April Young Bennett needed to renew her temple recommend. Her brother was soon to be married in a Mormon temple and she wanted to be there.
As many of you know, Latter-day Saints who do not hold a current temple recommend are not allowed to enter Mormon temples. They must be “worthy to enter.”
“Once you have some feeling for the value of temple blessings and for the sacredness of the ordinances performed in the temple, you would be hesitant to question the high standards set by the Lord for entrance into the holy temple.
“You must possess a current recommend to be admitted to the temple. This recommend must be signed by the bishop of your ward and the president of your stake…only those who are worthy should go to the temple. The bishop has the responsibility of making inquiries into our personal worthiness. This interview is of great importance to you as a member of the Church, for it is an occasion to explore with an ordained servant of the Lord the pattern of your life. If anything is amiss in your life, the bishop will be able to help you resolve it. Through this procedure, as you counsel with the common judge in Israel, you can declare or can be helped to establish your worthiness to enter the temple with the Lord’s approval.” (LDS Church produced booklet, Preparing to Enter the Holy Temple, 2002)
So Ms. Bennett had the necessary interview with her bishop, who found her worthy to enter the temple.
Ms. Bennett went on to the next step — an interview with her stake president. And this is when the wheels came off the bus.
Ms. Bennett’s stake president, who had “the responsibility of representing the Lord in interviewing” her (ibid.), would not sign her temple recommend.
A recommend interview reportedly consists of 15 questions. Three are questions of faith, and the rest are questions of behavior. Nobody knows Ms. Bennett’s “worthiness” in all of these things, but according to the Salt Lake Tribune, what the stake president deemed a problem was Ms. Bennett’s activity with Ordain Women, a group of Mormons who advocate for inclusion of females in the currently all-male LDS priesthood. The Tribune reported,
“Bennett says her stake president told her that, to keep her recommend, she would have to leave OW’s board…
“Bennett’s LDS stake president, who oversees a several Mormon congregations in the southwest Salt Lake Valley, also insisted that she delete 11 blog posts she had written for Exponent II, she wrote, which has ‘provided a safe forum for Mormon women to share their opinions since 1974.’
“‘Some of the deleted posts literally raised the question of women’s ordination simply by posting an opinion poll question for Exponent readers,’ Bennett wrote, ‘but others, such as “Ordination is the Answer to Correlation,” “Confirming Our Hope: Women and Priesthood,” and “Shouldn’t It Be Obvious? How Women Hold and Exercise the Priesthood Today,” represent months of scripture study and analysis of church history and the teachings of living apostles and auxiliary leaders.’”
Ms. Bennett was given the choice of making herself temple worthy by accepting her stake president’s stipulation, or apparently remaining “unworthy,” thereby missing her brother’s wedding. A hard choice. She wrote,
“I do not believe that temple recommends should be used as leverage to censor ideas or silence advocacy, but if I hadn’t complied, I would have missed my brother’s recent temple wedding. Choosing between following the dictates of my conscience and being present for a family wedding has been heartbreaking. In the end, I concluded that while others may take my place as an author or an advocate, no one can replace me in my role as my brother’s sister.”
Ms. Bennett expressed her hope that Church leadership will one day “respond to the sincere pleas of women with genuine concern, welcoming women’s ideas, requests and suggestions as valuable to the kingdom of God on earth.” She stated that she knows Jesus Christ “does not look upon women who express their desires to participate in his work as nuisances or threats,” yet her stake president, in his ordained capacity of “representing the Lord,” seemed to think otherwise.
Debra Jenson, an Ordain Women board member, described Ms. Bennett’s (and other Mormon’s) “informal discipline” experience this way:
“[I]nformal discipline is a public punishment. It is a scarlet A that she will wear every week. It is a way to brand a member as a threat, to tell the people with whom she worships that she is not their sister. Or worse, it is a warning to others that they must remain quiet and distant or they will suffer her same fate.”
A friend of mine described this whole affair as,
“Emotional blackmail, control, and manipulation used by Mormon leaders to close down discussion and a free exchange of thoughts and ideas.”
What strikes me about Ms. Bennett’s experience is the idea of temple worthiness. This is what a temple recommend interview is about, after all, determining someone’s worthiness to enter into and participate in Mormon temple activities “with the Lord’s approval.” Ms. Bennett was deemed not worthy as a vocal author, advocate, and Ordain Women board member. But as a silent supporter of these same ideals, as a silent supporter of the goals of Ordain Women, her stake president says she is temple worthy. It’s interesting to me that temple worthiness has everything to do with outward behavior and nothing to do with the condition of a person’s heart.
Ms. Bennett’s experience has brought people to thoughts of “public punishment,” “emotional blackmail,” and an “outward behavior” focus of Mormon temple worthiness. What do you think of when you read of Ms. Bennett’s experience?
See that’s the thing. If a person has some ideas that may not line-up with the current opinion of the leadership of the LDS church, that person needs to keep it to themselves. So it’s really not so much what the person believes but that they don’t share it. I often quote a BYU professor who said, “In the LDS church you can believe anything you want. You just can’t teach it.”
But think of this for a second. What doctrines, beliefs, teachings and practices of Mormonism, that were strongly held at one time, are no longer acceptable? We could make a long list but let’s just review. Polygamy, blacks in the priesthood, Adam-God doctrine, and the “sacred” temple rituals have either been changed, altered or totally done away with. So what would have been necessary in one era, is no longer necessary or even forbidden.
I remember when the Catholic Church went through some radical changes in it’s practices back in the 60s, it really had an effect on my mother. Her basic response was that she had been dutiful obeying all these things and suddenly, POOF, they were gone. I’m talking specifically about the prohibition of attending a wedding of a Catholic that took place outside of the Church. Other things were less of an impact like now being allowed to eat meat on Friday and the down-grade of some of the saints. Saint Christopher took a hit which was a real issue for those who wore the Saint Christopher’s medal.
