rameumptom

The temple endowment tells us that at least portions of the teaching are symbolilc. That Joseph Smith saw Adam and Eve (DC 137), tells us that they were literally real beings. That said, the story is nuanced, built into an epic event that teaches us about the Creation, Fall and Atonement.
There are some good books that can enlighten you on the story in Genesis. As we have it now, portions of the book of Genesis were written as early as 900 BC, and includes editing by various groups over the next several centuries. In fact, Genesis 1 and 2, give us two different versions of the Creation. Abraham and the Book of Moses give us stories that are different. Psalms and Isaiah also discuss the Creation, with God bringing order out of chaos (water and darkness). In fact, God defeated Leviathan as part of the Creation, and will fight the sea dragon again at the end of the world, according to the Book of Revelation.  All of it symbolic, while some of it is literally true.

This is a copy of a blog post I posted at MillennialStar.org: http://www.millennialstar.org/the-church-and-immigration/
In a world where many are afraid of terrorist attacks from radical Islam and drugs from Mexico, some think the Church is insane to have its current pro-immigration stance. However, there are two important points the Church considers in establishing its stance.
First, immigration has long been the lifeblood of the Church. When Joseph and the Church were struggling in Kirtland, Missouri and Nauvoo, he did not hunker the members down to weather storm. Instead, he sent out missionaries.
In the middle of the Missouri trials, Joseph sent one of his staunchest supporters, Heber C. Kimball to England. While there, Heber converted hundreds of people, the majority of whom immigrated to join the Saints.
Parley P. Pratt traveled to eastern Canada and converted John Taylor, the future third president of the Church. When Joseph Smith was slain at Carthage, 10 of the 12 apostles were off on missions, mostly in the eastern United States.
Brigham Young would continue the missionary work, sending elders to Europe, Hawaii, and into Asia.  All of this, while Johnston's army and anti-polygamy forces were continually buffeting and threatening the Church.
All of those immigrants that braved the Atlantic crossing, only to then hitch wagon teams or pull handcarts, became the heart and soul of Deseret. Without all of those immigrants, there would not be a Mormon Church today.
So important was this early immigration period that Isaiah prophesied about it:
But what about now and into the future?  This is where the second point on immigration comes into play.
The Lord foresaw a point of massive immigration from around the world of a people that would join the Saints and build the city of Zion in the last days:
Here we see the lost tribes of Israel, and perhaps others, coming to the Americas from the "north countries", which were lands north of the country of Israel, to receive a blessing from Ephraim (the LDS Church). This must occur as part and parcel of the establishment of Zion, as the lost tribes are to help build the city and temple.
The very core of the gospel revolves around immigrants. It is a repeated story of the children of God seeking the Promised Land. Enoch built a city for refugees from the violence of Noah's time Noah escaped the wickedness of the world and the Floods, as a refugee on a boat.  Melchizedek built the city of Salem as a refuge from Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham wandered from Ur to find a land promised to him by God. The Jaredites escaped the Tower of Babel and traveled across the sea in barges. Lehi and Nephi were guided from the evils of Jerusalem to a Promised Land in a ship built by Nephi. The Pilgrims were guided by God to the New World, where they could worship God as they saw fit.
The problem with much of today's immigration is that we allow people to immigrate without having them embrace their new life and culture. When Muslims are not integrated into western society, they retain the best and worst of their previous culture. When we do not let Hispanics enter and join our society fully, they remain on the edges, encouraging the darkest parts of culture to come forward.  We see the same occurring with those forced to come to America in the bounds of slavery, often left on the edges of society, where they do not feel like a part of the Promised Land.
The new call for the Relief Society to reach out a hand to refugees and immigrants is not a new call. After World War II, the Relief Society sent train car loads of grain, food, clothing and blankets to the refugees in war-torn Europe. When the immigrants in the Willie and Martin handcart companies were brought in from the storms, the sisters were ready to take them into their homes, often for years,
There is a consistent pattern in how the Church invites refugees and immigrants. They are the children of God. As such, they deserve a chance to be loved and helped.

Have her consider this: God wishes her to have the maximum amount of joy and happiness she is willing and able tor receive. If she receives baptism and the temple covenants, then God is able to give her the maximum joy in the celestial kingdom. Exaltation is promised to all those who faithfully accept and keep the temple covenants. The promises extend way beyond being sealed to family members.
If she accepts the fulness of the gospel, she opens the door for her husband to someday also accept it. If she closes the door on herself, she closes it on her husband, also. My non-member uncle was married to my LDS aunt for 40 years. When she died of cancer, he began to think about his family, children and grandchildren, and decided he did want to be with them for eternity. He joined the Church and was sealed to his deceased wife and his living children. He gained the blessing, because his wife did the right thing and never gave up hope, even in death.

