A Mormon 's Journey Through Life With God

One of the largest struggles for members in the church is animosity of non-members. On one hand, many express their dislike of the LDS church without even knowing what Sacrament Meeting is or the full the title of the “Mormon church” (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints). On the other hand, there are a number supposed experts about Mormon doctrine. Some have belonged to the Church themselves at one point, leaving after finding unresolved dissonance between their beliefs and the Gospel. Others are often learned scholars, criticizing the Mormon doctrine to prove their own views. The following paper involves the latter of the two in an analysis of Ezekiel 37:15-17, a Biblical scripture that the LDS Church believes to refer to The Book of Mormon.

Mormonism, the largest church to originate on American soil is not without its own burdens to bear. As one of the younger religions, one that strayed from the foundations of the other already established religions in the United States, it is often viewed with negativity and mockery. Modern day social media, television, news articles and movies often exploit Mormon beliefs. They twist and exaggerated certain facets of the Mormon way of life. This framing of their belief system by the media leads the public opinion toward viewing this representation as a true depiction of the Mormons. Some of the more extreme behaviors exhibited by members that have separated from the main group are used against the entire faith by the media, so in turn this extremist view has become a Mormon stereotype.

Arias had a pattern of unstable interpersonal romantic relationships with men, and the dynamics repeated in her relationships. She alternated between extremes of idealization and devaluation, and she was a chameleon, changing herself to fit in the people around her, in this case joining the Mormon Church a short time after meeting Alexander. In the beginning of these relationships she displayed intense fascination and were intrigued by their personality quirks, when she was ready to move on she then made claims of sexual deviancy, physical and emotional abuse, and in the case of Alexander, even stated he was a pedophile.

I peeked through my facemask and I could see the quarterback lining up to take the snap. I glanced back at my coach who swung his arm across his body indicating the “slash”. My body shook with excitement as I inched up to the line. At the sound of a distant “hike” I exploded from my stance off the tackle into the endzone. I found myself one on one with the quarterback in the backfield, an outcome I had prepared for hundreds of times. I dove at his legs colliding with his shins. After a push and pull struggle he went down and I stood victorious in the middle of the endzone, my teammates immediately raised their hands above their heads signaling a safety. The excitement in the stadium grew and the student section erupted chanting “STORMIN MORMON...STORMIN MORMON”

One might be fooled by the title of Joana Brooks book The Book of Mormon Girl. While the book may seem like it is aimed at a specific audience, its chapters reveal stories and thoughts that have a broad appeal. The book shares valuable insight about the Mormon culture, but its core is about how you fit into the religion, culture, or tradition that you were raised in or chose to be a part of later in life. The Book of Mormon Girl is divided into two parts; the first part being a recount of her childhood and life in general as a member of an incredibly dedicated Mormon family. Brooks details her “unorthodox Mormon story” in a way that is both affectionate and critical as the daughter of an LDS bishop. As a young child, her imagination was full

The Confessions of Saint Augustine tells of the events and life choices that Saint Augustine made through his life which eventually led him to converting to Christianity. This was not an easy or quick process for Saint Augustine, just as many members of the LDS church spend a great deal of time truly converting to the gospel. Saint Augustine’s conversion and also LDS members’ process of becoming truly converted, shares many similarities. Both involve trials, growing from those trials, an ongoing process, and a significant change. In order to understand the importance of what becoming truly converted means to a Mormon, there must be distinguishing factors between this and just being a convert to the Mormon Church.

The Utopian society of Mormon’s believed that the legacy, authority, and influence of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, for their perfect world, stems from the highest “reality” that the Church 's beginning was celestial: in other words, the Mormon history is not that of man 's reorganization but of God 's re-establishment of the truth within their perfect Utopian society. Thus, a restoration of the original church of Jesus Christ and the apostles was vital; improvement alone, was not enough. The Mormon members and followers believe that many truths had been lost over history and over time when the power to act in God’s name was taken from the earth. They believed it went with the executions of the apostles. The followers of this movement and community believe that restoration was and is still crucial as a prelude to the second coming of Christ. Today the church has a worldwide community of approximately 15 million members and faithful followers (Utopia and Dystopia).

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Mormons) have long contended to be a form of Christianity, in fact, Mormons proclaim to be the “true” church of Jesus Christ. In recent times, prominent Evangelical, Richard Mouw (former president of Fuller Theological Seminary) has launched a conversation amongst Evangelicals and Mormons in order, to open a dialogue between the two religions. Albeit a controversial issue, Mouw suggests that Mormons have more similarities with orthodox Christianity than differences. In this essay, I would like to argue that, notwithstanding the similarities, according to Mormon doctrine, Mormonism can never become Christian without forfeiting their faith in the book of Mormon, and teachings of its leader, Joseph Smith.

Growing up in an all LDS member family, the Book of Mormon has been apart of my life for as long as I can remember. Between personal study, reading it together as a family, sharing it with my friends, and pondering its message, there is always something that brings me back to reading it over and over again. I love the quote, “sooner or later every member of the Church must discover the scriptures for themselves.” And I truly believe that from discovering the scriptures, and more specifically the Book of Mormon, it has helped me to recognize why I keep coming back to the same book.

As I look back on my life, as short as it has been so far, there are a few key events that I recall that have shaped me most as an individual and secured my different places in life. I was born in Roosevelt, Utah. In this small town of just under 7,000 people I never truly was able to find out who I wanted to be. The community was heavily influenced by two main factors, the Mormon religion and a very conservative culture. If you were not a part of one or both of these influences you generally would run in an outer circle. I found it hard to figure out who I wanted to be as I battled with the cultural norm as well as my own internal struggles.

I hope this letter finds you well, and that you can read my handwriting! I’m writing this note to you for two reasons that give me so much joy to tell you about.

How does Mormonism, more formally known as The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, compare to Biblical Christianity? Is it different? If so, what about it is different? Are Mormons considered Christians? This paper is going to explore these questions about Mormonism. In 2007 there were over 13 million Mormons worldwide, there are approximately 6 million Mormons in the United States. Mormonism is “the fastest and most successful cult in the history of the United States…an average (increasing) rate of 300,000 converts a year” (Ridenour 130).

The religious group known as the Mormons cannot be investigated very long until the name Joseph Smith rises to the surface and is seen as one held in high regard. In order for one to examine the doctrines, practices, and views of the Mormon faith one must become acquainted with Joseph Smith, and who he is, who he claimed to be, and how the Mormon views him as it relates to his or her faith. However, just who is Joseph Smith? Who is Joseph Smith as it relates to the Mormon? We will examine who Joseph Smith is, his early childhood and religious affiliation, his founding the religion of the Mormons, how the Mormon views him, and how Joseph Smith and the views his followers hold of him contradicts the Bible.

The topic of my research paper is the Mormon religion. Particularly the original form of the religion as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. With this paper I will answer the following questions as to where did the religion started, who were/are the main leaders and places of worship for the religion, are there any divisions or sects that are associated with the religion, how has the religion changed over time, and what does the future hold for this religion? To find my answers I searched many online articles, books, and magazine articles. I found that the Mormon religion is a lot more complex than I believe many people think it is and there are many misconceptions made about the religion.

The Mormon Church, formally called the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, was founded on the belief that the church established by Jesus Christ did not survive and was saved in modern times through a prophet Joseph Smith.