Guest MormonGator Posted October 1, 2015 Report Share Posted October 1, 2015 Let me be more specific. Personal revelation that confirms doctrines taught openly by the prophets can and should be shared. As a general rule, private revelations about subjects that have not been explained by the prophets of the Church are meant for you alone. You need to keep your mouth shut about them. If God wants them revealed to the world, he will tell his prophets to declare them. Unless you are called to be the prophet to the world -- which we will know, because you will be an apostle -- you are not authorized to share your private revelations of new doctrine with the world. This is exactly right. The issue with private revelation is that it's subjective. You might honestly think God is trying to speak to you, but if you think God is telling you that whiskey is appropriate for breakfast-simply put, you are wrong.One of the reasons that we have prophets and apostles is so that we check what we think with tradition. It's on them-not you-to speak for the church. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LiterateParakeet Posted October 2, 2015 Report Share Posted October 2, 2015 (edited) About 9 years ago I had a dream a week after my grandfather passed away. I was sitting in a big stadium like room along with hundreds of other people whom I got the impression were all related to my grandfather. My grandfather was the only one walking from table to table visiting with the people. I was anxious and waiting for him to come to my table, when he came to me I saw his face and heard his voice as he gave me this advice..."you know what to do!" I have no doupt that my grandfather left this earth as celestial kingdom material and through the power of the priesthood has the ability to do what he was doing in my dream...reaching out to guide his posterity. It was obvious in my dream that the people sitting at the tables were limited. I believe that this vision would not have happened had it not been induced by the power of the priesthood that my grandfather is able to use. ...and its funny how my perspective fits perfectly with the "ask gramps" article posted vy just-a-guy, here is an exerpt from that article . . . parents who honor temple covenants are in a position to exert great spiritual influence over time on their children. Faithful members of the Church can find comfort in knowing that they can lay claim to the promises of divine guidance and power, through the inspiration of the Holy Ghost and the privileges of the priesthood, in their efforts to help family members receive the blessings of salvation and exaltation. I thought this was beautiful. I appreciate you sharing it. :) This is exactly right. The issue with private revelation is that it's subjective. You might honestly think God is trying to speak to you, but if you think God is telling you that whiskey is appropriate for breakfast-simply put, you are wrong.One of the reasons that we have prophets and apostles is so that we check what we think with tradition. It's on them-not you-to speak for the church. I think I understand your point and agree in part...and yet disagree partially too. For example, when we bear our testimony that is sharing personal revelation. And we are encouraged to do share our testimonies to strengthen one another. Where I can see sharing personal experiences as being problematic, is if someone is sharing their experience to persuade others to something the church doesn't have an statement on....certainly whiskey for breakfast falls into that category, LOL. But I think a more likely example would be if I share that the Holy Ghost told me to home school, and from that I wrongly assume that that was the best course for everyone. Another problem I see is people like Julie Rowe sharing her near death experience to warn people about dangers coming...that is worrisome. And on a related note sharing personal dreams about future events. I think people can and do have prophetic dreams but those should certainly be kept private. Getting back to PriesthoodPower's sharing, I thought it was beautiful as I said. I just took it as a sweet and comforting experience. I don't see any problem with him sharing it because he wasn't trying to say this is the way it is for every one, or warning people about future events etc. He was simply sharing a sweet faith promoting experience. That is what we do in Testimony meeting. What are your thoughts? Edited October 2, 2015 by LiterateParakeet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MormonGator Posted October 2, 2015 Report Share Posted October 2, 2015 I thought this was beautiful. I appreciate you sharing it. :) I think I understand your point and agree in part...and yet disagree partially too. For example, when we bear our testimony that is sharing personal revelation. And we are encouraged to do share our testimonies to strengthen one another. Where I can see sharing personal experiences as being problematic, is if someone is sharing their experience to persuade others to something the church doesn't have an statement on....certainly whiskey for breakfast falls into that category, LOL. But I think a more likely example would be if I share that the Holy Ghost told me to home school, and from that I wrongly assume that that was the best course for everyone. Another problem I see is people like Julie Rowe sharing her near death experience to warn people about dangers coming...that is worrisome. And on a related note sharing personal dreams about future events. I think people can and do have prophetic dreams but those should certainly be kept private. Getting back to PriesthoodPower's sharing, I thought it was beautiful as I said. I just took it as a sweet and comforting experience. I don't see any problem with him sharing it because he wasn't trying to say this is the way it is for every one, or warning people about future events etc. He