LDS Thoughts and DOCTRINE.

[plainness]

https://www.lds.org/manual/the-life-and ... d?lang=eng

"God chose Jacob over Esau while the two were yet in Rebecca’s womb and before either, as far as the works of this life are concerned, had earned any preferential status. Why? It is a pure matter of pre-existence. Jacob was coming into the world with greater spiritual capacity than Esau; he was foreordained to a special work; he was elected to serve in a chosen capacity.
You Are Favoured Because of Your Conduct in Premortal Life

Not all the reasons for your blessings are because of your conduct in this world; some go back into the beginning with God. “God gave his children their agency even in the spirit world, by which the individual spirits had the privilege, just as men have here, of choosing the good and rejecting the evil, or partaking of the evil to suffer the consequences of their sins. … some even there were more faithful than others in keeping the commandments of the Lord. …

The spirits of men … had an equal start, and we know they were all innocent in the beginning; but the right of free agency which was given to them enabled some to outstrip others, and thus, through the eons of immortal existence, to become more intelligent, more faithful, for they were free to act for themselves, to think for themselves, to receive the truth or rebel against it.” (Smith, Doctrines of Salvation,1:58–59.)

Many responded to the spirit of God there. They were favoured and foreordained to receive privileges."

Amazing how esoteric this thing can become. No one seems to temper this pre-existence thing with the obvious: Any soul who touches Christ by faith is reconciled to the very same depth and capacity of any other. The human reckoning of pre-existent greatness is very, umm, what's the word?

See the parable of the laborers in the vineyard.

Or the banality of the disciples contemplating their status and seniority.

How dumb. Jesus had to set them straight. Had to tell them that the last are first and the first last.

And that there will be new initiates greater than John the Baptist, who among, prophets, there are none greater. Sound a bit mystical and contradictory? Because status in eternity is a paradox.

Explaining Jacob's status above Esau's by pre-existent accolades is silly. His name means "supplanter, or status-thief."

He's a sympathetic, desperate, redeemed character with a very heavy identity crisis. Sound familiar?

[Elizabeth]

"First Presidency 2016 Letter Encouraging Political Participation, Voting in US
The following letter was issued by the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on October 5, 2016, to be read to Church congregations throughout the United States:

Dear Brothers and Sisters:

Political Participation, Voting, and the Political Neutrality of the Church

As citizens we have the privilege and duty of electing office holders and influencing public policy. Participation in the political process affects our communities and nation today and in the future. We urge Latter-day Saints to be active citizens by registering, exercising their right to vote, and engaging in civic affairs.

We also urge you to spend the time needed to become informed about the issues and candidates you will be considering. Along with the options available to you through the Internet, debates, and other sources, the Church occasionally posts information about particular moral issues on which it has taken a position at http://www.MormonNewsroom.org" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;.

Principles compatible with the gospel may be found in various political parties, and members should seek candidates who best embody those principles.

While the Church affirms its institutional neutrality regarding political parties and candidates, individual members should participate in the political process. The Church also affirms its constitutional right of expression on political and social issues.

Sincerely yours,

Thomas S. Monson
Henry B. Eyring
Dieter F. Uchtdorf
The First Presidency"
http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/f ... ticipation" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Elizabeth]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HlP9X5Pig-8" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Published on 20 Nov 2014
Mitt Romney, former presidential candidate and BYU alum, shares lessons gleaned from his professional and personal life.

Read and download his full address at the BYU Speeches website: https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/mitt-r.." onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;.

Mitt Romney, Republican candidate for the office of President of the United States (2008, 2012) and former governor of Massachusetts, gave this BYU forum address on 18 November 2014.

[Elizabeth]

https://www.lds.org/church/news/first-p ... e?lang=eng" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;



"The First Presidency has sent letters to Church leaders and members in four states urging them to vote against proposed recreational marijuana and physician-assisted legislation.

Recreational marijuana

In an October 13 letter to Church leaders and members in Arizona, California, and Nevada, the First Presidency addressed legislation that would legalize the use of marijuana for recreational purposes. They wrote:

“Drug abuse in the United States is at epidemic proportions, and the dangers of marijuana to public health and safety are well documented. Recent studies have shed light particularly on the risks marijuana use poses to brain development in youth. The accessibility of recreational marijuana in the home is also a danger to children.

