The following was an email sent on June 18, 2013 to a couple in our stake. It followed a lengthy visit in their home the evening before in which I tried to encourage them not to leave the Church. The father, in particular, had become disgruntled with the Church after studying anti-Mormon literature and the wife had found fault with Church doctrines and practices that she feels disparage women.
Thank you for your kindness in allowing me into your beautiful, and most comfortable, home. It was a treat to be with you both. And, Jennifer, thanks for the balloon on the mailbox. I'm embarrassed to say I missed it when I arrived, but saw it on your mailbox as I was leaving. That was so thoughtful of you! (as It turns out the "rustic barn" was the key landmark that got me to your home just fine…and what a barn! thanks for the tour :)
As I mentioned last night, we will miss you both and your children so much. Please know that you are wanted, welcomed and needed whenever you feel drawn to attend or be with us. We are a better church with you among us, but I respect your feelings and decisions. The saddest part of all of this is that the insensitivity of members (including, or especially, your stake president) contributed to your choices. Please forgive me and all of us!
As I shared with you last night, one of the issues here is that of passing judgment or judging others and things.
You have chosen to judge the church, modern-day prophets, other church members and church history. If we based the propriety of judging strictly on the Bible, you'd be on pretty thin ice for judging at all (Matthew 7:1 "Judge not, that ye be not judged.")
It gets even stickier with verse 2, "For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged; and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again." In other words, it appears to me, that if you're going to require modern-day prophets in your judgment to be infallible, then you should expect to be judged to the same standard. Verses 3-5 are also very telling.
Fortunately, the Joseph Smith Translation comes to the rescue clarifying that we ARE to judge, "but judge righteous judgment." (JST Matt 7:1-2)
So it's OK... in fact, it's expected… that we make judgments. But our judging must be in righteousness. So how do we do that?
Below are some scriptures, if you care to review them, that I find helpful in knowing how to judge righteously. I'm not suggesting I always judge righteously (you know that I don't), but thankfully the Lord is patient and He has given us scripture guidelines on how to judge righteously. As we continue to study and apply the scriptures, hopefully over time our judgments will improve so that ultimately we will judge others and things in the same way He will judge us—in righteousness.
James 2:13
3 Nephi 11:29
Moroni 7:15-17
D&C 52:14-19
Thank you for still wanting to be friends; even more than friends in so many ways. May your choices and desires bring you happiness in your home.
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