LionHeart

Before Zacherias was stricken speechless, the temple was in need of a new veil. So Zacherias asked the high priests to gather seven honorable virgins to spin the linen for the new veil. Mary just so happened to be among those chosen. They cast lots to decide who would do what job. There were four colors to spin, which were gold, blue, scarlet, and true purple, and then there was the task of weaving the threads into fine linen. One person would spin each color and three would weave them into the fine linen. Upon casting the lots, the job of spinning the true purple fell to Mary. (true purple signifies royalty) After this was instigated, Zacherias was stricken speechless and the priest Samuel assumed his duties. It was while Mary was engaged in this task that she was visited by the angel Gabriel. Mary was not afraid because she had become accustomed to being visited by angels. She had many visitations throughout her childhood in the temple. This particular visitation was different from the rest however. The angel Gabriel saluted her with the utmost respect. He told her that she was highly favored by the Lord and that she was chosen and blessed among women. Although Mary was not afraid, she, being very humble, was a little confused due to the great amount of respect shown her by this angel of God. It was at this point that the angel informed her that she would conceive a child while yet a virgin and she was to call Him Jesus. The angel also told her that this child would be called the 'Son of the Highest'. And the Lord God would give unto Him the throne of His father David, and He would reign over the house of Israel forever and His kingdom would have no end. He would be the 'Savior of the World', the Redeemer of Mankind, the 'Son of God'. Then the angel Gabriel informed her that her cousin, Elizabeth, who was barren had also concieved a son through the power of God and that through this power, all things are possible; and that Elizabeth was already six months along. (Elizabeth, on account of her age, hid herself away and kept her child a secret in order to avoid the public exposure) After hearing these things, Mary told the angel Gabriel that she was willing to submit herself to the will of the Lord, and the she was the Lord's to do with her as He will. After the angel departed, Mary related her visitaion to the acting high priest, Samuel. Samuel believed her words and told her that Lord had magnified her name and that she would be blessed in all ages of the world. As soon as Mary was finished with her task of spinning the purple thread, she hurried to visit her cousin Elizabeth. Upon arriving at the house of Zacherias, she told Elizabeth about her visitation and what the angel had told her about both of their children. When Elizabeth heard this, she felt the child in her womb leap. This was a testimony to Elizabeth that the child which Mary was to bring forth was to be the Son of God, because she knew that her child was to prepare the way for the coming Messiah. The two of them rejoiced in their situations and continually praised God. Mary decided to stay with Elizabeth and offer her help until the time Elizabeth's child was to be delivered. When the time fnally came, and Elizabeth delivered, her neighbors and cousins rejoiced in the fact that she was blessed with a child. On the eighth day, when it was time to give the child a name, the family and relatives attempted to name him Zacherias, after his father. But Elizabeth would not have it. She insisted that his name should be John; but her husband was unable to speak up in her defense. The relatives, however, pointed out that there was nobody named John among any of their kindred. But they decided to ask Zacherias about it. Since he couldn't speak, they gave him a tablet to write on; upon which, he wrote: "His name shall be John." Immediately after writing this, his ability to speak was returned to him, and the first words he uttered were praises to God. After this, Mary returned to her own house. Joseph was a carpenter, and was away building houses for a quite some time. But when he returned home and discovered that his future wife was with child, he was quite disturbed. But he was a just man and was not willing to make a public example out of her. While he was contemplating about what to do with her, the angel Gabriel appeared to him in a dream and informed him of the situation, and told him not to be afraid to take Mary as a wife. The angel referred him to the words of the prophet Isaiah which says: "Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name 'Emanuel'." (which being interpreted means "God with us") The angel then informed Joseph that the child which Mary was carrying was the Son of God and that when He was born, He was to be named Jesus. After awakening, Joseph rejoiced and did according to what the angel had instructed him to do; thus taking Mary for his wife. L.H.

Thanks for your support Ray. It is my pleasure to tell this story. L.H.

