LDS missionary
I had a brief encounter with an LDS missionary at Walmart earlier last month. I asked him where he was from, school, and if he's grown up LDS. He grew up LDS. I asked him why he thinks it's true, and he said it comes down to a personal feeling from God. I asked this missionary if he could be wrong, and he initially said no. Then I asked again if he could ever be personally wrong. He seemed to hedge, and then said he had to go. So I asked if he would check out my site sometime... probably after his mission-- JosephLied.com. I told him I put a lot of work into it and would appreciate it if he'd check it out. He said he would.
Christians, confronting LDS need not be complicated. Just give them something to think about and let the Lord take care of the rest.
LDS missionaries
I had another short conversation last month. I was at Walmart again. It was P-day (preparation day--Monday--when LDS missionaries have time to get their shopping done). I ran into 2 missionaries who were with an old guy on oxygen. The missionaries both grew up in the Church. 1 missionary just got on his mission; the other only several months.
The latter said he liked my cross necklace, so I asked him why is it most LDS don't wear one. He really stepped into it! He said, "Well we like to focus on the living Christ instead of His crucifixion." (They get this from Hinckley.) I responded, "And those who wear crosses don't?" He immediately started back peddling! "No, they do," he said. I replied, "You know I've seen a painting at Temple Square of Jesus' crucifixion and I know in the temple ceremony the 2nd Token of the Melchizedek Priesthood is about His crucifixion, so I find it funny that LDS usually don't wear crosses." The old guy immediately said he was running out of oxygen, so they had to go. As they were walking away, I said, "Please check out my site sometime... JosephLied.com."
Trans saga continued
Here's my final letter to the Jordan School District's Title IX Coordinator, Melissa Flores, on November 13th. I sent this also to the district's DEI consultant Ami Shah as well as to the district's Associate Superintendent Michael Anderson. I filed a formal complaint with the district over them allowing a gender confused boy to use the girls' bathrooms at my daughter's school. The Title IX Complaint form was for sexual harassment primarily. That was dismissed by Flores. However, since I named Jill Durant, the administrator for the district's elementary schools, as a respondent for the discrimination and hostile environment I charged, Flores sent the case over to Anderson. He just dismissed the case a couple days ago. I had a Zoom call with Flores and Shah, and I met with Anderson for 15 minutes. I also had other correspondence with them prior to their decisions.
Flores actually claimed that the Trump administration under Betsy DeVoss' Department of Education gave Supportive Measures to Title IX that were rolled out in 2020 and these state that nothing punitive is to be done to students. From this simple statement, leftists have derived a whole legal precedent to protect the gender confused and allow them to use whatever bathroom they want! So in leftist thinking, this entails that keeping trans students from doing so would be "punitive"! Unbelievable! Like this is what an Evangelical Christian like DeVoss really intended!
"Hi Melissa,
There is nothing specifically stated in the law referring to sex identity. You and others have merely assumed that’s entailed in the law, but again, there’s nothing in the law specifically stated as such. Others (i.e., the vast majority of the population) have traditionally understood “sex” as “biological sex” (as well as “gender”, by the way) as I have already pointed out. I’m not arguing that the 11th Circuit is binding here in UT. That’s a straw man. I am instead arguing that you are following the lead of others outside of Utah who have assumed that “sex identity” is entailed by “sex.” Just because others assume that doesn’t entail that they are right. So why upset so many parents and girls here in Utah by following their lead and *being punitive toward them*? The only answer seems to be simply that you continue to beg the question that “sex identity” is entailed by “sex”.
With that in mind, of course you don’t “believe there is any punitive measure in place related to bathroom use.” If you don’t buy the assumption that “sex identity” is entailed by “sex”, then you should be able to see how the rest of us do think you are being punitive. Of course you claim that anyone can use a single stall bathroom. Sure, but again as I stated to the school board, it is pragmatically unreasonable. What is more likely to be occupied–single or multi-stall bathrooms? So the former should be used by the minority, not the majority. Let me remind you that laws are made for the majority while providing accommodations for the minority. You and other legal sources are doing the exact opposite. Given the consciences of these girls, they shouldn’t have to use the exception bathroom; exception kids ought to be using it. As such, allowing boys in girls’ private spaces and sports is being disrespectful to most girls who don’t want this. (By the way, I know that boys are currently allowed to share showers with girls in Jordan School District.)
You were a girl once. Why don’t girls like sharing their private spaces with boys? Besides the obvious, there’s also the very real danger of voyeurism and sexual harassment, which has in fact been happening all over the country. (I’ll send you documented cases if you’d like, but I’m sure you can easily look them up yourself. As such, you not protecting girls opens yourself as well as the district up to potential lawsuits.) So of course what you and the district are doing here is punitive.
