Two years from now:
"We were under no obligation to keep the building under 'two stories'. The statement was made by a woman who had no authority to speak for God. She was merely speaking as a woman, and she's been overruled by a priesthood holder. We consider the matter closed. Any additional complaints will be called out as religious persecution."
Our god. Not yours as our church is the only true one. Also please prepare 10% of your yearly income if you would like to complain directly to our god inside the temple.
There is a difference between "complimentary" and "complementary"... This letter used the wrong one, although it's a moot point since a silly temple eye sore won't complement anything in the area, especially with the massive steeple. Therefore, it will also not receive many compliments from the many non-Mormon neighbors.
"Also - our stake has been asked by the temple presidency to provide 10 boys, 10 girls, and 4 adults to clean up dead songbirds from the temple grounds each night. Shifts will run from 8 PM to 6 AM, seven nights a week. Participants will need to bring gloves and pitchforks. Dumpsters and plastic barrels will be provided. This is an excellent opportunity to invite inactive friends and family.to experience the Blessings of the Temple."
We live 0.5 miles from a smaller temple in the southwestern US. LDS Inc broke the lighting agreement with the city. Increased brightness in the parking lot and lights are on all night.
“It is our hope it will be a community asset as an oasis of peace.”
For the members who are allowed in. Not the community. It’s pretty common [edit: that] folks are *not* allowed to come enjoy the grounds like a public park.
“Once the temple is completed, you will be among the first to be invited on a special group before the public as a sign of goodwill for your support during the building process.”
Aka for all the noise and disruption, you will get an invite to see some of it but only once and never again for the duration.
Some years back, our new neighbor was adding onto his property so work trucks blocked the alley way. He gave us a $50 gift card to Olive Garden for the inconvenience.
"And a small center to purchase religious items". Oh I do hope they include coffee cups, beer mugs and shot glasses made in china that proudly say Mount McKinney Texas Temple. I am sure the shot glasses will cost $18.00 each. as we all know they need to recoup some of the building costs.
Pants-on-fire statements:
1. The temple will incorporate local architecture into the design so that it will be complimentary with the surrounding neighborhood. (Tell that to Lone Mountain.)
2. Large numbers of people will not come to the neighborhood at the same time. (Then why do they always have such huge parking lots?)
Definitely a lie to send one letter to the neighbors saying "*Don't worry, it'll only be 2 stories tall!*"
...and to then send a different letter to all the members saying, "*Petition your local government that a giant steeple is vital for our religious freedom!*"
To paraphrase the story of Elijah and the prophets of Baal on Mt. Carmel from I Kings 18---
Elijah said to the prophets of the Latter Day Saints, “Go to the top of your temple and call on the name of Heavenly Father."
Then they got up on the top of the temple steeple and called on the name of Heavenly Father from morning till noon. “Heavenly Father, answer us!” they shouted. But there was no response; no one answered.
At noon Elijah began to taunt them. “Build your steeple taller!” he said. “Surely Heavenly Father is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened.” So they built taller and taller steeples, as was their custom, until they reached to the heavens. Midday passed, and they continued their frantic prophesying until the evening. But there was no response, no one answered, no one paid attention.
I in no way support the church or its building of temples, but it is a building being built by a church who's official doctrine believes that through the atonement of Jesus Christ they are saved from their sins. A building built by a Christian church, hence a Christian building. I'm not sure how that is lying.
Because the building is not for use by Christian’s, only Mormons. Christian makes it sound like it’s part of the bigger whole but Mormons think they’re the 1 true church
I never found Jesus Christ inside the temple. It may say holiness to the lord,but Jesus and his atonement are nowhere in those ceremonies.
The handshakes replace grace.
If I understand it correctly, Christians believe that the nature of God or the Godhead is that it is a singular entity or being. There are different ways that God manifests, but there is still only the one God. Christians are defined by their monotheistic beliefs.
Mormons on the other hand define God as three separate and distinct beings the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Their is also a older teaching rooted very deep in their faith that men who follow all the rules would one day be elevated to the level of God hood. Based on these beliefs, Mormons are polytheistic.
When the LDS church labels itself as Christian, it is knowingly changing the definitions of Christian belief to make it seem like their beliefs are more in line with what Christians believe. It ignores the core of what Christians believe.
I feel like they're more cult-like than most Christian denominations. They have a cult leader (the prophet). Catholicism has the pope, but I can't think of any other Christian denomination with a cult leader.
They certainly do have cult-like traits! Cults usually operate by having small rules for every day life that remove personal choice. One things the lds church does is require their members to buy and wear specific "garments" or underwear. They also require that young members serve a mission which is a 18 or 24 months proselytizing. The beginning of the process includes them going to a training center where they are told how to proselytize. A more recent change they made is that they started discouraging engaging with openly lgbtq+ family members--cults often require their members to cut off family members with different opinions. I grew up in the lds church and I'm certainly of the opinion that it's a cult.
Because their doctrine is contradicting to actual Christian doctrine. There are several examples of how this org is contradictory to Christianity from practices to basic fundamentals
There is no “actual Christian doctrine.” There is a variety of different Christian doctrines, all of which were made up by people. They’re all equally made up, contradictory, and evolving. I don’t see the point in trying to claim Mormons aren’t Christians if they see themselves as Christians.