As far as the truthfulness of this story is concerned, one must decide for theirself whether they believe it or not. But one thing I might mention about it, is that the books that it came from were up for consideration to be included in the official canon. There were many christian churches in those days that were teaching these things as true. The fact that these books were not included in the canon does not detract from how true they are because the books that were chosen were not chosen based on truthfulness; they were chosen based on importance. It is my personal opinion that these things are true. Moving on with the story, we come to a man named Zacherias, who was the high priest, and his wife Elizabeth. At this point I will pay special attention to a quote from one of the previous posts when the angel told Joachim "God is the avenger of sin, not of nature." I point this out because it was the High priest who reproached Joachim for not having any children. But as irony would have it, the new high priest, Zacherias was also without children; due to his wife Elizabeth being barren. Both Zacherias and Elizabeth longed for a child and made it a matter of sincere prayer, but as of yet, their prayers had not been answered. One day, while Zacherias was attending to his temple duties, and angel appeared to him and told him that his prayers had been heard. He said that Zacherias and his wife would have a son and that the child should be named John. The angel then said that this child would be filled with the holy ghost while yet in his mother's womb and he would act in the spirit of Elias and prepare the way for the coming of the Messiah. Zacherias was a bit slow to believe this because he and Elizabeth were quite old. The angel, upon realizing Zacherias' disbelief, told him that he was the angel Gabriel who came straight from the presence of God to bring him this message. And since Zacherias would not believe his words, he would be unable to speak until those things came to pass. Upon leaving the temple, people realized that Zacherias must have seen a vision because of the expression on his face and the fact that he couldn't speak. So Zacherias, on account of his condition, had to temporarily turn his temple duties over to a man named Samuel, and he went home; shortly after which, his wife Elizabeth concieved a child.

It was custom that all of the young women being raised in the temple, after they turned fourteen years of age, should return home and then seek to be married. However, in Mary's case, things were a bit more difficult due to a promise on the part of her parents that she would not be with a man due to the child she was to bring forth. Mary firmly intended to uphold this promise. The High priest, who was now a man named Zacharias, was troubled at this because he knew the importance of keeping a promise to the Lord, yet it was the custom of their country that young women who reach that age should seek to be married. So he entered into the holy of holies to consult the Lord on the matter. The Lord instructed him to summon all of the eligible men to the alter and that they should also bring their staff with them. Upon arriving, they would be asked to stretch forth their staff and the spirit of God would rest in the form of a dove on the staff belonging to the man to whom Mary should be betrothed. Among these eligible bachelors was a man named Joseph. Joseph was a widow who was also an older man, so he felt somewhat out of place at this event. So when the men were asked to stretch forth their staff, Joseph held his back. So the high priest was confused because the spirit of God did not rest on any of them. So he again went into the holy of holies to find out what happened. When he prayed about it, the Lord told him that the man to whom Mary was to be betrothed, was the only man there who did not stretch forth his staff. So Zacharias went out and inquired as to who it was that did not stretch forth his staff. Upon learning, and asking him to come foreward and stretch forth his staff, the spirit of God descended down in the form of a dove and rested on the staff. Shorly afterwards, they proceeded with the betrothal ceremonies, after which, Joseph returned to his own city to prepare his house and make the neccessary arrangements for the marriage. L.H. I'm getting the info from various sources. Some of it from the bible, some from a bible study course which was put together by a bible scholar named Chuck Missler, some from my own research, and some from a compilation from a friend of mine. This compilation includes the four gospels, as well as other books that were not included when the official canon was compiled. These books are where the story of Mary's parents came from. L.H.

