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https://thirdhour.org/blog/faith/angels-in-stone-married-baptized-same-day/ Looks like it was published just today. Kandyce and Bob Ciarrocchi (now there's an awesome Italian name!) sound like wonderful people. I'm so happy for them! I hope I and my family can keep some of this pure enthusiasm in our religious lives every day.

Nope, not confused at all. How did this jump to excommunication for breaking the law of chastity with holding hands and kissing? I believe we both recognize there are varying degrees of breaking the law of chastity. That is OK, you can disagree, but it doesn't change what is supported by God, and what has strictly been forbidden by Him. Homosexual acts of any kind, romantic, are a sin. Yes, we permit (or better said God permits) the act of holding hands and kissing between heterosexuals as good as this leads to proper union between ordained marriages. I am honestly not sure how anyone would think that two men or two women romantically kissing isn't breaking the law of chastity.

They've already pre-recorded all of the music. So for conference the actual choir members will be probably located on their individual couches, with plenty of social distance between them .

Yes it is people... As Vort said People not living their covenants as they promised. People not following Chris as they covenanted. I do not see what Prophet is doing as changing the goal posts I see it as a call to repentance. For example... Not looking after your fellows like you should have because you consider Home and Visiting Teaching 'forced friendships?' Well change the name of the program, tweak the reporting side a bit a tell everyone with these superfluous changes we expect 'More care not Less.' That is a paint job, not a moving of the Goal Posts. Some will repent and do what they have been covenanting to do other will not. Shorter church same idea. The goal is a better relationship with Christ that has always been the case. The goal has never been spend three hours in church. However anyone that ever thought that they were doing enough just because they showed up and expected others to carry them is in for a serious wake up call now. Hopefully they will heed the call to repent

I invested a little over $6,500 when the markets crashed significantly. Some of my mutual funds are still riding through the whole crash though. I expect big gains when the market recovers from the money I threw in when the market crashed.

There is a place for everyone in God's plan, from those in outer darkness to the top of the celestial kingdom. Where we place ourself within God's plan is entirely up to us.

1. Even if one of the parties to the hand-holding/kissing happens to be married to someone else? 2. What does the BYU honor code have to do with excommunication?

The key term here is "romantically" holding hands. Do I really need to go any further than that? If so, one is sanctioned by God, the other is not. One is ordained and supported by God, the other is not.

I heard of this line of reasoning before. I informed my evolutionist buddy (who believes in the Big Bang) that I could no more believe in that explosion causing all life to appear than I could believe a tornado blowing through a junk yard could produce a 747 airplane. Another expression I heard - if humans came from monkeys and apes, why do we still have monkeys and apes? 🙂

The past few weeks we had lots of transactions of SELLS from clients we couldn't talk into hanging on and riding it out. Now all kinds of new money is flowing in so we are doing lots of buys right now. Also the 2019 IRA contribution deadline was pushed to the right on the calendar. Lots of people maxing out their 2019 contributions to take advantage of the fire sale going on right now.

Long story, but basically I have a defined benefit pension plan calculated as a percentage of whatever my salary is when I retire (1.5% for every year I’ve worked with them, so if I stay 30 years my pension will be 45% of my retirement salary for as long as I or my wife live). The state re-calculates how much it will cost to fund the plan each year, and if the cost is an amount equal to less than 10% of my current salary, they pour the difference between 10% and the actual cost into a supplemental 401(k). Right now that would theoretically work out to an amount equal to around 2% of my salary going into the 401(k). I could add more to that, of course; but with six kids and student debt we aren’t exactly flush with discretionary cash at the moment.

Concerning the gathering of Jews, I heard that John Taylor might have been responsible for inspiring the Zionist movement. At least, that's what Dr Madsen says in his Presidents of the Church series.

I actually just added one more volume to my library of materials relating to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: a Spanish language quad combo. Santa Biblia/Libro de Mormon/Doctrinas y Convenios/Perla de Gran Precio, a burgundy, leather, thumb-indexed edition.

That is a very interesting answer. It would mean that we are not now fully and completely cut off. But because this is the only existence we can remember, it is easy to not understand what it would mean to be fully and completely cut off. IOW, we take for granted what we have now, even though it's not much. Couple that with knowing what we had as we remember our previous existence, even if only for a moment. I imagine it to be a place that is literally void of any light whatsoever with people who went out of their way to reject what they once had and fight against it. I think it would be a horrible experience to be deprived of all sensory perception.

You see everyone, it really is straightforward. We can leave this matter up to the chastity lawyers and they can assure us that there really is nothing wrong with holding hands or kissing as part of a homosexual relationship. The legal experts have informed us It's all perfectly corban.

