I was taught as a mormon kid that I was born into the US at this time in history because I was more righteous in the premortal life. Was this a common teaching for others?

I wonder how this teaching affects mormons and their view of immigration. The church it seems puts out pro-immigration messages (at least the ones I see, but I don't keep up on it) but many of the mormons I know are very anti immigration and have a fear of dark skinned people and non christians. Not all mormons though. I was wondering if you thought this teaching played into the views on immigration.

It's all false.

It's all bull shit, its meaningless and ignorant.

What the present day mormons believe is part of the

racist dogma that they teach and believe in . White

is right and everything else is inferior...... Its

a racist and hateful religion.

You can speak for me anytime on the subject.

And yes May, that is what I was taught as a young Mormon and I heard it a lot from many sources in my neck of the woods.

Yes, I was taught that too. I was also born with a mormon mother because I was more righteous. The lesser spirits were born before TSCC was restored, and they were continuing to be born in other countries. Those of us born mormon in the US were ultra-righteous, apparently.

I've not talked to any Mormons lately about their immigration views, but I know some who adopt african children or brown skinned children from other countries. I don't know of any who adopt african american children, although I'm sure some do.

I always get the feeling that the ones who adopt from other countries are embarrassed by the church's past and some of them are the ones who like to claim it never happened. Adopting different race children makes them feel better about denying the past.

Have you been taught this?

If so, did you hear much at home, or in church (Primay, YM, YW, etc.)?
If you don't mind, I'd appreciate your providing some idea of the type of ward(s) you grew up, and where.

I'm very curious to know if this teaching is reasonably current, or whether it's already become "I-don't-know-if-we-teach-that" or relegated to "folk Mormonism."

Never heard that kind of crap from my parents, but constantly during church and from leaders. Not only were we the special generation brought in right before the 2nd coming, our trials were also harder because we were born with that privilege. From what I'm told anyway.

I was BIC in the mid 80s.

Sorry for the double post I forgot to give the ward.

I grew up in Phoenix, my ward being a small(ish) family ward.

Mostly heard this during my teen years, although I did hear it off and on in primary. But in young women's, sunday school and seminary it was really heaped on.

Technically I am considered a millennial. I grew up in a liberal state.

Not random at all.
Whatever country your mother is in when she gives birth to you is your birth country.

Of course, that has *nothing* whatsoever to do with any "pre-mortal existence," or being special, or being white (or not), or anything of the sort. You know, all the stuff mormons taught/teach (yes, all of us US mormons got the same stuff about how special and chosen we were to be born here to white & delightsome parents).

And yes, of course that affects how mormons see "others." They're not as special or pre-ordained or chosen or anything else. Notice how many not-born-in-the-US GAs there are (only a few)...

I remember that being taught. Manifest destiny was being emphasized then, too.

I was taught that you earned the circumstances of your birth. One-third of the pre-existing population were simply kicked out, then there were the "fence sitters" who so affronted ghawd by their failure to even try, that they were doomed to be servants forever and not have the right to the priesthood while on earth.

Hossanah to those BIC!

Oh, if only I had accumulated enough brownie points to be born White, in Utah! But that's so typically me: try, but don't obsess about it!

But you are oh so delightsome!

It was unambiguously and officially declared by General Authorities galore. Alvin R. Dyer was the most definitive of these GAs, but here were plenty more. So, who do we believe- the older guys, who were sustained as prophets, seers and revelators, or the current crop, who are sustained as prophets, seers and revelators? It's so hard to know which set of prophets, seers and revelators is the right one.

In response to op question.

According to many 'reincarnation believers' we pick our family so we pick our 'race' before incarnating.

Our family choice is based on what 'life experience(s)' we need. In effect that is also based on what 'previous life experiences' we have endured/enjoyed/etc.

I completely agree with Spiritist on this one. There are experiences one needs for his/her own progress, that could only (or much more likely) be achieved in a certain country or social status within a country. For instance, if one has struggled in the past with something such as "misuse of scientific knowledge", and needs to try again to master this particular weakness, it would be very unlikely this person could benefit from being born into a family in rural Kenya, where he/she would live and die an illiterate. The possibilities are endless.