Approximately 400 years after Daniel, there lived a man named Joachim and his wife Anna. They were a humble and righteous couple, however, Anna was barren; therefore they had no children. They made a promise to the Lord that if He would bless them with a child, they would devote the child to His service. One particular day, they went to a feast celebrating the dedication of the temple; at which they planned to offer up some offerings unto the Lord. The high priest at that time, a man named Issachar, knew that Joachim and Anna had no children. Upon their arrival, the high priest despised them and their offerings saying that they were cursed and until they could resolve it, they could not disgrace the temple with their presence or their offerings. Joachim and Anna left the temple greatly troubled. Joachim then consulted the registry of the twelve tribes to see if there was anyone else in Israel's history who had not begot any children. He was greatly troubled when he discovered that all who were righteous raised up children in Israel. Being more troubled, he decided to go out into the wilderness and fast until the Lord would look upon him. After being there for forty days and nights, an angel of God appeared unto him. Joachim was startled at first but the angel assured him that he was sent by God. The angel told him that his prayers and offerings were heard and accepted by the Lord and told him that he was unjustly reproached for not having children saying: "God is the avenger of sin, and not of nature." The angel told him that his wife Anna was barren for a definite purpose; and pointed out that there were a few great women in Israel who were barren, but were blessed with children through the power of God; Sarah and Rachel, to name a couple of them. The angel then assured him that his wife Anna would bare a daughter; and that her name should be called Mary. Then reminding Joachim of his promise, the angel told him that she should be devoted to the Lord from her infancy and raised up in the temple so that she wouldn't fall under any bad influences. The angel then informed him that his daughter Mary was destined to be the mother of the son of God. Then the angel told him to return to Jerusalem. And as a sign that the words he spoke were true, he told him that upon arriving at the golden gates of Jerusalem he would find his wife Anna there feeling very troubled that he had been gone for so long. In the meantime, Anna was feeling doubly sorrowful because she not only was barren, but now she assumed that her husband was dead because he went out into the wilderness and didn't return. One afternoon, she was walking out in her garden, and she knelt down under a tree and offered up a prayer to the Lord. She prayed for the safe return of her husband and also that she might be blessed with a child. While she was praying the same angel appeared to her and informed her also that the Lord had heard and accepted her prayers. He then related the same things he told Joachim concerning the daughter she would bring forth. Then he told her to rise up and go to the golden gates of Jerusalem, and as a sign to her that the things he told her were true, she would meet her husband there. So both Joachim and Anna left the places they were at, according to the instructions of the angel and met at the golden gates of Jerusalem. They rejoiced greatly upon seeing each other and rejoiced even more upon learning that they had both been visted by the angel and were given the promise of a child. So eventually, they had a daughter; and according to their instructions, they named her Mary. After three years, when she was old enough to leave her mother, Joachim and Anna brought Mary to the temple and put her in the care of the priests to be brought up pure and undefiled in the eyes of the Lord. This is where she remained until, according to the customs of such situations, she was fourteen years of age. L.H.

I felt that this would be appropriate considering the time of year. I'm just going to post a part of this every so often so that nobody will have to read one huge post. We will begin in the Old Testament. The Old Testament is riddled with things that anticipate the coming of Christ and the manner in which He would atone for our sins. For example, Psalms 22, among others, prophecies of the Savior. This was written by King David and goes into details about how Jesus would die on the cross. The interesting part is that crucifixion was not invented until 700 years later by the Persians. The popular method of execution in Israel at that time was stoning. There are approximately 300 prophecies in the Old Testament of the coming of the Messiah. Jesus fulfilled every one of them; some of them deliberately, but most of them through methods that depended on the actions of other people. If we want to get statistical, the odds that Jesus was not the man prophecied of in the Old Testament are one in....a number so high that even the total of the number of atoms in the universe would not match it. To better understand this, imagine taking one atom from all the atoms in the universe and putting a mark on it. Step outside the universe and toss it over your shoulder back into the universe and shake it up. So now it could be anywhere in the universe. Now put on a blindfold and spin around to get dizzy, turn around and dive back into the universe and pick up an atom. The odds that you picked up your marked atom are better than the odds that Jesus was not the Messiah. In other words, the notion that Jesus was not the Messiah is a statistical impossibility. Moving on, we will have a look at the prophet Daniel and the role he played in the coming of the Messiah. Daniel, while he was yet a teenager was alive at the time King Nebuchadnezzar conquered Jerusalem. Daniel was among those who were taken to Babylon as prisoners; and there, he lived out the rest of his life. He became very good friends with the King and was the King's most trusted man. After King Nebuchadnezzar died, his wicked grandson, Belshazzar assumed the throne. Due to Belshazzar's wickedness, the Lord caused that Babylon, the impenatrable city should fall to King Cyrus of Persia without even a battle. King Cyrus, upon entering the city after the conquest, was met at the gates by none other than Daniel; who presented him with a personal letter; addressing him by name, which was written a few hundred years earlier by the prophet Isaiah; in which the Lord addressed King Cyrus as His annointed one; and that through him, the people of Israel would be spared and the temple in Jerusalem would be rebuilt. All of which came to pass. Since Babylon was such a great city, Cyrus made it the capitol of his empire. After Cyrus died, the throne was succeed by King Darius. Not surprisingly, Daniel became a very trusted friend to King Darius. In fact, Daniel became the third man over the kingdom. King Darius made him the leader of a sect of magi who held the responsibilty of choosing the next king. The interesting part of this is the fact that this group of magi was a heredatory group. Normally a man had to be a Mede in order to join this group. Daniel was a Jew. This was very upsetting to the rest of the magi; which, through their deceptiveness and craftiness, eventually led to Daniel being thrown into the lion's den. But the fact that Daniel was the head of this group enabled him to establish a secret sect within them to fulfill a prophecy of Isaiah approximately 400 years later. L.H.