Political Power and Physical Nation: The nation of Israel would never have been accepted by the world without the restoration. While the world points to the Balfour Declaration and to UN Resolution 181, as well as the events following it (like the US support) as the mechanism of the formation of the State of Israel, the Lord's time table is much longer. As Latter-day Saints, we point to the Dedication of Palestine for the Return of the Jews. The nation of Israel was not formed by man's hand, but by the Hand of God, through the power of the priesthood held by His appointed servants. No man taketh this honor unto himself, but he who is called of God as was Aaron, by a living prophet of God like Moses. Spiritual Gathering: The spiritual gathering is about temple work and about family lines coming together. While we have individuals from each of the houses of Israel, the gathering was to be en masse. And for the smaller houses, even the establishment of the nation of Israel cannot really be thought of as fulfilling that. So, this is at some future date. What we do know is that the spiritual gathering is not merely gathering as a political nation, but as servants of the Lord Jesus Christ. How many Jews in Israel can claim faith in Jesus as the Messiah? Very few. We in the Church have been primarily gathering those of the House of Ephraim. When the reeds have formed a wall against the wind, the remaining houses will gather, not in the Old Jerusalem, but in the New Jerusalem established by His Church and Kingdom on earth. And that ain't the UN.

Some coronavirus Australian oddities that might interest or bemuse you: Schools are still officially opened but State governments are begging parents to keep their kids at home. I think that attendance rates are down to about 10%. A few days ago I received a text message, the two sentences of which say “Hi, your health is our number 1 priority. That’s why we made the tough call to close all our branches across the country.” This was from my health insurance provider. Last Tuesday the government ordered that appointments with hair dressers and barbers cannot be for more than 30 minutes. Less than 48 hours later, they scrapped that limit but asked the cutters and clippers to continue with social distancing practices. Yesterday, gatherings of more than two people, indoors and out, were banned, but the hairdressers and barbers can stay open. A fight is emerging between the federal government and several networks of private hospitals. The hospitals want to shut down and stand down their staff, the government wants them to stay open. It's not clear which way it will go yet. This is a result of the governments ban last week on all elective surgery, which is where the private hospitals get their money from.

The bolded part above simply is not true. The answer: We don't. The realist: "Despite PP's assertion, not everyone wants the gospel. They view its covenants as restrictive and take joy in their own carnality. Until they are willing to abandon their worldly, fleshly, natural-man desires, they cannot and will not embrace the gospel." Amazing. Because, you see, I believe in a loving God, and I also believe that if you don't embrace and live as a part of the kingdom of God, then you cannot possibly receive the blessings God offers you—because those blessings are found within the kingdom of God. Not so. No such dissolution is taking place. That is a figment of your imagination. Wrong, wrong, wrong. The answer to our problems is for people to humble themselves, repent, and come unto Christ. Putting a fresh coat of paint on the walls may make the walls slightly more appealing, but it doesn't change the basic nature of the building. People come unto Christ or they do not. The problem doesn't lie in the fact that we're not luring them well enough. The problem lies in the fact that they do not want to abandon their fornications and make themselves clean so that God can bless them.

From time to time I have looked back through the rear view mirror of life and pondered how ready I was for important things. I could give several examples but I will use the example of my mission. I had looked forward and prepared for my mission from my youth. I had worked and saved to pay for my mission. When I served there were 6 discussions - I had committed all of them to memory more than a year before my mission call. There were 250 basic scriptures - I memorized all those as well. I came of age for my mission at the height of the Vietnam conflict and spent 2 years in the army to insure I could serve a mission and while serving in the military - I assisted (with the spirit) of bringing over 2 dozen converts. I believed I was ready. I was not ready to be arrested by the FBI as the prime suspect in a murder - in my first area. I was not prepared for poor leadership among the missionaries. I was not prepared for missionaries that would rather be home than on their mission. I was not prepared for a convert that would lie about their belief so they could be baptized for the primary purpose to defraud and rob a wealthy member. I was not prepared to interview converts for baptism - in particular my first such interview with a young teenage girl that thought she was sexually impure and unworthy for baptism because she has kissed a guy. And I was most unprepared for a homosexual struggling to repent and change their heart. I could list many more. But with all this and those I taught on my mission - I was astonished how quickly the spirit could turn a heart to repentance and prepare someone for baptism. I believe every person alive today has all they need to be able to repent and accept the Savior when he returns - even if it is tomorrow. However, it is my prejudice that those that think in their pride that (like me when I received my mission call) that they are prepared - are likely to be surprised and struggle wondering how they could have not prepared - like the 10 virgins without oil. And that those what when Jesus returns fall at his feet and plead for forgiveness of all their failings and beg for mercy - are likely to be the most ready. The Traveler

"Adam" in the Hebrew is not necessarily a proper name of a person. The Hebrew word means "a human" or "mankind." I was reading about this recently, and I find it fascinating. A recent translation of the Hebrew Bible by the Jewish scholar Robert Alter renders Genesis 1:26 like this: "Let us make a human, in our image, by our likeness...." Alter's footnote about this says the Hebrew "adam" here means "a human," and it discusses the original Hebrew text thus: "The term 'adam, afterward consistently with the definite article [the, as in 'the adam'] which is used both here and in the second account [Genesis chapter 2] of the origins of mankind, is a generic term for human beings, not a proper noun. It also does not automatically suggest maleness, especially not without the prefix ben, "son of," and so the traditional rendering "man" is misleading, and an exclusively male 'adam would make nonsense of the last clause of verse 27." Alter translates Genesis 1:27 like this, formatting it as poetry: "And God created the human in his image, in the image of God He created him, male and female He created them." Modern prophets have indicated that Adam was a real person, and that the story of Adam and Eve has great spiritual value. But I think we have to be careful assuming Genesis is a literal historical account, the way we would understand modern history. It is the creation story of the ancient Hebrews, passed down from unknown authors and times, and codified around 300 BC when the Hebrew Bible as we have it was put together, if I remember correctly what I've read from Bible scholars.

