Bridget Night – My Hopes And Beliefs, And Why I Have Them

Note from Mary: Bridget has been a well-loved member of Christian Gays for many years. She is the straight mother of a gay son, whose faith history includes the Mormon Church. She has been a spiritual mother and mentor to many of our family, especially our Mormon family.

Disclaimer from Bridget: This is what I believed at one time, however my beliefs have evolved, and I am no longer a member of the Mormon Church.

Sept 20, 2011 – In 1 Peter 3:5 of the New Testament it says, “….be ready always to give an answer, to every man that asketh you, a reason of the hope that is in you….” Therefore, I would like to share “the reasons for the hope within me.” The following are my hopes and beliefs and why I have them.

1. I believe that Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the light, as He said He was. I believe He is the Son of God literally. It is my firm belief that lasting happiness and peace can only be achieved by accepting and following Him.

2. Since God has always chosen special people, called prophets, to relate to man His will for each particular time, I believe that God also has prophets for this modern space age era. God has given us a brain, a heart, and personal revelation in order to determine a true prophet from a false one. People take the Bible or whatever claims to be the word of God and interpret it to mean what they want it to, or what they think it means. Thus we have a great many different churches with varying teachings that often contradict each other. During Christ’s time there were also many varying religions that tried to discredit Jesus as being the Messiah, and John the Baptist as a true prophet. Jesus’ teachings (The New Testament) were considered “adding to” the scriptures (The Old Testament). Christ’s teachings were rejected because of that. The motivation of these other religious sects to discredit Christ was because of loss of power, fame, and money from those who chose to follow Jesus.

3. The reasons I choose to follow the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, nicknamed “The Mormons”, are the following: After a great deal of research, study, and much prayer, I came to these conclusions. I believe that the great reformers such as Martin Luther, John Wesley, and Ellen White, besides many others, were inspired by God to prepare the way for the restoration of Christ’s church in these latter-days. I believe there is much good and the “milk” of the gospel of Jesus Christ in many other Christian churches. But, I also believe in the apostasy and that many corrupt teachings came into the original church of Christ. Honest-in-heart people who sincerely want to know the truth will eventually be lead to the “fullness” or meat of the gospel when they are ready for it and able to handle it. Just as a junk food junkie cannot handle a total health food diet right away, God feeds us, line upon line, and precept upon precept.

4. As I have studied the Bible, and what claims to be the word of God, I believe through prayer God has guided me to the truth. I believe that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints has a living prophet today, who is a prophet for the whole world. Since the restoration of the church through Joseph Smith, the first latter-day prophet, we have had continual prophets who have received revelation from God for our day. Because a true prophet is given the gift to interpret and speak scripture, it eliminates the confusion of each person doing private interpretation.

5. I believe that man is eternal and has the potential to become like his Heavenly Father. God loves us so much that He wants to share His all with us. The ultimate goal Christ gave us in the Sermon on the Mount is to “be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father in Heaven is perfect.” Through the atonement of Jesus Christ, I believe this is possible and where my ultimate joy lies.

Please see Part I of Bridget’s Presentation:
The Basics of Mormonism

And Part II:
Bridget’s Mormon Background, Her Book, and Her Gay Son

Contact Bridget