was simply sharing a sweet faith promoting experience. That is what we do in Testimony meeting. What are your thoughts? Frankly, I think you make a good point. Something I'll reconsider, that's for sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Folk Prophet Posted October 2, 2015 Report Share Posted October 2, 2015 (edited) The issue with private revelation is that it's subjective. Vort's not speaking of just private revelation. Private revelation is a core standard of the church and is absolutely requisite for all of us. Anyone who fails to have private revelation absolutely needs to seek it out. And sharing it is paramount and commanded. What Vort's speaking of is new private revelation. Something that hasn't been revealed to others that supposedly puts one ahead of the prophets. I agree that priesthoodpower's dream qualifies as a potential testimony building thing and I have no problem with such being shared. Where we're not in sync is his seeming claim that it qualifies as an understanding of things that have not been revealed to the church, or as an explanation of sealings, what they really mean, why they're really important, or how they'll work in the eternities. Edited October 2, 2015 by The Folk Prophet Vort 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MormonGator Posted October 2, 2015 Report Share Posted October 2, 2015 Vort's not speaking of just private revelation. Private revelation is a core standard of the church and is absolutely requisite for all of us. Anyone who fails to have private revelation absolutely needs to seek it out. And sharing it is paramount and commanded. What Vort's speaking of is new private revelation. Something that hasn't been revealed to others that supposedly puts one ahead of the prophets. I agree that priesthoodpower's dream qualifies as a potential testimony building thing and I have no problem with such being shared. Where we're not in sync is his seeming claim that it qualifies as an understanding of things that have not been revealed to the church, or as an explanation of sealings, what they really mean, why they're really important, or how they'll work in the eternities.Oh, okay. Thank you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LiterateParakeet Posted October 2, 2015 Report Share Posted October 2, 2015 I found your clarification helpful also, TFP. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
priesthoodpower Posted October 5, 2015 Report Share Posted October 5, 2015 I find many learning points and perspectives in this thread also. Gotta love these forums! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 7, 2015 Report Share Posted October 7, 2015 I had asked a similar question as the first comment (when I read it) on the Ask Gramps link. What happens when someone in the line is unfaithful to his covenants? I said "his" because the person in my family that I'm concerned about was male. I received two responses that addressed the question. 1) No, the chain is not broken. In fact, it is not a chain. It is a web. So, as a piece of the web is removed, the remaining portions of the web hold. And the Lord makes the patches were they need to be patched. 2) If your father, for example, breaks his covenants, you move up the line. You belong to your grandparents just as much as your parents. The specific wording that these two sources gave me were wildly different so gave me an entirely different impression of what they meant. But putting it together in these words, side-by-side shows how similar the responses were. Maybe both had a piece of the puzzle and the answer is somewhere around there. Back to the OP: "Family" in eternity is much more important than we realize. I could give an hour long lecture on this topic and still only touch the surface. And it would all be based on words from the prophets on family, sealing, and eternal progression (as mentioned before). No, this is not something to gain an easy understanding of in a forum such as this. But the answer to the OP is actually revealed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pam Posted October 7, 2015 Report Share Posted October 7, 2015 I had asked a similar question as the first comment (when I read it) on the Ask Gramps link. What happens when someone in the line is unfaithful to his covenants? I said "his" because the person in my family that I'm concerned about was male. Nice to see that you read Ask Gramps. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MormonGator Posted October 7, 2015 Report Share Posted October 7, 2015 I find many learning points and perspectives in this thread also. Gotta love these forums! Reason number 443 I love this church and the forum. So, so true. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brothermason Posted October 8, 2015 Report Share Posted October 8, 2015 Hi Syme, As you note one of the great blessings of being sealed is it allows us to be with our family forever. However, a sealing gives other blessings as well that those who are not sealed do not have. Sealed families form eternal families and enjoy eternal increase (offspring) in the afterlife. God also gives us a share in His creative power, and a sealed husband and wife raise up a righteous generation in the eternities. These are blessings that are enjoyed only by those who inherit celestial glory, and a temple marriage is one of the ordinances we need to participate in to be like our Heavenly Father. That's why sealings are so important. Why do we say "families can be together forever" when that's contingent on ending up in the same kingdom? And if we ARE in the same kingdom, why do I have to be sealed? Could I not visit Mother Teresa, Joan of Arc, or any other historical figures, just as I could visit my own family?Is there some barrier between you and those you aren't sealed to? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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