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Wow, that looks expensive!

Anything helps :-)

I know there are programmers here, but are there any web developers/designers? Regardless, just curious about people's opinions. How much would you charge for a custom website like this? How much would you expect to pay?

Does the W.H.O. count? I was also just thinking, have you considered that from a doctrinal perspective GMO plants also have spirits and are living entities? With that in mind, is it not reasonable to believe that they were also planned/designed to come into existence by our Heavenly Father?

I hope BTI wins!

There have been no conclusive studies establishing real side effects of MSG as compared to a placebo. We have a large bag of MSG and put it in/on almost every meal. I also have no problem with LFTB (Lean Finely Textured Beef - i.e. pink slime).

I would assume that in God's eyes, that person could choose not to be a doctor anymore. The only benefit to remaining a doctor would be the income and financial advantage it provides. God doesn't care about how much money you have, he wants you to keep the commandments and covenants you make with him, regardless of how else that may affect you.

Yes. Christ counseled specifically against looking upon a woman to lust after her, and compared it to adultery. Both are violations of God's Law.

A friend of my wife's posted a picture showing how the flooding is above the temple threshold. It will likely require major cleaning, possible repairs, and then re-dedication (according to him).

After quickly checking it out, I noticed at least a couple of forum members here participate in that one as well. Looks like they use the same forum software too. I have a hard enough time keeping up with just this one forum!

God didn't do that. According to LDS doctrine, we chose to come to earth knowing the potential outcomes in advance. That is, however, a valid question to be asked of those who do not believe it was our decision to come. Additionally, a resurrected telestial being is more advanced and progressed than an unembodied spirit being. Therefore, it would have been entirely reasonable for us to choose to come even knowing we might not make it to the celestial kingdom.

Yes. If the Holy Ghost had not been present, Joseph Would not have had adequate confirmation that his experience was true and of God.

A true shepherd will risk his life to save his sheep. About a year later he will be having lamb chops. I don't see the problem with doing the same with pigs.

I was referring to just the Christian community at large, but yes, being as I have a father who is Muslim, I have experienced and am aware that the Bible is generally criticized by the majority of the educated world.

Some people could believe that some events are determined and some are not. Absolute determinism would involve all events being 100% predetermined, that is why I specified using the word absolute.

I could sneak some Sudden Death hot sauce into a bite of soup for you. The the fastest and most effective remedy would be ice cream. As a result the Spirit could confirm that you should be eating it. Therefore, the secret to getting God's instruction to eat ice cream = eat hot sauce

I think we can agree on much, but my point would be more like this: God is omniscient ✔ God is omnipotent ✔ God is omnipresent (for LDS - via the Holy Spirit) ✔ God is benevolent ✔ God allows for the agency ('free will') of mankind ✔ For at least some, there is or will be a permanent state of abode which we can call 'Hell' ✔ God created everything in existence ex-nihilo, and all things are created after His own design ✖ The final doctrine in that list is logically incompatible with the combination of those listed previous, unless one believes in absolute determinism. However, if one believes in absolute determinism, it would also be incompatible with the combination of the other doctrines. You may disagree with what I have presented, although I currently don't see any logical flaw, but I wanted to clarify what was actually being questioned.

My statement was only in the context of the ex-nihilo creation of everything in existence except for God Himself. It would not apply to the LDS view of creation/existence. I am not sure what you see as being the fault in this context, but if you still feel there is one, please elaborate.

Also applicable, either something can come from nothing, or it can't, but not both. Observe the following information from a popular Christian online ministry: They argue that something can not come from nothing, but then they also argue that something actually can come from nothing. In my experience, this is a consistent contradiction within mainstream Christianity. I know we mortals still lack a lot of information, but from what we do have, the only thing that seems logical to me is to believe there is no beginning nor end to all forms of intelligent existence and/or matter, only to the state in which they exist at any given moment throughout eternity.

If there was ever a moment when nothing existed except for God, and even at that point God had 100% knowledge of all events for all eternity, then I think it would follow that God Himself does not have real agency, but merely acts out what He has always known He was going to do from the beginning. This would basically reduce God to being a self-existing program that controls the universe. That's not something I could believe.

@Carborendum and @prisonchaplain, Your discussion also goes back to another point I had recently made in a different thread. Why would the atonement be necessary to reconcile something that God created 100% on His own? If God made us from nothing, there shouldn't be anything stopping Him from deciding on His own what becomes of us. Our choices would only apply to whatever rules he decides to make up. I don't see why the atonement would even be part of the process unless he were doing it for 'fun'.

