RipplecutBuddha

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Everything posted by RipplecutBuddha

  1. Here's my bit. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is a religion, not a school. The purpose, therefore, of the Church's official day-to-day efforts towards its members is rightly directed towards religious teachings, education, and support. Of course the Church has other interests such as public service, etc. but I digress. The Church's official role is not, never has been, nor should ever be directed at a full historical disclosure of Church history. That is a scholarly pursuit involving a religious organization. It would completely drain the assets of the Church to spread its full history as widely as it has spread its doctrines. More to the point, suppose the full details about the interpretation of the Book of Mormon were made part of the regular Sunday curriculum...what else should then be added, how the Pearl of Great Price was interpreted? How each and every section of the Doctrine & Covenants was received? Just how detailed should we be about the forced migration to the Salt Lake Valley? What about Brigham's efforts to colonize the west in what turned out to be six states (or seven, not sure)? The more you demand full historical disclosure on Sunday, the less time there is for doctrinal education, which I feel very safe in saying is an exponentially more important education to receive at church. The facts of the Church's history are out there for those who want to explore them. The Joseph Smith Papers project is collecting, organizing, and making such facts more available than ever before. You would also do well to notice it's not an official undertaking by the Church directly, though it is heartily supported by it. The Church has never run from its history, good or bad. As a religious organization, there is more known about the founding and early years of the LDS church than nearly any other religion in the world. Considering how many people and organizations feel the need to attack the Church on its history, I find it fascinating that the Church has never withheld historical information when it has been available. To paraphrase President Gordon B. Hinkley, I don't fear truth, but for truth to be understood, it's got to be presented in the proper context of the bigger picture of what was going on at the same time. By focusing on the method of translation and whether or not it had been taught, we're glossing over the fact that the only reason Joseph had the plates was by direct revelation from God, and visitation from angels sent to teach and instruct Joseph on what he was to do. It's like being upset at a winning superbowl team because the numbers on their jerseys weren't the right font or color. Some things we need to know in order to progress to the life God wants for us. How Joseph translated the Book of Mormon (beyond his statement that it was by the power of God) is not something we need to concern ourselves with for our salvation.
  2. Aw, come on....nobody grabbed the 'house built upon the sand' opportunity?? buncha slackers....hehe
  3. All of them are essential. God would not give us frivolous doctrine. It is his work and glory to bring us to our fullest potential. Everything he's throwing at the problem is essential. He wouldn't waste time and effort with unessential material or knowledge. Now, there are parts of the Gospel that he allows us to discover for ourselves, versus those parts of the Gospel he revealed directly to his servants to make sure they were known. I suppose using that dividing line could determine what doctrines are 'essential', but to my mind it's just splitting hairs at that point. We need to know and understand the Gospel through and through, else why repeat what we are taught over and over? For instance, Faith is an essential principle. It's where we all start off at in the plan of salvation. However a talk given by Elder Holland caught my attention. I'd been listening to it over and over for years. It's one of my favorites. One statement caught my attention the other day that I hadn't considered before. He said that the Lectures on Faith documents were given to us so that we could "understand the nature of Godliness". Now, how does one go from a beginner's principle of faith to understanding the very nature of God himself? As I read through the lectures myself, I have new eyes and a greater understanding than I could possibly expect. So, to the OP's question, is this an 'essential doctrine'? Depending on your definition it could be yes or no. Again, I think it's all essential, but hey, very interesting question.
  4. Okay so it's been a while, and a lot has happened. Reader's Digest version -- I quit the job I had at the old building in downtown Cheyenne -- it just wasn't working out -- I now work at the Day's Inn at the front desk -- I'm married to a beautiful and amazing woman and we're working to get to the temple within a year. -- I finally have internet again so all you people get to put up with me again. -- Oh, and Happy New Year everyone
  5. Okay so I like the San Diego Temple....what's the big deal?? Just because I'm a guy shouldn't matter.....
  6. To a limited extent, and especially within the context of this discussion, you're spot on. However, as a priesthood holder, I cannot lay hands upon myself and give myself a blessing. Most of the time the priesthood is to be used in the spirit of service to others, precisely as Jesus demonstrated it in his own ministry. Again, however, a priesthood holder definitely has the authority to offer prayers and blessings to his family on his own, and I agree with you that it is a magnificent opportunity we have been given.
