Should there be a new calling to focus on the "Poor and Needy"?

[Tacenda]

5 minutes ago, ERMD said:

Don't leave us guessing.  Finish the sentence.

It must be some sort of a noun....

[HappyJackWagon]

30 minutes ago, ERMD said:

Don't leave us guessing.  Finish the sentence.

I was going to say "taffey-puller" but thought that might be too harsh for some sensibilities so I left it blank so people could fill in their kinder, gentler noun. Take you pick.

But referring to me as an incomprehensible troll was a bit harsh to. I was trying to tone it down a little  

[probablyHagoth7]

On 4/13/2017 at 0:53 PM, ksfisher said:

I suppose that anyone here who is taking in homeless people can start throwing stones at the people in Draper. 

The kind who quietly do the former are unlikely to do the latter.

[Calm]

5 hours ago, ERMD said:

There is a Christian charity in our town that is locally owned and operated.  It is pretty big, considering it's a small-town operation.  As few years ago, as part of a service activity, our youth tried to go there to volunteer.  We were told we could not participate due to "doctrinal differences."  Recently, a couple of ward members went there to volunteer (unaware of the previous situation).  They were presented with a document declaring a variety of Trinitarian beliefs with which they had to agree and were required to sign in order to work there.  They did not sign, so they were not allowed to work.

When I read Sis. Bingham's words spoken to the UN, I can't help but see a stark difference.  Having served as a bishop, worked at bishop's storehouses and stake farms, participated in Just Serve initiatives and large-scale disaster relief operations organized by the Church, I can't help but shake my head when I see the criticism directed at the Church for what it does, how it does it, and what it does not do when it comes to humanitarian efforts.  I certainly don't know everyone's situation or experience, but based on my experience, such criticism is levied out of ignorance.

 

This happened to ward members up in Calgary.  As soon as they heard about it, another Christian headed soup kitchen begged us to come help them.  They said they didn't care who volunteered to help them serve the poor.  They got some committed helpers.  Another group accepted LDS volunteers, but they were required to work in the back and not have contact with patrons.  Not so committed helpers I suspect.  Apparently our word we wouldn't proselyte wasn't enough.

[Tacenda]

1 hour ago, Calm said:

This happened to ward members up in Calgary.  As soon as they heard about it, another Christian headed soup kitchen begged us to come help them.  They said they didn't care who volunteered to help them serve the poor.  They got some committed helpers.  Another group accepted LDS volunteers, but they were required to work in the back and not have contact with patrons.  Not so committed helpers I suspect.  Apparently our word we wouldn't proselyte wasn't enough.

While serving in the Relief Society a few years ago, the president was all about service, and not your typical service, of course we did the 50 quilts to give to Primary Children's Hospital thing too.

She wanted to help a shelter. I've mentioned it before. Well she was such a wonderful lady, still is. So she contacted the shelter in Ogden, St. Ann's. We would go there weekly and help with sorting clothes, cleaning out storage rooms, collect items from everywhere for hygiene kits etc. And for Christmas we got our ward involved for a Sub for Santa. And several times of serving dinner etc.

The whole year was built around serving St. Ann's homeless shelter. But in the beginning I felt a feeling of them not being that excited we were there. It was a feeling of feeling unwelcomed. But at least they let us help. But I'll never forget it. Loved the service that that president planned out, not typical in my experience. The shelter did come around though and I think they were grateful. 

[CV75]

I picked up this theme to display charity on another thread Posted 1 hour ago (edited) as an outgrowth of the Lord’s Atonement. I’ve heard it said – I think, as I couldn’t find the reference – that “Zion is charity organized."

The thread discusses the Lord’s suffering for satisfying the demands of justice to permit the unconditional and universal resurrection (physical redemption), but also to satisfy the demands of our potential capacity for displaying divine love, which while inherent in us must still be a voluntary offering on condition of our obedience to the commandments especially that to love (spiritual redemption). Two reverses from the Book of Mormon point to these ideas.

Emphasizing the justice component of His reasons, 3 Nephi 27: 13-15, “Behold I have given unto you my gospel, and this is the gospel which I have given unto you—that I came into the world to do the will of my Father, because my Father sent me. And my Father sent me that I might be lifted up upon the cross; and after that I had been lifted up upon the cross, that I might draw all men unto me, that as I have been lifted up by men even so should men be lifted up by the Father, to stand before me, to be judged of their works, whether they be good or whether they be evil—And for this cause have I been lifted up; therefore, according to the power of the Father I will draw all men unto me, that they may be judged according to their works.” This refers to the role of His suffering to bring about the resurrection, which comes unconditionally to all.

And emphasizing the love component of His reasons, 2 Nephi 26: 24, “He doeth not anything save it be for the benefit of the world; for he loveth the world, even that he layeth down his own life that he may draw all men unto him. Wherefore, he commandeth none that they shall not partake of his salvation… (and verse 30) wherefore, the Lord God hath given a commandment that all men should have charity, which charity is love.” This refers to the role of His suffering in inspiring perfect love, which while voluntary and therefore conditional on our part, as children of God cannot be withheld no matter how craven we might be

The rest of verse 30 with verse 31 makes the Zion link with regards to caring for the poor and needy: “wherefore, the Lord God hath given a commandment that all men should have charity, which charity is love. And except they should have charity they were nothing. Wherefore, if they should have charity they would not suffer the laborer in Zion to perish. But the laborer in Zion shall labor for Zion; for if they labor for money they shall perish.” That, with all the scriptures about what Zion looks like, points to the Lord's suffering for our physical and spiritual redemption.

[ERMD]

7 hours ago, HappyJackWagon said:

I was going to say "taffey-puller" but thought that might be too harsh for some sensibilities so I left it blank so people could fill in their kinder, gentler noun. Take you pick.

But referring to me as an incomprehensible troll was a bit harsh to. I was trying to tone it down a little  

I said nothing about incomprehensible.  Spinning things off to the BYU honor code when the topic is caring for the poor and needy seems to fit the definition. 

In Internet slang, a troll (/ˈtroʊl/, /ˈtrɒl/) is a person who sows discord on the Internet by starting arguments or upsetting people, by posting inflammatory,^[1] extraneous, or off-topic messages in an online community (such as a newsgroup, forum, chat room, or blog) with the intent of provoking readers into an emotional response^[2] or of otherwise disrupting normal, on-topic discussion,^[3] often for the troll's amusement.