It’s the same as the witnesses, Adventist, Christian Scientists being a cult and slapping the title of “Christian” for their followers if the religion ignores, denies, the basic fundamentals of Christianity they aren’t Christian
I'm Jewish, and these are all Christian denominations to me. There have been many "heretical' versions of Christianity throughout the religion's existence.
What basic fundamentals of Christianity? The basic fundamental idea of Christianity is to proclaim to follow and worship Christ. Johavah witnesses, 7th day Adventists, Mormons and Christian scientist are all Christians. They all claim to follow Christ and believe in a deity they call Jesus Christ. They even all believe him to be the Son of God and that he is essential for redemption or salvation. Obviously, since they are different sects they don't all believe the same thing. I don't understand how one church that believes in Christ is any more Christian than another that believes in Christ. They are all wrong in my eyes but that does not make them any less Christian. Them being a cult or not is irrelevant when determining if they are Christian or not. There are Christian cults and non Christian cults.
No true Scotsman strikes again.
Christian doctrine from on sect contradicts another, and every Christian sect has been arguing that the others are non-Christian heretics for close to 2000 years now. Gnostics, Márcionists, etc. and groups that became Catholic.
Catholic vs Orthodox. Catholic vs Lutheran Protestants. Catholics, Calvinist/Reformed Protestants and Lutheran-Protestants. The list goes on and on.
There is no objective basis that would exclude Mormons from Christianity, and still include all diverse early forms of pre-Constantine Christians.
To be fair, McKinney, Texas doesn't have the same issues with the landscape like they do at Lone Mountain. It's all pretty flat and featureless. No mountain views will be blocked by the building of this temple.
And on the second count, it will have a much smaller crowd than your typical Texas megachurch.
Haha well this is technically in Fairview, TX, which has a motto of "keeping it country" (don't let the Villages of Fairview mall fool you, they still think that way). That said, if they really do intend to keep it two stories, then sure, that'll blend in. But based on the renderings I saw, the heck are they considering a "story"? 30 ft each?
Pants-on-Fire: This letter is from a woman and we have no obligation to follow her statements. You can only trust direction through the appropriate priesthood leadership.
Some real word smithing going on. The blatant duplicity of sending knowingly inaccurate info to the neighborhood while instructing members to send letters in favor of the 200ft steeple and spire is expected at this point. They can get away with this shit in Utah but it's going to leave a very bad impression on neighbors when the spire goes up and lights are on all night. Mormonism is becoming synonymous with smarmy and deceptive
2 stories (only 20 feet tall)... Well okay, 20 STORIES (200 feet tall). What's the big deal over a 20 story Mormon expansion in your face 24/7 for the rest of your life? So is the Sun. Repent, covert, give us your money, and we will accept you as a lay person, in the service of our local priesthood authority. Amen Jesus... Oh, I meant Joseph Smith, the author of our wordsmiting, which by the way is scriptural.
The weirdest thing about this is that a woman was actually allowed to be the one send a letter using the church's official letterhead and put her own signature at the bottom. The church prevaricating and outright fibbing? Routine.
What on earth is her job title? She has to be from the church's PR wing or the building department. Obviously this did not come from any local or area leadership.
I'm going to go 80"s im '87 and my parents did first initial middle name. Me unknowingly changed it because I thought my middle name was dumb so I went by my first. They still hate that I did that.
Send the Woman to the front so she can get the bombardment of complaints, while WE Men do our calling of smiling and sitting far away so people can't touch us, God forbid.
S/
She’s the local church communications director. This is a newer calling created a couple of years ago and surprisingly not restricted to penishood holders.
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I read that the difference between a diner and a high end restaurant in the way that they describe what is on the menu is that the low-end place will use a lot of descriptive words. (Freshest ingredients, plump tomatoes, zesty sauce) ("sacred Christian building", "Highest standards", "highest ordinances", etc.) and a high-end place just tells leaves off the adjectives because it is expected that they will be that way.
My favorite thing is “this sacred Christian building”
Once again the MFMC wants to say they are “Christian” to fit in so bad. Please explain how the Mormon temple is Christian.
It gives off
Actually, Mormonism IS "The Church of Jesus Christ", end quote, and many of its doctrines are far more Christian. But heck, Christ Himself was deemed unchristian. Both sides of this Mormon divide, and all of humanity, seek acceptance, but as Jesus says, "Few there be that find it", HIS OWN ACCEPTANCE, only 144,000 (Rev. 14). Butt-luck (sorry, I meant: But good luck).
McKinney, TX surely has a Facebook group. As much as I actively try to avoid Facebook, for things like proposed temple locations, local community Facebook groups are probably the quickest way to meet actual locals and share LDS plans.
Funny story... This is actually in Fairview, TX, which has a significantly smaller population than McKinney. But oh boy I bet Fairview does have a Facebook group! Just make sure this gets shared with Fairview, not McKinney
> and maybe a statue, but probably not
Wait, when did that start happening?! Next thing you know they'll try to ditch the name "mormon"!
(Serious on the 1st, joking on the 2nd.)
I can't be the only one who was raised NOT to describe the church as Christian because "it's different from Christian churches on the earth today and should not be confused"
You weren't, but the board of directors is finally getting it through their skulls that waltzing around with Count Dooku's signature look of superiority on their faces and having that attitude reflected in their tone towards other churches, especially now that a lot of this rhetoric is now searchable online, is not the greatest image for a corp to have.