“We urge Church member to let their voices be heard in opposition to the legalization of recreational marijuana.”

Physician-assisted suicide

In a letter dated October 13 to Church leaders and members in Colorado, the First Presidency urged Church members to oppose Proposition 106, which would legalize physician-assisted suicide:

“The Church maintains a firm belief in the sanctity of human life and opposes deliberately taking the life of a person even when the person may be suffering from an incurable condition or disease (see Handbook 2: Administering the Church [2010], 21.3.3). Life is a sacred gift and should be cherished even in difficult circumstances.

“Physician-assisted suicide is permitted by law in some countries and a few states in the United States. Experience suggests that such legalization [of physician-assisted suicide] can endanger the vulnerable, erode trust in the medical profession, and cheapen human life and dignity. Moreover, the decision to end one's life carries a lasting impact far beyond the person whose life is ending.”

“While the Church opposes physician-assisted suicide, members should not feel obligated to extend mortal life through means that are unreasonable. Decisions in such cases are best made by family members after receiving wise and competent medical advice and seeking divine guidance through fasting and prayer (see Handbook 2: Administering the Church [2010], 21.3.8)

“We urge Church members to let their voices be heard in opposition to the measures that would legalize physical-assisted suicide.”

[Elizabeth]

https://www.lds.org/church/news/elder-b ... _xLIDyL2-1_" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;


"The new Star Valley Wyoming Temple, the 154th operating temple of the Church, was dedicated Sunday, October 30, in three sessions by Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. The first temple in Wyoming—a state known for pioneer heritage—will serve thousands of members in six stakes in western Wyoming and parts of southeastern Idaho.
"Elder Bednar presided over dedicatory events Saturday, October 29, and Sunday, October 30, that included a temple cultural celebration. During the first dedicatory session on Sunday, he led an entourage of Church leaders out of the temple for the ceremonial sealing of the cornerstone.
Along with the leaders, Elder Bednar invited children to place some mortar and then he invited two daughters of Wyoming to take a turn with the trowels—his wife, Sister Bednar, who was raised in Afton, and Sister Barbara D. Perry, wife of the late Elder L. Tom Perry. Sister Perry, who was raised in Cokeville, south of Star Valley over a mountain pass and part of the temple district, participated in the dedication and cornerstone events.
“This is just like an amazing dream,” Sister Bednar said during the interview with her husband the day before the dedication. “I guess you could say I’m amazed and thrilled, I’m excited, and I’m just full of appreciation to a loving Heavenly Father who has seen fit to bless these people.”
Then Sister Bednar, the daughter of Kay and Nyla Robinson, who are pioneer descendants, shared a “tender mercy” for her family. When the Star Valley Temple was announced in 2011, Sister Bednar’s father, who was celebrating his 85th birthday, called his daughter and told her he had a birthday wish.
“He said, ‘I wished that I would live long enough that I would see the Star Valley Temple dedicated,’” Sister Bednar related.
Continuing, she said, “Well, tomorrow, the day of the dedication, is my father’s 90th birthday and he’ll be here. My mom and dad will both be here, 88 and 90 years old and still doing good things.”
Also speaking of the legacy her parents instilled in her was Sister Perry, the daughter of S. Reed and Lois Taylor Dayton. Her father was a bishop in Cokeville for 23 years and a stake president for 14 years. He was also a Wyoming state legislator serving the Star Valley area.
In her remarks to the Church News, Sister Bednar had a tender message for the youth of the new Star Valley Wyoming Temple: “I hope that the youth of this valley will always protect it by the way they live, that they will stand for truth and righteousness and be dedicated to the Lord and do their part to preserve the legacy of faith that has been established in this mountain home.”

