It's amazing how true to life I found States of Grace to be. It really is the missionaries that are the most strict about the rules that will end up having the most trouble with them, at least in my experience.
I dunno... I'm highly skeptical of that. I'd want to see the statement itself first. That makes no sense to me. "Only study by yourself or with your family outside of church"? There must be more to it than that, or less.
I don't understand this. If I choose to believe something, why does that mean the universe is defined by my whims? It's just how I think the universe works, not how I think the universe has to work.
Just because I know something doesn't have tangible evidence doesn't mean I think it's a...
I believe in religion because I want to and because it makes me feel good. I've had experiences that some would call "spiritual" and some would call "emotional." Doesn't matter what you call it. They mean something to me, and I want to believe that they're important, and that makes me happy...
Perhaps you can think of it this way:
Some of your ancestors did things that you know aren't right. In remembering them, you can remember to do better than they did. In that way, you can honor them by becoming a better person than they were.
Maybe it's just because I didn't grow up with anything like it, but "charismatic" worship makes no sense to me. I prefer calm, quiet worship. It helps me focus better. My life's already hectic enough without bringing hectic worship into it.
Fine, let me put it this way:
You have a time machine and you go 100 years into the future with it. You read the history books about the last hundred years to find out what happened. Now you have knowledge of all the choices that people have made over the last hundred years. You go back in...
If God knows what you're going to choose, then it means he must know that you're going to choose/make a choice. If you didn't have the ability to make your own choices, he wouldn't know that. The very fact that he knows what you're going to choose means that you have agency.
Make sense?
I understand the consternation about men being "harped on," but I think Elder Holland did a wonderful job in his talk in mentioning that the talks that are given are meant to be very broad and general. We are a very diverse church. Everyone has a special situation, and must deal with it as...
First question: Did anyone who responded to this actually read the article? The headline, I think, is quite misleading. That is a small piece of speculation that stems from the larger work that Dr. Janke appears to be doing. Also, the arrowheads are not the only bit of evidence he's looking...
Points 1 and 8 are actually very interesting when you think about them. As a church, we are one of the most open to critical thinking and analysis of any Christian church. On the other end, individual members, from my experience at least, can be some of the most repressive of thinking of any...
For a bit more context, this was jbug's comment on ritual abuse:
From this topic: http://www.religiousforums.com/forum/2363164-post19.html
I'd like to ask, though, what this has to do with the LDS Church, and specifically LDS doctrine. There are lots of adults who have mental disorders due...
Great summary of LDS beliefs on the subject. Good quotes, too. I've read the Joseph Smith one previously, but I wasn't aware of the Parley Pratt one, so I thank you for sharing it.
It just makes sense to me. The quote from Joseph Smith says that some people may say "I cannot believe in the...
There are two basic things that were overcome by the Atonement: sin and death. Death was conquered, and everybody gets to be resurrected. It's free. No work on our part is needed there, according to my understanding.
Sin is different. Sin was paid for by Christ, but we must do our part to...
From what I understand, the Mormon transhumanists connect the transhuman idea with our idea of resurrection. They say that it will be a process, and possibly a priesthood ordinance. First of all, I've never seen any of that in scripture or in any talks given by modern prophets or apostles...
No. There are similar ideas, but are ultimately incompatible. LDS theology is concerned with becoming like God through following him and with his help. Transhumanism is concerned with becoming "gods" through our own efforts alone, with the aid of technology that we have created.
My parents were born and raised in Ogden, Utah. I grew up in Georgia. It was always interesting for me to go back to Utah for family reunions, especially when we went to church. I remember a particular Sunday School class when I was a teenager where the teacher said she tried not to make...