A programming note; my lunch with the Mormons had to be delayed because my workload this week was busier than it had been in months. I promise I’ll let ya’ll know how it goes when I am able to reschedule our meeting.
When I called the local missionary center to let them know that I was going to be out of town the day of scheduled meeting I was told that it is two elders that were to meet with me. Elders? I was under the assumption that they would be sending me younger, less theologically trained missionaries.
Usually the missionaries that knock on my door on Saturday mornings have a ton of scripture verses memorized but have no real working knowledge of their doctrinal systems. How I carry on a conversation with folks depends of their understanding of their own theological system whether it’s my Baptist neighbor or a scientologist looking for Zenu’s mothership.
I’m gonna have to do a bit of research and figure out what exactly the LDS folks mean when they say someone is an elder. With there being a local LDS temple in my area it is entirely within the realm of possibility that that I’ll get to chat with the guys who have temple privileges. If that is the case, our conversation will be a very different one than I had originally envisioned.
5 comments:
I'm pulling for the nuclear option, Frank! Take no prisoners! Sock it to 'em! Hold their feet to the fire!
In a winsome way, of course.
One of the most interesting things I ever saw was a Morton Downey Jr. show where he had several cult leaders on the program, and after putting them on the hotseat - he asked them what they thought of each other. Very interesting! I wonder what our Mormon friends think of JW's, for instnace? How would they define "Christianity"? How would they define a "cult"?
Meh. That's probably not polite.
For all the talk of me being an angry blogger, I’m much more likely to use the nuclear option with my fellow Lutherans who have been taught rightly and still reject the Truth. I’m thinking of starting slow with a rapid escalation. That’ll be easier to do once we define what it is we are discussing. There can’t be “winsome” without defining who exactly who is this Jesus we are talking about.
I’m fairly certain that the Mormon’s definition of the great apostasy, that is until JS claims he found his golden tablets, defines anyone who confesses one or more of the ecumenical creeds as a cult.
In the LDS church being an Elder means you hold a specific priesthood office, not that you are old. You usually have to be 18+ to become an elder so the missionaries will probably be 19-21.
A high priest would be much older (50s is typical).
Thank you anonymous for the information. I was aware that elder was not an age related title. We ourselves use the designation for people that assist our pastor. The only thing I’m uncertain of is which level of elder I am going to be having a conversation with
I had a couple of Elders coming over several times over a two year period. I had a lot of success with one of the boys by asking them what was different, what was new between what I believed and what JS taught in the Book of Mormon. After letting them describe the difference between what I as an "evangelical Christian" believed and why I should join them, I asked them to read me Galatians 1:8-9 (But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, if any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.).
It was the most effective thing I did during the conversations we had, particularly the "or an angel from heaven" part because of good old Moroni.
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