Conference tecrus::mormonism

        
            Almost forgot, please  state why or why not to your response to
        the question of Muhammad's prophethood.
        
        - Ed

	I could be wrong, but I doubt if the Church has ever made any
	comment as such.

	In my opinion, the Lord probably placed Muhammad in the position
	for His purposes, to elevate the Arabs from a nomadic state to a
	more civilized state, that someday they would be more prepared to
	learn of Him.

	The Lord uses whom He will for his divine purposes.  Cyrus, while
	not in the "true faith," was used by the Lord and was called
	anointed.  I believe Cyrus was anointed of the Lord for His purpose
	of restoring the Jews to Jerusalem.

	While I recognize some of the teachings of Muhammad as untrue, that
	doesn't mean the Lord didn't place him in the position he was in, to
	bring ultimate blessings to his people.

    The Bible indicates that there were other prophets and prophecies
    which are not included in the Bible (references provided if you
    really want them).  So, as far as I'm concerned, there is no
    problem with Muhammad being a prophet as far as the Bible is concerned.
    I have heard that Muhammad claimed Christ to be a prophet only,
    denying somewhat the divine mission of Christ as Messiah.  This
    would be in conflict with my Christian beliefs.  I have heard
    conflicting things about Muhammad, about what he said and did.
    If he was a prophet, I suspect that what he said went through a
    great deal of alteration, perhaps in excess of what I believe was
    done done during the Apostacy.
    
    Steve

I believe that the Lord has inspired many people who are not LDS and who
are not even Christian.  I believe the Reformers were inspired to break
down the political and religious power of the Catholic church, such that
enough religious freedom existed that he could restore his church.  I
believe that Columbus was inspired.  I believe that the framers of the
US Constitution were inspired.  I believe that many ministers and priests
of Protestant and Catholic churches are inspired to teach their
congregations of Jesus Christ, thus preparing them to receive the restored
Gospel when the Mormon missionaries call at their door.  Similarly, I
believe that many religious leaders in non-Christian faiths are inspired
to teach the moral law of Christ, thus preparing them for the LDS
missionaries.  Everyone is a child of God, and I believe
that God loves them all and will guide them and help them solve their
problems.  We LDS have never claimed that we have a monopoly on divine
guidance.

A person's being inspired of God does not imply that that person has
the Priesthood and can perform the ordinances that God has said are
necessary.  I believe the Priesthood was restored through the visitation
of Angels to Joseph Smith and resides in the LDS church today.  We LDS
don't claim a monopoly on divine guidance, but we do claim a monopoly on
the Priesthood.

Allen

Note 268.4                  Muhammad prophet or not?                      4 of 4
CACHE::LEIGH "Come, let us eat of His bread"         24 lines   2-SEP-1989 21:12

>  I believe that many ministers and priests
>  of Protestant and Catholic churches are inspired to teach their
>  congregations of Jesus Christ, thus preparing them to receive the restored
>  Gospel when the Mormon missionaries call at their door.  


I'd have to agree with you here Allen. The only problem is that the
"inspiration" was not of God. Most of the priests in the Catholic Church
were inspired to water down the Gospels and teach ethics & stuff and in
effect, put up a screen through which we never really understood the
Gospels. Most, not all.... and I'm seeing some improvements. My Church
is probably the greatest contributor to the ranks of the LDS because
we were so poorly taught the Scriptures. When we got into personal problems,
we did not really know how to turn to Christ and so our ears were/are
"itching" for answers. Answers the LDS were able to supply and in the
process, were undermined by LDS doctrines.

Ed Cox who contributes here from time to time could also back that up
and probably tell you the the BCC gets most of its new members from the
Catholic Church, and for the same reason. While I disagree with some
aspects of the BCC, I know that those new Christians are being taught
sound Christian doctrine in the areas where it counts, in contrast
to LDS doctrines.

Don

    
    The explicit statement that Church teachings are not sound 
    Christian teachings is groundless at worst and debatable at best.
    I know that Church members try to live according to the teachings of 
    Christ as found in the Bible and other Scriptures.

    
    Steve

    I'm with Steve. Latter-day Saints teach and believe the teachings
    of Christ and his apostles as found in the Holy Bible. 
    