Those temple recommend questions are about gauging a persons loyalty to the Church and it’s leadership and have absolutely nothing to do with a person’s relationship to Christ. It’s about control. As long as the temple is tied to salvation it will be used as a tool for control.
falcon wrote: “I often quote a BYU professor who said, ‘In the LDS church you can believe anything you want. You just can’t teach it.'”
This concept certainly applies to garden variety LDS members as they ‘look up’ to their leaders for approval–and this process extends to calls to serve in church positions, the ability to go on a mission, etc. However, it apparently doesn’t apply to leaders as they ‘look down’ upon those who follow.
Alvin R. Dyer, a member of the first presidency during David McKay’s administration, openly taught that those of African descent were the fence sitters in the pre-existence, coming from the line of Ham. Likewise, he openly taught that the Hebrews and certain other middle-eastern peoples came through Shem’s lineage. And, finally, those of oriental descent came through Japheth. None of this was ever considered official Mormon doctrine, even at the time. There were those among the Quorum of Twelve and First Presidency who thought he was doctrinally in error. Nothing was done; his temple worthiness was never brought into question.
The same goes for Bruce McConkie. He taught openly and publicly in his book, Mormon Doctrine ideas that were not Mormon doctrine (the Catholic Church is the whore of the earth, etc). He was very much opposed in his views and received a relatively mild rebuke, but his temple worthiness was never brought into question, I wager. Joseph Fielding Smith (the Blacks and the priesthood), Harold B. Lee (the Blacks and priesthood), Ezra Taft Benson (his political views and his views on race relations in the united states), Mark E. Peterson (again Blacks and the priesthood), and others at various times held opinions that were openly taught in public on a consistent basis that were not in keeping with church doctrine, at least according to their fellow members of the high-level leadership.
Mormons today would say, “That was then, this is now.” LDS upper leadership don’t seem to shoot from the hip like they used to. Maybe the upper muck-a-mucks have learned to keep their false doctrines to themselves. Who knows? I’m kind of rambling here, but there seems to be a double standard in play.
I read through the questions. This one caught my eye: “12 Do you have financial or other obligations to a former spouse or children? If yes, are you current in meeting those obligations?” Seems an odd question…
And Sharon, my thought was like yours: the idea that someone can have a heart one way but outwardly express thoughts another seems to completely miss the point of Christ: its a matter of heart, not outward expression.
Yes that’s the old carrot and stick scenario as far as the temple recommend is concerned. No temple recommend, no opportunity to do the work necessary to get into the Celestial Kingdom, become a god and have a forever family. Is it any wonder that people who buy into this program work like dogs to achieve the brass ring? But for me here’s the fascinating thing. These folks like it! I recently had a little back-and-forth with a young man who had just been to the temple to do the work for dead relatives. He thought it was a “blast”. He’s a priesthood holder of course and he thinks he’s got some real spiritual power at his finger tips.
Least we forget there are different levels to LDS salvation. The first levels are pretty much free and clear however the top level has to be earned. If you work like a dog and still fall short that’s where LDS grace kicks in.
It is a personal view of mine that if your faith is real and beliefs are grounded then nobody on this earth can pose a challenge to your standing with God. So naturally when I see how the LDS plays the gender role card whenever the opposite sex asks a question or raises a voice I see the reaction from the men as curious and somewhat insecure. You’d think with being a ” God in embryo ” in all they’d have a little more backbone no ?
What I find interesting about the 15 questions apart from the 15th which makes me feel uncomfortable as I don’t see that as being my place to decide. Is number 14. I was told by the missionaries that the LDS ( unlike Catholicism ) doesn’t do ” Confession ” 14 looks awfully like that to me, just worded differently and without the big box. I was under the view that confession was between God and the sinner.
Just my thoughts.
Rhythm…………
OK, then what about this? There are adolescent/teenagers who have to go in and have a little chat with the bishop. Now think about it if you are a young innocent girl and this adult male religious authority starts asking you if you masturbate? It happens with the boys also of course. I wouldn’t allow my kid to be interviewed without me present if I were an LDS parent.
……………….and speaking of Catholic confession. Having been raised Catholic, until I “lapsed” when I was twenty years old, I went into the box a lot. One advantage of the process is that it sort of keeps you on the straight and narrow morally. That’s because if you take it seriously, you can’t with hold a sin knowingly when you’re confessing to the priest. So take the average 17 year old boy with raging hormones, what’s going to keep him from acting on his impulses?
I would say that the effect of walking the straight and narrow would have been the same had I come to a saving knowledge of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ early on.
Hello Falcon,
If I had a child who was up for a temple interview and was asked if they masturbate or not being pivotal to their ” worthiness ” to enter the Temple, I’d like them to point me to scripture where such a question is necessary to enter the presence of God.
I had a little chuckle when you posed the question Falcon as I immediately recalled the book of Mathew and the leper. I wonder if all those people who Jesus healed back then were confronted with a ring formed by the Apostles and if they were asked if they had been masturbating or not in order to be clean enough to enter the presence of God ?
However there is a more serious side to this which is obviously about the vulnerability of young people in such settings. I would find it a bit hard not to feel slightly creeped.
This is a topic that we don’t get much, if any, argument about from the LDS folks. It’s a pretty straight forward proposition for someone who wants to be a god. The tithe must be paid to the church, callings performed and the Word of Wisdom must be kept and then the member is deemed to be “temple worthy”.
The question is, how many Mormons, those on the rolls of the LDS church, hold a temple recommend and actually use it? By “use it” what I mean is not attending weddings of relatives because that’s just the LDS ticket for entry. I mean how many actually are involved in temple work? Temple work would be doing the baptisms for dead relatives and others.
We know that two-thirds of those on the rolls of the LDS church are inactive (in the church). So of the 18 million claimed members, 12 million aren’t involved in the church period. So of the 6 million remaining Mormons, how many are “temple” Mormons? Just a wild guess on my part but I’d bet it’s not any more than twenty to twenty-five percent of active members.
This is a pretty exclusive club. Not many active Mormons are going to become gods the way I look at it.
