teddyaware

Doctrine and Covenants 76 makes it abundantly clear that all those who are saved in any of the three post-resurrection kingdoms of heavenly glory, whether it be the celestial kingdom, terrestrial kingdom or telestial kingdom of glory, will have kept their second estate and will have the glory of God, in varying degrees of measure, poured out upon their heads for ever and ever. The inheritors of the telestial kingdom will be ministered to by the Holy Spirit, by angels and by my ministrants from the terrestrial kingdom; the inheritors of the terrestrial kingdom will be ministered to personally by Jesus Christ; and the inheritors of the celestial kingdom with be personally ministered to by both God the Father and Jesus Christ. Only those who inherit the highest of the three degrees of glory that exist within the celestial kingdom will be divinely empowered and enlightened with the fullness of God’s glory to become like God. Nevertheless, each saved individual in either the celestial, terrestrial and telestial kingdoms will have kept their second estate by their willingness to bow the knee and accept Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior. The sons of perdition are the only individuals who will not keep their second estate due to their obdurate refusal to accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, and their refusal to repent of their sins. 36 These are they (the sons of perdition) who shall go away into the lake of fire and brimstone, with the devil and his angels— 37 And the only ones on whom the second death (I.e. the loss of the second estate) shall have any power; 38 Yea, verily, the only ones who shall not be redeemed in the due time of the Lord, after the sufferings of his wrath. 39 For all the rest shall be brought forth by the resurrection of the dead, through the triumph and the glory of the Lamb, who was slain, who was in the bosom of the Father before the worlds were made. 40 And THIS IS THE GOSPEL, the glad tidings which the voice out of the heavens bore record unto us— (Doctrine and Covenants 76) and… 109 But behold, and lo, we saw the glory and the inhabitants of the telestial world, that they were as innumerable as the stars in the firmament of heaven, or as the sand upon the seashore; 110 And heard the voice of the Lord saying: These all shall bow the knee, and every tongue shall confess to him who sits upon the throne forever and ever; 111 For they shall be judged according to their works, and every man shall receive according to his own works, his own dominion in the mansions of glory which are prepared; (Doctrine and Covenants 76) Bottom line? Only the sons of perdition will receive the second death and lose their second estate.

In Doctrine and Covenants 76, a revelation given over 85 years earlier than Doctrine and Covenats 138, it’s revealed that there’s an intermediate state of salvation reserved for those spirits who do indeed possess testimonies of Jesus Christ but who are not valiant in their testimonies. Just because Doctrine and Covenants 138 is focused on the opposite extremes of those who would soon to be exalted compared to those who were as yet in an unsaved condition doesn’t mean that there weren’t spirits in the spirit world at that time who were only worthy of a terrestrial glory. In the final passages of Doctrine and Covenants 76, we’re informed that that great revelation, as we know have it, represents only the mere tip of the iceberg of the complete plan of salvation. I’m confident the same holds true for Doctrine and Covenants 138, and that it’s contents are meant to be enlightening and informative but nor definitive.

From a scriptural point of view, the answer to your question is so basic and fundamental to the gospel of Jesus Christ, and God’s plan of salvation, that asking others to answer a question that you could very easily answer yourself, with minimal effort, causes me to think that your question is actually a thinly disguised act of mockery of the sacred. If you can’t get the answer to your question by humbly pondering the sacred suffering and atoning sorrows of the now glorified and enthroned Jesus Christ, the chitchat answers you’ll get on this board aren’t going to even come close to helping you solve your conundrum.

While reading your comments, my thoughts immediately went to the Apostle Paul’s description of the manifold sufferings he endured throughout his ministry in devotion to the cause of Christ. 24 Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. 25 Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep; 26 In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; 27 In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness. 28 Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches. (2 Corinthians 11) and more… 7 And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. 8 For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. 9 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong. (2 Corinthians 12) And then my thoughts gravitated to the final triumphant testimony which herbore when he knew he was about to suffer a martyr’s death by the sword… 6 For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. 7 I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: 8 Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing. (2 Timothy 4) Finally, my reflections drifted away from Paul’s valiant example of steadfastness and to the marvelous wisdom manifested in God’s wondrous plan of salvation; for in his great love, mercy and compassion he has seen to it that even those souls who are not valiant in the testimony of Jesus will still be able to look forward to a glorious inheritance in the terrestrial kingdom.

