Sacrifice

Today in Church we had a lesson on Sacrifice and it led me to a lot of reflection. First off, my favorite story of sacrifice is that of Abraham and Isaac. Genesis 17:15-21,

"And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall her name be. And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of people shall be of her. Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear? And Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might live before thee! And God said, Sarah they wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him. And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him a great nation. But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year."

I find this interesting, because BEFORE Isaac was born the Lord already told Abraham that he would establish His covenant with Isaac and with his seed afterwards. This brings new meaning to the sacrifice that Abraham was asked- to sacrifice Isaac. Just think of the faith that that would require. To be asked to do something that doesn't make sense. The Lord has promised you that you will have a son, his name will be Isaac, and that HIS children will also receive the same covenant. But Abraham was asked to sacrifice Isaac before he had any children. To have faith that the Lord fulfills all his promises and really does know what is best- in this case- would require a lot of faith in my opinion. For if I were to follow, then how would the Lord fulfill His promise made to me before my son was even born? What was asked of Abraham, doesn't make any sense to me. And then compound that with the fact that in the book of Abraham we learn that Abraham was meant to be sacrificed to Egyptian gods by his father Terah- how appalling human sacrifice must have been to Abraham. Yet through this story we see an example of faith in the Lord to do whatever He asks. Knowing that the Lord will provide a way- even when we don't see how that could be possible. I personally don't think that the Lord intended for Abraham to sacrifice his son- but we are all tested to see if we will put the Lord first and trust in Him who knows more than we do and who is perfect, and perfect in His knowledge of what is best for us. Do we trust in Him? Even when it doesn't make sense?

One example, is that of modesty. I mean some of that makes sense and since this isn't a post on modesty I'm not going to go too much in detail- but part of our "dress code" never made sense to me. I mean to some extent I guess it still doesn't, but I'm endowed and I follow it anyways. The thing that I never fully understood was that of needing sleeves. I mean I understand not seeing bra straps- but surely a thicker strap is fine- I always referred to bathing suits- I don't have to alter my bathing suits to make sleeves for them to be modest- so I didn't see, especially in the summer time, why we were required to have sleeves. But the point is not a matter of sleeves, but are we willing to give up our sleeveless shirts (or cover them so we are modest) to follow what God has asked of us?

There's a story in the Old Testament of a leper named Naaman. I'm just going to briefly relate the story, but the whole story is contained in 2 Kings chapter 5. Naaman wanted to be healed of leprosy and enlisted the help of Elisha the prophet at the time. Elisha sent back a messenger telling him to wash in the Jordan River seven times and he would be healed. Naaman heard it and started complaining, thinking that it should've been something more miraculous, or at least have been asked to go and wash in a cleaner river. In verse 13 his servants come and say to him, "if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean?" So Naaman followed the council of Elisha and was healed. In our lives do we think that the small commandments aren't necessary? Or are we willing to sacrifice the small things and follow anyways- trusting in a prophet's voice who speaks for God himself?

There are many ways we can sacrifice- in doing things for others, in obeying the commandments, no matter what. In ancient times they had animal sacrifices that pointed to the great and "last" sacrifice- that of our Savior Jesus Christ. It was not the last sacrifice, but it was the last human or sacrifice that required blood to be shed. In 3 Nephi 9:19-20 it says, "And ye shall offer up unto me no more the shedding of blood; yea, your sacrifices and your burnt offerings shall be done away, for I will accept none of your sacrifices and your burnt offerings. And ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit..." Animal sacrifices were instituted to point to Christ- that through Him we could be saved. They pointed forward to that day. Now the Sacrament has been instituted (the Lord's Supper in some religions) to remind us OF that sacrifice. It is a time to reflect and to offer ourselves up in a sense. To offer up a broken heart and a contrite spirit. Today we discussed what that means exactly. Usually when we think of a broken heart and a contrite spirit we think of repentance. And it reminded me today of a scripture in Alma 22:18, where the Lamanite King is being taught by Aaron and the Lamanite king says, "...I will give away all my sins to know thee, and that I may be raised from the dead, and be saved at the last day..." Our sins and vices we sometimes keep because they bring pleasure, they bring temporary happiness, or we just don't see how we can survive without them. One definition of sacrifice is given as 'Sacrifice is giving up something of value for something of greater value'. In the midst of our sins we hold to them as something we see as valuable, but when we let them go we are able to more fully turn to the Lord and KNOW Him, and when we do that we prepare ourselves to be ready to be saved at the last day. To me this exemplifies a broken heart and a contrite spirit. To be willing, to desire to come closer to Christ, no matter what the cost. And to me that is what sacrifice is, to want to put our trust in God first- willing to sacrifice our time, talents and means to helping Him. Knowing it is for the greater good, knowing that we will be blessed, but WANTING to do it because we love God first. Not simply because we are told, and not even simply because we know it will help us in the end, but because we love God first. Whatever step we are at- whether we are merely obeying, or whether we are doing it for the personal reward, I think we all need to strive to have the attitude where we are doing something because it is what God wants. Knowing we will benefit from it and letting that be our sole motivation needs to eventually be different in our progress towards being better and becoming more like Christ.

So whatever we need to do, sacrifice a little more to come closer to Christ. Whether that is a sacrifice of time of service to do Christ's work, or more personal in repenting and giving away even one sin at a time to come closer to the Savior- let that be our goal.

Aaronic Priesthood

I used to used "Mormon Doctrine" by Bruce R. McConkie as doctrine. Then later I realized some discrepancies between it and other writings of other apostles. To start off, the publisher's note at the very beginning says of the book, "It is a valuable tool but should not be considered an official statement of doctrine." Nowhere does it have any seal of the First Presidency, declaring it as doctrine. In Bruce R. McConkie's own words in the Preface, "For the work itself, I assume sole and full responsibility."

