Tithing and Temples Part 4

.1 examines the teachings of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints from a biblical perspective view .1 Mormonism sponsored by Mormonism research ministry since 1979 Mormonism research ministry has been dedicated to equipping the body of Christ with answers regarding the Christian faith in a manner that expresses gentleness and respect. And now, your host for today's viewpoint on Mormonism with the revenue going into the Mormon church decrease if the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints was to abandon its law of tithing.

Welcome to this additional viewpoint on Mormonism on your host, Bill McKeever, founder director Mormonism research ministry with me today is Eric Johnson. My colleague at MRM we been looking at an article that was published in the Salt Lake Tribune. It was written by piggy Fletcher stack title does tithing requirement for entry into LDS temples amount to Mormons buying their way into heaven. And yesterday we read a statement that was attributed to D Michael Quinn. He is a historian. He was an official member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints until he was excommunicated in the 1990s, but he still considers himself a faithful Mormon.

I think he uses the phrase that he's a DNA Mormon and Quinn has written a lot of books on Mormon history and if you ever read any of his sources.

You probably know that the book itself is probably about one third of the entire length of the book is two thirds is usually footnotes.

He has a lot of footnotes and a lot of his works will and yesterday show. We brought out how piggy Fletcher stack cited Quinn is saying that if the Mormon church was to band and the doctrine that they have right now called the law of tithing that income or revenue from those ties would plummet and I would tend to think that that probably would happen to a certain extent, how much we don't know because it's not happening and I don't think it's going to happen, but he feels that if it was no longer mandatory that a lot of the faithful in the LDS church would cease to give you cited as saying if the church dropped the tithing provision from the temple imperatives the upper middle-class and wealthy who would count for a large percentage of the faith's total revenue would be the ones more likely to cut back. Quinn predicts the poor tend to be the more faithful that last statement, I tend to agree with. It seems to be a matter of fact that those who do not make a lot of money do tend to be the more faithful in supporting the religious causes that an individual holds to bill I'm going to give the answer to whether or not the church would feel it if they decided to make it voluntary to do tithing and not tie that in with the top requirement and the answer is tithing would go down and I think way down because Titan is knocking to go up just because I got rid of that requirement, you're not going to get the money from tithing settlement which is required when you want to get it to recommend, but you haven't had an page of the past year to the Bishop will tell you will. Here's what you have to pay to get caught up.

That's not gonna happen anymore so it in my mind, there is no way that people are going to want to pay more when they don't have to and they're gonna want to pay less but yet piggy Fletcher stack obviously interviewed Sam Brunson that he might say will who the world is Sam Brunson. According to her piece.

He's a latter-day Satan who teaches tax and business law at Loyola University in Chicago. What is piggy Fletcher stack report that Sam Brunson said he doubts eliminating the tithing question from Temple recommends would have much impact on believers willingness to contribute to their church quote based on the rhetoric I've heard. Not many pay so they can have a temple recommend. In childhood I did learn about pain. Tithing is a way to get to the temple."

Let me go back and examine that statement in quotation marks. It has him saying based on the rhetoric I've heard. Not many pay so they can have a temple recommend. I read that I'm thinking what Mormon would ever admit to something like that. I mean, do we really expect someone to kinda shoulder up to Sam Brunson's hate. By the way, the only reason I pay my tithes because I want to go to the temple. I can't even imagine someone saying that, however, it would not surprise me at all. In fact, I tend to believe it's true that there are people who pay their tithing so that they can go to the temple for what reason. Primarily, I would say so they can attend the wedding of their children. That's huge.

It is a big thing and we know that's a problem area in the Mormon church and it causes a lot of hate and discontent among non-member families when they are told they aren't allowed to experience the wedding of their children who happen to marry a latter-day Satan. Certainly there are Mormons within the church who are making sure that their tithing is paid up so that they can be there for the wedding of their children and I would really have a hard time believing that that doesn't happen. In some cases, or even that tithing settlement I mentioned earlier if they want to see the wedding they haven't been paying and yet they really want to go see that child get married. They're going to have to pay up.

And so somebody's going to have to do the work and that the parent is not going to be left out. It's embarrassing to have to stay downstairs while they're out there getting married in a formal setting. Brunson is also cited to say in childhood, I didn't learn about paying tithing as a way to get to the temple. It's interesting that in brackets, says childhood will I'm not really concerned what Sam Brunson heard as a kid.

As far as how you get to the temple.