Verse 12 of of Doctrine and Covenants Section 138 informs us that only those spirits who had proven themselves worthy to receive a glorious resurrection into the fullness of celestial glory were permitted to be gathered together “IN ONE PLACE,” where they would be ministered to personally by the Savior after his death on the cross. This elite gathering of the fully worthy met with the Savior separate and apart from all the other spirits in the spirit world who had not proved themselves worthy to obtain the fullness of celestial glory. Your confusion is due to a mistaken assumption on your part that when Christ appeared to the spirits of dead that there were some in the multitude who had not proven themselves worthy to receive the fullness of celestial glory, but this is a mistaken notion on your part. Verses 12 through 18 make it clear that the Savior only appeared and ministered to those spirits who were fully worthy to obtain the highest degree of glory in the celestial kingdom . 12 And there were gathered together IN ONE PLACE an innumerable company of the spirits of the just who had been faithful in the testimony of Jesus while they lived in mortality; (Doctrine and Covenants 138)

Thank you for this! The theological speculations that have been entertained on this thread (my own included) provide a perfect example of what can happen when isolated verses of scripture aren’t viewed and analyzed within their full context. By neglecting the imperative to obtain full scriptural context before venturing into attempts at analysis, sincere and well meaning individuals can easily be led down the primrose path that can lead to doctrinal errors that can significantly darken the way to clear and edifying understanding. When verses 24, 25, and 26 of Abraham 3 are viewed within the full context of the entire chapter, it becomes abundantly clear that the expression “prove them herewith” isn’t referring to the idea that the spirit sons and daughters of Gods would receive their first estate testing on the earth. Rather, what “prove them herewith” is actually referring to is a process that Wii determine how the spirit sons and daughters of God are going to respond to God’s proposed new earth, and whether or not they will agree with and obey his divine decrees concerning how the new earth will be administered and governed for the eternal benefit of man.. Therefore the first estate proving ground was a war that took place in heaven, a spiritual conflict that God knew would soon commence. And while it’s true that at the time the words in the quoted verses were spoken the war in heaven hadn’t yet commenced, the fact is that soon thereafter it did, and as a consequence of his rebellion in the struggle Lucifer lost his first estate (heaven). Therefore the first estate testing took place in heaven, not on the earth, and that’s why after his defeat Lucifer was banished from the precincts of heaven, and it was only then that he was cast down to earth.

The interesting thing here is that telnetd’s opinion makes perfectly good sense in light of the fact that the quoted verses assert that the first estate testing is going to take place on the earth. In this regard, it’s highly likely that as many as 99.999% of the members of the church believe that our first estate testing took place on a far away distant heaven, not on the earth. After all, it’s absolutely counterintuitive for the average believing Latter-Day Saint to imagine that somehow both the first estate and second estate testing would take place on the earth! But this strange ‘game changer’ doctrine becomes a bit easier to swallow when it’s understood that the creation of the earth occurred in two phases — the first being a finer matter spiritual phase, and second being a grosser matter ‘material’ phase. The final hurdle to leap over on the way to the acceptance of this “strange idea” is coming to the realization that prior to the fall the first estate spiritual creation of the earth was likely a heavenly realm upon which God could make an abode, in much the same way our earthly temples are Houses of the Lord.

As Doctrine and Covenants 93 testifies, we did indeed exist as uncreated, self-existent intelligences prior to our intelligences being clothed upon with organized spirit bodies, in the likeness of the way our organized spirit bodies are now clothed upon with organized earthly bodies. In the end it’s all material, and it could be that with greater material mass comes a greater potential for power, glory and joy, hence the progression from intelligences to spirit bodies composed of very fine matter, and then from spirit bodies composed of very fine matter to bodies of flesh and bone composed of far greater material mass.