With that, I decided I would slowly, gradually start studying Mormon Doctrine, maybe not on a regular basis, but trying to compare it to the scriptures and other things that have been declared as doctrine.

When it describes the Aaronic Priesthood it talks about how the Aaronical or Levitical Priesthood was conferred by lineage, solely by lineage within the tribe of Levi. In my New Testament class last week someone actually asked then why do all boys receive the Aaronic Priesthood at the age of 12 in the Church? I guess before I address that question I'll tell you what McConkie thinks, "Few members of the tribe of Levi gathered with the fold of Israel in the meridian of time; few have come back to the fold of their fathers in this dispensation; and there were none among the Nephites to whom our Lord ministered. Consequently, beginning in the day of the primitive Church the lesser priesthood was spread out among the body of the people and was no longer confined exclusively to the chosen lineage."

The Bible Dictionary says, "As part of his rationale that the law of Moses was fulfilled, Paul makes a point of the contrast between the lineal requirement of the lesser priesthood and the nonlineal Melchizedek Priesthood, which was not confined to those of one tribe (see JST Heb. 7:1-3; Heb 7:11-14) The lineal restrictions of that Aaronic (Levitical) Priesthood were lifted when the law of Moses was fulfilled, and thereafter the offices of the priesthood were conferred upon worthy men without limitation to the tribe of Levi."

In class my teacher brought up that there was no Aaronic Priesthood before Moses, not as was restricted to only the Levites. The restriction came after that because the people as a whole were not ready for the fulness of the gospel, so they were given lesser laws, and a lesser Priesthood. So if Adam and Noah and Abraham had the gospel then isn't it possible that there was a form of Aaronic Priesthood before that wasn't restricted to lineage? And with the scattering of Israel, isn't it possible that even if the lineal restrictions weren't lifted when the law of Moses was fulfilled that the Levites have intermixed with the other tribes?

The last paragraph in the Bible Dictionary continues though and correlates with two scriptures in the Doctrine and Covenants. "Although the Aaronic Priesthood is conferred in the Church today without restriction to the lineage of Aaron, the keys of this priesthood rightly belong to the firstborn of the seed of Aaron, and in the restoration of all things the office of bishop (president of the priests) will once again be conferred on one of that lineage, as it is designated by revelation to the president of the Church (D&C 84:14-21; 107:13-17"

D&C 107:13-17, "The second priesthood is called the Priesthood of Aaron, because it was conferred upon Aaron and his seed, through all their generations... The bishopric is the presidency of this priesthood, and holds the keys or authority of the same. No man has a legal right to this office, to hold the keys of this priesthood, except he be a literal descendant of Aaron. But as a high priest of the Melchizedek Priesthood has authority to officiate in all the lesser offices, he may officiate in all the lesser offices, he may officiate in the office of bishop when no literal descendant of Aaron can be found, provided he is called and set apart and ordained unto this power by the hands of the Presidency of the Melchizedek Priesthood."

So the rights belonging to the tribe of Levi and also Aaron have not been done away with, the keys rightfully belong to them, but unless one is found, a member of the Melchizedek Priesthood is allowed to officiate in the offices of Bishop- an office belonging rightfully to Aaron and his descendants.

Boyd K. Packer's talk October 2010 General Conference

Alright, so there has been a lot of controversy concerning Boyd K Packer's recent talk. I want to start out by saying the Gospel of Jesus Christ is simple. Let's review some basics. God is our Heavenly Father. He loves us. He wants us to be happy and wants what is best for us. Because of that He calls Prophets. We'll expound on this later. But the fact is, God is unchangeable. He is the same yesterday, today and forever- that seems to be a widely accepted Christian doctrine, and I think Jewish people also believe that. I know that they still have a lot of their traditions (and I think that's great but I think that shows that they also believe God is unchanging). So, God calls prophets to be His mouthpiece on the Earth, and throughout time we see (especially in the Old Testament) times where the people stop listening to their prophets and for awhile there is chaos and no prophetic records of anything. And then another prophet is called- surprise surprise- God STILL cares and STILL calls prophets. As members of the Church we believe in a Great Apostasy. That after Jesus Christ truths were lost because people stopped listening to what the Apostles had to say and decided THEY knew best. In Acts chapter 20 Paul is talking to a group of Elders (in the church) in Ephesus and in verse 30 tells them, "Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them." Men in the church were going to speak perverse things or false doctrine and lead others away too. And as members of the Church we believe that all the MANY different sects of Christianity are a result of this. I mean we see that there was the Catholic Church, then comes Martin Luther, he comes up with his points that he feels aren't consistent with the scriptures- inspired yes. But God didn't call him to be a prophet. And Martin Luther wasn't trying to set up a church- a group of others convinced him he was their leader and then formed a church. Then there were other churches and other break offs, people deciding things should be a certain way- some of them may have even been right, I'm not the judge. BUT then we have Joseph Smith. What makes our Church different from other Christian churches is we believe God called a Prophet in the latter-days to guide us, just like He called prophets in times of old and that a Prophet leads and guides us today. That is what makes us different- we believe we are following a Prophet of God who speaks DIRECTLY FOR God and that the doctrines are His and NOT ours or what we want them to be.

So now back to prophets. What and who are they? For Bible scholars there is Amos 3:7, "Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets." Joseph Smith Translation, which I believe is safe to say all members of the Church at least believe in clarifies and says that it would be "Surely the Lord God will do nothing, UNTIL he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets." The Lord uses prophets to guide us. He did not flood the Earth until he warned the people of a flood and gave them a chance to escape. He did not even free his chosen House of Israel from bondage in Egypt UNTIL he had warned the Pharoah. All the Old Testament stories would follow this pattern and we believe it is still the same today.

