The Next Mormons — Part 10

One member is examining the teachings of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints from a biblical perspective viewpoint when Mormonism is 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. Our younger members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints more evangelistic minded welcome this addition to viewpoint on Mormonism. I'm your host, Bill McKeever, founder and director of Mormonism research ministry with me today is Eric Johnson.

My colleague at MRM we continue looking at a book titled the next Mormons how millennial's are changing the LDS church. It's a book that was written by Jana Reese, a popular Mormon blogger and it is the results of a survey that was sent out to several hundred Latter Day Saints that was titled next Mormons survey what she refers to in the book is simply an M. S. The reason why we feel this is an important book to look over is because I think it helps us in understanding where our LDS acquaintances are coming from, and perhaps even some of the things that she says in this book will destroy some of the stereotypes that many of us may have regarding members of the LDS church today were going to look at section that has to do with spirituality and evangelism, and there were some interesting numbers in this section that she had Eric, but I think there could be a very easy explanation as to why some of those numbers are so high, solicit, discuss what she says about spirituality and evangelism among members and she says that 84% pray at least once a week of the morning, millennial's, and 70% read the Scriptures at least once a week. Doesn't those are very high numbers when she writes this millennial's also have the highest rate of literal belief in the Scriptures of any generation in which he says Scriptures.

Of course he's talking about the four standard works 45% agree that the Scriptures are the word of God and are to be taken word for word almost a 10 point jump over the Boomer and silent group.

This is an interesting and somewhat surprising development, given the clear downward generational trend on the same question in research by Pugh and Gallup in those studies the oldest respondents profess the most literal belief in the Scriptures, and millennial's the lease and is found on page 152. She also says that the Gen Xers and the millennial's are very evangelistic minded and says that 64% of the Mormon millennial share their faith daily or once a week compared to 56% of Gen Xers and only 45% of the boomers and silent generations, and she says that the high number for more millennial's might be due to the fact that they served their missions in the last two decades, and she writes on page 154. So for them, sharing their faith may simply feel more natural because doing so all day every day was a recent experience where and how are these millennial's sharing their faith because I can't recall any Latter Day Saints really when you think about it coming up to me wanting to share their faith with me if they thought.

For instance, I might need what they have and what they know.

Usually I find it's the evangelical that goes up to the Mormon and initiates the conversation. I can't even remember a time when the Mormon out of the blue just started talking to me about their faith. But see Bill your thinking as a Boomer evangelical Christian who thinks of actually talking to somebody to have an evangelistic conversation marked down but what is the Mormon millennial thinking. Does he think he has to go up to somebody a stranger. For instance, and be able to share even according to reset might not be the way there, thinking they're not thinking the same way that your thinking there. In fact she theorizes is possible that social media comes into play here. Millennial's might consider reposting inspirational maimed account. For example, so they go on the Internet.

They put something on their Facebook page that's inspirational or even maybe go on to our Facebook page and write something and encounter what we have to say in one of the comments will there is my evangelism for the day. That could very well be. In fact, I think that's probably a very good explanation because if they are thinking that because they post a statement made by a Mormon leader or a quotation. Let's say out of the book of Mormon and that counts as evangelism, then yes, I am approaching this as an older Boomer not understanding how their thinking because even though I may do that on Facebook and in social media.

I love to quote a lot of quotations from past Christian leaders and such that I think are inspirational, but I would never consider that to be evangelism. I just don't look at that as evangelism but if that's what they are thinking that could be why that number seems so high. There was one statistic in her book that talked about church attendance and it was very confusing for me because she said 8/10 millennial Mormon say they quote attended religious services at least weekly." That's 8/1080%, and yet the survey discovered that only 47% reported that they attended Sunday Mormon church meetings in the last 30 days, though. How does that make any sense that doesn't seem to make any sense at all to me. Unless of course they may be attending the local ward for another activity besides regular church service which of course would take place on a Sunday because as I understand there are some classes sometimes held at the local ward. I don't think that could be the answer, though, because they really that many things being held at the local ward that would interest most millennial's, I wouldn't think so but then, maybe, but you're right that does seem to be a contradiction in the numbers that she found that when it comes to the word of wisdom or the Mormon health code were also seen a change in the pattern from younger millennial Mormons and as opposed to the older Boomer Mormons and we think that this too could be as as Jenna Rees implies could be something that might change the church down the road.

