Confused with questions

[rosebud]

I would appreciate any help with the questions I have noted below.

First, I admit that I am not of the Mormon faith but I do not

want anyone to feel that I am asking questions with a critical heart,

with bad intentions or of mean spirit.

I simply am very curious. I have googled my questions but it

appears that there are many sites that are very unfair to the LDS's.

So, instead, I am coming to you directly with my questions.

Much of the reason I ask these questions is because I am a huge supporter of Mitt Romney & I am often attacked for supporting him based on his faith.

I try to approach life with a loving heart but people can seriously be very

critical and harsh. I don't see why some people put him down for his religion.

Thank you in advance!

Were Jesus & Satan at one time equals?

Was Jesus created?

Has God the Father always existed as He is now?

Is Jesus "God" or is He "A God"?

Has Jesus always been God?

What do Mormons believe about the Holy Spirit?

Is God the Father married or has He ever been married?

Has God the Father had physical sex?

Was Satan an angel?

Can we become equal to Christ?

[Dallin]

Hi Rosebud,

you ask some very difficult questions, even for members of the LDS church. Most of these questions we don't know the answer to, as no direction has ever been given by prophets in relation to them. We try to focus on those questions important to our salvation, which are mainly what we focus on in church services.

These teachings are similar to other Christian faiths. They are primarily that Jesus Christ is our Savior and it is only through him and his grace that we can return to live with God. We believe that the path to him (necessary steps to receive his grace) is through faith, repentence, baptism, receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost and then enduring in this path. If we do these things, the grace of Christ will help us to be better people in this life and one day allow us to be cleansed of all sin so we can live with God again. As you can see, the basis of our church is similar to most other Christian churches, with the exception that we believe that Christ has blessed us with prophets today who have authority to speak for him and to establish his church, just as he did in ancient times. These prophets help us interpret scriptures correctly and receive important ordinances such as baptism by people who have authority from God to do so. Basically, we believe that God has once again placed his church on the earth and is leading us to make sure we don't believe in false teachings and know those truths necessary for us to be saved.

If you've ever listened to one of these modern day prophets speak, you'll find there's really nothing radical about what they say - they teach us to love our families, treat our bodies like temples, read our scriptures, pray always, be honest and serve others - many of the things which those who don't have misconceptions about our church know our members for. These are the basic principles that we try to live by, and they are exactly the reason that having Mitt Romney for a president is a good thing and something you can feel comfortable with.

In conclusion, your questions are mostly unaddressed in our church, and we are encouraged not to worry about them. Some members may guess these answers or conclude non-doctrinal answers from other teachings, but they shouldn't be accepted as the beliefs of the church as a whole. I CAN answer a few of your questions, but I'll post them in my next post, since this one is running long.

[Dallin]

You'll have to forgive me Rosebud. I'm too tired tonight to finish answering your questions, and I want to do as good of a job as I can for you. I'll answer them first thing in the morning though.

[Dale]

I do not see LDS belief as saying Jesus and Lucifer were ever equal's. Lucifer was of lesser position than Jesus when he was still a good angel. Remember Lucifer only became evil at some point.

Collossian's 1:15 regarding Jesus pre-existent spirit being firstborn is interpreted by Evangelicals as meaning pre-eminent. I have seen a word study countering that opinion and it does mean born first. Jesus intelligence was uncreated, but i think he had a created body as much as Satan did.

I think myself that LDS are wrong about the literal spirit children idea. I am by the way a member of the Community of Christ (formely the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saint's.) So i am in a related church to the LDS, but we are two different denominations. I think Jesus created spirits. But indeed the created part's of Jesus and Lucifer can indeed be spirit brothers.

I see God's intelligence as alway's existing. I see that as meaning his personality has alway's been around. I understanding LDS belief as saying that intelligence was alway's around. But that at some point the Father had a spirit body, and physical body that whatever part of God was uncreated.

