Dumbest LDS Urban Legends

[SlackTime]

OK, you know you've heard them. Let's hear the best and the worst.

I remember one when I was tracting in Metarie, LA back in the mid-70's. There were only 16 temples then and only 5 had angel Moroni statues on them.(IIRC) Anyway, at the door I knocked on a man comes up and we introduced ourselves. He says; "Oh, you're Mormons? I know all about you guys. One of my friends is a Stake President and he told me that when the temple with the 7th Angel Moroni is set up, the Lord will be returning!" Then he shook his head, laughed, and shut the door. I was taken aback! I had never heard that one before!

Of course today there are a few more than 7 Angel Moroni statues out there on temples, so there goes that prediction.

Anyway, lets hear some good ones!

- SlackTime

[Jason]

I laugh at the 3 Nephite stories that are obviously re-workings of the old "Phantom Hitchicker" urban legend.

Someone gives a lift to a guy, he tells them to get their food storage ready or some such, and when they turn around (while the car is still moving) he's gone.

The original Phantom Hichicker legend dates back to horse-and-buggy days.

[Scottie]

The myth of the miracle of the seagulls and crickets is a good one.

A leader working at the MTC looked at the mountains and saw a horde of demons poised to attack, and when he looked at the MTC there was an army of angels ready to fight them off.

Some of the best are in F&T meeting. There was a lady who put a box of 12 chicken wings in the oven. Because she had paid her tithing, by the time dinner was over, her family had eaten something like 35 wings.

Then there are the ones like "Mormonism is the fastest growing religion" or "Mormonism is the largest Christian religion next to Catholicism"

[SlackTime]

The myth of the miracle of the seagulls and crickets is a good one.

A leader working at the MTC looked at the mountains and saw a horde of demons poised to attack, and when he looked at the MTC there was an army of angels ready to fight them off.

Some of the best are in F&T meeting. There was a lady who put a box of 12 chicken wings in the oven. Because she had paid her tithing, by the time dinner was over, her family had eaten something like 35 wings.

Then there are the ones like "Mormonism is the fastest growing religions" or "Mormonism is the largest Christian religion next to Catholicism"

Thank you Scottie, I like all of those! - SlackTime

[Scott Lloyd]

The myth of the miracle of the seagulls and crickets is a good one.

That's not a myth, it's an attested fact. I suppose we can argue over whether it amounts to divine intervention and is indeed a miracle as such, but it's a fact that the pioneers' crops that year were saved from a cricket infestation by the behavior of seagulls.

[SlackTime]

That's not a myth, it's an attested fact. I suppose we can argue over whether it amounts to divine intervention and is indeed a miracle as such, but it's a fact that the pioneers' crops that year were saved from a cricket infestation by the behavior of seagulls.

Miracle or myth is often a matter of perspective. For someone like me who sees the sun rising every morning as a new miracle and attestation of God, I tend not to argue when someone calls it the natural course of nature.

- SlackTime

[Mola Ram Suda Ram]

Some of the best are in F&T meeting. There was a lady who put a box of 12 chicken wings in the oven. Because she had paid her tithing, by the time dinner was over, her family had eaten something like 35 wings.

I thought that a group was lost out in the woods and all they had were a few chicken wings, and once they all had their fill of wings there was 35 of them. either way.

[Scottie]

That's not a myth, it's an attested fact. I suppose we can argue over whether it amounts to divine intervention and is indeed a miracle as such, but it's a fact that the pioneers' crops that year were saved from a cricket infestation by the behavior of seagulls.

Right, sorry, I didn't mean to say that the event was a myth, but rather that it is quite typical of seagulls to eat crickets. Kind of hard to place divine intervention on that.

[Scottie]

I thought that a group was lost out in the woods and all they had were a few chicken wings, and once they all had their fill of wings there was 35 of them. either way.

Yeah, I suspect each of these has variants.

[Scott Lloyd]

Miracle or myth is often a matter of perspective. For someone like me who sees the sun rising every morning as a new miracle and attestation of God, I tend not to argue when someone calls it the natural course of nature.

- SlackTime

Most day-to-day answers to prayers could be dismissed as coincidence or something occurring in the natural course of things. But to the one receiving the answer, it amounts to a miraculous demonstration of God's love, mercy and power.

That's why I reject the characterization of the episode of the crickets and seagulls as a myth or legend. It's a recorded fact that the cricket infestation was averted by the coming of the seagulls, this after prayers from the settlers.

We still teach it in Sunday School (see Our Heritage, Chapter 7, page 81).

[SlackTime]

Most day-to-day answers to prayers could be dismissed as coincidence or something occurring in the natural course of things. But to the one receiving the answer, it amounts to a miraculous demonstration of God's love, mercy and power.

That's why I reject the characterization of the episode of the crickets and seagulls as a myth or legend. It's a recorded fact that the cricket infestation was averted by the coming of the seagulls, this after prayers from the settlers.