[Elizabeth]

https://www.lds.org/manual/jesus-the-ch ... 3?lang=eng" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

"What other man has come to earth with such appointment, clothed with the authority of such foreordination? The atoning mission of Jesus Christ was no self-assumption. True, He had offered Himself when the call was made in the heavens; true, He has been accepted, and in due time came to earth to carry into effect the terms of that acceptance; but He was chosen by One greater than Himself. The burden of His confession of authority was ever to the effect that He operated under the direction of the Father, as witness these words: “I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.”s “My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.”t “I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will but the will of the Father which hath sent me.”u
Through the atonement accomplished by Jesus Christ—a redeeming service, vicariously rendered in behalf of mankind, all of whom have become estranged from God by the effects of sin both inherited and individually incurred—the way is opened for a reconciliation whereby man may come again into communion with God, and be made fit to dwell anew and forever in the presence of his Eternal Father. This basal thought is admirably implied in our English word, “atonement,” which, as its syllables attest, is at-one-ment, “denoting reconciliation, or the bringing into agreement of those who have been estranged.”v The effect of the atonement may be conveniently considered as twofold:

1—The universal redemption of the human race from death invoked by the fall of our first parents; and,

2—Salvation, whereby means of relief from the results of individual sin are provided.

The victory over death was made manifest in the resurrection of the crucified Christ; He was the first to pass from death to immortality and so is justly known as “the first fruits of them that slept.”w That the resurrection of the dead so inaugurated is to be extended to every one who has or shall have lived is proved by an abundance of scriptural evidence. Following our Lord’s resurrection, others who had slept in the tomb arose and were seen of many, not as spirit-apparitions but as resurrected beings possessing immortalized bodies: “And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, and came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.”x
Those who thus early came forth are spoken of as “the saints”; and other scriptures confirm the fact that only the righteous shall be brought forth in the earlier stages of the resurrection yet to be consummated; but that all the dead shall in turn resume bodies of flesh and bones is placed beyond doubt by the revealed word. The Savior’s direct affirmation ought to be conclusive: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live. … Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.”y The doctrine of a universal resurrection was taught by the apostles of old,z as also by the Nephite prophets;a and the same is confirmed by revelation incident to the present dispensation.b Even the heathen who have not known God shall be brought forth from their graves; and, inasmuch as they have lived and died in ignorance of the saving law, a means of making the plan of salvation known unto them is provided. “And then shall the heathen nations be redeemed, and they that knew no law shall have part in the first resurrection.”

[Elizabeth]

"Following the presidential election, the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles released the following statement on November 9, 2016, on Mormon Newsroom:

We congratulate President-elect Donald Trump on his election as President of the United States.
We invite Americans everywhere, whatever their political persuasion, to join us in praying for the president-elect, for his new administration and for elected leaders across the nation and the world. Praying for those in public office is a long tradition among Latter-day Saints. The men and women who lead our nations and communities need our prayers as they govern in these difficult and turbulent times.
We also commend Secretary Hillary Clinton and all those who engaged in the election process at a national or local level. Their participation in our democratic process, by its nature, demands much of those who offer themselves for public service. May our local and national leaders reflect the best in wisdom and judgment as they fulfill the great trust afforded to them by the American people."
http://www.ldsliving.com/First-Presiden ... on/s/83664" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Elizabeth]

