2003-4-27 07:34:00
Keith writes:
I may have been remiss in calling the web site Mormon. My intent was to say the web site contained information about Mormonism. Whether any of the information on this site is true should be left up to the reader to discern. For my part, I find the historical data the site references to be more interesting than the conclusions they draw from the referenced material. I do not always agree with their conclusions. I can accept the Book of Mormon as revealed scripture and Joseph Smith as a prophet and at the same time many of the darker aspects of Mormon History. Some of the darker arguments this site uses to discredit the Book of Mormon do not disturb my confidence in the revealed scripture or the Prophet - even if proven true. The contradictions in Joseph Smith's life which seem to have been covered-up by main steam Mormonism do not present a problem for me personally, but I can see how they would aversely effect a mainstream believer.
For the record, if I came across an anti-Dewey web site I would probably consider what the site had to say, and then decide for myself whether it contained any truth.
Rapter Keith
(A buffoon, fraud and clown can still present truth - even unknowingly. Such men have often been used by God knowingly and unwittingly to present truth. Sometimes this is the best way to disguise pearls of wisdom, so that those with ears can hear. I think this anti-Mormon web site can be viewed in much the same vein.)
JJ:
To understand Joseph Smith and early Mormon history you do indeed have to read both sides of the equation and even then you have to do some digging. I think most of the people on the list realize this, including the LDS list members.
The interesting thing is that the more miraculous parts of the Joseph Smith period are left out by both sides.
It is understandable why the anti-Mormons leave them out but it may seem odd that the Orthodox Church does also.
For instance, the incident I related about the light striking those who killed Joseph was in the first edition of the history of the church but subsequently left out. The miraculous healings I included are also left out. Another thing skimmed over is the pillar of fire that descended upon the Kirtland temple.
The reason for this is that none of these types of miraculous events happen in the church today and the authorities do not want to call attention to the miraculous past for fear the expectations of the current membership will be higher than can be delivered.
After Joseph Smith was killed there were a number of women in the early church who performed miraculous healings. This alarmed some of the male authorities for they did not want it to appear that the females, who were not priesthood holders, could do miracles as good as or better than the men. Church authorities clamped down on the equal power of the female until in this age few current LDS are even aware that females ever did such things in the early church.
JJ
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