We still teach it in Sunday School (see Our Heritage, Chapter 7, page 81).

And strictly speaking it doesn't fall under the heading of urban legend or the definition of this thread. But I would appreciate moving on and getting some real urban legends out, instead of this thread getting sidetracked on this topic. I will not be judging the merits of submissions, as much as letting people share here.

- SlackTime

[Scott Lloyd]

Right, sorry, I didn't mean to say that the event was a myth, but rather that it is quite typical of seagulls to eat crickets. Kind of hard to place divine intervention on that.

No more difficult than, say, the incident in 1846, when the Nauvoo exiles in the poor camps on the Iowa side of the Mississippi River were saved from starvation when flocks of quail landed in their camps and could easily be captured. This one, by the way, is well-attested also, and by non-Mormon sources, i.e. the logs from passing riverboats which recorded the fact that the quail landed on the decks of the boats the same day.

The incident is all the more remarkable, because it has Old Testament precedent. But you could dismiss this one as well, saying that it is typical behavior for migrating quail to become so disoriented in flight that they land spontaneously.

[Scott Lloyd]

And strictly speaking it doesn't fall under the heading of urban legend or the definition of this thread. But I would appreciate moving on and getting some real urban legends out, instead of this thread getting sidetracked on this topic. I will not be judging the merits of submissions, as much as letting people share here.

- SlackTime

I don't mean to sidetrack the thread. But I couldn't let it pass when Scottie appeared to identify this well-attested incident as a myth, and you appeared to applaud that characterization.

[Scottie]

Not sure if this one falls under myth, but the common belief that JS somehow adhered to the WoW because he refused alcohol when his leg was operated on. The myth, I believe, is that JS never touched alcohol, even when it would have saved him untold pain.

[Wiki Wonka]

OK, you know you've heard them. Let's hear the best and the worst.

I remember one when I was tracting in Metarie, LA back in the mid-70's. There were only 16 temples then and only 5 had angel Moroni statues on them.(IIRC) Anyway, at the door I knocked on a man comes up and we introduced ourselves. He says; "Oh, you're Mormons? I know all about you guys. One of my friends is a Stake President and he told me that when the temple with the 7th Angel Moroni is set up, the Lord will be returning!" Then he shook his head, laughed, and shut the door. I was taken aback! I had never heard that one before!

Of course today there are a few more than 7 Angel Moroni statues out there on temples, so there goes that prediction.

Anyway, lets hear some good ones!

- SlackTime

The idea that one of these days we will all be walking back to Missouri. The myth has its origins in things that were said by 19th-century Church leaders, when they thought that they would actually go back and take back their Missouri lands within their lifetime. Yet, somehow, there is a myth that we will all be trekking back there some day...and going without the benefit of motorized transport!

WW

[Wiki Wonka]

Not sure if this one falls under myth, but the common belief that JS somehow adhered to the WoW because he refused alcohol when his leg was operated on. The myth, I believe, is that JS never touched alcohol, even when it would have saved him untold pain.

Actually, that is a good one. All too often the story of Joseph refusing to take alcohol during the leg operation is often turned into a Word of Wisdom lesson, when that is definitely not the case.

[Scott Lloyd]

The idea that one of these days we will all be walking back to Missouri. The myth has its origins in things that were said by 19th-century Church leaders, when they thought that they would actually go back and take back their Missouri lands within their lifetime. Yet, somehow, there is a myth that we will all be trekking back there some day...and going without the benefit of motorized transport!

WW

You mean that well-packed handcart in my garage is doing nothing but taking up space?

Seriously, this one seems to be fading out as old-timers die off. I've noticed that the older one is, the more apt he/she is to hold to it.

[SlackTime]

I don't mean to sidetrack the thread. But I couldn't let it pass when Scottie appeared to identify this well-attested incident as a myth, and you appeared to applaud that characterization.

Scottie had listed several incidents and my applause was for sharing his perception of them. The nature of perspective is that to him they are false applications of faith, and to one who sees God in all things, they are true indications of God's love. If we judge and argue each submission, we will sidetrack the discussion very quickly. Scottie knows this and purposely added things that he knew would provoke responses to sidetrack the thread. But I'd like to see more submissions not less, and I don't see any reason to judge responses as such judgements are always subjective.

To me, calling something myth does not make a presumption on its verity. Anything that becomes a foundational cultural story enters the realm of myth whether it is true or false. Here is one dictionary definition of myth:

1a. A traditional, typically ancient story dealing with supernatural beings, ancestors, or heroes that serves as a fundamental type in the worldview of a people, as by explaining aspects of the natural world or delineating the psychology, customs, or ideals of society

I believe that the seagull story has become one of the defining myths of our culture and provides a basis of faith. That doesn't make it false.

