Befriending an LDS woman

[shmogie]

Does church membership require allowing clergy access into your private lives? Yuck.

When one becomes a member, one affirms they will live a moral life. If they choose not to they have te opportunity to repent. If they do not, they have not met the standard they swore to uphold and their membership can be revoked.

 

[Father Heathen]

When one becomes a member, one affirms they will live a moral life. If they choose not to they have te opportunity to repent. If they do not, they have not met the standard they swore to uphold and their membership can be revoked.

From a religious perspective, wouldn't struggling sinners need church the most?

 

[shmogie]

From a religious perspective, wouldn't struggling sinners need church the most?

The key is repentance, which means turning away from sin and seeking forgiveness. A repentant sinner will always be forgiven and we are all sinners. Yet, if a person refuses to repent, or say they do, but wind up in the wrong bed again, and again, it cannot be tolerated.

One can think that their particular cherished sin can be kept secret, but I know from experience it cannot, it always comes out in time.

Sexual sin strikes at the very integrity of the Church, and undermines it as a moral institution. Dodgy appearances can do the same.

When my first wife was dying of cancer at age thirty five, I spent time with her best friend, because she had lost her husband, a friend of mine, at 26. I was trying to learn from her about the experience, the emotions, the practicalities, what I needed to prepare for. I never compromised my wedding vows in any way, and I couldn't tell my wife I was preparing for her death, she still had hope. A neighbor of the friend, not even a church member, reported us as having an affair, and all hell broke loose.

I should have been wiser.

 

[shmogie]

The key is repentance, which means turning away from sin and seeking forgiveness. A repentant sinner will always be forgiven and we are all sinners. Yet, if a person refuses to repent, or say they do, but wind up in the wrong bed again, and again, it cannot be tolerated.

One can think that their particular cherished sin can be kept secret, but I know from experience it cannot, it always comes out in time.

Sexual sin strikes at the very integrity of the Church, and undermines it as a moral institution. Dodgy appearances can do the same.

When my first wife was dying of cancer at age thirty five, I spent time with her best friend, because she had lost her husband, a friend of mine, at 26. I was trying to learn from her about the experience, the emotions, the practicalities, what I needed to prepare for. I never compromised my wedding vows in any way, and I couldn't tell my wife I was preparing for her death, she still had hope. A neighbor of the friend, not even a church member, reported us as having an affair, and all hell broke loose.

I should have been wiser.

 

[shmogie]

From a bunch of total strangers on the internet?

Sorry dude. It just doesn't work that way in real life.
Tom

Sometimes unknown, univolved people have a much better perspective in dealing with a problem.

 

[Katzpur]

From a religious perspective, wouldn't struggling sinners need church the most?

I'd say struggling sinners need all the help they can get, and in my church, they get it. "I-don't-dive-a-damn-sinners" need to get to the point where they want help before the church can do much to help them change their lives.

I say this based upon the experiences I've had over the past fifteen months, teaching Sunday School with my husband at the Salt Lake Metropolitan Jail. These and struggling sinners and coming to help them to realize that God still loves them and always will, and that it's not too late for them to make changes in their life has, without a doubt, been the most uplifting experience of my life. They come to Sunday School if they want to start over. If they don't want to come, that's up to them. We pressure no one, but I can tell you which ones are most likely to be repeat offenders, and it's the ones who refuse to own up to the fact that they need help.

 

[columbus]

Sometimes unknown, univolved people have a much better perspective in dealing with a problem.

I understand, and agree to a point.
Oftentimes an objective outsider can give insight that the participants are too close to the story to see. Provided, of course, that they have enough information available.

What I saw in the OP was one of, at least, four participants in the story feeling hurt and innocent. The other three were the irrational ones, in his opinion. And, this was his first post on an internet forum of complete strangers.

If what he wanted was just an overview of LDS policies about temple recommends, there are way better sources online. If what he wanted was validation without insight, he went about that very well.

Call me cynical if you must.
Tom

 

[SoyLeche]

When one becomes a member, one affirms they will live a moral life. If they choose not to they have te opportunity to repent. If they do not, they have not met the standard they swore to uphold and their membership can be revoked.

Having membership revoked isn't the issue here. This is restricting access to the Temple, which is not a prerequisite for membership.

Some actions might end up with you being excommunicated (but even then, you'd be welcome to attend - unless possibly there were safety issues - you just wouldn't be a memeber). One view of this is that it releases you from the promisses you made, so that continuing to break those promisses won't be as problematic.

 

[JesusKnowsYou]

Does church membership require allowing clergy access into your private lives? Yuck.

They get as involved with you as you want them to.

 

[Howard Is]

They get as involved with you as you want them to.

And possibly more if no one else is home.

 

[Katzpur]

And possibly more if no one else is home.

Really? Such as?

 

[Mark Dohle]

Im not looking for any certain response, just alittle clarity, if possible.

Sounds like you have replaced the husband as the person she talks to. He may not be jealous, but in his mind, she is committing adultery. Marriage for Mormons is an eternal relationship leading to the highest level of salvation. I would think she needs to work this out with her husband.

I believe that you just want friendship, yet, there could be something more, or something could have developed which would have been bad for both of you.

 

[Saint Frankenstein]

As a general rule, I have found that if a man and a women want to spend time with each other...they are sexually attracted.

That's not true. Pretty much all my friends are women and I'm really only attracted to one of them, who I am already involved with anyway. Otherwise gay men couldn't be friends with other men, lesbians couldn't be friends with other women and bisexuals and pansexuals couldn't be friends with anyone.

Basically, just because you're attracted to some members of a sec, doesn't mean you're attracted to them all.

 

[Saint Frankenstein]

Damn shame that Reznor has done nothing notable since Downward Spiral.

I prefer his older stuff, too, but disagree here.