So what’s my other more fundamental argument that you shouldn’t follow those others you cite? Simply from the obvious assertion that just because you identify a particular way doesn’t entail you are that way. You disagree with that? If you do, then all sorts of crazy things follow. You open yourself not only to allowing boys to use girls' bathrooms, but locker rooms and showers (which used to be a civil rights violation, by the way). You allow them to get decimated by boys in sports. Not only that, but then you would be discriminatory towards those who consider themselves furries. The job of a lawyer and a judge is to get at objective truth, not uphold people’s subjective truths which won’t protect the vast majority who live in objective truth. The objective truth is that Allison is a boy and you are not only feeding his delusion by letting him use girls’ bathrooms, but you are even using his delusional preferred pronouns. In all respect, you and all those you cite who support your position are simply lying. This is just like all those in the crowd going along with the Emperor in The Emperor’s New Clothes.
Fortunately, though, there are others who have the courage to protect biological females from discrimination and from those who want to invade their private spaces that were originally intended for them and which Title IX was created to protect. You could act like these others I cite [Governor Stitt in OK, 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, and the law upheld in Idaho by a Trump appointed judge], including the school board in PA that recently changed its mind when high school students walked out in protest of their woke policy. So you haven’t convinced me that you aren’t cherry picking. That’s exactly what you’re doing. Obviously OCR [Office of Civil Rights] isn’t changing these decisions of those I cite. They aren’t enforcing it, but for whatever reason you simply side with OCR and the other circuit courts. In doing so, you are upsetting the majority of parents and girls here in Utah.
If nothing else, I would like you to specifically address one problem that I don’t think you’ve ever dealt with satisfactorily. The problem is that Fox Hollow Elementary seems to be clearly discriminating against biological girls because it does not provide those girls private spaces *based on their sex*. (This also goes for boys too, for that matter, since a student need merely identify as a boy or a girl to gain access to boy or girl designated spaces.) Everything in the law requires that girls not be treated differently because of their biology. So for the school and district administrators to deny girls, as a protected class by sex, a dedicated, designated, and collective private space based on their sex IS by its very fact a discriminatory act according to Title IX.
Thanks!
Rob Sivulka"
As a result of all this and unless something drastic happens, we have decided to pull our girls from the public school system next year.
We need your partnership
If you’re looking for ways to store up for yourself treasures in heaven (Matt. 6:19-20), may I suggest investing in our ministry? We not only need your prayers, but we need your financial partnership as well. Keep in mind that your investment is not simply for us, but for the lives of others we reach with the gospel. The standard way to financially invest is by writing a tax-deductible check to Courageous Christians United (CCU). For more information on various ways to invest in this ministry, including online giving, please see our “Invest” page on our sites. If you’re not a partner and are blessed by these monthly updates, please join our team and let us know soon. We’d love to be your missionaries here in Utah. Many thanks to those of you who hold us up in prayer and/or in your financial giving!
Be strong and courageous (Joshua 1:6)! Merry Christmas!
Rob Sivulka
President, Courageous Christians United
P.O. Box 1374
West Jordan, UT 84088
(801) 792-6373
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Mailbag
I am thankful for the perspectives you have even though they may not always align with mine. You have helped broaden my view and better understand Christianity since leaving Mormonism.
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Rob Sivulka how do I minister to a fledgling Mormon? She literally just got "rejected" for baptism for not answering questions about Jesus right. Any other help is welcome!
[I replied:] Give her my site and ask her what she thinks.
[She replied:] thank you. She married into the LDS and has been working towards baptism about 8 weeks
[I replied:] now is prime time to reveal all these problems to her before she gets too entrenched. Tell her you have a friend who has created a site that demonstrates the problems of Mormonism from a traditional Christian perspective. Ask her to at least read the Home page chart of differences, and tell you what she thinks. Has she a prior religious background?
[She replied:] I'll have to ask her. I think she mentioned protestant but not sure. Thanks that's helpful
So this was a post from a Christian women's group I'm in and the OP was the "rejected" one then I had another lady that was a bit upset that I responded that LDS are not Christians and explained myself in as respectful manner as possible. I also encouraged her to check out Rob's website but her response was patently dismissive. So I just referred her back to the Bible. I'm not good at this at all.
[I replied:] now it's time to start asking specific questions if she won't look. How can you call yourself Christian when you believe Christ to be x? Or how can you believe He's God when you believe p? When she says that they don't believe that, then you can say, "Well if you would have looked at the site I provided, you would have known better. It's all sourced on the site. I pray too, but I don't stick my head in the sand. God has given us minds, and He expects us to use them."
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