I thnk Jesus is two distinuishable from the Father to count as the same being as God. The scripture's mostly seem to require that belief, but not all. Some scriptures like John 17:21,22 seem to treat the Father and Son as two person's defineable like two men are person's. Those who wrote the creed's to escape such clear meaning tried to say the person's of God were like the person's of an actor. They knew the three were not mere role's of God and that Jesus never meant that, but they thought this unbiblical idea harmonized the idea of the person's with mono-theism.

I am not certain LDS have ever said Jesus was just a God. I have seen them say he's God. They see him not as the same being as the Father. So that would in a sense make him a God so i do not object to such language myself. Isa. 43:10 is a mono-theistic verse, but i see John 17:21,22 as a departure from that. Only distinct person's can be one in purpose with other person's. Why can't Jesus be both a God and a God?

I am not certain Psalm 90:2 require's the belief God was alway's been in the role of God. Psalm 103:17 use's similar language in application to us and that "from everlasting to everlasting" that the mercy of the Lord was upon us had a beginning. Do you have a specific scripture that you feel preclude's Jesus from becoming God at some point?

In regards to the Holy Spirit i see LDS as thinking the Holy Spirit is a personage. But that he has much omni-present capabilities so is not limited by him being a personage. The 1835 Lecture's on Faith an early LDS book described the Holy Spirit as the mind of Father and Son.

LDS see the Father as being married. Sex and marriage go together.

Jesus the man as God may have had sex and may have been married. Jesus was called Rabbi which if i am informed correctly was used in application to married men. In John 11 Jesus called out a woman in mourning which only a husband could do. One guy suggested John 2 has Jesus in charge of the wine which was the duty of the bridegroom. The early part of the chapter treat's Jesus as a guest unless of course some corrupt scribe , or Group couldn't stomach that so changed it. If Jesus is the same God as the Father God and not just a God the Godhead had a physical body that may have had sex.

I am not certain the argument's for a married Jesus are valid. But i have never seen LDS critic's who have mocked the opinion of some past LDS leaders that he was ever refute the arguments. The arguments have been around for year's in an LDS book called the Gainsayers by Derrick Evenson. The author is no longer LDS, but his argument's for a married Jesus should not be rejected because people prefer to have Jesus unmarried.

I do not see LDS as saying we can be equal to Christ. The person's that become God's in LDS belief are subordinate to the Trinity, or Godhead. The LDS couplet about "As man is God once was and as God is man may become" is not for all the gods. But any independent God will not be before, or after the Godhead except in an independent real that does not compete with God's.

LDS do not accept man and God have vast differences. They see Jesus as having a spirit body that resembled the spirits of other men. (Luke 24:39) One scholar i know compared the vastness of God's spirit to that of the ocean. John 4:24 i think Jesus was calling both person's of spirit along with the Holy Spirit as spirit. If Jesus was not formless in-between his death and resurrection that's what he was doing. Why would the Father have to be formless if Jesus as God had form?

I am not certain of some of the LDS idea's myself. my denomination does not accept the idea's of men becoming God's. And officially have a Trinitarian view of God. But not being a creedal church we have had much Anti-Trinitarianism also. I am not a real fan of all the Trinity idea myself.

[HiJolly]

I would appreciate any help with the questions I have noted below.

Were Jesus & Satan at one time equals?

I don't think so. The Church has never said they were. Though I do think they both had equal opportunities to choose for themselves what they would think, what they would do.

Was Jesus created?

No, I don't think so, and the Church clearly teaches that He was not, but that He existed from all eternity.

Has God the Father always existed as He is now?

I don't know. I think the Church doesn't teach that he was a man as we are, and hasn't for many, many years. Back when such things were taught, it was done as opinion, not doctrine, as far as I know.

Is Jesus "God" or is He "A God"?

