A photo of Muslims bowing down in prayer in a Relief Society Room in a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saint building is proliferating LDS social media. In the photo, there is a painting, supposedly of Jesus, that is covered.
Is this appropriate? Many have opined on both sides. Greg gives his two cents.
this I want to give my two cents on this
this episode is brought to you by
scripture notes scripture notes is what
I use for all of my scripture study it
is the best handsdown app out there for
scripture study in my opinion go to
scripture notes.com also a great gift
for Christmas scripture notes.com all
right so there's a picture going around
of Muslims in a Relief Society room uh
bowing down worshiping inside of the
belief Society room with a picture and
apparently this is a picture of Christ
it probably is covered up right because
for the Muslims they do not want any
kind of a picture anywhere they don't
allow that in their worship areas and so
they've got the picture covered up and
there's a lot of controversy about this
number one I think the first issue is
well do we allow latterday Saint meeting
houses to be used for worship for other
other religions not just you know
Christian denominations but other
religions like Islam and and uh Judaism
Etc um secondarily it's about the
picture I think of of Christ being
covered up that's a secondary issue uh
probably I think the bigger issue in my
mind as to as to why this is
controversial so let me go to this I
want I want you to take a look at the
picture here you can see this this is
from uh X and you have a tweet here that
says I am not okay with this regardless
of the scenario and here you have
obviously a Relief Society room you've
got the sign here outside the door you
can see in the background here the
picture that is covered up right and
then you see the Muslims here who are
bowed down in prayer on the carpet here
and so uh just a couple of things here
before I get into breaking this down a
bit number one I like it I am a fan of
this I have no problems with it
whatsoever I think it is great that we
are inviting the Muslims in to Worship
in our in our uh chapels not the chapel
the meeting house and allowing them to
go to a place where they they don't have
a place right now to worship right in
this area apparently and so there was an
agreement made and they came in they
worship in the Relief Society room they
are not in the chapel the chapel right
and that's one thing I think we need to
understand and distinguish here the
chapel in the meeting house is something
SE separate and sacred for us uh even
when there's nobody in there and the
lights are turned out right we don't
want kids running around in there uh we
keep it more sacred than the rest of the
building that is not what we're doing in
there that is not the the Muslims are
not in the chapel uh they are in the
building in the Relief Society room I
think there's no problem with this I am
happy to do this I love Interfaith
efforts like this uh um and and and I
think it's a wonderful thing both for
latterday Saints and for the Muslims
here and it's a an olive branch that is
uh extended to the Muslims secondly
being that it is the Muslims and Islam a
lot of people have this whole idea and
they may not know many Muslims right
that you know you've got look at the
Syrian rebels right now they just
conquered Syria they went to Damascus
took over the Russians are weakened in
Syria they're focused on Ukraine so the
rebels made ground they they took over
Damascus and and Assad is now uh I
believe he's in Russia right now in
Exile and then you've got them out there
with their guns and and screaming about
Allah and um how they're now going to
free Jerusalem from Syria right but
there's in the Northeast portion of
Israel there is a long border between
Israel and Syria and they're going to
free Jerusalem from uh the Jews
basically right and take that over
that's their next step and so you get
get this idea about conquering and
tyranny and force with islamism and
you've got to separate that you have to
do that you have to look at people
individually and and yes there is a mix
there I understand that that's it's very
adjacent um but I I think that this is
the right thing to
do and I don't think you go in and say
well I I saw someone online talking
about the first and second commandment
right love God with all your heart might
mind and strength and then and then your
neighbor and saying this is not loving
God they believe in a different God and
it's kind of like the evangelicals
talking to us and say you believe in a
different Jesus right this is a
completely different Jesus and it's just
I I I refer often times back to uh Ammon
with King Loni and his discussion there
when when King Loni is on his throne and
they're talking about the great spirit
that is not the terminology and it's not
the same idea that Ammon has about
God Ammon knows about Jesus Christ Ammon
is a
Christian and the lamanites are not
right remember that that is a we don't
talk about this enough in the Book of
Mormon the Lites are
Antichrist and that's why the denters of
the Nephites who are also Antichrist all
go over to the lamanites that is what
the story is about Christ and Antichrist
right
and so but but they've got Common Ground
here Ammon says do you believe in God
and he says I Lon says I don't know
about God but you know are you talking
about the great spirit and Ammon says
yes this is God now the nature of God is
different they're going to believe in
something different they don't believe
in the Son of
God a and but but he's looking for