So why is there such a low Temple participation rate among active Mormons? Mormonism is an exclusive religious club. There are a lot of people, I’m guessing, who just aren’t that interested or motivated to get involved in the temple program. I believe one of the big pushes in terms of a campaign within the LDS church was the building of a lot of smaller temples. The idea was to give easier access to the faithful so they wouldn’t have to travel long distances.
From a 1997 article:
“President Gordon B. Hinckley announced a plan to begin building small temples in remote areas of the church to complement the 69 larger temples either operating or in some phase of construction around the globe.”
“Unlike chapels used for Sunday worship, temples are used by faithful members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for marriages, baptisms and other sacred ordinances focusing on the eternal potential of family relationships. Temple worship is an integral part of the church’s genealogical pursuits, where ancestors are sought out and temple ordinances performed vicariously on their behalf.”
” The buildings would be constructed to “temple standards, which are much higher than meetinghouse standards. They would accommodate baptisms for the dead, the endowment service, sealings (marriages), and all other ordinances to be had in the Lord’s House for both the living and the dead,” President Hinckley said.
“The small temples may only be in use one or two days a week, depending on local need. “That would be left to the judgment of the temple president,” he said.”
“President Hinckley said church members will be expected to bring their own temple clothing to the small temples, and there will be no food service facilities.”
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/586942/Small-new-LDS-temples-to-dot-globe.html?pg=all
As a single father of two young daughters whose ex has started to go back to church should I speak up to church leaders if she tries to get a temple recommend since she doesn’t pay me child support ?
Ironman
Oh yea! This is war!!
Sorry I couldn’t help that. Just think of all of the entanglements here. We have whatever issues you and your wife had that may or may not have to do with Mormonism. Then we’ve got Mormonism with it’s beliefs, practices etc.
BUT you have a higher calling. I think this is one of those “what would Jesus do?” moments. He wasn’t married like many branches of Mormonism believe but at the same time……………However let’s get real here you old apostate. Do you really think it would make one bit of difference to the LDS bishop if your wife wasn’t paying you child support? I think she’d get a pass and they’d be happy to be sticking it to you.
The man made religious system of Mormonism talks about being worthy to enter their man made temples , the rituals in which are necessary to receive eternal life . But the New Testament reveals that becoming worthy to receive eternal life has nothing to do with man made temples with their secret rituals , rather it’s all about Jesus’s blood making us clean to be given the gift of eternal life in God’s home above –Heb 10:19 . No secret handshakes , pass words to learn to get into His home . It’s Jesus’ righteousness alone applied to us upon surrender to Him which is the WAY to God’s home above that is the New Testament message — Jn 14: 1-6 . ( note : the secret handshakes etc were finally dumped due to more and more unrest among new converts , I believe it was in 1990 ) . The temple recommend , the list of requirements Mormon leaders created in order to help make LDS clean enough ( ” worthy” ) to enter ” God’s home ” on earth the temple , has been a good example of Mormon leaders’ unstable gospel preaching as they’ve never been able to make up their minds what
a person must do to become eligible to enter temple . One example : re baptism was required for those wishing to enter the temple for the first time , but after years this doctrine was quietly
dumped .
It’s sad that Mormons like Ms Bennett can’t seem to see how blind they are as a result of following latter days imitation prophets , men , who created a man made church system and cleverly convince their followers it is the one true church of Jesus the sole dispenser of His gospel of salvation .
We need to pray for women like Ms Bennett that their eyes will be opened to the fact that the men who lead the Mormon church are not who they have claimed to be , they themselves have no authority from Jesus , they have not be sent by Him at all . They are well dressed , well meaning individuals , but who like some others around today , are claiming they are God’s true prophets .
They’re not . Jesus pre warned the Mormon people about such prophets — Matt 24:11 .
Mormonism is not the answer .
@Rhythm
I was going to mention the topic of healing versus sanctification in response to your post. Jesus healed the man (John 5:2-17, ESV). However, later in the day:
(John 5:14, ESV)
I think sometimes the LDS confuse evangelical core doctrines with a license to sin. I think Paul summarizes this perfectly, “Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions.” (Romans 6:12)
Christ doesn’t demand perfect repentance as a requirement of salvation. We are saved by grace alone through faith alone, however neither is it a license to sin. We are commanded to leave our sinful ways.
Jesus Christ is the only answer, not a man-made religion such as the LDS faith.
RJ,
I think that license to sin nonsense is just a Mormon throw-away line. They learn all these little mottos down at the ward and they pull them out whenever the occasion calls for it. These folks skate on the surface because doing some actual thinking would cause them to question their basic premises.
The real freedom in Christ comes when people live moral and up-right lives based on their relationship with Jesus rather than a list of “can do, can’t do”. The life I live I do so not out of some compulsion to follow rules but because my commitment to Christ changed my life. And the best part is that when I do sin I have an advocate with the Father, the Lord Jesus Christ. Walking by the Spirit is our charge so that we put away the deeds of the flesh. If someone says they don’t sin they are a liar. It’s our natural tendency.
My verse is, “If we walk in the Spirit as He is in the Spirit than we have fellowship with one another and the Blood of Jesus continually cleanses us from all unrighteousness.” It’s just a better way to live.
Well put Falcon. Agree wholeheartedly.
@ RikkiJ
Thanks for that.
I see it as a case of the sheep who hear his voice will naturally change in someway. They won’t turn into super saint or anything but to those around them and to those who know them, will tell there is something different about them and its noticeable on some level. It’s all very interesting.
Rhythm
Just think, if someone buys into the LDS “you can earn your way to godhood” program, they are hooked in a never ending performance gambit. It starts with being worthy to get into the temple, but that’s just the beginning. Then it’s go-go-go like a gerbil on a little spinning wheel. If a person allows themselves to be managed by the LDS church, they will never know freedom and they certainly won’t know Christ.
In the LDS sect it’s all about the individual and what he can do to achieve the ultimate reward of personal deification. This is not Christianity. It’s some hybrid religious form that Joseph Smith and those who followed him concocted.
