Is Mormonism a cult?

Rana said:
They do not skew the mainstream teaching of Christianity, they wrote the tenets basically. So you don't have a gotcha. I bet your fundamentalist sect considered the LDS a cult.
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And I bet the Jews in Israel thought that Christians were a cult, what is your point? At one point they would have been a "cult" if you use the "skew" portion (it isn't there in the dictionary, but heck we'll have fun with it anyway). But not once they have enough followers to be considered mainstream.

The reality is they worship the same god as the Jews, Christians, and Muslims. While they aren't Christian and their religion is different from Christianity, so it is with Muslims, and Jews. Having some different precepts isn't what makes a cult, it is belief in a person or thing rather than a god (first definition), or the number of followers (definition 2) as well as others thinking they are "sinister".

The number of followers for the Mormons simply overcomes the "relatively small number" property of a cult.
 
Rana said:
It is one set of definitions, Damo. I can go to several sites and find you many definitions of a cult. The bottom line is that many Christian denominations consider the LDS a cult ecause of the way the have skewed the teachings of Christianity.
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If you want to believe they are a "cult" because a religion you do not follow will say they are to try to depress a following then so be it. I could care less if the Pope thinks they are a "cult" (which I doubt). I think this line of stupidity was pretty stupid back in the day of Kennedy, it becomes more so as we get further from that point of religious bigotry. It takes a concerted effort to ignore progress we've made in religious freedom and start trying to tell people how to vote due to your own specific level of intolerance.
 
The difference is if the Pope came to visit a Catholic president and said..'we don't like your abortion laws and want it changed' the pres would have to say... 'although I personally agree with the Pope we have laws in this country which must be followed.' Mormons on the other hand, would follow the wishes of their temple priests to change what ever laws the temple tells them to.
 
Damocles said:
If you want to believe they are a "cult" because a religion you do not follow will say they are to try to depress a following then so be it. I could care less if the Pope thinks they are a "cult" (which I doubt). I think this line of stupidity was pretty stupid back in the day of Kennedy, it becomes more so as we get further from that point of religious bigotry. It takes a concerted effort to ignore progress we've made in religious freedom and start trying to tell people how to vote due to your own specific level of intolerance.
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People assume being a cult is negative, they use Jonestown as a definition of cult. It does not have to be negative, like you are trying to make it.

You label me as intolerant, that is not a fact. I think all religions are based on mythos, but I feel people have a right to believe as they wish as long as they do not force me to believe.

I am no more intolerant than you.
 
Crashk said:
The difference is if the Pope came to visit a Catholic president and said..'we don't like your abortion laws and want it changed' the pres would have to say... 'although I personally agree with the Pope we have laws in this country which must be followed.' Mormons on the other hand, would follow the wishes of their temple priests to change what ever laws the temple tells them to.
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Again, nonsense. It was exactly that argument made against Kennedy because the Catholics believe in the Pope's infallibility. It's simply ignorance based in the exact same ignorance as those who said the Pope would have all the say if Kennedy were elected. Seriously, we've come a long way since then, to go back to this kind of purposeful ignorance for political "gain" is disgusting, IMO.
 
Rana said:
People assume being a cult is negative, they use Jonestown as a definition of cult. It does not have to be negative, like you are trying to make it.
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They assume it is negative because it is, the sociologist who coined the term in 1932 meant it to be.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cult
The concept of "cult" was introduced into sociological classification in 1932 by American sociologist Howard P. Becker as an expansion of German theologian Ernst Troeltsch's church-sect typology. Troeltsch's aim was to distinguish between three main types of religious behavior: churchly, sectarian and mystical. Becker created four categories out of Troeltsch's first two by splitting church into "ecclesia" and "denomination", and sect into "sect" and "cult".[2] Like Troeltsch's "mystical religion", Becker's cults were small religious groups lacking in organization and emphasizing the private nature of personal beliefs.[3]
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You label me as intolerant, that is not a fact. I think all religions are based on mythos, but I feel people have a right to believe as they wish as long as they do not force me to believe.

I am no more intolerant than you.
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Yes, I think people who believe that because he believes in LDS he should not be President to be intolerant.
 
Damocles said:
Again, nonsense. It was exactly that argument made against Kennedy because the Catholics believe in the Pope's infallibility. It's simply ignorance based in the exact same ignorance as those who said the Pope would have all the say if Kennedy were elected. Seriously, we've come a long way since then, to go back to this kind of purposeful ignorance for political "gain" is disgusting, IMO.
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So you've worked closely with mormons over the yrs like I have. You've witnessed the Mormon Mafia like I have. You've studied the White Horse Prophecy and know that Romney believes he's a 'miracle birth'. You worked side by side with excommunicated mormons like I have. You've seen the fear in their faces at the thought of having a cup of tea. There's more but you wouldn't believe it even if you saw it with your own eyes.