There's always been these rumors circulating around that someday the Mormon church is going to eventually realize that coffee is a health food and change their word of wisdom in section 89 of the doctrine and covenants to reflect that. But it seems that a lot of the younger LDS members and I would probably say even some of the older LDS members when filling out a survey in privacy such as this one that she's including in her book tend to answer in a way that sounds like a lot of Latter Day Saints find some of the restrictions in the word of wisdom. Section 89 of the doctrine and covenants to be well probably the way I see it pretty silly. While it's interesting that you say that because for out of 10 recommend holders Temple recommend holders have consumed at least one of the word of wisdom's banned substances in the past six months, 40%, not just of Latter Day Saints. These are people who hold a temple recommend for out of 10 of them are not doing what they have told the bishop that they are doing by keeping the word of wisdom. This is what Reese writes on page 159.

This is especially noteworthy because Mormons are required to report to a church leader that they are faithful keepers of the word of wisdom to qualify for a temple recommend. Some people may be less than truthful in the recommend interview or they are interpreting the word of wisdom with a certain amount of flexibility. It's funny that she says exactly that because I've often thought that a lot of the people going to the recommend interview. Probably fudge on some of the answers and when you are sitting in front of your ecclesiastical leader, whether it's a bishop or a state prison or someone like that if you really want the recommend, you're probably not going to be as truthful as you probably should be.

And unfortunately, what you've just done is you've violated article 13 in the articles of faith, which tells the Latter Day Saints that they're supposed to be honest.

I mean, seriously, Eric. It can any Mormon answering the questions. In the recommend interview be totally honest in this I mean when you look at the word of wisdom, it just doesn't talk about coffee or tea. It does he mention those two substances by name. It merely says hot drinks, but then it talks about alcohol and tobacco. Not sure you would think that fewer Mormons would participate in drinking alcohol or using tobacco products. Yet she has a graph in her book, which seems to show me that there's quite a bit of Latter Day Saints that are imbibing alcohol and even participating in and tobacco products. That was quite surprising to me. Listen to what she writes on page 150 9R survey data shows that about 1/3 of current Mormons report consuming coffee at 35% and if you look at the chart that you just referred to this is figure 81 on page 1 6039% of millennial Mormons have had caffeinated coffee in the last six months. 40% of Gen X. So, for out of 10 of all these Latter Day Saints are drinking caffeinated coffee. She has it. Overall an average of 35% because the boomers brought it down a little bit. They only have 24%. Then she says 1/4, 25% of current Mormons have drunk alcohol or non-herbal tea 26% of LDS respondents reported that they have not wholly abstained from alcoholic beverages.

Nearly 17% of Mormon respondents in the study moped or chewed tobacco which is slightly higher than another result of 13% among Mormons and then she says about one in 10 consumed marijuana again. Bill these are current Mormons.

They might not be Temple worthy Mormons, but these are current Mormons and you have some pretty high statistics and if you look at this chart figure 81. You'll see that when it comes the millennial's 27% of them have had caffeinated tea 29% of them have had alcohol, tobacco, that that is that 23% one out of four more millennial's in the last six months have smoked or chewed, and we talked about gaping. Maybe that's something else that they're doing but these are things that the church certainly says you're not supposed to do if you're gonna be considered a faithful Latter Day Saints, and especially if you're gonna want to go to the temple which is a requirement.

If you hope to have eternal marriage and families forever.

Let me ask you this question. Do you think any of those people that are listed in those statistics that Jenna Rees gives you think if they were going for their temple recommend interview.

And let's say the one interviewing them was Joseph Fielding Smith the 10th president of the Mormon church.

Do you think they would get there. Recommend well what he said and doctors of salvation volume 2, page 16 is very clear, the answer would be no because he said salvation and a cup of tea. You cannot neglect little things I owe a cup of tea is such a little thing. It is so little Shirley.

It doesn't amount to much. Surely the Lord will forgive me if I drink a cup of tea. Yes, he will forgive you because he is going to forgive every man who repents, but my brother and if you drink coffee or tea or take tobacco.

Are you letting a cup of tea or a little tobacco stand in the road and bar you from the celestial kingdom of God were you might otherwise have received a fullness of glory. And that's basically the position of the LDS church right now if you were drinking coffee or tea or using tobacco products. You will probably be denied a temple recommend.

No one Joseph Fielding Smith says that the Lord will forgive you because he is going to forgive every man who repents you got to remember what that means according to what Joseph Fielding Smith believes he will forgive you if you stop doing that because that's what repentance is. It means you stop doing that and never to do it again. Yes, then he will forgive you, but not until then, maybe Latter Day Saints millennial's understand that because fewer than half of them have a valid recommend that could very well be. They get the recommend at a young age. Perhaps maybe they got just before they got married or they went on their mission.

This was not an issue in their lives. But when they come back later on in their married life.

They start picking up this habit and now they know that questions going to come up, so why even bother, and so they never end up getting that temple recommend renewed. Thank you for listening.

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