Elizabeth Smart thread, August 24-31, 2002

Also that is a commandment from God, and we are following his commandments.

Where do you find a commandment from God that says anything about the LDS Temple?

I'll find some scriptural references to what the early Christians did after Christ's death. In a bit, I promise sometime tonight.

I watched that and I really felt sorry for Ed. In the few weeks before Boylan Ed seemed to be making some investigative progress but something happened in the Boylan visit that the police convinced Ed they were really working hard on the case and he seemed to go back to totally relying them and nothing has happened since. And I think the police know a lot more than what they are going to tell Ed, for whatever reason.

do I affiliate with any group whose teachings are contrary to those of the LDS church?

Freepers

Funny, I didn't know that the FreeRepublic had any religious teachings.

Funny, I didn't know that the FreeRepublic had any religious teachings.

It was a joke, Sandude.

"They have not been on this case like they have the Smart case and that stinks, big time"

let's hope we have better results..............

I missed the first part, what are they recanvassing the neighborhood for, someone that might have seen something?

MK doesn't want to talk about it because she fears her friends are going to blame her for waiting 2 hours. This was mentioned so she's probably gotten a little of this from friends already. You know how kids are.

I don't remember Ed saying the police don't have anything on Ricci. He did say they can't charge him but that's what they've told Ed, I'm sure he really has no idea what they have on Ricci.

Ed said the cops are re-canvassing the neighborhood.

The answer may be closer to home than one might think. Maybe the Smarts and LE have an idea who the alleged kidnapper is and are moving so slowly because they don't want him to harm Elizabeth. They want him to give her up on his own. Or, for them both to give up on their own.

In one of the earliest news reports, Dinse mentioned something about believing the case might focus on the neighborhood of the Smarts.

Good question. What would they remember nearly three months later that they didn't remember in June?

Most likely, they're checking out a tip of some sort.

Here is what I found in the Old and New Testament. Plus I have a couple of comments after the passages of scriptures, and some links, if you are truly interested in finding out about the temple, both today and in ancient times. If you have more questions, let's take this to FReepmail, I hate to hijack the thread anymore than I already have. :)

Acts 2:38 -47
[38] Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
[39] For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.
[40] And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation.
[41] Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.
[42] And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.
[43] And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles.
[44] And all that believed were together, and had all things common;
[45] And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need.
[46 ] And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart,
[47] Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.

Acts 5:42
[42] And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ.

Matthew 21: 12-15
[12] And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves,
[13] And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.
[14] And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple; and he healed them.

Luke 24:53
[51] And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven.
[52] And they worshipped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy:
[53] And were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God. Amen.

Matthew 23:21
[16] Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor!
[17] Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold?
[18] And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty.
[19] Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift?
[20] Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon.
[21] And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein.
[22] And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon.
[23 ] Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.
[24] Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.

And here are the passages of scripture that say the temples and the ordinances will be restored in the last days.

Isaiah 2:2-4
[2] And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
[3 ] And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
[4] And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.

Revelation 7:15
[15] Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them.

Malachi 3:1-3
[1] Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to this temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.
[2] But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap:
[3] And he shall sit as a refiner and purifer of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.

Ezekiel 37:26-27
[26] Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore.
[27] My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

********************************************************* In my studies and searching over the years, I've found that the early Christians were also persecuted for having secret ceremonies, etc.

The early Christian Lactantius wrote:
"God orders us in quietness and silence to hide His secret and to keep it within our own conscience. . . . For a mystery ought to be most faithfully concealed and covered, especially by us, who bear the name of faith. But they accuse this silence of ours, as though it were the result of an evil conscience; whence they also invent some detestable things respecting those who are holy and blameless."
(Lactantius, Divine Institutes, VII, 26, in Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson, editors, The Ante-Nicene Fathers, 10 vols., Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1987, as cited by Peterson and Ricks, p. 112.)

This is an excellent website that has links to many references of both LDS authors and non-LDS authors who have written about ancient Christianity and today's practices. Again, if you have any questions, feel free to FReepmail me privately.

This website has some excellent links, the majority of it has to do with Freemasons and the LDS church, but the first 1/3 or so deals with early Christianity and latter-day practices and temples

Hmmm..... wonder if LE is taking another look at the following leads:

Probe Into Missing Girl Focuses on Neighborhood Wednesday, June 12, 2002 BY KEVIN CANTERA THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE

After sifting through thousands of leads since Elizabeth Smart disappeared from her Salt Lake City home a week ago, police said Tuesday they have a new focus in tracking down the 14-year-old 's ab- ductor.

"We don't have an identified suspect but we do have an analysis of what this suspect is like . . . We may have already talked to the suspect," said Salt Lake City Police Chief Rick Dinse, adding: "We are encouraged that we will solve this case."

