Just read a New York Times report about a recent genetic study out of Rockefeller University and a Swiss University that concludes all humans are descended from a single set of parents.
Say what???? You mean religious "mythology" actually got it right?
Check this out: https://nypost.com/2018/11/24/turns-out-all-of-humanity-is-related-to-a-single-couple/
Thursday, November 29, 2018
Wednesday, August 1, 2018
Did the Flood Really Happen?
I just watched a documentary about the flood mythology in ancient cultures, including the Biblical version of Noah's ark. Apparently, the earliest version of the flood myth came from ancient Babylonia in about 1750 BCE, which describes a reed boat supported with wooded beams and made waterproof by painting the outside with bitumen or pitch. But the thing that caught my attention was this boat's shape: it was round.
Round reed boats were commonly used in ancient Babylon all the way to the 20th century. They were called quffas and the larger ones could hold 125 tons or more.
Now, as a Latter-day Saint, why is this so interesting?
Because in the Book of Mormon there is one record that supposedly was written long before Nephi sailed across the sea on a boat of his own making in about 600 BCE. The Book of Ether details the people of Jared who fled the Tower of Babel by constructing six barges.
Round reed boats were commonly used in ancient Babylon all the way to the 20th century. They were called quffas and the larger ones could hold 125 tons or more.
Now, as a Latter-day Saint, why is this so interesting?
Because in the Book of Mormon there is one record that supposedly was written long before Nephi sailed across the sea on a boat of his own making in about 600 BCE. The Book of Ether details the people of Jared who fled the Tower of Babel by constructing six barges.
Sunday, September 10, 2017
Apostolic Succession
I'm giving a lesson in Sunday School today about the apostolic succession of leadership in the LDS Church following the martyrdom of Joseph Smith. Since we teach that our system of leadership (apostles, etc.) is patterned after Christ's original church, it is important to make the connection of apostolic succession in modern times to those of ancient times, and since we teach that Joseph Smith restored the priesthood which was lost to the world after Christ's apostles died, we must ask what happened to the original apostolic succession?
Well, saying that the priesthood was "lost" when the apostles died is not quite accurate. It was really more complicated than that.
The apostles, it is true, did not ordain new apostles (after adding Paul to their numbers), but they did ordain bishops to lead local congregations or churches in their absence with the intent that these bishops would continue to ordain new bishops in their stead. The Roman Catholic Church as well as the Orthodox and some Lutheran churches claim that this succession has continued down through time in an unbroken chain.
The LDS Church and many other churches and historians disagree. There is plenty of evidence to support the claim that the original apostolic succession of church leadership through its bishops has been broken on many fronts. Here is a good article that explains some of this evidence: http://www.northforest.org/CatholicControversies/SuccessionBroken.html
If indeed the apostolic succession from the original apostles to today was broken, then Joseph Smith was right in believing that the priesthood authority needed to be restored on earth before the Church could move forward.
As the President of the Church (like the apostle Peter before him), Joseph Smith held all the keys of authority of the Church. He was smart in that he anticipated his own death, and in 1843-1844 he bestowed the keys of authority to the Twelve Apostles. So, when Joseph died in 1844, the authority to lead the Church passed to the Twelve Apostles who, in 1847, selected Brigham Young as Joseph's successor as President.
This process of succession has continued in the LDS Church until the present day and will continue as long as the Church exists.
Well, saying that the priesthood was "lost" when the apostles died is not quite accurate. It was really more complicated than that.
The apostles, it is true, did not ordain new apostles (after adding Paul to their numbers), but they did ordain bishops to lead local congregations or churches in their absence with the intent that these bishops would continue to ordain new bishops in their stead. The Roman Catholic Church as well as the Orthodox and some Lutheran churches claim that this succession has continued down through time in an unbroken chain.
The LDS Church and many other churches and historians disagree. There is plenty of evidence to support the claim that the original apostolic succession of church leadership through its bishops has been broken on many fronts. Here is a good article that explains some of this evidence: http://www.northforest.org/CatholicControversies/SuccessionBroken.html
If indeed the apostolic succession from the original apostles to today was broken, then Joseph Smith was right in believing that the priesthood authority needed to be restored on earth before the Church could move forward.
As the President of the Church (like the apostle Peter before him), Joseph Smith held all the keys of authority of the Church. He was smart in that he anticipated his own death, and in 1843-1844 he bestowed the keys of authority to the Twelve Apostles. So, when Joseph died in 1844, the authority to lead the Church passed to the Twelve Apostles who, in 1847, selected Brigham Young as Joseph's successor as President.
This process of succession has continued in the LDS Church until the present day and will continue as long as the Church exists.
Saturday, October 29, 2016
Gathering of the Lost Tribes of Israel
I'm teaching a lesson tomorrow on the Gathering of Israel. In my research I came across this fascinating documentary about the Quest for the Lost 10 Tribes of Israel that suggests that some of the descendants of these tribes have already been discovered and are beginning to return to Israel in fulfillment of ancient prophecy.
