Olbermann Special Comment - May 13 2008

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Mormon Handbook

File

* mormon-handbook-of-instructions-1999.pdf (click to view full file)
* mormon-handbook-of-instructions-1999.pdf (alternative address)

Analysis
Mormon Church attempts to gag Internet over handbook

Summary

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (commonly referred to as the "Mormon Church") confidential Church Handbook of instructions (1999). The handbook reveals the procedure of handling confidential matters related to tithing payment, excommunication, baptism and doctrine teaching (indoctrination). The book is not generally available for normal members.

Some excerpts:

Persons Who Are Considering or Have Undergone a Transsexual Operation

Persons who are considering an elective transsexual operation should not be baptized. Persons who have already undergone an elective transsexual operation may be baptized if they are otherwise found worthy in an interview with the mission president or a priesthood leader he assigns. Such persons may not receive the priesthood or a temple recommend.


Surrogate Motherhood

Surrogate motherhood is strongly discouraged.

Surgical Sterilization (Including Vasectomy)

The Church strongly discourages surgical sterilization as an elective form of birth control. It should be considered only if (1) medical conditions seriously jeopardize life or health or (2) birth defects or serious trauma have rendered a person mentally incompetent and not responsible for his or her actions. Such conditions must be determined by competent medical judgment and in accordance with law. Even then, the persons responsible for this decision should consult with each other and with their bishop and should receive divine confirmation of their decision through prayer.

Sperm Donation

The donation of sperm is strongly discouraged.

Hypnosis

The use of hypnosis under competent, professional medical supervision for the treatment of diseases or mental disorders is a medical question to be determined by competent medical authorities. Members should not participate in hypnosis for purposes of demonstration or entertainment.

Name Removal and Church Discipline

If a member requests name removal and a bishop or stake president has evidence of transgression that warrants convening a disciplinary council, he should not act on the request until Church discipline has been imposed or he has concluded that no disciplinary council will be held. Name removal should not be used as a substitute for or alternative to Church discipline. If a member requests name removal and a bishop or stake president suspects transgression but lacks sufficient evidence to convene a disciplinary council, the request for name removal may be approved. Any evidence of unresolved transgressions should be noted on the Report of Administrative Action form so priesthood leaders may resolve such matters if the individual
applies for readmission into the Church.

Context
United States
Church or religious organization
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Wikileaks release date
Wednesday April 16, 2008
Primary language
English
Note
The 'scribd.com' link for the first file has been subsequently censored.
File size in bytes
970236
File type information
PDF document, version 1.4
Cryptographic identity
SHA256 006054d7af5a8e4a98e445b259e2bfd7bb45956a8d42fc9ed48cbf725e27ad54
Description (as provided by the original submitter)

1) The file of the first of two volumes was released and archived on a web site. The date of publication is 1998 for official release in early 1999.

2) The file in question appears significant because the book is strictly confidential among the Mormon (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, aka LDS in short form) bishops and stake presidents and it reveal the procedure of handling confidential matters related to tithing payment, excommunication, baptism and doctrine teaching (indoctrination). The book is not generally available for normal members. The book was handed down or leaked by the member who held a respectable position within the church hierarchy in a regional ward or stake (place of church).

3) The attached document is meant for the audience interested to know the inner workings of the LDS Church in terms of how the organization is run in regions by ward bishops and stake presidents in the management of financial and ecclesiastical affairs. The audience may be composed of ex-Mormons, active Mormons and comparative religion students and religion scholars/agnostics/atheists focused on the tenets of the "cult" behaviorial patterns in the governance of a particular organized religion.

4) The verification can be obtained by Wikipedia'ing "General Handbook of Instructions" for the listing and year of publication. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_Handbook_of_Instructions Googling the title will pull up the similar results, albeit in lengthy typed form on web sites devoted to the expose of the LDS Church's method of control by socio-cultural religious indoctrination.

5) The 1999 handbook is another one of the starting points to supplement 1968 PDF document submission (General_Handbook_of_Instructions_1968), and once it is propagated in readership, additional handbooks listed in the aforementioned Wikipedia page may be leaked to provide additional and supplemental information shedding the light on the methodology of social management within the setting of religious culture in financial and ecclesiastical manner.

6) No urgent event. The purpose of a leaked document intended for the regional church leaders is to provide the truth on how the organized religion is managed internally that report to the higher authority with financial surpluses and ecclesiastical affairs. This will help further the understanding of a religious organization -- founded in America circa 1840 [sic - 1830] -- perceived as a sect and/or a cult.

For more information on LDS Church's defense of Church Handbook of Instructions as a guide meant for approved church officers, suggested reading is February 2001 issue of Salt Lake City Messenger newsletter "LDS CHURCH SUES MINISTRY" [1]

McCain's "Spiritual Guide" Wants America to Destroy Islam

You may have heard of Rev. John Hagee, the McCain supporter who said God created Hurricane Katrina to punish New Orleans for its homosexual "sins." Well now meet Rev. Rod Parsley, the televangelist megachurch pastor from Ohio who hates Islam. According to David Corn of Mother Jones, Parsley has called on Christians to wage war against Islam, which he considers to be a "false religion." In the past, Parsley has also railed against the separation of church and state, homosexuals, and abortion rights, comparing Planned Parenthood to Nazis.

John McCain actively sought and received Parsley's endorsement in the presidential race. McCain has called Parsley "a spiritual guide," and he hasn't said whether he shares Parsley's vicious anti-Islam views. That's because the mainstream media refuses to ask. And so, we've taken matters into our own hands, joining Mother Jones to present the truth about McCain's pastor.

