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Granted, this would mean that people would have to leave the Catholic church and others. It would mean that the work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, of Ghandi should be rejected.
But most importantly of all, I believe that Mr. Beck's comments highlight something important:
They reveal that, according to Mr. Beck, the Latter Day Saint (aka LDS aka Mormon) church has nothing to do with social justice.
It has to do with money.
The LDS church recently announced the City Creek project, which would be a combination mall and apartment complex that will be built in Salt Lake City. It will costs hundreds of millions of dollars, and, according to church leaders, will not be exclusively for Mormon use.
So why do this? According to H. David Burton, Presiding Bishop for the church:
Church leaders said the desire to head off economic decline in downtown was their prime directive at City Creek.
“Along with economic malaise comes an element that we were concerned about in proximity to the temple,” said Mr. Burton, the presiding bishop. That the temple area might one day start to feel dangerous was simply intolerable, he said. “With decay, sometimes comes crime,” he said. Source: New York Times
It's not about the "threefold mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints" which is "Proclaim the Gospel, Perfect the Saints, Redeem the Dead."
It's about all those poor people who might be hanging around downtown, and we can't have that. So instead, we'll build up a private business that we own, and then we can kick the ruffians out.
It's not about feeding the hungry, or tending to the sick, or clothing the naked. You know - the things Jesus said to do to get into Heaven when he said:
34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
35 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:
36 Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.
37 Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?
38 When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?
39 Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?
40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.
So, thank you, Mr. Beck, for at least being honest with us in this issue. That your faith - the Mormon church - doesn't care about "social justice". About doing what Jesus actually preached to do. No, thanks to you, we can all see now that it's about money.
Sure, the LDS church could have built a giant hospital downtown, and used the tithing of their members to create a center for healing that would the admiration of the world and demonstrate Christian values. How I long for such a thing - that instead of giant megachurches and buildings, that Christians would actually tend to the sick the way their God calls them to.
Or maybe the LDS church could have created a shelter for homeless women and children, with full jobs programs and schools, so not a single child in the country would go without food and an education. What a testament to their faith that would be.
But, no. Thank you, Mr. Beck, for exposing what you believe religion, Christianity, and the Mormon church are all about. Not about doing the things that Jesus actually said to do to enter heaven.
Instead, Mr. Beck tells us what he believes Mormonism and Christianity stands for: greed, and money, and power. I'm sure Jesus himself who hung about with the prostitutes, the leapers, the destitute would so agree.
4 comments:
Ah, you're confusing charity and Christian living with political social justice ala ACORN and others that Beck targets daily.
HUGE difference.
Beck is attacking the Churches like Rev. Wright who are trying to manipulate government for socialist purposes. Everyone take a breather.
And your take on the LDS Church is dead wrong. I was personally in the office of Church president Tom Monson last month and spoke to him directly about City Creek. It is purely civic. The Church has been working closely with Salt Lake council (mostly non-Mormon) to improve the downtown. The city is ecstatic because of the Church's financial backing. It is a win win for everyone.
Also, You ahve left out the fourth mission of the Church: To help the needy. There four official missions of the Church. Considering the service and tithes that LDS are regularly involved with your argument rings hollow.
According to USA Today the state with the highest volunteer rate was Utah with over 60%. Here's the kicker: The second place state was only 40%. Nobody clomes close to Mormons in trhis area.
What *exactly* is wrong with the "social justice" that ACORN (OMG NOT ACORN) promotes?
You know - people able to get homes and afford them without being subject to bank tricks. Ooo. Scary. Or, the ability for poor people to vote.
Again. Scary.
The "threefold mission of the LDS church" says nothing about "serving the needy." Since I was growing up LDS, it's always been "roclaim the Gospel, Perfect the Saints, Redeem the Dead". Now, you can claim "Well, perfecting the Saints means service."
But again, look how they're going about it. Are they following the advice of King Benjamen, to service people, to give of their goods to the poor? Nope. They're building a shopping mall.
It is telling, though, the history of the LDS church when dealing with social justice. They opposed the civil rights movement and the moves to allow interracial marriage. They were on the wrong side of Prohibition, of women's rights - and here they are again, with Beck as their leader, on the wrong side of history.
Beck's claim that "social justice" are code words for "communism" and "naziism" shows his utter and complete lack of history.
The LDS church's decision to build a mall to - again, in Presiding Bishop's words "That the temple area might one day start to feel dangerous was simply intolerable, he said. “With decay, sometimes comes crime,” he said." - shows their values. It's all about the money.
Glenn Beck is a spokesperson for the Glenn Beck show and not for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
Considering the influence he seems to have over the minds of some of the members of the church that I know, he's walking a thin line between "influence for good" and borderline "Anti-Christ". I'm not saying that he IS the Anti-Christ...just that most of us in the world don't have (and never will gain) the influential power over so many people to even be the Anti-Christ. Not that it's probable, but it appears to be a possibility with Glenn Beck - he's on national television...aka "The Idol Box"...I think it's safe to say we're all a little guilty of worshiping the TV a bit too much - moving on.
As far as I've experienced, people are buying in to his teachings based solely on what he says - I've yet to hear anybody say "Yes...I have researched the information and prayed to know if what Glenn Beck teaches is true" as the LDS church urges EVERYBODY (member or not) to do when confronted with information. Search, Ponder, and Pray...
On my own personal level, the guy just creeps me out. I don't feel good when I watch his show. As far as I've seen, most of what he says is to beat down or bash somebody else. His attitude reminds me of all the things I don't like (and strive to change) about my own attitude. I even feel a little bit like Glenn Beck as I write about the things I don't like about the Glenn Beck show.
I just don't like the hostility his show creates between my family members who buy in to it and myself - somebody who wanted to see Romney and Obama run together in '08...(I think they have potential to balance each other out nicely and I saw it as a win-win for anybody who can swallow their pride enough to compromise on issues that span beyond their free-agency and tap into the agency of others...but that doesn't really matter now).
Moral of the story...PLEASE don't judge your Mormon neighbors/friends/church based on Glenn Beck...unless you happen to be neighbors/friends with Glenn Beck.
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