I have the blessing of teaching Primary today (children's Sunday school). During the past week my thoughts have focused on preparing for this wonderful opportunity. One of the thoughts that struck me is how we teach our children about faith and tolerance. Sadly this is an area most people are lacking. So today my thoughts are turned to the Children and how the world teaches them.
I was pleasantly surprised to find a series of books in my local library titles Religions of the World. However I was saddened to hear from the librarian that the books never get checked out and are on the potential cut list. These books are easy to read very well put together and a wonderful way for Children and parents alike to read and discuss other beliefs. They are straightforward and I was very happy to see the wide range of subjects available.
Many people teach their children from a young age that they are right and everyone else is wrong. This leads to intolerance and anger. Everyone wonders why so many wars happen. Well most of them are because of intolerance in regards to religious views. Our home is a dual religion home. I am a Latter Day Saint and my husband is Non-Denominational. We also have a Teenager who stays with us that is not religious. This gives us an amazing dynamic in our home. Many people do not understand how we can make it work because of the differences. It is easy and simple: We are Tolerant. We do not discuss religion except in a generic generalized way. Sometimes things will float to one belief set because of questions. Those questions help facilitate a better understanding not a hatred or alienation. We love the Bible in our home and we are working on a beautiful wall hanging of Jesus Christ. We honor all faiths in our home and respect all who enter. We have friends from all walks of life and we try vigilantly to help them feel love and acceptance. Unfortunately this is not the case in most homes. Even in the homes of my friends. Now I do not say that to upset any of my friends who may read this or family. I say it to show that this is more common than people realize. I have some dear friends who are not religious at all. They are very understanding and respectful however when we were over for dinner a few weeks back some of their friends frowned at us for telling my baby sister to say a prayer before she ate. They did not say anything but it was obvious it was not something they thought appropriate. My friends were great in handling it and making my Baby sister feel okay but it was one of the first times my sister had encountered such a thing.
Maybe we should stop and think how we teach our children. Maybe we should do some research and learn the truth for our self before passing on myths or untruths to our children. And maybe just maybe we should take the time to Pray to the God we hold dear about the truth of what we learn and how we need to teach our children. Raising children is a God given blessing not a right and we need to remember that and include him. They are his children too.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Monday, July 12, 2010
Books you should read
So I am taking a break from my normal weekly post. This week I am recommending you to read some books. You can find them on Amazon, the Library or local bookstore. Most of the stupid and ignorant things that are said and done in the name of religion is because people do not take the time to research or study before they open their mouths. Wars have been fought and people have died in the name of Religion that could be prevented if people just took the time to understand. You do not have belief it or follow the teachings but you really should take the time to learn. I have spent years reading and researching religions of the world all in the name of understanding my own faith more. So pick up a book....But I caution you that there are books for every argument and if you really want to understand something go straight to the source. Both the Dummies books and the Idiots Guide books are great because they are easy to understand and written by reputable resources. I would also encourage you to visit www.mormon.org as linked in the side of this blog for more information. If you have the ability in your area check out Deseret Book or Deseret Book online for good titles to look for and read. I also recommend Latter Days by Coke Newell it is a very wonderful and direct book full of history and insight into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Book Of Mormon....
This morning I logged on to Facebook to find an interesting post by a friend. It was a statement about the Book of Mormon. It basically called the Ideas a Moron and It was very hard of me to not let my blood boil. So This is were my inspiration for today's blog came from. We have touched on this briefly but I figured it needed a special post.
So Big question....What is the Book of Mormon and Why do you read it? We have already covered the situation with the Bible and the Article of Faith regarding the accuracy of translation. So here is the skinny on the Book of Mormon.
Everyone knows that the American Continent use to be inhabited by Aztecs Mayan and Incan civilizations as well as various Native American Tribes. These People all share a great number of common practices and religious views. One of which is the stories of the White god. Many People believe this is the stories of the First conquistadors. However if you study much of what is found in the ruins you realize these stories are Much older. The LDS view is that the White God was Christ. He talked many times to the Jews of 'Other Sheep'. We believe that those sheep were the people of the American Continents.
