If anything, being Mormon digresses and has led many otherwise good people astray.

How to reconcile that between themselves and their higher power?

They don't, because they can't.

In my world, they don't even have a corner on it.

Thank you. I concur.

Please, I don't mean to be picky, but what does the "it" in your response refer to? What is "it" that Mormons don't have cornered?

Like beauty, truth, salvation, or eternity are in the eye of the beholder with the best imagination.

There are quite a few churches in the Latter-day Saint movement and none has a monopoly on the religious ideas of founder Joseph Smith.

Brigham's Utah-based church may be the largest of the post-succession crisis splinter groups, but it never held a valid legal claim as the successor to Joseph Smith's church, nor did it ever own important property, such as the copyrights on the various books of Mormon scripture.

Brigham's brand of Mormonism he took westward with him was nothing other than a power grab.

That's what was in it for him. He coveted what Joseph had, and saw his opportunity to advance upon his demise.

No religion has a monopoly on salvation and eternity because they don't exist. There is no God, you don't need to be saved.

Truth can be proven with facts, otherwise it's just a belief.

I believe in salvation for I have been saved from wasting the rest of my earth life in the cult. I was saved from wasting my money supporting the retirement of the GA's and their families. Now I can take care of my own retirement. I have been saved from deeper depression that is crippling since I can now experience a modicum of peace, happiness and fun on this earth. I have been saved from controlling, oppressive, miserable authorities dictating what I should say, wear, and eat, etc. I have been saved from sitting in endless boring meetings listening to blasphemy and gibberish. Thanks to the Lord for saving me now and leading me to the light so I could see the cult and its darkness for what it truly is, HELL. I believe the Lord loves me and for whatever reason I was trapped in the cult, I attribute that to my addiction of co-dependency. After decades of training, therapy and growing, I grew strong enough to take the blinders off my eyes to find and accept my truth. The Lord gave me my life but also my freedom to choose and be healed of my addiction. I choose to be happy and seek relationships with honest and healthy people.

/silly

<sigh> ...at least you had a choice! I was doomed from the start to be happy! My youth was day after day of unrelenting, cheesy, over the top happiness! People smiling at me, encouraging me, offering a helping hand if I seemed to totter or stumble...

Sunny skies, balmy weather... what I wouldn't give to just for once, stub my toe, or have a pigeon poop on me, or have it rain on my parade...

And look at the sad result!! I have no character, no depth! People now just smile at me and then immediately, thoughtlessly, move on, looking for someone interesting with whom they can relate!

Every night I lay in bed, looking up to see the ceiling staring down at me, smirking. I'm in hell!!!

/silly

Good summation unbelievable2.

:)

Unbelieveable2, this should be our official RFM Creed!