I just reread the above verses and now realize there’s a definite indication that the first estate testing of spirits would indeed take place on the earth, not in heaven (at least not in heaven as it’s normally defined). This is most fascinating because it’s generally a accepted doctrine by the church that the first estate testing of our spirits took place in heaven, which testing culminated with the war in heaven, and that our second estate testing phase would take place in mortality on earth. But the above verses appear to indicate that although we did indeed exist as spirits at the time the words quoted were spoken, we had not yet experienced being tested to see if we would keep our first estate. Consider… 24 And there stood one among them that was like unto God, and he said unto those who were with him: We will go down, for there is space there, and we will take of these materials, and we will make an earth whereon these may dwell; (at this point it’s clear that our spirits already exist). 25 And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them; (At this point it’s clear that although we existed as spirits the testing to determine if we we will do all things whatsoever God commands us hadn’t yet taken place, and that the place where that testing would take place would be on the newly created earth). 26 And they who keep their first estate shall be added upon; and they who keep not their first estate shall not have glory in the same kingdom with those who keep their first estate; and they who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever. (At this point it appears the testing to determine who would keep their first estate hadn’t yet occurred because it doesn’t say, “those who have kept their first estate.” Perhaps the way to reconcile the implications of these verses with long standing Latter-Day Saint doctrine is to think of the spiritual earth as a kind of spiritual outpost of heaven?

Perhaps… Moses 3 makes it clear that the creation of this earth and all its life forms, as presented in Genesis 1 and 2 and Moses 2 and 3, was a purely spiritual creation, not a temporal creation. Moses chapter 3 plainly states that It wasn’t until after God rested from his creative labors on the 7th day that he again resumed his creative efforts by creating physically embodied man. When viewed as continuous and cohesive narratives, Genesis 1 and 2 and Moses 2 and 3 appear to suggest that our spiritual first estate may have been experienced in a spiritual realm that existed somewhere on planet earth, just as the post-mortal spirit world exists now somewhere within the boundaries of this earth. In this particular regard, Abraham 3 appears to be is in doctrinal harmony with Genesis 1 and 2, as well as with Moses 2 and 3. But there’s definitely some ambiguity in the accounts that make it difficult to come to a conclusion. 4 And now, behold, I say unto you, that these are the generations of the heaven and of the earth, when they were created, in the day that I, the Lord God, made the heaven and the earth, 5 And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew. For I, the Lord God, created all things, of which I have spoken, spiritually, before they were naturally upon the face of the earth. For I, the Lord God, had not caused it to rain upon the face of the earth. And I, the Lord God, had created all the children of men; and not yet a man to till the ground; for in heavencreated I them; and there was not yet flesh upon the earth, neither in the water, neither in the air; 6 But I, the Lord God, spake, and there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground. 7 And I, the Lord God, formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul, the first flesh upon the earth, the first man also; nevertheless, all things were before created; but spiritually were they created and made according to my word. 8 And I, the Lord God, planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there I put the man whom I had formed. (Moses 3)

