Mormons baptized slain reporter Daniel Pearl

to offer the dead a way to salvation. That is insulting to that person and to their faith IMHO.

If that doesn't bother someone because of their beliefs that's all well and good. That doesn't mean that those who are offended don't have a right to be. Their beliefs are being ignored.

But it really shouldn't matter to anyone that these people "baptize" the dead. It does not affect anyone faith or lack of. I am tired of manufactured outrage over nothing (read, make a mountain out of a mole hill). We have much more important things that need our attention. And I don't think this Mormon practice of baptizing the dead will change the vote of likely Romney voters.

What matters to people is their business. What matters to you is important in your mind. Why should I make fun of that?

News Flash: Everything we do or believe doesn't have to be tied to politics 24/7. There are other things that are worth our time and ARE UP FOR US TO CHOOSE as we see fit.

Rick Santorum has already laid claim to that perogative. Maybe you can apply to be his deputy.

I just posted my opinion that I think it is a waste of time and energy. But if one wants to get outraged over this- be my guest.

Many here at DU are atheists and I could envision them scoffing at this practice as being foolish, right along with "magic underwear."

"But it really shouldn't matter to anyone ..."

Hope that clears it up for you.

I still don't get why this practice should bother anyone. If you aren't a Mormon then you don't believe in it so it is moot, and if you are Mormon then you would approve.

More importantly, you should recognize that it matters. You don't have to share the same opinion, but belittling others because they don't share your opinion is just rude. I don't see the big deal in using profanity, but it offends some. I don't share that opinoin. However, I don't feel the need to belittle or chastize them for their opinion.

than others. You privilege your feelings by saying that other people's reactions to things "tire" you, and you put down other people by saying that their feelings are "manufactured" when you don't know anything about them.

If you don't like a thread, don't read it. If you disagree with somebody's feelings about something, ignore it.

I doubt you would like it if I picked on your for having the word Texas in your name. By the way, you misspelled progressive.

That said- there is a lot of outrage everywhere and it is not particularly productive. People hate Texas or northerners or whatever. I just don't get why it should really offend non-Mormons what they do as long as they are not committing incest or conducting human sacrifice and a few other things. Now the fact that they fund groups to effect political change (see prop 8) now that's a good reason to trash them. But this is a non-issue in my opinion.

The Mormon practice of baptizing people of other faiths is offensive to the people who follow those other faiths. It's just as offensive as hate speech. In fact, it is a form of hate speech, because the purpose is to devalue other people's religious beliefs and cultural history. When the target is Jewish people the Mormons are on especially thin ice because Jewish people are a tiny minority that have suffered from waves of genocide for more than a thousand years, including a big one in living memory. The Mormons should knock it off.

Do you think their silly little ritual has any power what-so-ever on the souls of the people they pretend to baptize or convert or whatever it is they think they're doing?

It's arrogant and disrespectful to be sure. But it's essentially meaningless.

It's not that something happens, perhaps it is for some, but not for me. Do you think anything happens when someone says they're going to "pray away the gay" over a gay person? I have never seen it happen, but it offends me when people say they are going to "pray away my gay." Should I not be offended because nothing will come of it?

The Earth actually has a spirit, just like we do. It had to be baptized (the flood) to fulfill all righteousness, just like us. It will also have to receive the baptism of fire (at the second coming of Christ) in order to receive its exaltation and become a celestialized world. See Prophet Joseph Fielding Smith's "Doctrines of Salvation," Volume 1, pages 73-74, page 87 "Celestial Destiny of the Earth." See also Moses Chapter 7:48-49, 56 where the Earth's spirit speaks with Enoch.

http://www.i4m.com/think/lists/mormon_science.htm



Joseph Smith was a psychopath according to most studies.

Joseph Fielding Smith was one of the Mormon church's later presidents and was Joseph Smith Jr.(The founder of Mormonism) great nephew.

Doofus #1: "We're going to baptize this ded dude into our religion! He'll contribute!"
Doofus #2: "Noooooo! He might not get the extra special afterlife package our religion promised him!"
Dead dude: "..."

Religion is based in faith. I don't agree with much of it, but as long as I am left alone, I don't care if people believe in green fairies. When they try to make me conform to their beliefs or push them so fervently I can't escape their ministrations, I have a major problem.

You apparently don't believe. That's fine with me. However, there are a lot of people who would gladly do you harm. They think what you believe is some 'goofy shit.'

Once you begin to discuss anything using your tone and description, there is no hope or any understanding. I don't mean that you have to understand or believe what someone else does. I mean that you understand that there is a freedom of and from beliefs. That goes for everybody.

What you posted as it was stated is insulting to me and probably to others. there are many was to say what you did that doesn't lower the level of discourse to a crude level. You have the right to say it, and say it on any level. It doesn't reflect well on you or your beliefs.

