Mormon Defectors are like Judas?

[Bill the Cat]

Source: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2014/10/joseph-smith?lang=eng

Many of those who dismiss the work of the Restoration simply do not believe that heavenly beings speak to men on earth. Impossible, they say, that golden plates were delivered by an angel and translated by the power of God. From that disbelief, they quickly reject Joseph’s testimony, and a few unfortunately sink to discrediting the Prophet’s life and slandering his character.

We are especially saddened when someone who once revered Joseph retreats from his or her conviction and then maligns the Prophet.

“Studying the Church … through the eyes of its defectors,” Elder Neal A. Maxwell once said, is “like interviewing Judas to understand Jesus. Defectors always tell us more about themselves than about that from which they have departed.”


... You may understandably question what you hear on the news, but you need never doubt the testimony of God’s prophets.

© Copyright Original Source

Boy, the brainwashing is in full flow here...

[Christianbookworm]

Yeah. Like leaving a cult is the same thing as selling out Jesus to get killed.

[Sparko]

The problem is, of course, if they really DO hear directly from God, then there is no excuses left for the errors their prophets made, and God would not keep changing his mind about things from one time to another, like "do Polygamy" and "Polygamy is an abomination" or "Blacks are the the curse of Cain and can't be priests" and "Of course blacks can be priests, there is no mark of cain upon them"

[Cow Poke]

Wow.....

But that's how my friends who left the Mormon Church in NW Houston feel.... some of their VERY CLOSE (former) friends won't even speak to them, or even LOOK at them when they run into each other at the grocery store or wherever.

And these were very FAITHFUL Mormons who got discouraged over the lies the leadership was telling about the purchase of property for the Temple -- not even anything having to do with their doctrine.

[Cow Poke]

The problem is, of course, if they really DO hear directly from God, then there is no excuses left for the errors their prophets made, and God would not keep changing his mind about things from one time to another, like "do Polygamy" and "Polygamy is an abomination" or "Blacks are the the curse of Cain and can't be priests" and "Of course blacks can be priests, there is no mark of cain upon them"

Yeah, ALWAYS TRUST our prophets, for they hear directly from God, except, of course, when they're proven wrong, in which case WE will throw them under the bus with all the REAL prophets we have ALREADY thrown under the bus!

[Christianbookworm]

Wow.....

But that's how my friends who left the Mormon Church in NW Houston feel.... some of their VERY CLOSE (former) friends won't even speak to them, or even LOOK at them when they run into each other at the grocery store or wherever.

And these were very FAITHFUL Mormons who got discouraged over the lies the leadership was telling about the purchase of property for the Temple -- not even anything having to do with their doctrine.

Isn't shunning people that leave one of the signs of a cult?

[Cow Poke]

Isn't shunning people that leave one of the signs of a cult?

Yeah, but it goes beyond this... the guy (let's call him John) was in real estate, and had some deals working with several families in their Church. They all informed John that he no longer represents them. ONE of the families actually told John, "I'm really sorry, I had no choice".

[Bill the Cat]

Yeah, but it goes beyond this... the guy (let's call him John) was in real estate, and had some deals working with several families in their Church. They all informed John that he no longer represents them. ONE of the families actually told John, "I'm really sorry, I had no choice".

[Cow Poke]

I haven't talked to him in about 6 months.... this is a good reminder for me to follow up with him. He said it was like "getting fired from my job, divorced, losing all my best friends and kicked out of my Church all at once". (not an ACTUAL divorce - he and his wife are sickeningly in love. He meant like in a nasty divorce where "everybody blames you", and they stay away)

Gonna make an effort to have fish tacos with him this next week!

[Christianbookworm]

Yeah, but it goes beyond this... the guy (let's call him John) was in real estate, and had some deals working with several families in their Church. They all informed John that he no longer represents them. ONE of the families actually told John, "I'm really sorry, I had no choice".

That's some serious shunning. It broke the shun-o-meter!

[Bill the Cat]

That's some serious shunning. It broke the shun-o-meter!

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[Christianbookworm]

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[KingsGambit]

I don't think this Mormon treatment of defectors is something that Christians have room to condemn. After all, in 1 John, John calls Christian apostates antichrists. It's a searing indictment of them.

[Kelp(p)]

I don't think this Mormon treatment of defectors is something that Christians have room to condemn. After all, in 1 John, John calls Christian apostates antichrists. It's a searing indictment of them.

He doesn't necessarily say to have nothing to do with them, though (unless they begin teaching falsely. At least that's how I always read 2 John 9).

[Bill the Cat]

I don't think this Mormon treatment of defectors is something that Christians have room to condemn. After all, in 1 John, John calls Christian apostates antichrists. It's a searing indictment of them.

Denying Christ is nowhere near the same as denying Joseph Smith. One can leave the Mormon church, condemn their doctrines, yet still be convinced that Jesus is the Christ, so there is no true comparison.