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Mormons Make Great FBI Recruits

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80 points churchill | 1 comments | 01 May 23 13:24 UTC | HN request time: 0s | source
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gavinhoward ◴[01 May 23 20:11 UTC] No.35778467[source]▶
I've seen a lot of good things in this thread, but also a lot of innocent misconceptions.

I'm a practicing and believing member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. AMA, I guess, to see if I can clear up some misconceptions.

I do have some non-mainstream beliefs for a member of the Church, but I am quite orthopraxic as far as members go.

(TIL what orthopraxy means; thank you to the two commenters who defined it!)

Just so you know, my stance is that anyone can do what they wish so long as it doesn't hurt anyone else, but don't force me to say that what you're doing is ideal.

Yes, I said "ideal," not "okay." That's where my beliefs are not quite mainstream.

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rendx ◴[01 May 23 21:53 UTC] No.35779717[source]▶
"my stance is that anyone can do what they wish so long as it doesn't hurt anyone else" sounds straightforward at first, but: how does one define "hurt"? Honest and curious question.

I would expect a lot of people to share that general stance, but differ widely on what it means to hurt or get hurt, and when to stay clear and when to intervene even if it's not you that gets hurt, or when some action merely has the potential to hurt.

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1. gavinhoward ◴[01 May 23 22:36 UTC] No.35780219[source]▶
That's a good point.

I don't know how others define it, and I'm not sure I could pin down my own feelings about it.

Here's a starting point: don't push something on someone without helping them understand the consequences.

As an example, when I become a parent, I want my child to be baptized a member of the Church. But I sure will not allow that child to be baptized until he/she understands the covenants that come along with baptism, understands what must be done to keep the covenants, and wants to be baptized.

It would be a great hurt if I did not do otherwise. I feel like many parents who are members hurt their children by pushing them into baptism without properly teaching them why and letting the child make their own decision.