What People Say I Believe

Counterclaims 


I had a really hard time getting my mind around my counter arguments. It's tough when you are so into what you believe and what your stance is on an issue that it becomes difficult to see other points of view. My paper is about the positive and negative image of Mormons and in my paper I talk about three main myths/misconception i believe to be powerful influences on the negative image of The LDS church (Mormons). So in my counter claims I focused on two of those misunderstanding and what people might think and what is true, the truth I plan to go into detail about in my paper.



Mitt Romney- why this is relevant

In class i was asked are you going to vote for Mitt Romney because you’re Mormon? I was not surprised to hear this question but still it amazed me. i wonder to myself why someone might think that just because we are of the same faith that would be my main reason to vote for him. The idea that faith would unite people is not a hard one to conjure but when it come to something as complicated as politics., i would hope to be given a little more credit for my own decision. I felt offended that someone might assume I'm a robot and not an intelligent human being capable of having strongly different views from someone who shares the same faith.

This is a theme that i have observed but the main concern i saw from voters about Romney’s religious beliefs in the election season was that the Mormons church would somehow have a direct or even overruling effect on him as President. In Andrew Preston article in History Today addresses this concern by sharing an excerpt from a speech Romney gave in Texas stating ' “A person should not be elected because of his faith nor should he be rejected because of his faith. Let me assure you that no authorities of my church, or of any other church for that matter, will ever exert influence on presidential decisions. Their authority is theirs, within the province of church affairs, and it ends where the affairs of the nation begin.”'

 I believe by Romney confronting this problem and trying to clear it up, shows that there is a feeling of nervousness towards his faith because of an assumption that some make that his decisions as president would be overpowered by his obligations to the LDS church.

Of course his membership in the church affects him as a man and has molded his values which is behind his political passion but Romney is his own person and the church has no control of the members lives. This viewpoint is understandable as with any deeply religious candidate for president, the question will come up,where is the line of obligation to your country,to your faith and which one will prevail over the other if the time comes for a decision.

For me the most important thing to explain is that I choose to attend my church, i choose to serve my church community and most importantly i choose to believe in my church, I am sure that Romney has those same choices .

Christains or Not


The question Are Mormons christians? is a common phrase i hear and something that i ve had to explain many times in my life, im sure this wont be my last.My stance is that this is a common misconception and as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints ,the proof is in the name.

Yet others continue to argue that this is not the case. Cooper P. Abram III a baptist pastor said in a religious magazine‘"Are Mormons Christians?" is simple: "They are not biblical Christians because their beliefs and teaching are contrary to what the Bible teaches and this reveals them to be a "Christian" cult."'.He goes on to break down verses of the Bible and elaborate on the many reason why the LDS faith is a cult.

I believe that what he is trying to explain is that Mormons do not fall under the category of what he believes to be Christians as he understand the Bible.Now anyone can get technical and over analytical about what it means to be a christian but it is their own interpretation. I think the only way to be able to state as a fact that Mormons or anyone for that matter is not a christian is to observe a complete absence of God the Eternal Father and Jesus Christ in the doctrine and an absence of belief in the Bible as well.

Mormons believe in all these things, I believe in all these things and they are very present in the doctrine of the church and in my life.
 
 

Women In the Church

Mormon women are brainwashed, miserable and oppressed by our religion. If i had a dollar for everytime i've heard this i would be rolling in the dough. Being a Mormon women in the LDS faith i know im not oppressed but others, many others,would argue against that. In her article written for a religious studies class student Jessica Longaker rips into the gender roles of women in the church starting with polygamy which was practiced between 1843 to 1890. She continues by explaining that not much has changed since the 1800’s and women continue to be undervalued, bossed around and controlled by males.

 Longaker goes on about different things like unacceptable divorce and women being the only ones held responsible for sexual purity but i want to focus on a specific idea that is woven throughout this article. The idea that women are boiled down to something to be used, that they need to stay in the home and have as many children as possible. She argues that women are not seen as equals but are ruled by the men in the church (Longaker).

That would mean that I , as a member, have no say and the men get away with this because I believe they are lead by God to treat me inferior to them.That means that my voice is never heard, my dreams are never realized and I’m only good for one thing. Wow, no wonder Mormons have a negative image. She make valid points when addressing the past practices of the church but mostly gets the doctrine all twisted.

I was 18 when i joined and i have never been disrespected , put down or ignored by a male member in my congregation. I understand that things happen in the world. There are bad men who are baptist, catholic, and yes, mormon who treat women poorly but that doesn't mean that position stands for the group as a whole.





Just a side note incase you didnt already know,   "It was the Mormons who, as a group, were the greatest champions of the suffrage movement, with women in Utah and Wyoming winning the right to vote long before the women in any other state in the union." (Gordon 423-429)

 

 

Work cited

• Abrams, Cooper P., 3. "The Bible and the Scriptures of the LDS Church." O Timothy Magazine Oct. 1996: n. pag. Web. Nov.-Dec. 2012.
• Gordon, Philip Sherman. "Not A Mormon." Cultural Studies 19.4 (2005): 423-29.
•  Longaker, Jessica. "The Role of Women in Mormonism." The Role of Women in Mormonism. Http://www.exmormon.org/mormwomn.htm, 2 Sept. 1996. Web. 22 Nov. 2012
• Preston, Andrew. "Making Mormons Normal." History Today 62.10 (2012): 18-20. Acedemic Search Premier. Web. 29 Oct. 2012.