Mourning, Right and Wrong

J. Max Wilson tells it like it is, again:

Among some vocal members of the church, there is a growing tendency to employ the phrase “mourn with those that mourn” as a rhetorical weapon. 

This is especially evident among those dissident members who publicly oppose the church and want it to change its policies and doctrines. As a rhetorical trump card it is a remarkably effective way to shut down disagreement and opposition from those who venture to defend the church or its leaders.

…I don’t think we can mourn with those who are mourning because the the Lord will not suffer them to take happiness in acting contrary to his prophets. We can mourn for them. We can mourn their suffering. But we cannot mourn with them, because we are under covenant to serve the Lord, keep his commandments, and stand as witnesses of him even until death.

Turning “mourn with those who mourn” into a overarching slogan is sloppy thinking and dangerous doctrine, especially when it is used in an effort to justify opposition to the prophets and the church.