bytebear

Baptism was not instituted at the time of Christ. It was practiced prior to his Birth by the Nephites (1 Nephi 20), and evidence of baptisms (sacred washings) was done by Jews prior to Christ's appearance (Isaiah 48). They may have been a symbol of what was to come and may have had a different understanding of the purpose, but the practice or some similar practice did exist. As for Baptism for the Dead. I don't know.

I think you are mistaking me BYTEBEAR with Bytor. We are not the same person. What I am condemning is bias in media. Treating one side or one person better than the other. Right now it's primarily about Obama more than liberalism in general. After all, they pretty much hacked up Hillary Clinton in the primaries in favor of Obama. You claim Fox didn't criticize Bush, but that's not the question. The issue is how media outlets are treating standing administrations. Fox certainly did cover Bush and his policies far more evenly than MSNBC, the NYTimes, and essentially every other media outlet is treating Obama now. Again, read the books I recommended. As for criticisms. News outlets are not there to criticize. They ere to inform. There should never have been a story about any flubs other than to say, "They flubbed." Unless it is a commentary show, like Beck, Olberman, or O'Reilley, there should be no opinion expressed by a reporter, ever. And I will say, when O'Reilley covered the election, he was very fair, while another reporter "felt a thrill go up my leg". So unprofessional.

I see political power as a pyramid. The top of the pyramid is world governments but they have the least amount of power over individual citizens. Then it goes to Federal, then state, then local, and at the local level is the most power, and control. Unfortunately, the pyramid is slowly turning upside down. The Health Care bill is a perfect example. We are now being given one choice in a universal health care plan. Alternatively we could have 50 different plans, and can actually decide at a state level how we want to take care of the uninsured. I prefer private charities to help those who cannot help themselves. But since all the power is now being given to the Federal government, how can I influence my community to help the poor? It's actually very sad and people will suffer because they will be stuck under one plan, and not have options to try different ways to help other people.

The video is more than a bit misleading. The reason the left leaning media didn't go after Bush prior to the war was because the left wing politicians were all for the war at the time. They all were gung ho on the idea of WMDs and taking out Saddam Hussein. It was only after it became clear that the war was a mistake that the Democrats decided to use it as a political tool and started to attack Bush (while at the same time continually voting to fund the war they pretended to oppose). Now, if you want a far better book on Media bias, I recommend two by the same author: Bias: A CBS Insider Exposes How the Media Distort the News A Slobbering Love Affair: The True (And Pathetic) Story of the Torrid Romance Between Barack Obama and the Mainstream Media Both books are Bernard Goldburg. And unlike the guy on the video, Goldburg gives real examples of how liberal media distorts and hides facts (sometimes without realizing they are doing it) simply because they have a viewpoint that is skewed by their own liberalism. He also used neutral studies that showed that during the 2008 election, Fox News had the most balanced coverage of both candidates. (MSNBC was far more likely to favor Obama, and the rest were not far behind). If you care to discuss bias in the media I would be happy to continue with this discussion. So, back to the original post. CNN did a story on a slip of the tongue, and made it out that the Republican was an idiot. I have given a specific example where Obama also had a brain fart, but there is no media coverage of it, and certainly nothing to the extent that CNN has tried to fry the right wing politician. Then when left leaning (or Obama loving) people on this board see the clip of him talking about 57 states, they start spinning with excuses. "Oh, he was joking" or "He meant that he visited some states twice". No, he said something wrong, plain and simple. He isn't perfect. The bottom line is, if we can't admit when he makes little mistakes, what are we going to do when he makes really big ones, ones that cause people to suffer. The current health care bill being discussed is going to cost a fortune, and take money away from Medicare (i.e. the elderly). There are lots of people arguing against it, but because the media cannot allow Obama to fail, they are ignoring those arguments. And when you feed into that blind ignorance, you are only hurting yourself. A free press was established to be one of the many checks and balances and it is not doing a good job at it lately. When a couple college students can uncover the truth about ACORN, or when it takes the NYTimes over 6 months to acknowledge Rev. Wright even exists and then praise Obama for distancing himself with no discussion of how Obama may have been influenced by his self proclaimed mentor, we have a serious problem.

You can be sealed to deceased parents as well as they are sealed to each other. Any living people must be church members to be sealed to you, so if you have adult children, they would have to members of the church to be sealed to you. I would assume any minor children would convert with you, but that may not be true.

For some their callings are made in the preexistance. Jesus was called to be part of the Godhead in the preexistence. He inherited all that God had before he was born. As part of that calling, he was chosen to be the savior of the world, and had a mission to fulfill, but he was chose for that prior to his birth. Here is a scripture to ponder: Jeremiah 1

Actually, he later claimed he was fatigued, but I do find your attempts at defending his ineptness commendable.

I didn't say they were interchangeable as to content. What I said was it would be easy to have a slip of the tongue and say "constitution" when you meant "declaration" and vice versa. And again, how do you address the biased coverage by CNN?

