Evangelising On LDS Forum

[Guest]

https://thirdhour.org/forums/topic/68213-hi-practicing-catholic-ask-me-anything/

If anyone cares to join.

[Guest]

Blessings on your endeavour, Josh.

[Guest]

What's surprised me so far is how many former Catholics I've run into in the first 18 hours. And that's with not spending much time there and only brief activity in the one thread I started.

Edited August 9, 2019 by Guest

[Guest]

I read some of your thread, Josh.  Well done indeed I thought.

I hope you wont mind a bit of advice from an old woman "Don't loose your cool"  You will catch more with honey than vinegar.  Keep your passion, just don't loose cool.....I'm a great one to talk, incidentally.

I figure in hope, I can have a bit of license being rather old nowadays (74 years) ......and as an aside, but related to the subject of this thread.  In evangelising efforts, I need to remember that it is Jesus who brings success, not me and no matter how eloquent He might gift me to be - and so I need to keep myself and my efforts close to Him; hence I need to keep my effort(s) reflecting Catholicism in spirit (spirituality).  I may never see the results of any effort I might make, which does NOT mean that my effort or efforts were not successful.  I will find all that out in Heaven and perhaps not before.

Work as if everything depended on work and pray as if everything depended on prayer - because it does.

A big mea culpa at this point.

[Guest]

The big thing for me about the parable of the Sower Going out to Sow His Seed is that the sower is not careful about where he throws his seed, nor does he check back to see what happened to his seed.

Merrily cast your seed and don't turn around to see what happened.

[Lilllabettt]

9 hours ago, Josh said:

What's surprised me so far is how many former Catholics I've run into in the first 18 hours. And that's with not spending much time there and only brief activity in the one thread I started.

The LDS church has a lot of similarities with Catholicism in terms of organization. They have their own version of the magisterium.  It's not like protestantism where it's a free for all. They have a governing body and they practice church discipline. 

One key difference is that they emphasize emotionality. Reason is definitely subservient to emotion. "Feeling the stirring" of the spirit is very important in how they discern what is true.

They also never pray to Jesus. All their prayers are directed to the Father. 

 

[Guest]

Jimmy Akin’s Mysterious World

Joseph Smith, Mormon Prophet – 

Joseph Smith reported receiving divine revelations in the early 1800s, and eventually became the founder of the Mormon religion and his prophecies now influence the lives of millions. Jimmy and Dom consider the evidence concerning Smith’s claims to be a prophet.

https://jimmyakin.com/2019/07/joseph-smith-mormon-prophet-jimmy-akins-mysterious-world.html

 

Edited August 10, 2019 by Guest

[Jane_Doe2]

Haha, so Josh (during his very obvious proselytizing mission) mentioned he was on this board, and me being a religious nerd, came to check it out.   Because I do love chatting with all folks about Christ, and hence I'm on many forums.  And while I was checking it out, I found his thread and just had to comment.  

(And no, I'm not here proselytizing.  That's not for forums, and I'm totally not into giving it.  )  

[Guest]

 

 

23 minutes ago, Jane_Doe2 said:

That's not for forums

It's definitely for forums lol

Edited August 10, 2019 by Guest

[Jane_Doe2]

21 minutes ago, Josh said:

It's definitely for forums lol

On that, you'll and I just have to disagree.

Any my experience, sharing Christ is done best in person, where both people can truly see each other, with actions, tone, and body language testifying as well.   Testifying of the love that person has for Christ, and the love that person has for the other person.

 Online forums usually take the form of a disembodied voice that comes across as trolling, egotistical and only reinforces all the negative stereotypes the other person already had (no matter who is doing the proselytizing or to whom). 

[Guest]

 

[Lilllabettt]

1 hour ago, Jane_Doe2 said:

On that, you'll and I just have to disagree.

Any my experience, sharing Christ is done best in person, where both people can truly see each other, with actions, tone, and body language testifying as well.   Testifying of the love that person has for Christ, and the love that person has for the other person.

 Online forums usually take the form of a disembodied voice that comes across as trolling, egotistical and only reinforces all the negative stereotypes the other person already had (no matter who is doing the proselytizing or to whom). 

Idk man, phatmass has a storied history of conversion.

This reminds me of another important distinction between LDS and Catholicism.  LDS has an emphasis on proselytizing. Whereas in Catholicism proselytizing is a dirty word, has a very negative, even sinful connotation. I remember when my LDS roommate started talking about prostelityzing, using that word, but speaking about it as a good thing. I had to pick the bottom of my mouth up off the floor.

Catholics are called to "evangelize".  In practical terms, this means, when Catholics "go on mission," they are building a hospital or school, or digging a well, something like that. When LDS goes on "mission," they are going door to door and trying to convince people to join their religion. 

[Guest]

 

 

Edited August 10, 2019 by Guest

[Guest]

 

[Jane_Doe2]

Josh, if you want to talk to me, then YOU have to talk TO ME.  I don't talk to unthinking videos or memes.  

22 hours ago, Lilllabettt said:

The LDS church has a lot of similarities with Catholicism in terms of organization. They have their own version of the magisterium.  It's not like protestantism where it's a free for all. They have a governing body and they practice church discipline. 

This is true.  Both LDS Christians* and Catholic Christians recognize the need to authority and view sola scriptura as a chaotic and bad thing.  That's actually something a lot of LDS Christians admire about Catholic Christians (myself included).  The specifics on who's in authority, how that authority is structures, etc, are different.  But that premise is the same.  

*Yes, I realize that scholastically Catholics don't recognize LDS Christians as Christians.  But this is me talking, and I'm using my words.

22 hours ago, Lilllabettt said:

One key difference is that they emphasize emotionality. Reason is definitely subservient to emotion. "Feeling the stirring" of the spirit is very important in how they discern what is true.

uuh... this statement is a bit  off.  A better way of explaining things would be that each person faith can be roughly broken down into 3 areas:

A. Body- the going and doing.

B. Mind - scholasticism study type stuff.

C. Spirit - the *umph* and devotion that makes a relationship a relationship.

Both Catholic Christian and LDS Christians place equal emphasis on A: it's important to walk that talk, and faith without works is dead.  In contrast, some Protestant groups put much less emphasis here.  Catholic Christians put more emphasis on B than C compared to LDS Christians, who put relatively more emphasis on C than B.  Having that individual relationship with God is super important for an LDS Christian.  Which isn't to say it's not important to Catholic Christians, or that scholastic study isn't important to LDS Christians too.  I'm just talking relative emphasis here.