Tag Archives | Mormons

Meeting The Latter Day Saints On Acid

By majestic on February 6, 2014 in News 8

Have you ever been lured into a Mormon temple by those nice clean cut young men who accost you on the sidewalk outside the “Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints”? Bet you didn’t decide to do so while on acid, but that’s just what Troy Farah did, recounting his tale for Vice:

No religion is complete without a little mystery—Catholicism with its Immaculate Conception, Scientology with its OT Levels, Buddhism with its Nirvana. It goes without saying that the Latter-day Saints have their share of enigmatic rituals. Some Christian fundamentalists are quick to point out the esoteric beliefs of the LDS church, including the ideas that Mormons become gods of their own planets when they reach one of three heavens, that Jesus vacationed in the Americas, and that they once sort of had a thing against black people.

The Mormon obsession with building gigantic temples around the globe also raises some eyebrows in non-believers, owing to the secrecy of whatever goes on inside.

… Read the rest

British Judge Orders Mormon Leader to Prove Faith

By Matt Staggs on February 5, 2014 in News 12

PIC: Brian Tibbetts (CC)

This is probably nothing more than a stunt, but at least it’s an amusing one…

Via Raw Story:

A disgruntled former Mormon has convinced an English court to file two summonses to appear against Thomas S. Monson, the current president of the Mormon Church.

Tom Phillips based his complaint on the Fraud Act of 2006, a British law that outlaws making a profit off of false representations. According to Phillips, this is precisely what the Mormon Church does — it uses statements it knows to be factually untrue in order to secure tithes from members of the Church.

The facts in question, court records show, are tenets of the Mormon faith, including that Joseph Smith translated The Book of Mormon from ancient gold plates, that Native Americans are descendants of a family of Israelites, and that death didn’t exist on this planet until 6,000 years ago.

“These are not statements of mere ‘beliefs’ or opinions or theories,” Phillips wrote.

… Read the rest

The Psychic Mormon Dream Mine In The Mountains Of Utah

By JacobSloan on May 25, 2013 in News 11

Via Utah.gov, the bizarre story behind the “Dream Mine” built by a nineteenth-century Mormon bishop-prophet famed for his dreams that predicted the future:

The so-called Dream Mine is located east of Salem in Utah County.

In August 1894, John H. Koyle experienced a dream in which he was visited by a figure from another world. The visitor carried him to a high mountain east of Koyle’s house and into the mountain, showing him the various strata and explaining the meaning of the minerals. The visitor showed Koyle an ancient “Nephite” mine with large rooms of mined-out ore bodies. The rooms contained treasure and artifacts of an extinct civilization.

Koyle was instructed that he was to open a mine and extract gold for the welfare of “his” people. The riches would be found and released to him and his followers during a time of world crisis. The wealth would be spread to others through Koyle and the people organized around the mine.

… Read the rest

Rewriting the Books of Mormon to Allow Black People

By majestic on March 18, 2013 in News 15

Modern Mormons are only slightly embarrassed about their founder Joseph Smith’s belief in polygamy, but they are definitely freaked out by the very public ban on Black people in their “church.” What do to? Rewrite their “scriptures” of course! NPR reports:

…The two biggest additions to the new edition of Mormon scripture can be found in the book of Doctrine and Covenants, says Givens, a professor of literature and religion at the University of Richmond, and they deal specifically with the church’s original ban on black priesthood ordination and polygamy.

Givens says Joseph Smith himself ordained black members of the church to the priesthood. But after Smith’s death, beginning in the late 1840s, Brigham Young apparently charted a new direction in terms, and began what became known as “the ban,” under which people of African-American ancestry were not permitted to hold the priesthood or to participate in temple ordinances.

“That was a policy that remained in place until 1978.

… Read the rest

Conservative Mormon Senator Busted for DUI

By Matt Staggs on December 25, 2012 in News 3

Conservative Republican Senator Michael Crapo (R-ID) was arrested in the early hours of Sunday morning after failing a roadside sobriety test. Crapo, a Mormon, has stated publicly that he abstains from alcohol.