This is a copy of a blog post I posted at MillennialStar.org: http://www.millennialstar.org/the-church-and-immigration/
In a world where many are afraid of terrorist attacks from radical Islam and drugs from Mexico, some think the Church is insane to have its current pro-immigration stance. However, there are two important points the Church considers in establishing its stance.
First, immigration has long been the lifeblood of the Church. When Joseph and the Church were struggling in Kirtland, Missouri and Nauvoo, he did not hunker the members down to weather storm. Instead, he sent out missionaries.
In the middle of the Missouri trials, Joseph sent one of his staunchest supporters, Heber C. Kimball to England. While there, Heber converted hundreds of people, the majority of whom immigrated to join the Saints.
Parley P. Pratt traveled to eastern Canada and converted John Taylor, the future third president of the Church. When Joseph Smith was slain at Carthage, 10 of the 12 apostles were off on missions, mostly in the eastern United States.
Brigham Young would continue the missionary work, sending elders to Europe, Hawaii, and into Asia.  All of this, while Johnston's army and anti-polygamy forces were continually buffeting and threatening the Church.
All of those immigrants that braved the Atlantic crossing, only to then hitch wagon teams or pull handcarts, became the heart and soul of Deseret. Without all of those immigrants, there would not be a Mormon Church today.
So important was this early immigration period that Isaiah prophesied about it:
But what about now and into the future?  This is where the second point on immigration comes into play.
The Lord foresaw a point of massive immigration from around the world of a people that would join the Saints and build the city of Zion in the last days:
Here we see the lost tribes of Israel, and perhaps others, coming to the Americas from the "north countries", which were lands north of the country of Israel, to receive a blessing from Ephraim (the LDS Church). This must occur as part and parcel of the establishment of Zion, as the lost tribes are to help build the city and temple.
The very core of the gospel revolves around immigrants. It is a repeated story of the children of God seeking the Promised Land. Enoch built a city for refugees from the violence of Noah's time Noah escaped the wickedness of the world and the Floods, as a refugee on a boat.  Melchizedek built the city of Salem as a refuge from Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham wandered from Ur to find a land promised to him by God. The Jaredites escaped the Tower of Babel and traveled across the sea in barges. Lehi and Nephi were guided from the evils of Jerusalem to a Promised Land in a ship built by Nephi. The Pilgrims were guided by God to the New World, where they could worship God as they saw fit.
The problem with much of today's immigration is that we allow people to immigrate without having them embrace their new life and culture. When Muslims are not integrated into western society, they retain the best and worst of their previous culture. When we do not let Hispanics enter and join our society fully, they remain on the edges, encouraging the darkest parts of culture to come forward.  We see the same occurring with those forced to come to America in the bounds of slavery, often left on the edges of society, where they do not feel like a part of the Promised Land.
The new call for the Relief Society to reach out a hand to refugees and immigrants is not a new call. After World War II, the Relief Society sent train car loads of grain, food, clothing and blankets to the refugees in war-torn Europe. When the immigrants in the Willie and Martin handcart companies were brought in from the storms, the sisters were ready to take them into their homes, often for years,
There is a consistent pattern in how the Church invites refugees and immigrants. They are the children of God. As such, they deserve a chance to be loved and helped.

Have her consider this: God wishes her to have the maximum amount of joy and happiness she is willing and able tor receive. If she receives baptism and the temple covenants, then God is able to give her the maximum joy in the celestial kingdom. Exaltation is promised to all those who faithfully accept and keep the temple covenants. The promises extend way beyond being sealed to family members.
If she accepts the fulness of the gospel, she opens the door for her husband to someday also accept it. If she closes the door on herself, she closes it on her husband, also. My non-member uncle was married to my LDS aunt for 40 years. When she died of cancer, he began to think about his family, children and grandchildren, and decided he did want to be with them for eternity. He joined the Church and was sealed to his deceased wife and his living children. He gained the blessing, because his wife did the right thing and never gave up hope, even in death.

Have her consider this: God wishes her to have the maximum amount of joy and happiness she is willing and able tor receive. If she receives baptism and the temple covenants, then God is able to give her the maximum joy in the celestial kingdom. Exaltation is promised to all those who faithfully accept and keep the temple covenants. The promises extend way beyond being sealed to family members.
If she accepts the fulness of the gospel, she opens the door for her husband to someday also accept it. If she closes the door on herself, she closes it on her husband, also. My non-member uncle was married to my LDS aunt for 40 years. When she died of cancer, he began to think about his family, children and grandchildren, and decided he did want to be with them for eternity. He joined the Church and was sealed to his deceased wife and his living children. He gained the blessing, because his wife did the right thing and never gave up hope, even in death.

