Posted on 07/07/2002 4:27:46 PM PDT by P-Marlowe
All men have heard of the Mormon Bible, but few except the "elect" have seen it, or, at least, taken the trouble to read it. I brought away a copy from Salt Lake. The book is a curiosity to me, it is such a pretentious affair, and yet so "slow," so sleepy; such an insipid mess of inspiration. It is chloroform in print. If Joseph Smith composed this book, the act was a miracle--keeping awake while he did it was, at any rate. If he, according to tradition, merely translated it from certain ancient and mysteriously-engraved plates of copper, which he declares he found under a stone, in an out-of-the-way locality, the work of translating was equally a miracle, for the same reason.
The book seems to be merely a prosy detail of imaginary history, with the Old Testament for a model; followed by a tedious plagiarism of the New Testament. The author labored to give his words and phrases the quaint, old-fashioned sound and structure of our King James's translation of the Scriptures; and the result is a mongrel--half modern glibness, and half ancient simplicity and gravity. The latter is awkward and constrained; the former natural, but grotesque by the contrast. Whenever he found his speech growing too modern--which was about every sentence or two--he ladled in a few such Scriptural phrases as "exceeding sore," "and it came to pass," etc., and made things satisfactory again. "And it came to pass" was his pet. If he had left that out, his Bible would have been only a pamphlet.
The title-page reads as follows:
THE BOOK OF MORMON: AN ACCOUNT WRITTEN BY THE HAND OF MORMON, UPON PLATES TAKEN FROM THE PLATES OF NEPHI. Wherefore it is an abridgment of the record of the people of Nephi, and also of the Lamanites; written to the Lamanites, who are a remnant of the House of Israel; and also to Jew and Gentile; written by way of commandment, and also by the spirit of prophecy and of revelation. Written and sealed up, and hid up unto the Lord, that they might not be destroyed; to come forth by the gift and power of God unto the interpretation thereof; sealed by the hand of Moroni, and hid up unto the Lord, to come forth in due time by the way of Gentile; the interpretation thereof by the gift of God. An abridgment taken from the Book of Ether also; which is a record of the people of Jared; who were scattered at the time the Lord confounded the language of the people when they were building a tower to get to Heaven.
"Hid up" is good. And so is "wherefore"--though why "wherefore"? Any other word would have answered as well--though--in truth it would not have sounded so Scriptural.
Next comes: THE TESTIMONY OF THREE WITNESSES. Be it known unto all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people unto whom this work shall come, that we, through the grace of God the Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, have seen the plates which contain this record, which is a record of the people of Nephi, and also of the Lamanites, their brethren, and also of the people of Jared, who came from the tower of which hath been spoken; and we also know that they have been translated by the gift and power of God, for His voice hath declared it unto us; wherefore we know of a surety that the work is true. And we also testify that we have seen the engravings which are upon the plates; and they have been shown unto us by the power of God, and not of man. And we declare with words of soberness, that an angel of God came down from heaven, and he brought and laid before our eyes, that we beheld and saw the plates, and the engravings thereon; and we know that it is by the grace of God the Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, that we beheld and bear record that these things are true; and it is marvellous in our eyes; nevertheless the voice of the Lord commanded us that we should bear record of it; wherefore, to be obedient unto the commandments of God, we bear testimony of these things. And we know that if we are faithful in Christ, we shall rid our garments of the blood of all men, and be found spotless before the judgment-seat of Christ, and shall dwell with Him eternally in the heavens. And the honor be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, which is one God. Amen. OLIVER COWDERY, DAVID WHITMER, MARTIN HARRIS.
Some people have to have a world of evidence before they can come anywhere in the neighborhood of believing anything; but for me, when a man tells me that he has "seen the engravings which are upon the plates," and not only that, but an angel was there at the time, and saw him see them, and probably took his receipt for it, I am very far on the road to conviction, no matter whether I ever heard of that man before or not, and even if I do not know the name of the angel, or his nationality either.
Next is this: AND ALSO THE TESTIMONY OF EIGHT WITNESSES. Be it known unto all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people unto whom this work shall come, that Joseph Smith, Jr., the translator of this work, has shown unto us the plates of which hath been spoken, which have the appearance of gold; and as many of the leaves as the said Smith has translated, we did handle with our hands; and we also saw the engravings thereon, all of which has the appearance of ancient work, and of curious workmanship. And this we bear record with words of soberness, that the said Smith has shown unto us, for we have seen and hefted, and know of a surety that the said Smith has got the plates of which we have spoken. And we give our names unto the world, to witness unto the world that which we have seen; and we lie not, God bearing witness of it. CHRISTIAN WHITMER, JACOB WHITMER, PETER WHITMER, JR., JOHN WHITMER, HIRAM PAGE, JOSEPH SMITH, SR., HYRUM SMITH, SAMUEL H. SMITH.