Here’s the deal. We will always have a performance gap between what we actually do and what God expects; that is total perfection. Knowing that this is impossible for us to achieve, God provided a remedy for our hopeless condition. By coming to the Father in faith, accepting Christs atoning sacrifice, we are sealed in Him with the Spirit of promise.
This in deed, is good news!
We are here to reach out to the Mormon people with not only some bad news , but also the good news they need to know . The bad news is that they have been detoured by latter days prophets not sent by Jesus , men who have drifted from the true gospel and thus have fooled people into accepting their counterfeit gospel .
The good news is that the Mormon people can be free of such prophets and hear the actual gospel of salvation that Jesus’ true apostles taught . The gospel they preached had nothing to do with trying to qualify to be allowed into a temple and receive certain ordinances in order to be become Gods and Goddesses after they die . Rather , it is all about Jesus , His righteousness credited to us , His worthiness alone allows sinners to stand before God clean enough to be allowed into His home above and the fullness of His blessings there . This all happens to those who bend the knee to Jesus and ask for His pardon , the Father then qualifies us — Rom 4:22- 5:1 ; Phil 3:9 .
A Mormon will parrot what his/her leaders tell them : ” It is only through the temple that we can regain the presence of our heavenly Father ….” [ Cheryl Lant , Ensign , Aug 2009 , p. 23 ] .
A saved sinner will stand on what Jesus’ apostles taught : In my Father’s house there are many mansions ….I go to prepare a place for you ….And whether I go ye know and the way ye know … Jesus saith unto him I am the way , the truth , and the life , no man cometh unto the Father but by me .”
[ See Jn 14:2-6 ] .
Want your sins burden lifted ? Assurance that God will forgive you and declare you worthy to be allowed in His house above ? Experience a very real intimate relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ that the Father has provided and is His arrangement ? This all comes by complying with Jesus’ call as recorded in Matt 11:28 . But a man made temple and it’s rituals is not a part of this arrangement .
An interesting point for women like Ms Bennett to think about : Mormon leaders claim that the reason for the great apostasy was that men drifted from important truths taught by Jesus’ apostles . This identified these men as those who God had not chosen to represent Him etc.
Yet according to Mormon women who are behind the effort to give women the priesthood their leaders have been guilty of the same type behavior relative to Mormon women and priesthood ministry . Mormon leaders have drifted from what they once taught about women and priesthood , as Maxine Hanks put it in a Los Angeles Times article : ” Perspective on Mormon women . A struggle to Reclaim Authority : The priesthood they exercised in the early church [ Mormon] has been lost , but the voice of feminism will not be silenced .” ( 7-10-1994 , brackets mine ) .
She uses the term ” reclaim ” . Sounds like a restoration is what these women call for , a restoration because a apostasy by their leaders ! Ms Hanks claims research into Mormon history reveals that Mormon women obtained an authority which lasted for 100 years only to be changed by Mormon leadership , so that sounds like today’s Mormon leadership is not being directed by God like they advertise . Bingo . ( Mormon leaders not only have drifted from what the prophets and apostles in the Bible taught about God / salvation etc , but they even have drifted from what they used to preach as gospel truth ) .
Hopefully many Mormons , especially women , will come to realize that Mormonism is not the answer to a right relationship with God . It’s a man made religious system where many good deeds are done by sincere people . However that can not make up for following prophets who have introduced a counterfeit gospel of salvation , at the very center of which is their man made temple along with the whole temple recommend procedure .
Jesus is our temple recommend !
May the Mormon people also come to realize the truth of that simple statement .
It’s a game changer .
There is nothing wrong with someone holding you accountable to keep the commandments of God. If people would examine themselves daily to see where they stand in accordance with righteousness they might find themselves walking a straighter path. The problem with this is not in the questioning of our level of righteousness but the goal at the end. These Mormon temple works have nothing to do with what God determines as acts of righteousness. We also know that God is one and there is none before and none after. So the motive behind determining our level of obedience and righteousness is the real issue here.
cattyjane
You wrote:
“There is nothing wrong with someone holding you accountable to keep the commandments of God.”
I’m always interested in how that’s going to work in the everyday world. Will individual Christians call each other out to correct them? Will pastors confront sinners privately or from the pulpit? Will church elders call sinners in for a little chat? Will there be Sunday School lessons, age appropriate, in which folks will be instructed regarding sin?
Like I’ve said, when I was a Catholic, I’d go to confession. In elementary school we’d march over to the church every Thursday afternoon at 2:00 PM. I can still smell the inside of the confessional. We had an examination of conscience book to review and then make a mental list of our sins and how often the sin was committed. We’d tell the priest, we’d say an act of contrition prayer (memorized from the catechism), he’d give us absolution along with our penance. The penance was generally something like having to say three our Fathers and three Hail Marys. I made my first confession in third grade in preparation for my first communion. We’d practice with the nun before we formally went into the box the first time.
That’s just part of the whole system of reclamation from sin in my Catholic era.
So do you have something in mind as to what you’d propose for a way of handling the problem of sin and the need for accountability that you mentioned?
BTW, Martin Luther was so paranoid about sin that he was always running to confession. His confessor told him to go out an actually commit a sin so he’d have something valid to confess.
To be honest, I have no problem with the idea of accountability. It may help with the problem of sin in that it can keep people focused on God. Sure it can also become a problem in that the focus becomes the accountability, which can be akin to a score card. It is about motive and spirit here. Our spirit should seek and yearn after Christ, not a list of check marks.
And Catty is right that the righteousness of God has nothing to do with Mormon temples.
@RikkiJ
Yeah I was flipping through some scripture today whilst looking at a picture of the Salt Lake Temple and came to Acts 17:24……..Ummmm…..
@Falcon,
Very interesting Falcon, I asked my friend about Temple worthiness and got a fairly interesting reply back with the questions seemed to be more interested in the chastity side of things more than anything else. I guess at the end of the day when it is all said and done, it does actually come down to the image of a man literally talking out of his hat…….
