Elayne

You might want to try reading King Arthur, World History, and the Church. (It's just one book.) It compares religion from Adam & Eve, the Israelites, lost tribes, teachings of Christ, the early Christian church, & reformation, with the restoration of the church by Joseph Smith. Just the kind of thing a good agnostic, or anyone else, might enjoy! It is unpublished, but is free to read on my website. The link is on my profile page under Books.

I have a question about the Law of Sacrifice. I have searched the scriptures and writings of the prophets without finding an answer, and would really like your opinions. Jesus Christ fulfilled the Mosaic law of blood sacrifice when he allowed himself to become the atoning sacrifice for all mankind. In virtually all sacrifices, the blood of the sacrifice was sprinkled on or around the altar of the temple. All secular accounts say that as Jesus hung on the cross, Joseph of Arimathea, his heir to the office of High Priest, took the cup Christ used at the Last Supper and used this same cup to collect some of Christ’s blood as he hung on the cross. History has not recorded whether Joseph of Arimathea then went to the temple and sprinkled some of the Saviour’s blood upon the altar. As heir to the office of High Priest, he was the only person who would have been qualified to perform this ordinance. That responsibility would have been in keeping with the original Mosaic law, and would have fulfilled the law of sacrifice in every detail. What is recorded is that at the moment of Christ’s death, “And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;” (Matthew 27:51). Joseph is then mentioned as having arrived at Golgotha after Jesus’ death (Matthew 27:57, Mark 15:42-43, Luke 23:50-52, John 19:38). Joseph of Arimathea was very close to Jesus and Mary and would not have stayed away from the crucifixion. Therefore it is entirely possible that his recorded arrival was a return from this errand rather than his first arrival. One of the best scriptures regarding this is: Matthew 5:17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. 18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. 3 Nephi 12:17-18 says almost the same thing. 1 Peter 1:2 Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ; …. This is the only verse I have found which mentions sprinkling the blood of Christ, and it is used in the middle of a “hello” and is not clear to me. I must admit that when I first came across the reference to Joseph of Arimathea collecting some of Christ’s blood, I didn’t believe it. But after I came across it the third time, I started to give it some serious thought. I finally decided it might have been like the golden cup of manna, kept as a memorial of a sacred event. It wasn’t until later, as I was studying Jesus and the law of sacrifice that I began to think this might be the fulfillment of that law. What do you think?

Hello, all. I’m a wife, mother, and grandmother with major interests in genealogy and history. When I saw this website mentioned during the recent General Conference broadcast, I felt impressed to seek a few new friends who might share my interest in history. I recently wrote a book (not published) about some of the things I have discovered in ancient history books. It is currently posted on my own website and is free. It began as an in-depth study of King Arthur, but rapidly evolved into world history from Adam to the Restoration. Some of the small, but intriguing bits of history include the names of the women on the Ark, the real identity of Zeus, and how the sword was placed in the stone. A major find was a group of Israelites escaping out of Egypt as the other Israelites were being enslaved. And it is virtually impossible to research King Arthur without running into the Ten Lost Tribes. If this sounds interesting to you, the link to my book is on my profile page. Elayne