Brigham Young quote

I do not, at this time, have enough time to devote to the whole discussion of Boyd K Packer's talk this past General Conference but I do want to address a quote that has been circulating. The quote is as follows, "If there ever comes a day when the Saints interfere with the rights of others to live as they see fit, you can know with assurance that the Church is no longer led by a Prophet, but a mere man." and is referenced to Brigham Young. I found a group on facebook that loves this quote and has been re-posting it to further their cause in not liking President Packer's talk. Some people on the page have asked for the citation. Only one response followed and it led to this SITE.

I tried looking for any other websites that would have the quote and found nothing. So as far as the web is concerned I believe it is only from this one page. And so on THAT site some people were asking for the source. After reading through it I realized something and I will share it with you, and if you wish to check for yourself, go to the page for yourself. On the right hand side you will notice it says that it is a blog roll, so a blog- posted by an average person. It also has the ability to subscribe to the RSS feed. It also has a place where it says "Email Brother Brigham" Email ME. This blogger's pen name IS Brother Brigham, and dedicates most of his posts to quotes Brigham Young DID say. I haven't read through them, so I don't know that I agree with how he interprets those quotes, but my guess is I don't.

The fact is, the quote people are saying is so contradictory is NOT actually from the Prophet Brigham Young but this blogger. His own comments which you can find on THIS PAGE, but you'll have to expand the comments to read it, says the following:

Brothers and Sisters, Good Evening,

I’m pleased the Sprit has directed you to my site.

To answer your questions, the above information is merely words that sum up my doctrine and my teachings. While I never said these exact words (and they do not appear in any of my published works) they express my personal religious convictions and a life time of teachings.

God Bless,

Brother Brigham.

PS (From Brother Brigham’s secretary: Brother Brigham wishes more to express his sorrow that this page of his website has been misunderstood. He wants you to know that all of his real quotes that appear on his website are set off by quotation marks and a citation. Brother Brigham is pained that the words that appear under the “ABOUT” tab of his website have caused confusion.)

(emphasis added)

So in essence, this is someone's OPINION about what THEY feel Brigham Young believed. Brigham Young was headstrong, and may not have been perfect, but his quotes that are doctrine ARE doctrine, and as we can see here, NONE of them actually say what is being posted on the web that condemn the Church's current stance on Prop 8, homosexuality or Boyd K. Packer's talk.

Misconceptions about Satan's Plan

Tonight this topic came up briefly in Institute, and from my studies, what was said is NOT doctrine. I am going to explain, what I feel the doctrine of the matter is, and the scriptures and quotes that have led me to this belief. (At this point of time, I don't even know that I have quotes, I think it is mainly scripture and reasoning, but I will share whatever led me to this belief.)

Tonight we were talking about the Garden of Eden. How if we had followed Satan's plan, they would've been forced to partake of the fruit. This implies that Satan's plan involves forcing people to do right. Let's first take a look as to where this conception starts.

Moses 4:1-3, "And I, the Lord God, spake unto Moses, saying: That Satan, whom thou hast commanded in the name of mine Only Begotten, is the same which was from the beginning, and he came before me, saying- Behold, here am I, send me, I will be thy son, and I will redeem all mankind, that one soul shall not be lost, and surely I will do it; wherefore give me thine honor. But, behold my Beloved Son, which was my Beloved and Chosen from the beginning, said unto me- Father, thy will be done, and the glory be thing forever. Wherefore, because that Satan rebelled against me, and sought to destroy the agency of man, which I, the Lord God, had given him, and also, that I should give unto him mine own power; by the power of mine Only Begotten, I caused that he should be cast down;"

So this talks about how Satan and Jesus Christ both stepped forward to set the Father's plan in motion but Jesus Christ was chosen because Satan sought to destroy the agency of man. So, it's pretty clear- destroying agency- without agency you then, must, of necessity, be forced right? If we are not free to choose then it's because we're being forced. So this was Satan's plan? To force us all to do right and then it would be all his glory?

On lds.org there is a definition of agency given. (Click HERE if you want to see the source.) It tells us, "Agency is the ability and privilege God gives us to choose and to act for ourselves. Agency is essential in the plan of salvation. Without it, we would not be able to learn or progress or follow the Savior. With it, we are "free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil" (2 Nephi 2:27)."

Can you not also destroy agency by taking away accountability? If no matter what we choose, liberty and eternal life was still granted, then wouldn't that ALSO defeat agency? We could no longer choose captivity and death- even IF we wanted it. Thereby thwarting our ability to really choose. Satan sought to let us do whatever we wanted with no consequences, no accountability, instead of seeking to force us to do right. I will cite another example as to why I think THIS is Satan's plan.

In the Bible Dictionary we read, under the section of the "War in Heaven". This section makes everything clearer to me, so I'm just going to copy the whole section and italicize the most important parts, in my opinion.

This term arises out of Rev. 12:7 and refers to the conflict that took place in the premortal existence among the spirit children of God. The war was primarily over how and in what manner the plan of salvation would be administered to the forthcoming human family upon the earth. The issues involved such things as agency, how to gain salvation, and who should be the Redeemer. The war broke out because one-third of the spirits refused to accept the appointment of Jesus Christ as the Savior. Such a refusal was a rebellion against the Father's plan of redemption. It was evident that if given agency, some persons would fall short of complete salvation; Lucifer and his followers wanted salvation to come automatically to all who passed through mortality, without regard to individual preference, agency, or voluntary dedication(see Isa. 14:12-20; Luke 10:18; Rev. 12:4-13; D&C 29:36-38; Moses 4:1-4). The spirits who thust rebelled and persisted were thrust out of heaven and cast down to the earth without mortal bodies, "and thus came the devil and his angels" (D&C 29:37; see also Rev. 12: 9; Abr. 3:24-28).

