More than likely you have heard phrases like, “This guy in my mission told me…” or “My friend told me that…” and “This is the honest truth, I heard it from a guy that lives down the street…” The information that follows is always a sensational story that straddles the line between fact and fiction.
Belief in sensational stories is in our blood as Mormons. One must simply look at the story of the restoration; we believe that two divine personages appeared and spoke to a 14-year-old boy. That is a very sensational story, but we find truth in it. How can we separate the truth from the exciting stories?
***
There is a fine line between being a believer and a gullible sucker. If we are not able to distinguish truth from as a people we will deteriorate as a church. If we believe every story we hear, we will start to build our faith and testimony upon here-say and rumor. Culture and tradition can turn into doctrine and truth while those who seek the truth are shunned and set as outsiders. Questioning what we believe is a part of our faith it is essential to gaining a testimony. We are asked to seek confirmation after General Conference, we are asked to pray about decisions we make, and we are asked to pray to know the truth of every principle that we learn. It is the basis of our religion. Moroni taught that the limits of knowledge that we can obtain are endless. In his promise near the end of The Book of Mormon he tells us that “by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.”(Moroni 5:5) I believe that this includes non-spiritual things as well.
As a seeker of truth I have followed a guideline that was given to me by my Mission President when I was a missionary. President Lee is a career CES (Church Educational System) teacher and he loved to discuss how to find truth in the world. To help missionaries avoid spreading rumors and half-truths about doctrine he set out these guidelines to keep us closest to the true source of truth, Jesus Christ:
I have used this guideline as a compass to keep me closer to the truth that Christ wants us to have. I have gained a stronger testimony of Prophets and scripture while having this document in mind. I have the ability to doubt and find truth. Most of all I don’t trust the rumors and traditions because they do not come from Christ.
Remember, just because it has been done for many generations does not mean that it is doctrine. Also, because your seminary teacher told you a story, that doesn’t mean it is the truth. There is only one source of truth and that is Christ.
“And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins.” 2 Nephi 25:26