The Church teaches that He is one of three Gods --- The first being Heavenly Father, Jesus being the second, and the Holy Ghost being the third. The Church clearly teaches that these three are One (though many times the comment has been made, that they are "one in purpose, not in body"). We don't believe in the Trinity. We believe in Three seperate and distinct individuals. ...And that they are One.

Has Jesus always been God?

That is what the Church teaches. Joseph smith made some statements that might lead one to think Jesus grew into Godhood long before the Earth existed, but those comments are not doctrine of the Church, as far as I know. Various people in the Church have opinions either way, but the Church scriptures are clear: Jesus is and always was God.

What do Mormons believe about the Holy Spirit?

We believe that there are a few differing things that are sometimes called the "Holy Spirit". One -- The Holy Ghost (third member of the Godhead) is sometimes called the Holy Spirit in the New Testament. Two -- The Holy Spirit can be seen as the influence of God in man. Three -- The Holy Spirit can sometimes mean what we LDS call the "light of Christ". So I think generally speaking we are fairly fluid in what that means.

Is God the Father married or has He ever been married?

Most Mormons believe God is married to Heavenly Mother, though we do not typically speak of it. We believe in Genesis it describes that Adam and Eve were formed in the image of God. We don't know much about it, except that some members/leaders have claimed that it is the truth. We are not obligated to believe it.

Has God the Father had physical sex?

Yikes. Maybe. I don't know. Who can say? We do believe He has a physical body, even now.

Was Satan an angel?

The Bible seems to say so, and we agree with that. He is a fallen angel.

Can we become equal to Christ?

No. We can inherit what He has been given by the Father, but we will never be His equal.

HiJolly

[the_jason]

Were Jesus & Satan at one time equals?

No. Jesus was the Firstborn and Only Begotten of the Father. Satan was at one time a very valiant son, but he was never equal to Christ.

Was Jesus created?

Yes. All children of Heavenly Father were created. God, himself, came about as a result of a creation.

Has God the Father always existed as He is now?

No. "As man is, God once was." He had to progress just as we do.

Is Jesus "God" or is He "A God"?

Both. He is a seperate and distinct person from the Father, but he is also God. They are one in purpose.

Has Jesus always been God?

Yes. He was created as such

What do Mormons believe about the Holy Spirit?

He is a member of the Godhead and is a personage of spirit. He does not have a physical body at this time so that he can dwell within us and testify of Christ.

Is God the Father married or has He ever been married?

Yes. He is married to our Heavenly Mother

Has God the Father had physical sex?

Probably

Was Satan an angel?

He still is. He never has and never will have a physical body.

Can we become equal to Christ?

Yes. "As God is, man may become."

[HiJolly]

...and so you see, we are all allowed our various belief and interpretations...

...and the confusion continues, I suppose...

HiJolly

[PentiumInside]

I would recommend reading the scriptures and praying and attending meetings to find an answer to some of those questions, and not from the people you might ask but from the feelings you get from the spirit. Alot of those questions have no bearing on your eternal progression what-so-ever. Whether they are true or not true, you will not be affected wither way. What you really mean to say is "Is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints true?" And the answer to that question is not found by searching for the answers to the afore mentioned questions, but by prayer and thought and reading the scriptures :)

Just MHO :)

[ztodd]

I would appreciate any help with the questions I have noted below.

First, I admit that I am not of the Mormon faith but I do not

want anyone to feel that I am asking questions with a critical heart,

with bad intentions or of mean spirit.

I simply am very curious. I have googled my questions but it

appears that there are many sites that are very unfair to the LDS's.

So, instead, I am coming to you directly with my questions.

Much of the reason I ask these questions is because I am a huge supporter of Mitt Romney & I am often attacked for supporting him based on his faith.

I try to approach life with a loving heart but people can seriously be very

critical and harsh. I don't see why some people put him down for his religion.

Thank you in advance!

Were Jesus & Satan at one time equals?

Was Jesus created?

Has God the Father always existed as He is now?

Is Jesus "God" or is He "A God"?