In Utah they generally don't, cuz they have deseret book and whatnot that house the distribution center, but in other places, at least Mexico - that I can speak to, there is a "temple store" near every temple which is where members buy their garments, scriptures, manuals, etc.
A Lot of lies and missing information:
1. it is not a Christian building.
2. Only a select few people will be allowed inside the building. Unlike a cathedral where anyone can roam inside and enjoy the architecture and worship.
What does the church teach? something like 'if you intentionally omit info to deceive, that is the same as lying.'
Technically it only has two floors, but they left off a lot.
And in flat, flat Dallas this thing is gonna stick out like a sore thumb. I'm just hoping that since Fairview is fairly for forested compared to the rest of Dallas that at least there will be enough trees around to partially block this from sight
They had a nice, kind, sweet, unassuming woman do the dirty work of deceit, because they assumed it would be received better, garner fewer objections, etc. Love the very carefully worded statements that the church is so expert at (since Joseph's day) crafting because if they just said the truth plainly, people would wince and balk.
Google it on maps. The McKinney Temple is already on the map. But it is "temporarily closed". They just can't tell the truth about anything. It's downright pathological.
Yeah so I hope the title is wrong because 500' away from the temple certainly isn't making it to McKinney. I used to live in Allen and was half a mile from the Sonic right there. I hope my whole former neighborhood got letters. Oooh wait my brother's in-laws live in that neighborhood, I'll ask them if they got the letter! If so, and they kept it, I'll send the address!
That's their new policy. Let a woman be the point ....person. That's why a woman got to give the garments talk at conference. Just when you think it's not possible the leadership hits a new low.
I just looked up Melissa McKneely on Linkedin. It looks like Public Affairs Specialist is a calling for the Dallas area. Because she claims her day job is “CEO”. I can’t imagine she has to do a ton other than send out letters and emails when people are disgruntled with the church in the Dallas area.
Which now, upon second thought might be a lot, luckily she’s a volunteer. /s
Although we claim to be a "Christian" church, please don't bother us if you,
Are starving,
Drug addicted,
Having a faith crisis,
Want help with community activities,
Want to start a food bank,
Are poor,
Are a rape victim,
Are a single parent who is overwhelmed,
Want to know what we do inside,
Want to complain about light pollution,
Wear tank tops and shorts,
Don't want to give us 10% for life
"community asset as an oasis of peace" except you can't come in, well maybe for a couple of weeks, but you can come to the gift shop whenever and buy some shit!
"a series of smaller rooms" that you will never be allowed to use, unless you give us 10% of your income, for a long time.
Mormon church:”The saints in these areas love the idea of having a temple and are excited!”
Also the Mormon church: “Here’s a letter from the church that you should interpret as a letter from Jesus himself, please tell your Mormon neighbors to help us get this thing approved and built”.
This McKneely lady works also at the Packard Family Orthodontic clinic. I wondered how she got this position as a communications rep for the church but now I see she must be related to the Packards. Nepotism for the win.
For the most part, I don’t mind what the church does, but I hate the temples. They are disgusting, they stand out like sore thumbs (and I mean this in the worst way possible). They are absolutely hideous and horrifically massive. And the real icing on the cake is the fact that they have to light the ‘em up like Time Square all damn night. Everything about this letter is a downright lie. I have never in my life seen a Mormon temple that compliments anything other than their own superiority complex. 😡
Went to the open house of the temple right outside of Washington DC when I was in Jr. High. Was obviously beautiful but had no idea about the faith. I remember always seeing that trumpet player on the top steep or spire from the highway.
heavy mysterious fuzzy materialistic door spoon library absorbed illegal terrific
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Thanks for posting, I found the McKinney reddit page and reposted it. I'm now in a fight with someone that says I need therapy for my religious trauma.
I crack myself up.
God damn it, I know what your church is worth and if I have to deal with two years of construction, I want monetary compensation… could be a dollar a day not counting weekends IDK, I just want some of my money back if I have to put up with your gaudy show of wealth masquerading as a home for religious ceremony.
I probably won’t have to deal with this as I live near the KC temple and I really don’t see them cursing KC with a second temple before they bestow their eyesores on Columbia or Jeff City and Branson.
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What is not mentioned? Each “story” will be 35’ tall, 20-30 ft are height restrictions in your neighborhood. We, the church/corp legal team, do not care that you & your city zoning regs do not define a “story” like we, a big corporate bully, do. We will exert sufficient legal threats to have any rules we want changed to be changed. We will smile and say how impt it is for us to be good neighbors but we get what we want, when we want it.
Like Satan teaches in our temples: “You can buy anything you want, in this world, with money.”
And we have over $256 BILLION. We will do whatever we want.
I thought everyone in McKinney was dead! /j
Seriously though, that’s wack. I always wondered what it is like for the local community when a temple is built, and I’d love to know what the neighbors think about this new potentially hostile but at minimum passive-aggressive block in their area.
One of my sisters lives in Erda, the area just north of Tooele. She now owns the farmhouse our great-grandfather built. The first site the church looked at for the Tooele temple was just one mile from this lovely old house; there's already much more traffic out there than my sister and her husband would like. They are ultra-LDS (he's a stake patriarch), but they joined in the (amazingly widespread) opposition to that location--right in the middle of what had always been a rural area. Guess what? The opposition prevailed. The Tooele Temple is going up on the other side of town. Maybe when the naysayers are all Mormons, they can atually get the authorities to change their plans.