And when I am far on the road to conviction, and eight men, be they grammatical or otherwise, come forward and tell me that they have seen the plates too; and not only seen those plates but "hefted" them, I am convinced. I could not feel more satisfied and at rest if the entire Whitmer family had testified.
The Mormon Bible consists of fifteen "books"--being the books of Jacob, Enos, Jarom, Omni, Mosiah, Zeniff, Alma, Helaman, Ether, Moroni, two "books" of Mormon, and three of Nephi.
In the first book of Nephi is a plagiarism of the Old Testament, which gives an account of the exodus from Jerusalem of the "children of Lehi"; and it goes on to tell of their wanderings in the wilderness, during eight years, and their supernatural protection by one of their number, a party by the name of Nephi. They finally reached the land of "Bountiful," and camped by the sea. After they had remained there "for the space of many days"--which is more Scriptural than definite--Nephi was commanded from on high to build a ship wherein to "carry the people across the waters." He travestied Noah's ark--but he obeyed orders in the matter of the plan. He finished the ship in a single day, while his brethren stood by and made fun of it--and of him, too--"saying, our brother is a fool, for he thinketh that he can build a ship." They did not wait for the timbers to dry, but the whole tribe or nation sailed the next day. Then a bit of genuine nature cropped out, and is revealed by outspoken Nephi with Scriptural frankness--they all got on a spree! They, "and also their wives, began to make themselves merry, insomuch that they began to dance, and to sing, and to speak with much rudeness; yea, they were lifted up unto exceeding rudeness."
Nephi tried to stop these scandalous proceedings; but they tied him neck and heels, and went on with their lark. But observe how Nephi the prophet circumvented them by the aid of the invisible powers: And it came to pass that after they had bound me, insomuch that I could not move, the compass, which had been prepared of the Lord, did cease to work; wherefore, they knew not whither they should steer the ship, insomuch that there arose a great storm, yea, a great and terrible tempest, and we were driven back upon the waters for the space of three days; and they began to be frightened exceedingly, lest they should be drowned in the sea; nevertheless they did not loose me. And on the fourth day, which we had been driven back, the tempest began to be exceeding sore. And it came to pass that we were about to be swallowed up in the depths of the sea.
Then they untied him. And it came to pass after they had loosed me, behold, I took the compass, and it did work whither I desired it. And it came to pass that I prayed unto the Lord; and after I had prayed, the winds did cease, and the storm did cease, and there was a great calm.
Equipped with their compass, these ancients appear to have had the advantage of Noah.
Their voyage was toward a "promised land"--the only name they give it. They reached it in safety.
Polygamy is a recent feature in the Mormon religion, and was added by Brigham Young after Joseph Smith's death. Before that, it was regarded as an "abomination." This verse from the Mormon Bible occurs in Chapter II. of the book of Jacob: For behold, thus saith the Lord, this people begin to wax in iniquity; they understand not the Scriptures; for they seek to excuse themselves in committing whoredoms, because of the things which were written concerning David, and Solomon his son. Behold, David and Solomon truly had many wives and concubines, which thing was abominable before me, saith the Lord; wherefore, thus saith the Lord, I have led this people forth out of the land of Jerusalem, by the power of mine arm, that I might raise up unto me a righteous branch from the fruit of the loins of Joseph. Wherefore, I the Lord God, will no suffer that this people shall do like unto them of old.
However, the project failed--or at least the modern Mormon end of it--for Brigham "suffers" it. This verse is from the same chapter: Behold, the Lamanites your brethren, whom ye hate, because of their filthiness and the cursings which hath come upon their skins, are more righteous than you; for they have not forgotten the commandment of the Lord, which was given unto our fathers, that they should have, save it were one wife; and concubines they should have none.
The following verse (from Chapter IX. of the Book of Nephi) appears to contain information not familiar to everybody: And now it came to pass that when Jesus had ascended into heaven, the multitude did disperse, and every man did take his wife and his children, and did return to his own home.
And it came to pass that on the morrow, when the multitude was gathered together, behold, Nephi and his brother whom he had raised from the dead, whose name was Timothy, and also his son, whose name was Jonas, and also Mathoni, and Mathonihah, his brother, and Kumen, and Kumenenhi, and Jeremiah, and Shemnon, and Jonas, and Zedekiah, and Isaiah; now these were the names of the disciples whom Jesus had chosen.