The text of Doctrine and Covenants 138 answers your first question with thoroughness and clarity. I’ll post the pertinent verses of Section 138 below and place in bold the portions that more directly help to answer your question. But I’ll at least explain that Section 138 reveals that there was a particular location in the spirit world where all those who had proved themselves worthy of receiving the fullness of celestial glory while in the flesh were gathered in anticipation of the glorious personal ministry of Jesus Christ to them. The fact that the Savior personally appeared only to these chosen souls after his death testifies that they were set apart from all the rest of the spirits of the departed dead due to the fact that they were fully worthy of taking part in the first resurrection and receiving the fullness of celestial glory. In other words, after his death the Savior didn’t personally appear and minister to the spirits of all the departed dead because he actually appeared only to this select group of spirits who were fully valiant in the testimony of Jesus. You appear to be under the misimpression that after his death Christ personally ministered to spirits who were not worthy of receiving the fullness of celestial glory, but Doctrine and Covenants 138 testifies that he didn’t. He appeared and personally ministered only to those who had proved themselves worthy of obtaining the highest degree of glory in the celestial kingdom. 11 As I pondered over these things which are written, the eyes of my understanding were opened, and the Spirit of the Lord rested upon me, and I saw the hosts of the dead, both small and great (at the start of his vision, Joseph F Smith sees all the dead in every category of worthiness and spiritual preparedness). 12 And there were gathered together IN ONE PLACE an innumerable company of the spirits of the just WHO HAD BEEN FAITHFUL IN THE TESTIMONY OF JESUS while they lived in mortality (President Smith now has his attention drawn to an exclusive gathering of elite spirits who, unlike all the other spirits, had proven themselves fully worthy to obtain the fullness of celestial glory); 13 And who had offered sacrifice in the similitude of the great sacrifice of the Son of God, and had suffered tribulation in their Redeemer’s name. 14 All these had departed the mortal life, firm in the.hope of a glorious resurrection, through the grace of God the Father and his Only Son, Jesus Christ. 15 I beheld that they were filled with joy and gladness, and were rejoicing together because the day of their deliverance was at hand. 16 They were assembled awaiting the advent of the Son of God into the spirit world to declare their redemption from the bands of death. 17 Their sleeping dust was to be restored unto its perfect frame, bone to his bone, and the sinews and the flesh upon them, the spirit and the body to be united never again to be divided, that they might receive a fulness of joy. 18 While this vast multitude waited and conversed, rejoicing in the hour of their deliverance from the chains of death, the Son of God appeared, declaring liberty to the captives who had been faithful;

It appears that you didn’t consider the following verses from the Book of Mormon when formulating your response. And please note that if the mostly apostate Zoramites had in their possession scriptural records that could be consumed by fire, how much more likely is it that the righteous and faithful among the Nephites also had scriptural records of their own that they studied, cherished and protected? It appears the Nephites developed a means that allowed for a fairly widespread dissemination of portions of holy scripture. 6 And it came to pass that Zeezrom was astonished at the words which had been spoken; and he also knew concerning the blindness of the minds, which he had caused among the people by his lying words; and his soul began to be harrowed up under a consciousness of his own guilt; yea, he began to be encircled about by the pains of hell. 7 And it came to pass that he began to cry unto the people, saying: Behold, I am guilty, and these men are spotless before God. And he began to plead for them from that time forth; but they reviled him, saying: Art thou also possessed with the devil? And they spit upon him, and cast him out from among them, and also all those who believed in the words which had been spoken by Alma and Amulek; and they cast them out, and sent men to cast stones at them. 8 And they brought their wives and children together, and whosoever believed or had been taught to believe in the word of God they caused that they should be cast into the fire; and they also brought forth their records which contained the holy scriptures, and cast them into the fire also, that they might be burned and destroyed by fire. (Alma 14)

How is believing the restored church is true while simultaneously believing that Brigham Young, John Taylor, Lorenzo Snow, and Willford Woodruff were all adulterous apostates not an example of cognitive dissonance? Perhaps you could suggest better terminology to describe this baffling phenomenon?

