There was an incident, referred to commonly as the “Mountain Meadows Massacre”, where it appears that members of the church murdered the members of a passing wagon train in cold blood. The evidence seems to support this – and if the facts are true, then what happened was wholly unjustifiable – and stains the reputation of the church by association.
It is not the case that the leadership of the church was complicit in any way. Not only is there no reliable evidence to that point, but a study of the character of the leaders of the church makes it wholly unbelievable.
Some have twisted the peculiarity of the church (yes, I admit we are different) and the devotion of its members to create a tainted lens which, if used to view the events, could indicate a potential for systematic wrong. But every experience I have ever had interacting with the leadership of this church points the other way.
Some have pointed to the defensive posture of the church as a justification for the actions. We had been driven out of our homes many times, and serious wrongs were committed against members of our church – ranging from disenfranchisement to assault to rape. Our Prophet had been murdered with the complicity of the State of Missouri, the President of the United States had turned down our pleas for redress on political grounds, and one of the beloved missionaries of the church had been assassinated in Arkansas – the very place from which the victims of the massacre originated. Missouri Executive Order 44, which ordered the extermination of all Mormons in Missouri, was finally repealed officially in 1976.
In light of that history, a defensive posture by members of the church is certainly justifiable. But an offensive one, like that demonstrated at Mountain Meadows, is not. In short, what those members of the church are accused of is unconscionable both legally and doctrinally.
The church disciplined those responsible. The territorial government, which was basically operated by the church at the time (it was still beyond the western frontier of the US and not yet a state) went so far as to execute the leader of the perpetrators.
Both then and now, the church condemned the actions of this handful of members of the church – and in doing so, confirmed our adherence to the true doctrines of the gospel with regards to how others are treated.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Monday, January 7, 2008
Are you saved?
It is a good question. It has been posed to me by Evangelicals, Baptists, ‘Born-again’ Christians. It has been asked of me in two different ways;
There are those who ask because they would like to tell me why I am not. They would like to dispute the finer points of my religion using various interpretations of the Bible, or a definition of ‘Christian’ or ‘Saved’ that has been concocted by something bias or logic outside of theology. I generally don’t waste my time having a discussion with someone who feels fulfilled by telling me what I believe and justifying it. I’ve found that those kinds of people have anger issues anyway.
But then there are those who are truly inquisitive. They want to know if I have felt the same things they have felt for the Savior. They want to know if I put my religion, my Prophet, my Book of Mormon between myself and my God – or ahead of my God – or I truly put God first. They want to know whether the Mormon Faith produces someone who feels born again and is wholly committed to following Jesus Christ.
The answer is yes. I feel that too. I recognize that there are some who profess the Mormon Faith that are not yet wholly converted. Some are yet young in their testimony of the Savior and understanding of the Gospel. Others’ loyalty to the church is intellectual, or social, or familial. And there are even those whose professed faith is (perhaps) hypocritical. The proverbial wheat among tares. You see, we don’t claim to have perfect membership – any more than any other church does. We have our problems. We’re all in different places spiritually.
There is also the impression that we centralize our prophet – and that he even becomes an intermediary. That is not the case. We encourage every member to make their relationship with the Savior primary and personal. We believe not only in prophetic revelation, but in individual revelation. At the same time (think about it – to accept personal revelation and prophetic and believe they are reconcilable - that takes faith!).
But because we evangelize, and people immediately want to know about the differences between Mormons and Protestants or Catholics, we tend to emphasize those parts of our Religion that make us unique. Those differences are important. Yes, I believe that God still talks to Prophets today. And Yes, I believe there are more inspired writings out there than the set of books currently referred to as the Bible. In asserting that I am a Christian, I am not hiding from any part of my Mormon faith. I believe in the Gospel of Jesus Christ as taught by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day saints. All of it - no excuses.
Mormons don't use the term 'saved' or 'born-again' as often as our neighbors. I think that is partly because we place a lot of emphasis on endurance - it is not enough to simply believe once, but belief has to be maintained throughout life. The gospel has to penetrate each aspect of your life and its duration. A lot of that attitude comes from our Pioneer Heritage - the idea of staying faithful under the hardest conditions, and making sacrifices for your faith. It doesn't mean we don't believe in being born again, in having a conversion experience, or in the part of your faith that is in your heart instead of your brain. It just means we see faith as something that is tested over time.
But those are not the central tenets of my belief.
I believe and feel that Jesus died for my sins. And I place all of my hope in His promises, because I believe He is the only way home. I believe He is the Son of God, and all that was prophesied he completed. And even though I am not perfect I believe my life is in order with what he taught – and each day I get a little closer to being what He wants me to be. If that is what it means to be saved and born again, then I am pleased to say:
Yes, I am.
There are those who ask because they would like to tell me why I am not. They would like to dispute the finer points of my religion using various interpretations of the Bible, or a definition of ‘Christian’ or ‘Saved’ that has been concocted by something bias or logic outside of theology. I generally don’t waste my time having a discussion with someone who feels fulfilled by telling me what I believe and justifying it. I’ve found that those kinds of people have anger issues anyway.
But then there are those who are truly inquisitive. They want to know if I have felt the same things they have felt for the Savior. They want to know if I put my religion, my Prophet, my Book of Mormon between myself and my God – or ahead of my God – or I truly put God first. They want to know whether the Mormon Faith produces someone who feels born again and is wholly committed to following Jesus Christ.
The answer is yes. I feel that too. I recognize that there are some who profess the Mormon Faith that are not yet wholly converted. Some are yet young in their testimony of the Savior and understanding of the Gospel. Others’ loyalty to the church is intellectual, or social, or familial. And there are even those whose professed faith is (perhaps) hypocritical. The proverbial wheat among tares. You see, we don’t claim to have perfect membership – any more than any other church does. We have our problems. We’re all in different places spiritually.
There is also the impression that we centralize our prophet – and that he even becomes an intermediary. That is not the case. We encourage every member to make their relationship with the Savior primary and personal. We believe not only in prophetic revelation, but in individual revelation. At the same time (think about it – to accept personal revelation and prophetic and believe they are reconcilable - that takes faith!).
But because we evangelize, and people immediately want to know about the differences between Mormons and Protestants or Catholics, we tend to emphasize those parts of our Religion that make us unique. Those differences are important. Yes, I believe that God still talks to Prophets today. And Yes, I believe there are more inspired writings out there than the set of books currently referred to as the Bible. In asserting that I am a Christian, I am not hiding from any part of my Mormon faith. I believe in the Gospel of Jesus Christ as taught by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day saints. All of it - no excuses.
Mormons don't use the term 'saved' or 'born-again' as often as our neighbors. I think that is partly because we place a lot of emphasis on endurance - it is not enough to simply believe once, but belief has to be maintained throughout life. The gospel has to penetrate each aspect of your life and its duration. A lot of that attitude comes from our Pioneer Heritage - the idea of staying faithful under the hardest conditions, and making sacrifices for your faith. It doesn't mean we don't believe in being born again, in having a conversion experience, or in the part of your faith that is in your heart instead of your brain. It just means we see faith as something that is tested over time.
But those are not the central tenets of my belief.
I believe and feel that Jesus died for my sins. And I place all of my hope in His promises, because I believe He is the only way home. I believe He is the Son of God, and all that was prophesied he completed. And even though I am not perfect I believe my life is in order with what he taught – and each day I get a little closer to being what He wants me to be. If that is what it means to be saved and born again, then I am pleased to say:
Yes, I am.
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