Has Jesus always been God?

What do Mormons believe about the Holy Spirit?

Is God the Father married or has He ever been married?

Has God the Father had physical sex?

Was Satan an angel?

Can we become equal to Christ?

As Dallin said, we don't really preach one way or the other on some of these questions, and they're not important, so try not to worry about them. Here's what I say to the ones I feel might be important-

Was Jesus created?

Is Jesus "God" or is He "A God"?

Has Jesus always been God?

Yes, yes, yes and yes. He has been termed, God the second (Encyclopedia of Mormonism : Compound Object Viewer - click God the Father).

What do Mormons believe about the Holy Spirit?

He is also God. He has been termed, God the third (see link above).

Can we become equal to Christ?

No, but we can become join heirs and inherit all that he has in store for us.

[a-train]

The trouble with some of these questions is the sense in which it is asked. Some of these questions could have answers of 'yes' in one sense and 'no' in another.

Example: Was Jesus created? In one sense he was never created. His immortal and eternal Spirit was never created. However, in some manner, He was born to the Father as the first of countless spirits. In this regard He is the First Begotten of the Father. It was there that His spirit body was created.

His physical body was created as he was born of Mary. Because He was the only One of the countless spirit sons and daughters of the Father to be born physically as the Son of the Father, He is therefore known as the Only Begotten of the Father.

Jesus is God, and He always has been and always will be. His passage through birth and death didn't mark any passage from nonexistance to existance, nor from non-God to God. It is because of this that we can make no assumption that the Father by any definition of the term 'God' could not have also passed through such experiences.

It is the declaration of the Church and the gospel that God once was as we are at this time. Jesus, our God, was once living on an earth as a man. So likewise did the Father. These truths pose no contradiction to the eternal nature of God.

-a-train

[Dale]

Mormon Miscellaneous has an interesting article entitled The Origin of the Human Spirit in Early Mormon Thought by Van Hale.

Articles & Papers

[PentiumInside]

Mormon Miscellaneous has an interesting article entitled The Origin of the Human Spirit in Early Mormon Thought by Van Hale.

Whats the point of that article? I didn't read it however my spidey senses are tingling about it. When ever something says "early" or "mormon" or even better "early mormon" you better think twice before thinking any of it is worth your time reading in my experience.

Can you give us a Cliff Notes version please? :)

[HiJolly]

Whats the point of that article? I didn't read it however my spidey senses are tingling about it. When ever something says "early" or "mormon" or even better "early mormon" you better think twice before thinking any of it is worth your time reading in my experience.

Can you give us a Cliff Notes version please? :)

I haven't read it, but in general I can say I have been very pleased with Van's work. I agree with him in most of his views, though not all.

HiJolly

[Dale]

The basic thing about the Van Hale article is the idea of being born spirit children of God was not Joseph Smith's idea. What became modern official LDS doctrine was based on an early misunderstanding of what he felt in regard's to the matter. I refer to the article if anyone is interested in finding out what Joseph Smith's idea was. The article contain's enough documentation that i see it as hard to argue against. If Van Hale has misunderstood his subject i can't see it. I only disagree with him on a couple of point's.

I also pointed to the article only for the information it contain's. Van Hale is LDS and i prefer to let him as an LDS member represent his position. One can easily find LDS who might disagree with him.

[HiJolly]

The basic thing about the Van Hale article is the idea of being born spirit children of God was not Joseph Smith's idea.

Having now read the article, I would just clarify that Van's point seems to be that we have no evidence that it was Josephs idea. He conceeds that it may have been, but there is no scholarly evidence to support that view.

HiJolly

[Dale]

That's a good clarification.

[NateHowe]

"God" is a title more than a name, as "Father" is. However, when we say "God," we generally mean our Father in Heaven, who is the father of all of our spirits, including Jesus and Lucifer. Jesus is also rightly called by the title of God, because he has inherited all that the Father hath, including all power, glory, and knowledge. The Holy Ghost can be called by the same title.