The Book of Mormon Starts with a Man named Lehi who is commanded to leave Jerusalem. Jerusalem went through a period of wickedness several hundred years before Christ. We know this from scripture and historical information regarding the area. Lehi took his family and braved the ocean's. He landed on the American continents. Where exactly is not known but we do know that he brought his son's and that over time his family spread out. He had a son named Nephi and one named Lamon. Over time the Children of these Brothers became the Nephites and the Lamonites. (very possibly Mayan's and Aztecs) We know that one tribe of people was righteous (the Nephites) and one was wicked (Lamonites) Eventually this changed and the rolls were reversed. The Book of Mormon follows the history of these people and the stories of their faith and struggles.
We also have evidence not only in the Book of Mormon but in the Ruins, that these people had Jewish Cannon available to them and shared many traditions. They had many temples and many practices that parallel the Jewish traditions at the time in Israel. I can hear your thoughts now..What about the human sacrifice? well Sacrifice is unfortunately a key roll in history. Even among the Jews. We do have evidence that eventually the Human Sacrifice did end among these people and it was only a short period of their history. This would correlate with the Book Of Mormon and the Stories that Christ came and visited them. Through Christ's Death the Law of Moses was Fulfilled so there was no longer a need for additional Sacrifice. This would very much relate to the History of these People.
We have ruins and Places of these people left to visit and study. While part of Scripture is having the faith to believe it. It is a wonderful gift for us in these Latter Days to be able to see the actual places these people walked just like having the places in Jerusalem where Christ walked.
Simply put The Book of Mormon is a history of the people on the American Continent, it shares their life, their faith and their struggles. It tells of Christ's visit to the America's after his Resurrection and it does not take anything away from the Bible. If anything through study and prayer it makes many things in the Bible clear. This book is Another Testament of Jesus Christ.
Anyone is welcome to a free copy of the book and I encourage you to read it in full and take up the Challenge at the end. (The Challenge is to pray with an open heart if the things of the book are true.) If you do this you will know if it is true or not. It is for each person to determine and I hope you take the time to do this. I will warn you it is not all flowers and good stories there is a great number of wars and battles in the book, but honestly that makes it even easier to read. Enjoy and Please do not make comments about something you dont really understand until you have taken the time to learn and understand your self.
So Big question....What is the Book of Mormon and Why do you read it? We have already covered the situation with the Bible and the Article of Faith regarding the accuracy of translation. So here is the skinny on the Book of Mormon.
Everyone knows that the American Continent use to be inhabited by Aztecs Mayan and Incan civilizations as well as various Native American Tribes. These People all share a great number of common practices and religious views. One of which is the stories of the White god. Many People believe this is the stories of the First conquistadors. However if you study much of what is found in the ruins you realize these stories are Much older. The LDS view is that the White God was Christ. He talked many times to the Jews of 'Other Sheep'. We believe that those sheep were the people of the American Continents.
The Book of Mormon Starts with a Man named Lehi who is commanded to leave Jerusalem. Jerusalem went through a period of wickedness several hundred years before Christ. We know this from scripture and historical information regarding the area. Lehi took his family and braved the ocean's. He landed on the American continents. Where exactly is not known but we do know that he brought his son's and that over time his family spread out. He had a son named Nephi and one named Lamon. Over time the Children of these Brothers became the Nephites and the Lamonites. (very possibly Mayan's and Aztecs) We know that one tribe of people was righteous (the Nephites) and one was wicked (Lamonites) Eventually this changed and the rolls were reversed. The Book of Mormon follows the history of these people and the stories of their faith and struggles.
We also have evidence not only in the Book of Mormon but in the Ruins, that these people had Jewish Cannon available to them and shared many traditions. They had many temples and many practices that parallel the Jewish traditions at the time in Israel. I can hear your thoughts now..What about the human sacrifice? well Sacrifice is unfortunately a key roll in history. Even among the Jews. We do have evidence that eventually the Human Sacrifice did end among these people and it was only a short period of their history. This would correlate with the Book Of Mormon and the Stories that Christ came and visited them. Through Christ's Death the Law of Moses was Fulfilled so there was no longer a need for additional Sacrifice. This would very much relate to the History of these People.
