Posted on 01/27/2009 6:50:37 AM PST by greyfoxx39
BIRTH
by W. John Walsh
"Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee…"
Latter-day Saints believe that every member of the human family is an eternal being. The Prophet Joseph Smith taught : "The spirit of man is not a created being; it existed from eternity, and will exist to eternity." While each person is eternal, he or she goes through "successive phases" of existence. Each of these phases is marked by a birth or change, including our spirit birth, our mortal birth, and our spiritual conversion. This series of births is not to be confused with reincarnation, a belief which the Church rejects.
Each birth is a milestone that marks achievement of a higher state of development than previously enjoyed. Eventually, if we are faithful to the plan of salvation, this series of births increases our "capacity to grow in grace, knowledge power and intelligence itself, until [we], gaining the fulness of all things, become like [our] Father, the Supreme Intelligence." However, if we are not faithful to the proscribed plan, then our progression is stopped and we never complete the intended journey or reach the final milestone. President Joseph F. Smith taught:
"What is damnation? It is being barred, or denied privileges of progression, because of failure to comply with law. All who fail to enter into the celestial kingdom are damned, or stopped in their progression, but they will enter into some other glory which they are entitled to receive."
Mankind began in the premortal world as spirit element which has always existed and is co-eternal with God. Our first birth occurred when our "self-existent spirit element [was] born as spirit children" to our Heavenly Parents who used "the ordained procreative process…" The First Presidency noted: "All men and women are in the similitude of the universal Father and Mother, and are literally the sons and daughters of Deity." Since "this birth constituted the beginning of the human ego as a conscious identity," it is a higher form of existence than that enjoyed previously as spirit element.
Mortal birth, our second birth, "is the event by which one's spirit body is temporarily joined with a mortal tabernacle begotten by earthly parents." Beings with physical bodies are in a higher state of development than beings without such bodies:
"In contrast to the view that the subtle powers of intellect or soul must finally transcend the body or anything corporeal, the Prophet Joseph Smith taught that all beings ‘who have tabernacles (bodies), have power over those who have not’ (TPJS, p. 190; 2 Ne. 9:8). At minimum, this is taken to mean that intellectual and spiritual powers are enhanced by association with the flesh. It follows that a long absence of the spirit from the body in the realm of disembodied spirits awaiting resurrection will be viewed not as a beatific or blessed condition, but instead as a bondage (D&C 45:17; 138:50). Moreover, ‘spirit and element [the spirit body and the physical body], inseparably connected, [can] receive a fulness of joy. And when separated, man cannot receive a fulness of joy’ (D&C 93:33, 34)."
Mortal birth is the first milestone which some members of the human family never reach. In the premortal world, some spirit children of our Heavenly Father rebelled against him. As punishment, the progression of these souls— Lucifer and his devils—has been stopped and "they remained unembodied" and are forever denied the opportunity to receive a mortal body.
While receiving a physical body is crucial to our continued eternal development, it is not sufficient to realize our full potential as divine children of our Heavenly Parents. When we are born into mortality, we experience a form of spiritual death—or separation from the presence of God, as a result of the Fall of Adam. To overcome the effects of this spiritual death, it is necessary that we are born again. Christianson explained:
"Through the Atonement of Jesus Christ all people are given opportunity to be born again in a spiritual sense as his sons and daughters so as to return to God's presence as his spiritually begotten children (Mosiah 5:7-9; Alma 5:14). The process of being born of the spirit begins when one is baptized and receives the gift of the Holy Ghost. Since the Holy Ghost is a member of the Godhead, the effects of the spiritual death, or separation between man and God, is lessened individually when one is truly born of the Spirit."
A spiritually reborn person enjoys the "constant companionship of the Holy Ghost," "the third member of the Godhead." With this companionship, a person ascends to a higher state of development and receives insights into the "solemnities of eternity" as well as purification from all sin. Eventually, he will be prepared to live again with his Heavenly Father as an exalted being. Unfortunately, most people will abuse their agency and reject this rebirth. Thus, few people will reach this final milestone and thus enter into Godhood.
Jeremiah 1:5, The Holy Bible, The King James Version, Salt Lake City, Utah: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1987.
Smith, J., Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, ed. by Joseph Fielding Smith, Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book, 1938, p. 158.
McConkie, B., The Millennial Messiah, Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book, 1982, p. 613.
