Vort

There is no difference between the two. The "Old Testament/Book of Mormon" view of God is the "Christian" view of God.

God cannot murder, any more than God can commit adultery. In a practical sense, I agree. The idea is absurd.In a principled sense, the question is perfectly good. Nephi was commanded to kill, and it was accounted righteous for him to obey. Abraham was commanded to kill his own son, and was praised as righteous for attempting to do so. The Nephites and, by extension, we were and are commanded to defend selves and families, by force if necessary. And now you have them!

Typically, a young man "goes through the temple" (that is, he receives his endowment) at 19 years old, just before serving his mission. A young woman typically receives her endowment just before she marries or, if she serves a mission, just before she enters into her mission service. Older sisters can receive their endowment if they are still unmarried at a later age, or if their husbands are not temple-worthy. I assume that older, unmarried men who did not serve missions can also receive their endowment, but that is just my speculation. You don't say if you're male or female. If you are a man, then men rarely or never receive their endowment earlier than a month or so before entering their mission service at 19. If you are a woman, then women rarely or never receive their endowment while very young (18-20) unless they are marrying in the temple. But these are just general observations. You really should talk to your bishop about this. If you are a man, then remember that you need to be ordained an elder before you enter the temple. If you are not yet an elder, then talk to your bishop or stake president about taking that step.

I would rather be rich than ugly. -- Jack Handey

Dr. Payne (did reconstructive surgery on my ankles when I was 22; an alcoholic, very well-named) Carole Holly (receptionist at BEA when I worked there years ago; a delightful person, also very well-named)

It's really very simple.You pay tithing of 10% of your increase annually. That's all there is to it. If you want specific help in determining what that means, you are always welcome to talk to your bishop. He would be happy to assist you in figuring that out. If you want opinions, then ask here and you will get them. But that is all they will be: opinions. The doctrine of the Church is as I stated above. Anything else is just that person's interpretation or application. For example, my wife and I always tithe our gross (pretax) income. We feel that is the most honest way to tithe, since we enjoy the governmental protections and projects (roads, etc.) from our taxes. On the other hand, we do not tithe income that goes to pay Social Security; instead, we will tithe whatever we actually receive from the government at the time we receive it. Many disagree with our former stand, and many others disagree with our latter stand. But it makes sense to us and it feels right, so that's what we do. If our bishop were to ask us to tithe our FICA withholdings, too, we would, but so far no bishop has bothered to inquire into our tithing past asking if we are full tithe payers.

Are you saying that individuals in Utah are not aware of what they themselves believe? Seriously?Amazing. I've met some people I've considered, let's say, not the brightest bulb in the chandelier, but I have never met anyone so stupid that he doesn't even know his own ideas. Your opinion of Mormons is obviously quite low. Especially since we don't even know our own individual beliefs.

My buddy Jesus Garcia has given blood every five weeks for the last eighteen years. I'd say there must be many people walking around today with a little Jesus in them. (PS I thought your story was touching. Just had to grab the straight line when it was available.)

Amazing, then, that God created us with the capacity to feel guilt, and the scriptures are replete with examples of people being brought to repentence because of their guilty feelings. What do you make of this, Moksha?

Four families in six years = an average of one family every 18 months. A shameful occurrence, to be sure; but given that you are living in a city that is probably a third Mormon and that you are surrounded by Latter-day Saints, meeting one bad apple (or family) every 18 months should not be overly surprising. Like, for example, if they're unfriendly to you when they find out you're not LDS? 4 times in 6 years != common. I assume you help those rascally Latter-day Saints, too. Assuming you don't actually have the ability to read minds, you are inferring a great deal. Uh, yep. So...? In order to have an open mind, you have to believe that everyone else's worldview is correct? No, I disagree. One can have an open mind while still believing another party is incorrect. Or do you want to admit that you're actually as close-minded regarding the Latter-day Saints as they are regarding you?

As your roommate, it is her sworn duty to make your life a living hell on earth. Better get used to it.

This is an amazing statement, Stacey. Do you really believe that a person does not have the right to feel guilty about failing to keep his/her covenants? I find that attitude astounding. I get a significant tax break every year by claiming my tithing and offerings as charitable donations. I would not be able to do that if things were done as you suggest. In order to get a temple recommend, you must be a full tithe payer (or at least claim to be such). Records, of which the Lord has repeatedly commanded the Church to keep, help us know whether we are in fact full tithe payers. Those whose duty it is to make such decisions apparently disagree with you.

Btw, Anderson Silva was off his game in the UFC event. It took him over a minute -- 61 seconds, to be exact -- to knock James Irvin out in his first-ever light heavyweight match. But after that Affliction card, the UFN event was nothing but an asterisk. Good stuff, anyway.

Don't blink

36 seconds?! 36 SECONDS?! Un. be. lievable. I figured Fedor would win, but 36 seconds? Uh-uh. By my count: Sylvia: 1 punch thrown, 0 landed, 0 sub attempts Emelianenko: 18 punches thrown, 18 landed, 1 sub attempt Win, Fedor Emelianenko, 36 seconds round 1 by RNC. WOW

The "easy-to-read" Book of Mormon is called The Book of Mormon. (Technically, I suppose it's now The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ.) Many parents, including my wife and me, teach their children to read from its pages. It's already written in plain, easily-accessible language. Dumb it down and you remove much of the gospel message. Only my opinion, of course. But I happen to be right.

Look, I only point out the important and relevant scriptures. I can't do all the interpretation, too. You think I have nothing better to do than promulgate scriptural exegesis as some random avatar on an anonymous discussion list? Just goes to show, you can lead a horse to water but you can't make him eat the sugar cubes.

Dang. He's onto us. Anyone bring a neuralizer?

Why Big Tim will lose on Saturday (Sorry about the fanboyishness. What can I do? It's Fedor!)

I'd rather watch PG-13 than ever watch an R, 'Cause PG-13 films don't leave as deep a moral scar. I'd rather watch PG than PG-13 films, by far, 'Cause PG's close to G, while PG-13's almost R. - Vort

Sorry, typo. The ref was 3 John, not 1 John. But I figured since I had given such valuable and insightful scripture regarding piercings, I would go the extra mile and provide some helpful scriptures about tattoos, too. Because that's just the kind of helpful guy I am.

I can't tell if you're responding to me or to the OP.

By definition, "good" means things that are Godly or that come from God. Therefore, the "wrath of God" must, by definition, be good. Justice is one of the eternal attributes of God. As Christ taught, we receive wages of him whom we list to follow. The wage of sin is death, which is to say, spiritual death. The wrath of God is the just judgment of God that the unrepentant sinner cannot abide his presence. This is spiritual death, which awaits all those who do not seek after God nor respond when they find him.

But we're not bitter.

As for tattoos, remember 3 John 1:13: "...not with ink..." Crystal clear. I'm Vort, and, yes, I'm here to help.