What do Mormons believe about the Godhead? Members of the Godhead are united in purpose and will but consist of three separate Beings: God, the Eternal Father; Jesus Christ, His Son, our Redeemer; and the Holy Ghost...
Mormons, members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, have nothing to do with the Texas polygamy sect, recently covered in the national and international press. We wish to convey compellingly that those who practice polygamy today are not Mormons. They are fundamentalists or members of other religious groups who defy the teachings of the Savior in our day, and who are in no way affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ (Mormon Church). This is true of the Texas polygamy sect and of all other splinter groups that have formed in the West and in various parts of the world.
As Mike Otterson of LDS Public Affairs has stated, we have made this distinction clear in the past and we reiterate to the press and to all those who are desirous to know the facts, and the reality of the doctrines and practices of all identifiable Mormons worldwide.
We ask the press and public, therefore, to dissociate the terms “Mormon” and “polygamist” and “Mormon” and “fundamentalist” when referring to anyone who practices polygamy in our day. It is a violation of both our creed and our civil law.
The teachings of the Savior for our day include monogamous marriage between a man and a woman. We also oppose same sex marriages while we extend a hand of fellowship to those wishing to overcome same gender attraction.
You can know the truth for yourself.It is possible. It is more than possible. We were born to know our purpose and to live for it.
While there is a crisis of knowing in our day, truth is in fact knowable, and we have an inborn capacity to know and recognize the truth.That knowledge is discernible, and it is real and absolute. All knowledge is not, as many claim in our day, just a social construct or a relative idea, equal to every other.Truth matters. Truth exists. So you are on the right path if you desire in your mind and heart to know it. It comes to us through the voice of the Spirit, God’s voice to us, His children.
As we desire to know what is true, we search for it by reading, thinking, pondering what we can find that pertains to that truth. We are enlightened in the process through the light of Jesus Christ, which brings understanding to us. We can recognize that burst of light as we connect ideas and thoughts in a way that exceeds our own ability and as we see that we feel and know has come to us from an outside source of revelation in a language we understand and that penetrates us in an unmistakably clear way. As we act on whatever we learn, we are guided further to greater light. (more…)
By divine will, there is an order of leadership that the Lord has laid out for us in modern revelation.That pattern means that the one called as Prophet and President of the Church, Stake President (leader of a large congregation of members), Bishop (leader of a smaller unit of members), Relief Society President (leader of women in a designated area), Young Women or Young Men’s President (leader of youth), Primary President (leader of children) and other leaders will prayerfully select two counselors to serve with them in their respective calls.Together these presidencies seek specific inspiration for the needs of those they serve. They counsel together, review matters at hand and move forward with decisions and activities to lift, inspire and encourage individuals and families only after they have come to a unity of mind and heart on those matters. This is the way the Lord prescribed.It is a safeguard, a help, and a blessing to those who serve and are served in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Additional Resources:
General Conference broadcast transcript, forthcoming, April, 2008 at www.lds.org.
An article of faith of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) states, “We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God” (Articles of Faith 1:9). Latter-day Saints (LDS) believe that just as God continued to reveal his will throughout the Old and New Testament periods he continues to reveal his will today. Nevertheless, the core principles of truth are eternal and unchanging. These principles are revealed to humankind through prophets and apostles and often recorded in scripture and in the official statements of the First Presidency and Twelve Apostles. (more…)
Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons or Latter-day Saints), like other Christians, accept both the Old and New Testaments as Holy Scripture. Additionally, they accept the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price as part of their standard works (canonized scripture). The Doctrine and Covenants, first published in 1835, contains one hundred thirty-eight sections or individual documents generally arranged in chronological order beginning in 1823 through 1918 and two “Official Declarations” announcing new policies in 1890 and 1978. These documents are a selection from the revelations and other inspired writings given through Joseph Smith (1805-44) and his successors as president of the Mormon Church. (more…)
Mormons believe that true followers of Jesus Christ are counted as “saints”–those who have followed Him into baptism by immersion through His priesthood power as held by ordained members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) and who continue in the path of righteousness. Members of Christ’s Church established when he was on the earth are the early saints, and members of His Church today are referred to as “Latter-day Saints” or Mormons. Many of all faiths live a Christ-like life and are saintly and good. The literal term, “saint,” or “latter-day saint,” however, in our theology is reserved for those who qualify as described above.
Mormons do not beatify (call blessed in a formal sense) or canonize (declare a higher state of sainthood) anyone who is a member of the Church. (more…)
The lights aren’t always green. The bread isn’t always fresh. Tires go flat. Bills mound. People take ill and die at every stage of life. People struggle. Others starve. Wars go on.
Grief is part of the human experience. Opposition is necessary for growth, according to the Mormon view of our mortal experience, revealed by the Lord through modern prophets. It can, however, be lifted through the power of the atonement of Jesus Christ. Mormons believe that the Savior not only died to pay for our sins but also to take upon Himself our sorrow, grief, and infirmities (Alma 7:11-12). (more…)
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon Church) is against all forms of abuse–spiritual, physical, and emotional. Abuse is any hurtful form of treatment of another, including humiliation, domination, physical, psychological or spiritual harm inflicted on another person. The Lord never condoned any like behaviors but was and is an Advocate of peace and harmony for His children. (See Abuse)
In an interview with LDS practitioners discussing “spouse abuse,” John Nelson describes what is deemed inappropriate behavior: (more…)
Mormons partake of the Sacrament of the Lord’s supper–initiated by Jesus Christ–every Sunday, as Catholics partake of Communion. The LDS ordinance, however similar in purpose to that of the Catholics’ Eucharist, differs in a couple of profound respects. The Sacrament, we believe, is an ordinance that can be performed only in a given prescribed manner revealed by the Lord. Only holders of His authority or priesthood, as present in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, can actually rightfully administer the emblems of the Sacrament. The true manner of blessing the Sacrament is found within revealed modern scriptures: The Book of Mormon and the Doctrine and Covenants.
The prescribed manner of administering the blessing of the bread is set forth as follows: (more…)
One of the scriptures of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (”the Mormon church”) is the Book of Mormon, from which the Church’s nickname is derived. In that book of scripture we are taught “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, reconcile yourselves to the will of God, and not to the will of the devil and of the flesh; and remember that after ye are reconciled unto God, that it is only in and through the grace of God that ye are saved” (2 Nephi 10:24). The same scriptural writer later says more briefly, “We know that it is by grace we are saved, after all we can do” (2 Nephi 25:23). (more…)