Have her consider this: God wishes her to have the maximum amount of joy and happiness she is willing and able tor receive. If she receives baptism and the temple covenants, then God is able to give her the maximum joy in the celestial kingdom. Exaltation is promised to all those who faithfully accept and keep the temple covenants. The promises extend way beyond being sealed to family members.
If she accepts the fulness of the gospel, she opens the door for her husband to someday also accept it. If she closes the door on herself, she closes it on her husband, also. My non-member uncle was married to my LDS aunt for 40 years. When she died of cancer, he began to think about his family, children and grandchildren, and decided he did want to be with them for eternity. He joined the Church and was sealed to his deceased wife and his living children. He gained the blessing, because his wife did the right thing and never gave up hope, even in death.

Everyone has covered the point that any answers are speculative, so instead let me address the above point.
Do we, or do we not, believe that God loves and values his daughters?
Do we, or do we not, believe that God's plan is a plan of happiness?
Do we, or do we not, believe that exaltation is the ultimate expression of joy and fulfillment?
Are we to believe that "be[ing] someone's fiftieth wife" is somehow demeaning or degrading? Is it a lesser fate, to be shared only by women who gain a less favorable exaltation?
There is no such thing as "a less favorable exaltation." If a woman is exalted, then she is a god. There is no asterisk beside that.
If this good sister's exaltation lies in "be[ing] someoene's fiftieth wife," then she should happily embrace that exaltation when the time comes. In the meantime, worrying and fretting about it does no good at all, and might do a lot of harm.
Do what is right. Let the consequence follow.

The temple endowment tells us that at least portions of the teaching are symbolilc. That Joseph Smith saw Adam and Eve (DC 137), tells us that they were literally real beings. That said, the story is nuanced, built into an epic event that teaches us about the Creation, Fall and Atonement.
There are some good books that can enlighten you on the story in Genesis. As we have it now, portions of the book of Genesis were written as early as 900 BC, and includes editing by various groups over the next several centuries. In fact, Genesis 1 and 2, give us two different versions of the Creation. Abraham and the Book of Moses give us stories that are different. Psalms and Isaiah also discuss the Creation, with God bringing order out of chaos (water and darkness). In fact, God defeated Leviathan as part of the Creation, and will fight the sea dragon again at the end of the world, according to the Book of Revelation.  All of it symbolic, while some of it is literally true.

The temple endowment tells us that at least portions of the teaching are symbolilc. That Joseph Smith saw Adam and Eve (DC 137), tells us that they were literally real beings. That said, the story is nuanced, built into an epic event that teaches us about the Creation, Fall and Atonement.
There are some good books that can enlighten you on the story in Genesis. As we have it now, portions of the book of Genesis were written as early as 900 BC, and includes editing by various groups over the next several centuries. In fact, Genesis 1 and 2, give us two different versions of the Creation. Abraham and the Book of Moses give us stories that are different. Psalms and Isaiah also discuss the Creation, with God bringing order out of chaos (water and darkness). In fact, God defeated Leviathan as part of the Creation, and will fight the sea dragon again at the end of the world, according to the Book of Revelation.  All of it symbolic, while some of it is literally true.

Note that Elder Holland said that in the paradisiacal state there was no human death. What if only the Garden of Eden was in that state, while the rest of the earth was already in a fallen state?
I believe it actually happened, but I think we try to impose too many of our own ideas onto the story of Adam and Eve in the garden and afterwards. Some of it is metaphor.
Think of truth and the vehicle that carries the truth. The vehicle may not be perfect, historically, scientifically or otherwise. That is not what the vehicle is for. it is to contain and carry forth the truths found inside. The story of Adam and Eve are the vehicle that teaches us the truths of the Creation, Fall and Atonement. Some of vehicle/story may be accurate, but there is no reason for all of it to be so.

Note that Elder Holland said that in the paradisiacal state there was no human death. What if only the Garden of Eden was in that state, while the rest of the earth was already in a fallen state?
I believe it actually happened, but I think we try to impose too many of our own ideas onto the story of Adam and Eve in the garden and afterwards. Some of it is metaphor.
Think of truth and the vehicle that carries the truth. The vehicle may not be perfect, historically, scientifically or otherwise. That is not what the vehicle is for. it is to contain and carry forth the truths found inside. The story of Adam and Eve are the vehicle that teaches us the truths of the Creation, Fall and Atonement. Some of vehicle/story may be accurate, but there is no reason for all of it to be so.

The idea (doctrine?) that there was no death before the Fall of Adam has caused a real issue on reconciling science with religion, when we look at the fossil record.
 
