longview

Maybe the AI that is administering the survey became completely befuddled when you threw in references to the Hellenistic Fantasy.

I align with Bruce McConkie at 79% and least with Progressive Mormons at 49%.

Here is the communist version: Will patrons find moldy bread on the shelf?

Nah. I am very happy with my original "quip" : "The Lord is sifting the wheat and Lucifer is sifting the tares." And I have expanded on BOTH clauses in a very meaningful and comprehensive manner. While I am quipping, you and Nehor are wisecracking. My quote and bolding of Talmage's observation: "The occasion was crucial; the effect was that of sifting and separation" was a nice finishing touch on our discussion. The process of sifting dovetails with the concept of separation. The "binding" of the Tares also fits with the gradual process of the sinner going deeper into slavery until his ultimate destruction. There is a whole lotta of sifting going on here! The very purpose of experiencing mortality in a fallen world.

Makes for a thoughtful mosaic, don't ja think?

Sifting can also reference the process of separation. The wheats and the tares are mingled together. Not only are God and Satan testing and trying all of us but we are exerting our influences on each other. The sifting process among the "dim bulbs" is a progression of increasing depravity for some and for others a sudden or growing realization of agony of sin(s) with consequent attempts at repentance (spiritual warfare). JST / Matt 3:39 And it is he of whom I shall bear record, whose fan shall be in his hand, and he will thoroughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but in the fullness of his own time will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire. From Elder Talmage's Jesus the Christ Ch. 21: "41.Many deserted Him, and from that time sought Him no more. The occasion was crucial; the effect was that of sifting and separation. The portentous prediction of the Baptist-prophet had entered upon the stage of fulfilment: "One mightier than I cometh ... Whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire." [734] The fan was in operation, and much chaff was blown aside." From Putting on Christ Ch. 4: "8.Brigham Young said: “The spirit which inhabits these tabernacles naturally loves truth, it naturally loves light and intelligence, it naturally loves virtue, God and godliness; but being so closely united with the flesh their sympathies are blended… the spirit is indeed subject to be influenced by the sin that is in the mortal body, and to be overcome by it and by the power of the Devil, unless it is constantly enlightened by that spirit which enlighteneth every man that cometh into the world [i.e., the Light of Christ given to all men], and by the [amplified] power of the Holy Ghost [through the Comforter when we are born again] which is imparted through the Gospel” Those born into the world receive the light of Christ will still be subjected to the sifting process even IF they do NOT join a christian church or even reject any kind of affiliations.

The Wheats are willing to be "yoked" with Christ and accept transformations ever upward. The Tares are NOT willing but will fall into Satan's hellish grasp till eventually being horribly BOUND to vices, addictions, agonies (either in mortality or the "place of torment" in the spirit world). The evil sifting process involves the use of flaxen cords which are few in the beginning and easily broken. But over time sins accumulate and become powerfully burdensome to the point of being unbreakably strong. 2 Nephi 26:22.And there are also secret combinations, even as in times of old, according to the combinations of the devil, for he is the founder of all these things; yea, the founder of murder, and works of darkness; yea, and he leadeth them by the neck with a flaxen cord, until he bindeth them with his strong cords forever.

Wheat are seed bearing. Tares are seed bearing. Seeds of any kind can be sifted. Whuh? 😧

Notice that he (or she) who overcomes sits with Christ in his throne, just as Christ sits with his Father in his throne. Not separate, nor in a separate throne. I don't think I ever hinted at separation of any kind in the Celestial Kingdom. On the other hand, there is greater and greater separation as you go down to Terrestrial, Telestial, and outer darkness.

The Lord is sifting the wheat and Lucifer is sifting the tares.

This was merely a "dry run" by the Deep State for implementing and testing out implements of mass control and shaking out systems of oppression. With billions of dollars shelled out to hospitals for hyping Covid deaths (e.g. $40,000 "subsidy" for reporting each incident). ETC ETC ETC

I submitted a lengthy response but it "disappeared". Don't know if board mods put the kibosh on it (Nemesis?). So I am not inclined to recreate it. Sorry.

Exactly! By addressing each other as brothers and sisters is a proactive show of good will AND testifying that we firmly believe we came from the presence Heavenly Parents in the pre-existence.