Falcon
Do you understand the difference between intentional and unintentional sin? That is a key player when it comes to repentance. If you commit a sin on purpose and think a few words are going to wash it away youve got another thing coming. I think a more suitable prayer would be God help me to realize the depth of my transgression against you and circumcize my heart so that i might obey your commands. People who sin on purpose have no forgiveness because their hearts are not truely repentant if they keep committing the same sin. Forgiveness is given to someone who is truely repentant. This means turning away from the sin and walking on the path that is straight. I learned a lot about repentance during Yom Kippur. When i get home i will post some of the prayers that were recited. Before services i felt like i was in a good place as far as how i was living my life, but by the middle of service i realized how many things we dont consider sin that we should. My heart was broken and in that moment i became truely repentant and open to returning to obedience to God. By the end of service i felt lighter and closer to God. I felt refreshed and had a clean slate to work with. I had never felt that before. I honestly cant wait until next Yom Kippur. Repentance should be a good thing if it is meant whole heartedly. I would say your catholic experience probably wasnt. Only God can forgive sin anyway. You know that.
Now, Catty, I disagree with you on this:
“If you commit a sin on purpose and think a few words are going to wash it away youve got another thing coming. I think a more suitable prayer would be God help me to realize the depth of my transgression against you and circumcize my heart so that i might obey your commands. People who sin on purpose have no forgiveness because their hearts are not truely repentant if they keep committing the same sin.”
Its a process that we alter our lives. Our hearts change, yes, but we don’t always do what we want. Sometimes we act in spite of ourselves. I don’t want to do some things, but I do them anyway. I get jealous and all sorts of things that are considered sin. We all do– even you. Have you asked God to help you on those and repented, at least in voice? I would guess that you have, like all of us.
I would also guess that we all do this consciously even though we know it is sin. Even Paul, and David for that matter, knew they sinned.
MJP
But if we continue to repeat the sin how can we call it repented of? God is merciful but hes not a fool. We cant trick God by praying for forgiveness and then turn around and jump in the ditch. That doesnt make sense. That is no better than what God condemned Israel of in Isaiah. They kept bringing offerings but then continued to oppress the poor and trample the sabbath. He said they drew near with their lips but their hearts were far. Action matters.
I don’t disagree entirely, catty, but I do disagree. The fact of the matter is that God will not suffer long the fools who deceive him and themselves. However, this is the beauty of Christ: he covers even the worst of our sins. This is not license to sin, no, but we don’t ever need to be perfect.
You ask how can we repeat a sin and call it repented? A change of heart: that which we used to enjoy we now loathe is demonstrative of repentance, at least to a degree.
Now, we can argue all day over whether that is “adequate repentance” but I simply ask you if you ever do things or take attitudes you know you shouldn’t that would be considered sin? If you answer “No” I call you a liar.
This is precisely what Christ was talking about when he admonished the Pharisees concerning the adulterous woman.
cattyjane,
Do I understand sin? Are you serious? I went to Catholic school. I’ve forgotten more about sin than you’ll ever know. I could have been awarded a degree in sinology! I lived under the Law and it robbed me of any joy I may have had as a child of God
Man, you’re just too hardcore for me; way too sin oriented for my tastes. Do you have a closet in your house where you keep your sack cloth and ashes?
Thankfully, I’m saved and covered by the Blood of the Lamb as a result in the faith I have in the Lord Jesus Christ. I don’t know where you’re getting you’re theology but I’m not joining your sect.
Cattyjane,
1 John 3:4-6, “Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him.”
1 John 5:16-17, “If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask, and God will give him life—to those who commit sins that do not lead to death. There is sin that leads to death; I do not say that one should pray for that. All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that does not lead to death.”
This then is how we are to understand 1 John 1:6-7, “If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.”
The issue is not whether or not Christians sin at all after being reborn, the issue is whether Christians “practice the truth” or “make a practice of lawlessness,” for “there is sin that leads to death.”
The Apostle Paul also bemoans the presence of sin in his life after being vivified by Christ, Romans 7:14-25, “For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin. For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.”
And this is the constant struggle within the Christian between the old Adam and the new Adam, until the mortal puts on immortality, until what is sown in weakness is raised in glory. If you mean that a Christian should not continue boldly in the sins that ensnared before being reborn then you are right. But if you are suggesting that after a person is born and grafted into Christ they will not sin anymore then you are completely wrong, for St. John goes on to rebuke this, 1 John 1:8-10,
“If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.”
1 John 3:4-6, “Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him.”
1 John 5:16-17, “If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask, and God will give him life—to those who commit sins that do not lead to death. There is sin that leads to death; I do not say that one should pray for that. All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that does not lead to death.”
This then is how we are to understand 1 John 1:6-7, “If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.”
The issue is not whether or not Christians sin at all after being reborn, the issue is whether Christians “practice the truth” or “make a practice of lawlessness,” for “there is sin that leads to death.”
The Apostle Paul also bemoans the presence of sin in his life after being vivified by Christ, Romans 7:14-25, “For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin. For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.”
And this is the constant struggle within the Christian between the old Adam and the new Adam, until the mortal puts on immortality, until what is sown in weakness is raised in glory. If you mean that a Christian should not continue boldly in the sins that ensnared before being reborn then you are right. But if you are suggesting that after a person is born and grafted into Christ they will not sin anymore then you are completely wrong, for St. John goes on to rebuke this, 1 John 1:8-10,
“If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.”
If Mormons wish to know why those who worship the Lord Jesus Christ can’t take Mormon temples serious to be a vital part of Jesus’ gospel , there is a great short article entitled ” Jesus said that He was Greater Than The Temple ” available to read on the Utah Gospel Mission web site:
utahgospelmission.com .