The warfare is continued in mortality in the conflict between right and wrong; between the gospel and false principles, etc. The same contestants and the same issues are doing battle, and the same salvation is at stake.

Although one-third of the spirits became devils, the remaining two-thirds were not equally valiant, there being every degree of devotion to Christ and the Father among them. The most diligent were chosen to be rulers in the kingdom (Abr. 3:22-23). The nature of the conflict however, is such that there could be no neutrals, then or now (Matt. 12:30; 1 Ne. 14:10; Alma 5:38-40).

When you think about how the SAME war that was being fought then is being fought NOW, it helps you realize a few things. Does Satan try and FORCE us to do right? No, he usually tries to get us to do wrong. How? By making us rationalize that the consequences aren't what they're hyped up to be, or it doesn't matter, or it's just one time, or no one will know... the list goes on. Satan would have us do whatever we wish with no consequences. To me, understanding this principle of what we REALLY stood for, not just the right to choose, but the right to choose and be accountable, so we can choose an OUTCOME through our little actions helps me understand other principles. For example, abortion. Some people think the church's standpoint is somewhat contradictory, and I think that is because they misunderstand. They say we believe that thou shalt not murder, nor do anything like unto it. So people say, abortion is "like unto it". So it must be murder. But if it's wrong, then it's wrong. Right? Well, if we were going by that standard, yes. But the Church has exceptions. If the woman was raped for example, the Church feels the girl has the choice to keep or abort the baby. How is this right and not abortion in all circumstances? I think it leads back to what Satan's plan is. Our GOAL in life is win the war against Satan. And what in essence is he trying to destroy? Accountability. Why should a girl be forced to live with the results of being pregnant if she didn't have a choice in the first place? I think THIS is how the defining line of where the exceptions are drawn and where they aren't. Does it encourage Satan's plan? If a girl were to CHOOSE to have sex, KNOWING pregnancy is a possibility, does she get to ALSO choose whether or not she gets caught? To put it maybe a bit more extreme but within the same concept- do we get to do things that qualify us for captivity and death and then get to choose eternal life? No, our goal in life is to bring our actions in line with the outcome we want- not just decide we want something we haven't worked for. To do so would destroy Christ's plan and choose that indeed we do believe Satan's plan. For it would be easier to just be granted eternal life, automatically, regardless of agency, but we wouldn't have really learned anything, or grown or be worthy of the gift or eternal life.

"We believe that men will be punished for their own sins, and not for Adam's transgression." (2nd Article of Faith) We believe in choice and accountability, as the Young Women's values taught me and we hold to it.

The One

So, I've been thinking a lot about "The One" recently, or a soul-mate. However you choose to look at it. I have lots of friends who have gotten married and many others who are still in that stage where they are looking for "The One" as I am. I put it into quotes for a reason that I hope will become clear by the end of this. I will be bringing in a lot of what I believe in, which some people may not agree with, but it is what makes sense to me based on what I believe to be true. This post may be a little on the long side, but I want to make sure I include as much as possible so I'm almost positive it makes sense.

I will start by saying that I believe that we lived before this Earth life. I believe in God being our Heavenly Father. And I believe family relationships are the most important relationships we can strive to develop while here on Earth. At this particular time I'm not really going to go into why I believe everything I do, although it is simple in principle I have a way of making it more complex and it would take much too long to explain. But I don't believe that babies are magically brought into this world with certain personalities and to certain families. I believe we are placed in certain families for a reason. If it is not the greatest childhood I believe there is something to be learned from it and although I feel sorry for the children I still believe they were placed in such hard situations for a reason, sometimes for the benefit of another. I'm straying already. I believe families are meant to last forever- not til death do us part. I believe in life after this life, just as I believe we existed before this life as we know it. And I believe that families last beyond what we can see and understand as mere mortals. If families are supposed to last forever, why would we be expected to make a choice of who we should marry and be with FOREVER in a matter of a few years in the spectrum of what I believe to be more than millions of years. It seems we should spend more time than that on decisions that affect forever. But I also said I believe we existed before. I believe we existed as individuals before- not with a body as we are now but our spirits that I believe are an integral part of us, I believe that that part of us existed for a long time before we came here and were born on this Earth. I believe we had relationships with people here. I don't know about everyone but there are times when I feel drawn to someone I hardly know. As if I know them. Some people say they fell in love with words such as "love at first sight". I believe there are times when our spirits can recognize people we once knew. And I believe that we had a say in who are families would be here. So in a sense I believe in soul-mates- someone we chose before. I believe we existed for a long time before we came here and knew people better than we know them now. So it would seem as if I believe in "The One", but I don't, not as most people see it, anyways.

Here in this life, life is nowhere near perfect. There is a veil that has been placed over our minds so we do not remember life before this. We are to "walk by faith" as the Apostle Paul wrote. We make mistakes as humans, we are learning, growing. Some people have forgotten who they were and that they chose to come to Earth (another side note that requires way too long of an explanation to into fully- I believe that all people on this Earth were good and proved it when they chose to come to Earth, but some have chosen to go a different way here on Earth which creates a lot of good and bad people). There is abuse, their is death, drugs, disease- some things that are within the control of humans and some that are not. And bad things often happen to good people.

