What Do Mormons Believe? » sstacey

What is your great question of the soul?

sstacey — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 16:00:17 +0000

I read an interesting quote the other day, about how people in our church “need to know how to use the Book of Mormon to arouse mankind’s interest in studying it, and they need to show how it answers the great questions of the soul” (Ezra Benson).

That quote made me think: what are the great questions of the soul? I thought of several and I want to show you how the Book of Mormon answers them. Many of the questions I thought of are below, along with a specific passage in the Book of Mormon to help answer that question. There are many more questions and many more passages, but this is just a small glimpse into the book I love so much. I hope this helps some of you orient yourselves to the Book of Mormon, which has helped me answer my own soul’s greatest question.

Is there a god? (2 Nephi 2:14; Alma 30:43-44)

If so, how can I know? (Alma 22:16-18)

What is God like? (2 Nephi 26:23-24, 33, 27:23)

Does life have a purpose? (Alma 42)

Can I know that purpose? (Mormon 9:21, 27-28)

Is there life after death? (Alma 11:45, Alma 40)

I know that although this site is targeted to people who want to know more about what Mormons believe, it is frequently visited by members of our church. I encourage all of you who have read this far to leave a comment in this section. Tell about a great question of your soul, or simply ask it here. If you have found your answer in the Book of Mormon, put the scriptures that helped you. If you know of any scriptures to help anybody out, put them there. We can all gain something from this experience if you share your thoughts in the comments right now, and we need your contribution.

Hating the sin, loving the sinner

sstacey — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 17:32:39 +0000

When Jesus Christ was on the earth, he was criticized for eating with “publicans and sinners” (Matt 9:10-11). His opponents felt that he was being too friendly with people whose choices were not those of righteousness. However, Jesus consistently taught love for those whom we are not inclined to love (Matt 5:44). He showed us the example by his love for Roman invaders, thieves, harlots and other people whom he had every apparent reason to despise. An important aspect of the Savior’s example is that even though he loves all with an incomprehensible love, he “cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance”. As members of His church, we seek to emulate this characteristic, which is summed up in the oft-quoted maxim “hate the sin, love the sinner.”

Of course this phrase isn’t strictly doctrinal, but it serves as a simple reminder of some very Christian practices. In our quest to emulate the savior we seek to become as he is: perfect, just and merciful (Alma 42: 15). Of course, we know that all men sin and “come short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23). Yet we still cannot, as disciples of Christ, condone sinful practices, either in ourselves or others. For this reason we strive, as individuals, parents, friends, voting citizens and in all other capacities, to promote measures that encourage righteousness and discourage practices that go against the revealed will of God.

I personally find that understanding a person’s motives allows us to sympathize with them as individuals even though we do not condone their behavior. I think of Dostoyevsky’s novel “Crime and Punishment”, in which the protagonist is a murderer and another main character is a harlot. Throughout the novel you discover that the murderer and the harlot are both very human—almost pitiable. They are motivated by such common emotions as individualism, helplessness, despair and caring. This understanding does not justify them for doing wrong nor does it exempt them from punishment (as shown in the end). However, committing ourselves to treating all people as humans with human motives and desires allows us to love them more fully.

Do Mormons Believe in the Trinity?

sstacey — Mon, 11 May 2009 14:00:32 +0000

Q. What is the belief concerning the trinity, is it one God, 3 persons, or 3 gods that comprise one God? How does that work?

A core belief of all Christians is the testimony of Jesus Christ as divine. The nature of the godhead — God the Father, Jesus Christ the Son and the Holy Ghost — is a key topic in religious discussion, and has been debated for centuries. The traditional Christian view describes the godhead, or trinity, as united in substance and in person in a way that is incomprehensible by man. As Latter-day Saints we believe as all Christians do “in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost” (Articles of Faith 1). We believe that they are one in purpose and mission and that they are three separate divine beings.

A brief study of history will show that the idea of numerical separateness of the godhead is not new, and was believed by many early Christians. For example, Arius, founder of Arianism, was ruled a heretic after the first council of Nicea for preaching, among other controversial doctrines, the separateness of God the Father and Jesus Christ.

There are many biblical passages which clearly show the separateness in person of God the Father and Jesus Christ (see Matthew 3:16-17, Luke 22:42, Acts 7:55-56). However, there are many others which also state that they are one (see Deuteronomy 6:4, John 10:30, 1 John 5:7). This dichotomy has long been recognized, and the First Council of Nicaea was convened in AD 325 to, among other reasons, set forth in formal creed the official view of the church. The famous Nicene creed, which was adopted at that council and continues today as a cornerstone statement of many current doctrines of the trinity, describes Jesus Christ as “God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, one in Being with the Father” (The Nicene Creed).

The convening of councils for the construction of creeds has been the method used by “traditional” Christian churches to resolve doctrinal disputes. As Latter-day Saints we believe that there is a better way: through revelation given directly to authorized prophets, God has revealed and continues to reveal many gospel truths. Among the doctrines made clear in modern times by revelation is the nature of the godhead as three beings, united in purpose and separate in person. We value the inspired words in the Bible, and we believe that the same spirit which inspired its writers still inspires holy men today to teach doctrines that are equally true and valuable.

It might be said that the doctrine of the trinity is the very first of all doctrines in which Latter-day Saint teachings differ from the traditional Christian view. The first prophet called of God in modern times was Joseph Smith. When he was a boy, disputes among churches prompted him to ask God for himself which church preached the eternal truth about God and salvation. In answer, God the Father and Jesus Christ appeared to him in glorious vision. God the Father himself said to Joseph “This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!” (Joseph Smith – History 1:17). What better example can there be of the unity of the Father and the Son as separate beings?

As stated earlier, Biblical evidence for the LDS doctrine is abundant. I have not focused on them so as to emphasize that we do not base our belief on a creed made by scholars concerning an expert interpretation of the Bible. We base our belief on the testimony given to us by the Holy Ghost that the first vision of Joseph Smith was real and prophets continue to reveal truth about God. I strongly recommend that any reader who wishes to see strong Biblical evidence of our belief read this talk (or watch it) by an apostle and special witness of Jesus Christ. I invite anybody who wishes to discover the truth of our message to study the scriptures, pray and ask God, who will tell you by the Holy Ghost that it is true.

This article was written by guest author Stephen Stacey