No other being can take the place of our Father, the God who presides over the universe. For example, Jesus Christ is not trying to usurp power from his Father - that would be contrary to eternal laws and thus negate his power and glory. He is the Son of God, and as such is a rightful heir who works in harmony with his Father. So may we become by following their plan for us.

[tubaloth]

Let see what I come up with….

Were Jesus & Satan at one time equals?

That is kind of a tuff question. We believe that all of us are spirit children of Heavenly Father. We do believe that Jesus Christ (being not only the first born of the flesh, but also the first “born” in spirit, and thus the birthright.) We believe in this pre-mortal life that each progressed at there own level and at there own rate. Christ progressing farther beyond any of us. So, no I don’t see Jesus and Satan being equals, but I’m guessing what you have heard is more if Jesus and Satan were brothers. In the real sense this WAS true (just as you and me are brothers, as in anybody else that has been born to this earth, including Hitler). So if we follow that thought Hitler and Jesus were “brothers” in that spiritual sense. With Satan going against God and his plan for us, Heavenly Father cast Satan out, and thus Satan is what he is. I don’t know if I would call him my “brother” much.

Was Jesus created?

I probably would have to know what you mean by “created”? We do believe that Jesus was “born” a spirit like we all are. We know that Jesus came to this earth and got a body. We believe that Jesus is resurrected and now has a body of flesh and bones.

Has God the Father always existed as He is now?

This we don’t know. We assume from other teachings the history of God, but those are only humans trying to get a better grasp of whom and what God is.

Is Jesus "God" or is He "A God"?

I guess I really don’t know what the difference is here. We believe that Jesus, as being the Firstborn son of God, was called to fulfill his Role in the Godhead. At first Jesus didn’t have power as a God (as God had) but had power as his role in the God head (yes I know this is kind of confusing). As Christ fulled all his Father had Given him to do (the Atonement, resurrection, creation and so forth). Jesus was then a God, with Power as his Heavenly Father had.

Has Jesus always been God?

Probably look at the previous answer. I probably would say No in the completely term of what it is to be a God. But that didn’t mean that Jesus was ever not chosen to do and be what he was. (if that makes sense).

What do Mormons believe about the Holy Spirit?

I assume you mean the Holy Ghost… We believe that Holy Ghost was a spirit person that lived in Pre-mortal life. Is part of the Godhead. Teaches us truth, brings us closer to God. We believe that after Baptism we can have the Laying on of hands for the gift of the holy ghost.

Is God the Father married or has He ever been married?

We do pretty much assume that God is married. How, what or when it all happen we don’t know. We just believe in the LDS church the Eternal unit of the Family. It just doesn’t make sense that you can have a FATHER in Heaven with out having a MOTHER in heaven.

Has God the Father had physical sex?

This we don’t know. Anything that is really “taught” on this subject is just guessing based on the previous question and, us trying to understand God.

Was Satan an angel?

What is your definition of Angel? Satan was never one of God’s messengers… if that is what you think. We do believe that Satan and progressed to some status in Pre-mortal life. How high we don’t know. We just know that he lost a lot! (fell)

Can we become equal to Christ?

This is a tuff question. We believe in the LDS church that the point of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is to bring us back to our Heavenly Father, to dwell with him as a family, and that at some point in time we can gain all that our Father has. We don’t completely comprehend what this completely is, but it would entail become just Like God. Does that mean we are going to replace God, or that we aren’t going to need God or Jesus Christ. No. our Relationship to them well always stay the same. So we won’t be equal to Christ (as the savior and redeemer) but we can become joint heirs with Christ.

Now your questions were way deep!!! These types of questions are tuff to understand (especially on a message board). Even more if this is what you think we teach every Sunday at church you are mistaken completely. These types of subjects might come close to being taught in church, but more it is stuff we study on our own!