It’s certain many will find the following response to be bizarre and outrageous (so be it!) but it presents some of the out-of-the-box ruminations that I’ve allowed to pass through the processes of my mind with regard to plural marriage and the church. Let me start by saying it’s been conflicting and simultaneously amusing for me to imagine that some present-day general authorities have engaged, or may still be engaging, in passionate carnal relations with their spouses. I say conflicting because we so often hear about how spiritually destructive it is for any member to engage in sexual relations outside of marriage that at times it becomes difficult for me to imagine that a general authority and his wife could actually engage in the “forbidden act” and actually enjoy themselves without feeling at least somewhat guilty and ashamed that allowed they themselves to succumb to the lustful desires of their fallen flesh. This post-coital guilt and shame would seen to especially hold true for those general authority couples who are beyond childbearing years and yet still engage in “the act” to satisfy their sexual desires. In other words, I sometimes allow my imagination to entertain what is surely the mistaken notion that if a general authority couple actually allow themselves to indulge in the enjoyment of sexual relations that their spiritual sensibilities must be at least somewhat offended because they allowed themselves to succumb to their carnal lusts. Meanwhile when I allow the better angels of my nature hold sway, I can plainly see how it’s possible for righteous, divinely sanctioned, spiritually edifying sexuality to exist among the leaders of the church. I bring these issues up because I believe one of the main reasons why so many members can’t bring themselves to imagine plural marriages that would include sexual intimacy could possibly be entered into in righteousness because most people (myself included) have “dirty minds” that can’t even begin to imagine that it’s possible for a man who’s spiritually mature and filled with the Holy Ghost to romantically love more that one woman at the same time and to have wholesome, divinely approved sexual relations with more than one wife. The bottom line is I think it’s more than likely that so many members of the church coil in revulsion at the very thought that many early leaders of the restoration had plural wives is because their own fallen natures and carnality won’t allow them to see through the fog of cognitive dissonance so as to be able grasp the possibility that plural marriage can be practiced in righteousness by those who are spiritually mature and sanctified by the Spirit. Because I know of a surety that the church is true, I’ve come to the inevitable conclusion that the principal of celestial plural marriage, as set forth in Doctrine and Covenants 132, is one of the deeper mysteries of the gospel that the those with carnal minds will never be able to comprehend because, by very nature, they are spiritually incapable of understanding the principle due to the fact that their minds are not yet sanctified. In the end, I’m perfectly confident that when the dust of controversy finally settles, all the facts are in and the half informed conclusions have finally been put to rest, we will all clearly see that the early prophets and leaders of the restoration did nothing wrong and that their righteousness will be vindicated in the end.

I live in the New York City area and about 20 years ago I asked a savvy and knowledgable young sister from Utah (at the time she was working out here as a mother’s helper) if she could explain to me why women from Utah often sound like they’re saying “thiinks” when they’re actually saying “thanks,” or why it is that when they say the word “bank” to my ears it sounds like they’re saying “biink?” She was a bit surprised that I was unable to answer my own question. She then said, “do you not realize how many Swedes, Norwegians and Danes moved into the Utah area in the 1800s? It’s little wonder why it sounds like they’re saying “thiinks” when they say “thanks!” True story…

This past April, the missionaries assigned to my ward invited me to assist them as they visited the homes of two newly baptized female members (in both instances, these women went totally inactive immediately after baptism). As the conversations ensued, the first thing I observed is how abysmally ignorant both of these women were when it comes to the most basic teachings of the restored gospel. After asking a number of pointed questions, I came to the realization that these women were woefully unprepared for baptism, which led me to ask them what it was that caused them to want to follow through with a commitment to be baptized? In both cases I was told that the missionaries who taught them were so enthusiastic in their manner and so indefatigably insistent that they absolutely needed to join the Church, that they felt saying no wasn’t an option. The most amazing takeaway from this experience is that both of these women really liked and respected the missionaries, both of them standing in awe of their energy, positivity and irresistible zeal. All of these powerful elements combined to put these women in a position where they felt they had no choice but to go ahead and be baptized because they didn’t want to disappoint the wonderful missionaries.

I agree! Your post evoked terrifying images of the blood soaked idols of wood, stone and brass from the dim past. But the problem is that unless those who now believe in an immaterial “idol” accept and internalize the illuminating light of the restored gospel of Christ, revealed truth that will enable them to rejoice in the sure knowledge that God truly is a God of infinite and eternal love, compassion, life-affirming wisdom and long suffering, they will remain stuck in the rut of a belief in God and a religion that defies reason.

