Well those Mormons were back again... and they brought that third person along for 'moral support'.

The two missionaries who came door-knocking the first time were actually relatively reasonable people. Well, maybe 'reasonable' is the wrong word - respectable? Maybe.

But Mormon Number Three was a totally different breed. He was what I would describe as a fundamentalist. He did not allow any reinterpretation or cherry-picking of either the Bible or the Book of Mormon. How he manages this is beyond me - but he made it pretty clear that he thought I should convert immediately... OR ELSE!

The first 'session' I spent with the two Mormon missionaries was an entertaining - though baffling - experience. They seemed open to criticism and attempted to come up with answers. When they couldn't, the admitted it. This time, it was not entertaining. It was just baffling.

I fail to grasp how people can believe such nonsense and not notice the contradictions. Of course, early indoctrination, no doubt, aids the process. But you need to be pretty blind to never see the problems - because there are just SO many!

Mormons believe (or these did anyway) that 'God' has a Divine Plan which he put into motion around 6000 years ago when he created Earth. On the other hand, he also created/has created several other 'Earths' so the universe itself, they concede, need not be only 6000 years old. Obviously, the Earth is not only 6000 years old - but lets leave that aside for now.

So God created The Plan before he created humans in the form of Adam and Eve (more nonsense there of course). In competition with Satan, God attempted to bribe souls into consenting to be sent to Earth to live out their mortal lives. If they obeyed him, they'd get to go to the 'Celestial' realm (heaven). If they were good people but not great (in God's eyes), they'd stick to Terrestrial - the rest go to the Telestial plane. Satan has a better offer - he suggested the souls do as he says and they can all stay with him for eternity - no need to waste time on Earth trying to earn his approval.

Cute story. But why? God is all-knowing. You would think his omniscience and omni potence would mean he could snap his fingers and ensure everyone is perfect and gets to spend eternity with him. "No!" they tell me, "that violates our free will!"

Well I'm tired of that argument. If there is a god - any omniscient type - free will cannot exist. It's as simple as that. She knows what's going to happen. Not only does she recognize what our decisions will be - she also knows her own. An omniscient god not only makes for a predetermined world for each of us, it even eliminates her own freedom to make decisions. (Which then means she's not omni potent either - there goes 'God' - oops!)

But what gets me isn't so much this flaw in the fefinition of 'God' - after all, can 'God' make a rock too heavy for him to lift? No, what bothers me is that people feel a god who sends us to Earth to prove ourselves - when he knows perfectly well what's going to happen already - is considered 'loving' and deserving of piety. The idea that we needed to be 'saved' - from a situation he created - and that we should be thankful for this. And if we're not? He's going to punish us! What an ass!

Anyway - however hard I tried to explain the problems to the Mormons, they replied in the same way - you must have Faith.

So I gave up and moved on, "How can I have Faith?"

So out comes the King James Bible...

I was read some passage from John - something about Praying with a Genuine Interest in the Answer and with Faith in God... "Then you'll get your answer."

Umm... right... I need faith first, then I'll be 'blessed' with faith...

Their response was something about seeds...