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I wanted to make a running list of questions I’ve posted that have been answered and unanswered mostly for my own reference. Thanks to everyone for your feedback Question: Why are miracles performed by LDS prophets today not publicized like they were in the Bible? Are the miracles today just not as grandiose as they were before? Status: [UNANSWERED] Current Thought: Although I haven’t received an answer for myself on this, great feedback from @Just_A_Guy and @Anddenex. I need to dig deeper to find out how much publicity miracles really received back then, and what exactly it means in passages like the following where Jesus performed a miracle and specifically charged the recipient to not say anything: Mark 1:45 “But he went out, and began to publish it much, and to blaze abroad the matter, insomuch that Jesus could no more openly enter into the city, but was without in desert places: and they came to him from every quarter.” Question: Is the church doing enough to combat pornography? Could more resources be dedicated to helping its members? Status: [NO COMMENT] Current Thought: I can’t state a definitive yes or no to the question above without undermining church leadership. What I will say is I personally would like to see in the future every ward have its own pornography addiction support group as well as someone in the ward being assigned to a calling as the pornography addiction support group leader to host meetings once a week. I believe every ward has enough men (and sometimes women) experiencing pornography issues to justify these measures. The real problem becomes opening up honest discussion on the subject to allow members to help each other overcome such a shameful, embarrassing addiction Question: Why do we pray to the Father and not the Son for forgiveness when it was the Son who atoned for our sins? Status: [ANSWERED] Answers: @Snigmorder “Jesus was sent by the Father, Jesus is the Father's servant. We did not break Jesus's laws, therefore it is not his forgiveness we ask.“ @prisonchaplain “The Godhead has determined that it is the Father who decides how sins are redeemed, and that they are forgiven.” @Anddenex “The definition of being "one" doesn't mean their roles are also the same. Remember the intercessory prayer, and how we are commanded and the Lord prays that his servants will be one like Jesus and the Father are one. Our specific roles do not change when we become ‘one.’” Question: In the multiple accounts recorded of Joseph Smith’s First Vision, why did Joseph Smith state he only saw one “Lord” in his first account while in later accounts he stated seeing both the Father and the Son? Status: [ANSWERED] Answer: The first account actually did allude to two “Lords” being present. It’s not black and white, but it’s workable when you compare the first account in 1832 to the second account in 1835. 1832 Account “…I was filled with the spirit of god and the <Lord> opened the heavens upon me and I saw the Lord and he spake unto me…” This sentence could be interpreted as one Lord appears first to open the heavens, AND THEN, Joseph sees another Lord who speaks to him. I tried rewriting this sentence as if I was writing it referring to only one Lord. All I ended up doing was replacing the second usage of “the Lord” with a pronoun. “…I was filled with the spirit of god and the <Lord> opened the heavens upon me and I saw him as he spake unto me…” However, even when just trying to refer to one Lord, I’m tempted to revert back to the original sentence Joseph Smith wrote to make it clear he did indeed see the Lord with his own eyes. This analysis by itself does not merit much, but when comparing it side by side with the 1835 account, it meshes a lot better with the notion Joseph did intend to describe in his first account that he saw two Lords who appeared at different times. 1835 Account “…a personage appeard in the midst, of this pillar of flame which was spread all around, and yet nothing consumed, another personage soon appeard like unto the first…” In later accounts, the choreography of one Lord appearing before the other is dismissed, possible due to focusing more on the message itself than the staging of the First Vision. Credit goes to @Snigmorder Question: How do 300,000 year old human fossil remains fit on the timeline with Adam being the father of the human race when it is thought he lived on this Earth no more than 7,000 years ago (give or take a few years based on calendar discrepancies)? Status: [UNANSWERED] Current Thought: The more I think about this topic in general, the more confused I become. God created Adam as the first man, yet modern scientific timelines place Neanderthals well before scriptural timelines. What is the relationship of that which was living in the Garden of Eden to that which was living outside of it? Were Neanderthals human and did they have a conscience? When did Neanderthals integrate with descendants of Adam, and does it even make sense that not all humans today would have a direct line to Adam? And how accurate is our measurement of time using half-life analysis? ¡AYYYY CARAMBA! Question: Do you think the Lord will judge us based on how much meat we consume in this life? Or how many animals died at the expense of our nourishment? Status: [ANSWERED] Answer: Yes, the Lord will judge us using the “sparingly” threshold Question: Is It Okay to Admitting to a Substandard Testimony from Behind the Pulpit? Status: [ANSWERED] Answer: Yes, as long as