The only door today that God has deemed required to enter in order to receive eternal life and live with Him in His home above is Jesus — Jn 10:9 . Becoming worthy to enter that door is by the blood of Jesus . Being clothed with His righteousness received by confessing that we and our works are unworthy , but He is worthy . We come as the old hymn says with ” nothing in my hand I bring , only to the cross I cling ” . Mormons have been fooled into thinking they must come with a card in their hand as a credential that they are worthy to enter a man made temple door which their leaders have referred to as the “gate of heaven ” * . Mormon temple door/gate are not the way to get to heaven , there’s only one Way , one Door — Jesus . Through a personal relationship with Him is how sinners can be recommended as worthy to receive eternal life and enter God’s house above . Jn 14:6 ; Heb 7:25 .
Like some Jewish leaders long ago Mormon leaders have run past the will of God and created new doctrines that are of their own making and their temple is a good example of this error —Mk. 7 :7 -8
* ” The temples , the houses of our God , when acceptably dedicated , become to us the gates of heaven …” [ Mormon apostle Franklin Richards , Jof D v 25, p. 231 , cited in ” Mormon Claims Answered” , by Marvin Cowan , p. 103 ]
mod jail 🙁
cattyjane
Let me bottom-line it for you.
As long as you’ve come to recognize that Jesus was God incarnate, the perfect sacrifice for sin, and you’ve placed your faith in Him for eternal life, I could really care less if you want to focus on commandment keeping, the Law, a moral code and so forth. That seems to be where you are comfortable.
But please, don’t preach this to people who have little or no understanding of what it means to be saved by grace through faith. What you would be doing is placing a stumbling block before them. There are plenty of Christian groups out there that are into legalism. I could make a list for you.
Grace through faith. Jesus is God. Nevermind im not even touching these two topics.
catty won’t address the truth of Jesus being God incarnate , and sinners being saved by grace through faith — two fundamental truths of the Christian faith , which falcon mentioned .
It takes a lot of time for some people who have come out of autocratic religions like Mormonism to get a proper understanding of what the Bible teaches about basic Christian doctrines , like the two mentioned above . But we’ve got patience because the Father is slowly drawing her to His Son little by little . Jn 6:44; 12:32 .
The influence of counterfeit prophets or their teachings can stay with some former followers for a long time . I learned that first hand by working with ex-Jw’s . It was’nt easy but it was rewarding when individuals finally discovered the truth about Jesus . Their life changed .
Though the fears , confusion , can run deep for many who once were members of a false prophet led organization and the submission they had to render the prophet , still God loves those precious souls and so do we .
The Mormon temple : a beautiful building , great eye appeal . A true monument to human creativity .
But it is only that because the door to heaven was already established long before the first Mormon temple was built and it’s door put in place . No need for Mormon temples when you have Jesus . It’s that simple . Jn 10:9
Cattyjane,
I wanted to ask you that even if you don’t want to touch the topics of the divinity of Christ and justification by faith alone what did you think about my post on Christians (those who have faith in the Trinity) sinning after being reborn, but then I realized that if you don’t want to discuss Jesus being fully God then there’s really nothing for us to talk about.
I wasn’t going to discuss it because it isn’t the topic of this posting and I have a lot to say about both of them.
If Mormons could just see that the temple has nothing to do with what the original temple was meant for. The temple was made to bridge a gap between us and God. It was a means for us to draw close to him. However, if the persons heart was not repentant when offering the sacrifice than the sacrifice was not accepted. It was never the blood of the animal that atoned but the repentant heart of the person who was returning to him. We see this in Isaiah 1:11-15 where he is chastising them for bringing vain oblations and trampling His courts. In the very next passages we see what God was desiring of the people, Isaiah 1:16-17. He was telling them to take their had from doing evil, uphold the righteous, the orphan and defend the widow. He states in Isaiah 1:18-20 that by doing these things her sins will be turned from crimson to white. In vs 20-21 it states that disobedience is what creates the harlet, not lack of blood sacrifice.
Psalms 40:6-7 states you do not desire sacrifice and meal offering. You do not ask for burnt offering and sin offering. In verse 9 it states to do what pleases you, my God, is my desire.
Psalms 51:17-19 states that God does not want us to bring sacrifices and burnt offerings, but instead the true sacrifice to God is a contrite spirit. It states that God will not turn away a crushed heart or true remorse for transgression.
In Hosea 6:6 God is speaking and saying that he desires goodness, not sacrifice and obedience to Him rather than burnt offerings.
The point is this. Regardless of what the LDS church calls worthy to enter their temple made with hands becomes meaningless to what God requires of us to come before Him. From what I can see the temple does not serve anyone but themselves. I understand they will say that these are also works for the dead. Tell me where in scripture God commanded works to be done for the dead.
The works that God desires are to do good to those who are living. Isaiah 58:6-7 states that we are to feed the hungry, clothe the naked and care for our family. When we do these things we keep the commandments that God wrote with his own finger. We find favor with him.
To the LDS reading:
Never does it say in scripture to have weddings in the temple, or baptize for the dead in the temple in order to find favor with God. It is not about caring for ourselves but caring for others. These LDS temple works are not required by God and they are just a distraction to keep you from what is. We cannot create new traditions and call them of the God of Israel. God does not change. If these things were required we would have been told they were in the first five books of the Old Testament where all of the commandments were given regarding sacrifice and temple works. Its not there. Please open your eyes LDS and return to the God that said I am the existed one who has always existed. Don’t love your traditions more than the God who created you. You cannot serve both.
That’s all fine and good even if I agreed with everything you said, but if your faith is not placed in the only true Christ who is equal with and the same being as the Father then you are still dead in your sins and under God’s wrath, regardless of how much you are in opposition to LDS doctrine and practice.
Mist T
You and I have the same goal on here. Im not working against you.
No, we do not. If your goal is to get people out of Mormonism, that is not mine. My goal and the goal of everyone here is to get people into the only true Christ. Mormons need the true Christ, and so do you. You most certainly do not gather with us or the only true Christ, you scatter. You are neither LDS nor Christian, yet you still continue to post here. You are just as opposed to the truth as the LDS. We are not the same.
