walkingdork said:

darth_ender said:

Yeah, I understand. I just don't want our "unconventional" ideas to completely define us and I wanted to throw that in there before the thread entirely lost its steam.

But that's the problem, we are defined by what makes us unique.

Well, what's interesting is that the distinction between Baptists, Methodists, and Presbyterians is nearly insignificant today, though they came from some drastically different roots. But even these 13 Articles of Faith contain unique doctrines, some not laid out so specifically, but very important, such as the aforementioned distinct beings: The Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.

I did start this thread to answer the questions that tickle everyone the most, but it occurred to me that the image being conjured was something more akin to scientology (like the Kolob discussion). These things are present, but again are not particularly important to us. A non-LDS Christian who attends one of our services for the first time would find things that are certainly different from what they experience in his or her own services, but at the same time, it would definitely be a church service, not a Star Trek convention. It would certainly feel familiar to them in spite of its differences.

I understand your point, and I'll continue to happily share our wackiest traits or misconceptions. I just thought it would be wise to lay down what the base of our religion truly is.