In order that the reader may observe how much more grandeur and picturesqueness (as seen by these Mormon twelve) accompanied on of the tenderest episodes in the life of our Saviour than other eyes seem to have been aware of, I quote the following from the same "book"--Nephi: And it came to pass that Jesus spake unto them, and bade them arise. And they arose from the earth, and He said unto them, Blessed are ye because of your faith. And now behold, My joy is full. And when He had said these words, He wept, and the multitude bear record of it, and He took their little children, one by one, and blessed them, and prayed unto the Father for them. And when He had done this He wept again, and He spake unto the multitude, and saith unto them, Behold your little ones. And as they looked to behold, they cast their eyes toward heaven, and they saw the heavens open, and they saw angels descending out of heaven as it were, in the midst of fire; and they came down and encircled those little ones about, and they were encircled about with fire; and the angels did minister unto them, and the multitude did see and hear and bear record; and they know that their record is true, for they all of them did see and hear, every man for himself; and they were in number about two thousand and five hundred souls; and they did consist of men, women, and children.
And what else would they be likely to consist of?
The Book of Ether is an incomprehensible medley of if "history," much of it relating to battles and sieges among peoples whom the reader has possibly never heard of; and who inhabited a country which is not set down in the geography. These was a King with the remarkable name of Coriantumr,^^ and he warred with Shared, and Lib, and Shiz, and others, in the "plains of Heshlon"; and the "valley of Gilgal"; and the "wilderness of Akish"; and the "land of Moran"; and the "plains of Agosh"; and "Ogath," and "Ramah," and the "land of Corihor," and the "hill Comnor," by "the waters of Ripliancum," etc., etc., etc. "And it came to pass," after a deal of fighting, that Coriantumr, upon making calculation of his losses, found that "there had been slain two millions of mighty men, and also their wives and their children"--say 5,000,000 or 6,000,000 in all--"and he began to sorrow in his heart." Unquestionably it was time. So he wrote to Shiz, asking a cessation of hostilities, and offering to give up his kingdom to save his people. Shiz declined, except upon condition that Coriantumr would come and let him cut his head off first--a thing which Coriantumr would not do. Then there was more fighting for a season; then four years were devoted to gathering the forces for a final struggle--after which ensued a battle, which, I take it, is the most remarkable set forth in history,--except, perhaps, that of the Kilkenny cats, which it resembles in some respects. This is the account of the gathering and the battle: 7. And it came to pass that they did gather together all the people, upon all the face of the land, who had not been slain, save it was Ether. And it came to pass that Ether did behold all the doings of the people; and he beheld that the people who were for Coriantumr, were gathered together to the army of Coriantumr; and the people who were for Shiz, were gathered together to the army of Shiz; wherefore they were for the space of four years gathering together the people, that they might get all who were upon the face of the land, and that they might receive all the strength which it was possible that they could receive. And it came to pass that when they were all gathered together, every one to the army which he would, with their wives and their children; both men, women, and children being armed with weapons of war, having shields, and breast-plates, and head-plates, and being clothed after the manner of war, they did march forth one against another, to battle; and they fought all that day, and conquered not. And it came to pass that when it was night they were weary, and retired to their camps; and after they had retired to their camps, they took up a howling and a lamentation for the loss of the slain of their people; and so great were their cries, their howlings and lamentations, that it did rend the air exceedingly. And it came to pass that on the morrow they did go again to battle, and great and terrible was that day; nevertheless they conquered not, and when the night came again, they did rend the air with their cries, and their howlings, and their mournings, for the loss of the slain of their people.
8. And it came to pass that Coriantumr wrote again an epistle unto Shiz, desiring that he would not come again to battle, but that he would take the kingdom, and spare the lives of the people. But behold, the Spirit of the Lord had ceased striving with them, and Satan had full power over the hearts of the people, for they were given up unto the hardness of their hearts, and the blindness of their minds that they might be destroyed; wherefore they went again to battle. And it came to pass that they fought all that day, and when the night came they slept upon their swords; and on the morrow they fought even until the night came; and when the night came they were drunken with anger, even as a man who is drunken with wine; and they slept again upon their swords; and on the morrow they fought again; and when the night came they had all fallen by the sword save it were fifty and two of the people of Coriantumr, and sixty and nine of the people of Shiz. And it came to pass that they slept upon their swords that night, and on the morrow they fought again, and they contended in their mights with their swords, and with their shields, all that day; and when the night came there were thirty and two of the people of Shiz, and twenty and seven of the people of Coriantumr.
9. And it came to pass that they ate and slept, and prepared for death on the morrow. And they were large and mighty men, as to the strength of men. And it came to pass that they fought for the space of three hours, and they fainted with the loss of blood. And it came to pass that when the men of Coriantumr had received sufficient strength, that they could walk, they were about to flee for their lives, but behold, Shiz arose, and also his men, and he swore in his wrath that he would slay Coriantumr, or he would perish by the sword: wherefore he did pursue them, and on the morrow he did overtake them; and they fought again with the sword. And it came to pass that when they had all fallen by the sword, save it were Coriantumr and Shiz, behold Shiz had fainted with loss of blood. And it came to pass that when Coriantumr had leaned upon his sword, that he rested a little, he smote off the head of Shiz. And it came to pass that after he had smote off the head of Shiz, that Shiz raised upon his hands and fell; and after that he had struggled for breath, he died. And it came to pass that Coriantumr fell to the earth, and became as if he had no life. And the Lord spake unto Ether, and said unto him, go forth. And he went forth, and beheld that the words of the Lord had all been fulfilled; and he finished his record; and the hundredth part I have not written.
