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An Ugly Attack on Mormons
article.nationalreview.com ^ | December 3, 2008 | Jonah Goldberg

Posted on 12/03/2008 8:59:31 AM PST by Publius804

An Ugly Attack on Mormons

The easiest targets for an organized campaign against religious freedom of conscience.

By Jonah Goldberg

Did you catch the political ad in which two Jews ring the doorbell of a nice working-class family? They barge in and rifle through the wife’s purse and then the man’s wallet for any cash. Cackling, they smash the daughter’s piggy bank and pinch every penny. “We need it for the Wall Street bailout!” they exclaim.

No? Maybe you saw the one with the two swarthy Muslims who knock on the door of a nice Jewish family and then blow themselves up?

No? Well, then surely you saw the TV ad in which two smarmy Mormon missionaries knock on the door of an attractive lesbian couple. “Hi, we’re from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints!” says the blond one with a toothy smile. “We’re here to take away your rights.” The Mormon zealots yank the couple’s wedding rings from their fingers and then tear up their marriage license.

As the thugs leave, one says to the other, “That was too easy.” His smirking comrade replies, “Yeah, what should we ban next?” The voice-over implores viewers: “Say no to a church taking over your government.”

Obviously, the first two ads are fictional because no one would dare run such anti-Semitic or anti-Muslim attacks.

The third ad, however, was real. It was broadcast throughout California on Election Day as part of the effort to rally opposition to Proposition 8, the initiative that successfully repealed the right to same-sex marriage in the state.

What was the reaction to the ad? Widespread condemnation? Scorn? Rebuke? Tepid criticism?

Nope.

The Los Angeles Times, a principled opponent of Proposition 8, ran an editorial lamenting that the “hard-hitting commercial” was too little, too late.

(Excerpt) Read more at article.nationalreview.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Editorial; Politics/Elections; US: Utah
KEYWORDS: christians; gaymarriage; homosexualagenda; ldschurch; mormon; mormons; prop8; samesexmarriage
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To: AnalogReigns; DieHard the Hunter
Be happy, be Mormon—and I won’t discriminate against you—but please don’t claim the mantle “Christian.”

Reign in the insults there, DieHard says he's not a Mormon, I am and you got the doctrine, and the time-line wrong, The "Trinity" is what we don't believe in, and until The trinitarians got Constantine to go with them, Arianism was the norm.

Go to my page here and read the sections on The Trinity and the Arian Controversy, and lastly Hippolytus

Here is a summation from the bottom of Hippolytus:
So between the time that Hippolytus died in 236 and the Council at Nicea in 325 AD the view of the church swung from three entities acting as one God to one God made up of three manifestations. This is really not a HUGE change when you think about it, but it has many important ramifications.
Also note that I am not just quoting "Mormon Scripture" in these sections, I link to Catholic enclyclopedia on-line for most of this, and other on line references for the rest.

We can and do make a doctrinal case for our opinion, those who refuse to look at it just look juvenile.
361 posted on 12/03/2008 4:06:02 PM PST by DelphiUser ("You can lead a man to knowledge, but you can't make him think")
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To: SkyPilot

No, he made a comment. I was asking him to explain that comment. Are the questions too hard to answer? You constantly ask Mormons to explain their beliefs, which we do on a regular basis. When we ask for you to explain your beliefs, all you can do is come up with “You Play Defense For Awhile!”?

I would think you would be proud of your beliefs & be willing to explain them rather than hide behind some nebulous guide to distract the argument.

There are lurkers here that not only look for our explanations, but yours as well. I asked questions. I would think they would be relatively easy to answer. Plain & simple.


362 posted on 12/03/2008 4:10:23 PM PST by Reno232
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To: netmilsmom; colorcountry
>>You do know that the Catholic Church views other baptisms by Christian sects as valid don’t you?<<

My husband is a convert, yes I know.
But I’m sure that the Mormons don’t mind at all that the Catholics don’t recognize their Baptism when entering the Catholic church. Ask a few. I’m sure they don’t care at all.


Speaking as a Mormon, nope it does not bother me at all, nor do Baptists not accepting my Baptism, nor Calvinist, nor Mennonites...


363 posted on 12/03/2008 4:26:41 PM PST by DelphiUser ("You can lead a man to knowledge, but you can't make him think")
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To: Reno232; Colofornian
No, he made a comment. I was asking him to explain that comment.

OK - you "made a comment" too. I haven't read every post on the thread, but I read yours. Explain "After All You Can Do" vis a vis the Grace of Christ and His words "It is Finished - John 19:30" for me.

Is that too hard?

You constantly ask Mormons to explain their beliefs, which we do on a regular basis.

HA!

No you do not!

You call every critic a "bigot" or a "hater", you contradict scripture, deny Mormon heresy, and then point fingers.