Mist T
Im not LDS because I left the church when I found out it was a lie. You have never been LDS right? Havent you always been a christian? What is your reasoning behind what you said and why do you feel the need to push me out of here when i havent said anything wrong. This isnt a competition. You want to convince them of what you believe is true go right ahead. Show them proof. Thats all im doing is showing scripture and how it doesnt line up with their traditions and doctrine. If i can help them see what i saw that caused me to leave the lds church than how is that a bad thing?
Cattyjane,
I can’t control who posts here or what they post by any stretch of the imagination. Nor do I have a desire to see you go, it’s simply not my place. But you should know by now that since you are a non-Christian who is refuting Mormonism, many of your objections against Mormonism apply to you as well, according to a Christian perspective. People don’t applaud you here when you put a nail in the LDS coffin, instead we all ask to ourselves, “And what about you, cattyjane? Why haven’t you accepted the true Christ yet? Why do you still continue to also preach a gospel of law?”
You see, I do want to convince people here that Christianity is true. The difference between you and me is that when I speak I am speaking Christianity and the other posters here know it. You are also trying to convince people here that what you are speaking is true. The fatal flaw that you are grossly ignoring is the fact that you are a non-Christian who is posting on a Christian blog targeted towards LDS. Have you ever heard the expression, “This is an A and B conversation, so C your way out of it.” Now I’m not asking you to leave but I am asking you to realize that you are a fifth wheel and are not actually part of the primary objective of MC and MRM.
MRM is primarily a Christian ministry. Period. It has its own special niche of targeting the LDS. That’s secondary, but by no stretch insignificant. You stand opposed to Christianity by rejecting the core of mere Christianity by opposing the true Christ and preaching a religion of works. You, my dear, do not gather with us. You scatter what we build here. Do you honestly not see this? You want so bad for us to embrace you as Christian, just like the LDS. Then after we embrace you both, then what? You both tear the flock apart.
You meet the secondary objective of MRM with flying colors, but so long as you are opposed to the primary objective you will always be regarded as an object to be converted just as the LDS. But you’re much more than a mere object, you are a human life living in darkness, and I know that fact breaks all our hearts.
Mist T
Don’t give me that line about how it breaks your heart. Especially after everything you said before that. I’m not sure if you realize how horrible what you just said sounds. You know nothing about me or my relationship with God. From what you just said I would say you are no better than the Catholics who forced Jews to convert to Christianity or die. Just like missionaries that go to native tribal villages with gifts for the people, all for free in the beginning. Then they tell them they can only continue to have these gifts if they keep coming to church. What I just heard you say is that in order to be in your little club I have to believe as you do. We could have been best friends if I would have just swung over to the same beliefs as you have after I left the LDS church. Well I am not that desperate for friends or blog interactions online. And honestly that is sick. I wouldn’t treat people like that. If you know the scriptures than you should never be afraid of any questions people have about them. I’m not scared of any scripture you bring up because I know what they say even if you think I don’t. You cannot bully or alienate someone into believing what you believe. God did not intend it to be that way. You have treated me no better than the LDS church treats its members when they leave. You were ready to welcome me with open arms when I walked out of the LDS faith and now your ready to stone me. What happened? You don’t care about anything but numbers and tally marks. Even if someone doesn’t convert to Christianity when they leave the LDS faith you should still be happy they are out. At least they are no longer trying to become God or believing in more than one God. At least maybe their children wont follow into this pagan religion. I think you just don’t see the big picture. But your right its up to the Mods if they want to ban me or not. Honestly I don’t care either way. It wouldn’t hurt my feelings. Like you said, to you guys im just an object that needs to be converted.
“What is your reasoning behind what you said and why do you feel the need to push me out of here when i havent said anything wrong.”
So I did, but I assured you that your paranoia was getting the best of you and that I am not trying to get you banned, as if I even could. Did someone else ban FoF or did he ban himself? And I ended my response with an objectification of the problem then a personification of yourself. But you bookended your response by first rejecting my personification and ending on the objectification of yourself, as if I even framed it that way. And you said, “But your right its up to the Mods if they want to ban me or not.” Cattyjane, why are you so paranoid? If a Mormon comes here are we all trying to get them kicked out? If we aren’t doing that for them why on earth would we do that for you?
“From what you just said I would say you are no better than the Catholics who forced Jews to convert to Christianity or die … in order to be in your little club I have to believe as you do … You cannot bully or alienate someone into believing what you believe … now your ready to stone me … you don’t care about anything but numbers and tally marks.”
When you go down this road of arguments the conversation is over.
“You know nothing about me or my relationship with God”
You’re right, I have no idea how fervently you obey your God. But I know for a fact that your god is not my God, which is all I need to know. But somehow you can tell me exactly how I actually feel towards you?
“Even if someone doesn’t convert to Christianity when they leave the LDS faith you should still be happy they are out. At least they are no longer trying to become God or believing in more than one God. At least maybe their children wont follow into this pagan religion. I think you just don’t see the big picture.”
This right here shows that you have absolutely no regard for defending the true Christ in all his fullness and the work he did on the cross. You might come here to attack Mormons but we are here to bring them to the true Christ. Merely bringing them out of Mormonism is simply leaving them in the dark on a different alley.
MistTest
Im not attacking anyone on here and i am not living in a spiritual dark alley. If anything i am closer to God now than i have ever been.
catty said , ” If anything I am closer to God now that I have ever been ” .
I don’t doubt that at all , especially considering how you’ve traded the false doctrine about God taught by Mormon leaders , for the God revealed in the Old Testament . You indeed are closer to God , and we await the day when you will be the closest to Him , to know Him in the most intimate way which happens when you bow before Jesus asking Him to be your personal Savior . That is how the God first revealed in the O.T. has arranged for everyone today to know Him in the closest way a human can — Abba Father —daddy . This takes place when we honor Jesus in the same way we honor His Father , the Father accepts us fully when that happens . This is why we constantly direct your attention to Jesus . And yes some on here get very passionate about this . Sadly, some people may feel that God is their Father, but they are only fooling themselves if they do not honor His Son as He is due . Jn 5:23 . That’s the New Testament message .
