On Jun 8, 7:25=A0am, Jeff <jeff_...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
> In the online version of Chapter 4 (http://www.shakenfaithsyndrome.com/
> toc.html), it says "We might similarly ask how Old Testament prophets
> could be wrong about the shape of the earth".
>
> Did Mr. Ash substantiate this statement with references from the
> Bible?
I also wish for enlightenment on this. A computer search
of the Old Testament for "shape of the earth" yields not
a single hit. Nor 'earth flat'. Earth round, now that
gives six. Of particular interest is Job 37:12. Close
reading tho shows it's probably the clouds he's turning
round, not the earth. Further reflection reminds us that
the Hebrew word used here, eretz, doesn't mean the earth,
but "earth", ie. the land. It does make sense to talk
about the four corners of a regionm or a continent, if it
has four corners.
> Mr. Ash's book also discusses doctrine and opinions.
>
> Why does the LDS Church print and distribute books such as Gospel
> Principles, Gospel Fundamentals, and Religion 430-431 - Doctrines of
> the Gospel Student Manual and not put disclaimers in them to the
> effect that "this part is true", "this part is false", and "this part
> is a speculative opinion"?
I'd guess that's because we are weak. See DC 1:24, also
Ether 3:2, 2 Nephi 3:21, 33:4,11. Ether 12:23 is particularly
incisive. We Americans have a language of exquisite precision,
more so I'd guess than any other language in history. We can
say exactly, but *exactly* what we want to say, altho it
might take a few sentences to say it. Sometimes we can say
it in three words.
Gospel Fundamentals is designed to get you started. So they
had to balance between excessive verbosity and inadequate
elucidation. The student is supposed to learn to gauge
truth, and there's a Grand Caveat: we are naught but humble
mortals here.
>...Or does the LDS Church expect its members
> to read them and pray to God to know if it is true like they pray to
> God to find out if the Book of Mormon is true?
Moroni 10:5 is the bottom line.
Why not?
Why not make it an exercise?
> Likewise, when a Mormon apostle speaks in a General Conference, should
> members pray to God to know if what he is saying is true or false?
Absolutely. I've sometimes heard things there I felt
were not true. I figure maybe I'm out of tune - or
maybe not. If in building my building I find a brick
the GA's say belongs in a certain spot, but it doesn't
seem to fit, I just set it aside and keep building and
sometimes later it turns out to fit OK. It's kind of a
holistic process.
Wood
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