  7. It wouldn't be uncommon for members to say a prayer of blessing over their own store, however there's no precedent I know of for LDS church leadership to offer blessings over anything but consecrated or religiously purposed church property or gravesites.
  8. I would like to see a free Harley Davidson giveaway.....to me....twice.... hehehe
  9. I think that the best explanation would be that mainstream Christianity is better at connecting everything they teach back to Jesus. On our side, we link things to past prophets (which is where the whole 'you Mormons worship old Joe Smith' may have some grounding), but we don't always follow through the rest of the links back to Jesus in the same way. The links and connections are there, but we don't necessarily include the Savior's role as often. Part of this could be that we seem to have more material (ie. the standard works, living prophets) to explore, study, and teach about. Just my two cents.
  10. If no one judged me, I would never achieve Exaltation.
  11. This attitude of hyper-sensitivity so prevelant today offends me. While this is a tongue-in-cheek statement, the sentiment behind it is very serious, coming from me. Nobody has a 'right' to be offended. Being offended is a choice. The generation of "Me! Me! Me!" thinks of nobody else first, entirely contradicting what the gospel of Christ is all about. It's not my fault other people disagree with me, nor I with them. I'm too busy trying to live my life as best I can, to be bothered being offended by someone who thinks I'm completely wrong. And there have been plenty of opportunities, to be sure. Get over yourself, stop thinking you are the center of anything in life, and wake up to the rest of planet earth around you.
  12. If you're able to build a PC yourself, and you know all the ins and outs of such a process, Tiger Direct is a good website to go to for pricing components, cabinets, etc. I bought a remanufactured HP from Best Buy for about 700 dollars that normally would have been close to twice the price new. I've had it five years now, and it's been flawless. I recently found out that for the same price, I can source everything from Tiger Direct and get a serious upgrade from this machine. A joke to end on; How many Apple users does it take to change a light bulb? None, when the light bulb goes bad, they go buy a new house.
  13. and once again, the tongue-in-cheek tone is totally missed....
  14. The only point I wish to discuss of your list is #3; essentially that there is no evidence supporting the Book of Mormon. The truth of the matter is that there are several things mentioned in the Book of Mormon that have modern support. Here's a partial list below. -Book of Mormon parallels to the Dead Sea Scrolls -Authentic non-Biblical ancient ceremony recorded in the Book of Mormon -Authentic non-Biblical ancient legend recorded in the Book of Mormon -Ancient Book of Enoch text quoted in the Book of Mormon -Ancient Arabian Geographical naming conventions used in the Book of Mormon -Ancient non-Biblical poetic style used in the Book of Mormon -Ancient non-Biblical idiom used in the Book of Mormon -Biblical literary structure, undiscovered until 1950's, found in the Book of Mormon -Authentication of dozens of non-Biblical Book of Mormon Names -Statistical analasys gives 1000 to 1 odds against the 'one author theory' -Golden plates -Temple building If you're interested in the complete study of these issues, I'm citing a document that was written in 1997, and can be found here. Each of these items were either known only to a few experts in the archaeological field in the 1830's when Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon, or they were completely unknown by anyone in the world at the time. There are also many other points such as these that I haven't included. So what does this prove? As the author of the work I referred to has said, it really doesn't prove anything either way, however it should start generating some interesting questions. Questions like; If none of these bits of knowledge were available when Joseph translated the Book of Mormon, then was he really inspired, or was he just really good at guessing at facts more than a century before hand? Another good question would be; Even if some of this information was known during Joseph Smith's life, why did none of his contemporary critics name a possible source he could have used? Why is it that every last alternative explanation for how the Book of Mormon came to be is deconstructed with minimal effort or research? The truth of the matter is that proving the Book of Mormon true or false lies with personal prayer to God. Ultimately, it is this one experiment that all of us must perform to find out for sure one way or the other. The only question to consider in that situation is this; Are you prepared to accept and act upon the answer you recieve? -------------------- As to your other points, I only have this to say. If there is a God, and I believe there is, then that God which created all that is, including you and I, has no need to answer to us for how his church is organized, what terminology is used, what the rules are, or what doctrines will be taught there. What are you going to do, Chastize God for setting up his church wrong? For not following the will of his imperfect, short-sighted, narrow-minded, selfish, arrogant, greedy, lustful, and error-prone children? What do you expect from a supreme being that holds all of creation in his hands? A humble contrition to what your short-sighted, mortal needs might be for a scant 90 years at best? The fact is that truth is an eternal thing. What is right is right, and what is wrong is wrong. The rules God has established for us happen to be geared towards maximizing our eternal happiness and progression in the life to come. Yes there are a lot of things that would be fun to do while we're here, however in the long term, they are damaging to us in ways we don't consider, or may not be aware of. So it is then up to us to humble ourselves and demonstrate that we are willing to be obedient to the will of the Father in all things, no exceptions. Your friend was caught up in the difficulty in following through with that promise, as we all are throughout our lives. The key to passing the test is in humbling ourselves, admitting when we have strayed from our promised path, and working dilligently to return to the light God wants us to have in our lives. Your friend chose not to pursue that goal. The only time the LDS Church expels one of its own is under extreme conditions of rebellion and open attacks against the doctrines and/or leadership of the Church. It doesn't seem like your friend went that far, so as far as I know, he willingly chose to separate himself from the Church. When you speak with him again, let him know he's welcome to return at any time.
