tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11005186581321744932012-02-16T16:03:48.438-07:00Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.comBlogger251100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-46025212888662541202011-10-15T08:54:00.006-06:002011-11-21T09:46:06.490-07:00

Since there are two Mormons in the Republican primary race, questions about Mormonism are coming up in public discourse. The response in the media and by public figures has generally been to condemn any religious-based discrimination as irrelevant to a candidate's eligibility, which is right. But there is also a need for explanations of the specific charges and why they are not problematic.One

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-5866199198519643202011-08-13T11:53:00.013-06:002011-11-20T20:50:02.955-07:00

      An increasingly frequent mockery of Mormonism is the claim that Mormons wear “magic underwear.” Like most such rumors, the “magic underwear” claim is a misrepresentation. Yet there is some truth behind it, which ought to be separated from the sensationalism.The Temple Garment      Mormon men and women who have worshiped in a temple wear a white garment as their underclothing. (Temple

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-19825189602129312672011-08-08T12:34:00.018-06:002011-08-11T09:18:33.268-06:00

      The Broadway musical “The Book of Mormon” is a prominent example of what has become a trendy belief among those who consider themselves benevolent atheists: that religion is full of ridiculous beliefs, but is still possibly a positive thing because it makes people feel good. The musical presents a list of crazy-sounding ideas as if they were core Mormon beliefs and implies that all religion

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-15666640339745981382011-03-11T09:11:00.010-07:002011-08-10T22:06:47.451-06:00

I often hear nonreligious people assert that faith means willingly ignoring logic and reality in order to believe something for which there is no evidence, simply because they want to believe it. Such people reveal their ignorance of a matter they do not comprehend.       Faith is not a willing suspension of disbelief, and it doesn't mean believing something just because you want to. At its most

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-12793307334217104352011-02-15T09:59:00.006-07:002011-08-10T22:05:57.027-06:00

      Conspiracy theorists like to say that the use of certain symbols on Mormon temples, particularly the inverted pentagram, is evidence of Satan worship or other elements of the occult in Mormonism. History begs to differ with these notions.        The inverted pentagram (upside-down five-pointed star) was first used on a Mormon temple in the mid-1840s. Back then, the symbol was not yet

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-55846750192850294342010-01-13T10:01:00.005-07:002011-11-21T20:34:56.093-07:00

      Mormon doctrine teaches that all humans are the spirit children of God (Rom. 8:16), and that all races are equal in the sight of God (2 Nephi 26:33). But critics of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints often claim that its teachings are racist—if not today, at least historically. This criticism is not true but deserves a closer look.      There are two primary reasons to claim

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-26270635623512067592009-06-01T10:48:00.008-06:002009-06-04T15:22:18.248-06:00

      Mormonism is one of a few Christian religions (the others being primarily Eastern Orthodox) that teach the doctrine of theosis or deification, meaning that human beings have the potential to become gods. In Mormonism, theosis/deification is also called exaltation. This doctrine has been a favorite target of critics, many of whom portray it in an exaggerated way to make it appear

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-60298397583138096892009-03-02T11:24:00.012-07:002011-08-20T11:14:02.392-06:00

      Jesus Christ taught a number of “hard sayings” that cost him many followers. Perhaps the world today finds none of these a more difficult standard than the law of chastity. The Ten Commandments prohibited adultery (Exodus 20:14), but Jesus Christ required a stricter standard: even lustful thoughts are sinful! (Matt. 5:28)       In our sex-saturated society, some claim that pornography,

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-68920454006574445662009-01-31T23:42:00.003-07:002009-02-01T00:45:29.489-07:00

      I plan to post an explanation of the law of chastity soon—not a frequent topic of anti-Mormon criticism, but certainly something under attack in our culture. Until then, I thought I'd post this random thought.      There are a lot of bitter former Mormons out there. They like to frequent online message boards in order to vent their feelings. I've noticed a common thread in a lot of the

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-46085249296158867782008-11-14T10:05:00.004-07:002008-11-14T11:32:23.401-07:00

1. Then: You religious people say that gay marriage could threaten your church's tax-exempt status. That is ridiculous fear-mongering; that would never happen.Now: Tax the bigoted lobbyist churches that got involved in Prop 8!2. Then: Proposition 8 is about basic civil rights and is morally wrong. It's a moral issue.Now: This is a political issue, not a moral issue, so churches shouldn't be

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-34214428170543230142008-10-15T14:28:00.008-06:002008-10-16T09:17:24.863-06:00

      Until now, I have focused my blog posts on answering criticisms of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In light of the upcoming Proposition 8 measure in California and the legalization of gay marriage in Connecticut, I'm going to digress in order to voice my opinion on the matter.      That is not to say that our doctrine of marriage is not the target of criticism. And the

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-79634428454656457612008-09-17T13:07:00.011-06:002008-10-07T09:53:50.506-06:00

      Most Protestants believe that because humans are completely dependent on Christ for forgiveness, only faith matters for salvation. Good works are seen as a byproduct of faith in Christ, but one's actions or obedience to commandments are not seen as directly related to salvation. Because Mormonism maintains that works and faith are both required for salvation, critics sometimes accuse

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-5371846029767835982008-09-15T21:56:00.009-06:002008-09-19T18:32:50.375-06:00

      Baptism for the dead is a unique doctrine of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The practice of baptizing someone as a stand-in for someone who died without being baptized was common among early Christians and is mentioned once in the New Testament (1 Corinthians 15:29), but the Mormons are the only ones who practice it today. Not surprisingly, baptism for the dead has been a

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-51936406077815978242008-08-23T10:00:00.013-06:002009-02-11T15:11:08.515-07:00

      The Book of Mormon is one of the most distinguishing features of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. No other Christian denomination has produced additional scripture, and certainly none have claimed any non-Biblical writings to be equal to the Bible. The Book of Mormon is such a unique feature that the Church is most widely known as the "Mormon Church," after the book.      