Saturday, July 16, 2016
Baptism for the Dead: Not Just for Mormons
Here is a fascinating article about the practice of baptism for the dead in early Christianity. The article was published by the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, but I have listened to lectures (non-LDS) on this topic as well.
http://publications.mi.byu.edu/publications/jbms/19/2/S00004-5018489f69cae3BapDead.pdf
http://publications.mi.byu.edu/publications/jbms/19/2/S00004-5018489f69cae3BapDead.pdf
Sunday, July 19, 2015
Who is Melchezidek?
I ran across this interesting speculative post about the possible identity of Melchezidek in the Old Testament. I think he makes some pretty good arguments.
http://ad2004.com/Biblecodes/Hebrewmatrix/melchizedek.html
http://ad2004.com/Biblecodes/Hebrewmatrix/melchizedek.html
Sunday, July 12, 2015
OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO PRESERVE LIBERTY
I gave a talk in church today. In preparing it, I ran across many quotes I found to be important. Here is the talk in its entirety in case anyone wants those quotes.
OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO PRESERVE LIBERTY
Long ago, before the civilizations of man appeared, before Adam and Eve, even
before the formation of the Earth itself, a council was held in Heaven.[i] In
this council, God presented a plan in which the children of men would be proved
whether or not they would follow him and keep their first estate. But knowing
that his children would err, he asked whom he would send to redeem them.[ii]
Two stepped forward, one was Jesus Christ, who wanted to support God’s plan and
give the glory to God. The other was Satan, who wanted to coerce mankind into
obedience and to keep the glory for himself.
We are told by
God in scripture: “Because … Satan rebelled against me, and sought to
destroy the agency of man, which I, the Lord God, had given him… I caused that
he should be cast down[iii]…And
also a third part of the hosts of heaven turned he away from me because of
their agency.”[iv]
THE GIFT OF LIBERTY
Agency was the
first gift of Heaven and continues to be among the greatest of God’s gifts to
mankind. But while men and women have been endowed with the gift of agency,
which is, according to LDS
doctrine,[v]
the privilege of choice between good and evil,[vi]
the gift of Liberty, which is the state or condition of people who are
able to act and speak freely,[vii]
is not so easily obtained or preserved.
Throughout history, liberty has been enjoyed by comparatively few
individuals within select societies. The history of mankind is fraught with
countless examples of slavery, war, social injustice, political corruption, and
Genocide. Even when one group of people within a nation has been free, often
other groups have not. Those of us fortunate enough to have enjoyed liberty
throughout our lives might do well to remember that unlike Agency, which no man
can take from you, liberty is more fragile a thing and requires vigilance to
protect it.
In his April 2015 conference address, “Preserving
Agency, Protecting Religious Liberty,” Elder Robert D. Hales said the
following: “As prophets foretold about these latter days in which we live,
there are many confused about who we are and what we believe. Some are “false
accusers … [and] despisers of those that are good.”[viii]
Others “call evil good, and good evil; [and] put darkness for light, and light
for darkness.”[ix]
We must understand that the faithful use of our agency depends upon our having
religious freedom. We already know that Satan does not want this freedom to be
ours.”
RELIGIOUS FREEDOM
On December Dec. 15, 1791, Virginia became the first state to ratify the Bill
of Rights, which begins as follows:
Congress shall make no
law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise
thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of
the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress
of grievances.
It was not accidental nor an oversight that the freedom of religion, the
freedom of speech, and the freedom to assemble were to jointly share this first
and most fundamental Amendment to the Constitution. They are interconnected.
One cannot exist without the others. But to be able to exercise and defend
these freedoms, we must first understand what they are. In regards to the
freedom of religion, upon which the other aforementioned freedoms are hinged, two
specific protections are included.
The first is The Establishment Clause, which prohibits the government from
passing legislation to establish an official religion or preferring one
religion over another. The second is The Free Exercise Clause, which prohibits
the government from interfering with a person's practice of their religion.
To provide even greater insight into what these protections mean to us,
Elder Hales outlines The Four
Cornerstones of Liberty:
The first Cornerstone of Liberty is the Freedom to Believe. In Doctrine
& Covenants 134: 4 Joseph Smith states:
“We believe that religion is instituted of God … we do not believe that
human law has a right to interfere in prescribing rules of worship, to bind the consciences of men, nor
dictate forms for public or private devotion; that the civil magistrate should
restrain crime, but never control
conscience; should punish guilt, but never
suppress the freedom of the soul.
Similarly, The Universal
Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by United Nations General Assembly on
Dec. 10, 1948, states: “Everyone has the right to freedom of thought,
conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or
belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or
private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and
observance.”[x]
The second Cornerstone of Liberty is the Freedom to Share our Beliefs with
Others.
After Christ’s resurrection he commissioned his apostles to “Go ye into
all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.”[xi]
In our own lifetimes we have seen the freedom to preach the gospel open in more
and more nations throughout the world. This is an example of how the Freedom of
Speech is so vital to maintain right here at home.
The third Cornerstone of Liberty is the Freedom to Form a Religious
Organization.