WTH is that supposed to mean?

And yes, this is a semi-free country so people are free to believe stories written by people who thought dragons were real, and we are also free to say it's absurd.


We don't have to respect somebody's choices for making their econobox look like a ricer or give deference to the mystical stories they want to live their lives around.

to the student who opposed prayer in her school. I don't care if anybody is an atheist. There are a lot of people who do.

If teh stupid want to take their idiocy to that level maybe they can earn a Darwin award in the process

"What you posted as it was stated is insulting to me and probably to others."

This to me, reminds me of a child who is upset that you just sat on their imaginary friend who was just using that chair. "How dare you?! mr. Binky was sitting there first!" Which, by extension, makes this whole thing about people getting upset over other people baptising people who are dead into a wacky ball-pit religion, very similar to third-graders screaming at each other over which pokémon could beat all the others in a fight.

I understand you cannot see the silliness of this whole thing. That you can't understand that even from a position of "faith," it's ludicrous (what, does the Mormon Church have the magic power to overrule YHWH?) However, please don't act as if I have to respect you for your lack of ability.

"You have to respect my opinion that Nazis live in the hollow earth!"
"You have to respect my inability to understand basic biology!"
"You have to respect my belief that Obama will institute death panels!"
See? "I believe something!" does NOT translate into "You have to be respectful of what I believe!"

It looks to me as if you are wasting a LOT of energy and effort on ranting about the idea of someone's immortal soul being sent to the planet Kolob, when you COULD be, I dunno, making yourself a tasty snack or something.

We haven't had one of those for ... I don't know ... maybe 15 minutes? I can't wait until one of them comes up with some original schtick.
Sure, reflexively shitting on religion and DUers of faith can get one's name on the ballot, but that's just fucking lazy. And predictable. And boring.

but it's boosting their numbers and getting "the last word" by having free reign over the Dead.

Have the Mormons gotten around to baptizing Pope John Paul II, Moses, and Abraham?

The mormon baptism for the dead is the after-death equivalence of a mormon missionary knocking on your door wanting to teach you about the Book of Mormon. Not interested? They go away. Baptize a dead person? They believe it's up to the dead person to decide whether to accept the baptism.

From the mormon perspective, it would be unethical to NOT baptize someone after death, as they feel this is the only path to salvation for those who didn't join the LDS church while they are alive.

and no true conversion as the subject hasn't consented.

There is no free will and conscious decision to convert and accept baptism. Plus, the Mormons seem to be targeting famous non-Mormons and Jews generally, like they're imperfect in death if they aren't Mormons. That isn't respectful of the faith the non-Mormons died with.

If the Mormons are on a roll and can convert and baptize people while they're alive, that's another situation altogether.

It brings grief to their families. Kind of taking their deceased loved ones away from them.

It's plain disrespectful.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2106049/TV-host-Stephen-Colbert-weighs-baptism-row-converting-dead-Mormons-Judaism.html

The mormons are just another sect of the folk that think that magical cloud beings watch over their every single move...

The person they are 'baptizing' is dead. Gone. Finished. Kaput. It matters not one whit what these ignorant fucktards think will happen as a result of their actions, the actual person no longer exists....

Don't get me wrong, I think it's comedy gold when these nutter's escapades are publicized, but in the grand scheme of things it's really very sad to think that when these busy-body god-bothering idjits finally pop their clogs they may for a split second finally realize they wasted their entire lives on nothing...

Flame-suit : on :

Or say "we hereby baptize every human being who has ever died"?

Shouldn't *everyone* get access to salvation?

It's not just the act of baptism but the collection of personal information about the person being baptized. That's how they stuff their database. It is the tenant of their religion that they are to baptize five generations back. That means they have to have all the information, birth, marriage, death, children, spouse(s), etc. As a genealogist, I've used their data and I appreciate it. HOWEVER, once they depart from their specific ancestors, I think they are showing their arrogance and disrespect for the subject. I'm an atheist and I don't believe that baptism of the dead actually does anything but reveal the prejudices of the party doing the act. As I've said a couple of times before on this board, it's the disrespect that offends.

THANK YOU!!!!!



Seriously, THANK YOU!!!

Dead Jewish people I mean

I think the first time this really came up was because they were doing it to Jews murdered in the Holocaust and to many of us, the ultimate inslut was to "convert" someone who died because they were a Jew. I don't know if we are a target anymore than any other religion or not.

Especially Anne Frank because that was so offensive to do...Of course, one of my thoughts was also that they were doing this because of The Rapture...

for the NINTH time.

http://www.americablog.com/2012/02/mormons-baptize-anne-frank-again-for.html#