Since the media won't question McCain about his deeply bigoted pastor, it's up to you to call attention to this issue. Make McCain's pastor problem a major story by forwarding this video to your family, friends, and colleagues.

We can't let McCain get away with aligning himself with a religious leader who's called for an all-out war on Islam, someone who draws no distinctions between Muslims and violent Islamic extremists. Now is the crucial time to act.

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Brian Cox: What really goes on at the Large Hadron Collider

McCain's crazy preacher

Here is an article about the Hagee/ McCain connection from:

http://www.cjr.org/campaign_desk/the_mccainhagee_connection_1.php

More than a week after John McCain’s endorsement by the anti-Catholic, anti-Semitic pastor John Hagee, the media continues to give the GOP nominee a free pass.

Consider the following pronouncements by Hagee, the man who McCain proudly introduced as an ally last week.

On Jews:

It was the disobedience and rebellion of the Jews, God’s chosen people, to their covenantal responsibility to serve only the one true God, Jehovah, that gave rise to the opposition and persecution that they experienced beginning in Canaan and continuing to this very day.

And:

How utterly repulsive, insulting, and heartbreaking to God for his chosen people to credit idols with bringing blessings he had showered upon the chosen people. Their own rebellion had birthed the seed of anti-Semitism that would arise and bring destruction to them for centuries to come.

On gays:

All hurricanes are acts of God, because God controls the heavens. I believe that New Orleans had a level of sin that was offensive to God, and they are — were recipients of the judgment of God for that. The newspaper carried the story in our local area that was not carried nationally that there was to be a homosexual parade there on the Monday that the Katrina came. And the promise of that parade was that it was going to reach a level of sexuality never demonstrated before in any of the other Gay Pride parades. So I believe that the judgment of God is a very real thing. I know that there are people who demur from that, but I believe that the Bible teaches that when you violate the law of God, that God brings punishment sometimes before the day of judgment. And I believe that the Hurricane Katrina was, in fact, the judgment of God against the city of New Orleans.


Hagee, of course, is also a virulent anti-Catholic, who has suggested that the pope is the anti-Christ, and that Adolf Hitler’s anti-Semitism was the result of being educated at a Catholic school.


One would think that when a leading presidential candidate proudly touts the support of such a figure, the issue would receive close scrutiny from the press. But last week, once McCain assured reporters that, just because Hagee was endorsing him, it didn’t mean he agreed with everything Hagee said, the mainstream media essentially let the matter drop. Chalk another up for the Straight-Talking candidate.


That’s all the more remarkable given the high-profile grilling Barack Obama has received on the subject of Louis Farrakhan. In a recent Democratic debate, Tim Russert asked Obama to reject Farrakhan’s support. And in January, Washington Post columnist Richard Cohen drew attention to the fact that a magazine controlled by Obama’s pastor had given an award to the Nation of Islam founder.


But so far, neither Russert nor anyone else at NBC News has seen fit to press McCain on the subject, and Cohen hasn’t chosen to write about it. And remember, Obama did nothing to solicit Farrakhan’s support, while McCain actively sought Hagee’s and appeared on stage with him.

Children's guide to religion

Monday, May 12, 2008

Scientist team creates first GM human embryo

Scientists have created what is believed to be the first genetically modified (GM) human embryo.

A team from Cornell University in New York produced the GM embryo to study how early cells and diseases develop. It was destroyed after five days.

The British regulator, the Human Fertilization and Embryology Authority (HFEA), has warned that such controversial experiments cause “large ethical and public interest issues”.

News of the development comes days before MPs are to debate legislation that would allow scientists to use similar techniques in this country.

The effects of changing an embryo would be permanent. Genes added to embryos or reproductive cells, such as sperm, will affect all cells in the body and will be passed on to future generations.

The technology could potentially be used to correct genes which cause diseases such as cystic fibrosis, haemophilia and even cancer. In theory, any gene that has been identified could be added to embryos.

Ethicists warn that genetically modifying embryos could lead to the addition of genes for desirable traits such as height, intelligence and hair color.

The Human Fertilization and Embryology Bill, which will have its second reading this week, will make it legal to create GM embryos in Britain.

The bill will allow GM embryos to be created only for research and will ban implantation in the womb. Ethicists, however, say that the legislation could be relaxed in the future.

The HFEA has said that it is preparing for scientists to apply for licences to create GM embryos. A paper, published by the authority, states: “The bill has taken away all inhibitions on genetically altering human embryos for research. The Science and Clinical Advances Group [of the HFEA] thought there were large ethical and public interest issues and that these should be referred for debate.”

The Cornell team, led by Nikica Zaninovic, used a virus to add a gene, a green fluorescent protein, to an embryo left over from in vitro fertilization.

The research was presented at a meeting of the American Society of Reproductive Medicine last year but details have emerged only after the HFEA highlighted the work in a review of the technology.

Zaninovic pointed out that in order to be sure that the new gene had been inserted and the embryo had been genetically modified, scientists would ideally need to grow the embryo and carry out further tests.

The Cornell team did not have permission to allow the embryo to progress, however.

Scientists argue that the embryos could be used to study how diseases develop. They also say GM embryos could be more efficient in generating stem cells.

However, Dr David King, director of Human Genetics Alert, warned: “This is the first step on the road that will lead to the nightmare of designer babies and a new eugenics. The HFEA is right to say that the creation and legalization of GM embryos raises ‘large ethical and public interest issues’ but neglects to mention that these have not been debated at all.”

He added: “I have been speaking to MPs all week and no one knows that the government is legalising GM embryos. The public has had enough of scientists sneaking these things through and then presenting us with a fait accompli.”