Joseph Smith

When Joseph Smith was fourteen (or 15, or 16?) years old he says “…I saw the Lord and he spake unto me…” Earlier in our study we read “Joseph Smith later recounted* that he saw two ‘personages’” Yet aren’t we told nobody can see the face of God and live? "And the LORD said, "I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the LORD . . . But, "he said, "you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live. " (Exodus 33:19-20, NIV) It states clearly here “for no one may see me and live” (Ex ch 33) but back in chapter 6 God is reported to say “and I appeared unto Abraham unto Isaac, and unto Jacob”. And Job says “but now my eyes see You”. Could a possible explanation be that it is Jesus Christ speaking about appearing to these prophets, not God the Father? Doesn’t he refers to Himself often as the one God relating to the prophets? " . . .He who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords . . . dwelling in unapproachable light (where the Father lives), whom NO MAN has seen or can see…

Joseph Smith played a pivotal role in the Mormon faith as its founder. His upbringing greatly influenced his achievements during the 1830s and 1840s. The Second Great Awakening, a religious revival movement during the early 19th century in the United States, also influenced Smith, in turn, compelling him to believe he was needed for significant religious duties. Joseph Smith’s Church of Christ had many beliefs outside the norm and practiced many ideas that were not considered acceptable by…

Derived from Christianity in 1830, the Mormon Church (also known as The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) was founded by Joseph Smith in 1830. Due to religious persecution, and after the murder of Joseph Smith in 1844, the newly appointed leader, Brigham Young, led the Mormons out west to a religious safe haven in Salt Lake City. In 1823, Joseph Smith claimed he was visited by an angel named “Moroni”, and this angel told him of an ancient record that contained God’s dealings. In 1827…

personal harem that acts like nothing more than slaves for that man's pleasure? But is that true? To quote Elbert Hubbard “Polygamy: An endeavor to get more out of life than there is in it.” So is polygamy evil as we believe? I believe that though the government has passed many laws that are against polygamy. I believe that it should be legalized. What is polygamy, polygamy is the practice of a man marrying more than one woman. According to the LDS, church polygamy was started in the U.S by a…

During the bitter winter of 1838-1839 some five thousand Latter Day Saints crossed the Mississippi River from Missouri and settled in western Illinois, where they soon established the city of Nauvoo under the leadership of their prophet, Joseph Smith, Jr. Situated on a bend of the Mississippi River in Hancock County, Nauvoo grew rapidly during the next seven years as a flood of Latter Day Saints settled in the area. Finally, it would seem that the Mormons had found a place, a holy city where…

When you think of the phrase “seer stone,” there is usually a negative connotation that goes along with it. Why is that? Joseph Smith used a seer stone as one of the primary instruments in his translation of the Book of Mormon, and they are mentioned as legitimate objects throughout the scriptures. So why do we as members of the church hesitate to discuss seer stones, and why do non-members find exceeding criticism in them? I hope to answer these questions in my analysis. I will also explore…

Many vast theories and ideas have been presented whether that be science or religious based. Many people have provided some well thought out ideas, but unfortunately incomplete. Who would know the answers to these questions but the creator of man who played a sole part in where we came from? There are many voices that claim different things, but it is only through asking God where we get to learn the truth. This is where the Doctrine and Covenants plays a unique role. Joseph Smith,…

Krakauer connects the Lafferty brothers, and the murders to Mormon history, which implies focusing on its vicious and authoritarian perspectives. It’s noteworthy to say that the murders of Brenda and Erica Lafferty took place because of historical, psychological, anthropological, and sociological evidence. Historical being religions, psychological being the personal and familial psychological history, anthropological being family, culture, and religion, and lastly sociological, which was how the…

The Theology and Anthropology of Mormonism Raley Ivester Murrell-A4 24 February, 2016 Mormonism is a modern day cult based loosely on Christianity. While the teachings of Mormonism claim to be Biblical,they are actually quite far from it. They have the same people, but often with a completely different background or role in the story. For example, Mormons believe that Jesus is the “ literal spirit-brother of Lucifer, a creation” . (Slick, “A Comparison…”). Mormonism was founded in 1830 by…

Joseph Smith the founder of Mormonism developed a view of the afterlife that was more complex than any other Christian religion. In the Mormon religion their final judgment comes in multiple stages. The first stage begins right after death. The spirit is judged immediately and is assigned to either paradise or spirit prison. Paradise allows the soul peace and rest but spirit prison is the opposite. Spirit prison denies the soul rest. Those in paradise must wait until the times of Christ’s second…