Good morning. I’m interested in getting to know the Mormon religion. I should mention that I don’t know much since I’m agnostic. I really want to know more about how to convert in order to marry my Mormon boyfriend. I’d like to know the steps I should take and how being Mormon could make a difference in my life. I’d also like to know more about marriage and raising children. Thanks in advance for any information you could provide me with.
Is it possible to convert to be married in the Church?
A statue of Jesus Christ at temple square in Salt Lake City.
It's not a good idea to convert just to be married. Conversion should symbolize a sincere desire to begin a new life as a disciple of Christ. You should join the restored Church of Jesus Christ because you love the Savior, not because you love your boyfriend. That having been said, many people get to know the Church through their boyfriends or girlfriends. They often see the wonderful blessings that come from worshiping God in the Church and decide they want to have that positive influence in their lives. These same people might go on to marry their boyfriend or girlfriend and to live happy lives as faithful members of the Church. You shouldn't convert just to get married, but you can still be married after you convert for Christ's sake.
How does being Mormon impact your life? Mormonism is not just a religion; it's also a culture. Consequently, being Mormon impacts almost every aspect of one's life. Once someone joins the Church, their main goal in life is to strengthen their relationship with God. Addictions can interfere with our ability to connect with God, so Mormons don't drink alcohol or coffee, smoke, or use illegal drugs. Reading scriptures, praying daily, attending church every week, and serving others, on the other hand, do help us better connect with God. Gaining greater intelligence through religious study and secular education also helps us grow closer to the Heavenly Father. In general, we try our best to dedicate ourselves to furthering the cause of Christ; we're certainly not perfect, but we try to make our love for Christ shine brightly in our lives.
What's it like to raise children in a Mormon family? I was raised in a Mormon family, and it was wonderful. Certainly no family is perfect, but when all the members of the family are united in their faith, the family is generally strengthened. Mormon children learn gospel principles from a young age. In church there are special classes for children. Additionally, children have the opportunity to speak publicly in church, to receive a good religious education through the seminary and institute programs of the church, and to serve others through the church's many humanitarian projects.
Mormons believe that our families can be together forever, even after death. We also believe that family plays an important role in our progress in the next life. Consequently, we're very dedicated to family life.
Doug
2010-06-01 09:09:19
I am happy to hear that someone is interested in joining us mormons (being baptized into the LDS church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.) The 3 terms: Mormon, LDS, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are synonymous; these are 3 different names for the same church.
Being a mormon is similar to being a Jew or a Muslim in that it is a 24 hour/7 day a week way of life.
Missionaries in Alagoas, Brazil.
A person needs to join the church because he/she is truly converted and wants to be a mormon. It is not a good idea to convert to a different religion, and especially to the LDS church just so that he/she can marry someone. The best advice that I can offer is to meet with our missionaries. When people investigate the mormon religion some people join it and some do not. The difference is that those who eventually join the church ask themselves the question, "Just, what if it is true?" They give the church and what it teaches, the benefit of the doubt. They decide to put what they are being told to the test. These are the people who read the Book of Mormon, contemplate what they read, accept it on faith and then ask God in prayer if what they have read is true. When they ask God, they are prepared to receive either a "yes" or "no" answer. Strangely enough, some of those people who do join the church and then are among the strongest members were initially the most opposed to it. This happens because they are sincere and humble people who were seeking the truth. As for the other people, they decide that it is not true, but that is based on one, two or several things they do not like about the church. They have made the error of believing that it is solely through logic that they can decide the validity of what they have been told. Until or unless they take the approach just mentioned, they will never know that what the church teaches is the truth. Thirty-four years ago, I was a disillusioned person who believed in Christ, but I was convinced that no religion was true.
Then I moved to Utah and married a totally less active Mormon. I started to listen to what the members of the LDS church had to say and started to become interested. I was baptized in 1976. Previously, I had been a lost, confused person who did not even know what kind of person I wanted to be. I saw the truth that the church taught, and that it was a sane, practical, and realistic religion.
When I realized these things, I made a far reaching change in my life- I became a totally different person, who is totally committed to living the gospel. To this day I marvel at what I found. As the prophet Joseph Smith said, this church "makes bad men good and good men better."
I dread to think where I would be today had I not joined the LDS church and changed my life so thoroughly, because prior to then I was on a slow downhill slide and was headed for no good. Furthermore, the beauty of the whole situation is that I have learned for myself that this church is true and teaches the truth.
What steps need to be taken to convert? I recently wrote an article entitled "How can I Join the Church?" that describes the steps in detail. In brief, I recommend that you meet with Mormon missionaries and visit a Mormon chapel to see how we worship.
Is it possible to convert to be married in the Church?
How does being Mormon impact your life? Mormonism is not just a religion; it's also a culture. Consequently, being Mormon impacts almost every aspect of one's life. Once someone joins the Church, their main goal in life is to strengthen their relationship with God. Addictions can interfere with our ability to connect with God, so Mormons don't drink alcohol or coffee, smoke, or use illegal drugs. Reading scriptures, praying daily, attending church every week, and serving others, on the other hand, do help us better connect with God. Gaining greater intelligence through religious study and secular education also helps us grow closer to the Heavenly Father. In general, we try our best to dedicate ourselves to furthering the cause of Christ; we're certainly not perfect, but we try to make our love for Christ shine brightly in our lives.
What's it like to raise children in a Mormon family? I was raised in a Mormon family, and it was wonderful. Certainly no family is perfect, but when all the members of the family are united in their faith, the family is generally strengthened. Mormon children learn gospel principles from a young age. In church there are special classes for children. Additionally, children have the opportunity to speak publicly in church, to receive a good religious education through the seminary and institute programs of the church, and to serve others through the church's many humanitarian projects.
Mormons believe that our families can be together forever, even after death. We also believe that family plays an important role in our progress in the next life. Consequently, we're very dedicated to family life.
Being a mormon is similar to being a Jew or a Muslim in that it is a 24 hour/7 day a week way of life.
Then I moved to Utah and married a totally less active Mormon. I started to listen to what the members of the LDS church had to say and started to become interested. I was baptized in 1976. Previously, I had been a lost, confused person who did not even know what kind of person I wanted to be. I saw the truth that the church taught, and that it was a sane, practical, and realistic religion.
When I realized these things, I made a far reaching change in my life- I became a totally different person, who is totally committed to living the gospel. To this day I marvel at what I found. As the prophet Joseph Smith said, this church "makes bad men good and good men better."
I dread to think where I would be today had I not joined the LDS church and changed my life so thoroughly, because prior to then I was on a slow downhill slide and was headed for no good. Furthermore, the beauty of the whole situation is that I have learned for myself that this church is true and teaches the truth.