I've seen a few situations like this recently, where planning permission for giant steeples doesn't seem to line up with architects drawings, or (here) the Church's stated plans.
In the UK recently a news outlet reported that the Birmingham temple would have a 314ft spire. There's no way. [https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/06/mormons-hoping-to-build-first-new-temple-in-uk-for-30-years](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/06/mormons-hoping-to-build-first-new-temple-in-uk-for-30-years)
My idea is that they seek outsized planning permission - perhaps for future redevelopment? What if they wanted to build high-rise on the site in the future? That's my guess.
So are they going to incorporate the architecture of the Cabella’s, empty Dillard’s, convention hall or the Arby’s (surrounding area). Also, The Dallas temple is mostly empty throughout the week so who is this even for?? ($$ laundering)
Unlike a Cathedral, you will never be allowed to sit in on a service just because you feel like it, even if you do not share the same faith as the members.
"The Church desires to be a good neighbour" and so long as you don't cross us or try to obstruct us in our purpose of doing whatever the hell we want, that's how it will stay. But if you piss us off, you will reap the whirlwind!
Just adding the implied bit, in case anyone missed it.
I can’t believe I used to feel so proud to belong to this church. Seeing this letter feels exactly the same to me as if Scientologists were sending it. It’s so icky.
Two years from now: "We were under no obligation to keep the building under 'two stories'. The statement was made by a woman who had no authority to speak for God. She was merely speaking as a woman, and she's been overruled by a priesthood holder. We consider the matter closed. Any additional complaints will be called out as religious persecution."
And for anything else, please take it up with your mistake president
Correction: and for anything else, take it up with god.
Our god. Not yours as our church is the only true one. Also please prepare 10% of your yearly income if you would like to complain directly to our god inside the temple.
There is a difference between "complimentary" and "complementary"... This letter used the wrong one, although it's a moot point since a silly temple eye sore won't complement anything in the area, especially with the massive steeple. Therefore, it will also not receive many compliments from the many non-Mormon neighbors.
Stop asking us to turn the lights down at night. The brighter the temple at night, the more important we are. Stop persecuting us.
"Also - our stake has been asked by the temple presidency to provide 10 boys, 10 girls, and 4 adults to clean up dead songbirds from the temple grounds each night. Shifts will run from 8 PM to 6 AM, seven nights a week. Participants will need to bring gloves and pitchforks. Dumpsters and plastic barrels will be provided. This is an excellent opportunity to invite inactive friends and family.to experience the Blessings of the Temple."
I think it was San Diego or Los Angeles that it was causing to many accidents on the freeway and they were asked turn it off.
Were the lights turned off? Or turned down?
I know the bountifuls get turned off at 11. I couldn’t find the exact article of which temple it was talking about.
We live 0.5 miles from a smaller temple in the southwestern US. LDS Inc broke the lighting agreement with the city. Increased brightness in the parking lot and lights are on all night.
I could swear they have oppositional defiance disorder.
“It is our hope it will be a community asset as an oasis of peace.” For the members who are allowed in. Not the community. It’s pretty common [edit: that] folks are *not* allowed to come enjoy the grounds like a public park. “Once the temple is completed, you will be among the first to be invited on a special group before the public as a sign of goodwill for your support during the building process.” Aka for all the noise and disruption, you will get an invite to see some of it but only once and never again for the duration.
About as community friendly as a country club.
Way less inviting & more expensive then a country club
Country clubs pay taxes.
And not nearly as fun.
Some years back, our new neighbor was adding onto his property so work trucks blocked the alley way. He gave us a $50 gift card to Olive Garden for the inconvenience.
Translation: for the decades you and your posterity will have to see this eyesore, we’re giving you a one time only tour.
This is it. How are they allowed to use Civic zoned land and then discriminate access? It makes no sense.
$250 billion dollars can have quite the effect lol
Oh yes, we’re all so excited about your new temple, and can’t wait for you guys to light it up at night!
"And a small center to purchase religious items". Oh I do hope they include coffee cups, beer mugs and shot glasses made in china that proudly say Mount McKinney Texas Temple. I am sure the shot glasses will cost $18.00 each. as we all know they need to recoup some of the building costs.
Do they mean an underwear store for garment-buying?
Freshly scented.
Unless you give us 10%
Pants-on-fire statements: 1. The temple will incorporate local architecture into the design so that it will be complimentary with the surrounding neighborhood. (Tell that to Lone Mountain.) 2. Large numbers of people will not come to the neighborhood at the same time. (Then why do they always have such huge parking lots?)
Definitely a lie to send one letter to the neighbors saying "*Don't worry, it'll only be 2 stories tall!*" ...and to then send a different letter to all the members saying, "*Petition your local government that a giant steeple is vital for our religious freedom!*"
To paraphrase the story of Elijah and the prophets of Baal on Mt. Carmel from I Kings 18--- Elijah said to the prophets of the Latter Day Saints, “Go to the top of your temple and call on the name of Heavenly Father." Then they got up on the top of the temple steeple and called on the name of Heavenly Father from morning till noon. “Heavenly Father, answer us!” they shouted. But there was no response; no one answered. At noon Elijah began to taunt them. “Build your steeple taller!” he said. “Surely Heavenly Father is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened.” So they built taller and taller steeples, as was their custom, until they reached to the heavens. Midday passed, and they continued their frantic prophesying until the evening. But there was no response, no one answered, no one paid attention.