Protected by the freedom to assemble in the First Amendment in the Bill
of Rights, all churches, not just our own, can remain free to worship as they
choose only as long as we are free to
gather together and to practice our faiths within the framework of organized
religions.
The fourth Cornerstone of Liberty is the Freedom to Live our Faith.
In his talk, Elder Hale states: “Some are offended when we bring our
religion into the public square, yet the
same people who insist that their viewpoints and actions be tolerated in
society are often very slow to give that same tolerance to religious believers
who also wish their viewpoints and actions to be tolerated. The general
lack of respect for religious viewpoints is quickly devolving into social and
political intolerance for religious people and institutions.”
In other words, intolerance of religious practices can become a threat to
the freedom to exercise those practices.
PROTECTING OUR LIBERTY
As I mentioned earlier, for those of us fortunate enough to have enjoyed
liberty throughout our lives, it might be too easy to forget the sacrifices and
efforts of the countless individuals who obtained it and who continue to defend
it for us. If we believe our liberty can
never be taken from us, we might do well to remember the admonition of the
prophet Jacob: “And others will Satan pacify, and lull them away into carnal
security, that they will say: All is well in Zion; yea, Zion prospereth, all is well—and thus the
devil cheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell.”[xii]
In his dissent of the recent Supreme Court Decision, Obergefell
vs. Hodges[xiii],
Chief Justice Clarence Thomas said the following: “Aside from undermining the
political processes that protect our liberty, the majority’s decision threatens
the religious liberty our Nation has long sought to protect.” He wrote the
decision could create “potentially ruinous consequences for religious liberty.”
Similarly, in his own dissent, Chief Justice John Roberts stated: “Today’s
decision…creates serious questions about religious liberty.”
Brothers and Sisters, I truly hope and pray they are wrong. But if they
are correct, let us not be caught unawares. Even at the very birth of this
nation, our forefathers understood the fragile nature of liberty. James
Madison, the Father of the Constitution, the author of the Bill of Rights, and
the 4th President of the United States stated: “I believe there are more
instances of the abridgment of the freedom of the people by gradual and silent
encroachments of those in power than by violent and sudden usurpations.”
In other words,
we are more likely to lose our freedoms slowly over time than in one fell blow.
Elder Hales states: “We are responsible to safeguard these sacred
freedoms and rights for ourselves and our posterity.”
So, what can we do to safeguard our freedoms? Elder Hales finishes his
talk but suggesting three things each of us can do to protect our religious freedom
today.
First, Be Informed.
Do not rely on the cherry-picked news headlines on the internet and
television for truth. Seek out the facts—read the Supreme Court rulings and
their dissenting arguments. Read the bills presented to Congress and the voting
history of our elected representatives. Educate yourselves on the history of
our nation and on the men and women who currently lead it.
Second, Work Side by Side to
Protect Religious Freedom.
Elder Dallin
H. Oaks has stated that, “religious persons should insist on their
constitutional right and duty to exercise their religion, to vote their
consciences on public issues, and to participate in elections and in debates. .
. . These are the rights of all citizens and they are also the rights of
religious leaders and religious organizations. In this circumstance, it
is imperative that those of us who believe in God and in the reality of right
and wrong unite more effectively to protect our religious freedom to preach and
practice our faith in God and the principles of right and wrong He has
established.”[xiv]
Third, Be a Good Example of What
You Believe.
This is not the time for silence or fear. This is the time to bolster our
testimonies in what we know to be true and to boldly declare the Gospel to our
friends, our neighbors and the world.
Remember,
“Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Let
your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify
your Father which is in heaven.”[xv]
In the words of Elder Hale, “Our Savior’s
Second Coming is drawing nearer. Let us not delay in this great cause. Remember
Captain Moroni, who hoisted the title of liberty inscribed with the words ‘In
memory of our God, our religion, and freedom, and our peace, our wives, and our
children.’[xvi]
Let us remember the people’s response: exercising their agency, they ‘came
running together’[xvii]
with a covenant to act.”
The
reason God sent his only begotten Son to Earth was to atone for the sins of all
mankind. We are all children of God, those of us in this congregation and
similar congregations throughout the world, those who profess beliefs different
from our own, and those who may contend against us—we have all been given the
divine gift of agency—and we must do everything we can to defend liberty for
ourselves, for our children, and for everyone.
In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
[i]
See Abraham 3:22-26
[ii]
See Abraham 3:27-28
[iii]
Moses 4:3
[iv]
D&C 29:36
[vi]
See 2 Nephi 2:26-27
[viii]
2 Tim 3:3
[ix]
Isaiah 5:20
[x]The
United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 18 http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/
[xi]
Mark 16:15
[xii]
2 Nephi 28:21
[xiv]
“People of Faith Should Defend Freedom of Religion, Elder Oaks Says,” lds.org. https://www.lds.org/prophets-and-apostles/unto-all-the-world/people-of-faith-should-defend-freedom-of-religion-elder-oaks-says?lang=eng
[xv]
Matthew 5:14-16
[xvi]
Alma 46:12
[xvii]
Alma 46:21
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