Let's just keep it real here
Mormonism is rooted in polygamy. It does not matter if the mainstream LDS church no longer practices it, and in fact outwardly condemns the practice, that does not negate the fact that polygamy plays a huge part in the LDS belief system.
This came up because of a book I purchased recently and read within a night. It's called "Escape" by a woman named Carolyn Jessop. She was raised in the flds (fundamntalist latter day saints) and was married to a much older man at the age of 18. She was the fourth wife, and was soon followed by two other women.
I recently saw a documentary over polygamy within the fundamentalist sects, and it infuriated me.
I was raised to believe (as a mainstream Mormon) that polygamy was wrong....here on this earth. However, it states within Mormon religious texts that if a man wishes to advance in the next world, he must practice polygamy in the next life. Basically, it comes down to this:
Mormonism is Christianity.....if you slap on a crazy bunch of rules and ...you know what? no, it's not even Christianity. NO. It's Mormonism. By itself. You cannot begin to compare Mormonism to say...Catholicism or the Presbyterians. Crazy.
But yeah...back on track. Mormonism teaches that while on this earth, those who are "worthy" (you must be a baptized, adult member of the church) will participate in different temple ceremonies. These ceremonies are exclusive to members, but the standard line is not that the rituals are secret, but rather sacred. Whatever. If you're not a member, you're not going in. These rituals range from baptism for the dead, to sealing ceremonies and weddings. I never participated in the sealing and weddings, because I left the church at a younger age, and those are for adults who have already gone through it once. Your first time at a Mormon temple wedding will always be your own.
Baptism for the dead was where we were given a list of names, dressed in white as teenages, and baptised in their place so that they would be able to progress in the next world. Mormons do not have a "heaven" and "hell" in the same way that Christianity does. They have different "kingdoms", the highest of which is the celestial kingdom. To get into the celestial kingdom, you must be in a polygamist marriage. The doctrine believes that "as Man is, God once was, and as God is, man can become." Essentially, you can become a god if you are a man, and with your many wives, populate your OWN planet. God was once a man, (not like, as Jesus, but like, another man, on a planet, who had his own God and blahblah). If you were exposed to the "gospel" in this world, and did not accept it, you were screwed...and if you were still a good person, you'd end up in the middle kingdom, which was still a pretty good place. Just God, who is a our literal father (he was married to a bunch of women and they gave birth to us and here we are now). Now, I don't know if there are extremes in blasphemy, or if it's all the same degree...but if there were extremes...that's pretty freaking blasphemous, at least in my eyes.
Here's the thing too, I am cool with people practicing their own faith. If you're Buddhist, great. Another denomination than I am? fantastic. Muslim? Atheist? Agnostic? Taoist? I so don't care. Just try to live a good life and treat others well. I have a serious problem though, with the lies the church continues to put out there. When they send those missionaries out there, they do NOT tell people about God living on a planet called "kolob." It's a few years later you find that out. That IS a lie, a lie of omission. Suckering someone into a belief system and then gradually revealing the inner workings? Yeah...kinda cult like. Not saying mainstream Mormonism is a cult...just freaky and controlling. Ok, it might be borderline cult like, idk. Reading that explanation there.......
So I remember already having doubts about the church as a teenager, and we were told about "Kolob." It was in the morning, before school (we had to go to to "Seminary" every morning before school as teenagers). I was like "everyone is cool with this, right? I mean, we all just heard this?" Everyone was cool with it, except me. I was pretty sure I was GONE by then. I asked my parents, they were..weird. Dad said he'd heard of it, mom said she just did not believe it. That's a pretty central concept of a religious belief system to just..ignore. ya know? Mom always objected to the treatment of women in the church, but she CONVERTED. It's not like she was brought up in it, and dad was converted in large part BY her, after he met her. So...I am at loss here. I don't join a religion and then try to revolutionize it. I'm thinking there are tons of belief systems, and of course, my own inner belief system, separate from any organized group (which I think we all have, regardless of whether or not we are religious, spiritual, atheist etc. we all have what we personally hold to be true because of, or in spite of, the greater world around us), surely I can find a philosophy or something I don't have to completely revitalize and rewrite? I mean, wtf is the point of joining the damned group then?
When I have told people about Christianity, just for discussion, I lay out what I know. I don't just withhold info. I might leave something out, but it's not to purposefully draw them in.
Women are taught they will get to heaven (or the celestial kindgom rather) through their husbands. I'm so screwed up after being raised in this crap. I really can't believe I came out as sane as I did. :P The fact is though, that I think I am better for it, because I am a much more rational thinker than I think I would have been if I had not been forced to confront the religion I was raised in.