It seems a pity he did not finish, for after all his dreary former chapters of commonplace, he stopped just as he was in danger of becoming interesting.
The Mormon Bible is rather stupid and tiresome to read, but there is nothing vicious in its teachings. Its code of morals is unobjectionable- -it is "smouched" [Milton] from the New Testament and no credit given.
Rev.5
11 And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands;
12 Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.
13 And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.
D&C 77
3 Q. Are the four beasts limited to individual beasts, or do they represent classes or orders?
A. They are limited to four individual beasts, which were shown to John, to represent the glory of the classes of beings in their destined border or sphere of creation, in the enjoyment of their eternal efelicity.
14 And the four beasts said, Amen. And the four and twenty elders fell down and worshipped him that liveth for ever and ever.
Encyclopedia of Mormonism, Vol.4, WORK, ROLE OF WORK IN THE HEREAFTER. Work will not cease with death. "Work with faith is a cardinal point of our theological doctrine and our future state—our heaven, is envisioned in terms of eternal progression through constant labor" (Richards, pp. 10-11; cf. Rev. 13:14; D&C 59:2). Detailed information about the nature of work in the hereafter has not been revealed. However, "what little information we have of a tactical nature suggests that we will be intelligently involved doing specific things which are tied to the eternal purposes of our Father in heaven" (Maxwell, p. 26; cf. Sill, p. 7).
Encyclopedia of Mormonism, Vol.4, WORK, ROLE OF The Latter-day Saint work ethic is similar to the Protestant work ethic regarding the central role of work in a devout life; however, the Latter-day Saint view maintains a strict distinction between work and worship. Although dedicated work builds character and is a form of service to God, it alone is not sufficient to express worship for God. No matter how much service humans render, they still remain "unprofitable servants" overwhelmingly blessed by God (Mosiah 2:21). Other sacred activities such as prayer; attending meetings; making and renewing covenants through baptism, the Sacrament, and temple ordinances; and serving the needy are more direct and explicit forms of worship and are a ritual dimension of the LDS pattern of life.
Encyclopedia of Mormonism, Vol.4, WORK, ROLE OF Some measures in the Church are taken to keep the commandment to work from being misconstrued to encourage "workaholism," or a frantic compulsion to be constantly busy. Church members are encouraged to use judgment in how much they undertake and are counseled not to run faster than they have the strength (Eccl. 9:11; Mosiah 4:27; D&C 10:4).
Encyclopedia of Mormonism, Vol.4, WORK, ROLE OF The importance of work is to be balanced with other worthwhile pursuits. Members are exhorted to be anxiously engaged in a good cause (D&C 58:26-28), including the fine arts, music, dance, and literature (D&C 88:118; 136:28). Brigham Young taught the need for a balance between physical and mental labor: "Some think too much, and should labor more, others labor too much, and should think more, and thus maintain an equilibrium between the mental and physical members of the individual; then you will enjoy health and vigor, will be active, and ready to discern truly, and judge quickly" (JD
Encyclopedia of Mormonism, Vol.4, WORK, ROLE OF The Latter-day Saint work ethic was clearly evident during the settlement of the western United States. After the Mormon pioneers entered the Salt Lake Valley, they immediately began turning the desert into fertile farms and thriving cities. Their motto became "Industry," and their symbol, the beehive. During the first decade there, the Mormons colonized approximately ninety-six communities, and before the end of the century at least 500 more (see Colonization). Opinion surveys indicate that Latter-day Saints continue to accept the moral importance of work and take pride in craftsmanship.
Do you think that Protestants don't have that distinction? A conclusion that can be drawn here is that the Protestant world didn't separate secular work from the "work" involved in worship.
After the Mormon pioneers entered the Salt Lake Valley, they immediately began turning the desert into fertile farms and thriving cities. Their motto became "Industry," and their symbol, the beehive. During the first decade there, the Mormons colonized approximately ninety-six communities, and before the end of the century at least 500 more (see Colonization).
Not to take anything away from the work it took the Mormons to develop the SLC area, but this is nothing out of the ordinary for people of that day. Did the Mormons have some special power to persevere that the others didn't? Look at how many non-Mormon towns were built from nothing. Was their drive any less extraordinary?
Its about knowing that we will have things to do in the hereafter and its we are pracitcing in this dimintion. Why do you take this to have anything to do with you? Just because one compares apples and oranges does not mean we care about oranges, it just a marker, nothing personal. You don't even beleive in work in the hereafter at least that's what I was told.