"The doctrine of reincarnation is, says the Prophet Joseph, the doctrine of the devil!" (Smith, J., Doctrines of Salvation Vol. 1, Salt Lake City, Utah: Bookcraft, 1954, p. 184.) "…the doctrine of reincarnation is utterly foreign to every principle which God has revealed in the last days to His Church." (Cannon, G., Gospel Truth Vol. 1, ed. by J. Newquist, Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book Company, 1957, p. 28.)
McConkie, B., Mormon Doctrine, Salt Lake City, Utah: Bookcraft, 1966, p. 387.
Smith, J., Doctrines of Salvation Vol. 2, Salt Lake City, Utah: Bookcraft, 1954, p. 227.
McConkie, B., Mormon Doctrine, Salt Lake City, Utah: Bookcraft, 1966, p. 751.
McConkie, B., Mormon Doctrine, Salt Lake City, Utah: Bookcraft, 1966, p. 751.
McConkie, B., Mormon Doctrine, Salt Lake City, Utah: Bookcraft, 1966, p. 84.
The Origin of Man, (Statement of the First Presidency issued in November, 1909 by Joseph F. Smith, John R. Winder, Anton H. Lund.)
McConkie, B., Mormon Doctrine, Salt Lake City, Utah: Bookcraft, 1966, p. 84. Also, "This intelligence combined with the spirit constitutes a spiritual identity or individual." (Smith, J., Answers to Gospel Questions Vol. 4, Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book Company, 1972, p. 127.)
"Birth," Helen Lance Christianson, Encyclopedia of Mormonism, New York: Macmillan Publishing Company, 1992.
"Resurrection," Douglas L. Callister, Encyclopedia of Mormonism, New York: Macmillan Publishing Company, 1992.
Talmage, J., Jesus the Christ, Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book Company, 1982, p. 182.
Talmage, J., Articles of Faith, Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book Company, 1984, p. 428.
Smith, J., Doctrines of Salvation Vol.2, Salt Lake City, Utah: Bookcraft, 1954, p. 325.
"Birth," Helen Lance Christianson, Encyclopedia of Mormonism, New York: Macmillan Publishing Company, 1992.
Smith, J., Answers to Gospel Questions Vol. 4, Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book Company, 1972, p. 90.
Smith, J., Doctrines of Salvation Vol.1, Salt Lake City, Utah: Bookcraft, 1954, p. 38.
Doctrine and Covenants 43:34, Salt Lake City, Utah: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1981.
Whitney, O., The Birth of Water and the Spirit, p. 8.
"Most of the adult people who have lived from the day of Adam to the present time will go to the telestial kingdom." (McConkie, B., Mormon Doctrine, Salt Lake City, Utah: Bookcraft, 1966, p. 778.)
ping
So does this mean that God forms/creates people, knowing what they will do after they are born?
Isn't that sorta like Scientology or Buddhism ie. reincarnation? Don't know just wondering.
While each person is eternal, he or she goes through “successive phases” of existence. Each of these phases is marked by a birth or change, including our spirit birth, our mortal birth, and our spiritual conversion. This series of births is not to be confused with reincarnation, a belief which the Church rejects.
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No, I’m not confused...
That’s definitely REINCARNATION...
Paging Bill Paxton!
This is an example of “Here’s what we believe and we went out to find Scripture to support it”.
Genesis 1:27 - So God created man in his own image, in the image of God He created him;
Sounds like a created being to me...
That’s definitely REINCARNATION...
Looks to me like you are just ignorant of what reincarnation is. That is okay there is a treatment for that condition, it is called getting an education.
"In the heavens are parents single?
No, the thought makes reason stare!
Truth is reason, truth eternal
Tells me I've a mother there!"
Mormon Hymn
ETERNAL MARRIAGE OR PHALLIC FANTASY?
Mormon doctrine teaches that all of earth's inhabitants were born in the spirit world before becoming candidates for earth mortality and that God and His plural wives produced those spirit children in the same manner as it happens in mortality. That is to say by way of sexual intercourse. The doctrine also teaches that “worthy” males and females will inherit the “Celestial Kingdom” (where God dwells) and become gods and goddesses to create worlds and fill them with people in the same manner as God and his predecessors have.
