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I had a nice talk with my mom tonight regarding some of my questions and feel a lot more confindant with the thoughts and feelings I have. I am so glad that my mom is who she is. She would fit nicely here I think. It’s nice to sit and have a real conversation about these things. Ray, i hope this is the thread you were meaning. It did have 25 posts and is on the temple. 
I am going to copy and paste from my previous post:
I have always felt peaceful at the temple and was not really afraid or suprised by things that occur in the temple. But as I have read about Joseph and how he started the current endowment, I am concerned that it is wrong. I know that Joseph’s original intent for the temple was so that the people could become close to God. And the peacefulness in the temple definitely can help one achieve that.
My issue is that Joseph told people that they had to accept the principle of celestial marriage. I am not sure if he always did this, or if it was just at first. I don’t like that he told Emma that she could not be sealed to him eternally unless she accepted celetial marriage and let him marry other women, whom he had already married. I think that is wrong, to tell someone their salvation is dependant on something that they completely disagree with. It seems evident to me that Emma did not agree with the principle as she disagreed with it shortly after her endowment and sealing to Joseph.
So my question then is, if it was wrong, then what in the temple is good? I can get close to God through meditation and a lone hike in the mountains. So must I go to the temple.
When did the leadership not make it a requirement to accept celestial marriage (understood as polygamy) to enter the temple? I know that they worked hard to finish the temple and help members get their endowments before heading west after Joseph’s death. I don’t feel that they made the members accept it then as section 132 wasn’t published publically until several years after arriving in Utah. So why was it ok to change that stance then, when it was so important to Joseph that Emma accept it before she could receive those blessings in the temple? It justs stinks of deception and coersion to me.
I look forward to hearing your thoughts and understanding mine better.
Wow! I agree with so much you said just now. When this first started to happen, I looked at my wife and knew that she was and is a good person, no matter what someone in the church may think becasue of her disaffection. I hate that such thoughts continue in our church today. My wife and boys come foremost in my life and that was why all of this has happened, at least I feel that way. My parents library did not just include the church history stuff. My parents have studied from many “good” books and have instilled that respect for knowledge that I feel has helped me on this path.
I guess my concern is throwing the baby out with the bathwater accidentally. I am afraid to let go of something prematurely. I definitely feel that that is how I will have to continue in the LDS church if I want to stay, but it is hard when things you don’t agree with are discussed in church.
My wife never really had a testimony. There are a lot of parts to that story, but I originally became aware of some of her concerns after our second son was born and we found that he was born with a genetic disorder. She was very upset at God. She brought up concerns every so often, but I did not take it to seriously. The main concerns she has discussed with me were over polygamy, Prop 8, and the authoritarian nature of aspects in the church. I understood what she was saying, but mostly ignored it and did not believe that she was really that concerned about those things. If I could shelf them and not think about them, why couldn’t she? Move on 3 or so years to this past April, and she finally got it through my thick skull that she was serious about what she believed and that she could not keep up a facade. We had recently moved out of student housing and into a new city, so it was pretty easy for her to make a clean break.
Right now my concerns stem around the temple mostly, but that should probably be brought up in a different part of the forum. I will work on organizing my thoughts and put together a post, unless I find an applicable previous posting.
Also, a little bit more about me, as I didn’t do much intro, so here is a little bit more:
I am 27 years old. My wife and I have 2 boys who are a handful, but worth every minute of craziness we have at our house.
just me wrote:Well, IMHO, there is no asking place that is a better blend of safe, inspiring, and motivating than here.
I have to agree. I have been reading here and over at NOM as well as just reading books and other stuff online, and I feel most drawn here. You make everyone comfortable to say what they need to say without making them too cautious. I definitely have to thank everyone here for that.