Colonization
[This entry is an overview of Latter-day Saint colonization in the Great Basin. Articles on City Planning; Community; Gathering; and Immigration and Emigration discuss principles guiding colonization decisions. For further discussion of colonization outside Utah, see entries on LDS pioneer settlements in Arizona; California; Canada; Colorado; Idaho; Mexico; Nevada; New Mexico; and Wyoming. Related articles are Economic History of the Church; Native Americans; and Young, Brigham.]
Encyclopedia of Mormonism, Vol.1, COLONIZATION Latter-day Saints were industrious colonizers of the American West. During the Brigham Young administration alone, they founded nearly four hundred settlements, with three hundred more thereafter. Though some were distant from Salt Lake City, they were not isolated villages but maintained close communication with adjacent settlements and Church headquarters. Following a pattern that emerged in the Church's first decade, each was founded to provide protection and promote unity and shared values.
Encyclopedia of Mormonism, Vol.1, COLONIZATION Between 1830 and 1846, Latter-day Saints settled in or near a series of Church headquarters. After conflict and persecution in New York, Ohio, Missouri, and Illinois, they sought refuge in a virtual no-man's-land in the West. After establishing a new headquarters in the heretofore largely uninhabited Salt Lake Valley, Latter-day Saints sought to ensure self-rule by establishing a dominant influence over a vast territory including present-day Utah and Nevada and parts of Idaho, Wyoming, and California. Immigrant converts, first from the United States and the British Isles and after 1852 from continental Europe, swelled the ranks of colonists. Under the direction of President Brigham Young, exploring parties were sent out and settlements were established in a corridor extending from the Salt Lake Valley southwest to Las Vegas, Nevada, and San Bernardino, California. Missions to Native Americans prompted the establishment of several settlements around the perimeter of the Mormon sphere of influence: Fort Limhi, Idaho, on the Salmon River to the northwest; the Elk Mountain Mission to the southeast (near present-day Moab, Utah); and Harmony and Santa Clara, Utah, and Las Vegas to the southwest. Settlements in Carson Valley, Nevada, on the west were an outgrowth of individual LDS enterprise along the route of gold-seekers traveling to California, reinforced at the direction of Church leaders. To the northeast, Fort Bridger and Fort Supply, Wyoming, were to anchor a series of way stations between Salt Lake City and the Missouri River along the Mormon Trail to facilitate immigration and trade. San Bernardino was to be a temporary gathering place for Saints from the Pacific Coast.
Encyclopedia of Mormonism, Vol.1, COLONIZATION For various reasons, most of these outer colonies proved less than successful and were discontinued by 1858. The March of the Utah expedition toward Utah and hostility provoked by the Mountain Meadows Massacre prompted a withdrawal from most distant outposts. After the conclusion of the so-called Utah War, colonization resumed, but within a more compact territory. St. George, Utah, the focal point of the 1861 Cotton Mission, became a key settlement in the Southwest. With President Young's persistent support, that settlement survived the demise of its cotton industry after America's Civil War and the abandonment of LDS efforts to establish a route for trade and immigration via the Gulf of California and the lower Colorado River. With the addition of settlements in northern Utah and southern Idaho, the population came to be most heavily concentrated in the territory's northern region.
Encyclopedia of Mormonism, Vol.1, COLONIZATION Meanwhile, the extension of settlement beyond the Salt Lake Valley deprived Native Americans of prime hunting and fishing lands. After initial conflicts, President Young established a policy of feeding the Indians rather than fighting them, but still advised villages to build fortifications against possible attack. Latter-day Saints sought to convert the Indians both to their religion and to the pursuit of agriculture. Even with the assistance of federally sponsored farms, however, few Indians made successful transitions. The continued influx of LDS immigrants and the failure of Church and government efforts to reverse the gradual impoverishment of the Native American population led to the Walker War of the 1850s and to the Black Hawk War of the 1860s. The subsequent resettlement of the surviving Indians to reservations removed one of the major obstacles to further colonization.
Encyclopedia of Mormonism, Vol.1, COLONIZATION Before Brigham Young's death in 1877, additional settlements were planted along the Little Colorado River in Arizona, followed by more in Colorado, New Mexico, Canada, and Mexico. Elsewhere, the Palawai Valley on the island of Lanai and, later, Laie on Oahu became gathering places for Saints in Hawaii, the first such settlements outside western North America.
Encyclopedia of Mormonism, Vol.1, COLONIZATION Colonization was generally directed and coordinated from Church headquarters. Church leaders selected key sites and handpicked leaders to direct the founding of new villages. Some settlers volunteered, while others received a calling to relocate. When LDS families established new locations on their own initiative, Church leaders usually visited soon afterward to ensure that the settlement was properly organized. Thus, each settlement was effectively a colony of the mother settlement in Salt Lake City. From initial sites, Latter-day Saints spread out to occupy most of the arable land nearby and founded new towns.