Interesting. Never occurred to me to think of it that way***, but now you say that, I can imagine a lot feel as you do on this. According to the teachings and counsels and commandments of the master teacher Jesus, we very much NEED to be "proactive", go the extra mile, show energetic goodwill, no slacking back with timidity. Matt 5:44. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; This is eyeball-to-eyeball discipleship! Stop using "fake" qualifiers. This is NOT "enforcement" but a willingness to walk with Jesus no matter big or small.

Not sure why you would call it dogma. There is no need to be divisive. I consider Joseph Smith's King Follett discourse on the nature of God to be inspirational. Here is a couple of segments:

Right. Not merely to hear but to undergo the challenges and rigor of "growing" and living in the Gospel of Christ. Becoming transformed ever steadily. The many "steps on Jacob's Ladder". Thus we MUST resist the temptation of hellenistic fantasy of conflating the personhood of Jesus/Jehovah with the personhood of God the Father/Elohim. The Nicean Council and early "fathers" were in a tizzy over trying to define the single ONE God by using various non-biblical terminologies such as consubstantiation and whatever impenetrable "mysteries". We simply can take at face value the many descriptions of the members of the Godhead, all having important distinct personable roles. Here are at least two distinct levels yet affirming the unity or oneness of disciples, apostles, the Savior, and God the Father (see Intercessory Prayer in John 17): Rev 3:18. I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. 19. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. 20. Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. 21. To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.

If Jesus told you that He is the ONLY way (No one can come to God the Father BUT ONLY through Jesus, one way only, narrow is the gate), then you are in a pickle. Because there are over 40,000 denominations and sects. Jesus taught that HIS HOUSE is a house of order (NOT of confusion) and MUST perform proper priesthood ordinations to enable various ordinances such as baptism. It would be like YOU telling Jesus that you will be (MY WILL not the Lord's) using a cafeteria approach. Many disciples in the days of the Apostles were instructed to find ONLY those that had proper authority (the right priesthood) in order to have a valid baptism. Jesus taught Nicodemus that baptism (done properly) is the ONLY way to gain entrance into the Kingdom of God. You performing baptisms for others is void and meaningless because you have NOT been ordained into the priesthood.

It is practically a universal belief that Jesus was and is and will remain God. Many scriptures prophesy of the Messiah coming to earth to be "made flesh" and live among the people. Yet, as He ministered, He continually prayed to God the Father who is the Head of the Godhead consisting of three distinct personages (united in purpose just as WE can be united with God being ONE with all His Church). AND He unambiguously subordinates Himself completely UNDER God the Father (this remains TRUE thru all Eternity). "Not My Will But Thine". I got chatGPT to list the prophesies from the Bible: “Immanuel” means “God with us.” Christians connect this to the birth of Jesus in the New Testament. Isaiah 9:6–7 — A divine child king “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given… and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” This passage is significant because the coming ruler is given titles associated with deity. Micah 5:2 — Eternal ruler born in Bethlehem “But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah… out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.” Christians see this as pointing to a ruler with eternal origins who would nevertheless be born in a specific town. Daniel 7:13–14 — The “Son of Man” “One like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven…” The figure receives everlasting dominion and worship. Jesus frequently used “Son of Man” for himself in the Gospels. Zechariah 12:10 — God pierced “They shall look upon me whom they have pierced…” In Christian interpretation, God is speaking, yet is also the one pierced — understood as foreshadowing the crucifixion. Psalm 45:6–7 — The king addressed as God “Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever…” Originally a royal psalm, but later applied in the New Testament to Christ. Psalm 110:1 — David’s Lord “The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand…” Christians interpret this as showing a divine Messiah distinct from yet united with God. Genesis 3:15 — The promised seed Often called the protoevangelium (“first gospel”): “He shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” Seen as the earliest hint of a coming redeemer born from humanity. Isaiah 53 — The suffering servant This chapter describes a servant who suffers for the sins of others: “He was wounded for our transgressions…” Christians connect this closely to Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. Jeremiah 23:5–6 — The LORD our righteousness “I will raise unto David a righteous Branch… and this is his name… THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.” A descendant of David is identified with a divine title. The “Angel of the LORD” passages In several places, the “Angel of the LORD” speaks as God, receives worship, and yet is distinguished from God: Genesis 16 Exodus 3 Judges 13 Many Christian theologians view these as appearances of the pre-incarnate Christ. Other symbolic foreshadowings Christians often point to The Passover lamb (Exodus 12) The bronze serpent (Numbers 21) The tabernacle where God dwells among people These are usually viewed as “types” or symbolic previews rather than direct prophecies. A key New Testament statement connecting these ideas is John 1:14: “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us…” Christians read many of the passages above through that lens. Jewish interpretations generally do not understand these verses as predicting God becoming human, so the meaning of these texts depends heavily on theological perspective.

