Why are people so against the Mormons?

[Lark_Truth]

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is one of the religions where non-members and others seem to have a lot of wrong ideas about. Nicknamed "Mormons" because of the book of scripture, the Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ, a complement to the Holy Bible, the Church has undergone a lot of persecution from physical attacks to people spreading false rumors. Physical attacks have not happened so much ever since the early eighteen hundreds during the Church's early years, but many people still seem to think that Mormon men have lots of wives and that they all wear magic underwear.

Mormon polygamy was stopped in 1889, and even then those who practiced it during that time were not a majority among the membership of the Church, and those plural marriages were not harems. I might also mention that those who had the American Congress force the bill to make polygamy illegal were doing things with lots of women they weren't even married to. Magic underwear is another false rumor, and the detail behind it can be found on either Mormon.org or LDS.org.

Besides the two main false rumors, there are dozens of more that are still false and others that have had their truths twisted to look evil. Wherever there are large bodies of Mormons gathered, there are protesters (I guess you could call them that) having anti-mormon rallies, passing out anti-mormon literature, trying to denounce the Church.

Why are people so against the Mormons? Sure, they're against homosexual marriage, most cases of abortion, and other stuff that you can also find on Mormon.org which the church has taken a very strong stance against, but they don't pay any of their General Authorities, Stake Presidents and Leaders, Missionaries, Bishops, or preachers (they don't have preachers! congregation members give the sermons). The only ones who earn their living by the Church are those who have full time jobs to run it, accountants for instance to keep track of where all of the funds are going. All of the tithing that Mormons pay into their church goes into running the church, paying for their church houses and temples, charity, humanitarian aid, etc.

All of what I have described is just the tip of the iceberg. The Mormons are wonderful people and don't deserve such treatment from their fellow men.

So why are people so against the Mormons?

[LuckyR]

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is one of the religions where non-members and others seem to have a lot of wrong ideas about. Nicknamed "Mormons" because of the book of scripture, the Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ, a complement to the Holy Bible, the Church has undergone a lot of persecution from physical attacks to people spreading false rumors. Physical attacks have not happened so much ever since the early eighteen hundreds during the Church's early years, but many people still seem to think that Mormon men have lots of wives and that they all wear magic underwear.

Mormon polygamy was stopped in 1889, and even then those who practiced it during that time were not a majority among the membership of the Church, and those plural marriages were not harems. I might also mention that those who had the American Congress force the bill to make polygamy illegal were doing things with lots of women they weren't even married to. Magic underwear is another false rumor, and the detail behind it can be found on either Mormon.org or LDS.org.

Besides the two main false rumors, there are dozens of more that are still false and others that have had their truths twisted to look evil. Wherever there are large bodies of Mormons gathered, there are protesters (I guess you could call them that) having anti-mormon rallies, passing out anti-mormon literature, trying to denounce the Church.

Why are people so against the Mormons? Sure, they're against homosexual marriage, most cases of abortion, and other stuff that you can also find on Mormon.org which the church has taken a very strong stance against, but they don't pay any of their General Authorities, Stake Presidents and Leaders, Missionaries, Bishops, or preachers (they don't have preachers! congregation members give the sermons). The only ones who earn their living by the Church are those who have full time jobs to run it, accountants for instance to keep track of where all of the funds are going. All of the tithing that Mormons pay into their church goes into running the church, paying for their church houses and temples, charity, humanitarian aid, etc.

All of what I have described is just the tip of the iceberg. The Mormons are wonderful people and don't deserve such treatment from their fellow men.

So why are people so against the Mormons?

There are as many reasons why various folks dislike, don't trust and/or try to stop the Mormon church. Before I get into that though, for me personally, what separates the Mormon church from a lot of other religions is the tithing. Giving (or taking depending on your perspective) 10% of PRETAX income is in the Madoff zone. In another context it would be considered criminal and getting tax-exempt status on top of that just shows the power of the church over government. Somewhere between sad and scary.

OK, as what bothers typical citizens is NOT the above rather it is a combination of:
1- Competition with standard Christianity, as many consider the "Latter Day" aspect to be blasphemy or a twisting of that faith.
2- Splinter groups of the Mormon church who use polygamy as a cover for pedophilia
3- Forced missions, as some find proselytizing to be off-putting
4- Historically the Mormon church has discriminated against blacks until 1979.
5- Many consider the "magical" nature of the church history to be comical or fake and thus believers to be duped or rubes.

I am certain I am missing many other objections that citizens have against the Mormon church.

[Sy Borg]

I find the premise of Mormonism to be ludicrously funny and it amazes me that anyone would believe it. It appears that Joseph Smith wanted America to have its own religion, just as Webster wanted the US to have its own lexicon, just as the US decided to stick with imperial measurements for nationalist reasons (with the loss of a Mars orbiter as a result).