It never ceases to amaze me what lengths non-LDS Christians will go to in order to defend the idea that while God is love he’s simultaneously callous, indifferent, unjust, unmerciful and uncharitable when it comes to the happiness and eternal welfare of his creation. Meanwhile we Latter-Day Saints are supposed to feel shame because it’s wrong to believe that the God of perfect love loves each of us so perfectly that he will do anything he possibly can do in righteousness to save us, including offering the spirits of the dead a remission of their sins and salvation if they are willing to receive the gospel of Christ in faith after death. How silly and unsophisticated of us to believe that the God of loves and cares so much about the eternal welfare of his creation that he will do all he possibly can do to save them from the horrors of an endless hell! I recently read a comment from an insightful writer who said that the only way thoughtful and informed non-LDS Christians can say that they love and honor their version of God is if they’re suffering from a cosmic version of Stockholm Syndrome.

Are you entertaining the idea that something can exist without it existing within a kingdom or sphere? How is possible for anything to exist without it being somewhere? And if it does exist somewhere, the verse I quote below testifies that that anywhere that’s somewhere is within kingdom or sphere of existence. 37 And there are many kingdoms; for there is no space in the which there is no kingdom; and there is no kingdom in which there is no space, either a greater or a lesser kingdom. (Doctrine and Covenants)

Did you factor in the revealed truths found in verse 30 of Doctrine and Covenants 93 when you were swayed toward believing the concept “that intelligences are fundamental informational/mathematical structures with no end nor beginning. However, these structures do not have the ability, on their own, to observe their eternal existence?” 30 All truth is independent in that sphere in which God has placed it, to act for itself, as all intelligence also; otherwise there is no existence. The Lord appears to be letting us in on a big secret here, to wit that both elemental truth and rudimentary intelligences are independent agents that are able to process thoughts and even make decisions to act based on those independent thoughts! Then to add even further to the intrigue, the Lord reveals that if it weren’t for the ability of elemental truth and rudimentary intelligence to think and act independently nothing could exist! From this I come to the inescapable conclusion that before we were born as spirits, while in the rudimentary state of being uncreated primeval intelligences, we were aware of our existence because we possessed the ability to both think and act.

To add further nuance to this controversy, it must also be conceded that the scriptures make it clear there’s more than one way for a rebellions, unrepentant soul to be burned at the Lord’s coming. 38 Therefore if that man repenteth not, and remaineth and dieth an enemy to God, the demands of divine justice do awaken his immortal soul to a lively sense of his own guilt, which doth cause him to shrink from the presence of the Lord, and doth fill his breast with guilt, and pain, and anguish, which is like an unquenchable fire, whose flame ascendeth up forever and ever. (Mosiah 2) and… 52 And again I say unto you, the Spirit saith: Behold, the ax is laid at the root of the tree; therefore every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit shall be hewn down and cast into the fire, yea, a fire which cannot be consumed, even an unquenchable fire. Behold, and remember, the Holy One hath spoken it. (Alma 5) But I must say in conclusion that when this thread’s controversy is examined in the light of the restored gospel, the whole of it turns out to be a ridiculous waste of time and effort! The testimony of the Standard Works declares that the judgements of God against unrepented sin can indeed be very harsh, but ultimately it’s all designed for our own good and eventual salvation. Like it or not, the justice of God is going to have its way, and the spiritually immature and blind can lament and bellyache about it all all they want but it isn’t going to change the way a just and merciful God operates for the ultimate salvation of his children. His is a great comprehensive program of mercy that will ultimately instruct and enable nearly all of his children to obtain a salvation in one of the three kingdoms of heavenly glory. In the end, and in spite of it all, all will be saved and find happiness save the sons of perdition who reject Christ and refuse to repent. Fortunately, many of the recalcitrant will eventually wake up, arise from the sleep of death and repent thanks to the at times harsh administration of God’s justice.

I believe the main complaint of those opposed to so-called Christian Nationalism, whatever that might be, is the perception that the Christian Nationalist’s plan is to cram their religious ideas down everyone’s throats, whether they like it or not, thereby depriving them of their agency. My point doesn’t address this perception and fear. Rather, my point is that the Book of Mormon makes it perfectly clear that unless the people in the American promised land freely choose (i.e. without compulsion) to worship and keep the commandments of Jesus Christ the nation will be doomed to eventual destruction. This makes the Book of Mormon a Christian Nationalist document in the sense that it testifies that unless Jesus Christ is worshipped as the God of the land the nation will eventually fail. I’m just the messenger!

