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Any claim of revelation is outrageous. It presumes that God exists, that God speaks and that all is not lost when human beings translate that speech into ordinary language. But time mutes the outrage, or muffles it. Many of us greet the miracles of Jesus with a shrug, and there is little scandal any more in claiming that the Bible is the word of God. -SNIP-So we probably know more about the production of the Book of Mormon, which is holy writ to the world's 14 million Mormons, than we do about any other scripture. The product of over...

The Lord Speaks Again: Ancient Temple Patterns in D&C 124 On 19 January 1841 the Lord issued an important revelation through the Prophet Joseph Smith which is now known as Doctrine and Covenants section 124.1 There are many verses within this revelation where the Lord describes concepts associated with the Nauvoo temple. These concepts can be placed under five general categories so that they can be more easily evaluated: The Lord’s People, The Lord’s Commands, The Lord’s House, The Priesthood, and The Ordinances. This article is calculated to help students of the past more accurately understand what (and how...

  June 26, 2009: Temple ordinance information is no longer updated in the International Genealogical Index (IGI). Church members who wish to verify completed temple ordinances for their deceased ancestors may contact a family history consultant, or visit a local family history center for assistance. Caesar Flavius Valerius Aurelius Constantinus Augustus (27 February c. 272 – 22 May 337), commonly known in English as Constantine I, Constantine the Great, or (among Eastern Orthodox, Coptic Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and Byzantine Catholic Christians) Saint Constantine, was Roman emperor from 306, and the undisputed holder of that office from 324 until his...

You might think that the Mormon people celebrate Christmas like a good Christian denomination would. But a doctrinal issue broods over the Mormon people, a historic issue that prevents many Mormons from appreciating the Christian meaning of Christmas. Indeed, it is an issue that prevents Mormons from having a saving relationship with the real Jesus Christ. Just who is that Jesus in the manger? How was he conceived? And what kind of salvation does he freely offer to those who want eternal life and the forgiveness of sins?One of the fundamental tenets of Christianity is that Christ was born of...

The LDS Church - and many of its members - objected last spring when HBO's hit series "Big Love" depicted a plural wife participating in a temple ceremony, calling the episode an offensive act that trivialized a sacred practice. But an entire context is needed to sanctify an image, gesture, ritual or event, said Alex Caldiero, and without its unique context, the sacred cannot be violated. "The sacred sort of protects itself against any inappropriate, any misuse or any foul play by being so protected and encased in a context," said Caldiero, artist-in-residence at Utah Valley University in Orem. "What...

A friend of my daughter recently said she could not understand why Mormons baptize children at such a young age, 8 years old. This got me thinking. ...We do not baptize infants or little children because, as taught in section 29 of the Doctrine and Covenants, "little children are redeemed" through Christ and "cannot sin, for power is not given unto Satan to tempt little children until they begin to become accountable before me." But why do we baptize at the young and tender age of 8? Why not wait until they are older and, as some would argue, more...

History: Orderville's utopia was nearly perfect -- for about a decade

An informal survey shows there are 38,000 fundamentalist Mormons in the U.S., Canada and Mexico -- up by 1,000. "It is a conservative figure but that's the approximate figure for now," said Anne Wilde, a co-founder of the advocacy group Principle Voices, which conducts the periodic survey. Estimates for organized groups are provided by group leaders or council members. The count includes children and adults, living in both monogamous and polygamous families. Wilde said about half are in plural families. "It's been kind of generally increasing but not in thousands, maybe in 50s or 100s," Wilde said. "There is the...

As members of the church we recognize that the Book of Mormon was written for us and for our day and age. No earthly Nephite, other than Mormon, and perhaps Moroni, ever read the Book of Mormon in its entirety. It was edited by the Prophet Mormon under the direction of the Savior with the intention of articulating doctrine, events and experiences that relate to our times and circumstances. We live in a time of endemic warfare, and as Joseph Smith prophesied on Christmas Day 1832, from that time forth, "war shall be poured out upon all nations" until the...

Dear Seeker of Truth, I am a former Mormon missionary and apologist (defender of the faith). I wrote a book defending the Church against anti-Mormon attacks ("The Gainsayers" 1989). I spent many years of my life in research, hoping to find evidence for The Book of Mormon, and to counter anti-Mormon claims. I studied Book of Mormon archaeology and also Mormon history far more intensively than 99% of other Mormons. I did this because I wanted to defend the Church. Ultimately, I discovered the truth. I resigned from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1996. Below is...