[Dark Matter]

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is one of the religions where non-members and others seem to have a lot of wrong ideas about. Nicknamed "Mormons" because of the book of scripture, the Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ, a complement to the Holy Bible, the Church has undergone a lot of persecution from physical attacks to people spreading false rumors. Physical attacks have not happened so much ever since the early eighteen hundreds during the Church's early years, but many people still seem to think that Mormon men have lots of wives and that they all wear magic underwear.

Mormon polygamy was stopped in 1889, and even then those who practiced it during that time were not a majority among the membership of the Church, and those plural marriages were not harems. I might also mention that those who had the American Congress force the bill to make polygamy illegal were doing things with lots of women they weren't even married to. Magic underwear is another false rumor, and the detail behind it can be found on either Mormon.org or LDS.org.

Besides the two main false rumors, there are dozens of more that are still false and others that have had their truths twisted to look evil. Wherever there are large bodies of Mormons gathered, there are protesters (I guess you could call them that) having anti-mormon rallies, passing out anti-mormon literature, trying to denounce the Church.

Why are people so against the Mormons? Sure, they're against homosexual marriage, most cases of abortion, and other stuff that you can also find on Mormon.org which the church has taken a very strong stance against, but they don't pay any of their General Authorities, Stake Presidents and Leaders, Missionaries, Bishops, or preachers (they don't have preachers! congregation members give the sermons). The only ones who earn their living by the Church are those who have full time jobs to run it, accountants for instance to keep track of where all of the funds are going. All of the tithing that Mormons pay into their church goes into running the church, paying for their church houses and temples, charity, humanitarian aid, etc.

All of what I have described is just the tip of the iceberg. The Mormons are wonderful people and don't deserve such treatment from their fellow men.

So why are people so against the Mormons?

They're bigots. What a person believes is between them and their God.

-- Updated January 29th, 2017, 12:22 pm to add the following --

Note: Spiral Out didn't like me simply saying "They're bigots" even though it is demonstrably true and on subject.

[Sy Borg]

DM, I didn't like your post either and would have deleted it myself if Spiral hadn't done it first. "They are bigots" is just an accusation. You can accuse anyone of anything so the post comes under the heading of "meaningless posts". Removing the post is a way of asking you to explain yourself, and I don't think you have succeeded in backing your claim here either.

How does "What a person believes is between them and their God" especially apply to Mormons? It's hardly uncommon for theists to reject those who subscribe to different faiths, hence words like "heretic" and "infidel". So what makes Mormons especially bigoted? I'm obviously not an adherent, but I find unfounded criticisms like those you made about Mormons as jarring as if you made claims about me or other "agnostics".

Maybe there is a real issue, but you have to do better than making accusations. That's fine for Facebook and Twitter but Scott's hoping to raise the bar here just a little, nothing fancy or impressive, just somewhat of a refuge for those who are more interested in comparing ideas than grumpy cut and thrust. The latter is readily available elsewhere.

So, can/will you explain the issues you perceive with Mormonism without prejudice?

[Dark Matter]

I was raised Mormon; I've been on the receiving end. It is because of that experience I would have said the same thing with respect to any other religion.

Many people claim to be tolerant and open-minded, but are hateful and intolerant when the rubber meets the road. (Did you hear some of the in the recent anti-Trump demonstrations? Same thing, different venue.)

-- Updated January 29th, 2017, 11:09 pm to add the following --

I was referring to the critics of Mormons, not Mormons.

-- Updated January 29th, 2017, 11:12 pm to add the following --

IMV, I'm owed an apology. Was it prejudice that caused you and Spiral Out to jump to a false conclusion?

[Sy Borg]

No, "they are bigots" is an unacceptable comment regardless.

Is there going to be apology from you for giving unpaid moderators extra work because you so often disregard forum rules? I thought not.

[Lark_Truth]

Hey guys, thanks for the replies.

There are as many reasons why various folks dislike, don't trust and/or try to stop the Mormon church. Before I get into that though, for me personally, what separates the Mormon church from a lot of other religions is the tithing. Giving (or taking depending on your perspective) 10% of PRETAX income is in the Madoff zone. In another context it would be considered criminal and getting tax-exempt status on top of that just shows the power of the church over government. Somewhere between sad and scary.

OK, as what bothers typical citizens is NOT the above rather it is a combination of:
1- Competition with standard Christianity, as many consider the "Latter Day" aspect to be blasphemy or a twisting of that faith.
2- Splinter groups of the Mormon church who use polygamy as a cover for pedophilia
3- Forced missions, as some find proselytizing to be off-putting
4- Historically the Mormon church has discriminated against blacks until 1979.
5- Many consider the "magical" nature of the church history to be comical or fake and thus believers to be duped or rubes.