Do you believe the Book of Mormon’s prophetic warning that if the Gentile inhabitants of the American promised land in the last days fail to worship and serve Jesus Christ that they will be utterly destroyed and vanquished provide believers in the Book of Mormon with a legitimate, morally sound reason for them to strive diligently to convince the inhabitants of the land that the United States will fail spectacularly unless its citizens worship and faithfully keep the commandments of Jesus Christ? But if in spite of the Book of Mormon’s prophetic warnings you still think that it’s morally wrong and offensive for believers to warn this nation that it’s imperative for them to believe in and follow Jesus Christ or face ruin, doesn’t it logically follow that an unbelief in the divine authenticity of the Book of Mormon is the only reason for any rational person to fail to heed the following most solemn warning and divine decree voiced by the prophet Moroni? 7 And the Lord would not suffer that they should stop beyond the sea in the wilderness, but he would that they should come forth even unto the land of promise, which was choice above all other lands, which the Lord God had preserved for a righteous people. 8 And he had sworn in his wrath unto the brother of Jared, that whoso should possess this land of promise, from that time henceforth and forever, should serve him, the true and only God, or they should be swept off when the fulness of his wrath should come upon them. 9 And now, we can behold the decrees of God concerning this land, that it is a land of promise; and whatsoever nation shall possess it shall serve God, or they shall be swept off when the fulness of his wrath shall come upon them. And the fulness of his wrath cometh upon them when they are ripened in iniquity. 10 For behold, this is a land which is choice above all other lands; wherefore he that doth possess it shall serve God or shall be swept off; for it is the everlasting decree of God. And it is not until the fulness of iniquity among the children of the land, that they are swept off. 11 And this cometh unto you, O ye Gentiles, that ye may know the decrees of God—that ye may repent, and not continue in your iniquities until the fulness come, that ye may not bring down the fulness of the wrath of God upon you as the inhabitants of the land have hitherto done. 12 Behold, this is a choice land, and whatsoever nation shall possess it shall be free from bondage, and from captivity, and from all other nations under heaven, if they will but serve the God of the land, who is Jesus Christ, who hath been manifested by the things which we have written. (Ether 2) Putting aside any so-called Christian Nationalist organizations and groups for a moment (I’m not affiliated with any of them), can you not see how a believer in the Book of Mormon would see it as a terrible dereliction of duty and an act of reckless disregard to fail to heed Moroni’s warning?

Let me make this very simple: If God the Father has several wives, each of then having her own unique genetic, racial and ethnic background, then this would almost certainly mean that there is racial and ethnic diversity in heaven among the spirit children of God, in the same manner that there’s genetic, racial and ethnic diversity here on earth — the temporal being in the likeness of the spiritual. Now the final hurdle to surmount on the way to extending that same heavenly genetic diversity to this world would be for God to miraculously manipulate the chromosomal composition of the sperm of Adam and the ovum of Eve in order for them to generate offspring with the same genetic diversity that exists in heaven — the temporal being in the likeness of the spiritual, and the spiritual being in the likeness of the temporal.

There is no specific schematic needed beyond observing the mind bogglingly complicated and convoluted nature of this earth’s human genetic history, and then linearly projecting it backward in time to a previous existence of human beings who also had a mind bogglingly complicated and convoluted genetic history. As far as human genetics are concerned, what’s happening presently on this earth very likely also occurred on the previous earth from which this earth stems, both during that previous earth’s mortal phase and after its celestial glorification. Simply put, this earth’s genetic history very likely stems out from of the genetic reproductive activity of the previous earth. And if there were various races on that earth it only stands to reason that there would be various races on this earth due to the fact that this earth’s procreative genetic activity is a directly connected continuation of the previous earth’s procreative processes.