The Book of Mormon is not for kids

[john doe]

Originally Posted by BrioCyrain

He walked on water with the help of Christ, I'm pretty sure if Christ wasn't there to give him the power he wouldn't have been given the ability to walk on water. The only times we are given godly powers is if the Lord or our Heavenly Father wants us to do something.

So faith and/or priesthood are nothing? You are partially right in your assertion, I wonder if you know which part you are right about.

[BrioCyrain]

The priesthood is there for us to do god's work, I doubt that if Moses wanted to part the red sea just to part the red sea, the red sea would obey him.

If it's not god wish to do something, it's not gonna happen. Kind of like how many of us die even when some of us try to use the priesthood, if heavenly father rather have his children with him, the priesthood will let the person die since the priesthood only really works if god wants it to work in our favor.

Kind of like how some prayers/blessings don't go in our favor, because god has something else planned.

If you pray for no severe weather and a tornado comes through your town, it's not lack of faith..it's just that god would rather let the tornado go through.

[mtman318]

I know this was a year ago, but I'll reply anyway.

"The priesthood is there for us to do god's work, I doubt that if Moses wanted to part the red sea just to part the red sea, the red sea would obey him."

Doesn't the same hold true for all of Christ's miracles and prayers? Surely He never did anything contrary to the will of the Father. The same rule applies to both Christ and ourselves, so it cannot be an adequate argument that Christ was not fully human. And honestly, I think finding any distinction between us and Christ is ultimately moot. God, mankind, angels, in our belief system are these not the same species? The differences lie in quality of attributes, rather than type of being.

Also, the Roman soldier pierced the Savior through the heart after He was already dead.

[anatess]

I can't read the entire thread. I stopped at page 2.

It must be nice for people to have the luxury to say The Book of Mormon is not for kids because of the violence it portrays.

Coming from the Philippines, I just have to remember that Americans never had to live through violence every day of their lives.

Dude, we don't watch R-rated films, not because it is violent, but because it GLORIFIES violence. You don't watch violence to be entertained. But, when you have kids being recruited or even abducted at a very young age to join the National People's Army or the Abbu Sayaff or... even just having kids sell themselves to prostitution or have kids beat each other up over a piece of meat in the trash - or die on the street for lack of food and water... you don't tell your Filipino kids to "close your eyes because it's too violent!".

[Vort]

Originally Posted by anatess

Dude, we don't watch R-rated films, not because it is violent, but because it GLORIFIES violence. You don't watch violence to be entertained.

My thought exactly. Heaven help me if I allow myself to be entertained by portrayals of torture, death, and misery.

[Anddenex]

I, personally, would disagree with the OPs assertion. In our home, before any of our children are baptized they must read the whole Book of Mormon and apply the challenge given by Moroni.

Actually today, I get to baptize my daughter, who two weeks ago finished reading the Book of Mormon and applied Moroni's challenge.

My oldest son, the second time he read the Book of Mormon (he is eleven and on his third time reading the Book of Mormon), I told him the most important learning in the Book of Mormon is about Jesus Chirst. I asked him to come down stairs and tell me what he learned about Christ. Every night until he finishd the Book of Mormon the second time, he came down stairs, when he read, and would tell me what he learned about our Savior.

This was great because it allowed me to share with him additional knowledge or correct what he had misunderstood.

I am all for children reading the Book of Mormon, they must receive a testimony themselves, and what better way to gain a testimony of the BoM then by reading it themselves and applying Moroni's promise.

[Eowyn]

A few weeks ago in Gospel doctrine, a question about all of the war in the book of Alma was brought up. I can't remember the exact numbers the teacher used, but he pointed out that out of all of the plates that Mormon had to abridge, these chapters make up a surprising percentage of the Book of Mormon. Why would he choose to include so much war and violence? One of the possible reasons (not the best one, but an interesting thought nonetheless) was that perhaps he was inspired because it would keep young men preparing to go on missions interested and engaged. I thought it was kind of a funny comment, but later my husband told me that's a totally feasible thought.

[applepansy]

Several years ago our neighbor gave us Righteous Warriors: Lessons from the war chapters in the Book of Mormon by John Bytheway. (This was the first talk I'd heard by Bro. Bytheway.)

The Book of Mormon was written for our time. They are talking to us. In my adult life I think America has been at war somewhere almost continually. Sometimes our leaders don't label the conflict a war but its war nonetheless. I've listened the the CD talk several times and every time I learn more about protecting my family and my testimony from the war chapters. I even learn more now when I read them because I look at them from a different perspective than I used to.

In keeping with the thread, I think its very important for children to understand what war will do to a people. What better place to teach that than in scripture.

[Dravin]

Considering Mormon's life it wouldn't surprise me if the lessons of the war chapter's stood out to him in particular.

[Blackmarch]

Originally Posted by BrioCyrain

I remember when I was a young kid growing up in the church, that me and my classmates never really "read" the book of mormon, and were taught simple lessons on how and why heavenly father and jesus christ loves us. It only took 'til recently for me to hink why the classes were set up that way.

The book of mormon is not for kids

And it's because simply the fact, the Book of Mormon is filled with violence and other themes that aren't really kid friendly IMO. Do we really want kids to read about people getting dismembered and how really evil some of people in the BoM are? That and IIRC one of the last books where someone was so "evil", that when his head was chopped clean off, the rest of his body was still swinging his sword? Graphic material like that would seem traumatic to a kid IMO.

History is not very "kid friendly"... Many times i'd say not people friendly at any age. Yet if we ignore it, we both forget, and repeat mistakes and failures.
The book of mormon leaves out a very great amount of nitty gritty details. The few details it does have are in there for a reason. I also agree that when we teach kids from the scriptures that one has to go to their level to help them understand whats being taught.

Out of the scriptures we have, the book of mormon would be my first choice for teaching children out of.