When we ask for you to explain your beliefs, all you can do is come up with “You Play Defense For Awhile!”?

You are reacting to me calling BS with your post. Now, you multiply the error.

I would think you would be proud of your beliefs & be willing to explain them rather than hide behind some nebulous guide to distract the argument.

You bet.

Ravi is a friend of mine.

Here is what I believe:

Ravi Zacharias - The Existence of God

Ravi reached out to the Mormon church, and spoke in Salt Lake. The leaders of Mormonism cynically used his appearance to try and justify their power. They reminded me of Pharisees in Christ's time.

There are lurkers here that not only look for our explanations, but yours as well. I asked questions. I would think they would be relatively easy to answer. Plain & simple.

You don't only "ask questions" as an innocent lamb, so drop that defense. You are a Defender of Mormonism, and it cannot be logically defended.

Let me put a stake in your argument. Joe Smith (your "prophet") took sexual pleasure in wives of men who followed him who were married to these same women!

If you are so blind to follow that - then you deserve your fate.

364 posted on 12/03/2008 4:39:52 PM PST by SkyPilot
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To: greyfoxx39; af_vet_rr; colorcountry
I can just hear the howls if a California group pushed a lot of money into Utah to influence THEIR laws!

That may be, but there are Mormons in California. Their participation is as legitimate as the NRA, the AARP, or any other advocacy group. Perhaps unusual only in the sense that it's coming directly from a religious group, rather than an affinity group.

365 posted on 12/03/2008 4:44:31 PM PST by SJackson (http://www.jewish-history.com/emporium/)
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To: Elsie
How do you feel about ambiguity?

I haven't decided...
366 posted on 12/03/2008 4:51:41 PM PST by DelphiUser ("You can lead a man to knowledge, but you can't make him think")
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To: Jibaholic
The world hates righteousness, and when I was a part of the world I hated righteousness too.

Not all that is hated is righteous.
367 posted on 12/03/2008 4:53:21 PM PST by DelphiUser ("You can lead a man to knowledge, but you can't make him think")
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To: MeanWestTexan

> As a mason, I will say he boldly stole the fraternity initiation and turned it into a religion.
>
> Pretty crappy thing to do to the fraternity for many reasons. Not only an oath-breaker, but continues to tar the fraternity with people who think it is a religion.

I guess I need to respond to this on two levels.

As a Mason I am bitterly disappointed that Brother Joseph Smith thought our Masonic birthright to be something that he could treat cheaply and shabbily.

You and I both swore the same Obligations that he did: in his case he probably took the Antient Obligation — something not to be taken lightly. And it would appear that he broke those Obligations, if I am to believe this material (I do).

Crikey! On a Masonic level Joseph Smith would be a wilfully perjured individual, void of all moral worth and totally unfit to be received into any warranted Lodge or society of men who prize honor and virtue above the external advantages of rank and fortune.

To say nothing of the Antient penalties.

I do not know of any Mormons who are active Freemasons: there are none in my Lodge. I do not doubt that there must be some in the wider Brotherhood. If so, it must be somewhat embarrassing for them!

There would be no barrier to them joining, naturally, because they believe in God.

My response to this as a Christian is that I need to leave the judging of Joseph Smith to God. Not for nothing does Jesus advise us not to take Oaths: I believe it is because doing so can make you obligated in ways that can make your Christian walk difficult.

I have no difficulty keeping my Masonic oaths, but obviously Joseph Smith did. And by promising to keep secrets that he did not keep, he bore false witness.


368 posted on 12/03/2008 5:01:37 PM PST by DieHard the Hunter (Is mise an ceann-cinnidh. Cha ghéill mi do dhuine. Fàg am bealach.)
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To: Elsie
It seemed to work out for Jesus...

Elsie, I know Jesus, and you are not Jesus Christ.
369 posted on 12/03/2008 5:03:35 PM PST by DelphiUser ("You can lead a man to knowledge, but you can't make him think")
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To: Jibaholic
Arianism and other faiths that reject the divinity of Christ are heretical. That includes Mormonism.

You sir are tragically mistaken, We believe most fervently in the divinity of Jesus Christ.
370 posted on 12/03/2008 5:06:12 PM PST by DelphiUser ("You can lead a man to knowledge, but you can't make him think")
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To: DelphiUser
The Mumbai terrorists asked many of the people they were about to murder what their religion was. If they answered "Muslim" they were set free. That is a direct indictment of the MSM's claim that the terrorists were "Indiscriminate." No, they were very discriminate.

The Jews were singled out for torture, and even one of the morticians said he was horrified when he had to view the bodies.

The people who answered "Christian" were slaughtered. If they answered "Mormon" the terrorists would have (maybe) thought they were Christian, but definitely not Muslim, so they would have been safe. BUT - that kind of judgment means the Judges were more ignorant than potted plants.

