Dishonoring Christ?

[Anonymous]

As usual, I agree with JMB, and Shawshank Redemption is one of the most uplifting movies out there.

[Anonymous]

Well, just since we are talking about Christ’s own words I will throw this one into the mix.

Matt 23:23

23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and canise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

[Anonymous]

swimordie wrote:

What would Christ think of:

Rated-R movies?

Multiple piercings?

Shopping on Sunday?

Caffeinated soda?

Tea?

Reading BoM for 30 minutes every day?

Sleeveless shirts?

Bikinis? 😳

Home Teaching?

Taking the sacrament with the right hand?

…

My point is: Are we honoring the spirit of Christ’s teachings and the fulfillment of his prophetic mission and ministry by “adding on endlessly”?

Was His intention to hit “reset”, start with two commandments, and then, “Let’s go from there, what else can you or can’t you do? Let me count the ways”?

If we are not “to be commanded in all things”, why is there a commandment, rule, policy, cultural norm in seemingly every little possible thing?

I like the mantra, “Don’t let the rules squeeze the spirit out of life”

I think the commandments are for our benefit while we are young (physically, mentall, or spiritually) until we grow older and wiser when the rules melt away to understanding the purpose of honoring Christ. I think tithing and WoW (discussed on other threads) have become hard line absolutes in Mormonism, which I don’t fully agree with, but see their purpose. Commandments can lose their meaning if practiced without teaching/learning/reminding ourselves the meaning behind the commandments (for example, fasting without purpose is just starving…that kind of thing).

But to answer your questions, I would think Christ would think the following:

Rated-R movies? Whether R- or PG, there are few movies virtuous and of value to our souls that come from Hollywood.

Multiple piercings? Vain and not treating our bodies like temples.

Shopping on Sunday? There are better things to be spending time on the sabbath, unless the “ox is in the mire”

Caffeinated soda? Neutral

Tea? Neutral

Reading BoM for 30 minutes every day? This would benefit anyone for making such an effort.

Sleeveless shirts? Neutral

Bikinis? Unnecessary and too worldly – people should be conservative and modest with dress

Home Teaching? A good program that scratches the surface of the 2nd commandment. Monthly reports should be unnecessary, but true love and shepherding can be practiced always by doing this properly in the spirit of love.

Taking the sacrament with the right hand? A good sign of respect, symbolizing good things. If someone understands the symbolism, it is helpful.

[Anonymous]

Heber13 wrote:

But to answer your questions, I would think Christ would think the following: …

Interesting way to put it Heber – what would Christ think of all those things? Personally I see Christ reflecting perfect love in everything, so he would naturally see the purest intentions in everyone and understand their true motivations. Personally I would never have piercings or tattoos – but you have to understand I don’t even wear stripes or bright colors, it’s just not me (I don’t like to draw attention to myself). I don’t think I can judge what these things mean to others who have different personalities or have been raised differently than myself.

I think there is much here to ponder, thanks for that.

[Anonymous]

Orson wrote:

Personally I see Christ reflecting perfect love in everything, so he would naturally see the purest intentions in everyone and understand their true motivations.

Herein lies the rub, imo. Intention and motivation is between the individual and their “higher power”.

I like Heber’s concept of children needing the “letter” of the law while they gain an understanding of the “spirit” of the law.

However… these “laws” are very ethnocentric; tattoos and piercings have very different cultural meaning in different parts of the world. Modesty is EXTREMELY different in different parts of the world (national geographic). R-rating only exists in the U.S. Mate’ is a cultural tea in South America.

This list would get long when comparing church “policies”, prophetic “directives”, etc. in different places throughout the world. (Ironically, polygamy would be fascinating in this comparative model)

I know McDonald’s has done interesting things with it’s menu in different geographic cultures. Not that the church is McDonald’s but the image conscious “rules” simply don’t apply to roughly 4 billion of the 6 billion current inhabitants of the earth.

I’m not trying to split hairs, I’m just referring back to the OP: how are we honoring Christ in this maze of “policies, rules, commandments, etc.”?

In my mind, I see that there are contradictory/paradoxical reasons for some of this. The “easy” way may actually be the “right” way: teach the principle and let the individual decide. The “hard” way seems to be the path chosen by the church: come up with policies/directives for every conceivable possibility, at least in North America. (my BYU background may have some influence to this, ie, measuring the distance of the shorts hem-line with the knee, etc.)

[Anonymous]

swimordie wrote:

Orson wrote:

Personally I see Christ reflecting perfect love in everything, so he would naturally see the purest intentions in everyone and understand their true motivations.

Herein lies the rub, imo. Intention and motivation is between the individual and their “higher power”.

I like Heber’s concept of children needing the “letter” of the law while they gain an understanding of the “spirit” of the law.

However… these “laws” are very ethnocentric; tattoos and piercings have very different cultural meaning in different parts of the world. Modesty is EXTREMELY different in different parts of the world (national geographic). R-rating only exists in the U.S. Mate’ is a cultural tea in South America.

This list would get long when comparing church “policies”, prophetic “directives”, etc. in different places throughout the world. (Ironically, polygamy would be fascinating in this comparative model)

I know McDonald’s has done interesting things with it’s menu in different geographic cultures. Not that the church is McDonald’s but the image conscious “rules” simply don’t apply to roughly 4 billion of the 6 billion current inhabitants of the earth.

In my mind, I see that there are contradictory/paradoxical reasons for some of this. The “easy” way may actually be the “right” way: teach the principle and let the individual decide. The “hard” way seems to be the path chosen by the church: come up with policies/directives for every conceivable possibility, at least in North America. (my BYU background may have some influence to this, ie, measuring the distance of the shorts hem-line with the knee, etc.)

Well, I think the church does alter its practice and counsel based upon culture and the needs of different parts of the world. Now I am not well traveled, but I do hear lots of stories from friends who have either been on missions or who have spent time in other countries. I just heard of one place in the Carabean where the way they did Sacrament meeting was very different because of the mentality of the culture. So, the church changed to fit those needs.

Quote:

I’m not trying to split hairs, I’m just referring back to the OP: how are we honoring Christ in this maze of “policies, rules, commandments, etc.”?

How dow we honor Christ? Well, first of all we don’t get encombered by the maze! Instead of living in the tiny blinded views of the maze, live in a place where you can view properly the entire landscape. Your behavior on the outside may not change a bit. I suppose in the end all these things are meant to change us on the inside anyway.

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