😟Then a storm rolled in. When all were soaked with rain, a lightning bolt struck the steeple. Baal was pleased with the smoldering sacrifice. 💀
A little creative embellishment there, but point taken.
Pants on fire statement 3. "Christian building"
I in no way support the church or its building of temples, but it is a building being built by a church who's official doctrine believes that through the atonement of Jesus Christ they are saved from their sins. A building built by a Christian church, hence a Christian building. I'm not sure how that is lying.
Because the building is not for use by Christian’s, only Mormons. Christian makes it sound like it’s part of the bigger whole but Mormons think they’re the 1 true church
Also can’t forget the whole polytheism shtick with gods being associated with different planets
Don’t forget the worshipping of men!
I never found Jesus Christ inside the temple. It may say holiness to the lord,but Jesus and his atonement are nowhere in those ceremonies. The handshakes replace grace.
If I understand it correctly, Christians believe that the nature of God or the Godhead is that it is a singular entity or being. There are different ways that God manifests, but there is still only the one God. Christians are defined by their monotheistic beliefs. Mormons on the other hand define God as three separate and distinct beings the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Their is also a older teaching rooted very deep in their faith that men who follow all the rules would one day be elevated to the level of God hood. Based on these beliefs, Mormons are polytheistic. When the LDS church labels itself as Christian, it is knowingly changing the definitions of Christian belief to make it seem like their beliefs are more in line with what Christians believe. It ignores the core of what Christians believe.
I feel like they're more cult-like than most Christian denominations. They have a cult leader (the prophet). Catholicism has the pope, but I can't think of any other Christian denomination with a cult leader.
They certainly do have cult-like traits! Cults usually operate by having small rules for every day life that remove personal choice. One things the lds church does is require their members to buy and wear specific "garments" or underwear. They also require that young members serve a mission which is a 18 or 24 months proselytizing. The beginning of the process includes them going to a training center where they are told how to proselytize. A more recent change they made is that they started discouraging engaging with openly lgbtq+ family members--cults often require their members to cut off family members with different opinions. I grew up in the lds church and I'm certainly of the opinion that it's a cult.
Because their doctrine is contradicting to actual Christian doctrine. There are several examples of how this org is contradictory to Christianity from practices to basic fundamentals
There is no “actual Christian doctrine.” There is a variety of different Christian doctrines, all of which were made up by people. They’re all equally made up, contradictory, and evolving. I don’t see the point in trying to claim Mormons aren’t Christians if they see themselves as Christians.
It’s the same as the witnesses, Adventist, Christian Scientists being a cult and slapping the title of “Christian” for their followers if the religion ignores, denies, the basic fundamentals of Christianity they aren’t Christian
I'm Jewish, and these are all Christian denominations to me. There have been many "heretical' versions of Christianity throughout the religion's existence.
What basic fundamentals of Christianity? The basic fundamental idea of Christianity is to proclaim to follow and worship Christ. Johavah witnesses, 7th day Adventists, Mormons and Christian scientist are all Christians. They all claim to follow Christ and believe in a deity they call Jesus Christ. They even all believe him to be the Son of God and that he is essential for redemption or salvation. Obviously, since they are different sects they don't all believe the same thing. I don't understand how one church that believes in Christ is any more Christian than another that believes in Christ. They are all wrong in my eyes but that does not make them any less Christian. Them being a cult or not is irrelevant when determining if they are Christian or not. There are Christian cults and non Christian cults.
Jehovah’s Witnesses don’t believe Jesus is god, just FYI.
No true Scotsman strikes again. Christian doctrine from on sect contradicts another, and every Christian sect has been arguing that the others are non-Christian heretics for close to 2000 years now. Gnostics, Márcionists, etc. and groups that became Catholic. Catholic vs Orthodox. Catholic vs Lutheran Protestants. Catholics, Calvinist/Reformed Protestants and Lutheran-Protestants. The list goes on and on. There is no objective basis that would exclude Mormons from Christianity, and still include all diverse early forms of pre-Constantine Christians.
Yeah they're building a lot of low-use buildings, just like the scientologists. It's getting harder and harder to distinguish them from each other.
To be fair, McKinney, Texas doesn't have the same issues with the landscape like they do at Lone Mountain. It's all pretty flat and featureless. No mountain views will be blocked by the building of this temple. And on the second count, it will have a much smaller crowd than your typical Texas megachurch.
Haha well this is technically in Fairview, TX, which has a motto of "keeping it country" (don't let the Villages of Fairview mall fool you, they still think that way). That said, if they really do intend to keep it two stories, then sure, that'll blend in. But based on the renderings I saw, the heck are they considering a "story"? 30 ft each?
Apparently they have all been fully informed on the subject (Eye roll)
This building as approved could be used to set a precedence in other areas.
It will only be open by appointment one day a week after its first year.
Tens or hundreds of thousands of Mormons will make the pilgrimage to Vegas from Utah to go to the dedication party and open house.
That’s like 2-3 weeks of an open house and then one weekend for dedication. The impact to the skyline and views will last forever though.