MT is right about the fact that we take no joy in seeing a Mormon leave the Mormon church if that person does not find the true Jesus , because only the true Jesus has the power to save . The Mormon Jesus is a good counterfeit ( 2 Cor 11:4 ) . That being said we also realize that for some former Mormons it takes a long time to discover the truth about God/Jesus/ salvation which the Bible teaches . We need patience and understanding for these people .
Lastly , I must say that what you said above ( @ 12:41 pm ) to MT was way over the top . I don’t believe that type of caricature is an accurate description of anyone here . You’ve accused us here of similar type things in the past , which then , as now with MT is a gross exaggeration on your part .
Don’t ever forget : it’s one thing to find out that Jesus is the long awaited Messiah , but it’s a whole different thing to confess TO Him personally that He is and to confess ABOUT Him to others that He is .
Jesus is waiting to hear from you catty .
cattyjane
Every thread that we have here on MC is for the purpose of bringing souls to Christ. That’s the Great Commission at outlined by Jesus and contained in the first chapter of the Book of Acts. So we have an underlining theme regarding the nature of God generally and the nature of Jesus specifically. This is the foundation for God’s plan of salvation. This is not our opinion but is seen very clearly in the NT Scripture.
I’m really somewhat distressed at your mis-characterization of MT and also of Christians by providing a very narrow and bigoted description applied as a gross generalization. It makes me wonder what ax you have to grind. What are you so angry about?
I don’t think you’re a whole lot different in your out look from when you were a member of the LDS church. Your whole approach is the Word of Wisdom on steroids. You may as well be vying for a temple recommend.
@Rhythm
“The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man,” (Acts 17:24, ESV)
If I were to play devil’s advocate, I would ask this question: If God doesn’t dwell in temples made by humans, then who lived in the mercy seat in the Tabernacle in the OT(Exodus 25:22, ESV)?
Certainly I hope to offer aletrnate explanations:
1. It wasn’t God manifest himself who was meeting Moses, but a representative for God (likely angels Acts 7:53, ESV). There are issues with this explanation, simply because Moses did experience the manifest presence of God firsthand. (Exodus 33:9, ESV)
2. The scriptural reference is to living not meeting. God can meet with someone, but doesn’t choose to continue to be there.
I cannot say definitely, yet number 2 feels like a better option. In the NT, Christ meets with us, and as God himself in us – the temple of the Most High God. (1 Cor. 6:19-20, ESV)
Can God not meet with us in a church built by human hands? The conclusion I would come to, is that a physical building is not required for the manifest presence of God. The veil of the Temple has been rent, and God meets with us in our hearts(2 Cor. 3:16, ESV). I don’t mean to say that we should not congregate in church (Heb. 10:25, ESV), but the purpose of Acts 17:24 is to illustrate Temples as a futile(read as non-Biblical) requirement to meet with God.
If Temples are required to meet with God, then we have lost everything, for we do not have the original temple. It was destroyed in AD 70.
Can we trust Mormon leaders to be reliable guides concerning important gospel truths ? A review of their teaching track record suggests that a person concerned about the danger of being fooled by latter days false prophets would be wise to not submit to Mormon leadership . Though Mormons seem to concentrate on the appearance ( well dressed , polite manners etc ) of their leaders as a main reason that they can trust them to be the place where safe ,accurate , consistent , gospel preaching can be found
the evidence gleaned from a examination of their teaching track record says otherwise . To convince their flock that Mormonism is the unique and exclusive place where the true gospel is found , Mormon leadership has made it a routine practice to tell their flock that all other churches , religious leaders don’t deserve to be considered worthy place where stable , consistent , gospel teachings will be found . God has supposedly picked Mormon prophets/apostles instead of them etc .
Brigham Young summed up this accusation about others in no uncertain terms :
” … the professing Christian world are like a ship upon a boisterous ocean without a rudder , compass, or pilot and are tossed hither and thither by every wind of doctrine .”
[ Jof D v. 10 p. 265 ] .
But what do we see when we examination the ” gospel preaching ” record of Mormon leaders? The answer is a clear one : Mormon leaders are the pot calling the kettle black .
Not only have Mormon leadership vacillated concerning ordinances and teachings that have taken place in their temples , but they have also been unstable in what they have taught are the requirements LDS must comply with in order to be considered worthy to enter the temple .
A few examples :
– first time attendees were told that re-baptism was required before receiving their endowments . That teaching was later discarded .
– keeping Word of Wisdom was not a strict requirement until the 1920’s , despite , according to Mormon apostle Spencer Kimball , that it was pronounced a commandment of God by a prophet (Brigham Young ) in 1851 . ( Miracle of Forgiveness , p. 56, 211 )
– for years it was deemed not appropriate to give pit bosses , money changers , waitresses serving
alcohol in Las Vegas casino’s a temple recommend . (But Casino executives were not considered unworthy ). In 1987 this was changed . [The Prescott ( Arizona ) Courier , 7-13-1992 ] .
– Brigham Young declared that married couples should not have sexual relations for a week before going to the temple .
– Black men and women could not enter the temple to receive temple sealing ordinances .
– A First Presidency letter to Stake Presidents in 1982 declared oral sex between married couples to be a “impure” practice and thus those guilty of this needed to put their lives in order before they could be considered worthy to enter the temple . [ photo copy of this letter see http://www.lds-mormon .com/worthy letter 1 .shtml ] . ( note : I won’t pursue this particular issue any farther ) .
Mormon leaders have claimed that a sign of the great apostasy after the deaths of Jesus’ apostles was that men relied on human wisdom to teach God’s Word , the result was : false ideas were taught as truth , something to be trusted . ( see Preach My Gospel . p 32-37 ) .
But this is what Mormon leaders have succumbed too also !
People who have a desire to know Jesus , to invite Him into their lives as their personal Savior , and who want to follow Him , do not need Mormonism . The Mormon temple as eye appeal is good advertising for Mormonism but it is truly not necessary to enter in order to gain a right relationship with God and receive eternal life from Him . It’s that simple .
“original temple” – I should rephrase that to say “authorized” or “only” temple.