“LDS says Young was a prophet, seer, revelator. Do prophets, seers and revelators “misspeak”? How can that be? And on a matter of such importance! I mean, surely the identity of the Creator of the Earth and Man is not a trivial item, right?”
Yes. That’s why we go to God for confirmation.
“And if Young had been “mistranslated,” why did he not correct this error in the articles reporting and discussing his Adam-God pronouncement? He certainly had every opportunity to straighten things out.”
I agree, and I don’t know the answer to that.
Still, prophets are men, and men are fallible. I do not believe the so-called “Adam-God Theory” because the Holy Spirit has not confirmed it to me as true.
You must understand my focus. While I learn from the prophets, I do not follow them. I follow Jesus Christ. If a prophet errs, I will take Christ’s word over his.
Nevertheless, a man can err, and still be a prophet of God. It’s Christ’s decision whether or not to strike such a man down; in the meantime, as long as I feel the confirming voice of the Spirit that the man is a prophet, I will sustain him as such.
Which is why, despite all efforts to the contrary, my confidence in Joseph Smith’s calling is unshakable (and indeed, has grown in the last few weeks, thanks to these discussions). You have a few shovel loads of evidence against him (and his successors). I have been provided with a barge of evidence for him.
Moses erred and was still a prophet,
Jonah erred and was still a prophet,
There were others I’m sure but their names escape me at the moment.
So prophets are just common men with a special “duty”?
Well that would explain why prophets of old were often ignored, misunderstood, shunned, and spurned especially by those who knew him/her as a child. See Matt 13:7 and Mark 6:4.
So if there is a prophet for today he would get ridiculed like those of old?
From all I heard on this thread Mr. Smith was either a charlatan or a prophet. No wiggle room here. With evidence pointing at both possibilities I guess it’s up to the seeker of truth and his/her God.
Labels used: Prophet, “common men”, duty, charlatan, “seeker of truth”, God.
Until we understand what a label means to another we cannot understand another’s perspective. - Truth-Miner