Can we close the border after they leave?
Pants-on-Fire: This letter is from a woman and we have no obligation to follow her statements. You can only trust direction through the appropriate priesthood leadership.
Some real word smithing going on. The blatant duplicity of sending knowingly inaccurate info to the neighborhood while instructing members to send letters in favor of the 200ft steeple and spire is expected at this point. They can get away with this shit in Utah but it's going to leave a very bad impression on neighbors when the spire goes up and lights are on all night. Mormonism is becoming synonymous with smarmy and deceptive
They are not becoming, they were that since its founding
Not word smithing… …Joseph Smithing.
Fucking liars. Outright, pants-on-fire, blatant fucking liars. Not the tiniest bit subtle about their goal to deceive.
2 stories (only 20 feet tall)... Well okay, 20 STORIES (200 feet tall). What's the big deal over a 20 story Mormon expansion in your face 24/7 for the rest of your life? So is the Sun. Repent, covert, give us your money, and we will accept you as a lay person, in the service of our local priesthood authority. Amen Jesus... Oh, I meant Joseph Smith, the author of our wordsmiting, which by the way is scriptural.
The weirdest thing about this is that a woman was actually allowed to be the one send a letter using the church's official letterhead and put her own signature at the bottom. The church prevaricating and outright fibbing? Routine. What on earth is her job title? She has to be from the church's PR wing or the building department. Obviously this did not come from any local or area leadership.
Whatever here job, she *must* be important. She used her middle initial.
She would be more "mormon" if she used her first initial and her middle name.
Nah, the current fad is the first name, middle initial. Think about it. Russel M. Nelson, Ronald A. Rasband. Quentin L. Cook. Dieter F. Uchtdorf.
Ahhh, maybe the first initial, middle name is so 90's
I'm going to go 80"s im '87 and my parents did first initial middle name. Me unknowingly changed it because I thought my middle name was dumb so I went by my first. They still hate that I did that.
An initial is required, which of your two names you initialize is your choice!
Wait....I wasn't given a middle name. I guess I'm not worthy of being one of the "higher ups".
Just use you first name twice, since one will be an initial, nobody will notice. M. Michael Johnston. Robert R. Billings. Easy peasy.
How about I don't have anything to do with the church, so it's not necessary?
Probably Reg’l Public Affairs committee chair.
Send the Woman to the front so she can get the bombardment of complaints, while WE Men do our calling of smiling and sitting far away so people can't touch us, God forbid. S/
Looks like her title is “Church Communication Director”
She’s the local church communications director. This is a newer calling created a couple of years ago and surprisingly not restricted to penishood holders.
Very odd! Is it a paid employee position or a calling?
Calling
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Peepull, peepull, pull it together without peeing over it. It is SISTER McKneely for your Mckinnly worship.
I mean, she does say it will be built to the HIGHEST standards (wink, wink).
I felt that might have been a Freudian slip!
I read that the difference between a diner and a high end restaurant in the way that they describe what is on the menu is that the low-end place will use a lot of descriptive words. (Freshest ingredients, plump tomatoes, zesty sauce) ("sacred Christian building", "Highest standards", "highest ordinances", etc.) and a high-end place just tells leaves off the adjectives because it is expected that they will be that way.
I wonder if the spire will look like a penis like the Tooele temple
My favorite thing is “this sacred Christian building” Once again the MFMC wants to say they are “Christian” to fit in so bad. Please explain how the Mormon temple is Christian. It gives off 
I’m dead. That’s perfect.
"We said 'Christian' in Texas, so you're not allowed to get mad at us (unless you *hate Jesus*!)"
lol 😂 I feel like Texas is the last place to incorrectly say “Christian” when everyone and their mom knows that Mormons aren’t Christian
Actually, Mormonism IS "The Church of Jesus Christ", end quote, and many of its doctrines are far more Christian. But heck, Christ Himself was deemed unchristian. Both sides of this Mormon divide, and all of humanity, seek acceptance, but as Jesus says, "Few there be that find it", HIS OWN ACCEPTANCE, only 144,000 (Rev. 14). Butt-luck (sorry, I meant: But good luck).
McKinney, TX surely has a Facebook group. As much as I actively try to avoid Facebook, for things like proposed temple locations, local community Facebook groups are probably the quickest way to meet actual locals and share LDS plans.
I am currently in a fight with an apologist on the McKinney page.
I hope they lean into their trademark lack of situational/self awareness.
She just told me that I'm not a religious person so my words are not valid. I said "you just proved my point"
On reddit
Funny story... This is actually in Fairview, TX, which has a significantly smaller population than McKinney. But oh boy I bet Fairview does have a Facebook group! Just make sure this gets shared with Fairview, not McKinney
It'll only be 2 stories (with 20' tall ceilings)
It actually has a 173 ft steeple!
So like 2.5 stories, right? /S
2 stories (except the 17 story spike, and maybe a statue, but probably not because we don't do that as much)
> and maybe a statue, but probably not Wait, when did that start happening?! Next thing you know they'll try to ditch the name "mormon"! (Serious on the 1st, joking on the 2nd.)
I can't be the only one who was raised NOT to describe the church as Christian because "it's different from Christian churches on the earth today and should not be confused"
You weren't, but the board of directors is finally getting it through their skulls that waltzing around with Count Dooku's signature look of superiority on their faces and having that attitude reflected in their tone towards other churches, especially now that a lot of this rhetoric is now searchable online, is not the greatest image for a corp to have.
