In Reply to: Re: Where did Smith get his ideas? posted by Niek0 on May 13, 2004 at 00:22:41:
I am aware of the letter that those quotes came from and the context that they are written about at the Sword site. Berg borrowed from many different groups. But that did not mean he sat in councils with them and was directly associated with them. He wasn't. Also in a big push to Catholic countries, we attended Catholic churches and related to them as Catholic missionaries, but did not use this relation, as spoken of in many letters of that period in time, in Protestant cultures. Sword of the Lord and others call Mormons and JW's a cult. In the earliest days, Berg did too, but later he related to them. In the earliest days he was pro-Israeli, and then when his kibbutz dream was shattered, he became avidly anti-Jewish. Berg wrote one letter where he said the family had the best of everything, multiple wives of the mormons (which they no longer have officially), free sex of the hippies (which was never really free in the family for most and certainly not with minors)
And berg then scapegoated his own followers to save his own perverted neck by blaming his doctrines on the "hippies" those dirty hippies. Most of which were burnt out and disillusioned with their lifestyles and seeking stability.
I personally don't see mainstream Mormons as a cult. I see them as a legitimate religion that has evolved over time. They have good ethics and contribute to society. I would NEVER want to be one, but I know some that are great people. I don't believe their doctrines, but don't see them as destructive compared to the family and other destructive cults.