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-13225592741643571542008-08-08T17:24:00.016-06:002008-08-31T12:20:22.668-06:00

      From 1852 to 1890, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints taught the doctrine of polygamy or plural marriage. In 1890, Wilford Woodruff, the president of the church, issued a "Manifesto" ending the practice. In 1904, the Church issued a second manifesto to clarify any misunderstandings about the universality of the ban.The Church has prohibited polygamy ever since, and

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-62440700183001745442008-07-31T09:52:00.011-06:002011-02-17T13:59:33.142-07:00

      People often wonder why The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints does not use the cross as its symbol. Some assume that Mormons do not display the cross because they do not believe that Christ was crucified for our sins. I've heard from another who thought that we eschewed all religious symbolism. Hopefully the other posts on this blog adequately answer those misconceptions.      

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-70694026360562287562008-07-27T18:38:00.013-06:002011-02-17T13:46:04.654-07:00

      The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints considers itself the authentic modern restoration of Jesus Christ’s New Testament church. Mormons are therefore dismayed when outsiders claim that they are not Christians and that Mormonism is not a Christian faith. As Mormons respond by asserting their faith in Christ, critics often reply by claiming that such Christianity does not count

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-89044891941478021552008-07-27T18:33:00.008-06:002011-02-17T13:38:19.410-07:00

      Critics often characterize the church as attempting to become more “mainstream,” that is, to quietly abandon old beliefs in favor of less controversial ones. A much-circulated bit of misinformation claims that there have been over 3,000 changes to the Book of Mormon (the number varies), suggesting an underhanded attempt to sanitize the text without admitting that there were any problems

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-58955022474159144812008-07-25T00:26:00.014-06:002011-02-17T13:30:02.568-07:00

      There are two types of Mormon houses of worship. The first are the churches or meetinghouses. They function both as houses of worship and as community centers for the congregation’s other activities. Where Mormons have no such chapel to meet in, they can use anyplace suitable. Baptisms can be performed in rivers, and Sunday worship service can be held in rented space or private homes.      

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-79793620662851660962008-07-24T15:34:00.010-06:002011-02-17T13:25:33.205-07:00

      For some reason, Mormon temples have always inspired public curiosity. Perhaps it is because ancient temples were the centers of civilization, and their absence is still felt throughout the Western world. Or perhaps it is simply because they are not open to the general public. People who have never had the slightest interest in attending Sunday worship services at a regular Mormon church

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-50303076779146730492008-07-23T08:14:00.011-06:002011-02-17T13:22:38.358-07:00

      "Mormons believe that Jesus Christ and Satan are brothers!" That seems to be one of the more popular Mormon-bashing slurs. The statement implies that Mormons believe that Jesus Christ is in some way equal with the devil, which is blasphemous. In fact, Mormons never speak of Jesus Christ as Satan's brother or vice versa. The idea of equating the two is totally foreign to Mormon

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-80869153845635276622008-07-16T10:45:00.016-06:002011-02-17T13:21:08.240-07:00

      Mormonism contemplates a more nuanced view of the afterlife than the traditional view divided between a blissful heaven and a miserable hell. Joseph Smith wondered how such a simplistic afterlife could accommodate all of humanity. In response to his inquiries, he received a revelation in 1832 now recorded as Section 76 of the Doctrine and Covenants. The revelation paints a very merciful

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-83477771646160296222008-07-15T14:27:00.017-06:002008-09-20T12:33:44.107-06:00

      The means by which Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon is the subject of frequent criticism. Smith said that he found the ancient records which he translated as the Book of Mormon buried in a stone box, and "that there were two stones in silver bows—and these stones, fastened to a breastplate constituted what is called the Urim and Thummim—deposited with the plates; and the

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-57416679423279971962008-07-15T13:08:00.009-06:002011-02-17T13:16:10.885-07:00

      A gold-leafed statue of an angel blowing a trumpet tops most Mormon temples, symbolic of the preaching of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ to the world. The angel is typically associated with the angel mentioned in Revelation 14:6 and with the angel Moroni, who ministered to Joseph Smith.      Someone once remarked to me that the Angel Moroni statue "goes back to the whole golden calf

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1100518658132174493.post-37087376265296361722008-07-15T09:01:00.006-06:002011-02-17T13:11:23.376-07:00

      Throughout the early history of the Church, 17 Mormon printing presses were destroyed by anti-Mormon mobs, with virtually no public response. But on June 7, 1844, a group of disgruntled ex-Mormons published The Nauvoo Expositor, a newspaper accusing Joseph Smith and other church leaders of blasphemy, adultery, political corruption, and other slanderous charges. With the consent of the city

Travis Brintonnoreply@blogger.com0