I believe in Heaven and Hell, but not as a lot of Christians view it. I do not believe that Hell is endless burning and that if one is not baptized into a certain church one will burn forever. But I do believe that there are different degrees within heaven "In my Father's house are many mansions." (KJV John 14:2) I believe we have to prove ourselves worthy of living with our families forever and being sealed to them. (That is the way I interpret another scripture but it also goes off on a tangent.) So what if "The One" dies because of life here on Earth? Are we doomed to be alone for all of this life- which at times seems very long? What if "The One" for us decides they don't really care to do what's right? Are we doomed to be with someone who doesn't want to be the best they can be and might end up in a life of abuse? No. But in the same sense, I believe that God knows everything, including who we will end up with, so if that is how you define "The One" then I guess I believe in it. But He knows who we will end up with based on our choices.

There have been many quotes given by apostles and prophets in my church. Some saying there is no such thing as The One. They also say that ANY two righteous people can get married if they are willing to pay the price. I think they say that because some people would say they found The One and even if that person was not living worthy of them, they would attach themselves to a life of misery and abuse by choice, all in the name of 'The One'. But at the same time there are other quotes that tell people in my church to pray about it, to find the right one, that when we can see how God brought us and our spouse together we will have more harmony in our relationship. Which almost implies there being One soul-mate for us.

What makes sense to me is that there are "Ones". Maybe we chose to be with someone before this life began. But maybe he decides that he wants to be a murderer here. God will not doom us to be tied down to him. He will provide another if we are doing everything we can to be the right one. If our spouse dies, or our "soul-mate" dies, we are not doomed to live alone forever. The Lord can prepare someone else.

We always have a say in who we marry and there isn't a One and Only until you seal yourself to that person- then they become, by your choice, your One and Only, your soulmate (and unless there are extreme circumstances, I believe both parties need to work on their marriage no matter what, with the attitude that now that they are married there is only ONE.) I understand that divorce happens and it isn't always both sided and there can still be happiness for those who go through this, I also know that there are cases with abuse where it isn't safe for someone to remain in the marriage, for the kids, or whatever the circumstance may be. (So basically I believe in exceptions... sorry for the tangent) I think that's it on this subject for now... :) Until later! :)

Why I believe in “Yes” for Prop 8

First I want to preface this by saying that I don’t mean to offend anyone. No political vote has been won unanimously and so if I am voting contrary to what you feel I hope you do not find personal offense to it. My beliefs are my beliefs. They pertain to my religion, which means that not all my sources will be considered credible to everyone reading this. But my stands on this has not been dictated to me by my church- it is simply what I have decided to believe on and I know that although I was taught by others in my church, I have done my own studying and know for myself that I am not being manipulated by anyone in my beliefs. That doesn’t mean that you have to believe as I do, but I am going to write them as I believe in it, and hopefully people will be able to understand my view, even if they do not agree with it, and hopefully know why it is so important to me. If people want to comment you may. Write things like, I agree, or ask questions if you don’t understand something… Do NOT leave questions if you are trying to start a debate- that is not my purpose in writing it. If you disagree you may state so and if you wish to write something contradictory I suggest leaving a link, do not write it in your comment. My actual beliefs are not up for debate, they are, in a sense, fact, since you cannot tell me that it is not how I feel, but if you wish to show a different view leave a link to something that shows your opinion and your standpoint. I’m not looking for loopholes in my logic- my beliefs won’t change, but if you wish for me to clarify something ask. If you leave a link I will read it, but if it suggests a debate I probably won’t comment on it. If you fail to comply with my wishes on MY note, your comments may be deleted. So be warned to write your opinion elsewhere.

I’m also going to say that I have some quotes from the Bible. I use the King James Version- it was the first one to be translated into English and although some may find it hard to understand, hence the other simplified versions I believe it to be the most correct since it was an original translation, not a translation of a translation (some of you may be aware of what happens in the game of telephone), so I will do my best to explain what the scriptures mean to me. This once again relates to what I believe. If you believe differently that’s fine, but I am stating it as fact because it IS what I believe to be true.

First I want to start with a broad overview of something that may seem impertinent, but I promise to connect it all before I’m through. What makes a nation great? Throughout all of history there have been many great nations. How many have lasted? What has been the cause of their falls? Historians will tell you that it was due to weakness in leadership, geographical weaknesses that made it easy for invasion, economic difficulties, or any number of other things. I believe that there is a different thread that ties, at least most falls of civilizations together. (This is my theory, but it is also my belief- that there is a different reason for at least most falls of civilizations.) I believe that the two greatest sins are murdering and those revolving around chastity, fornication, adultery and yes, even homosexuality. These two things have to do with the giving and taking away of a life. I think most Christians will tell you it is wrong to kill. A lot of Christians also believe it isn’t ethical to clone because you are taking God’s power to create into your own hands. I believe that the way that children are brought into the world is very important and though I will readily admit that no family is perfect, I do believe that every child should have the right to be raised by a mother and a father. There are certain divine qualities, or natural gifts, instincts, roles that are given to both men and women and I believe it takes one of each in a family. Yes I know sometimes there are single parents, due to divorce, death, any number of reasons. I also know many gays and lesbians who are very caring individuals, who would probably do well with children, but there are certain things, no matter how qualified a person is that the child would miss out on. You don’t have to agree with me on this point. I do know that if God had created two males or two females alone we would not be here. He created Adam and Eve, a man and a woman, and that is what I believe to be the divine institution of marriage. No matter who raised you, whether it was a mother and father, a single mom or dad, or even two caring individuals of the same sex, no one would be here if, somewhere along the line there was not a man and a woman. Since this union is how I believe children ought to be brought into the world, (sometimes they are and sometimes they aren’t- this world isn’t perfect) this issue of marriage and how it is defined is also important to me.