common ground right the Muslims believe
in the god of Abraham
they believe in a different book like we
believe in a different book from the
rest of
Christianity um anyway it it's it's I
think that this is what we're supposed
to do now that's one edge of the sword
you know or one side of the sword you
know I we talk about walking the edge of
the sword the other side is are we going
to have to compromise our own ideals and
our own belief system or some of our
rituals or practices and at what point
do we stop that that is the next thing
and I believe we do any of that here I
don't think that that is an
issue I understand about the covering up
of the picture of Christ that to me is a
little bit symbolic I don't like it I
don't like it at
all I I think that you look at the
picture in here it's not pleasant to be
honest with you I think just Greg's two
cents here they should take the picture
out of the room and put it somewhere
else and again like I said you know the
Muslims don't it's not about Jesus
Christ that's not the only issue for
them they would not if you go to a
mosque and walk around in there you're
not going to see a single picture of
anybody or anything just a lot of
intricate
designs they don't do that because they
believe that's idol worship right
there's not a picture of M Muhammad
obviously there's not a picture of a
pilgrimage to Mecca there's nothing like
that whatsoever so that is their belief
system they don't want any up on the
walls to see like that and so I I saw
somebody else say um I don't like I
don't mind the request what I don't like
is the demands that they're
making and
and I I I I just don't have an issue
with this move the picture put it in in
in in the nursery for a little bit for
them that's not a problem this I think
that this is an act of love I don't
think it's an act of compromise at all
uh they're not in the
chapel we don't put pictures up in the
chapel right either in the place that we
worship in the room that we worship in
and and and pray and take the sacrament
there are no pictures
anywhere and they're not in there right
they're they're that's what that Chapel
is dedicated for is for the worship of
Jesus
Christ and so I I I I don't see the
issue here I don't know what the big
uh uh hoopla is on this I think it is a
very positive thing I remember a few
years ago the same thing happened in New
Zealand there was a I I I don't remember
if it was from the terrorist attack out
there with at a mosque or what was going
on but we we had in invited the Muslims
to come and worship in our building not
in the chapel but in our building and
gave them a spot where they could do
that that that's a Christlike thing to
do as long as you're not compromising
now timely is President Oak's message
from Christmas I want you to listen to
this real quick the spirit of Christmas
encourages us to use this season to step
across barriers and promote
understanding and love with people of
all Races Creeds and National
Origins whether Latter-Day Saints are in
the majority as we are in Utah or in the
minority as we are every where else we
should reach out to all the Sons and
Daughters of God fully believe this we
should extend the sincere hand of
Fellowship to all persons those who are
and those who are not of our
faith we should observe the command God
has the prophet Moses give to the
children of
Israel if a stranger sojourn with thee
in your land ye shall not Vex him but
the Str stranger that dwelleth with you
shall be unto you as one born among you
and thou shalt love him as thy
Hospitality love so we have to realize
also that Islam is portrayed very
negatively sometimes rightfully
so especially in certain areas in the
Middle
East um but in the United States there
we need to be careful about what we do
with this you have a very
very
firm uh certain
Christian approach to these types of
things and I say Christian I mean the
collective not the
attitude against things that people look
at as absolute evil most of these
individuals are good-hearted people and
they're bowing down because they are
humble to their God right and that is
Allah and by the way did you know that
the Jews who speak used to be that the
Jews were all over the Arab world not
that long ago you go back to the' 60s
and 70s the Jews are all over the Arab
world until you got the revolutions
coming up and Iran's coup in 1979 and uh
I think it was 79 right and with a sh
you know outing the Sha the Jews were
all over the place in the Arab world and
they spoke Arabic they spoke
Arabic do you know what they called God
and those that still speak Arabic call
God they call him Allah because that
that's the name for God in Arabic it is
the same root as l or
Elohim now again the nature is very
different it's just like us even with
the evangelicals or the Catholics or the
Orthodox or the Jews the nature is very
different and we believe we have uh
things that are added upon and a greater
knowledge coming through Joseph Smith
with restored gospel we believe that
firmly and we don't need to compromise
that but I think that this is a great
bridge that can be made
as long as we hang on to our principles
here move the pictures don't cover them
up just my recommendation love your
neighbor as yourself and if there become
problems and we did this all over the
place and because of the law of numbers
there were some outliers and Fringe
individuals that really caused a problem
then we look at it again and then you
come back to me probably and say hey
Greg I told you so like look come on
love is difficult love is difficult
Merry Christmas and thanks for listening
