Thank you for answering all my questions
No problem. I'm glad you took the initiative to ask them.
I think I understand your thinking, Although... the reason I brought up the corruption thing is because I kept reading how Mormonism is supposed to be uncorrupted, that the whole religion came about because of the corruption in Christianity.
Yeah, I can see why'd you'd get that impression. See, here's the essential reason for the existence of Mormonism... We believe that, as part of His earthly ministry, Jesus Christ actually did establish a church. It could essentially be thought of a "The Church of Jesus Christ." We believe He ordained Apostles to oversee it and chose Peter to lead the Church here on earth (after His death, resurrection and ascension). We believe that despite the best efforts of the Apostles, men changed the teachings of the Church He had formed. Over the years, doctrines crept in that were different from those He had taught, and many of the truths He had taught began to be mixed with the philosophies of men. Eventually, God withdrew the authority He had given to Peter and the other Apostles, and the world was left with an imperfect form of Jesus' teachings, and no God-given authority to govern His Church. It remained in this state for many years, until He knew it was the time to restore it to the earth again. We believe that He called a young boy through whom to do His work. He revealed to him the truths that had been lost over the ages and gave him the authority Peter once held. People seem to be of the impression that we Mormons hold the rest of Christianity in contempt, which is really not the case. We believe that there is much good and much truth taught by other Christian denominations, and we definitely view their sincere believers as "true Christians." We simply see ourselves as the re-established Church of Jesus Christ -- in the latter-days, in other words, "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints."
Having said that, I feel it would be dishonest and arrogant of me to say that I believe Joseph Smith and those who succeeded him to be immune to making mistakes. Mormons do not see their leaders as infallible. We do look to them for guidance and direction, but we are counseled to always let the Holy Ghost direct our paths and to find out for ourselves what "truth" really is. Mormon leaders have made mistakes in the past and I'm sure they will continue to make them in the future. Still, I believe that Joseph Smith really was instrumental in bringing Christianity as it was taught in the first century back to the earth. He did so under God's direction and with God's guidance. That doesn't mean he was a perfect man. The only perfect man who has ever lived was Jesus Christ. The rest are just mere mortals trying to do their best.
I believe that the reason we were given the bible is so we can get the 'gist' of everything.
Yes, and I think it fulfills that purpose admirably. We Mormons study the Bible a lot. We trust its words and we believe them. But the Bible also says that Jesus Christ said and did so many things during his short lifetime that had they been recorded, they would more than fill all of the books in the world. When you look at the four gospels, and realize how much is repeated in two or three of the accounts, you have to stop and wonder how much of what Jesus taught actually didn't get recorded, or got recorded and then lost. Certainly, if He was with His disciples 10 or 12 hours a day for three years, the account we have of His teachings must be incomplete. His ministry was so important that I can't imagine that He wasted much time talking about the upcoming storm over the Sea of Galilee or the price of fish or where to find a new pair of sandals. He must have been teaching constantly. People back then, with very few exceptions, I think, really didn't realize how critical His words were. Most couldn't read or write anyway. It's quite a miracle that any of what He said and did got written down for posterity.
And it even says itself it's meant to be a guide to help us recognize false prophets.
That it does. And it cautions us to be on the lookout for false prophets. But nowhere does it imply that God would cease to send true prophets, or that any and all prophets should be considered to be "false prophets." In Ephesians, Paul very specifically states that Christ intended that prophets and apostles continue to lead His Church until all of His believers came into a unity of their faith. He said that without the organizational structure Christ had established, we'd be like children tossed about by every wind of doctrine and would not know what to believe. Seeing as there are over 30,000 different Christian denominations in the world today, it appears that what Paul said would happen without prophets and apostles actually did happen. The vast majority of these get their doctrines straight from the Bible, and yet even with the Bible as their shared source, they cannot seem to agree on what much of it means.
And as far as I can tell, nothing truly similar that happened in the bible happened to Joseph Smith.
I guess I'm not quite sure what you mean by this, so I'm not going to respond at this time. If you'd like to elaborate on what you mean, I'd be happy to comment, though. I'll just leave it up to you.
So me as your regular joe Christian, well I don't really know how you or anyone could trust the Mormon Doctrine.
Again, I'm not sure exactly what it is you're saying. I'd need you to be a little more specific in order for me to really give you a satisfactory answer.