Several years ago, I suggested the idea that death was operative during the five days of creation on another LDS forum, and was renounced as a heretic, an apostate.
 
Few have noticed a recent comment by Elder Holland in the last General Conference.  He was speaking of the Creation and Adam and Eve.  He said something very interesting
 
This is the first time in my memory that the door was opened to the idea that there was death prior Adam, and that the Fall only affected HUMAN death.

The Church policy is, if a person can prove they are a direct descendant of Aaron (not just a Levite) can be a bishop without holding the Melchizedek Priesthood. However, he is still under the requirement to be called of God to that position by the Prophet. Just because a person has met one criteria does not mean he has met all criteria, such as worthiness. That being said, it is very likely that a descendant of Aaron that was called would also be ordained to the MP, so that he could have full access to the blessings of the temple. He would not be able to do temple interviews for endowments or sealings without the MP. He could not direct the priesthood in ordaining MP, confirmations of the Holy Ghost, or a variety of other things. He basically would have one hand tied behind his back, or those responsibilities would have to be delegated to the high priest group leader or elder's quorum president.

I think he was saying that different truths are of varying levels of importance.  Truths can also be interpreted differently. Are we interpreting what the BoM says from our own perspective, or from the perspective of Nephi or Joseph Smith? Or God?  World views differ depending on how a person defines her world.
 
For me, Zion and "Promised Land" are all of North and South America, because that is what Joseph Smith told us. 

The journals/writings of some of the early Church members is a good source.
 
http://www.boap.org/LDS/Early-Saints/

For those without callings, they can make their own "callings". Visit the shut ins. Go out with the missionaries. Do family history. Mow the lawns of the families they home teach. Share the gospel online. Volunteer to help the Scout troop.

Satan's purpose is to have us believe we are gods without needing God. When he said, "ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil", he was stating a lie. We become as God, knowing good and evil, through Jesus Christ.  Today, as in other wicked periods of the past, people chose to be gods unto themselves, not necessarily knowing good and evil, but declaring what will be good and/or evil.
 
There will be a clash, simply because LGBT has, for many, become a religion.  Just as there are continual tensions between radical Islam and Christianity, so there is between radical LGBT and Christianity. As the radical Islamists seek to establish a global caliphate, so do the radical among the LGBT. And while the majority of these groups may be kind, generous, and patient with Christianity, the loud and aggressive ones are the ones pushing much of the agenda for the entire group.

The journals/writings of some of the early Church members is a good source.
 
http://www.boap.org/LDS/Early-Saints/

Satan's purpose is to have us believe we are gods without needing God. When he said, "ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil", he was stating a lie. We become as God, knowing good and evil, through Jesus Christ.  Today, as in other wicked periods of the past, people chose to be gods unto themselves, not necessarily knowing good and evil, but declaring what will be good and/or evil.
 
There will be a clash, simply because LGBT has, for many, become a religion.  Just as there are continual tensions between radical Islam and Christianity, so there is between radical LGBT and Christianity. As the radical Islamists seek to establish a global caliphate, so do the radical among the LGBT. And while the majority of these groups may be kind, generous, and patient with Christianity, the loud and aggressive ones are the ones pushing much of the agenda for the entire group.

Capitalist, of course humanity came to know evil, because now we'd done it.  Of greater concern is the whole "being like God" part.  Despite the doctrine of exaltation, no LDS or Evangelical argues that our coming into godlikeness is to happen in this lifetime.  Yet, those who supress religion and faith, in the name of human rights, do just that.  They, believing they know good from evil, declare God unnecessary, and his followers being that need to be contained. 

Thanks for THAT image, Eowyn.
I officially hate you.

Stop agreeing with me ..... Just because you met my wife doesn't mean I have to be nice to you. Lol!!!

Only because it unconstitutionally arrogated that authority to itself in 1803. Ever since Marbury v. Madison, people have been waiting with bated breath, fearing the day when the Supreme Court would grab the brass ring it gave itself and effectively end Constitutional rule and declare itself the ruling oligarchy by "interpreting" the Constitution in brazenly false ways so as to establish all law from the bench.
 
And that is exactly what has happened. Unless you truly believe that the intent of the 14th Amendment's "equal protection" claused, passed in the mid-1800s, was intended to create and foster homosexual "marriage".
 
Welcome to 21st century America, which is certainly not a democracy. And that is not merely Vort's ranting. Antonin Scalia, the most intelligent and most honest of the Supreme Court justices, sees it that way.

Two years ago, the SCOTUS shot down the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), because marriage was in the sole domain of the States. Now we have the same 5 judges telling us that marriage is suddenly an issue of the federal government. Time to reduce government, and get them out of the relationship business entirely.