Just found this story. It is very Touching, and related to a general discussion about homosexuality:

I think what Carborendum and Vort are getting at is related to how in LDS theology we do not believe God created us in the same way other Christians believe it. Obviously you know that we believe that man is eternal and has always existed in some form or another. As a result this would lead to the belief that our agency ('free will') is truly ours, it has been a part of our nature for all eternity even if we weren't using it in the same way we do now. As a result, when God created our bodies and put us on this earth, even if He had foreknowledge of our decisions, it was not something He could change. He could give us spirits bodies and physical bodies and help us to progress, but He could not alter our decision making process. If God in fact created every aspect of human existence, and did not use already existing materials, then as a result, whatever God created, having foreknowledge, should reasonably be within His responsibility. Hence Vort indicated his question about your interpretation of free will. If God has the ability to create me from nothing, in theory, he should have the ability to create me as a being who would never choose sin. It is incongruous if God in fact has that ability, and yet says: The reason? Because God in essence created me as a sinner from the moment of creation. My agency, or 'free will' is simply a manifestation of His creation of my character, rather than my own choices. Alternatively, in the LDS perspective, if we have in fact always existed eternally and are also 'uncreated' beings, then our ability to choose would also be 'uncreated'. Therefore, even if God has 100% foreknowledge of us and our actions, we are still truly the ones making the choices, because our ability to choose good or evil is not a construct of the creative mind of God, but an eternally self-existent aspect of our being. Having jumped in late here, I hope I accurately interpreted the misunderstanding and that this is helpful.

Not to change the subject here but. . . Spanish is completely phonetic too.

At first glance, I would say you are correct in your main point. I would also suggest that the brethren are very aware of the need to receive a witness that the Church is true. When Moroni wrote his promise, he did not have the calling, nor the need to write for others to pray and find out that the Church was true. His calling pertained to the Book of Mormon itself. However, the introduction was intentionally added to the Book of Mormon, and addresses the very question you have asked. This inspired introduction does not use the equals method that many people talk about. It does not say, Book of Mormon true = Jesus is the Savior = Joseph Smith is a prophet = the Church is true. Instead it states that we 'will also come to know' that all those other things are true. The Book of Mormon is the keystone of our religion. It is the fast track way to receiving an answer that will lead someone down the correct path to knowing that the Church is true. The Lord and the Church are aware that we need to receive a witness from the Holy Ghost about, at the very least, the Book of Mormon, Jesus Christ as our Savior, Joseph Smith as a true prophet, and the Church itself as Christ's true church. However, while it is possible to receive that witness in any order, for most people, to be open and receptive to the message, and capable of recognizing the answer, the most effective way is to first receive a witness of the Book of Mormon. While it could potentially be problematic, it is not immediately necessary that an individual focus on receiving each of these witnesses at once, although it would be prudent to do so. In most cases, it is unlikely that it would be a problem, because most people will naturally follow in receiving sufficient witness of the other things for their personal needs. If this were not so, while the Church has already directed toward these needed witnesses, they would be placing more focus on it, and they are not. In my personal situation, I actually knew that the Church was true by the power of the Holy Ghost before knowing that the Book of Mormon is true, and before truly knowing that Christ is my Savior. I never understood this, until on my mission I received a blessing, where unprompted and uninformed about this concern of mine, my mission president informed me through the blessing that one of the gifts of the Spirit I have been given is to know that the Church is true. All of a sudden this unusual circumstance made sense. I always knew the Church was true, because that's what God wanted me to know as a gift of His Spirit, even if I didn't have other witnesses yet. I have long since received a witness of the other things as well. Each person's journey is specific to them, however, the instructions we have been given are there for a reason. The witness of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon should not be the end, it should not be the only question, nor the final question, but it is intentionally the first question most people are taught to seek. We should seek inspiration and personal revelation related to many things in our lives, even outside the Church and the gospel. For now, though, the witness of the Book of Mormon is the primary and general method that the Lord has, in His infinite wisdom with regard to what is best for God's children, guided us to use to lead others to the truth. For your personal situation, while you have had these additional questions and concerns (which you must admit not everyone gets concerned about), I would suggest that the Lord has prepared a way for you to receive the answers applicable to your specific situation. That may be one of the benefits of your participation in this forum.