Now, to continue on, I believe that you cannot sin in ignorance- “Because the law worketh wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression” (Romans 4:15. Other similar scriptures include: Romans 5:13, James 4:17, and 1 John 3:4 which talk about how you need to know to sin, or you sin when you know and don’t follow through). This does not however pertain to the laws of the land, but the laws of God. His laws are not voted on, they are what He says, so don’t mix this up with laws in our land where if they were abolished they wouldn’t be wrong anymore. (If murder was allowed in this country it would still be morally wrong.) But I also believe that you cannot be saved in ignorance. Well, I believe that God doesn’t change- even if society does. So, to me, marriage was originally between a man and a woman and in God’s eyes it will always be defined. Also, God always sent prophets. I believe these prophets were supposed to warn the world- as much as they could, so that they could be saved. But once a people were no longer ignorant they can now sin. This is what happened in the Biblical account of Sodom and Gommorrah.

“And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; … And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you, into your servant’s house, and tarry all night… and they turned in unto him, and entered his house.” (Genesis 19:1-3) So far, some holy men or angels have come to Sodom and Lot invited them to stay at his house, and they did. “But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round… And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? Bring them out unto us, that we may know them.” (Gen. 19:4-5) So, the men in the city came and surrounded Lot’s house and asked for the angels to come out, and it says, so that they may know them. This may sound harmless to you in our English, but since it is the King’s James version, it was written in the English of the time. In this case, both the Hebrew word it was translated from and the original English use the word ‘know’ in place of a sexual word. To know someone “Biblically” is to have sex with them. And these are men asking to have sex with other men. And Lot said, “I pray you, brethren, do not so wickedly. Behold now, I have two daughters which have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes: only unto these men do nothing; …” (Gen. 19:7-8) So Lot tried offering up his daughters, although it would still be a sin, a lesser one to try and persuade them to not commit such an act. I believe Lot thought he had raised his daughters well and that they might be able to persuade them not to commit a sin and also had been taught well enough that they would not allow any sexual sin to be committed with themselves either. Then in the next few verses the people tried to break into Lot’s house. They basically think that Lot has made himself a judge over them and plan to deal with Lot, his daughters and the two men who are staying with Lot. The two angels are able to stop the men but tell Lot and his family to leave. (In the previous chapter the Lord had said that he wouldn’t destroy a city if there were righteous people within it, and so Lot and his righteous family members are now leaving.) Then the city is destroyed, because of the sins of the city which has been manifested in this story. (The complete story continues through verse 29.)

Now you may say, well that is a Biblical account- it’s only pertaining to one belief- one people, one time. Well, here is where other times come into account. We don’t know much about the Xia dynasty in China but we have the writings of the next dynasty. In “The Mandate of Heaven” recorded in the Book of Documents, Yi Yin, an advisor to the first king of the Shang dynasty is giving advice to the new king. He relates things about the previous dynasty and keys of success that had been lacking in the Xia dynasty. “… the former kings of Xia cultivated earnestly their virtue, and then there were no calamities from Heaven…. But their descendant did not follow their example, and great Heaven sent down calamities, employing the agency of our ruler…. The attack on Xia may be traced to the orgies in Ming Tiao.” The original kings of the Xia were virtuous according to this and therefore there was no struggle with power, but then their descendant, the last king of the Xia dynasty had orgies. It is not fact that that was the cause of the fall, but that’s what Yi Yin thought. Then he continues with counsel for the next king starting with discussing three “fashions” which will shortly be explained.

“If you dare to have constant dancing in your palaces, and drunken singing in your chambers,- that is called the fashion of sorcerers; if you dare to set your hearts on wealth and women, and abandon yourselves to wandering about or to the chase,- that is called the fashion of extravagance; if you dare to despise sage words, to resist the loyal and upright, to put far from you the aged and virtuous, and to seek the company of…youths,- that is called the fashion of disorder. Now if a high noble or officer be addicted to one of these three fashions with their ten evil ways, his family will surely come to ruin; if the prince of a country be so addicted, his state will surely come to ruin…. The ways of Heaven are not invariable.”(Andrea p. 25-26)

Yes it might have been biased, but there are facts written in there such as how it said the previous king was known to have orgies and then lists the opinion that the author of this document isn’t sure if that was the cause of the fall. This document also proves that my theory is at least not brand new. That the laws of God or Heaven do not change and that when sexual sins enter into the reigning authority and is there accepted that is when a nation falls.

Then there is Troy. The fall of Troy. Why did Troy fall? Well, you could blame it on the fact that they didn’t have Achilles. You could say that their army wasn’t superior, or even that they fell for the clever ploy of the Trojan horse. But the truth is, why were the armies there in the first place? Paris stole away the wife of Menelaus, Helen. We know it was considered wrong in the eyes of the people there because of Paris’ brother’s reaction when he finds out. We also know that it was soon justified away. Well, this sin is alright because she’s happy, or whatever. Not the best thing to do. Don’t rationalize away your sins. So, in my opinion, why did Troy fall? Because they were not ignorant about adultery being wrong and yet they did it and accepted it legally as ok.

Now, this one I find interesting, although it is not a hundred percent tied to the actual Fall of the Roman Empire, but it does contribute to my theory. Towards the end of the Roman Empire there was the development of the Roman mime within Roman theater. “The Romans enjoyed sexually provocative dramatic material, and the emperor Heliogabalus, in the first part of the third century C.E., is said to have forced mimes to perform actual sexual acts.”(Wilson, p. 81) This was at the beginning of the third century and in 330 it was already clear that the Roman Empire was beginning to fall. You may think- big deal- that happens in Hollywood all the time. But if you remember, actors used to be all male. If sexual acts were being performed on stage, that means that it was homosexuality being publicly accepted and enforced. This was in a nation that had accepted Christianity as their religion, and had scriptures which condemned the practice.

