bytebear

Mormon was the name of an ancient prophet who compiled a book and it was called the Book of Mormon. This book was translated by a modern prophet named Joseph Smith and published in 1829. The next year, the Church of Christ was established, and later named the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. But the locals still called members Mormons for their belief in the Book of Mormon. The nickname stuck and we have it today. But historically, Mormonism should really be referred to as the Latter Day Saint movement. and the church shoudl be called the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or simply the Church of Jesus Christ, or in a pinch the LDS Church, but never the Mormon Church.

I was browsing YouTube, and came across a video of someone opening up their mission call paper and announcing to his friends and family where he would be going, and what language he would be speaking. I have to say, it totally choked me up. The spirit was so strong. Then I noticed another, and another, and ended up watching dozens of videos, all reading the same statement over and over again... What was wonderful was that no matter where they were going to be sent, or what language they would speak, every single one of them was excited and over joyed at their calling. Here are some scriptures that I thought of when watching these videos: These videos have shown me through the sprit that these prophecies are being fulfilled even as we speak every day. Please watch these videos and know that God lives and that Jesus is the Christ and that His work goes forth to all nations.

Have you ever been around someone who didn't get their morning coffee? Grumpy doesn't even begin to describe it.

For me, the letter of the law is justice, and the spirit of the law is mercy. We must use the spirit to know when to how to exercise both in our lives.

Get a Kindel from Amazon, or a netbook with wireless internet. I rarely use my tangible scrptures for research, but go to scriptures.lds.org. I can find what I am looking for much faster, and I love that I can search a word or phrase and find what I need quickly.

The Bible also says Mark 2 24 And the Pharisees said unto him, Behold, why do they on the sabbath day that which is not lawful? 25 And he said unto them, Have ye never read what David did, when he had need, and was an hungred, he, and they that were with him? 26 How he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and did eat the shewbread, which is not lawful to eat but for the priests, and gave also to them which were with him? 27 And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath: 28 Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath. This tells me that if Jesus is Lord of the sabbath, then He can make the rules of observation, including whether it should be on Saturday or Sunday.

Remember, this story occurs under the old law, "an eye for an eye" and all that. There are many stories from the OT where propehts killed for rightious purposes, even though we see them as wrong today. Here's one graphic example: 2 Kings 2: 23 ¶ And he [The prophet Elijah] went up from thence unto Beth-el: and as he was going up by the way, there came forth little children out of the city, and mocked him, and said unto him, Go up, thou bald head; go up, thou bald head. 24 And he turned back, and looked on them, and cursed them in the name of the Lord. And there came forth two she bears out of the wood, and tare forty and two children of them. Dictionary.com defines "tare" as the archaic form of "tear" meaning to pull apart or in pieces by force, esp. so as to leave ragged or irregular edges.

It sounds like you are looking at only one aspect of Heavenly Father. Yes, he is a God of vengence, but also of mercy, of justice and of love. I found it interesting that the LDS Topical Guide has listed along with Vengence, see also "God, Justice of." So, my recommendation is look at the whole picture. God is perfectly just. No one who goes before the judgement bar of Christ will feel they were unfairly punished, because, unlike here on Earth where we tend to blame someone else, we will have a perfect knowledge of all our guilt.

For one who comes from a Trinitarian view of God to understand the LDS view of the Godhead, one must first understand the concept of Theosis, and how it relates to the Trinity. Once one understands that we can all become one with God (in a very literal sense), then one can truly understand how multiple beings called "gods" can, in fact, be one God.

If only cookies converted.