    Rich

        To all,
        
            Some of this could make for an interesting side debate which is
        not what I  was  looking  for.  I AM very interested in hearing the
        views  of  individual  LDS  members  on  the  topic  of  Muhammad's
        "prophethood".  My reason for  asking is not to create an argument,
        but I see certain similarities between  the  establishment of Islam
        and Mormonism.  If Mormons  do not accept Muhammad's prophethood, I
        would like to know on what  logical  or  scriptural  grounds.    If
        Muhammad's prophethood is acknowledged, even in part, I would  like
        to  know why LDS teaching does not incorporate the Koran  the  same
        way  that  it  does  the  Bible.  In other words, if  Muhammad  was
        anything  other  than  a  lunatic,  it would seem that LDS teaching
        would have  to  acknowledge the Koran as scripture.  It has already
        been stated that some feeling runs in favor of Muhammad having been
        inspired by God.  Does that mean he wrote scripture?
        
            As a side note to this comment by Don:
        
RE:< Note 268.5 by MRVAX::FRENIERE >

>Ed Cox who contributes here from time to time could also back that up
>and probably tell you the the BCC gets most of its new members from the
>Catholic Church, and for the same reason. While I disagree with some
>aspects of the BCC, I know that those new Christians are being taught
>sound Christian doctrine in the areas where it counts, in contrast
>to LDS doctrines.

        Well, I can not  speak  of  the  ratio of prior Catholic background
        people to other background within  the  LDS  church.  I would admit
        that many members of the BCC have come from Catholic backgrounds as
        stated by Don, but I think that  is  only  a reflection of the fact
        that  the  major  religeous  population  of  New  England  is  also
        Catholic.  The mixture of former religeous backgrounds with the BCC
        is  probably very similar to that of the general population.    The
        one exception to this is that I believe I only know  of  one former
        LDS  member  within  the  BCC.   While I heartily disagree with LDS
        doctrine, I  will  say  that they do an admirable job of discipling
        their people, especially within the family  [which  makes them very
        difficult to turn to the  truth  ;^)  ].    The  BCC  is  not above
        learning from anyone who practices a  true scriptural principle and
        has begun its own emphasis on family  times  and  devotionals.  The
        failure of God's people to adequately train its  children stands as
        one  of  the  greatest blunders to be repeated throughout  recorded
        history!    Any  group truely serious about following God would  do
        well to learn from this one LDS success!  (A backhanded  compliment
        maybe, but a compliment never-the-less!)
        
        - Ed

First off, I'd like to mention to no one in particular that I consider the
occasional throwaway comment to the effect that Mormons lead people away
from Christ's doctrine to be somewhat tasteless, as well as untrue. I'm not
saying to refrain from such comments if you feel you must make them; just
be aware that some of your readers have this reaction and may, as a result,
devalue whatever else you have to say. 

Regarding Mohammed, I would say that Mormonism does not consider him a 
prophet, simply because all prophets are called and ordained by the
authority of Jesus Christ. It is impossible for a true prophet to deny
the authority of Jesus Christ. Also, Mohammed could not have held the
priesthood, since he did not live during one of the seven
dispensations when the priesthood was on the earth. 

This hardly means he was a lunatic. Quite the contrary. I am sure 
that he spoke many times in concert with the mind and will of God. But 
that does not mean he is what in Mormonism is termed a 'prophet.' I, 
too (I hope), speak often in concert with the mind and will of God, 
but I do not consider myself a prophet. Nor a lunatic. :-)

So Mohammed's recorded sayings in the Koran or elsewhere would not
fall under the category of scripture, any more than would the many
books written by the General Authorities of the LDS Church. Both
kinds of writings came from good men who are/were inspired by God, but
they are not scripture. 

A brother in Christ,
/kevin

    I would echo what Kevin has said. Mohammed's writings are not
    considered scripture by Latter-day Saints, and he is not regarded as a
    prophet of God. He may have been inspired by God to say many of the
    things that he did, just as we believe that many of the Christian
    reformers were, but we have no record or reason to believe that he was
    called by God and ordained with the priesthood of God by someone who
    has authority from God to do so, as we believe that true prophets of
    God are. 
    
    Thanks, Ed for the compliment about how well (some) Mormon families
    train their families, and, likewise, no thanks for the comments about
    Mormons leading folks away from Christ's doctrine. We do sincerely
    believe that we adhere to *every* teaching that comes from Christ. We
    accept Him only as Lord and Savior and ernestly strive to do as He has
    commanded. This is the essence of being followers of Jesus Christ,
    which we claim to be. 
    
    Witnessing of Christ,
    Rich

    I want to apologise, and retract two comments that were inappropriate
    and in poor taste for me to have put into your "Mormon Notes".
    
    They were the statements "Answers the LDS were able..........., were
    undermined by LDS doctrines.". And in the last paragraph, the
    following;  " in contrast to LDS doctrines."
    
    Thank you,
    Don

    Gee, Don, thanks!  That's really appreciated!  :)
    
    Steve