NOM

Has anybody seen this yet?

https://www.deseret.com/indepth/2021/3/ ... anon-faith

I'm very torn on this article, which basically explains "why" evangelical Christians get sucked into conspiracy theories. On the one hand, I agree with them, that it's a problem. And the comment section, which is a must read, really shows why this is a current problem. And kudos to the Deseret News as the church's own newspaper for tackling this issue.

But then, in typical Mormon fashion, they ignore the extremely large elephant in the room. Which is that SO MANY Mormons are sucked into these same conspiracy theories. That's so annoying. As if pretending that Mormons aren't the worst offenders, and it started during the Bensonite years of the 1950s, and this is a logical conclusion to this story playing out. Give us a break, DN. Just come out and say what's going on, you cowards. And even more cowardly, pretend that it's not the Q15's job to squelch these beliefs in their own membership. Good luck with that!

The comment section IS eye-opening.

"new research says there’s a good chance a conspiracy theorist is sitting next to you at church."

She never says outright that Mormons are just as susceptible to conspiracy theories but I believe the above statement is her passive way of saying, "Yeah, this means you too, Mormons."

She can't come right out and use the church's name because theoretically, people who are led by a prophet aren't making the same mistakes as those floundering members of other Christian denominations.

Thanks for sharing this article, which I read with interest.

The spooky part were the comments below the article. Yowzer. There were comments that were saying that this article was not only incorrect, but that Desert News should not have printed it....or posted it...not sure what they do these days, or if DN prints papers.

In any case, if you've got a glob of time on your hands, scroll down and read the comments.

How is it that the Church has changed from the most liberal religion, not counting bozos with the crazeoid cults and the like, I'm talking about mainstream religion. With polygamy alone, the church was far left. Now days, lefties, as they are called are looked down on with shame. What happened? This is scary stuff folks.

Palerider wrote: ↑

Mon Mar 29, 2021 9:52 pm

She never says outright that Mormons are just as susceptible to conspiracy theories but I believe the above statement is her passive way of saying, "Yeah, this means you too, Mormons."

The church won't speak out directly against these people for the same reason the Republican Party won't. They need the numbers and donations.

Mormorrisey wrote: ↑

Mon Mar 29, 2021 10:18 am

But then, in typical Mormon fashion, they ignore the extremely large elephant in the room. Which is that SO MANY Mormons are sucked into these same conspiracy theories. That's so annoying.

This is an exceptionally good point. Mormon apostle and Presiden, Ezra Taft Benson and BYU professor Cleon Skousen were two of the all-time over the top conspiracy theorists and they paved the way for political nuttiness both among the Saints and the general population. That is why the Saints were so well represented in the recent Treason Weasel Insurrection trying to take down the Constitution of the United States and replace it with the Empire of Trump.

The Deseret News can rightly bemoan QAnon amongst the Evangelicals, but they are still missing the enormity of the problem. The Big Lies of Trump and QAnon have allowed fascism to reignite in America and many willing participants are right here in the Jell-O Belt. Ammon Bundy has amassed an army of 50,000 and there are armed groups throughout the country.

First, they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a socialist.
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out— because I was not a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for coffee-flavored ice cream—and I said No Way!!!

We all have limits to madness.

Mark Twain has several good quotes about people's ability to deceive themselves. Hagoth has quoted them in his posts. Even Jesus's "Mote and Beam" parable is reminder that generally people deceive themselves more easily and more commonly than they deceive others. I have told my wife "when somebody tells me they 'KNOW' something, it makes me MORE suspicious of what they are saying." My wife is TBM, but also an extremely good listener. I have also told my wife, "If you ever learn something that would show me I am wrong about the LDS Church please tell me." I haven't gotten much response to that.