This doctrine (story) is taught to every faithful member from childhood on and becomes one of the guiding stars of Mormon theology. As a result, even though polygamy has been officially removed from the observed practices of the church since the 1890 Manifesto* of church president Wilford Woodruff, most every Mormon male is looking forward to the day when the practice can be re-instated. [* Church property had been escheated to the US government as a penalty for violating territorial law banning polygamy. This manifesto got it back!]
In the meantime, the custom of marriage in a temple is promoted and practiced so that those faithful young Mormon couples will have a head start toward that doctrinal goal when they have passed the veil of tears. The number of times annually when temple marriages are solemnized is in the thousands.
In order to check out the rationality of that eternal marriage/procreation doctrine, I recently did some surfing/calculating on the issue of how many humans had been on earth since the First Stone Age. I guessed the results might show an irrationality of phallic fantasy of Mormon men.
The study could not be accurate without including an additional 1/3rd of the calculated actual world population to cover the group that was cast out of heaven as followers of Satan. Satan and his followers had warred in heaven against the 2/3rd majority who chose Jesus as their future savior.
An estimated number of 109+ billion came up to the present time with additional daily births estimated at 16,000/hr or 140.16 million/yr.
If we take 1/2 of the 109+ billion mortals as 1/3rd (Satan's Crew) of the total = 54.5 Billion and add it we get a total of 163.5 Billion.
Then take 1/2 of 140.16 million yearly births (Satan's Crew) =70.08 million and add it to the pre-existent total we get an additional 210.24 million.
Then project it another 50 years into the future without increasing it for ever expanding births, we get 10.5 Billion to be added to the 163.5 Billion, resulting in 174.4 Billion Spirit Souls who were born on planet Kolob** to reside in future mortal bodies. [** Kolob is where God and his wives*** reside (*** see estimated numbers below).] This number is required to be calculated as the full contingent of spirits who were convened in a council in Heaven voting between Jesus and Satan. [Remember these calculations are only good if the world ends in 50 years]. So 174.4 Billion spirit children (30 times larger than earth's present population) of God were assembled in the largest mass meeting ever held anywhere in the Cosmos! While the size of that assembly is mind boggling, there are other issues of creating that number equally as mind boggling. Remember we have just one male God impregnating the mothers of those 174.4 Billion spirits. To estimate how many children per wife, we need some assumptions. Let’s first assume 1,000 wives -174,400,000.000 divided by 1, 0000 = 174,400,000 or 174.4 million per wife! Assume 100,000 wives = 1,744,000 or 1.744 million per wife! Assume 1,000,000 wives = 174,400 or 174.4 thousand per wife. Assume 10,000,000 wives = 17,440 or 17.44 thousand per wife! Assume 100,000,000 wives = 1,744 or 1.44 thousand per wife! Assume 1,000,000,000 (one billion) wives = 174 per wife! Assume 10,000,000,000 (ten Billion) wives = 17.4 per wife
From the article above: "Mankind began in the premortal world as spirit element which has always existed and is co-eternal with God"
There is a mormon belief called "Free Agency"
Agency makes our life on earth a period of testing. When planning the mortal creation of his children, God said, “We will prove [test] them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them” (Abraham 3:25). Without the gift of agency, we would have been unable to show our Heavenly Father whether we would do all that he commanded us. Because we are able to choose, we are responsible for our actions (see Helaman 14:30–31).
When we choose to live according to God’s plan for us, our agency is strengthened. Right choices increase our power to make more right choices.
As we obey each of our Father’s commandments, we grow in wisdom and strength of character. Our faith increases. We find it easier to make right choices.
We began to make choices as spirit children in our Heavenly Father’s presence. Our choices there made us worthy to come to earth. Our Heavenly Father wants us to grow in faith, power, knowledge, wisdom, and all other good things. If we keep his commandments and make right choices, we will learn and understand. We will become like him. (See D&C 93:28.)
From Gospel Library Lessons
Truly a bizarre religion wrapped up in hundreds of millions of dollars of publicity to make it look “normal”.
That is what you 'Christians' believe happens when you are born again. : )
Seriously, google it. It will do you cut and pasters a world of good.
Paxton stars in the HBO series
Truly a bizarre religion wrapped up in hundreds of millions of dollars of publicity to make it look “normal”.
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A sincere question: How would you define a normal religion?
He plays the father figure in HBO’s Mormon series “Big Love” - great show by the way.
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