it’s shared in the right spirit. What would happen if we were more open with each other about personal struggles we are going through? Could we find some good in that? To me it seems whoever takes the microphone in Church has to appear to have a 100 percent testimony, when in reality, we all know that's not the case. I personally would appreciate it if more speakers were down to earth with admitting they might not be perfect, but that they have hope in Christ of becoming better. Question: Are Confessions Kept Confidential by Bishops? Status: [ANSWERED] Answer: No, confessions are not kept STRICTLY confidential by bishops. While they won’t be parading around what you confessed, they are at liberty to discuss your confession with other ward members, your mom and dad, and any others they see fit Question: Why do couples have to wait a year to be sealed in the temple if they were first wed civilly? Status: [ANSWERED] Answer: I think the issue is based on where is your priority. Who do you put first in your life? God or man? Also, waiting a year serves as a safeguard for those who may not be ready to take on additional accountability. A temple marriage provides some special blessings but with those blessings comes an added measure of accountability to following the Lord’s commandments. Question: Where do the desires to survive, learn, love, procreate, and prosper come from? Did God instill these desires within us? Are these desires righteous or just a part of the natural man? Status: [ANSWERED] Answer: All instinctual and righteous desires within us are animated by the light of Christ Credit goes to @CV75 Question: Is Jesus Christ the Savior of more than just this world? Status: [UNANSWERED] Current Thought: Who knows? If he is the Savior to more than this world, does he live and die multiple times to have a mortal experience on every world he atoned for? Did his atonement in our world cover just our sins or also include every world out there? Did he perform a new atonement each time he lived on a different world? If his atonement here covered the sins for all other worlds and he never had mortal experiences elsewhere, does that mean all other worlds have to accept him as an alien Savior? ¡AYYYY CARAMBA! Question: Is the Devil necessary for God’s Plan of Salvation to go forward? Status: [ANSWERED] Answer: No. If a devil is needed to tempt us, who tempted Lucifer when he first rebelled against God? We as imperfect beings can make wrong decisions without the influence of a devil. The Devil increases the challenge for us to resist temptation, but he is not necessary for God’s plan to go forward. God’s plan would go forward regardless. Question: How can we reliably use the Holy Spirit to gain a testimony of the LDS church when experiencing the Holy Spirit is not unique to the Mormon Church? Status: [ANSWERED] Answer: The summation of spiritual experiences one has is not the same as receiving a spiritual confirmation that the religion is true. We need to pray specifically to know if the LDS church is the one and only true church on the face of the Earth. Also, we can’t just gain a testimony of the Book of Mormon and then subsequently accept all teachings within the Church to be true. The “if/then” logic is faulty (if the Book of Mormon is true, Joseph Smith was a prophet, and the Church is true…). We need to ask more specific answers in prayer. If you prayed to know Mother Theresa’s words were true, and received confirmation that they were, does that mean you should accept all beliefs of the Catholic Church? Credit goes to @person0 Question: What does Matthew 7:14 mean when it says "Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it." Status: [ANSWERED] Answer: It means few will obtain Celestial Glory (my own interpretation of a “few” is between 5-10 percent) Question: Is the LDS belief that everyone will be extended a chance to accept the gospel whether in this life or the next not one the greatest reassurances that God is a respecter of no man and he loves all his children equally? Status: [ANSWERED] Answer: Yes Question: Why would God introduce Mormons to the practice of polygamy only to restrict it, and then say the restriction is only temporary and that Polygamy is indeed a true eternal doctrine to be embraced by those worthy and willing at a later time? Status: [UNANSWERED] Current Thought: I still haven’t found an example of God behaving in a similar manner within the Holy Bible, and I don’t consider the Law of Moses to be a parallel example. We were never meant to practice “an eye for an eye” forever. Question: Should dying at a young age in itself be the reason why Celestial glory is awarded? Status: [UNANSWERED] Current Thought: If the answer is PREDESIGN, I’m only left with more questions. Did children who die before turning 8 years old live more valiantly than the rest of us in Premortal Life? If so, what’s that to say about the timing of death in all other scenarios? Take for instance a man who dies in a wicked state but who would have repented a couple years down the road given the chance. Did he not live valiantly in the Premortal Life? What about a man who dies in a righteous state but who would have fallen into wickedness a couple years down the road given the chance? Did he live more valiantly in the Premortal Life? And when have you ever seen a heavenly class of kinder garners? If a bomb blew up that school and one of the teachers lived to tell about it, do you really think she would grade every student of hers as Celestial?