Well actually it's more of an immediate reaction. For example, in a dog fight, should they want to go up, then the plane would go up. The problem they have is they have'nt figured out how to pick up the brain waves strong enough. They can get the plane to react using the brain, but it is only a slight reaction. This also effects accuracy of the movement as well. L.H.

I believe the idea is to put the gauges and such in the windshield rather than in the dash; so people don't have to take their eyes off the road to look at the guages. The O.L.E.D. stands for Organic Light Emitting Diode. They are extracting an organic substance out of neon fish to use for them. When the right electrical current is applied, it lights up; colors and all. It is quite incredible. Also, the US air force is currently researching technology that enables fighter pilots to pilot their jet with their mind. They strap on a special helmet and think about which direction they want to fly and the jet ponts in that direction. However, they haven't been able to yield acceptable results yet. But they're working on it. L.H.

Some tech companies are also working on a new kind of screen called an "O.L.E.D." screen. With this technology your TV screen could be as thin as a peice of poster paper and roll up. Instead of having a projector to project an image on the white screen, the white screen would be the whole package. You could have a television screen built into the windshield of your car. Also, it is cheaper to construct, therfore it will be less expensive than a regular flat screen. L.H.

When I first get on, I end up in the opening screen. From there, I have the opportunity to log in or proceed to different parts of the site. I usually just click on the "Forums" tab and it automatically logs me in if I'm on my computer. L.H.

I read a yahoo news headline today that said: "Poisoned spy blames Putin for his death." I just assume that the ghost of said poisoned spy has some circumstantial evidence to believe it was Putin who did it and made it manifest to him in a dream one night. Putin must be feeling very uneasy right now. L.H.

My question is: Assuming this is true, how bad is Disney really ripping us off? L.H.

I agree completely. What I was merely pointing out is that religionists have a God that can be bashed while atheists do not. Both parties can certainly be insulted in one way or another concerning religion. It's just that when a religionist has their God bashed on, the tend to take it personally. You can't bash on an atheist's God because they don't have one. From my perspective, and I may be wrong about this, it seems that it would be far more insulting for an atheist to try to convince a religionist that there is no God than vise versa. Simply because the religionist, or at least many of them, already have that personal conviction of the existence of God. It seems to me that an atheist being convinced of the existence of God would be less insulted because God is not being tore down in them; only being built up. At least that's how I see it. But I am a religionist. My perspective may be biased. Perhaps SGAllen, being an atheist, can give us some insight on this. L.H.

The argument between a religionist and an atheist is really not a level playing field. For example: we religionists not only believe in God, but for many of us, God is a very improtant part of our lives. To try to take Him away from us would be like trying to take away our father. To insult Him, is held as one of worst atrocities one can commit. So when these people launch a crusade to prove God does not exist, we take it as an insult to the divine creator. We also hate to see other people get led away from their belief in God because of the resulting afterlife we believe in. However, to simply tell an atheist that God does exist, does not have the same effect because they have no belief in any significant deity, therefore, no insult is given. L.H.

There is a book called 'A Marvelous Work and a Wonder' writted by LeGrande Richards. It is an LDS publication containing an account of an old Indian legend. This legend was told to the Author in person by an Indian who apparently was not very fluent in speaking the English language; wich is apparent due to the fact that the mis-spoken words were recorded exactly as they were pronounced in the text. But the legend tells of a large calamity that took place on the American continent many years ago. But the most interesting part is that it closely parallels the account given in the Book of Mormon concernig the three days after the crucifixion of Christ. The Earthquakes and destruction, and the three days of thick darkness, etc. I found that to be quite fascinating. L.H.

That is very sad. It makes me wonder why these people feel the need to begin a crusade against religion. How do they figure that they have any right in attempting to impose on anyone's religious beliefs? L.H.

