I’ve been accused of spreading anti-mormon lies and propaganda.
Oh no! They got me! Guess I’ve been Deceived by Satan. Drank The World’s kool-aid. The serpent beguiled me, as it were. How dare my 60,000 word essay about my experience in the church not promote the message mormonism pushes.
Now that I’ve been caught, what’s left to do but write some more?
My incomplete list of anti-mormon lies
- Jesus loves you unconditionally. See “Divine Love” by Russell Nelson
- Not only are liars cast down to hell (see 2 Nephi 9), but they definitely shouldn’t be prophets, seers, and revelators (see FAIR and Mormon Stories)
- God cares about people who serve in his church (see Elemental Epistles 1.2)
- God’s righteous population should love everyone and treat minority groups equally (see 2 Nephi 5)
- You have to be really bad to be sent to hell or “outer darkness” (see 2 Nephi 28)
- Agency (including someone’s ability to go home from a mission) should be respected (see Elemental Epistles 1.2)
- People can repent after they die (see Mosiah 2)
- People who didn’t know about mormonism should be baptized for the dead (see Moroni 8)
- Christ’s (and by extension, his church’s) doctrine should not be extended beyond “the doctrine of Christ” (see Doctrine and Covenants)
- Non-mormon doctors, lawyers, and other professionals are capable of giving good counsel (see “Think Celestial!” by Russell Nelson)
- Jesus isn’t a fan of lawyers, businessmen, debt collectors, and people with lofty educational backgrounds (see General Church Leadership)
- Polygamy was discontinued (see D&C 132)
- Elderly and widowed folks should be supported and not exploited (see Missionary Opportunities)
- Prophets aren’t inspired by Satan when they direct the church’s money, language, and advertising (see The Correct Name of the Church and also Meet the Mormons)
- Men and women are equal (ask any mormon)
- It’s wrong to cover up abuse (see floodlit.org)
- Secret combinations are evil (see LDS Temple Endowment)
- If you do horrible things, you should appologize for them (see Official Declaration 1 and 2)
But seriously
I made this list to highlight some of the cognitive dissonance I experienced in the church. Of course, religion can lend itself to dialectical (nuanced) thinking. There are some occasions when, as it were, both things can be true. The church can help millions of people at the same time it seriously hurts millions of people. But when sentiments in core beliefs directly contradict each other, it’s hard to imagine a perfect, loving God compiling mormon doctrine.
Can you think of any more anti-mormon propaganda to add to the list? I’d love to discuss it, perhaps on Mastodon – @mossbiscuits@mastodon.social.