I am sure the Muslim murderers "hated." It wasn't even "righteous."

It still remains, however, that Mormonism is a cult that has distorted scripture and must be opposed. It is not the Truth, and never has been. It is enslaving people to Hell, and to empower it is evil, wicked, and terrible.

371 posted on 12/03/2008 5:06:24 PM PST by SkyPilot
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To: Elsie

> Iff’n you ain’t a SLC based believer in the BoM and some of the Bible and the D&C’s and the Living Prophet®, then you AIN’T a ‘real’ MORMON and do NOT try to pass yerself OFF as one!

1) I don’t take orders from you, Elsie
2) I defy you to show me where I have ever claimed to be a Mormon
3) I expect your apology


372 posted on 12/03/2008 5:07:45 PM PST by DieHard the Hunter (Is mise an ceann-cinnidh. Cha ghéill mi do dhuine. Fàg am bealach.)
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To: netmilsmom
No, this is the Apostle’s Creed.

I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
the Maker of heaven and earth,
and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord:
Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost,
born of the virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, dead, and buried;
He descended into hell. [See Calvin]

The third day He arose again from the dead;

He ascended into heaven,
and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty;
from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Ghost;
the holy catholic church;
the communion of saints;
the forgiveness of sins;
the resurrection of the body;
and the life everlasting.

Amen.

Catholics say that at the beginning of the Rosary.


As a Mormon, I only have a problem with the part in red, the rest is a bit old and stilted, but could be taught in a Mormon church without the batting of an eye.
373 posted on 12/03/2008 5:11:25 PM PST by DelphiUser ("You can lead a man to knowledge, but you can't make him think")
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To: SJackson

I’m not saying the Mormons in California don’t have a right to get involved. I was commenting on the fact that the majority of out-of-state money that was involved was from Utah, and it was a lot of money. Those Mormons in Utah that got involved, whether financially (donations) or through other means, would probably not have been happy if millions of dollars poured in from California to fight or support a proposition in Utah.


374 posted on 12/03/2008 5:13:51 PM PST by af_vet_rr
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To: af_vet_rr

I’m sure they wouldn’t be pleased. Few activists for any cause embrace their oppositions tactice. This entire thread has gotten away from the topic, a blatently anti-Mormon ad. Internet, what can you do, but shame on the stations that ran it.


375 posted on 12/03/2008 5:22:13 PM PST by SJackson (http://www.jewish-history.com/emporium/)
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To: DelphiUser

Yes, but he is only one God among many. Perhaps even you will join him some day. Pride=wanting to be like God.


376 posted on 12/03/2008 5:24:58 PM PST by Jibaholic ("Those people who are not ruled by God will be ruled by tyrants." --William Penn)
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To: DelphiUser

I never said it was. I said the world hates righteousness.


377 posted on 12/03/2008 5:25:53 PM PST by Jibaholic ("Those people who are not ruled by God will be ruled by tyrants." --William Penn)
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To: MeanWestTexan
As a mason, I will say he boldly stole the fraternity initiation and turned it into a religion.

Pretty crappy thing to do to the fraternity for many reasons. Not only an oath-breaker, but continues to tar the fraternity with people who think it is a religion.


As my father would tell you (He was a Mason before he Joined the LDS) there are some resemblances, but there are also many differences. BTW that is as much as he would say about the Masonic ceremony because he gave his word not to tell about it, which is more than I can say for those who post all they can remember about LDS temple ceremonies here.

As a mason, what is your opinion of the Masons in the Mob who killed Joseph Smith who ignored his plea "Is there no help for the Widow's Son?". what do you think of them?

I wold also point out that that is why Mormons do not join Masonic lodges. (My uncles are still asking me to.)
378 posted on 12/03/2008 5:26:14 PM PST by DelphiUser ("You can lead a man to knowledge, but you can't make him think")
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To: SJackson

>>While I suppose it’s possible the discussion here pleases Mormons, my suspicion it that a politically conservative Mormon unfamiliar with the site reading the reaction to these ads isn’t anxious to sign up.<<

You’ve got that right.
And taken out of context by those looking to hurt FR.

If someone looking up glass confessionals on a Google search, came upon the thread where the Catholic practice of confessing to a priest was questioned in the second reply, I suspect, that person would not come back.


379 posted on 12/03/2008 5:27:37 PM PST by netmilsmom (Psalm 109:8 - Let his days be few; and let another take his office)
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To: Elsie; acipher
What's the MORMON teaching on WHEN Jesus became devine?

Before anything was created... (Jesus is the creator of all things.)
380 posted on 12/03/2008 5:28:58 PM PST by DelphiUser ("You can lead a man to knowledge, but you can't make him think")
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