My fear in being so frank with you, is that you well assume this is all Mormons are! That isn’t it!!! If you really want to understand Mormons (and even more who Mitt Romney is) you need to look at way more of our Religion then some anti-mormon questions (that everybody trys to use to discredit us).

I do suggest you get a copy of the Book of Mormon. Yes we do believe that there is more scripture for us. Its About a people that had the gospel and tried to live it like we all do. We do believe that Joseph Smith was a prophet, and that there are still prophets today!

Start here! http://www.mormon.org

Any more questions I can try to ask!

Go Mitt!

[rosebud]

I am so sincerely appreciative of everyone's responses & absolutely thrilled that nobody

thought that my questions were out of line.

I was a bit nervous about that. I mean, I read a couple threads in this forum where

people were being extremely disrespectful of the Mormon faith. I was so impressed with how many people of the Mormon faith responded to the hateful posts.

I was hoping that my original post came across as genuine.

I consider myself Christian although I do not belong to a certain sect. I am non-denominational. I was brought up by parents of different faiths. My Mom is Baptist & my Dad is Catholic. I went to both churches. Talk about confusing!

Personally--(And I am not demeaning the Catholic faith. I have many family members who are very devout Catholics) but I never really got much out of going to Catholic mass. Growing up, I enjoyed going to the Baptist church a lot more.

There, I could feel Gods presence.

When I became an adult & married, I went to my Grandmother who I admire & trust. She could quote scripture (Seriously.. she could quote much of the Bible) & had a very close relationship with Jesus Christ.

I asked her "What am I"?

"Am I Catholic or am I a Baptist"?

She told me to pray about it. The next week, we met for lunch & she asked me

if I had prayed about it. I told her I had & that I really felt that I was simply "Christian".

I do study the Bible, I have been baptized & I can honestly say from the depths of my soul that I "feel" God's love for me; especially when I am in prayer.

As much as I read & study about God, certain things can be very confusing. The Word of God can be very complex.

As I grow in my faith & continue to study, I pray that I will come to understand more.

It doesn't help that I am the type of person that confuses easily. lol!

But what I do understand is that God is so loving, so forgiving & so faithful.

I see some Christians act as if they are both judge & jury of the world. Some act as if they know who is & who isn't going to Heaven. Some don't associate with certain people because they don't believe them to be "Christian enough."

This is really sad. Jesus walked on earth & committed no sin. Jesus showed us by example how to live our lives. But I wonder if some Christians would snub their noses up at the people that were closest to Jesus when He walked the earth. Sadly, I think that some would.

I mean many of the disciples were not exactly the pillars of their communities at the beginning. But Jesus loved them regardless. The Apostle Paul (Saul) was the perfect example of a life changed by Jesus Christ. If Paul could change, I say that ANYONE can change. Anyway, basically what I am saying is that Jesus taught us to love one another, not judge. What if Jesus had just judged everyone when He was on earth? He didn't.

He changed lives. He loved the unlovable, the fortunate & the unfortunate.

He was humble, He didn't have an ego, He didn't have greed in His heart. He was then, is now & has always been the definition of pure, perfect & unconditional love.

I think of how much I love my husband, my Mother, my brother & sister. It's powerful.

Then, I think of the fact that God loves me more than I am capable of loving anyone else; more than anyone else could possibly love me. That is beyond powerful.

That thought alone keeps me strong during dark times.

Anyway, thank you for answering my questions & allowing me to share about myself.

God Bless

[Dale]

Personally i am not upset at LDS thinking God has with his wife spirit children. If they know more than i do about the matter that's ok with me. And i do favor the idea Jesus created spirit's, but it does not matter to me so much whether they are born, or uncreated spirit's as in Joseph Smith's idea. I find the last two ideas as speculative. But i feel some LDS critic's upset by what they regard as endless celestial sex is not something i am upset over.

LDS never talk of "endless celestial sex" LDS critic's alone brought together those three words to mock the spirit children idea.