Encyclopedia of Mormonism, Vol.1, COLONIZATION Beginning in 1880, Mormon villages spread along the route of the Utah and Northern Railway and the Upper Snake River Valley in Idaho. Many of these were settled through individual initiative rather than Church direction, and Church leaders labored with some difficulty to encourage the location of homes in the customary compact Mormon villages rather than scattered throughout the surrounding farmland.
Encyclopedia of Mormonism, Vol.1, COLONIZATION Colonies in Alberta, Canada, and in Chihuahua, Mexico, largely resulted from the Church's attempts to find refuge for polygamists under threat of prosecution during the 1880s (see Antipolygamy Legislation). Later efforts included the Big Horn Basin of Wyoming by 1900 and Kelsey, Texas, in 1901. Though Kelsey was one of only a handful of LDS settlements established outside the larger sphere of Latter-day Saint influence, the town still exhibited many of the characteristics of a planned Mormon village.
Encyclopedia of Mormonism, Vol.1, COLONIZATION Early in the twentieth century, new colonization ceased and emphasis was placed on strengthening congregations throughout the world rather than on gathering to already predominantly LDS communities.
Illustration This view of Logan, Utah, c. 1890, with the Logan Temple above the town and grist mill in the foreground, shows the broad streets and typical layout of a thriving "Mormon village." Courtesy University of Utah.
Mormon settlements in Utah, 1847-1906. Selected Mormon settlements in the West, 1847-1890. Bibliography Arrington, Leonard J. Great Basin Kingdom. Cambridge, Mass., 1958. Campbell, Eugene E. "Brigham Young's Outer Cordon—A Reappraisal." Utah Historical Quarterly 41 (Summer 1973):220-53. Hunter, Milton R. Brigham Young the Colonizer. Santa Barbara, Calif., 1973. Sherlock, Richard. "Mormon Migration and Settlement After 1875." Journal of Mormon History 2 (1975):53-68.
RICHARD L. JENS
Wrigley, I think you a charming person, you have been quite for the last couple of days.
Journal of Discourses, Vol.8, p.35, Brigham Young, April 6, 1860 How many Gods there are, and how many places there are in their kingdoms, is not for me to say; but I can say this, which is a source of much comfort, consolation, and gratification to me: Behold the goodness, the long-suffering, the kindness, and the strong parental feeling of our Father and God in preparing the way and providing the means to save the children of men,--not alone the Latter-day Saints--not those alone who have the privilege of the first principles of the celestial law, but to save all. It is a universal salvation--a universal redemption. Do not conclude that I am a Universalist, as the term is generally understood, although that doctrine is true in part, like the doctrines or professions of all professing Christians.
As was stated yesterday, by one of those who spoke, when he was a Methodist, he enjoyed a portion of the Spirit of the Lord. Hundreds of those now present have had a like experience in a greater or less degree, before they joined this Church. Then, when we inquire who will be saved, I answer, All will be saved, as Jesus said, when speaking to the Apostles, except the sons of perdition. They will be saved through the atonement and their own good works, according to the law that is given to them. Will the heathen be saved? Yes, so far as they have lived according to the best light and intelligence they had; but not in the celestial kingdom. Who will not be saved? Those who have received the truth, or had the privilege of receiving it, and then rejected it. They are the only ones who will become the sons of perdition, go into everlasting punishment, and become angels to the Devil.
Journal of Discourses, Vol.8, p.35, Brigham Young, April 6, 1860 The Priesthood of the Lord has again bestowed upon those who will receive it, is for the express purpose of preparing them to become proficient in the principles pertaining to the law of the celestial kingdom. If we obey this law, preserve it inviolate, live according to it, we shall be prepared to enjoy the blessings of a celestial kingdom. Will any others? Yes, thousands and millions of the inhabitants of the earth who would have received and obeyed the law that we preach, if they had had the privilege. When the Lord shall bring again Zion, and the watchmen shall see eye to eye, and Zion shall be established, saviours will come upon Mount Zion and save all the sons and daughters of Adam that are capable of being saved, by administering for them. Is not this pleasing? Is it not gratifying? Is it not a consoling feeling and influence upon the mind of every intelligent being? Our former views were that the majority of the inhabitants of the earth would not be saved in any kind of kingdom of glory, but would inherit a kingdom of damnation. Jesus said, "In my Father's house are many mansions. If it were no so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you, that where I am ye may be also." In other words, "I go to prepare a place for you who have received and obeyed the celestial law, which I have committed to you." The celestial is the highest of all. The telestial and terrestrial are also spoken of; and how many more kingdoms of glory there are is not for me to say. I do not know that they are not innumerable. This is source of great joy to me.