LuckyR, you gave some great reasons as to why there are people against the LDS Church. I might add that some other Christian denominations dislike the church because their missionaries steal their members. Can't say I blame them there. But I must ask in the third reason you gave on your list, are you saying that the LDS Church force their young men and women to go on missions?
Yes, for some reason there was racial discrimination in the Church. Why? I don't know. I know of an essay that covers the topic on LDS.org. It doesn't quite give an explanation as to why this happened, but it gives the history as to why the Priesthood was withheld from those of African decent and a lot of theories as to why it may have happened.
And you are right about the splinter groups. The doctrine of plural marriage among the early Mormon Church was not meant as an excuse for harems. There are splinter groups who still try to get around the law about polygamy today, and many of them are called Mormons, but are not to be confused with the LDS Church. Some are called the Revised LDS Church (RLDS) and have a lot of different beliefs (such as polygamy) than the original Mormon Church.

Greta, if you want to know just why over 15 million people (I think, that number was announced years ago) believe in Mormonism, then I advise you check out Mormon.org and see for yourself.

And yes, let's try to delve into these issues without prejudice.

Please post more!

[ExodusMe]

I think most Christian's do not like Mormonism because it is a heresy. For instance, Protestantism is essentially ruled by Sola Scriptura which is a theological doctrine that came out of the protestant reformation. Sola Scriptura states that the Christian scriptures are the sole infallible rule of faith and practice. This alone is enough justification for the average Christian to label Mormonism as a heresy and it's preachers as false teachers.

Also, I think the internet/information age has become a serious burden to modern religions. There are so many scholars and exegetes that literally every error is uncovered in any type of historical text. Mormonism has been destroyed because of this. Anyone with an internet connection can look up Mormonism origins and see that it was founded by a 19 year old man who went into a cave and 'received' gold plated scripture that magically 'disappeared' that gave him the authority to marry multiple women (many of whom were already married). There are also numerous issues with the Mormon text including its reference to populations and land masses that never existed. The Mormon text also has anachronisms that place horses and types of vegetation on North America in the ancient world that did not come about until Spain brought them over. All of this coupled with the fact that Mormonism claims to usurp Christianity because the apostles didn't lay their hands on their followers appropriately to spread the Holy Spirit.

[Fooloso4]

Lark_Truth:

So why are people so against the Mormons?

In what way does this question differ from the question of why are people so against any X? Is it a question about religion? If so, then how does it differ from the question of why are people so against the Jews? Why are people so against the Catholics? Why are people so against the Muslims? Or is it a matter of group identity? Why are people so against the Blacks? Why are people so against the French? Why are people so against the LGBT? Why are people so against the Republicans? Why are people so against the liberals?

[A Poster He or I]

I was raised a Christian but left it behind at age 16. I'm against all of the Abrahamic religions for their unapologetically self-righteous exclusionary attitude, as well as a host of other reasons not worth getting into. So my dislike of the LDS Church is mostly due to that. The LDS Church is worse, however. My wife was a LDS member for almost 30 years -- she left the Church shortly after I met her and put up with a ton of sh** from them for almost 10 years after due to their "pestering" to get her back into the fold. One of the main reasons I married her was for how much I admired her reason for leaving the LDS Church: she had simply outgrown it. It supported her psychologically in her youth when she had big troubles in her family. And when it became pointless and useless to her she cut it loose, even though it lost her her best friend from childhood who told my wife to her face she had gone over to Satan. Some friend, huh?

Anyway, I've learned a lot from my wife and her participation in ex-Mormon websites. The religion is so blatantly and obviously an invention of Joseph Smith and his need to rationalize his pedophilia that it makes me sick to even consider the gullibility of its followers. Actually, I was going to say more but I'm making myself angry so I'm gonna quit here.

[-0+]

So why are people so against the Mormons?

In what way does this question differ from the question of why are people so against any X? Is it a question about religion? If so, then how does it differ from the question of why are people so against the Jews? Why are people so against the Catholics? Why are people so against the Muslims? Or is it a matter of group identity? Why are people so against the Blacks? Why are people so against the French? Why are people so against the LGBT? Why are people so against the Republicans? Why are people so against the liberals?

There may be a variety of reasons why people are against any X. In some cases it may be obvious why Y is against X. For example, X is at war with Y, so Y is against X.

In other cases the reasons may be more subtle or otherwise less obvious, begging the question why Y is against a specific X ("what has X done to Y that is so bad for Y to be so against X?").

Perhaps the variety of reasons all boil down to a common reason that applies to any given "Y is against X"?