"Jacob, a Nephite prophet, taught the universality of the resurrection, and set forth the absolute need of a Redeemer, without whom the purposes of God in the creation of man would be rendered futile. His words constitute a concise and forceful summary of revealed truth directly bearing upon our present subject:
“For as death hath passed upon all men, to fulfil the merciful plan of the great Creator, there must needs be a power of resurrection, and the resurrection must needs come unto man by reason of the fall; and the fall came by reason of transgression; and because man became fallen, they were cut off from the presence of the Lord; wherefore it must needs be an infinite atonement; save it should be an infinite atonement, this corruption could not put on incorruption. Wherefore, the first judgment which came upon man, must needs have remained to an endless duration. And if so, this flesh must have laid down to rot and to crumble to its mother earth, to rise no more. O the wisdom of God! his mercy and grace! For behold, if the flesh should rise no more, our spirits must become subject to that angel who fell from before the presence of the eternal God, and became the devil, to rise no more. And our spirits must have become like unto him, and we become devils, angels to a devil, to be shut out from the presence of our God, and to remain with the father of lies, in misery, like unto himself; yea, to that being who beguiled our first parents; who transformeth himself nigh unto an angel of light, and stirreth up the children of men unto secret combinations of murder, and all manner of secret works of darkness. O how great the goodness of our God, who prepareth a way for our escape from the grasp of this awful monster; yea, that monster, death and hell, which I call the death of the body, and also the death of the spirit. And because of the way of deliverance of our God, the Holy One of Israel, this death, of which I have spoken, which is the temporal, shall deliver up its dead; which death is the grave. And this death of which I have spoken, which is the spiritual death, shall deliver up its dead; which spiritual death is hell; wherefore, death and hell must deliver up their dead, and hell must deliver up its captive spirits, and the grave must deliver up its captive bodies, and the bodies and the spirits of men will be restored one to the other; and it is by the power of the resurrection of the Holy One of Israel. O how great the plan of our God! For on the other hand, the paradise of God must deliver up the spirits of the righteous, and the grave deliver up the body of the righteous; and the spirit and the body is restored to itself again, and all men become incorruptible, and immortal, and they are living souls, having a perfect knowledge like unto us in the flesh; save it be that our knowledge shall be perfect.”
https://www.lds.org/manual/jesus-the-ch ... 3?lang=eng" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Elizabeth]

https://www.lds.org/?lang=eng&cid=email ... 12516_Logo" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

https://www.mormon.org.au/?cid=HP_FR_25 ... _xLIDyL1-A_" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

"Since a new star first appeared above Bethlehem, Christmas has been a season of light, reminding us that Jesus Christ is the light of the world. Together, we can celebrate His birth by making the world a brighter place. All we have to do is follow Him—His life, His example, and His teachings. In doing so, we can help #LIGHTtheWORLD."

[Elizabeth]

https://www.lds.org/church/events/2016- ... _&lang=eng" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;


2016 First Presidency’s Christmas Devotional, 4 December, 2016.

[Elizabeth]

http://www.ldsliving.com/Mitt-Romney-Po ... dium=email" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;


"Mitt Romney has never shied away from sharing his faith on social media. After the passing of a close friend, Senator Bob Bennett, Mitt Romney wrote on Facebook, "What I will remember most about Senator Bennett is his unwavering commitment to principle; his is an example of integrity and character that will long live in the memories of all of us who knew him. God be with you, Bob, till we meet again at Jesus' feet."

Even while discussing politics, former presidential candidate Mitt Romney has a way of tying in eternal truths to help us see God's hand in our lives.


On Sunday, December 11, Mitt Romney shared a post about the special honour it is ordaining a grandson as a Deacon in the Aaronic Priesthood."

[Elizabeth]

https://www.lds.org/manual/jesus-the-ch ... 3?lang=eng" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

"The application of the atonement to individual transgression, whereby the sinner may obtain absolution through compliance with the laws and ordinances embodied in the gospel of Jesus Christ, is conclusively attested by scripture. Since forgiveness of sins can be secured in none other way, there being either in heaven or earth no name save that of Jesus Christ whereby salvation shall come unto the children of men,e every soul stands in need of the Savior’s mediation, since all are sinners. “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God,” said Paul of old,f and John the apostle added his testimony in these words: “If we say that we have no sin we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.”

Who shall question the justice of God, which denies salvation to all who will not comply with the prescribed conditions on which alone it is declared obtainable? Christ is “the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him,”h and God “will render to every man according to his deeds: to them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, eternal life: but unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil.”

[Elizabeth]

http://www.ldsliving.com/Elder-Christof ... dium=email" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

"At the National Prayer Service offered Saturday morning at the Washington National Cathedral, 25 faith leaders offered prayers for the country and its new leader.
Among them was Elder D. Todd Christofferson. “There was a wide variety of faiths represented, and it was an honour for us to be included," Elder Christofferson told Mormon Newsroom. "I felt the Church was recognised and honoured and that the prayers for the nation were heartfelt—that our leaders would be wise and Spirit-guided. It was a wonderful unity of spirit, unity in behalf of our leadership and for the good of the country."
Elder Christofferson offered a prayer that might have sounded unusual to Latter-day Saints, as it was "a prayer adapted from an Episcopal text read at George Washington’s inaugural service," the Washington Post noted.