Sure, it's similar just like the Quran is similar but that as you should know doesn't really mean much.
Okay, but where do you find anything remotely resembling this in the Qur'an:
"And now, my beloved brethren, after ye have gotten into this strait and narrow path, I would ask if all is done? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; for ye have not come thus far save it were by the word of Christ with unshaken faith in him, relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save. Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life. And now, behold, my beloved brethren,
this is the way; and there is none other way nor name given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God. And now, behold, this is the doctrine of Christ, and the only and true doctrine of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, which is one God, without end." (2 Nephi 31:19-21)
The Book of Mormon is 531 pages long. Jesus Christ is mentioned the first time on page 2 and the last time on page 531. Within its 531 pages, Jesus is referred to as the "Christ" 398 times. He is referred to as our "Redeemer" 41 times, as our "Savior" 12 times, as the "Messiah" 32 times, and as the "Son of God" 51 times. From the beginning to the end, He is spoken of as the only means by which we might be reconciled to our Father in Heaven and return to His presence. The book is about Jesus Christ. The Qur'an is not. The book stands as another testament, another witness of Jesus Christ's divinity. We believe it to have been inspired by the same God as inspired the Bible.
I guess I'm just asking... why Mormonism?
Well, there are a number of reasons. For starters, I was raised in a Mormon family. I'd have to say that my parents always encouraged me to think and to question, though, and I was never ever ever made to feel ashamed if I doubted something I heard taught in a church setting. Clearly, my Mormon upbringing has a great deal to do with why I'm a Mormon. I have been interested in comparative Christianity, though, since I was about 12 years old. I'm now 67, so that's been an interest of mine for a while now.
Even as a child, I liked to learn how my Mormon beliefs differed from the beliefs, for instance, of my Catholic friend. I really don't know all that many preteen kids who are interested in that kind of stuff. As a grew into an adult, my interest in Christianity as a whole also grew. I found myself on websites like this one (and I've been here nearly 12 years). I heard people say things about Mormonism that were very confusing to me. They'd say, "Mormons believe...[such and such]," and I'd think, "Well that's weird. I've been a Mormon for 40 or 50 or 60 years now and I've never heard that taught in a Mormon worship service or Sunday School class or anywhere else!" I'd start doing research and I'd learn where their misconceptions came from. I'd learn how what we really teach and believe was twisted by people who wanted my religion to sound crazy or abhorrent to others. I learned about some things that troubled me, too, and things that tested my faith and my commitment to Mormonism. But whenever I found something of this sort, I continued to research until I could resolve the issue in my mind.
So, at this point, I'd have to say that I am a Mormon because...
1. I was born and raised in the faith.
2. I have looked carefully at the beliefs of other Christian denominations and find that Mormon doctrine, when correctly understood, makes more sense to me than the doctrines of traditional Christianity. I find that the restored gospel answers the questions that are sometimes not quite fully explained in the Bible.
3. I honestly believe that the Church Jesus Christ established fell into a state of apostasy relatively shortly after His death, and that He had to be personally involved in its reestablishment.
4. I find that the restored gospel answers the questions that are sometimes not quite fully explained in the Bible.
5. I cannot imagine why God would speak to His children through prophets for 4000 years and then suddenly decide to stop. We believe a living prophet, personally called by God, leads the Church today.
6. I believe my religion has made me a better person than I would have otherwise been. It has definitely helped me be less critical of other religions, since I know what it is like to be the underdog.
7. I love the constant opportunities my religion gives me to serve my fellow men.
8. I love how it guides essentially every aspect of my life and is not a Sunday-only religion.
9. I love how it lifts me and makes me feel that God really does have something very, very special in mind for me. He has given me the potential to become perfect, even as He is.
The more I learn about it the less I feel like I understand it.
I'm sorry, but that's not even logical. You'll have to clarify what you mean by that, because I don't see how it's possible to learn more and understand less. At any rate, please feel free to ask me any questions you may have about Mormonism as they come up in your mind. It's important to me that people understand what we really believe and why we believe as we do. Then, if they judge us negatively, their conclusions will at least be based on accurate information. You do not seem like a judgmental person at all, to me, so I'm really not all that worried about you judging me. I would like you to have a better understanding of my beliefs, though. I think that any time we can come to understand why people believe as they do, we all benefit and grow closer to God in the process, since we are all His children.
