# Mormon Doctrine



## Blue Tick (Feb 3, 2008)

I'm going to list some excerpts from the official LDS Church website.



*God is your loving Heavenly Father*



> God is your Father in Heaven (Matthew 6:9). We call God Heavenly Father because He is the Father of our spirits and we are created in His image ( Genesis 1:27).
> 
> God has a body that looks like yours, though His body is immortal, perfected, and has a glory beyond description. He knows you personally and loves you more than you can comprehend. To help you find happiness in this life and guide you to return to live with Him, Heavenly Father provided a plan called the gospel? of Jesus Christ, a guide based on the life and teachings of His Son, Jesus Christ.
> 
> ...



*The Gospel Blesses Families and Individuals*



> God has established families to bring happiness to His children, allow them to learn correct principles in a loving atmosphere, and prepare them to return to Him after they die. Because families are ordained of God, they are the most important social unit in time and in eternity.
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> Marriage (Genesis 2:18) and family ( Genesis 1:28) are central focal points in God’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children. Your Heavenly Father wants you to do all you can during your time on Earth to prepare yourself to live in an eternal family.
> 
> ...



*Heavenly Father Reveals His Gospel to All*



> Throughout history God has revealed His gospel through prophets?, such as Noah, Abraham, Moses, Peter and others, and has endowed them with divine authority, which is priesthood?, to speak and act in His name (Amos 3:7). These prophets teach the people the gospel and direct His Church. They teach and testify about the character of God and the special mission of Jesus Christ, inviting all to partake of the blessings of the gospel.
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> You can find the testimonies of prophets in the Old Testament?, the New Testament?, and in the Book of Mormon?.
> 
> ...



*Jesus Christ established His Church*



> A few hundred years before the birth of Jesus Christ, people had fallen into apostasy?. When the Savior began His mortal ministry, He restored His gospel and established His Church again on the earth. He built His Church upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, He himself being the chief cornerstone (Ephesians 2:20).
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> Jesus Christ called twelve men to be His Apostles?—including Peter, James, and John—and laid His hands on their heads to give them priesthood authority ( Matthew 10:1; John 15:16; Matthew 28:19-20). Before the Savior’s death and Resurrection?, He gave His Apostles priesthood authority? to teach His gospel?, perform the ordinances? of salvation?, and continue to establish His Church in the world.
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> ...



*The Great Apostasy*



> Following the death of Jesus Christ, wicked people persecuted and killed many Church members, and other Church members drifted from the principles taught by Jesus Christ and His Apostles?. The Apostles were killed and the priesthood authority—including the keys to direct and receive revelation? for the Church—was taken from the earth ( 2 Thessalonians 2:1–3). Because the Church was no longer led by priesthood authority and revelation, error crept into Church teachings. Good people and much truth remained, but the gospel? as established by Jesus Christ was lost, resulting in a period called the Great Apostasy?.
> 
> This apostasy led to the formation of many churches with conflicting teachings. Without the full gospel or the priesthood authority, people relied on human wisdom to interpret the scriptures? and the principles and ordinances? of the gospel of Jesus Christ. False ideas were taught as truth, and much of the knowledge of the true character and nature of God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost was lost. The doctrines of faith? in Jesus Christ, repentance?, baptism?, and the gift of the Holy Ghost? became distorted or forgotten. Each generation inherited a state of apostasy, as people were influenced by what previous generations passed on, including changes to Christ’s gospel. Some inspired people, such as Martin Luther and John Calvin, recognized that practices and doctrines had been changed or lost and tried to reform the churches to which they belonged. Without the priesthood authority, however, Christ’s gospel could not be returned to its original form.
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> ...



*The Restoration of the Gospel*



> In 1820, as He had done throughout history, Father in Heaven again chose a prophet? to restore the gospel? and the priesthood? to the earth. He called a young man named Joseph Smith, and through him, the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ was restored to the earth.
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> Joseph Smith lived in the United States, which was perhaps the only country to enjoy religious freedom at the time. It was at a time of great religious excitement in the eastern United States, and Joseph Smith’s family members were deeply religious and constantly sought for truth. The Holy Bible? taught that there was “one Lord, one faith, one baptism” ( Ephesians 4:5), but many ministers claimed to have the true gospel. Joseph attended different churches, but he was confused about which church he should join and desired “to know which of all the sects was right” ( Joseph Smith—History 1:18). He later wrote:
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> ...