I think polygamy is an interesting topic in many respects. Brian and Laura Hales have recently published an excellent, in-depth study of the history and doctrine surrounding this topic: Joseph Smith's Polygamy: Toward a Better Understanding https://www.amazon.com/Joseph-Smiths-Polygamy-Toward-Understanding/dp/1589587235 If you want a lot more detail, they have an additional 3-volume series as well. Addressing the OP, if I remember correctly, the Hales' books would indicate the following: The popular idea that polygamy is a higher law that we all would ideally be following is not necessarily doctrine. Joseph Smith did indeed resist the commandment to him and obey it with great reluctance. This was partly because of his concern about how Emma would react. (His worries were confirmed ) Joseph Smith submitted to polygamy out of obedience. Polygamy was very difficult to live. (It was not some sort of sex party, as some people with more lurid imaginations have assumed.) We don't know all the reasons for why polygamy was instituted in the church (although the Hales' books do examine these questions in depth). My personal take-away from reading these books is that polygamy was given by the Lord to early modern church leaders as a lesson and challenge in obedience. (Only a minority of LDS practiced polygamy in the 1800s.) We don't know all the why's about it. The Lord's mind and ways are not our own. "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are my ways higher than your ways, And my thoughts than your thoughts" (Isaiah 55:9). Brigham Young did supposedly make a lot of statements saying polygamy was a higher law. However, I always chuckle at this quote supposedly from him: "The introduction of the doctrine of polygamy was the first time in my life that I desired the grave, and I could hardly get over it for a long time. And when I saw a funeral, I felt to envy the corpse its situation." -- Brigham Young Of course the go-to place to begin to understand this is the church's official Gospel Topics Essay: Plural Marriage in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-topics/plural-marriage-in-the-church-of-jesus-christ-of-latter-day-saints?lang=eng

Following Christ means following in his footsteps. Keeping his commandments. Doing as he did. Joining his kingdom, putting your shoulder to the wheel and pushing along. So yes, eventually, people who follow Christ must indeed be "active Mormons". I know that disturbs the Universalist fantasies of many, apparently including yourself. But that's the doctrine.

I don't know that I've ever felt micromanaged before. Maybe there have been certain individuals guilty of that but I haven't witnessed anything wide spread. Actually just the opposite. More and more what we are seeing is a moving away from lists of do's and dont's to being led by the Spirit. This is in response to an increasingly polarized world which is actually bringing about a condition that Christ sought for: being hot or cold and not simply lukewarm. It is also prophesied that there will eventually be a division among the people which is necessary because when the Savior comes everyone on the planet must fall into one of two categories: wicked enough to be destroyed or righteous enough to live in the Millennium, not perfect but righteous enough. So while we don't want to drive people away by stressing the need to be progressing to do anything less would be a failure on our part to have warned our neighbor for what's ahead. I have a feeling though that when push comes to shove many lukewarm saints will finally jump back in with both feet, that's my hope anyways.

The first sentence is clearly false. The Church in no way micro manages thoughts and beliefs of its members. The higher amount of inactivity is due to personal choice and faithfulness. This is plainly taught in the parable of the sower and also in Lehi's vision. If the Church micro managed people's thoughts we wouldn't have the Journal of Discourses. The meaning of Joseph Smith's statement is already clear and plain. How would it take on any new meaning.

I would say, "No." When the Lord commands that is always the perfect time, whether or not we hearken or listen to is a matter of our personal faith and faithfulness.

What a sad story that a young man while on his mission is arrested for child pornography. https://www.deseret.com/2020/3/5/21166546/missionary-mormon-arrest-california-later-day-saint-child-pornography

THERE’s a dismal career path . . .

My retirement is...not well...at this point. It's gone to a bad place. I AM retirement age...so...that's how the wheel spins sometimes. I will double down on the suggestion to donate to fast offerings. I think the way things are going that we are into some deep financial difficulties in the US coming up. If Trump's hopes that we all get back out by Easter, we MIGHT avoid a depression. I think that a depression may be just around the corner though if we are not already entering into one soon. I think there are many that are currently out of work or not working and that the next few months will see a great need for Fast Offerings to be given. I cannot deny my own worries about income and other items (thus far, still have the same income...but I have no idea what's coming up next with all this) so hope I'm not the hypocrite on this and can offer a good sized fast offering myself to help others in the next few months. I personally feel it will be needed or at least useful.