"O, Lord, our Heavenly Father, whose glory is in all the world," Elder Christofferson prayed, according to the Deseret News. "We commend this nation to thy merciful care, that, being guarded by thy Providence, we may dwell secure in thy peace.
"Grant to Donald John Trump, president of the United States, and to all in authority, thy grace and favour. Give them wisdom and strength to know and to do thy will. Endue them with thy heavenly gifts. Fill them with the love of truth and righteousness, and make them ever mindful of their calling to serve this people in thy fear; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end."

[Elizabeth]

Attacking the LDS Church’s Tax Exempt Status
19 January 2017 by Scott Gordon

LGBT political advocate Fred Karger has threatened to file a complaint against the “Mormon Church,” otherwise known as The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, with the IRS once he uncovers the Church’s “vast business holdings and all of the secret political activities.”[1] He hopes to get the tax exempt status of the Church revoked.[2] To assist with this, he has launched a TV ad campaign and has put up a new Website looking for tips and documents that will support his cause.

So, as I understand it, once he finds evidence of a crime—because he is sure there has been a crime, he will act on it and report the Church to the IRS, which he is sure will revoke the Church’s tax exempt status.
This sounds a lot like when he accused the Church of election fraud in 2008. The Church filed some of its reports with the State of California using the wrong forms. They gave the State the correct amount of in-kind donations, but in the last two weeks of the election failed to put it on the daily form that is required.
To be clear, they told the State the correct number, but just put in on the wrong form, which had a different due date.[3]

Even though the state law in question specifically states it doesn’t deal with election fraud[4]; even though the Church corrected the paperwork and paid their fine for late notification; even though the State of California recognized that the instructions were not clear so they changed them after this incident, it didn’t stop Fred Karger from crying fraud...

http://blog.fairmormon.org/2017/01/19/a ... mpt-status" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;



Comcast to air ads pursuing Mormon church tax status after all, organizer says
The Salt Lake Tribune
Jan 25 2017

Ads asking for documents and other information harmful to the tax status of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will run on Comcast after all, the ads' producer said Wednesday. Fred Karger said he has continued negotiating with Philadelphia-based Comcast and it has agreed to broadcast the advertisements in the Salt Lake City market, provided Karger amends the script. Karger said Comcast is requiring him to reword part of the ad and graphic alleging the LDS Church has more than $1 trillion in assets. Karger said that portion of the ad will say something to the effect that it is thought that the church has that much in assets...

Comcast issued a statement Wednesday afternoon saying it had wanted substantiation for five claims made in the ad, and Karger had been unwilling to provide those.Karger provided substantiation for four of those claims last week, the Comcast statement said.
"For the one unsubstantiated claim, they agreed to modify the statement/visual," the statement said. "We are waiting for them to send us a revised 30-second ad to review."

http://www.sltrib.com/home/4862450-155/ ... ing-mormon" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Robin Hood]

I wonder why he doesn't go after the Catholic Church?

[Elizabeth]

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/8656 ... tml?pg=all" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.ldsliving.com/Elder-Oaks-Urg ... dium=email" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

TEMPE, ARIZ.

"Urging all Church members to take a stand in defense of religious freedom, Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and other Church officials addressed more than 1,100 people at the Tempe Institute of Religion at Arizona State University on Jan. 21. Over 11,000 more, age 16 and older, viewed a live broadcast of the event at 81 stake centers in Arizona.

“The leadership and membership of The Church of Jesus Christ are irrevocably committed to the principle and preservation of religious freedom because it is necessary for the divine plan for mortals to exercise their agency to make the choices necessary to progress toward eternal life,” said Elder Oaks. “In furtherance of what we believe to be the inspiration of God, our national and state constitutions guarantee the free exercise of religion by forbidding government laws or actions to restrict it.”