Here is the Websters Dictionary definition of the term Christain: 1: Of Jesus Christ, or His teachings. 2: Of, or adhering to the religion based on the teachings of Jesus Christ. 3: Of Christians. 4: An adherent to Christianity. The whole of the LDS religion revolves around the teachings of Jesus Christ. Thus making them Christains. And who is anyone to say otherwise? L.H.

Hi Tsuzuki, That is some fascinating reading. How soon before it's finished? And can I get a copy of it when it's done? Also, was Eliphas Levi the leader of some sort of religious movement? Thanks. L.H.

You guessed it. That is fascinating stuff.

This sort of thing is quite fascinating. There are also theories that the bible contains certain codes, for example: if you skip a certain amount of letters and take every letter you land on and spell it out, you get a certain word. The intersting thing is this: first of all, the first five books of the old testament are called the 'Torah' Also, to help this make better sense, all languages flow toward Jerusalem. If you are west of Jerusalem, your language will read from left to right, if you are east of Jerusalem it will read right to left. Now, if you take the book of Genesis in the Hebrew language and count every 49 letters, which is 7 squared, you get the word 'Torah'. It happens again in Exodus. It does not happen in Leviticus, but it spells out backwards in Numbers and Deuteronomy. Although, you don't find 'Torah' in Leviticus, if you count every seventh letter, rather than seven squared, you find 'Yaweh' Which is Jehovah. The first two books have 'Torah' spelled left to right, and the last two books have it spelled right to left with 'Jehovah' in the middle. So in summary, the Torah points towards God. I thought that was quite interesting. L.H.

RKY forums. I say *about* because it could be anywhere from 5-15 years. :) I'm interested in learning more about this time frame. What is the RKY forums? And how can I learn more about it? Thanks. L.H.

Isaiah 55:9 has nothing whatsoever to do with plural marriage and attempting to apply it to polygamy would contradict the rest of the bible. I have read through the bible and studied it with a fine-toothed comb and have found nothing that supports the practice of polygamy in eternity. What I have found is that those who did practice polygamy (David and Abraham, for example) did not receive blessings from the Lord for doing it. In fact, not once have I found a command for anyone in the bible to take mulitple wives, but rather those who did were chastized by God. Do you care to comment on this? thanks, blazius I have a comment: Jacob, who is Israel, was blessed with twelve sons who were from more than one wife. Each son became the father of a tribe in Israel. I would consider that a blessing. In fact the greatest of his sons, Joseph, came from his second wife. L.H.

My pleasure Maureen. Oh, P.C., I like that joke about the Jehova's witness and the universalist. Thanks for that. L.H.

One thing to realize about section 132 of the D&C is that it begins with these words: 1 Verily, thus saith the Lord unto you my servant Joseph, that inasmuch as you have inquired of my hand to know and understand wherein I, the Lord, justified my servants Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as also Moses, David and Solomon, my servants, as touching the principle and doctrine of their having many wives and concubines— 2 Behold, and lo, I am the Lord thy God, and will answer thee as touching this matter. 3 Therefore, prepare thy heart to receive and obey the instructions which I am about to give unto you; for all those who have this law revealed unto them must obey the same. 4 For behold, I reveal unto you a new and an everlasting covenant; and if ye abide not that covenant, then are ye damned; for no one can reject this covenant and be permitted to enter into my glory. I understand this to mean that this section was given in regards to the doctrine of plural marriage. Or as Snow said, the new and everlasting covenant. Why would the Lord say "I will answer thee concerning the doctrine of my servants having many wives." and then proceed to give him something completely different? Another thing I might point out concerning this section is that this revelation is what Joseph Smith presented to Emma in order to convince her of the doctrine of plural marriage. If it was something else, then why did he present it to her to convince her of the doctrine; and why did she get upset and nearly throw him out of the room? People can pick it apart and try to prove that it is referring to something else but when you know the history behind it, you will understand exactly what it is referring to. L.H.

A man was wandering through the South American jungle when suddenly he entered a clearing and was instantly surrounded by heathens. Upon realizing this, and being very concerned for his well being, he muttered to himself: "Oh no, I'm in trouble now." Just as he said this, he heard a voice that said: "No you're not. See that biggest heathen standing in front of you? And see that big rock at your feet? Take that rock, and use it to beat that big heathen to a pulp." So he picks up the rock, charges at the big heathen and beats him down. As soon as he gets done, he looks around at the rest of the heathens as they look at him with astonishment. And the voice says to him: "Now you're in trouble." L.H.