He said detectives will "re-canvass" the Smarts' Federal Heights neighborhood because police "believe the suspect is still in the area," but added: "We have not excluded anyone."

The new focus is based on a forensic examination of the home, a criminal profile created by FBI behavioral specialists and numerous interviews with Elizabeth's family -- including three separate questionings of the 9-year-old sister who told police she saw the gunman snatch Elizabeth early June 5.

Investigators on Sunday administered a polygraph to Ed Smart, Elizabeth's father, but have refused to comment on the results. Other members of the family have not been given lie detector tests, but police held out the possibility of that happening.

"We believe [the suspect] is somebody who has the ability to do it again," said Dinse, who declined to release further information about the suspect, who has been described as soft-spoken, about 5-foot-8, with dark hair. He reportedly wore white pants, a white baseball cap and light jacket.

"We've given all the description out that we think is helpful at this point," Dinse said.

Since Elizabeth's disappearance, police dispatchers have been swamped with around 6,000 tips from across the country, including a New Jersey "clairvoyant" who said the girl is alive and being held hostage, and an Idaho woman who suggested police question her ex-husband, a convicted child predator.

In addition, officials from the Utah Department of Corrections have given police a list of dozens of names of known sex offenders on probation or parole "who are known to target the same general age [as Elizabeth] with a history of break-ins," said spokesman Jack Ford.

On that list is the name of a man who fits the suspect's description and recently had a delivery job in the Smarts' neighborhood. The man -- convicted of aggravated sexual abuse of a child in 1994 -- has failed to check in with his probation officer in the past month as required, said Ford, who added: "That is not so uncommon."

On that list is the name of a man who fits the suspect's description and recently had a delivery job in the Smarts' neighborhood. The man -- convicted of aggravated sexual abuse of a child in 1994 -- has failed to check in with his probation officer in the past month as required<

Wonder where Sickler worked in 1994?

Salt Lake City Weekly, June 20: As theories continued to fly, Cantera and Michael Vigh reported on June 13 that the Tribune had learned that police were postulating Smart may have been taken by a member of her extended family, who staged it to look like the work of an outsider.

Olympic Rings Create Gridlock Saturday, 2/23/2002 @ 9:24 pm: KSL TV reports one of the major Olympic attractions is causing big problems for Salt Lake City police and fire tonight. Hundreds of people trying to get a closer look at the Olympic rings are creating gridlock in the residential neighborhood of Arlington Hills.

An awful lot of people were in Elizabeth's neighborhood during the Olympics -- maybe Larry King wasn't so far off base? Maybe she did meet someone there and was swept off her feet, so to speak.

With all due respect...I think I can clarify the verses.

Acts 2:38-47

Jewish believers at first did not separate from the rest of the Jewish community. They still went to Temple and synagogues for worship and instruction in God's Word.But their belief in Jesus crated great friction with Jews who didn't beieve Jesus was the Messiah. Thus believing Jews were forced to meet in private homes for commmunion, prayer, and teaching about Jesus. by the end of the first century, many of these Jewish believers were excommunicated fro their synagogues altogether.

Acts 5:42

Home Bible studies are not new. The Apostles had to teach in homes because the synagogues and the Temple were not open to their teaching .Home Bible studies met the needs of believers and also introduced people to the Christian faith. During later times of persecution, this became the primary method of passing on Bible knowlege. Christians throughout the world still use Home Bible study as a way to build up believers.

Matthew 21:12-15

This is the second time Jesus cleared the Timple (see John 2:13-25) Merchants and moneychangers set up their booths in the Court of the Gentiles in the Temple, filling it with their wares instead of allowing it to be filled with Gentiles who had come to worship God. The merchants sold sacrificial animals at hight prices, taking advantage of those who had come long distances. The moneychangers exchanged all secular currency for Temple currency..the ony kind of money the merchants would accept. They often decieved foreigners who didn't iknow the exchange rate. Not only were the merchants and moneychangers deshonest...they also took advantage of those who had come to worship God. Their commercialism in God's house frustrated people's attempts at worship. This, of course, greatly angered Jesus. Any practice that interfers with worshiping God should be stopped.

Luke 24:53

Luke's Gospel portrays Jesus as the perfect example of a life lived according to God's plan...as a child with the religious leaders in the timple, as a young man living without sine, as an adult serving God and other's and in his death suffering without complaint.This emphasis was well suited to the Greek audience, who placed high value on examples and seft improvement and who often discussed the meaning of perfection. The Greeks however, had a hard time understanding the spiritual importance of the physical world. To them, the spiritual was always more important than the physical. To help them understand the God-man who united the spiritual and the physical, Luke emphasised that Jesus was not a phantom but a real human being, who healed and fed people because he was concerned with their physical health as well as the state of their souls. As unbelievers living acording to God's plan, we too should obey our Lord in every detail as we seek to restore people's bodies and souls to the health and salvation God has in store for them. If we want to know how to live a perfect life, we can look to Jesus as our example.