Nobody had authority from God. That didn't come until the restoration of the Gospel through Joseph Smith. But, there is an implication that God inspired King James to do the translation and that at least some of those who actually did the translation did it with inspiration from God. But no translation would be perfect unless completely directed by God through a prophet. That is why we need the Holy Ghost, to help us discern truth. Even if we had the original words from Peter or Paul, it would be no different than the words of Joseph Smith or Nephi. We still must determine what truth exists in those words for ourselves.

Not really. Both are pretty interchangeable as founding documents of the United States. I can easily see someone meaning to say one and say the other. I am just pointing out the hypocritical inconsistency of CNN in their coverage of such instances.

Nope. The Holy Ghost is a member of the Godhead and he has no body. Assuming you believe the Godhead existed prior to the creation of the Earth, and the Earth was created by Christ, how could he have created the Earth before being a participant on it. Is the issue with LDS belief which is pretty clear on the subject, or it's incompatibility with Trinitarian though?

I actually, thought Stewart's coverage of the lack of coverage by mainstream media on Acorn was far more interesting. Jon Stewart Mocks Media on ACORN Story: ‘Where the Hell Were You?’ | NewsBusters.org I think the mainstream media (other than Fox News) has a long way to go before I will consider them even remotely balanced when it comes to issues that may embarrass or harm the current presidential administration.

Two words: Palm Pre.

The only issue I have with posts like this is when it is one sided. That is where I have a big problem with mainstream media. There are YouTube clips of Obama saying there are 57 states in the Union, among other equally cringable quotes. So, people say stupid incorrect things. In the scheme of things, saying the Constitution instead of the Declaration of Independence is pretty minor. Far more so than adding seven states to the union. The question is, are we treating both sides fairly in our acknowledgment and assessment of what they say? Do you think CNN did a similar story on Obama's flub? And if they did, was it in such a condescending and demeaning tone? This story says a lot more about CNN than it does about Boehner.

You are correct in the decision for KJV or some other translation is unknown. Was it Smith or was it God. But I do know that later prophets have praised the KJV above other English translations. I think it is pretty clear that LDS leaders prefer it to other translations and feel Smith was inspired by it both in translation (of the BoM and the PoGP) and in a standard Bible version for the church to use.

Nope, and you can't legislate people liking you.

Everyone will have an opportunity accept or reject Christ, whether in this life or the next. Those who reject Christ will be in the Telestial Kingdom, those who accept him in the Terrestrial. Only those who covenant through Baptism and live according to that covenant (which includes repentance and renewal through the Sacrament or communion) will receive Celestial glory. It should be noted that this glory only comes after the resurrection. Between death and the resurrection we are in the spirit world, separated into two parts, prison and paradise. This is similar to the heaven and hell of traditional thought, although it is only temporary and resurrection and final judgment comes later. The LDS Topical guide has lots of scriptures on the subject. Topical Guide: Spirits in Prison

God could have used any language He wanted, but He chose to use the language that Smith was most familiar with. If Smith spoke Spanish, we would have a very different translation. If Smith used the Ebonics translation of the Bible, the Book of Mormon would be in that form.

The goal of the government should be to encourage as much competition as possible. Any legislation that regulates business should be about allowing other companies to compete. It should not be about moving from a private monopoly to a public one. All these issues of unfair business practices will iron themselves out naturally once competition exists. Routine medical care should be as common and routine as cell phone plans. Even the poorest of the poor can afford a cell phone. If you are too old to remember Reagan then you are too old to remember Ma Bell. That was when the government ran the telephone service. We all had a big black phone that ran directly into the wall. No voice mail, no answering machines, caller ID, no call waiting, no three way calling. Just a big black box that rang and if you weren't home you didn't get the call, and if they were on the line, all you got was a busy signal. Yep, those were the good old days of government regulated monopolies.

One quick recommendation is don't hide anything from your wife. In fact, share with her what you learn and get her opinion. She may give you odd looks, but at least she won't be feeling left out or that you are spiritually sneaking around.

Oh, the article is fascinating, and it is totally in line with LDS understanding of the Bible and translations. The author just doesn't understand that God chose KJV type language for familiarity and compatibility with a prophet who would likely question such alterations.

I hope this from the article isn't about us. Oh, it is. Obviously this author does not understand the history of Lehi and his knowledge of old world ways.

I LOVE SAN DIEGO! I live in Orange County, CA (near Laguna Beach) but would move to San Diego in a heartbeat if I could get a job down there. For some reason my chosen profession has tons of jobs in this area, and very few there. I will be visiting San Diego this weekend in fact, for a friend's Birthday party.

I am only going to disagree in what we emphasize over what Jesus and the apostles emphasized. They continually emphasize baptism as the gate to salvation (exaltation). Today we know more about the blessings of the temple. But being endowed and sealed do not change your state of being. I think the "higher levels" of the celestial kingdom is not the emphasis of the Gospel, although I think we in the church tend to think it ism. So, it's semantics. but the single, unendowed member is just as saved as the temple married member. Both will live in the presence of God.

I don't know what happened in your life, but I think it better you did not make the temple covenants. It would have made things much harder to get back on track. It sounds to me like you weren't ready, so I trust the council to wait until you are absolutely ready.