I was ponderizing Pres. Nelson's Sunday morning talk and it reminded me of a William Smith (Joseph's younger brother) quote from 1893.
William: "Hyrum, Samuel, Katharine, and Mother were members of the Presbyterian Church.(In the 1820's) My Father would not join. He did not like it because a Rev. Stockton had preached my brother's funeral sermon and intimated very strongly that he had gone to hell, for Alvin was not a church member, but he was a good boy and my Father did not like it."
The LDS version of a "Fire and Brimstone" speech is often a "You Will Be Separated from your Family/Loved Ones" theme. This doesn't bother me directly, but it does make me feel bad for my believing siblings, children, and Grandchildren who are reminded once more that Grandpa Deacon will not be with them in heaven. I think the spirit of this speech is similar to what William remembered about Rev. Stockton's funeral sermon. It feels mean-spirited and also reminiscent of the Mote/Beam syndrome that institutional Churches seem to incline toward. Pres. Nelson's talk even implied that if He were the judge, he wouldn't be lenient to his unnamed friend who asked to have the temple work done after his death. Now I hope we will all be inclined to be forgiving of others. I would remind each of us: In Luke 18 did Jesus say the Pharisee or the Publican would be saved?
The typical LDS hellfire speech
- deacon blues
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The typical LDS hellfire speech
God is Love. God is Truth. The greatest problem with organized religion is that the organization becomes god, rather than a means of serving God.
- FiveFingerMnemonic
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Re: The typical LDS hellfire speech
I'm so happy I no longer feel burdened with defending or rationalizing such fear mongering. The truth shall set you free.
Re: The typical LDS hellfire speech
It's the same tactic that comes up at least once in every single conference. This is a frequently used rhetorical tool because it works. I uneasily anticipate whatever is going to be the "worst talk in GC" every six months knowing that the emotions will run raw and deep on a dozen different apostate forums.deacon blues wrote: ↑Tue Apr 09, 2019 8:08 amThe LDS version of a "Fire and Brimstone" speech is often a "You Will Be Separated from your Family/Loved Ones" theme. This doesn't bother me directly, but it does make me feel bad for my believing siblings, children, and Grandchildren who are reminded once more that Grandpa Deacon will not be with them in heaven.
I'm the crazy person who is amused by these talks. I'm no longer emotionally harmed by them and have made peace with Mormonism and with my dear, believing wife. It's simply tragic to have a front row seat at the semi-annual parade of pain watching the strained family relationships brought to forefront. Often we will simply get a link or printout of the talk with the urging to read and ponder it. This "drive-by" ministering is annoying and virtually never reciprocated. It's ministering when they give you a talk, but persecution if you were to respond with something as calm as "Letter to my Wife".
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