Quote:
Originally Posted by ErikJohnson
But you take it further than I would be willing to go. You tell us—“it’s nigh impossible for the average member to concretely know whether the prophet is right or wrong concerning doctrinal matters…” Forgive me for saying it Maxel, but you seem to have a low view of the “average member” (or at least the average member’s capacity for discernment). Your experience may be quite different than mine—but I can’t agree with you on this one.
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My view of the average member is higher than you make it seem to be. It is, truthfully, nigh impossible for a member (whether (s)he be average or exceptional) to concretely
know if the prophet is wrong considering a doctrinal matter- since our knowledge of the things of God are given only by the Spirit of God and are often distilled upon our souls like the dews of heaven, understanding and knowing complex doctrine is more rare among Church members than it ought to be. Besides- the stewards of the Church (including the doctrine espoused by the Church) are the First Presidency and the Quorom of the 12- not the Sunday School teachers.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ErikJohnson
And then you say it was the responsibility of the 19th century LDS Sunday School teacher to teach the Adam-God doctrine—even if the teacher knew in his heart the doctrine was a falsehood! You wrote: “Ultimately, though, the duty of the teacher is to teach the lesson.” Your reader will conclude you place a higher value on obedience than you do on truth, Maxel. Is that really your position? In the LDS “hierarchy of truth”—is the value of truth itself subordinate to the value of obedience? Have to admit I wouldn't have thought of this on my own, but reading your posts it sure seems to be the case.
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The higher value is not obedience instead of truth, the higher value is obedience instead of pride. I made that perfectly clear in my post ("
the question becomes 'which is more important- my pride or my duty?")- however, I notice that you left that part of the sentence out, despite quoting the first clause! You then use this quote, ripped from its context, to make it seem that I am making it appear that the Church values obedience over truth (equivocal reasoning, at best). You dishonest fiend, you! ;0)
Ultimately... The duty of the teacher
is to
teach the lesson. The members of the Church must all play their part, whatever part that is. Once a testimony of the Book of Mormon and a testimony of the prophet is obtained, the moral duty of the member is clear:
follow the prophet.