Dear Seeker of Truth, I am a former Mormon missionary and apologist (defender of the faith). I wrote a book defending the Church against anti-Mormon attacks ("The Gainsayers" 1989). I spent many years of my life in research, hoping to find evidence for The Book of Mormon, and to counter anti-Mormon claims. I studied Book of Mormon archaeology and also Mormon history far more intensively than 99% of other Mormons. I did this because I wanted to defend the Church. Ultimately, I discovered the truth. I resigned from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1996. For those...

The 8th Article of Faith states: "We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God." In the title page of the Book of Mormon, we read, "...if there are faults they are the mistakes of men; wherefore, condemn not the things of God." Lastly, we read the words of Moroni shortly after he took over his father's record: "Condemn me not because of mine imperfection, neither my father, because of his imperfection, neither them who have written before him...

SNIP Sharing testimonies is an important part of the Latter-day Saint experience. We bear testimonies in many settings — in the home with family and among friends and associates or in missionary experiences. In Church, one Sunday is set aside every month for the bearing of testimonies during sacrament meetings. SNIP In his address at the October 2004 general conference, Elder M. Russell Ballard of the Quorum of the Twelve...said that his experience throughout the Church leads him to worry that too many members' testimonies linger on "I am thankful," and "I love," and too few are able to say...

Phoenix » Some north Phoenix residents are voicing strong opposition to a proposed Mormon temple, saying it would be an eyesore and would disrupt their mountain views. The four-story, all white, 9,500-square-foot temple would rise from the desert floor near 51st Avenue and West Pinnacle Peak Road.

Bob Bennett has a challenge for those who reject The Book of Mormon as a fanciful work of fiction...In a new book, Leap of Faith: Confronting the Origins of The Book of Mormon, the lifelong Mormon and grandson of a church prophet, argues that the foundational book of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints cannot be dismissed so easily. SNIP ...Terryl Givens, a Mormon and a professor of literature and religion at the University of Richmond, notes that The Book of Mormon has not undergone much if any scrutiny by scholars outside the faith. "The story of its...

...The Joseph Smith Papers, Revelations and Translations, Volume 1: Manuscript Revelation Books will be in bookstores on Sept. 22. It is the second book to be released in the anticipated 30-volume comprehensive scholarly set that will cover more than 2,000 documents in the Prophet's personal papers. Of necessity, the latest volume is larger and more expensive than the others. This is because it contains a full-color photo image of each page of two important manuscript collections produced by the Prophet and his scribes: the Book of Commandments and Revelations and the Kirtland Revelation Book. "Coupling them together, we're presenting one...

First in a series of four articles Somewhere among the varied coasts of the two American continents was landfall for a small group of ancient Israelite seafarers led by a prophet named Lehi. Whether they stepped upon the sands of an empty or crowded continent is at the heart of the DNA debate over the historical nature of the Book of Mormon. Ugo Perego, an Italian-born researcher in human genetics, tries to look with a scientist's eye at the controversy surrounding DNA and the Book of Mormon. He is a bit impatient with some of the strong conclusions of some...

We Mormons have our own personal religious lore; one that tops the list is the Three Nephites. A healthy percentage of members who make it to church more often than not either have their own personal Three Nephites tale or can relate at least one that has been passed onto them. The Three Nephites are mentioned in The Book of Mormon as disciples of Jesus Christ who ask to remain on earth until Jesus Christ returns and convert souls for him. Christ says yes, which is the same answer he gives to John the Beloved in the New Testament. (I...

By day, Clinton resident Chris Adams teaches art classes to about 200 tweens and teens at Roy Junior High. After hours, the 34-year-old father of three produces abstract paintings about some of the weightier matters of the universe -- in particular, the end of the world. "There's a lot we do that's very unnatural in how we live our lives," said Adams, a self-described Christian and Mormon. "There's a growing tension with people -- perhaps it comes from 9/11 -- and we don't feel safe anymore." "But there's a general belief," Adams added, "that things will get worse and an...

Those curious about the polygamous community that has thrived on the Utah/Arizona state line for nearly 75 years may now take a guided tour through what promoters bill as "the largest and most secluded polygamist colony" in America. "Why the prairie dresses and long braids? No makeup? More than one wife?" -- all questions to be answered during "The Polygamy Experience: A Guided Tour of Colorado City." The four-hour excursion promises accounts from guides "who have actually lived and loved 'The Creek,'" the historic name for Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Ariz., home to the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ...