong. I also worry that the Church has made a fetish of the nuclear family, when it is the extended (multigenerational) family which should be primary (Mosiah 2:5). However, even the nuclear family is now in decline: Maria Kouloglou, “The New Inequality: The Decline of the Working Class Family,” Quillette, June 13, 2019, online at https://quillette.com/2019/06/13/the-new-inequality-the-decline-of-the-working-class-family/ ,

It's the economy, Brother. It's the economy...

Yep, and in a worldwide Church, we could say that the Latter-day Saint way optimizes survival and even happiness. Ironic in view of the old joke about Mormons greening Hell itself.

True enough, and it continues to be a problem for backsliders -- even among the Brethren. And aside from the sin of failing to put family first, there are geniuses like Einstein and Nibley who spend inordinate amounts of time on their personal obsessions. Nibley's own children described him as a "freak." An exception which proves the rule?

Modern tech, as I had pointed out. Now our big crises are obesity and anomie.

That is all sadly and plainly false doctrine: LDS Church Handbook 2, § 17.2.1, titled “Family Circumstances”: “ . . strong families are vital to the Church, and members should not be asked to make excessive family sacrifices to serve or to support programs or activities.” --online at https://www.lds.org/broadcasts/article/worldwide-leadership-training/2010/11/selected-principles-from-the-new-handbooks?lang=eng&query=family+priority . Dallin Oaks, LDS Conference, Oct 2007, online at https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2007/10/good-better-best?lang=eng#6- , “The First Presidency has declared that ‘however worthy and appropriate other demands or activities may be, they must not be permitted to displace the divinely-appointed duties that only parents and families can adequately perform’.”--First Presidency letter, Feb. 11, 1999; printed in Church News, Feb. 27, 1999, 3. “Church programs should focus on what is best (most effective) in achieving their assigned purposes without unduly infringing on the time families need for their ‘divinely appointed duties’.” President Harold B. Lee said: “It seems clear to me that the Church has no choice—and never has had—but to do more to assist the family in carrying out its divine mission . . . to help improve the quality of life in the Latter-day Saint homes. As important as our many programs and organizational efforts are, these should not supplant the home; they should support the home” (“Preparing Our Youth,” Ensign, March 1971, p. 3).”

I just don't buy any of that, Your Grace. The plain fact is that the physical difficulties of being a pioneer were immense, and the only social safety net was family and church. Hobbes had it right: Life was nasty brutish and short. Nothing at all romantic about that.

An important skill is learning how to say "No." And knowing when to say it. And not to blame others when we don't take responsibility at home. My dad was not a member of the LDS Church, and had no interest in religion at all. However, he had two jobs and was constantly providing for us, so we saw very little of him. You don't have to be religious to burn the candle at both ends. Better balance makes for a better culture, whether Mormon or non-Mormon.

Correct. I have been in those straits several times courtesy of the US Navy. The USA is the guarantor of free sailing on the high seas.

Historically, LDS members have not engaged in proselyting in China, and normally make the Church a family affair. Unlike Falun Gong, Latter-day Saints really do not pose a threat to the govt. In the past, there was a large expat community (including LDS), but that is no longer the case. Xi Jinping made the mistake of discouraging liberal economic policy (capitalism), locked up successful entrepreneurs, and chased the expats out of China, leading to near economic collapse. More practical leaders have seen this and have now taken control. Whether they will be successful is still unknown. The future GDP depends upon facing reality.

Thanks

Yes, a famous Chinese curse. For a variety of reasons, mainland China may be near collapse. Perhaps an invasion of Taiwan would be a useful diversion. However, we have long taken a very protective view of Taiwan, and we still far outclass the Chinese navy and air force. The CCP no doubt fears what may happen if they attack.

That would not be advisable at all. Latter-day Saints have a reputation in China for being honest and above board. Never a threat to the govt. The CCP is in the midst of a major change in leadership, and it is too soon to conclude anything. We do not in fact know what the near future holds. Xi Jinping is losing power, military leadership is undergoing major changes, and it is not clear who will come out on top.

Pastor Jeff is a wonderful guy, and I enjoy all his productions.