I grew up with Saturday’s Warrior. It certainly f’d with my head. According to the play and all my church leaders, I was supposed to be valiant. I certainly didn’t feel that way. It was terrifying because I had an on off the rails seminary teacher who said we WOULD be ushering in the second coming.

I was also supposed to feel incredibly lucky. Born in Utah! To devout Mormon parents! Never mind undiagnosed, untreated mental illness in half the family. Never mind abuse. Feel blessed or you’re a bad person.

Fast forward thirty years. I can’t figure out—why does God hate the Chinese?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/16/2018 05:19PM by Dorothy.

Your seminary teacher wasn't off the rails, Dorothy. I was taught the same thing. That our generation was the chosen one and we would be packing up the handcarts and hieing off to Missouri.

What they failed to tell us was that Joseph Smith was also supposed to see th 2nd coming. And every generation after him was told that THEY were the chosen.

Terrible thing to do to kids.

It was commonly taught. Especially, I think, in Utah in the late 70s on in to the 80s. Is it still being pushed? This guy pushed it 5 days a week all through my 9th grade year.

He said we’d get the call from the profit and we’d head to Jackson county Missouri. We’d probably take the engine out of out of our cars and push them because there wouldn’t be any gas.

I hope that dude died while Obama was president. He was such an arrogant hater.

I don't know for sure, but now I'm pretty sure it's one of those things that was never taught. They're all ashamed of believing something so idiotic now.

"I grew up with Saturday’s Warrior. It certainly f’d with my head."

(singing)
I've seen that f'd up head somewhere before...

Haha. Oh, yes, back in the day it was all the rage to tell our "chosen generation" (some of us now have great grandchildren) that we were chosen to come at THIS time to THIS country and be born in the covenant to prepare the way for the Lard. This, of course is because we were so valiant in the pre-existence.

I had a good friend who was Methodist and their MYF (youth) group did so many fun things and they were just great kids. She had a fun family, good parents, they were close and encouraged her in school and career. I used to look at her and think "Why did I have to be so damn valiant." I thought the lucky ones were the ones who were born the same time I was, in the US, to good families, but weren't burdened with "the truth" so they could have a fun life and pursue their dreams. Then someone would do their work in the millennium and they'd end up in the CK just like me.

Of course, now I know those people are more likely to be wherever I end up, and it won't be Mormon CK (i.e. hell), so it all works out ok anyway.

My abusive Mormon father told me that I was extra blessed to be white and Mormon. I chose to be his son in a previous life. I was valiant in the heavenly wars. He told me a lot of things that were obvious fabrications.

One day I decided I'd had enough. I sent him a letter demanding that he be straight up with me or I'd stop taking his calls or reading his letters. I haven't had a response to that yet--eleven years later.

Not born to Mormon parents.

Not born in the US of A. Or even in North America.

Not Mormon.

Doomed, I guess, according to the way they think. Destined to always be less than.

Just a so-called "convert" although I don't call myself that as I told them all along I didn't believe in JS as anyone special so was not "converted" in the way they meant - I just wanted to get baptized. I don't even remember now why.

So I was the fool who jumped in their font when I didn't need to. They had to dunk me twice as my pretty white dress floated up the first time. (I refused to wear a white pantsuit for any reason whatsoever, then and to the end of time). And the nightmare never ended. A very miserable three years ensued.

SO SO SO glad not to be BIC or to have Mormon parents to teach me all that stuff not guaranteed to lead to a happy life.

I wasn't taught I was special for being white - we scots always felt superior to the rest of the world in our own wee way anyway - I was taught I was special to be born into a mormon family. Yet, because lamanites and cain & co were cursed with dark skin, that obviously meant being white I was not cursed.

So, in 70s & 80s scotland, we were indoctrinated that to be born mormon was special enough and the plus that we and our countrymen were not cursed was just implied.

Most christians, muslims, and jews, believe that god created the nations and split the people by language and race back in the tower of babel time, so to believers, birth country is not random and never was from the time countries were created as populations different to each other.

County is random. City is most certainly not though. State (of mind)? Maybe.

Being ALIVE might be random. I've never stopped to check.