Islander

Sure. But the point was that in fact that is "learned" theology rather than logic or intuition. People in other parts have "learned" to worship stones or sea shells. Equally, some Christians have "learned" to use the cross as a symbol of their faith but it need not be so. It was not so in early Christianity.

I continue t see the subject brought up again and again and thus it seems that marriage is one of the great social hurdles of this generation. I can not help but think that people are the ones ill-equipped to socialize and and find a mate. Marriage and courtship remains the same (different flavors) but it is still a basic pillar of society; "boy meets, likes, dates, marriages girl." The same holds true in every country in recorded history. But here in the US more and more people seem unable to accomplish that task and facet of life. Regardless, it seems that the problem lays with "people" and not the ritual. I wish I could be of more help.

Amen!!! Look at California. In 6 years the state bureaucracy has increased by 20%!!! Why should my tax dollars go to support programs that I find philosophically and even morally objectionable? It is very likely that we would move out of California next year. Some 20% lower tax (other states) sounds very appealing right now.

This is an old and endless debate. The resistance about baptism comes from the need to acknowledge (therefore) that one having authority MUST perform it. If Jesus Himself spoke in clear and transparent terms about baptism and subjected Himself to it it stands to reason that it is a requirement. The Apostle Paul, having received a revelation from Christ Himself was soon after baptized. Pointing to a letter among friends and co-religioners that merely brushes on the subject as a side issue is just short-sighted. It is just a letter, not a thesis in Christian theology designed to dissect item by item all points of doctrine. At the end some will believe and some will not. That is the reason for NEW revelation; to put to rest the philosophy of men and raise up God's word. Much of what the Apostles did was just that, clarify and expound. But even then (3 John 8-9) as now, some will reject the word of God in favor of their own doctrine.

It is a matter of indoctrination and tradition. For those with no religious traditions or reference to the cross, it would not accur to them to adopt it as a symbol of their newly found faith. It was not so for the first few hundred years of Christianity and remains so now. It is completely counter intuitive to elevate an instrument of death to a sign of worship.

And technology, creativity, innovation, futuristic, imaginative....But I still think Spanish remains the celestial language....ehem, ehem....Just my bias...

It seems that evangelical Christianity has gone to great length to push the idea that God has spoken, dictated His word and made clear His expectations to us (the scriptures) and now sits quietly in His throne leaving humanity to fend for itself. Dogma and tradition aside, the notion of a distant disconnected and uninvolved Heavenly Father is completely counter intuitive. My grandmother had her old dilapidated bible to glance but tid bits of wisdom and insight from the scriptures. But she was convinced that God was real, that He acted, intervened and directed the life of His children on earth, that he whispered to them at night, gave them dreams and illuminated their minds when they were humble enough to seek His counsel. She had no preachers, teachers or influences of any kind but her old, faded bible printed in Madrid in 1802. The Gospel makes sense, the word of God finds echo in the desires of our heart to find meaning beyond what life has to offer, to have ope that our existence, love and families do not end at the edge of the grave. It makes sense that since a thousand years is just a minute in His calendar, a millennium ago His word was heard; why not today?

When one is lonely hungry, cold or thirsty you'd be surprised the choices we make to try and satisfy our need. Once the time of crisis passes we say "did I do that? eeeeek!!!" Your current relationship is a band aid. You have feelings of need that are satisfied by this relationship but you are realizing it is not and will never be enough. It is a humbling experience but be strong in order to be honest and call it for what it is. Do what you know you have to do and call it quits. It does not make you a bad person, it does not mean that you are cold hearted witch. Do not listen to Satan but to the Spirit that is leading you to repentance and do the right thing for you and your children. And go talk to your bishop, get some serious counseling and start working on putting your marriage back together. My prayers are with you.

2 days anywhere is not enough time to form an accurate opinion of any culture. If you go to New York or Boston; it is all business, serious discussion, old money, dark suits. San Diego is more lay back, casual, young and diverse but not be fooled. The local economy brings in 4 billion a year. The US is a very large and diverse country. There are parts where you can die on the street and people will step over you on the street without giving a glance back. In other parts EVERYONE will smile and say hello as you pass by.

He needs to get treatment, work on his issues make restitution to the family. And the family MUST stop playing the racket and enabling him. PTSD is not insanity. He has not lost his mind and is no longer capable of rational decisions or to adhere to social norms. He has unresolved traumatic events that create anxiety, insomnia, worry, fear, etc. Justifying his addiction and antisocial behavior will do nothing to help in his recovery. What we feel is never a good excuse to break the law or inflict pain on others.

Yes, it is a right in the constitution; to feel secure in your property and your person. Personal liberty relates to what you can do as a human being in the space that is yours by right.

The argument goes too far when in reality is quite simple. Laws exist to protect property rights. Anything else is an intrusion of the government into private property and encroaching in our liberty and freedom. We have become fat and complacent and allowed the bureaucracy to do the same. Now we have the best paid but poorly qualified and unmotivated bureaucrats entrenched in government which the people are almost powerless to change. Arbitrary and dictatorial laws (and taxes) continue to be enacted by "executive order" with total and complete disregard for the voice of the people. Remember the story about frogs cooked alive by bring the water slowly to a boil? Sounds familiar?