I'm more interested in what Sam Brunson might've heard or read. As an adult in order to get to the temple and I could almost guarantee you that when you look at a lot of the church manuals that certainly tithing is mentioned as a requirement, so I'm sure he's read that somewhere, and I don't. This is why I don't understand why it says in brackets in childhood. What who cares then Brunson says that tithing was something you did to become a good person. Isn't that what religion does. It makes you into this person who is striving to do all these good things, and yet in Matthew chapter 7 Jesus says there can be many who say, Lord, Lord, look at all the good things I've done and Jesus as I want nothing to do with you.

So this idea that tithing made you into a good person again. How many people are doing it for that reason versus what they're getting out of the church including being able to go there wedding to be able to just be able to go that temple. I think that plays the biggest role will be taken a step further than what you just mentioned are when he says it was something you did to become a good person.

I would add well how many Mormons are paying the tide to go to the temple so that they could become a God person. I mean I have talked to Latter Day Saints that look forward to eventually becoming a God and as they told me doing what God does over this planet. They hope to do over there own world or earth, as they often describe it, and if I'm hearing that from Mormons were being honest enough with me and I'm not a member.

I have to wonder how many Mormons tell each other near the drinking fountain that they're looking forward to becoming a God in the next life, and this is a part of meeting that goal. If you're not a latter-day St. you've never been inside the temple. We haven't been in the temple either but we know it goes on and what's handling I should say at least for the endowment ceremony. We have been in a lot of temples affect I think you and I have given more temples and most Mormons of ever been in, but certainly not for the endowment, but what's going on in there.

They are getting new names they are learning the ordinances that were taught from the very beginning there in a learned special handshakes called tokens necessary to be able to progress to the celestial kingdom to get by the sentinels. These are all quietly within Mormonism taught they are not publicly teaching this but for those who have been through the temple ceremony Inc. it's very ugly. I mean a lot of I talked a lot of former Latter Day Saints who said what in the world was I doing in their effect. How many people have we heard you went through one time and had never understood what went on in there until they went through when they got married and they never went back again, but they do believe by doing these things by getting these names in learning these handshakes that that is going to allow them to be able to get to the celestial kingdom which, as you mention his godhood or they call it exultation or they call it eternal life. This is the very height of Mormonism and yet before you enter a temple during an open house and that's what I was referring to earlier that you and I have probably been more temples than most Mormons when you go to a temple open house. They play this video and the interview members of the church about their experience in the temple and the experience that they are relating in this video, which of course is going to be faith promoting.

Naturally, it doesn't seem to fit what you just described. And you're right. I have talked to former Mormons who told me that going to the temple was not a positive experience at all. They did not like it creeped them out and they never went back again, yet this is something that you would think would be the more than Disneyland. But that's not the effect it has on everybody.

Now I'm not saying that the people that are shown in those video clips before you go through a temple open house were not speaking sincerely they may have.

They probably were. But that is not the feeling that all members seem to get when they go through the temple were not given away the secrets here, but I'm sure there is a latter-day St. or to listening to us right now who says to themselves. I understand what they're talking about because I feel that way and maybe you're that person who's a latter-day St., and you don't think very highly of the temple.

Well, this is what your church says is a requirement for you to be able to get the very best it has to offer so much a better deal if you want to call it a deal that Jesus has. When Jesus says he came to forgive us of our sins. All we have to do is receive him. It's so simple compared to the all the complications that Mormonism puts into this idea of salvation will think about this. Eric not only do we find anywhere in the New Testament of a mandatory tie.

We don't even read anywhere in the New Testament of mandatory attendance to the temple. Yet we find Christians going to the temple to teach and to instruct about the gospel he founded as being a great place to go to talk to people who needed to hear the gospel, but you don't find anywhere in the New Testament that Christians were being encouraged or even told they better go to the temple and attended you don't see anything like that. Not only that, but you don't see the ordinances that are done in Mormon temples today that were practiced back in the time of the biblical temple you're not saying baptisms for the dead, but what they did in the temple was they sacrificed animals in atonement for the sins of the people Jesus fulfilled that according to Hebrews chapter 7 through 10 and so we must understand that the temple that people are trying to get to by paying their tithing is not a biblical concept in the way that the Mormon church is interpreted it will. In closing the show. Let me just cite with Peggy Fletcher's taxes and attributes to Sam Brunson allowing members to attend the temple without pain could be a good move. Brunson theorizes quote it might tie them to the church even more. Don't know if I would agree with that. I certainly don't think the Michael Quinn would agree with that theory.

It may, in his particular case, and some others that think like him but he says still. The professor acknowledges he is coming at it from a comfortably middle-class place, giving 10% of his income. Brunson says doesn't hurt me in any obvious way. I don't know if the great majority of members of the LDS church, especially living in Third World countries were the Mormon church is building a lot of temples are going to agree with what Mr. Brunson says here. Thank you for listening. If you would like more information guarding is research ministry.

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