  15. Just gonna go through this bit by bit with you. Here we go. Because of the wide variety of cultural differences between each of the tribes, there's good reason to think the ancestors of the Native Americans came from several places, including Israel and Asia. Remember that Lehi and his family weren't the only people led to the promised land in the Book of Mormon. Yes Joseph practiced polygamy, but it wasn't in secret at all. Most, if not all, of the saints then knew about it. Also important to remember is that Joseph was told to practice it for more than ten years before he began to. It took a clear and direct warning from the Lord to finally cause him to move forward with it. Apparently he had the same problems with it most of us do to this day. Not sure about the trial part of it, but it wouldn't surprise me. Treasure hunters were quite common in his day, and he was known to work with others on joint projects, as it were. According to his own words he never gained anything from his efforts, nor found any treasure. There are many credible sources that confirm this as one of the several methods he used. I don't think Joseph ever stated himself how the translation was done, however. How would knowing these things keep you from the Celestial Kingdom? Yes. It doesn't mean there aren't any still waiting to be discovered, however. So far, the only way would be by inspiration from God, because that's how Joseph did it. Don't worry about it though. There are no writings we know of in that language beyond the golden plates, and Moroni has them in his care as far as we know. It is true he is accused of mistranslating it. Since we don't have the exact papyri Joseph read from identified, we don't know for sure either way. It means you have some subjects to study out for the sake of your testimony, just like everyone else that has had to address these issues personally. I don't think God would ever punish you for gaining knowledge and wisdom about the founding of the LDS Church.The answers (beyond what I have given) are out there for you to discover. When I have more time, I'd like to go back over these issues a little more in depth with you, since I had to study each of them out myself as well. At the same time, I can't just give you the peace of mind about any of them. Only you can do that, through prayer and sincere study from all sources you can find from both pro-LDS and anti-LDS sources, though I wouldn't recommend going too deep with the anti-LDS. Once you understand their questions and arguments, that is sufficient. Seeking the answers is far more important. God has the answers you need. Reach to him for help and he'll give it to you.
  16. My tip usually starts at $5 and then moves from there depending on the service. If it's really bad, I'll still leave a buck or two, but if it's very good, or I can tell the server seriously cares about doing a good job, I'll sometimes even double it. Oh, and I add two bucks for each person past two of us.