This leads me to Romans 1. This chapter was written as an epistle from the apostle Paul to the Romans and pertains to homosexuality. According to the Bible, the laws have not changed. It is still a sin, just as it was when Sodom and Gomorrah was destroyed. I have learned in my history classes that things are not addressed, laws are not made, letters are not written unless there is an issue with it. For example we wouldn’t make a law that said that we can kill aliens from outer space without being punished, unless there were aliens that proved to be or were thought to be dangerous. Well, in Romans chapter one, Paul is writing an epistle, or letter to the people residing in Rome. “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed [or showed] it unto them.” (Romans 1:18-19) So the wrath of God comes to those who are unrighteous who have the truth or knowledge of what they’re doing is wrong. Then it goes on,

“Wherefore God also gave them [the people who are sinning and have the truth] up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonor their own bodies between themselves: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen. For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient; Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness….” (Romans 1:24-29)

So to go back and rephrase this, God let these people choose to dishonor their bodies, for He will not take away our agency, even when His laws do not change. It says that they twisted and changed the truth of God into a lie to justify their ways. When it says they worshipped the creature more than the Creator this refers to humans being the creature, as we are a creation of God, and they followed after corrupt ways that man came up with instead of honoring God’s laws and wishes and therefore no longer worshipping God but the creature. It refers to the sins as vile affections, saying that even the women were involved in doing things that are against nature. And when you think about it in nature, males mate with females, not males with other males, or females with other females. It says that men left the natural use of woman- that of reproducing, and instead of mating with females, as nature would suggest they turned to each other. Thus we have men working with men that which is “unseemly” or unnatural or in plain terms- homosexuality is unnatural.

Before I go on I feel I should address something else, kind of a side note to the main topic of this essay. I am declaring in this essay quite bluntly that I believe homosexuality to be a sin and the reason for falls of nations. But I am NOT saying we should be intolerant of these people. Many people would argue that God loves everyone and He does not discriminate. I’ve been told that God is no “respecter of persons”. I agree with them. I KNOW that He loves everyone, regardless of race, upbringing, genealogical ties, or sins. But He does not love the sin. Although some people may have a hard time (we are all humans) with drawing the line between the sin and the sinner, God is perfect. True Christians can stand up for what they believe in, what is sin and what is not, without hating the sinner. I know I am not perfect, but I do not seek to change God’s laws in ways where I fall short, I simply try to do my best, knowing that as I do He will make up the difference. In the Bible there is a story where Jesus is teaching in the temple,

“And the scribes and Pharisees brought unto him a woman taken in adultery; and when they had set her in the midst, They say unto him, Master, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest thou? This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him, But Jesus stopped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not. So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her. And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground. And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? Hath no man condemned thee? She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.” (John 8:3-11)

In this story you have a woman who was found to have sinner and was caught in the act. Yet we see that no one is perfect in this story. Jesus at the end says he does not condemn her. He says, “Go and sin no more.” In writing this article I don’t mean to throw any stones at any particular individual, for I am not without sin. But I am trying to stand up for the issue. God doesn’t say, I don’t condemn thee, let’s change the law and make it so that it’s not a sin anymore. He simply does not judge the sinner and still maintains that the sin is a sin. In voting yes for Prop 8 I am saying that I believe it is a sin to marry someone of the same sex. The civil rights have already been granted unto gays and lesbians so that the individual is not discriminated against. Some may feel that voting yes is a discrimination- that is where we would differ. I believe marriage to be ordained of God, and therefore I believe that, that definition should only be implied as God sees fit. If individuals choose to sin, as I see it, that is their choice, but I personally am not going to stand by and watch the sin become legalized.

Now as for the Book of Mormon, which I also believe in, there are scriptures in it prophesying about the promised land- this land- America. How we need to follow God and our country will be strong, until it no longer accepts the principles. In the Book of Mormon it shows us that the Lord gives commandments with promises and when we don’t keep our part the Lord has consequences. This is shown when He says, that inasmuch as they keep the commandments they shall prosper in the land. It talks about this land of America saying,

“Wherefore, this land is consecrated unto him whom he shall bring. And if it so be that they shall serve him according to the commandments which he hath given, it shall be a land of liberty unto them; wherefore, they shall never be brought down into captivity; if so, it shall be because of iniquity; for if iniquity shall abound cursed shall be the land for their sakes, but unto the righteous it shall be blessed forever.”(2 Nephi 1:7)

The Book of Mormon talks about people who lived in America anciently. And it shows people who went astray and were then destroyed. In the book of Ether, the prophet Moroni, the last prophet of the Book of Mormon writes,

“And he [God] 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 fullness of his wrath should come upon them. 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 fullness of his wrath shall some upon them. And the fullness of his wrath cometh upon them when they are ripened in iniquity. 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 fullness of iniquity among the children of the land, that they are swept off. 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 fullness come, that ye may not bring down the fullness of the wrath of God upon you as the inhabitants of the land have hitherto done. 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 2:8-12)

Now, in my personal opinion to throw God’s opinion of marriage out the window simply because society “demands” it is to throw God out of our lives as well. Just as in Romans 1:25 says, “Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.” In a way implying, we don’t need you anymore- we like society’s view better. I also believe that a nation becomes ripened in iniquity, or that the fullness of iniquity comes when certain things are legalized and legally considered acceptable in a country. And so I will stand for this union of marriage as I think it should be defined.