I am reading again a book entitled Jesus Christ/Joseph Smith by Floyd Mcelveen. And instead of focusing on the positive aspect's of being spirit children of God he mock's a bunch of time's the wonderful idea of the Heavenly Father and Mother having spirit children together.

I recall Gilbert Schwarffs the author of the Truth About The Godmakers saying something about critic's objection to either eternal pregnancy, or the sex. I may have spelled his name wrong. I recall him as writing he was uncertain if LDS official doctrine was clear on whether God's method of having spirit children is the same as man's way of having physical children.

I think the question's are great. They indicate areas of concern people have about LDS doctrine. I have not found any church free of what outsider's might think heresy. I do not think Evangelicalism as orthodox as they claim, and i have come to think Mormonism more true than they think.

[VisionOfLehi]

I think an important thing to mention, if it hasn't already been, is the Godhead. Several questions asked seem to related to understanding the Godhead.

We do not believe in the Trinity as set forth in the Nicene Creed. We believe the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost are 3 distinct personages.

Briefly on the Holy Ghost, or the Holy Spirit:

The mission of the Holy Ghost is to testify of Christ. He is a Spirit, and his exact nature we do not know, nor do we believe we need to.

[Shell72]

Personally i am not upset at LDS thinking God has with his wife spirit children. If they know more than i do about the matter that's ok with me. And i do favor the idea Jesus created spirit's, but it does not matter to me so much whether they are born, or uncreated spirit's as in Joseph Smith's idea. I find the last two ideas as speculative. But i feel some LDS critic's upset by what they regard as endless celestial sex is not something i am upset over.

LDS never talk of "endless celestial sex" LDS critic's alone brought together those three words to mock the spirit children idea.

I am reading again a book entitled Jesus Christ/Joseph Smith by Floyd Mcelveen. And instead of focusing on the positive aspect's of being spirit children of God he mock's a bunch of time's the wonderful idea of the Heavenly Father and Mother having spirit children together.

I recall Gilbert Schwarffs the author of the Truth About The Godmakers saying something about critic's objection to either eternal pregnancy, or the sex. I may have spelled his name wrong. I recall him as writing he was uncertain if LDS official doctrine was clear on whether God's method of having spirit children is the same as man's way of having physical children.

I think the question's are great. They indicate areas of concern people have about LDS doctrine. I have not found any church free of what outsider's might think heresy. I do not think Evangelicalism as orthodox as they claim, and i have come to think Mormonism more true than they think.

Why would any human be concerned with God and sex in the same sentence? This does seem to be rather disturbing that someone would put thought and words into the subject.

[Dale]

One of the earlier question's raised related to God and sex. It reminded me of reading Floyd Mcelveen's book where that critic did just that. It was his way of trying to get his reader's upset at the LDS idea of a married God, and him having spirit children.

I think some of his effort was aimed to upset women readers. He spent a lot of time bashing eternal marriage. That women would be eternally pregnant.

He only presented i think Matthew 22 against the idea of marriage in heaven. Jesus gave an answer based solely on the interpretation of law of Moses. Moses law is not the final authority regarding the matter. The law and it's rule's were abolished. Nothing would prevent Jesus from learning something in the afterlife regarding eternal marriage which made his idea of no marriages wong.

[darrel]

Rosebud, I appreciate your questions and personally feel your support for Mitt is well founded. As a life time member, returned missionary, active leader, and member missionary I can say that your questions are good ones. Some of them I feel are the result of misunderstanding the doctrine of the LDS gospel which you may have received from anti-lds sources. Some of those sources are on this forum so you must be able to discern them. That is the roll of the Holy Ghost (Holy Spirit). As you sincerely search, ponder, and pray you will receive a confirmation by that spirit of the truth you are seeking.

Any answers you might receive to your questions must be received by that spirit of the Holy Ghost in order for you to accept and understand them. The confusion in the world today is because so many voices are clammering to be heard.