Matthew 23:21

Jesus mentioned 7 ways to guarantee God's anger, often called the "Seven Woes". These seven statements about the religious leaders must have been spoken with a mixed tone of judgement and sorrow. They were strong and unforgettable.They are still applicable any time we become so involved in perfecting the practice of religion that we forget that god is also concerned with mercy, real love, and forgiveness. Verse 21..speaks of blindly lelading God's people to follow man made traditions INSTEAD of God' Word.

Isaiah 2:2-4

God gave Isaiah the gift of seeing the future. Here God showed Isaiah what would eventually happen to Jerusalem. Rev. 21 depicts the glorious fulfilment of this prophecy in the new earth, where only those whose names are written in God's book will be allowed to enter. God made a covenant (promise) with his people and will never break it. This prophecy gives the people hpoe for the future.

Revalation 7:15

it is difficult to imagine how blood could whiten any cloth, but the blood of Jesus Christ is the world's greatest purifier because it removes the stain of sin. White symbolizes sinless perfection or holiness, which can be given to people ony by the sacrifice and shed blood of the sinless Lamb of God. This is a pictue of how we are saved by faith. (Romans 3:21-26)God will provide for his children's needs in thier eternal home, where there will be no hunger, thirst, or pain, and He will wipe away all tears. When you are suffering or torn apart by sorrow, take comfort in this truth.

Malachi 3:1-3

There are two messages in this verse. The first is usually understood to be John the Baptist...The second messenger is Jesus, the Messiah, for whom both Malachi and John the Baptist prepared the way. In the process of refining metals, the raw metal is heated with fire until it melts. The impurities separate from it and rist to the surface. They are then skimmed off, leaving the pure metal. Without this heating and melting, there could be no purifying. As the impurities are skimmed off the top, the reflection of the metalurgist appears n the smooth pure surface. As we are purified by God, his relflection in our lives will become more and more clear to those around us. God says that leaders should be especially open to the purification process in their lives.

Ezekiel 37:26-27

God's promise here goes beyond the physical and geographical restoration of Israel. He promises to breath new spiritual life into his people so that their hearts and attitudes will be right with him. This same processis described throught God's word as the clensing of our hearts by God's spirit.

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FOR EDUCATIONAL USE ONLY

Monday, August 26, 2002

Ricci's friend Young pleads innocent to bank robbery

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - A man accused of robbing a bank with a potential suspect in the Elizabeth Smart kidnapping pleaded innocent Monday to federal bank robbery charges.

Douglas Rex Young, 51, of Salt Lake City, appeared before U.S. District Magistrate Ronald Boyce to enter his plea to three felony charges related to the Nov. 2 robbery of Far West bank in Sandy.

He is accused of the crime along with John Russell Remington, 44, of Sandy, and Richard Albert Ricci, 48, of Salt Lake City.

Charging documents allege Ricci, the man being investigated in the Smart case, was the gunman in the robbery. The men allegedly stole $1,713.

Ricci is also being held in the Utah State Prison on unrelated state charges of theft and burglary. One of the theft charges alleges he stole items from the Smart home in April 2001. Ricci has yet to make an appearance on the federal charges.

Ricci and Young worked for Remington in 2001 as handymen in the Smarts' Salt Lake City neighborhood. All have long criminal histories and spent prison time together.

Remington pleaded innocent before Judge Boyce earlier this month.

Following Young's plea Judge Boyce asked Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Vincent if he wanted to combine the two mens' trials.

Vincent said he had hoped to combine them and a trial date for the two men was set on Oct. 30.

After the hearing Vincent said he was unsure as to whether Ricci would make his initial appearance on the federal charges in time to be included in the trial, but that he would like to resolve the case with all three at the same time.

Under the federal charges, all three men face possible sentences of up to 10 years in federal prison for being felons in possession of firearms. The bank robbery charges carry a penalty of up to 25 years in prison.

A finding that the men brandished a weapon during the crime would carry a mandatory sentence of seven years that would be tacked onto any other sentence.

---- INDEX REFERENCES ----

KEY WORDS: AP STATE WIRES: UTAHSPORTATIONSANCES

NEWS SUBJECT: English language content; Crime/Courts;
Political/General News; Crime (ENGL GCRIM GCAT CRM)

STORY ORIGIN: SALT LAKE CITY

NEWS CATEGORY: N

REGION: Utah; Western U.S.; United States; North America; United States - Utah; United States; North American Countries (UT USW US NME USUT USA NAMZ)

(My daughter is an attorney and she allowed me to use her Westlaw...haven't found much, but I do have a 1982 case on Richard Ricci. Nothing to do with Elizabeth, but interesting, if anyone would like to see it. There is still no evidence connecting RR to the disappearance of Elizabeth.)

Thanks for explaining your beliefs.