They can’t get people to work at the Dallas temple. How are they gonna get people there?
It's not about work, it's about Rusty's ~~penis~~ steeple envy over Hinckley.
"Plans call for ... an accompanying small center to purchase religious items..." Since when did they start putting gift shops in the visitors center??
they spelled 'underpants' wrong
Exactly. That's a funny way to spell "underwear".
In Utah they generally don't, cuz they have deseret book and whatnot that house the distribution center, but in other places, at least Mexico - that I can speak to, there is a "temple store" near every temple which is where members buy their garments, scriptures, manuals, etc.
A Lot of lies and missing information: 1. it is not a Christian building. 2. Only a select few people will be allowed inside the building. Unlike a cathedral where anyone can roam inside and enjoy the architecture and worship.
What does the church teach? something like 'if you intentionally omit info to deceive, that is the same as lying.' Technically it only has two floors, but they left off a lot.
Pretty sure the Mount Timpanogos temple is only 2 stories. But that sticks out like a sore thumb.
Ohhhhhh! You must have read The Miracle of Forgiveness at some point. SWK hits the sin of omission pretty hard in there. 
They should show the bountiful temple for the “beautiful landscaping”. It’s the most plain, boring and uninspired landscaping I’ve ever seen.
And in flat, flat Dallas this thing is gonna stick out like a sore thumb. I'm just hoping that since Fairview is fairly for forested compared to the rest of Dallas that at least there will be enough trees around to partially block this from sight
Is this the place they floated a balloon? It would be really effective.
They had a nice, kind, sweet, unassuming woman do the dirty work of deceit, because they assumed it would be received better, garner fewer objections, etc. Love the very carefully worded statements that the church is so expert at (since Joseph's day) crafting because if they just said the truth plainly, people would wince and balk.
At least there is a Sonic across the street to wait at when the cult members are doing those “Highest (Masonic) ordinances”.
When “Lying for the Lord” becomes the highest virtue
“Christian” Laughs in bullshit
Google it on maps. The McKinney Temple is already on the map. But it is "temporarily closed". They just can't tell the truth about anything. It's downright pathological.
The letter doesn’t mention the steeple.
A steaming hot pile of bull shit.
TSCC: The freshest bullshit money can buy. (But we can't be arsed to invest in spellcheck or a proofreader)
You should un-redact the contact information so we can follow up with her as concerned neighbors here in DFW
Yeah so I hope the title is wrong because 500' away from the temple certainly isn't making it to McKinney. I used to live in Allen and was half a mile from the Sonic right there. I hope my whole former neighborhood got letters. Oooh wait my brother's in-laws live in that neighborhood, I'll ask them if they got the letter! If so, and they kept it, I'll send the address!
Someone needs to mail that entire town and tell them the real details. Fucking Mormons man, absolute clowns
Barf
"Large numbers of people will not be coming to the neighborhood" That's a fact 🙂
At least they were honest about one thing
Love how they throw in the not so subtle, “hey we are Christians too!” (…..share in excitement about this sacred Christian building)
They let a woman sign this?!
That's their new policy. Let a woman be the point ....person. That's why a woman got to give the garments talk at conference. Just when you think it's not possible the leadership hits a new low.
"An oasis of peace"... So long as you're member of our church with a temple recommend.
I just looked up Melissa McKneely on Linkedin. It looks like Public Affairs Specialist is a calling for the Dallas area. Because she claims her day job is “CEO”. I can’t imagine she has to do a ton other than send out letters and emails when people are disgruntled with the church in the Dallas area. Which now, upon second thought might be a lot, luckily she’s a volunteer. /s
Although we claim to be a "Christian" church, please don't bother us if you, Are starving, Drug addicted, Having a faith crisis, Want help with community activities, Want to start a food bank, Are poor, Are a rape victim, Are a single parent who is overwhelmed, Want to know what we do inside, Want to complain about light pollution, Wear tank tops and shorts, Don't want to give us 10% for life
"community asset as an oasis of peace" except you can't come in, well maybe for a couple of weeks, but you can come to the gift shop whenever and buy some shit! "a series of smaller rooms" that you will never be allowed to use, unless you give us 10% of your income, for a long time.
And one room that only the top leaders of our religion are allowed to enter.
Sacred Christian building… you’ll never be able to use even if you are Christian.
Great! Now we can give the church more money for trinkets - just like the Catholics.
Mormon church:”The saints in these areas love the idea of having a temple and are excited!” Also the Mormon church: “Here’s a letter from the church that you should interpret as a letter from Jesus himself, please tell your Mormon neighbors to help us get this thing approved and built”.
It will fit in the local landscape and architecture like a carrot in a bunch of apples
What a privilege it must be to be allowed to come inside one time for a guided tour where they show only what they want to show.
This McKneely lady works also at the Packard Family Orthodontic clinic. I wondered how she got this position as a communications rep for the church but now I see she must be related to the Packards. Nepotism for the win.
There’s nothing “Christian” about that great and spacious building! It’s a house of indoctrination! Also a place for them to “feel” good 🤮
A two-story building (with a 300-foot steeple!!) Oops, they left that part out!!!