[Stampede]

I would appreciate any help with the questions I have noted below.

First, I admit that I am not of the Mormon faith but I do not

want anyone to feel that I am asking questions with a critical heart,

with bad intentions or of mean spirit.

I simply am very curious. I have googled my questions but it

appears that there are many sites that are very unfair to the LDS's.

So, instead, I am coming to you directly with my questions.

Much of the reason I ask these questions is because I am a huge supporter of Mitt Romney & I am often attacked for supporting him based on his faith.

I try to approach life with a loving heart but people can seriously be very

critical and harsh. I don't see why some people put him down for his religion.

Thank you in advance!

Thank you for looking at it objectively and asking the appropriate sources for information. rather than relying on other sources where you could have as easily accepted thier slander and flith towards us. I appreciate your sincerity and will glady answer your questions to the best of my knowledge.

Were Jesus & Satan at one time equals?

They are our spirit brothers. as we are all brothers and sisters, children of our heavenly father. God created them in his spiritual likeness just as he created us. The "priesthood" existed before the world began, and in latter-day revelation (Doctrine & Covenants) we know that Lucifer was given Power similar (i don't know about equal though) to that of Christ. And when the time came to come to earth, Lucifer was angry that he was not picked for the Job and that his horrible idea was cast aside. He then sought to overthrow god and take his kingdom, but what he did not realize at the time is the true Power of God. Lucifer and his followers (1/3 of the hosts of heaven) did not have physical bodies, only spiritual bodies. God being all powerful because of his knowledge and him having obtained a physical Body, cast them out of heaven for thier open rebellion against him.

Was Jesus created?

Just like we were created as spirit children before coming to earth

Has God the Father always existed as He is now?

No, He once went through the same trials and tests that we went through. He is the creator of our beings, and the great governor of the universe.

Is Jesus "God" or is He "A God"?

Jesus is the son of God, the Only Begotten of God in the flesh. His mission was one of mercy for the redemption of mankind. He is part of the Godhead which consists of God the Father, Jesus Christ the Son, and The Holy Spirit.

God, is more like a title. like the Seahawks (football) they are a sports team. each person is individual, but they work together as a team to achieve a single Goal.

Such is the Godhead. God the Father requires Justice, But he is a loving Father and allowed for the demands of Justice to be satisfied through his Son Jesus Christ by way of Mercy. And the Holy Ghost is the Witness of truth, who does not have a physical Body, because his mission requires him not to have one yet.

Has Jesus always been God?

No, he obtained this through the ultimate sacrifice, being perfect in mortality he could pay the price of sin to satisfy the demands of justice for those who have ever existed and will exist on this planet. and allowing him to ascend to sit at the right hand of God and obtain the glory that is his.

What do Mormons believe about the Holy Spirit?

He testifies of Truth. he is the comforter. "the Spirit of God" He is what comforts you in times of nee, He lets you feel God's presence of love. He is the medium in which our prayers are answered.

Is God the Father married or has He ever been married?

Has God the Father had physical sex?

Yes, most definitely, God the father created mankind in his own image, we are in the likeness of Him. Man and Woman sealed together for time and all eternity is the only way to achieve Exaltation like our Father in Heaven. We most definitely have a ehavenly mother and all womankind is modeled after her image.

Out of respect for my ehavenly father i do not wish to discuss symmantecs of matrimony. We are his children, we are made in his likeness, you can figure out the rest.

Was Satan an angel?

At one time yes, but his open rebellion cost him everything, He comitted the unpardonable Sin, Denying the Holy Ghost while the heavens were Opened to him. jsut like his followers

Can we become equal to Christ?

We can become equal to our Father in Heaven if we do all that is required of us. and this can only happen through the grace Mercy of Jesus Christ. He took upon the sins of the world so that we may be found spotless before God by obedience to all of the comandments he has given.