Just throwing this rant out there.
This is all. :P
This came up because of a book I purchased recently and read within a night. It's called "Escape" by a woman named Carolyn Jessop. She was raised in the flds (fundamntalist latter day saints) and was married to a much older man at the age of 18. She was the fourth wife, and was soon followed by two other women.
I recently saw a documentary over polygamy within the fundamentalist sects, and it infuriated me.
I was raised to believe (as a mainstream Mormon) that polygamy was wrong....here on this earth. However, it states within Mormon religious texts that if a man wishes to advance in the next world, he must practice polygamy in the next life. Basically, it comes down to this:
Mormonism is Christianity.....if you slap on a crazy bunch of rules and ...you know what? no, it's not even Christianity. NO. It's Mormonism. By itself. You cannot begin to compare Mormonism to say...Catholicism or the Presbyterians. Crazy.
But yeah...back on track. Mormonism teaches that while on this earth, those who are "worthy" (you must be a baptized, adult member of the church) will participate in different temple ceremonies. These ceremonies are exclusive to members, but the standard line is not that the rituals are secret, but rather sacred. Whatever. If you're not a member, you're not going in. These rituals range from baptism for the dead, to sealing ceremonies and weddings. I never participated in the sealing and weddings, because I left the church at a younger age, and those are for adults who have already gone through it once. Your first time at a Mormon temple wedding will always be your own.
Baptism for the dead was where we were given a list of names, dressed in white as teenages, and baptised in their place so that they would be able to progress in the next world. Mormons do not have a "heaven" and "hell" in the same way that Christianity does. They have different "kingdoms", the highest of which is the celestial kingdom. To get into the celestial kingdom, you must be in a polygamist marriage. The doctrine believes that "as Man is, God once was, and as God is, man can become." Essentially, you can become a god if you are a man, and with your many wives, populate your OWN planet. God was once a man, (not like, as Jesus, but like, another man, on a planet, who had his own God and blahblah). If you were exposed to the "gospel" in this world, and did not accept it, you were screwed...and if you were still a good person, you'd end up in the middle kingdom, which was still a pretty good place. Just God, who is a our literal father (he was married to a bunch of women and they gave birth to us and here we are now). Now, I don't know if there are extremes in blasphemy, or if it's all the same degree...but if there were extremes...that's pretty freaking blasphemous, at least in my eyes.
Here's the thing too, I am cool with people practicing their own faith. If you're Buddhist, great. Another denomination than I am? fantastic. Muslim? Atheist? Agnostic? Taoist? I so don't care. Just try to live a good life and treat others well. I have a serious problem though, with the lies the church continues to put out there. When they send those missionaries out there, they do NOT tell people about God living on a planet called "kolob." It's a few years later you find that out. That IS a lie, a lie of omission. Suckering someone into a belief system and then gradually revealing the inner workings? Yeah...kinda cult like. Not saying mainstream Mormonism is a cult...just freaky and controlling. Ok, it might be borderline cult like, idk. Reading that explanation there.......
So I remember already having doubts about the church as a teenager, and we were told about "Kolob." It was in the morning, before school (we had to go to to "Seminary" every morning before school as teenagers). I was like "everyone is cool with this, right? I mean, we all just heard this?" Everyone was cool with it, except me. I was pretty sure I was GONE by then. I asked my parents, they were..weird. Dad said he'd heard of it, mom said she just did not believe it. That's a pretty central concept of a religious belief system to just..ignore. ya know? Mom always objected to the treatment of women in the church, but she CONVERTED. It's not like she was brought up in it, and dad was converted in large part BY her, after he met her. So...I am at loss here. I don't join a religion and then try to revolutionize it. I'm thinking there are tons of belief systems, and of course, my own inner belief system, separate from any organized group (which I think we all have, regardless of whether or not we are religious, spiritual, atheist etc. we all have what we personally hold to be true because of, or in spite of, the greater world around us), surely I can find a philosophy or something I don't have to completely revitalize and rewrite? I mean, wtf is the point of joining the damned group then?
When I have told people about Christianity, just for discussion, I lay out what I know. I don't just withhold info. I might leave something out, but it's not to purposefully draw them in.
Women are taught they will get to heaven (or the celestial kindgom rather) through their husbands. I'm so screwed up after being raised in this crap. I really can't believe I came out as sane as I did. :P The fact is though, that I think I am better for it, because I am a much more rational thinker than I think I would have been if I had not been forced to confront the religion I was raised in.
Just throwing this rant out there.
This is all. :P