There's a huge difference between Catholics like Kennedy and Kolob believers like Mrs. Romney's miracle baby. Mitt believes he's Gods voice in this world and destined to lead the temple into the White House.
 
Crashk said:
So you've worked closely with mormons over the yrs like I have. You've witnessed the Mormon Mafia like I have. You've studied the White Horse Prophecy and know that Romney believes he's a 'miracle birth'. You worked side by side with excommunicated mormons like I have. You've seen the fear in their faces at the thought of having a cup of tea. There's more but you wouldn't believe it even if you saw it with your own eyes.

There's a huge difference between Catholics like Kennedy and Kolob believers like Mrs. Romney's miracle baby. Mitt believes he's Gods voice in this world and destined to lead the temple into the White House.
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I don't believe that you have. My brother is married to a Mormon, because of that I know a great many of them, have worked with them and enjoyed their company, none of this is true.
 
Arab Spring said:
And they are as equally uneducated in what is and is not a cult as you are. Cults are localized, and the church of latter day saints is internationally recognized and has far too many members to be a cult. The belief in sacred garments is no more unusual than in other religions, nor is any other aspect of the religion. Get over your intense bigotry and stop hating someone for believing differently from you bigot.
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I don't know that size or location are included in the definition of a cult. It also seems that "cult" is in the eye of the beholder. I think Scientology is a cult, and years ago I knew some fundamentalist Christians who considered Catholicism a cult.
 
Rana said:
Damo, there are members who believe that the garments afford them physical protection, though most believe it is just spiritual protection.

There are fundamentalists that believe invoking the name of Jesus will afford you physical protection.

There are extremists in all religions that have some, pretty far fetched ideas.

My aunt use to carry a medal blessed with holy water fom Lourdes that she thought protected her from harm.
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And there was the St. Christopher medal, at least until he got downgraded like the former planet Pluto. :D
 
Damocles said:
Incorrect. Unless you consider Catholicism a "cult" due to a belief in the Divine Wisdom of the Pope...

That Mormonism survived past its first leader is a sign that it isn't much of a "cult", that it is spread throughout the world actually does change it because according to your definition it must "skew" mainstream belief, the numbers count. This doesn't "skew" mainstream belief it is one.
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I wrote before that when I was hanging with a group of hard-core fundamentalists years ago, they all called Catholicism a cult and the Pope a cult leader.
 
Damocles said:
I don't believe that you have. My brother is married to a Mormon, because of that I know a great many of them, have worked with them and enjoyed their company, none of this is true.
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One question, are they Temple Mormons?

I also consider by definition, the Unification Church to be a cult. Jehovah Witness as well. I understand now why you are so defensive of Mormons.
 
Crashk said:
The difference is if the Pope came to visit a Catholic president and said..'we don't like your abortion laws and want it changed' the pres would have to say... 'although I personally agree with the Pope we have laws in this country which must be followed.' Mormons on the other hand, would follow the wishes of their temple priests to change what ever laws the temple tells them to.
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No....they dont. No more than the Orthodox must obey the patriarch, the Muslims a caliph (should one arise), etc.
 
christiefan915 said:
I wrote before that when I was hanging with a group of hard-core fundamentalists years ago, they all called Catholicism a cult and the Pope a cult leader.
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Again, that people I don't share a religion with call something a cult because they want to depress people joining their numbers doesn't change what is actually a cult. While idiots may be intolerant and thus try to demean a religion as a "cult", that doesn't mean we should join them.
 
Rana said:
One question, are they Temple Mormons?
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His wife is, many are. A few are what I call "social Mormons"... They grew up in the church and don't believe but continue to remain because of the society that they don't want to give up.

I also consider by definition, the Unification Church to be a cult. Jehovah Witness as well. I understand now why you are so defensive of Mormons.
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I disagree. While I believe the Unification Church to be a cult, Scientology too (based on both numbers and weirdness), I do not think JWs are, they are way too mainstream. And no you don't really, I am just disgusted by intolerance. I would be the same way about an idiot who called Catholics a "cult" because they have icons at their church and believe in the Pope's infallibility.
 
christiefan915 said:
I don't know that size or location are included in the definition of a cult. It also seems that "cult" is in the eye of the beholder. I think Scientology is a cult, and years ago I knew some fundamentalist Christians who considered Catholicism a cult.
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Yes, and they were primarily Democrats. Mormons actually used to vote solid Dem because the GOP was viewed as the party of mainstream WASPS, and because it was strongly opposed to Mormon social values such as polygamy (the platforms of 1854 - 1860 called for abolition of polygamy in the territories). As times changed, the Catholics and Mormons have both learned they can get along with the WASPS, but not so much with the left.
 
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