Regarding the cross. LDS do not abhor the cross. LDS military chaplains wear the cross to signify they are Christians. The church does not use the cross in architecture, but it does have depictions of the cross in art when appropriate, and even some older coverted chapels do have crosses in their stained glass and other design. Rather than use the cross to distinguish themselves, they use their actions. This is also why holy rainment are worn under clothing instead of outwardly, because covenants are private and personal, and it avoids boisterous displays President GB Hinkley said " “I do not wish to give offense to any of my Christian colleagues who use the cross on the steeples of their cathedrals and at the altars of their chapels, who wear it on their vestments, and imprint it on their books and other literature. But for us, the cross is the symbol of the dying Christ, while our message is a declaration of the Living Christ. ... the lives of our people must become the most meaningful expression of our faith and, in fact, therefore, the symbol of our worship. ” LDS.org - Ensign Article - The Symbol of Our Faith Here are some wonderful examples of how we use the symbol of the cross in worship: LDS.org - Family Chapter Detail - I Stand All Amazed LDS.org - Family Chapter Detail - There Is a Green Hill Far Away LDS.org - Family Chapter Detail - How Great the Wisdom and the Love LDS.org - Family Chapter Detail - Upon the Cross of Calvary LDS.org - Family Chapter Detail - Thy Will, O Lord, Be Done LDS.org - Family Chapter Detail - In Memory of the Crucified LDS.org - Family Chapter Detail - Behold the Great Redeemer Die LDS.org - Family Chapter Detail - He Died! The Great Redeemer Died LDS.org - Family Chapter Detail - In Remembrance of Thy Suffering LDS.org - Family Chapter Detail - We’ll Sing All Hail to Jesus’ Name LDS.org - Liahona Article - Carry Your Cross LDS.org - Family Chapter Detail - Again, Our Dear Redeeming Lord LDS.org - New Era Article - Amazed at the Love Jesus Offers Me LDS.org - Family Chapter Detail - O Lord of Hosts LDS.org - Family Chapter Detail - ’Tis Sweet To Sing the Matchless Love LDS.org - Family Chapter Detail - O God, the Eternal Father LDS.org - Topic Definition - Atonement of Jesus Christ "Jesus's atoning sacrifice took place in the Garden of Gethsemane and on the cross at Calvary."

The church has a very extensive program called LDS Family Services. LDS Family Services "LDS Family Services provides licensed child placement services including infant adoption, and special needs adoption." It also provides "assistance for birth parents and others facing an unplanned pregnancy." Another program is called Families Supporting Adoption which "seeks to promote a positive view of adoption." Families Supporting Adoption In other words, there is a lot of support for adoption.

I had the same user PM me as well. He used a few "proof texts" and I simply told him to read the Bible and come to his own conclusions about what is truth. If anyone is interested, I will post the conversation, but I think those of us who have bantered with people like this, know the general format. They take a particular point (in my case, the plurality of gods) and use a couple Bible verses to "prove" me wrong. When I explain the LDS concept in context with dozens of Biblical verses, they hammer back those one or two verses, once again out of context. Then when they realize they cannot persuade me, and that I have in fact given them food for thought, they shift gears and bring up another point (in my case, the Book of Abraham), to which I simply ask to stick to the topic at hand, which was "Does the Bible teach a plurality of gods" and what does that mean in context of there being "One God". A simple exercize I had my friend do, was to replace the word "god" with the word "savior" in his proof texts and suddenly, the Bible falls right in line with LDS theology, and there is harmony with those few verses and the dozens of verses that talk about Jesus and the Father being separate beings. we also got into what a true prophet of God was, and I gave a few dozen examples of Biblical prophets who were less than perfect. It's an annoiance when people use "tests" on Joseph Smith that equally fail when applied to so many of the Biblical patriarchs. Hopefully, I have given him something to ponder and pray about. Because you cannot prove anything except by the spirit.

I visited a prisoner while on my mission. It was a Book of Mormon referral. I imagine it was against the rules, as only one person was allowed to go, and so I went alone, while my companion waited with a church member (male) who drove us there. It was the only time I was ever separated from my companion, but the spirit told me to go. When I did bring in the book, they didnt allow hardcover books, so I went out and got a soft cover copy, and now I know why the church publishes soft cover copies. :) Could I have baptized that prisoner? No, but it did teach me about compassion. And hopefully some of those men could find the gospel through the Book of Mormon and repent of their sins.

give him a journal and have him write in it every night. One think I regret. I did however write my mission president often, and I think that is important that he let the mission president know him and what he is doing. it will help so much in his mission to build that bond. One thing I was really amazed with was that my mission president gave me a large package of letters I had written him over the years. What a blessing to go through and re-read what I had written. Don't waste time on those not interested. Seek and ye shall find those who really want to learn about the gospel of Jesus Christ. But always be searching. There are so many people just hoping to find the truth. Find them!

