Comments for Political Apostasy: An Impossible Thing? at http://www.ldsfreemen.com , comment 1 to 3 out of 3 comments http://www.ldsfreemen.com Tue, 06 Jan 2009 15:37:40 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.2 http://www.ldsfreemen.com/steven-montgomery/political-apostasy-an-impossible-thing.html#comment-153 I can understand what Ammon N. is saying to a degree, but didn't Joseph Smith and every other prophet since him state that the constitution was inspired of God? If so then there has to be a "correct" interpretation of it. Bruce R. McConkie once said that the only way to interpret scripture is through the spirit of prophecy, the same way it was received. Wouldn't it make sense to then have a more correct interpretation of the constitution also? Read also D&C 101:77-80. Ammon N. also said In politics, the goal is not to understand truth, but to persuade others to our view of the truth. Many modern day prophets considered the constitution to be the will of God. All of Gods work is a manifestation of "truth." It can't be any other way. You are in affect saying that God didn't have any particular meaning attached to the constitution and that any interpretation you have of it isn't wrong.... Sounds a lot like a man named Korihor to me. - Clint D Wed, 03 Sep 2008 16:59:21 +0100 http://www.ldsfreemen.com/steven-montgomery/political-apostasy-an-impossible-thing.html#comment-146 Ammon N wrote in: [quote]You are also equating the Constitution to the "religion" of our country. [/quote] To which I reply: You're right. I am equating the U.S. Constitution to a "political" religion. And that's how President Ezra Taft Benson referred to it as well. For instance, President Benson, in his masterful talk, "[i]The Constitution: A Glorious Standard[/i] (see: [url]http://tinyurl.com/5lw9dm[/url]," he makes this wonderful statement: [quote]We must learn the principles of the Constitution and then abide by its precepts. Have we read the Constitution and pondered it? Are we aware of its principles? Could we defend it? Can we recognize when a law is constitutionally unsound? I quote Abraham Lincoln*: “Let [the Constitution] be taught in schools, in seminaries, and in colleges; let it be written in primers, spelling-books, and in almanacs; let it be preached from the pulpit, proclaimed in legislative halls, and enforced in courts of justice. And, in short, let it become the political religion of the nation.”[/quote] *for all you Lincoln haters, can't you acknowledge that maybe Lincoln got a [i]few things[/i] right? - Steven Montgomery Wed, 13 Aug 2008 18:14:06 +0100 http://www.ldsfreemen.com/steven-montgomery/political-apostasy-an-impossible-thing.html#comment-143 The problem I see is that you are not defining apostacy. You are also assuming that, like religious doctrine, there is a correct political "doctrine" from which someone can apostatize. You are also equating the Constitution to the "religion" of our country. This is a huge leap, and a contradiction of your stated premise. You are dicatating to people that they have a moral obligation to value one interpretation of the Constitution over another. There is a huge difference between religion and politics. In religion we seek to learn the truth through authority. In politics, the goal is not to understand truth, but to persuade others to our view of the truth. This cannot be done by dogmatically calling people who interpret the Constitution differently than you do apostates. - Ammon N. Tue, 12 Aug 2008 12:01:19 +0100