He explained that core principles of Church doctrine, such as those identified in “The Family: A Proclamation to the World,” are divinely given doctrine of the restored Church and cannot be changed.

“The most important Church doctrine being currently attacked is our practice and reliance on the traditional man-woman marriage and family,” Elder Oaks said. “The Family Proclamation begins with the declaration that ‘marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children.’ ”

He said when the proclamation was presented by President Gordon B. Hinckley in 1995 many Church members questioned why such an official pronouncement of commonly accepted beliefs was necessary. Today, “we see the hand of the Lord in identifying our doctrine in clear terms,” Elder Oaks said.

“There are many political, legal and social pressures for changes that de-emphasize the importance or change the definition of marriage, confuse gender or homogenize the differences between men and women that are essential to accomplish God’s great plan,” he said. “Our eternal perspective sets us against such changes.”

Speaking prior to Elder Oaks was Elder Von G. Keetch, General Authority Seventy, and Elder Lance B. Wickman, general counsel of the Church and an emeritus General Authority Seventy.

Elder Keetch, who conducted the meeting, said the purpose of the Religious Freedom Conference was to assist Church members in understanding the role they can and should play in defense of basic constitutional rights.

“Religious freedom is definitely under fire,” he said. “There will be serious challenges ahead.”

“We should stand where we are and do the very best we can when a religious liberty fire erupts,” he said, referring to a story he told of a volunteer firefighter who left his post briefly and returned to a raging fire in a building he was assigned to protect.

Elder Wickman spoke of the creation of the U.S. Constitution by those who labored extensively to form “a more perfect union.”

“It was a product of hard work,” he said. “It requires us to do hard work as citizens to protect it.”

“We’ve left too much to the courts,” he said. “ ‘We the people’ must do the hard work in defense of religious freedom ‘in order to form a more perfect union’ today.”

There was also a presentation by two religious liberty lawyers, Hannah Smith and Alexander Dushku. They showed the Church’s new webpage, religiousfreedom.lds.org, which features videos and information that defines religious freedom and what can be done to protect it.

For example, under “Get Involved” there are “10 Ways to Protect Religious Freedom” and “Seven Keys to Successful Conversations.”

Under “Examples,” there are videos and information on “Everyday Conversations: Creating Mutual Respect in Heated Conversations” and “Religion in Public Schools: 7 Religious Things You Can Still Do.”

The presenters also took questions submitted by audience members and talked about how to speak up with courage and civility.

Sister Smith also recognized members of other faiths who were in the audience and pointed out a doctrinal perspective from Church history when the Prophet Joseph Smith said that he was just as willing to die in defending the rights of a Presbyterian, a Baptist, or a good person of any denomination because he realized that the same principles that would trample upon the rights on those other faiths would be used to trample on the rights of Church members.

Joseph Smith said: “It is a love of liberty which inspires my soul — civil and religious liberty to the whole of the human race.”

She also quoted the Church’s 11th Article of Faith: “We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.”

“I hope, as members of the Church,” she said, “we would be the first to stand up for religious freedom for all people.”

Those participating in the conference reminded audience members of the need for civility and understanding when discussing and defending religious freedom and dearly held personal beliefs.

Elder Oaks said: “Notwithstanding opposition, the Lord Jesus Christ commands His followers to show love and seek peace.”

“Whatever our differences, most of us want to live together in happiness and harmony, with goodwill toward all,” he said. “We want effective ways to resolve differences without anger or contention and with mutual understanding and accommodation. We all lose in an atmosphere of hostility or contention. We should encourage all to refrain from the common practice of labeling adversaries with such epithets as ‘godless’ or ‘bigot.’ We all lose when debates on ideas and policies turn into personal attacks, boycotts, firings and other intimidation of adversaries.”

He added, “To achieve these goals, we must have mutual respect and Christian love toward others whose beliefs, values and behaviors differ from our own.”

Dr. Jaswant Singh Sachdev, who represents the Sikh religion on the Arizona Interfaith Movement, was one of many belonging to other religions who attend the conference. He said after the meeting that it was one of the best conferences of its kind that he had attended and would like to see more of them to help people better understand each other’s beliefs.