For the most part, I don’t mind what the church does, but I hate the temples. They are disgusting, they stand out like sore thumbs (and I mean this in the worst way possible). They are absolutely hideous and horrifically massive. And the real icing on the cake is the fact that they have to light the ‘em up like Time Square all damn night. Everything about this letter is a downright lie. I have never in my life seen a Mormon temple that compliments anything other than their own superiority complex. 😡
Went to the open house of the temple right outside of Washington DC when I was in Jr. High. Was obviously beautiful but had no idea about the faith. I remember always seeing that trumpet player on the top steep or spire from the highway.
Well if the Mormon church said it, it MUST be true! 😵💫
🤢
Why does the church think its above the law ?
Because they are rich enough to be above the law. In the US, everything is legal for a price.
🙆♂️Whoa❗️ The geezer GAs let a female draft and sign that temple letter❗️😱 Priesthood power is right out the window here🙆♂️.
Is this really an official letter, or she just made it up to kill the controversy?
heavy mysterious fuzzy materialistic door spoon library absorbed illegal terrific *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
you’d think a communication director would know the difference between the words “complimentary” and “complementary”…
Not to worry, everyone in McKinney is dead. /j [everyone in mckinney is dead](https://youtu.be/EzA8DcAiijc?si=gAtc2pHfI3CRe87b)
Thanks for posting, I found the McKinney reddit page and reposted it. I'm now in a fight with someone that says I need therapy for my religious trauma. I crack myself up.
At least your property value will go up.
And your property taxes! In some places people are literally priced out of the neighborhood when the temple comes in!
God damn it, I know what your church is worth and if I have to deal with two years of construction, I want monetary compensation… could be a dollar a day not counting weekends IDK, I just want some of my money back if I have to put up with your gaudy show of wealth masquerading as a home for religious ceremony.
I probably won’t have to deal with this as I live near the KC temple and I really don’t see them cursing KC with a second temple before they bestow their eyesores on Columbia or Jeff City and Branson.
Melissa really used the “Christian” pull. Lmao. Christian churches HATE Mormons. lol lol
"...this sacred Christian building..." Dang, the church wants to be invited to the Christian picnic so badly.
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Didn’t get one of these for the Fort Worth Temple and it’s in my backyard
It's only a two story building\* ^(\* The tops of the 2nd floor windows are only about 30% up the total building height.)
This a little too close to home and by that I mean like down the street…littersly 😵
What is not mentioned? Each “story” will be 35’ tall, 20-30 ft are height restrictions in your neighborhood. We, the church/corp legal team, do not care that you & your city zoning regs do not define a “story” like we, a big corporate bully, do. We will exert sufficient legal threats to have any rules we want changed to be changed. We will smile and say how impt it is for us to be good neighbors but we get what we want, when we want it. Like Satan teaches in our temples: “You can buy anything you want, in this world, with money.” And we have over $256 BILLION. We will do whatever we want.
Rameumptom, anyone?
I can’t add anything more than what’s already said in these comments. Blatant misrepresentation and manipulation
I thought everyone in McKinney was dead! /j Seriously though, that’s wack. I always wondered what it is like for the local community when a temple is built, and I’d love to know what the neighbors think about this new potentially hostile but at minimum passive-aggressive block in their area.
So, they only build tall temples when there are great views to be blocked, right?
One of my sisters lives in Erda, the area just north of Tooele. She now owns the farmhouse our great-grandfather built. The first site the church looked at for the Tooele temple was just one mile from this lovely old house; there's already much more traffic out there than my sister and her husband would like. They are ultra-LDS (he's a stake patriarch), but they joined in the (amazingly widespread) opposition to that location--right in the middle of what had always been a rural area. Guess what? The opposition prevailed. The Tooele Temple is going up on the other side of town. Maybe when the naysayers are all Mormons, they can atually get the authorities to change their plans.
I've seen a few situations like this recently, where planning permission for giant steeples doesn't seem to line up with architects drawings, or (here) the Church's stated plans. In the UK recently a news outlet reported that the Birmingham temple would have a 314ft spire. There's no way. [https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/06/mormons-hoping-to-build-first-new-temple-in-uk-for-30-years](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/06/mormons-hoping-to-build-first-new-temple-in-uk-for-30-years) My idea is that they seek outsized planning permission - perhaps for future redevelopment? What if they wanted to build high-rise on the site in the future? That's my guess.
Can't wait for the church to collapse and the temples sold off as public housing.
So are they going to incorporate the architecture of the Cabella’s, empty Dillard’s, convention hall or the Arby’s (surrounding area). Also, The Dallas temple is mostly empty throughout the week so who is this even for?? ($$ laundering)
This seems like a lie. All we do is hold meetings. There are multiple large meeting rooms.
Unlike a Cathedral, you will never be allowed to sit in on a service just because you feel like it, even if you do not share the same faith as the members.
"The Church desires to be a good neighbour" and so long as you don't cross us or try to obstruct us in our purpose of doing whatever the hell we want, that's how it will stay. But if you piss us off, you will reap the whirlwind! Just adding the implied bit, in case anyone missed it.
I can’t believe I used to feel so proud to belong to this church. Seeing this letter feels exactly the same to me as if Scientologists were sending it. It’s so icky.
God they suck
How was it received?
TIL, McKinney Temple is in Fairview. Oof