We have ruins and Places of these people left to visit and study. While part of Scripture is having the faith to believe it. It is a wonderful gift for us in these Latter Days to be able to see the actual places these people walked just like having the places in Jerusalem where Christ walked.
Simply put The Book of Mormon is a history of the people on the American Continent, it shares their life, their faith and their struggles. It tells of Christ's visit to the America's after his Resurrection and it does not take anything away from the Bible. If anything through study and prayer it makes many things in the Bible clear. This book is Another Testament of Jesus Christ.
Anyone is welcome to a free copy of the book and I encourage you to read it in full and take up the Challenge at the end. (The Challenge is to pray with an open heart if the things of the book are true.) If you do this you will know if it is true or not. It is for each person to determine and I hope you take the time to do this. I will warn you it is not all flowers and good stories there is a great number of wars and battles in the book, but honestly that makes it even easier to read. Enjoy and Please do not make comments about something you dont really understand until you have taken the time to learn and understand your self.
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Tolerance....
I am sorry I am so late in posting this week but I have really struggled with the words to use and how to make the post I wanted this week.
This is a subject that really bothers me but I feel it must be addressed if anything is going to change.
The Article of Faith for today is number 11; "We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may."
The biggest thing I encounter as an LDS member among other Christians is the personal attacks on my beliefs or telling me I am miss guided and wrong. I also hear very regularly that I am brainwashed or a member of a cult. Would you just drop it, please? We do not tell you how to live or how to believe do we? So why do you feel like you must tell me how to live my life. I know many of you have had encounters with LDS members who are very pushy or very in your face about our church and you being wrong or miss guided. But this is not what our church teaches or believes. Just read the Article of Faith above. I will be the first to admit that too many members have forgotten this. When we are approached we become defensive. This unfortunately is because the majority of the people who approach us do so in a negative and accusative way. There is no love shown when things are approached this way. Christ was very specific on showing love to others and of loving even the Gentiles. This still applies today. Every man, woman and child has the God given right to make their own choices and to worship how they feel is right for them. No man, woman or child has the right to take that from another person.
I am sorry if you have been on either side of the delicate issue. I am saying it with complete love and understanding for all...PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE do not tell someone how they should worship the Lord or that they are going to Hell for their beliefs. That is not your place, and frankly Jesus knows I am a Christian. So does it really matter what you think?
I am sorry this is such a forthright post but It needs to be said and not just to the general Christian population but to those LDS members, too.
May the Lord guide you and help you find tolerance and understanding in your life.
This is a subject that really bothers me but I feel it must be addressed if anything is going to change.
The Article of Faith for today is number 11; "We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may."
The biggest thing I encounter as an LDS member among other Christians is the personal attacks on my beliefs or telling me I am miss guided and wrong. I also hear very regularly that I am brainwashed or a member of a cult. Would you just drop it, please? We do not tell you how to live or how to believe do we? So why do you feel like you must tell me how to live my life. I know many of you have had encounters with LDS members who are very pushy or very in your face about our church and you being wrong or miss guided. But this is not what our church teaches or believes. Just read the Article of Faith above. I will be the first to admit that too many members have forgotten this. When we are approached we become defensive. This unfortunately is because the majority of the people who approach us do so in a negative and accusative way. There is no love shown when things are approached this way. Christ was very specific on showing love to others and of loving even the Gentiles. This still applies today. Every man, woman and child has the God given right to make their own choices and to worship how they feel is right for them. No man, woman or child has the right to take that from another person.
I am sorry if you have been on either side of the delicate issue. I am saying it with complete love and understanding for all...PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE do not tell someone how they should worship the Lord or that they are going to Hell for their beliefs. That is not your place, and frankly Jesus knows I am a Christian. So does it really matter what you think?
I am sorry this is such a forthright post but It needs to be said and not just to the general Christian population but to those LDS members, too.
May the Lord guide you and help you find tolerance and understanding in your life.
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