  17. Think of it this way, when we get baptized we symbolically claim in the presence of God, and by his authority, that we are willing to be obedient to his will. Full stop. In no way are we allowed to place conditions of our own on where our obedience will be. We commit to it all. In preparation for baptism, we meet with the Elders or Sisters to prepare us for the taking on of this obligation. The requirements for baptism can also be steep to many people, for several reasons. Now, at first this seems rather harsh, and indeed it is a steep commitment. However, the blessings we recieve in exchange for our willingness to obey are many times greater than whatever sacrifice we may give. Now, look at approaching the temple in the same light. Again, we make covenants with God regarding our obedience. At this point the expectations are far higher and much more demanding, and again the blessings attached to them also increase. However, the preparation is also important. Before there were temples, where did true believers of God go to speak with him? Into a mountain. Moses, Nephi, and many others sought the isolation of a mountain. Why is this? Ask yourself how easy it is to climb a mountain just to say a prayer. In another way of looking at it, how important is the question you have? What are you willing to do to find the answers you seek? Climbing a mountain takes time, serious effort, and an unwavering commitment to reach the goal. Now reflect on a different name for the temple; The Mountain of the Lord. In exactly the same way climbing a mountain requires preparation and determination, so should approaching the Lord in the temple. With a real mountain, the effort is physical. However with the Temple, as with so many other formerly physical aspects of the Gospel, the physical effort has been moved to spiritual effort. A far more difficult task, but again, the blessings more than compensate. I hope some of this has been helpful. May God be with you both always.
  18. My take is this; Freedom of speech is constitutionally protected in all public forums. What is misunderstood, especially online, is that websites are not purely public forums. Each one of them, this one included, is created, managed, and paid for by people. Because website owners legally own their domains, they are legally entitled to establish and uphold any and all rules governing behavior on their website. Yes the forums are free, and open to the public, however the rules must be followed. Any and all comments, dissenting or otherwise, are more than welcome, as long as the terms of use are followed, which is required of everyone who visits, moderator or otherwise. It's really not rocket science. Societies need rules to have order, and that includes onlince societies, such as what we have here. Follow the rules, and you can still believe as you choose. For a prime example, PrisonChaplin....
  19. So happy for you Slamjet!! Congratulations :)
  20. And now we find ourselves on the slippery slope that could have been avoided. All that needed to be done was to hold to the standards the Lord has set. No sex outside of marriage. Ever. None of this would even be debateable under that rule. The fact is, however, whatever judgements are rendered by the state, both will still answer to the Lord as well. It's examples like these that should be blatantly cautionary to all of us on the earth. We've just turned so far away from the face of Heavenly Father as a whole that we never even consider what he's had to say about anything anymore. I know I'm reflecting a bit of a pipe dream in all this, but really, it could have been different, had we chosen to be more faithful as a race of God's children on earth.
  21. I recall reading about when Oliver Cowdery was excommunicated (at least I believe it was about him). Details aren't important about the excommunication, however once Oliver repented and apologized to Joseph, the Prophet was quick to forgive and welcome him back into the church. However, Joseph himself noted that Oliver wasn't the same man he was before his rebellion. His spirituality had been lessened somehow. He never returned to the general leadership position he had either. He did, however, live as a strong and faithful member for the rest of his life. When God gives us a responsibility, and we turn around and rebel against that responsibility, it's not likely that we will be trusted with the same, or even more afterwards. I say not likely, because we have the extreme examples of Paul and Alma the Younger to examine as exceptions. To be sure, if it did occur, it seems that it would be a very rare situation. In the end, it really is up to the Lord whom he chooses to lead in his Church. I can't say it won't ever happen, and due to the privacy that is granted past transgressions, I don't suppose we'd ever know one way or the other for certain. The only concern I've had in the past is to add newly called apostles to my testimony of authorized representatives of Christ who lead this Church. Once I get that confirmation of the spirit, their past is immaterial. Whom the Lord calls, the Lord qualifies.
  22. If the true understanding of morality as a way of living were taught at home, in all homes, none of this would have to happen. As it stands, morality is becoming 'old fashioned' in society today, and because it is slowly being put aside, these kinds of clarifications, statements, and standards have to be put in place; to shore up what society as a whole ought to be maintaining on its own. No, the BSA shouldn't have to say this, but fewer and fewer families are teaching this at home, so they're placed into the unwanted position of highlighting what should be common sense. Welcome to the world...
  23. Wow, The LDS church re-emphasizes it's focus on moral purity for all young men involved in scouts. Essentially saying that individual inclinations are not the focus, but that individual conduct is the focus was intended, I assume, to de-fuse the angst that is usually wrought with this subject. And then it gets brought right back in again because people are talking past each other, staking claims on moral ground that is reserved for Jesus alone, and generally missing the entire point of the press release in the first place. This may be only a policy matter, however it is directly tied to doctrinal principles that have been in place from the beginning. A discussion on that, I feel, might be more fruitful than, say, discussing what homosexually oriented kids might do when camping.