In each case, there may be a belief that X is somehow harming or threatening to harm Y or that there is a high chance that X will harm Y. This harm could be physical, but may just be psychological or ideological. There may be a real or imaginary sense that X is against Y, so Y is against X.

This sense may not be direct. If Y identifies with or supports Z, and Y believes that X is against Z, then Y may also believe that X is against Y, leading Y to be against X, even if Z is just an idea.

In some cases, Y may feel that X is against Y even if X believes they are for Y. This can happen if X is religious and trying to convert Y. X may believe they are trying to help and improve Y, and Y may agree if X is successful, but if X is trying to change Y then it can be argued that X is actually against Y and only for a modified version of Y.

If X is for Z then X is implicitly against anything that is not Z, compared to Z. Being pro something will naturally attract opposing anti feelings.

If X is strongly for itself (if X has a strong sense of superiority, eg, master race, God's chosen people, only true church), and Y is not X, then X will implicitly be against Y (viewed as inferior relative to X), perhaps without realising this. Even if X is not explicitly against Y, X's sense of superiority may be reflected in X's behaviour towards Y. This may be viewed as an attack on Y's ego, leading Y to be against X.

[Sy Borg]

One is tempted to ask Y [sic], but certainly claims of superiority, especially unwarranted claims, will attract opposition, especially when it includes disparagement of "the competition". Some renegade sportspeople are can be similarly disliked for sledging and failing to show normal sportsmanship and respect to opponents.

[LuckyR]

Hey guys, thanks for the replies.

There are as many reasons why various folks dislike, don't trust and/or try to stop the Mormon church. Before I get into that though, for me personally, what separates the Mormon church from a lot of other religions is the tithing. Giving (or taking depending on your perspective) 10% of PRETAX income is in the Madoff zone. In another context it would be considered criminal and getting tax-exempt status on top of that just shows the power of the church over government. Somewhere between sad and scary.

OK, as what bothers typical citizens is NOT the above rather it is a combination of:
1- Competition with standard Christianity, as many consider the "Latter Day" aspect to be blasphemy or a twisting of that faith.
2- Splinter groups of the Mormon church who use polygamy as a cover for pedophilia
3- Forced missions, as some find proselytizing to be off-putting
4- Historically the Mormon church has discriminated against blacks until 1979.
5- Many consider the "magical" nature of the church history to be comical or fake and thus believers to be duped or rubes.

LuckyR, you gave some great reasons as to why there are people against the LDS Church. I might add that some other Christian denominations dislike the church because their missionaries steal their members. Can't say I blame them there. But I must ask in the third reason you gave on your list, are you saying that the LDS Church force their young men and women to go on missions?
Yes, for some reason there was racial discrimination in the Church. Why? I don't know. I know of an essay that covers the topic on LDS.org. It doesn't quite give an explanation as to why this happened, but it gives the history as to why the Priesthood was withheld from those of African decent and a lot of theories as to why it may have happened.
And you are right about the splinter groups. The doctrine of plural marriage among the early Mormon Church was not meant as an excuse for harems. There are splinter groups who still try to get around the law about polygamy today, and many of them are called Mormons, but are not to be confused with the LDS Church. Some are called the Revised LDS Church (RLDS) and have a lot of different beliefs (such as polygamy) than the original Mormon Church.

Greta, if you want to know just why over 15 million people (I think, that number was announced years ago) believe in Mormonism, then I advise you check out Mormon.org and see for yourself.

And yes, let's try to delve into these issues without prejudice.

Please post more!

I am using forced to mean peer pressured "forced", not gun to your head "forced".

It is not a mystery why minorities in general and blacks specifically were discriminated against. The religion was invented by 19th century white people. That wasn't "discrimination", that was "normal".

[Eduk]

So I guess there are a number of issues.
1. As people have already pointed out they personally find the religious claims made to be unbelievable. This is a common complaint of everyone who isn't in whatever religion is being discussed. Personally I find the religious claims of LDS to be identical to Christianity or any religion. So it's in no way unique or particularly objectionable. Secularism basically deals with the problem, from both sides, and hopefully allows us all to live together in relative harmony.
2. To my mind the real problems with LDS, or any religion, are not so much the beliefs but the behaviours. When religion turns into a cult you have a real and genuine problem. Now I only know LDS through what I have read online and through some podcasts who have interviewed people who have left LDS. Those people certainly described cults. Now you can maybe say ok there are some LDS cults, in the same way there are some Christian cults, but you could argue it's the minority and not the majority. Personally I don't have any facts and figures to hand tp be sure one way or the other.

Lark Truth I assume you are in the LDS church? Can I ask you a question? If you today decided that you no longer believed in the teachings of the church and you wanted to leave. How would your friends/family and fellow church members react?