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The spirituality promoted on this website is Mormon because it is grounded
in the scriptures and traditions of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints. Sometimes, individuals who no longer believe literally in certain
aspects of LDS religion, such as the Book of Mormon, downplay those aspects,
focusing instead on what Mormons have in common with other Christians,
such as the New Testament. Other Mormon liberals, no longer believing
in just one true church, may borrow eclectically from many spiritual traditions.
This website takes a different approach. The spirituality promoted here
is based on teachings and practices that are specifically and distinctively
LDS. This is a spirituality for people who find that Mormonism continues
to be the language in which most of their communication with God occurs.
This website shows liberal Mormons how they might reclaim LDS scripture,
ritual, and sacred story, apart from conservative claims to historical
truth or an exclusive dispensation of divine authority. The website asks:
What does God communicate to us through the visions and writings of Joseph
Smith? How do Mormon rituals or spiritual disciplines sustain and guide
us?
Besides the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, headquartered
in Salt Lake City, other religious groups trace their origins to Joseph
Smith and thus could also be regarded as "Mormon." The largest
of these groups is the Community of Christ (formerly the RLDS Church),
headquartered in Independence, Missouri. It would be an interesting project
to pull together spiritual resources from various Mormon traditions. However,
that is not this website's project. This website focuses on the traditions
of the LDS Church.
Heber C. Kimball:
My heart is in "Mormonism;" it is my joy, and I have no
joy in anything else. . . . Let me be made an instrument in the
hands of God to play the tune which He influences me to play; that
is my way. . . . I stick to "Mormonism," and I pray God
that it may stick to me.
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Journal
of Discourses 3:231 |
Leonard J. Arrington:
This was a great church, I came to believe. It perpetuated fine
ideals of home, school, and community life; its approach and philosophy
enabled its members to reconcile religion with science and higher
learning; its emphasis on free agency encouraged individual freedom
and responsibility; its strong social tradition taught its members
to be caring and compassionate; and its strong organizational capability
empowered its people to build better communities. As Brigham Young
said, a central doctrine of Mormonism is that God's primary work
is through people, and so our principal concern was with the here
and now.
In short, it was a religion and a church worth working for. . .
. I am still devoted to carrying out responsibilities which I trust
continue to be helpful in building the Kingdom of God on earth.
Spiritual experiences I have had and my intensive study of Church
history [have] validated for me, intellectually and emotionally,
this decision to serve the faith.
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"Why I
Am a Believer," Sunstone, January 1985, 38 |
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