However, this thread is not about myth, or true stories. It is about the Urban Legends that spring up among us from time to time. So, by definition the seagull story would not qualify.

The story of the angels and demons would be, if the original testator said that he hadn't really said it. I can't judge those things. A good example of Urban Legend is the Myth of B.R. McConkie saying that all our youth today were generals in the war in Heaven. He has stated that he did not say that, it is an urban legend. It is false.

Please everyone, lets try to stay on topic.

Thank You!

- SlackTime

[gmormon]

The idea that one of these days we will all be walking back to Missouri. The myth has its origins in things that were said by 19th-century Church leaders, when they thought that they would actually go back and take back their Missouri lands within their lifetime. Yet, somehow, there is a myth that we will all be trekking back there some day...and going without the benefit of motorized transport!

WW

Note to self: cancel Handcart Trek

http://www.handcarttreks.com/

[Scott Lloyd]

Scottie had listed several incidents and my applause was for sharing his perception of them. The nature of perspective is that to him they are false applications of faith, and to one who sees God in all things, they are true indications of God's love. If we judge and argue each submission, we will sidetrack the discussion very quickly. Scottie knows this and purposely added things that he knew would provoke responses to sidetrack the thread. But I'd like to see more submissions not less, and I don't see any reason to judge responses as such judgements are always subjective.

To me, calling something myth does not make a presumption on its verity. Anything that becomes a foundational cultural story enters the realm of myth whether it is true or false. Here is one dictionary definition of myth:

1a. A traditional, typically ancient story dealing with supernatural beings, ancestors, or heroes that serves as a fundamental type in the worldview of a people, as by explaining aspects of the natural world or delineating the psychology, customs, or ideals of society

I believe that the seagull story has become one of the defining myths of our culture and provides a basis of faith. That doesn't make it false.

I see your point. But an alternate dictionary definition of myth is "any fictitious story, or unscientific account, theory, belief, etc." So use of that term to apply to factual history is misleading at best and potentially inflammatory.

However, this thread is not about myth, or true stories. It is about the Urban Legends that spring up among us from time to time. So, by definition the seagull story would not qualify.

Agreed.

The story of the angels and demons would be, if the original testator said that he hadn't really said it. I can't judge those things. A good example of Urban Legend is the Myth of B.R. McConkie saying that all our youth today were generals in the war in Heaven. He has stated that he did not say that, it is an urban legend. It is false.

Actually, it was Boyd K. Packer who reportedly said it and who later disavowed it.

Please everyone, lets try to stay on topic.

Thank You!

I apologize for my part it drawing us off topic and will try to refrain from doing so.

[Silver Girl]

How about the story of the mentally handicapped boy who is told in a Priesthood Blessing that he was the angel that thrust Satan out of Father's Kingdom after his rebellion...?? He is told that his handicap is a "disguise" so that Satan cannot recognize him or destroy him...

But, wouldn't the boys cover have been blown by having the Priesthood holder announce it like that??

Silver Girl

[SlackTime]

How about the story of the mentally handicapped boy who is told in a Priesthood Blessing that he was the angel that thrust Satan out of Father's Kingdom after his rebellion...?? He is told that his handicap is a "disguise" so that Satan cannot recognize him or destroy him...

But, wouldn't the boys cover have been blown by having the Priesthood holder announce it like that??

Silver Girl

Never heard that one. Yup foolish priethood holder, letting the cat out of the bag like that.

- SlackTime

[Scott Lloyd]

How about the story of the mentally handicapped boy who is told in a Priesthood Blessing that he was the angel that thrust Satan out of Father's Kingdom after his rebellion...?? He is told that his handicap is a "disguise" so that Satan cannot recognize him or destroy him...

But, wouldn't the boys cover have been blown by having the Priesthood holder announce it like that??

Silver Girl

Perhaps the point was that his mental age would place him outside of Satan's reach, as the devil has no power to tempt little children.

But, I don't mean to imply I believe this story.

[Black Moclips]

There is the one about the pope having a picture of Joseph Smith and a Book of Mormon in his inner sanctum, knowing full well the church is true but not being brave enough to admit it. I heard that one several times growing up.

[Calm]

The myth, I believe, is that JS never touched alcohol, even when it would have saved him untold pain.

Which reasoning I never understood given the as often times told story of how the WoW came to be.

In order to add something of substance, I will post a link to the Mormon myth site I know: http://www.shields-research.org/Hoaxes/LDSWorld_Internet_Hoaxes_and_Mormon_Urban_Legends.htm

Two 'myths' are more about how stories are presented and received than about the story itself.

There used to be a collection of large, paperbound books that contained lots of stories and quotes for talks. I cringed when such were presented (often very popular in college wards) as if they were factual stories.

Then there is the difficulty as a Primary teacher trying to explain to my young students that just because something happened or someone said something in their scripture stories video, that does not mean the scriptures actually teach it.