This is an old argument. There is the text and the context. The biblical references relate to a very specific subject and circumstances. I am away from my home computer today and too late and too tired to respond to Snow's argument point by point but I'll try some: Corinth was a port city with a long history of lascivious and lewd practices. The Apostle Paul is providing counsel of how Christian men and women are to be different in dress, appearance and behavior. Imagine a forcing a Tongan man to wear western style pants to go to church. They wear a tupenu (looks like a skirt) and that is fine in Tonga. The counsel for us in California, for example, to wear slacks to officiate in the priesthood does not constitute a condemnation of the dress code in Tonga. As far as some of the rest, do some research about what the word translated "glory" could mean in the Greek original, for example. You must study the context of the passages in question and their meaning: "to live by the sword" means to resort to violence to solve problems or establish authority. In the course of such lifestyle you are likely also to die by the sword...in sum, without detail and dedicated study of these scriptures you may never truly understand them.

Capitalism is a horrible system of government....of course, except for ALL the other ones... People, our socio-political and economic system may be flawed but there is none better...To argue beyond such reality is just being naive to the point where it may not be polite to describe it.

The above title received not attention from the media at all. It just flew under the radar to the bottom of Amazon list. As demographics change, more and more elections will become a pageant based on social and psychological appeal and less about actual issues or substance. This last one was teh first chapter in this new trend. We are witnessing the deconstruction of our political system slowly but surely. And, as most people have no experience or insight into any other, the changes may be imperceptible to them. And then it may be too late.

It is, after all, no longer reporting but ideological positioning. Most of the press in the US no longer adhere to former ethical mandates of the profession, e.g. to bring truthful and unbiased information to the public. Now it is all about opinion shaping and ideological posturing to push the agenda and catering to the political task masters and sponsors. Very sad.

The ideal is noble but in practice the system is not functional. Nobody lives in fear of getting sick in America. We already have the largest social safety network and top medical care in the world. it is call Mediaid. The issue is when 90% of the cost is shouldered b 10% of the people. The issue is when the government takes upon itself to become the ruler and master of the people bloating itself and loading the people with unfair taxes to support their vision of and ideological construct.

He had no point. ust a hit and run. We should be done with the thread. PS: Snow, your avatar is soooooo freaky...

Sorry the initial response was not what you expected. You also must understand that when you stated you have been a member all your life it raises logical questions about the truthfulness of the statement or your actual level of activity in the Chruch. You may have been a member of record but may have not attended seminary or institute, did not attend Gospel Essentials or Sunday School, did not read the sciptures or Gen. conference. If so, you might as well be a non-member and perhaps it would have been understandable your limited knowledge and insight into the subjects in question. Another red flag, at least for me, was that you come to the forum frantic, racked with doubt and despair about theological and historical issues that you should at least be familiar with. There are significant resources on the Church website and in readily available texts in every chapel in the world. But you come to this, a non-church website, an open and for all practical purposes (since you have no idea) potentially inaccurate source of information. If you are relying on the information you find here to help you solve your spiritual doubts and struggles you may be indeed in deep trouble. You should seek the counsel of your bishop and develop a study and teaching program with the Elders. You should seek to gain a witness of the Spirit and the Restoration of the Gospel before you try and tackle other historical and theological issues that for the most part have no bearing on your salvation. Just some thoughts.

I think is vile and repulsive to trivialize the word of God in such a way. I think it points to a particular agenda. and that such translation can not and will not inspire anyone as the Spirit will not partake of profanity. You can not blaspheme His name and invoke His Spirit in the same sentence.

I have gained over 1.5 lbs for every year I have been in the US to a total of 34 over my historic 180 lbs. My doctor is not concerned as of yet given that my blood pressure is still 120/75. He figures I am doing quite well, he said: "considering that your people can survive on crab legs, a tomato and mango juice for desert, you are doing much better than the rest." I told him, "hey, I am a Mormon now so I carry my food storage with me. It saves space at the house."

One must not forget that it was thru translations (interpretations) that the word of God came to mean different things to different people at different times. I can read and speak in several languages and can attest to this fact. I love Isaiah, for example. In English is quite beautiful, with poetic and very rhythmic prose. In Spanish or Portuguese is quite messy, archaic and disjointed. No concordance or cross reference exist due to very poor translations which have not been revised to this date. The meaning, beauty and the spirit contained in the passage is lost in translation, literally.

Have you ever seen two fishermen arguing about the "one that got away"? They were both on the same boat that day but depending on who you ask the fish was 500 lbs and the largest in recorded history (of the area) or it wasn't. They will never agree on those facts since they could not actually get the fish out of the water!!! We either believe the prophets or we don't. Since none of us were there to witness the revelation.

Just ban him and close the thread

JIM: There is nothing "fishy" here, Jim. Precisely because you know absolutely nothing about the subject, any opinion you may have lacks any value in the exchange. You should sit this one out. The questions raised are valid based on the assertion of the OP. The encouragement to do research is also quite valid. There are no new questions in this forum. The same questions have been asked for almost 200 years so it would be wise for some to go and search on their own and seek clarity and discernment from the Lord after that.