Posted by Fred Goff [FredGoff] on November 09, 1999 at 06:56:00 {4Hfg918T5gHjeBrKyFOkEK8l6G4Za6}:
In Reply to: **Mormon Freddy Franz posted by Lobo on November 08, 1999 at 11:52:10:
First, it's Steve, not Reed. My mistake.
Second, ad hominem attacks are ones in which you accuse a person of that which, you yourself are guilty. My comment is a statement of fact. Steve Benson left the church because of his feminist leanings. It's a statement of fact without judgement attached to it.
Thirdly, I was not aware that you attended General Conference sessions or read the Ensign articles where the health of President Benson was discussed so that you could make such an absolute claim.
Fourthly, the LDS church has a history of DISCLOSING information, not hiding it (examples at the end of this letter), whereas Steve Benson had a personal agenda against the church, and is basically the lone voice claiming his grandfather was a vegetable. Interesting that no one else in the Benson family made that claim, nor did the doctors caring for Benson, nor did any of the news agencies (you would think that would be BIG national news, Mormon Leader and Prophet in vegatative state).
And yes, I am a Mormon in good standing. There are actually very few similarities between JWs and Mormons, so I am curious as to what similarities you think are present.
As promised: Examples of LDS disclosure of potentially embarrasing information:
1. 1830 editions of the Book of Mormon available for purchase through FARMS
2. Fragments of the Papryrus held by Joseph Smith and used in the translation of the Book of Abraham published in the Ensign after they were given as a private gift to the church by the museum in Chicago where they were found, even though the modern translation of these fragments has NO similarity to the Book of Abraham.
3. Disclosure of the contents of the "Salamnder Letters" sold to the church by Mark Hoffman, even though they contained material that appeared to show Joseph Smith's claims were fraudulent.
4. The entire Journal of Discourses freely available for purchase in any LDS bookstore or in an on-line format, including his controversial teachings.
5. One copy of the General Handbook of Instructions to be placed on file in each Clerk's office for review by any member upon request.
6. A standing policy that each member can, upon request, view their complete membership record