*The Restoration of the Priesthood*



> Throughout time, God has given His servants, the prophets, the authority to act in His name. This authority? is called the priesthood?. Jesus Christ gave the priesthood to His original Twelve Apostles, and they directed the work of His Church after Jesus ascended to heaven. After the Apostles were killed, the priesthood gradually disappeared from the earth.
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> In 1829, Joseph Smith received the restored priesthood authority to organize Christ’s Church. John the Baptist appeared and conferred upon Joseph Smith and his associate Oliver Cowdery the Aaronic Priesthood?, which includes the authority to perform the ordinance? of baptism?. Later, Peter, James, and John (three of Christ’s original Apostles) appeared and conferred the Melchizedek Priesthood? upon Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery, restoring the same authority given to Christ’s Apostles anciently. In 1830, with this priesthood authority, the same Church of Jesus Christ that existed centuries ago was organized and restored to the earth by Joseph Smith.
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> ...



*The Book of Mormon*



> As part of the Restoration? of the gospel?, God brought forth the Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ?. By the power of God, Joseph Smith translated this book from an ancient record written on gold plates?. The Book of Mormon is “a record of God’s dealings with the ancient inhabitants of the Americas and contains, as does the Bible?, the fulness of the everlasting gospel” (Introduction to the Book of Mormon).
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> The Book of Mormon is a powerful witness of Jesus Christ. It helps us understand His teachings, including those in the Bible. Examples of Book of Mormon witnesses of Christ include:
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> ...



*How can I know this is true?*



> Your Heavenly Father is the source of all truth. He loves you and wants to answer your questions. Therefore, He will help you recognize the truth as you sincerely seek it and ask Him for guidance. You can know if the things you are learning are true if you ask your Heavenly Father in prayer. He desires for you to know the truth, and you can receive an answer from Him through the Holy Ghost. As taught in the Bible, “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, [and] temperance” (Galatians 5:22–23). These feelings from the Holy Ghost are personal revelation to you that the restored gospel of Jesus Christ is true. You will then need to choose whether you will live in harmony with the knowledge you have received.
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> As the Savior taught in the Bible, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you ( Matthew 7:7). Feelings from the Holy Ghost are personal revelation to you that confirm the truth of the Book of Mormon and the gospel of Jesus Christ as restored through the Prophet Joseph Smith.
> 
> ...


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## Neogillist (Feb 3, 2008)

Mormonism appears to be quite semi-Pelagian from those quotations. Like Pentecostals, they also believe in on-going revelations, except that they are non-trinitarian. Overall, they are trying to pass themselves off as pretty evangelical. It's interesting to see how they hold to many "smaller errors" that mainstream evangelicals make, and yet make such huge blunders that they come out completely anti-Christ. If one is immune to mild heresies, he will also be immune to more serious ones.


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## DMcFadden (Feb 3, 2008)

I think I feel a burning in my bosom. O, wait. Maybe it was just that pesky pepperoni. How man-centered can you get?


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## Blue Tick (Feb 3, 2008)

I would classify Mormons as "Hyper-Arminians".


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## No Longer A Libertine (Feb 3, 2008)

Blue Tick said:


> I would classify Mormons as "Hyper-Arminians".


I would classify Mormons as the predecessor to Dungeons and Dragons.


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## SRoper (Feb 3, 2008)

No Longer A Libertine said:


> I would classify Mormons as the predecessor to Dungeons and Dragons.



I'm missing something.


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## danmpem (Feb 4, 2008)

I think it may be more accurate to say that the LDS church leadership "teaches" such and such said things, as opposed to saying "you know, those Mormons believe yada yada". I've observed some major doctrinal differences in social Mormonism. Many have a very synergism-like view of salvation, while some others hold to doctrine which is _similar_ to that which places God as the initiator of a life of holiness.

This is in no way to retract any notion that what is taught in their buildings and homes is complete and total heresy.


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## No Longer A Libertine (Feb 12, 2008)

SRoper said:


> No Longer A Libertine said:
> 
> 
> > I would classify Mormons as the predecessor to Dungeons and Dragons.
> ...


Fantasy, people who live for fantasy, must I spell out my jokes....leave me alone, now where's the emoticon of scorn and disgust.


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## holyfool33 (Feb 27, 2008)

Neogillist said:


> Mormonism appears to be quite semi-Pelagian from those quotations. Like Pentecostals, they also believe in on-going revelations, except that they are non-trinitarian. Overall, they are trying to pass themselves off as pretty evangelical. It's interesting to see how they hold to many "smaller errors" that mainstream evangelicals make, and yet make such huge blunders that they come out completely anti-Christ. If one is immune to mild heresies, he will also be immune to more serious ones.



It's not semi-Pelagian it *IS* Pelagian Mormons also teach that man will become a God with there own planet which they will populate with there Goddess wives and then die for there spirit children also Mormons teach that The Atonement only takes effect after the believer does everything in his power to sanctify himself and then if you dig deeper there is the old mormon doctrine of Adam God and God the Father having "relations" with Mary to conceive Jesus who became God a lot of other stuff to but thank God I got out after two years it is a cult dont lethem tell you otherwise


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