TheMightyQuinn

So the Didache was written when 11 Apostles were dead and the remaining Apostle was banished. I assume then that John didn't have much influence over the churches. Did John have control over the churches while banished?

When were the apostles killed? When was the Didache written? From my understanding the Didache was written around the turn of the century which would have been after the death of all the apostles. So one could say that the Didache probably describes the post-apostolic Church. I don't think this is true, as apostasy had been present in the Church from the beginning--just read the epistles. When the Apostles died, the proper authority to perform ordinances and to guide the Church was lost.

If you don't mind me asking, what is your scientific background? I've been surprised at the number of LDS people I find in engineering and science, especially with advanced degrees (I have a doctorate in EE). The one thing I learned in my research, is you must be skeptical of claims (especially your own) but also realize that nothing is impossible, since we are routinely accomplishing what was considered impossible only a decade earlier. Most of these "impossible" things became possible because we let go of our assumptions of how they must be implemented. We thought we had enough knowledge to determine whether something is possible, but in truth we know next to nothing. One of the greatest joys of being a Dad is that I routinely amaze my children doing things they think aren't possible simply because their sphere of knowledge is so limited. This is how I see our relationship with God, who knows vastly more than we do. The point of this rambling is to tell you your scientific background can be a strength in searching for faith. Many beliefs we held in science and religion have turned out to be based on our own assumptions of how the universe or God works, and these assumptions were wrong. So in reading scripture let go of any assumption that only a certain reading is correct, and see scripture as a message God wants you to hear (particularly the Book of Mormon which was brought to us in this modern era.) There are many things in scripture I don't understand, as there are many things in science I do not understand, but that doesn't make them incorrect or invalid.

The symbol on the right Obviously looks like this:

The issue I have with "ghosts" is that their manifestations seems to be dependent on one's culture. The way "ghosts" behave in various countries and cultures varies dramatically, and more importantly how one culture "verifies" the existence of ghosts also varies.

In my wife's PB she is described only as "a decendant of Abraham".

I have a hard time imagining myself giving away my children's food to feed local bureaucrats in the name of "saving people's lives", but maybe I'm just too selfish?

Are you certain?

I know of no official statement, but if you realize that the church only produces 46 lessons which should cover the 52 Sundays this year, it only makes sense that you wouldn't skip a lesson for stake or general conference. (Besides, if the Church wanted us to skip lessons for general conference, why would they bother writing lessons for the first Sunday in April and October?) Does anyone think that the Church wants us to skip lessons they prepared and then create lessons of our own to fill the 52 weeks? Doesn't make a lot of sense to me.

Early one Saturday morning I slogged into the local meetinghouse to clean the building. To my surprise I noticed that someone had already vacuumed. Since I know for a fact that no one else from my ward would dare help clean the building, the only reasonable conclusion is that it was the work of the Three Nephites!

Saintmichaeldefendthem1 is correct. For Jayhawk to say incandescent bulbs are not banned is akin to claiming (and please forgive the hyperbole) poll taxes did not prohibit blacks from voting. What a law states is one thing; what a law accomplishes is often another.

Globe CFLs are the only ones I've had problems with. Unfortunately, they're the bulbs we use the most.

That's strange, because when I was experiencing these problems I found many others in similar situation. The general consensus was: 1) CFLs should not be cycled on/off often, and 2) CFLs should not be exposed to moisture. One problem was that I have a habit of turning off lights when not in use. Bathroom usage is about 1-2 minutes at a time. Note--all the globe CFLs I used took several minutes to warm to full brightness (significantly longer than any other type of CFL i have used.) So I was cycling on/off before the bulb got to full brightness. It was recommended that I leave the CFLs on (this is what Jayhawk calls "efficent".) Many others have had problems with CFLs outdoors due to environmental conditions, so I inferred the bathroom problem was due to humidity. I also suspect the globe CFLs get hotter due to the globe around the bulb, causing premature failure. The globe CFLs also produce intolerable color. One could look directly at the incandescent bulbs (40w), which produced a soft yellowish light. The CFL globes could not be viewed directly, not because of intensity but because of only what I can describe as "harshness"--it hurt to look at them. This is a bit of a problems as the bulbs are positioned directly along the top of the mirror. The light produced was cold and sterile, but one expects that from CFLs. I was really hoping CFLs would help reduce the high energy use in our two bathrooms-a total of 480 watts of incandescent lighting! CFLs could have dropped that down to around 120 watts! Fortunately people like Jayhawk are are around to accuse me of "oppos[ing] using the resources of this earth efficently". I better head out to Home Depot to consume new products all the in name of "efficency"!

Do you seriously believe that? I replaced my globe incandescent bulbs with CFL globes in my bathroom. Within a years ALL the CFLs were dead. My incandescents last longer and are significantly cheaper than the CFLs. How is that more efficient?

As I read this evening while home teaching: Doctrine and Covenants Section 76 17 Verily, verily, I say unto you, ye are little children, and ye have not as yet understood how great blessings the Father hath in his own hands and prepared for you; 18 And ye cannot bear all things now; nevertheless, be of good cheer, for I will lead you along. The kingdom is yours and the blessings thereof are yours, and the riches of eternity are yours. 19 And he who receiveth all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious; and the things of this earth shall be added unto him, even an hundred fold, yea, more. I think cheerfulness should be the hallmark of the Saints of Christ.