Journal of Discourses, Vol.8, p.36, Brigham Young, April 6, 1860 The vision given to Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon is the greatest vision I ever knew given to the children of men, incorporating more in a few pages than any other revelation I have any knowledge of. "This is the Gospel--the glad tidings which the voice out of the heavens bore record unto us," state Joseph and Sidney, "that he came into the world, and to be crucified for the world, and to bear the sins of the world, and to sanctify the world, and to cleanse it from all unrighteousness; that through him all might be saved whom the Father had put into his power and made by him, who glorifies the Father, and saves all the works of his hands, except those sons of perdition who deny the Son after the Father has revealed him; wherefore he saves all except them: they shall go away into everlasting punishment."
Mom, you have learned well.
For what it's worth, everything from here on (and from a while back, as well) is speculation...
My human mind can not grasp that something other than God could exist with no beginning
It has occurred to me that this might address the "Christ" concern. You know, the one about us not being Christian because we say Christ is the firstborn spirit of our Heavenly Father, and thus is not forever and ever. Maybe His spirit was "created" by Heavenly Father, but His "intelligence" is eternal, so He has no beginning.
Of course this would suggest that we are eternal, also, but that is fine, since we believe that we can become "God" too. Neat how that all works out in our theory.
on your theory that intelligences also must be composites assembled by layers of Heavenly Fathers, how does that "fit " into the belief that the Heavenly Father had a Heavenly Father that had a Heavenly Father ( for the assembling of the spirit)
You asked for it. Don't say I didn't warn you.
Eternal progression is the answer. Again, everybody, this is not official LDS doctrine, but the theory of T.P.Pole.
Here on earth we can participate in the creation process by having children. We create the body, and the spirit comes from Heavenly Father.
In Heaven, Heavenly Father participates in the creation process by having spirit-children. He creates the spirit, and Extra-Heavenly Father provides the intelligence.
In Extra-Heaven, Extra-Heavenly Father participates in the creation process by having intelligence-children. He creates the intelligence, and Extra-Extra-Heavenly Father provides the light.
In Extra-Extra-Heaven, Extra-Extra-Heavenly Father participates in the creation process by having light-children. He creates the light, and Extra-Extra-Extra-Heavenly Father provides the truth.
And in Extra-Extra-Extra-Heaven, Extra-Extra-Extra-Heavenly Father participates in the creation process by having truth-children. He creates the truth, and Extra-Extra-Extra-Extra-Heavenly Father provides the [OK, I've run out].
BTW, the light and truth comes from D&C 93. Verse 29 says "Man was also in the beginning with God. Intelligence, or the light of truth, was not created or made, neither indeed can be." And verse 36 says "The glory of God is intelligence, or, in other words, light and truth."
Onward. We say that eventually we can become a God. We also suggest that that means that we can create spirit children.
Maybe Heavenly Father is progressing, too. Maybe if He gains enough glory through His spirit children (which we just said are composed of spirit and intelligence), then He can become an Extra-Heavenly Father, and can create intelligence-children.
You see where I am going? Our Extra-Heavenly Father gains exaltation and progresses to Extra-Extra-Heavenly father and begins to create light-children.
And so forth, and so forth, for eternity.
More like multi-level marketing than I first suspected.
Then, when we gain exaltation and have spirit children, we have a world created, and send our Adam and Eve down, and there is a transgression, so we need to send our first-born spirit child down to our world to be a Savior. Our spirit children go down to the world to get the bodies that our Adam and Eve (and their children) create. Our Christ teaches that he is just doing what we would do if we were there. He also says if they see him, they have also seen us, since he is our son, after all. If they accept our Christ, and follow his example, they can become exalted. And after they are exalted, they can have spirit children, and we become Heavenly Grandparents.
Of course, by then, we may have progressed to Extra-Heavenly Parents, and are busy creating intelligences. We wouldn't see our Heavenly Father much since He might have progressed to Extra-Extra-Heavenly Father and is busy creating light-children.
Are you saying that some Heavenly Fathers functioned in a way to "birth" not spirits but intelligences?
Bingo!
One more morsel. One thing we talk about is how the true gospel is like a piano. Some churches have some of the keys. Others have others. We claim that only we have all the keys. In a sense, this is how we observe our understanding of our lives.
Other faiths have knowledge about from when we are born (on this earth) to just after we die. We have knowledge from before we were born to long after we die. Our concept of the spirit world (where we await resurrection after we die) contains a spirit paradise and a spirit prison. Remember our discussion a while back about Christ opening up spirit prison to the missionaries? Our concept of spirit paradise and spirit prison looks a little bit like the rest of the world's concept of heaven and hell. Throw in a Catholic purgatory, and you have folks moving from prison to paradise after they accept the gospel and have their temple ordinances done. Remember, we don't consider paradise to be the end. We believe that after that comes resurrection, final judgment, then assignment to a glory (or a kingdom, as in "Celestial Kingdom").
In many ways this makes it hard to discuss this with others, since they have no concept of a pre-earth life or any idea what we do after we are in heaven (other than sing praise and play harps).