I wonder, if all the rightious are resurrected in the first resurrection, who will be continuing the missionary work in the spirit world? maybe some will have to (or choose to) wait to be ressurected because they are still doing work on the other side. Just a thought.

well, gee, is it just me or are the questions just a little leading? Here is a Wikipedia article on the technique: Push poll - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I remember a lot of "Families are Forever" stickers in the 1970s and '80s. Then there was the one with an ill placed anti-drug message just under it saying "Be smart, don't start!"

Missionaries are also not to write to people within their mission. Once they leave an area, they need to move on. They can stay in contact with investigators through the current missionaries, and often a missionary will come back to witness a baptism, but aside from that, they are there to teach the people in the area they are assigned. That is also why they only stay in an area for a short time. They cannot get too attached to a specific ward or branch. I think every returned missionary has a story of an Elder being sent home because he had an inappropriate relationship with a young lady in a former area. We had one missionary in our mission who was calling a young lady after he left the area. Even when he was transfered to the furthest reaches of the mission, she still drove up to try to see him. Well, he was sent home early, and although it sounds bad, he was free to persue that which was more important to him.

I always found it interesting that a church leader at any level from Bishop upward must be married and must have a rightious wife. I think priesthood leadership may be conducted by the men, but it is not a burden the man carries alone. He must have a wife willing to accept the burden as well. Similarly, a husband can never carry the burden of pregnancy, but he is still an equal partner in the process.

Not all scripture or revelation is for all people at all times. The Law of Moses is not followed today. We don't sacrifice animals, nor do we require new converts to be circumsized. Things change. Even little things change. Smoking and coffee were not social norns in the NT, so there is no discussion on their use. Even revelatinos we hear during General Conference may only apply to a specific group in the church, or for a particular time. We must use the Holy Ghost to descern how specific revelations apply to us personally, and not get hung up on what, for example Joseph Smith said to Oliver Cowdry. Yes, we can see the example and apply it to us, but that revelation was still just for him and just for that time.

I visited the world headquarters in Boston while on my mission.

This site has the pictures you are looking for, plus pictures from many other temples. There are also pictures from the 1912 book on the Salt Lake Temple by James E. Talmage. An interesting story there. It seems an authority of some sort (I forget who) decided to have photos taken of the temple and published them (without permission). Well, Church President Joseph F. Smith decided to have their own book officially published to stop the "forbidden" connotations of the previous book, and had Talmage write the accompanying text. It was written for non-members as a sort of virtual open house, and was updated with color photos later (which is where the Ensign magazine comes in).

I think I had the most success on my mission when I was actively engaged in the community we served. We didn't do a lot of door knocking, but we did ride the bus constantly, and talked to people on the street. Everyone in that small town knew who we were, and knew we were friendly, and willing to help them out even with non-church related things. We were bold. One thing about the standard dark suit, white shirt, prominant nametag, is that you can't hide your light under a bushel. Everyone knows you are different. Missionaries need to take advantage of the fact that they stand out like a sore thumb, and be bold at talking to people. We had one bus driver reading the Book of Mormon between each run of his route. He eventually moved to the Doctrine and Covenants, and took a lot of ribbing by his coworkes who told hm to "stay away from those scary Mormons!" We need to make sure we are not scary, and that people who are looking for the light of Christ will come to us (missionaries and members alike) and ask how they can receive that light themselves. I also think the goal of the missionaries should be to build the Kingdom of God, which means working with the local ward or branch. Setting goals to grow and fill the pews with visitors and new memebers. Get them excited at the idea of a new chapel being built, or the ward splitting or growinng into a stake. What joy we would have seeing prophecy fulfilled as the gospel literally fills the entire Earth. YouTube - LDS Church Growth 2007 Version

The Scruptural referrence is found in 1 Kings Chapter 7 Some details of the temple, particularly with the architectural symbolism are common knowledge. It isn't that things are secret, and you will find that many details about the temple are plainly declared in the scriptures.