He said he was taking away the thought shared by Elder Oaks of the metaphor of a two-sided coin: “Love of others and tolerance for their opinions and behavior is only one side of a two-sided coin,” Elder Oaks said. “The other side is always what is true or right. One of these sides cannot govern without consciousness of the other. Those who question why the Church does something they consider contrary to love overlook the companion requirement of truth.”

Dr. Sachdev said of the message: “I believe we can find ways to live in harmony.”

[Elizabeth]

https://vimeo.com/36171969" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

https://vimeo.com/36171969" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KchNq0M9N1k&spfreload=5" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;


Brightly Beams Our Fathers Mercy A Cappella /Jamez

Sung by Dan Ellison, Spencer Ellison, Steven Jensen and Trevor Nielsen.

[Elizabeth]

"Who shall question the justice of God, which denies salvation to all who will not comply with the prescribed conditions on which alone it is declared obtainable? Christ is “the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him,”h and God “will render to every man according to his deeds: to them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, eternal life: but unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil.”

https://www.lds.org/manual/jesus-the-ch ... 3?lang=eng" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Elizabeth]

https://www.lds.org/manual/jesus-the-ch ... 3?lang=eng" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
"Such then is the need of a Redeemer, for without Him mankind would forever remain in a fallen state, and as to hope of eternal progression would be inevitably lost. The mortal probation is provided as an opportunity for advancement; but so great are the difficulties and the dangers, so strong is the influence of evil in the world, and so weak is man in resistance thereto, that without the aid of a power above that of humanity no soul would find its way back to God from whom it came. The need of a Redeemer lies in the inability of man to raise himself from the temporal to the spiritual plane, from the lower kingdom to the higher. In this conception we are not without analogies in the natural world. We recognize a fundamental distinction between inanimate and living matter, between the inorganic and the organic, between the lifeless mineral on the one hand and the living plant or animal on the other. Within the limitations of its order the dead mineral grows by accretion of substance, and may attain a relatively perfect condition of structure and form as is seen in the crystal. But mineral matter, though acted upon favorably by the forces of nature—light, heat, electric energy and others—can never become a living organism; nor can the dead elements, through any process of chemical combination dissociated from life, enter into the tissues of the plant as essential parts thereof. But the plant, which is of a higher order, sends its rootlets into the earth, spreads its leaves in the atmosphere, and through these organs absorbs the solutions of the soil, inspires the gases of the air, and from such lifeless materials weaves the tissue of its wondrous structure. No mineral particle, no dead chemical substance has ever been made a constituent of organic tissue except through the agency of life. We may, perhaps with profit, carry the analogy a step farther. The plant is unable to advance its own tissue to the animal plane. Though it be the recognized order of nature that the “animal kingdom” is dependent upon the “vegetable kingdom” for its sustenance, the substance of the plant may become part of the animal organism only as the latter reaches down from its higher plane and by its own vital action incorporates the vegetable compounds with itself. In turn, animal matter can never become, even transitorily, part of a human body, except as the living man assimilates it, and by the vital processes of his own existence lifts, for the time being, the substance of the animal that supplied him food to the higher plane of his own existence. The comparison herein employed is admittedly defective if carried beyond reasonable limits of application; for the raising of mineral matter to the plane of the plant, vegetable tissue to the level of the animal, and the elevation of either to the human plane, is but a temporary change; with the dissolution of the higher tissues the material thereof falls again to the level of the inanimate and the dead. But, as a means of illustration the analogy may not be wholly without value."

[Elizabeth]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WyxXGdG3-Io" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=caUIXLxqiPU" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Elizabeth]

https://www.lds.org/manual/jesus-the-ch ... 3?lang=eng" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

"So, for the advancement of man from his present fallen and relatively degenerate state to the higher condition of spiritual life, a power above his own must cooperate. Through the operation of the laws obtaining in the higher kingdom man may be reached and lifted; himself he cannot save by his own unaided effort.k A Redeemer and Savior of mankind is beyond all question essential to the realization of the plan of the Eternal Father, “to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man”;l and that Redeemer and Savior is Jesus the Christ, beside whom there is and can be none other."