Think I have rambled on enough. I'll let somebody else have the floor, now.
Sorry, forgot to answer. The one I have is copyrighted 1998, so I suspect it is a later version. When I got it I hated it, since they changed the whole desktop. I think I liked the old way of searching better.
Since my kids broke the old version's CD, I cannot compare head-to-head, and time dims memories. Sorry.
I don't know that I have come to terms with how this works. I am certainly open to suggestion.
Rest brought up the verse in Moses that talks about God creating the spirits of the plants and animals before placing them on the earth. That is one point.
Others pointed out verses showing animals in Heaven. That's another point.
But do animals share in the same level of expectation and exaltation that we do? I have no idea.
Almost any LDS would agree that our pets are with us in heaven. However, I don't think we fully understand what this means. If they are good animals, do they gain exaltation and get to create spirit-animals (and intelligence-animals, and light-animals, etc.)?
And what about plants? How can they be obedient? Didn't Christ curse a plant that didn't provide him fruit? Does that plant go to hell/outer darkness?
They sure didn't cover this in primary...
Journal of Discourses, Vol.8, p.35, Brigham Young, April 6, 1860 How many Gods there are, and how many places there are in their kingdoms, is not for me to say; but I can say this, which is a source of much comfort, consolation, and gratification to me: Behold the goodness, the long-suffering, the kindness, and the strong parental feeling of our Father and God in preparing the way and providing the means to save the children of men,--not alone the Latter-day Saints--not those alone who have the privilege of the first principles of the celestial law, but to save all. It is a universal salvation--a universal redemption. Do not conclude that I am a Universalist, as the term is generally understood, although that doctrine is true in part, like the doctrines or professions of all professing Christians.
BOOK OF MOSES CHAPTER 1 (June 1830)
God reveals himself to Moses—Moses transfigured—Confrontation with Satan—Many inhabited worlds seen—Worlds without number created by the Son—God’s work and glory to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.
1 THE words of God, which he spake unto Moses at a time when Moses was caught up into an exceedingly high mountain,
2 And he saw God face to face, and he talked with him, and the glory of God was upon Moses; therefore Moses could endure his presence.
3 And God spake unto Moses, saying: Behold, I am the Lord God Almighty, and Endless is my name; for I am without beginning of days or end of years; and is not this endless?
4 And, behold, thou art my son; wherefore look, and I will show thee the workmanship of mine hands; but not all, for my works are without end,</b? and also my words, for they never cease.
5 Wherefore, no man can behold all my works, except he behold all my glory; and no man can behold all my glory, and afterwards remain in the flesh on the earth.
6 And I have a work for thee, Moses, my son; and thou art in the similitude of mine Only Begotten; and mine Only Begotten is and shall be the Savior, for he is full of grace and truth; but there is no God beside me, and all things are present with me, for I know them all.
7 And now, behold, this one thing I show unto thee, Moses, my son, for thou art in the world, and now I show it unto thee.
8 And it came to pass that Moses looked, and beheld the world upon which he was created; and Moses beheld the world and the ends thereof, and all the children of men which are, and which were created; of the same he greatly marveled and wondered.
9 And the presence of God withdrew from Moses, that his glory was not upon Moses; and Moses was left unto himself. And as he was left unto himself, he fell unto the earth.
Off hand my first thought would be to ask if the Heavenly Father worships the god that is above Him?
How do you deal with Isa?
Isa 43:10 Ye [are] my witnesses, saith the LORD, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I [am] he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me.
As to the cursed tree...the tree was symbolic of Israel...it bore no fruit so it was cursed.
Do plants have spirits? That sounds a bit like Hinduism/animism....it has almost a sense of primitive witchcraft.
So I sense that you are not meaning it in a literal sense as in a human spirit.
Isa 43:10 Ye [are] my witnesses, saith the LORD, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I [am] he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me.
If there is some basic essence that is eternal (before truth and light in my earlier reply), then indeed there were none formed before or after, at least in whatever that essence is. At least that is my first reaction to that in light of the other.
I'll return later to consider this again. But for now it is bedtime. Nighters.
Moses 1
3 And God spake unto Moses, saying: Behold, I am the Lord God Almighty, and Endless is my name; for I am without beginning of days or end of years; and is not this endless?
4 And, behold, thou art my son; wherefore look, and I will show thee the workmanship of mine hands; but not all, for my works are without end, and also my words, for they never cease.
5 Wherefore, no man can behold all my works, except he behold all my glory; and no man can behold all my glory, and afterwards remain in the flesh on the earth.
I don't think it could be any clearer!
6 And I have a work for thee, Moses, my son; and thou art in the similitude of mine Only Begotten; and mine Only Begotten is and shall be the Savior, for he is full of grace and truth; but there is no God beside me, and all things are present with me, for I know them all.
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