I am in no way a prophet. But in the Bible it says that you can know a true prophet from a false one by their fruits- meaning by their results. Prophets often give us prophecies, if these are true, then they can be considered a true prophet. I have my own interpretation of certain prophecies and if they are wrong it doesn’t mean that the prophets were false, only that I didn’t understand the prophecies accurately. But I believe that if Prop 8 does not pass it will be the beginning of the end of our country as we know it. I don’t know how long that fall would take and if it does pass, we may never know. But this is the way I see it, and if you thought, from your own personal studies that your nation that you love would fall apart wouldn’t you, no matter who you thought you were offending, stand up for what you believe? Even if you do not agree with me, or think my logic isn’t sane, I hope you can at least see, at the very least, that my concern stems from not only what I feel is right, but what is actually best for all of us. When nations fall there is chaos for everyone and there are usually deaths- I would not wish that on anyone. Yes, this may seem a little extreme, but I believe in God. I believe that this is important to Him, and I believe that if this country wants His help we need to stick to His values and not our own. "Every man lives his life for what he believes. Every woman lives her life for what she believes. Some people believe in little or nothing, but they give their life to that little or nothing. One life is all we have and we live it as we believe in living it and then it is gone. But to surrender who you are to live without belief, is worse than dying... yes, even worse than dying young."(see Bibliography 5)

Bibliography

(In order of use in the above essay)

1. The Holy Bible: King James Version. Translated under King James’ command. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Salt Lake City; 1979.

2. Andrea, Alfred J. and James Overfield. The Human Record: Sources of Global History. Sixth Edition/Volume 1: To 1700. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston; 2009.

3. Wilson, Edwin and Alvin Goldfarb. Living Theatre: A History. Fourth Edition. McGraw Hill, Boston; 2004.

4. The Book of Mormon. Translated by Joseph Smith. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Salt Lake City; 1981.

5. My mom quoted it from memory and said it was either from Joan de Arc the play or a quote from Joan de Arc when she was about to be burned at the stake. May not be an EXACT quote, but the meaning is still there.

Remember to keep the Sabbath Day Holy

So, since I often don't think before I act, and am naturally a klutz, I seem to have many embarrassing moments. But I'm going to share just one today. Most of my embarrassing moments aren't worth remembering because they happen on a regular basis, but this is one of those that hasn't been repeated. It all started with a family trip to Hawaii.

My family loves Hawaii but this one particular year, our Hawaii trip just barely overlapped with Girls' Camp (a camp over the summer put on by my church). I was going to be a Youth Camp Leader and it was my sister Carly's first year. I couldn't miss it! So, arrangements were made for my grandparents to fly home with Carly and I, two days early so we could make it on time to Girls Camp. We left Saturday night and flew over night- I don't think any of us slept on the plane though. When we got home, everyone was tired. My grandparents are not accustomed to all-nighters, so they were going to sleep and miss church that day. Carly, as well, was also tired and chose to go to sleep. But I decided I could take a shower to wake me up and still make it to church on time and then I would just sleep the rest of the afternoon. So I went to church. Now, some of you may not know, but my family is a big part of the ward. And my extended family that is normally there were also on similar vacations and weren't getting back til that afternoon. So needless to say, I felt like I was attending a different ward because it was close to empty and many of my friends were related to me. But I felt proud of myself for making it to church. (I don't however remember if I stayed awake for all 3 hours...)

Well, on my way home from church I realized that I was low on gas. There's a commandment, "Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy...." And it talks about not having to work or making anyone work, so generally I do not go to gas stations, because even though I'm filling up my car by myself, I'm spending money, and the gas stations are open, whether because of me or not. So, by my own definition I would be breaking the Sabbath. But I decided it was an emergency. If I didn't fill up today I wouldn't have enough gas to get to the church the following morning for Girls Camp, and it's not like I was in town the day before. Well, as fate would have it, I ended up going to get gas.

I put in my card- credit card denied. So I tried again. Credit card denied. So, I think, no matter, I'll use my other card. I turn around to go get my other card. I realize that the door had shut, so I go to open it, seeing my wallet lying on the passenger's seat. I find, to my dismay that my door is locked. I to this day have no idea how it became locked. At the time I never locked the doors while driving and when I got out of the car I would only lock it using the clicker attached to the keys. But there my door was- locked and I could see my keys lying on the floor on the driver's side. I figured, I should call someone. But my cell phone was also lying in the passenger's seat. At the time I only had a few numbers memorized. I had the phone numbers of my family members, all who weren't home. I had my home number memorized, but for any who knew Carly at the time, they know that she was a VERY sound sleeper. I had my best friend, Anna's phone number memorized, but she went to Poland over the summer. I had no idea who to call. Then I realized that my neighbor, Norma hadn't gone to Hawaii. So I went into the gas station to ask to use a phone book and a phone. I did not at the time have Norma's phone number memorized.

I asked the attendant if I could use the phone book and a phone. He looked at me and said, "That will be $20." At the time I hated confronting people. If I wanted ketchup at a restaurant I couldn't ask for it, someone else had to do it for me, so it was hard enough to ask to use the phone in the first place. But when he said $20 I lost it and started crying. I didn't have any money. I had a credit card that had been denied. I couldn't get to my other card. I didn't have any cash on me- any I would have had was in my car. So, how was I going to be able to pay $20? I felt like all hope was gone. Well, this guy apparently doesn't handle tears very well. He all of a sudden became distraught trying to help. And so he asked, "Is it local?" Meaning the phone call which I understood, but all I could manage in response was, "It's just around the corner." And I pointed the direction. I should've known that he was just trying to figure out if his kind act was going to cost him a long, long distance phone call to China or somewhere....

So I finally was able to call my neighbor, asking her to break into my house (I don't know if she had a spare key or had to crawl through the doggy door) and get my spare keys and bring some spare cash. While waiting however, the missionaries from church, that I had seen just a short time before walked into the gas station- they were not breaking the Sabbath, they had stopped in to get directions to someone's house they were heading to. But I felt humiliated. I had been caught in my act of breaking the Sabbath. It was embarrassing and I will always remember it and the lesson I learned from it.

Norma did come to my rescue shortly afterward. I was able to get gas in my car and drive home, and the rest is history!