[Elizabeth]

https://www.lds.org/manual/jesus-the-ch ... 4?lang=eng" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Chapter 4: The Antemortal Godship of Christ.
"It now becomes our purpose to inquire as to the position and status of Jesus the Christ in the antemortal world, from the period of the solemn council in heaven, in which He was chosen to be the future Savior and Redeemer of mankind, to the time at which He was born in the flesh.

We claim scriptural authority for the assertion that Jesus Christ was and is God the Creator, the God who revealed Himself to Adam, Enoch, and all the antediluvial patriarchs and prophets down to Noah; the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; the God of Israel as a united people, and the God of Ephraim and Judah after the disruption of the Hebrew nation; the God who made Himself known to the prophets from Moses to Malachi; the God of the Old Testament record; and the God of the Nephites. We affirm that Jesus Christ was and is Jehovah, the Eternal One.

The scriptures specify three personages in the Godhead; God the Eternal Father, His Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost. These constitute the Holy Trinity, comprizing three physically separate and distinct individuals, who together constitute the presiding council of the heavens. At least two of these appear as directing participants in the work of creation; this fact is instanced by the plurality expressed in Genesis: “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness”; and later, in the course of consultation concerning Adam’s act of transgression, “the Lord God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us.” From the words of Moses, as revealed anew in the present dispensation, we learn more fully of the Gods who were actively engaged in the creation of this earth: “And I, God, said unto mine Only Begotten, which was with me from the beginning: Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” Then, further, with regard to the condition of Adam after the fall: “I, the Lord God, said unto mine Only Begotten: Behold, the man is become as one of us.” In the account of the creation recorded by Abraham, “the Gods” are repeatedly mentioned."

[Elizabeth]

https://www.lds.org/manual/jesus-the-ch ... 4?lang=eng" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

"As heretofore shown in another connection, the Father operated in the work of creation through the Son, who thus became the executive through whom the will, commandment, or word of the Father was put into effect. It is with incisive appropriateness therefore, that the Son, Jesus Christ, is designated by the apostle John as the Word; or as declared by the Father “the word of my power.” The part taken by Jesus Christ in the creation, a part so prominent as to justify our calling Him the Creator, is set forth in many scriptures. The author of the Epistle to the Hebrews refers in this wise distinctively to the Father and the Son as separate though associated Beings: “God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds.”Paul is even more explicit in his letter to the Colossians, wherein, speaking of Jesus the Son, he says: “For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: and he is before all things, and by him all things consist.” And here let be repeated the testimony of John, that by the Word, who was with God, and who was God even in the beginning, all things were made; “and without him was not anything made that was made.”

[Elizabeth]

https://soundcloud.com/janadele/sets/ja ... -jesus-the


Jesus The Christ. Audio. Chapters One to Six.

[Elizabeth]

"That the Christ who was to come was in reality God the Creator was revealed in plainness to the prophets on the western hemisphere. Samuel, the converted Lamanite, in preaching to the unbelieving Nephites justified his testimony as follows: “And also that ye might know of the coming of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Father of heaven and of earth, the Creator of all things, from the beginning; and that ye might know of the signs of his coming, to the intent that ye might believe on his name.”

To these citations of ancient scripture may most properly be added the personal testimony of the Lord Jesus after He had become a resurrected Being. In His visitation to the Nephites He thus proclaimed Himself: “Behold, I am Jesus Christ the Son of God. I created the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are. I was with the Father from the beginning. I am in the Father, and the Father in me; and in me hath the Father glorified his name.” To the Nephites, who failed to comprehend the relation between the gospel declared unto them by the Resurrected Lord, and the Mosaic law which they held traditionally to be in force, and who marveled at His saying that old things had passed away, He explained in this wise: “Behold I say unto you, that the law is fulfilled that was given unto Moses. Behold, I am he that gave the law, and I am he who covenanted with my people Israel: therefore, the law in me is fulfilled, for I have come to fulfil the law; therefore it hath an end.”
https://www.lds.org/manual/jesus-the-ch ... 4?lang=eng
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