You are being very very very warped. 😗

You are taking a warped view. It was NOT the sex of the lead prosecutor but the behavior that was SO disappointing. It was blatantly embarrassing.

So true. For example, the O.J. Simpson trial was abominable. Lead prosecutor Marcia Clark behaved shamefully, always preening for the camera.

There doesn't need to be. Just look up their alphabet - each letter has a meaning - it's been that way since they invented their alphabet from the Egyptian heiroglyphics, which operate that way. heh = behold or look. yod = hand vav= nail ot prg. Alternatively, you can ask google. I got chatGPT perspective: What is historically true 1. The Hebrew alphabet ultimately descends from Egyptian-derived scripts This part is broadly correct. The ancestor of the Hebrew alphabet came through the Proto-Sinaitic / Proto-Canaanite writing systems, which were influenced by Egyptian hieroglyphs. Early alphabetic symbols were originally pictographic. For example: Proto-symbol for yod likely originated from a hand image Proto-symbol for he may have represented a figure with raised arms Proto-symbol for waw/vav may have represented a hook or peg So there is a distant historical connection between: pictorial origins object associations letter names That’s mainstream historical linguistics. What is misleading or incorrect 2. Hebrew letters do not inherently carry theological meanings in normal Hebrew linguistics The poster says: “each letter has a meaning” This is where the claim drifts away from credible scholarship. In actual Hebrew linguistics: Hebrew letters represent sounds (phonemes) The names of letters historically came from words But the letters themselves are not interpreted as standalone semantic symbols in ordinary textual analysis For example: yod historically relates to “hand” vav/waw historically relates to “hook/peg” he may relate to a window or exclamation depending on reconstruction But Hebrew scholars do not generally read words by decomposing them into symbolic theological meanings of each letter. That method is associated more with: mysticism folk etymology Kabbalistic interpretation modern apologetics —not mainstream Semitic philology. 3. “vav = nail” is especially problematic This specific claim is very common in Christian apologetics trying to produce hidden Christological messages from Hebrew words or names. Historically: waw/vav probably referred to a hook, peg, or connector translating it specifically as “nail” is often tendentious and projecting crucifixion symbolism backward into ancient Hebrew is not accepted historical methodology A scholar would distinguish: “possible ancient pictographic origin” from “theological semantic meaning in biblical interpretation” Those are not the same thing. 4. “There doesn’t need to be [a scholar]” is a red flag The original question was: “Is there any credible Hebrew scholar who supports this claim?” The response effectively says: scholarship is unnecessary because Google and pictographs are enough That’s not a strong evidentiary position. In academic Hebrew studies: claims about ancient meaning require evidence from: epigraphy comparative Semitic linguistics paleography textual history Not just symbolic associations. Likely underlying argument This type of reasoning is commonly used to claim hidden meanings in divine names like: YHWH Yehoshua Torah terms For example: “Behold the hand, behold the nail” is a famous apologetic construction imposed onto the tetragrammaton using alleged pictographic meanings. Virtually no mainstream Hebrew scholars accept this as the intended meaning of the Hebrew text. Why? Because: the letter forms evolved over centuries biblical Hebrew readers did not read letters as pictographs the reconstruction selectively mixes eras and meanings it ignores actual Hebrew grammar and morphology Bottom-line assessment The post contains: a kernel of historical truth about alphabet origins mixed with exaggerated and non-scholarly symbolic interpretation A careful academic summary would be: Ancient Semitic letter names may preserve traces of earlier pictographic origins connected to Egyptian-derived scripts. However, mainstream Hebrew scholarship does not treat Hebrew words as theological messages encoded through symbolic meanings of individual letters. Claims such as “heh = behold,” “vav = nail,” and hidden Christological readings are generally regarded as speculative or apologetic rather than linguistically credible.

And they have a cheerful countenance. Hopefully no pain.

Are the golden statues depicting cherubims? Usually in pairs.