Just gonna jump right into it.
I'm sorry, you guys, but Mormonism has never been a democracy. The whole point of our religion is that we have a loving Heavenly Father who, through his prophet and apostles, communicates His will and direction to His children. Everyone has the choice as to whether he/she wants to believe this or not, and that is a beautiful thing. When you claim to be a member of any given religion, you are stating that you align with the beliefs and standards that that religion practices. In the LDS church, we believe that the prophet is the only person on earth who can receive revelation for the whole of his church.
"When the prophet speaks, the debate is over." - Elaine Cannon
Now, this doesn't mean that you can't ask questions. Please, by all means, PLEASE ask questions. It keeps you moving forward in life. Just... be ready to receive a reply. Sometimes the answer won't be a fun one, and that is because our Heavenly Father knows a heck of a lot more than we do. I believe that with my whole heart.
No one is forcing you to be a part of our church. If you don't agree, then don't be there. And if you say you're a Latter Day Saint but then openly oppose the church's teachings and encourage others to do so as well, then you have lost the right to call yourself a Latter Day Saint.
All this does not in any way mean that we should shun or disrespect those who don't believe the things that we do. We absolutely have no right to criticize a child of God. No one except God and Jesus knows their hearts fully. We have been commanded to love everyone. Everyone. Love. We all make mistakes. Great. We also all have wonderful talents and unique quirks and were created by an exalted being that has never created a person He didn't love.
This is what I know, and these are truths that I love. And when it all comes down to it, I know that the greatest thing you can do to get answers is to pray. About anything. Pray and ask if there really exists a guy that you can pray to. And then listen for the answer. It could come from anywhere.
I love that we have a prophet today. Sure, Moses and Elijah and whatnot were great, and they received lots of cool revelations that we can always learn from. But times change, and with that, new problems arise that couldn't even be fathomed back in their day. We need somebody here, someone who knows what it's like. Our boy Tommy Monson is that person, right now, today (or tonight, I guess). He's a true blue through and through bonafide prophet o' God. So I'm pretty sure we should listen to him. IDK, that's just me.
Again, these are things that I personally believe. You need to figure out for yourself what you believe. No one can do that for you.
So just be true to the things that you say you are true to. If you're a Christian, act like a Christian. It's. That. Simple.
Rina