A mea culpa has already been issued:

I am deeply sorry for the actions that resulted in this circumstance. I made a mistake for which I apologize to my family, my Idaho constituents and any others who have put their trust in me. I accept total responsibility and will deal with whatever penalty comes my way in this matter. I will also undertake measures to ensure that this circumstance is never repeated.

Who the hell says “I am deeply sorry for the actions that resulted in this circumstance” anyway? A guy who probably isn’t going to have a political career for much longer, that’s who. Crapo, indeed.

Keep reading.… Read the rest

Canadian Polygamist Cult Lives In Former Ski Resort Compound

By JacobSloan on November 19, 2012 in News 5

Canada’s CTV News on a bizarre breakaway sect of Mormonism tucked away in a remote Ontario valley, ruled by a violent, domineering man dubbed the “Prophet” who inherited control of the sex cult from his father:

Carol Christie was 18 when she says her mother, an unstable religious fanatic, drugged and manipulated her into “marrying” Stan King, a charismatic preacher more than twice her age. In the early seventies Stan established his own fundamentalist Mormon sect. His followers called him The Prophet.

Carol moved into King’s farmhouse, and joined his legal wife, and two other “church wives” — one of whom was only 14. According to Carol, Stan had a fondness for group sex. And as time passed, she says King bedded three more “wives” ranging in age from 10 to 17.

In 1977, the church started a printing company in Mississauga, Ont. Within five years, King and his followers bought a 200-acre property, a bankrupt ski resort, simply rechristened “The Property.” They planned to build a temple there, high on a hill.

… Read the rest

Mad Mitt Defends Mormonism

By majestic on November 9, 2012 in News 25

You might have thought you’d seen the last of this guy but no, his furious defense of his Mormon faith is going viral on YouTube:

A Secret Look Inside Mormon Temple Rituals

By JacobSloan on October 23, 2012 in News 16

Supposedly filmed via hidden camera, this footage of sacred, closed-to-the-public Mormon rituals — which come across as quite bizarre viewed from an outsider perspective — has been making waves. Prayers to the planet Kolob, horned oxen, baptism of the dead, golden curtains, secret handshakes, and everything else you might hope for are included:

Government And Police Department In Colorado City Accused Of Operating As A Branch Of Polygamist Cult

By JacobSloan on August 16, 2012 in News 7

Chilling, imagine traveling the Southwest and accidentally wandering into a extreme theocracy. Via ABC News:

Police in Arizona are beginning daily patrols in Colorado City, a polygamist community that was once home to Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (FLDS) leader Warren Jeffs.

The patrols come after a complaint was filed by the U.S. Department of Justice against the Colorado City government and local marshal’s office alleging…the Colorado City Marshal’s Office “routinely uses its enforcement authority to enforce the edicts and will of the FLDS; fails to protect non-FLDS individuals from victimization by FLDS individuals; refuses to cooperate with other law enforcement agencies’ investigations of FLDS individuals; selectively enforces laws against non-FLDS; and uses its authority to facilitate unlawful evictions of non-FLDS, among other unlawful conduct.”

In April, the Arizona House of Representatives killed a bill that would have replaced local police in the town with Mohave County sheriff’s deputies.

… Read the rest

Magic Mormon Underwear Secrets Exposed

By majestic on July 10, 2012 in News 4

Astanac (CC)

Valerie Tarico turns some Mormon undies inside out to shake out their secrets, for AlterNet:

To outsiders there is little more fascinating about the Mormon religion than the secret underwear that Mormon temple initiates are expected to wear day and night. As one former believer put it, “I’ve been an exmo since 1967. All that time, the underwear questions were the first ones I got from people who found out I had been Mormon. A friend brought it up again last week at lunch.”

Another former Mormon agrees: “When people first find out I’m exmo, their first question/comment almost ALWAYS is, ‘So what is the deal with the magic underwear?!’ Honest! People outside the morg are spending WAY too much time thinking about garmies!” (DC)

(“Garmies” is insider slang for the sacred undergarments prescribed by the religion’s founder, Joseph Smith.)

Some outside interest may be driven simply by curiosity: Mormons have sacred underwear!

… Read the rest

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