Category: Mormon Theology
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Fall of Adam and Eve (Defined)
Fall of Adam. According to the Book of Mormon, “Adam fell that men might be” (2 Nephi 2:25). According to Apostle Mark E. Petersen, “The fall of Adam and Eve was no tragedy. It was a blessing in disguise, for without it none of us would have been born, since Adam and Eve, in their original state,…
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Exaltation (Defined)
Exaltation. Godhood achieved by complete obedience to all the commandments and complete repentance of sins. Those who are exalted earn the right to etenral life in the celestial kingdom with their families. Those who are exalted will create worlds and populations, receive the worship of those people, and rule as Gods and Goddesses over their creations.
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Eternal Progression (Defined)
Eternal Progression. Composed of three stages of development, which are the first estate (premortality or preexistence), the second estate (mortality), and the third estate (immortality or eternal life). Eternal progression had no beginning and has no end; all Gods that ever were or ever will be must achieve their exalted state in this way.
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Eternal Life (Defined)
Eternal Life. Gaining exaltation in the highest level of the celestial kingdome and living forever in the family unit. Apostle Bruce R. McConkie explained, “Only those who obey the fulness of the gospel law will inherit eternal life … Thus those who gain eternal life receive exaltation; they are sons of God, joint heirs with Christ, members…
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Eternal Increase (Defined)
Eternal Increase. The ability to procreate throughout eternity. This is reserved for Mormon couples who have complied with all the requirements for exaltation. This will give them access to unlimited spirit children. According to Joseph Smith, “Those who are married by the power and authority of the priesthood in this life, and continue without committing the…
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Elohim (Defined)
Elohim. God the Father. The literal father of Jesus Christ. According to Apostle James Talmage, “Elohim is literally the Father of the spirit of Jesus Christ and also of the body in which Jesus Christ performed His mission in the flesh …” (The Articles of Faith, pp. 466-467). Elohim was once a mortal man who progressed…
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Cross (Defined)
Cross. According to 15th President Gordon B. Hinckley, “the cross is the symbol of the dying Christ, while our message is a declaration of a Living Christ” (“The Symbol of Our Faith,” Ensign, April 2005, p. 3). Tenth President Joseph Fielding Smith explained the reason why Latter-day Saints don’t wear jewelry depicting the cross: To many,…
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Council in Heaven (Defined)
Council in Heaven. A council of the gods held in the pre-existence to arrange for the creation and peopling of the earth. This council was called by Elohim, the “head of the Gods” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 349). Also present were Jehovah, Michael, and Lucifer. This council also determined how mankind would be saved.
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Covenants (Defined)
Covenants. Two-way promises made by members with God. When the member keeps the promises, God keeps His promise of blessing. When the member does not keep the promises, the agreement is broken and God is under no obligation for eternal life (exaltation). Quoting sixteenth LDS President Thomas S. Monson, the July 2012 Ensign (“Understanding Our…
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Commandments (Defined)
Commandments. Laws and rules taught by the LDS Church. Keeping these are necessary to receive exaltation, as tenth LDS President Joseph Fielding Smith explained, “CELESTIAL SALVATION. Those who keep the full law and obey all the commandments of God are heirs of full salvation in the celestial kingdom, the glory of which the sun is spoken…
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Celestial Marriage (Defined)
Celestial Marriage. Traditionally meant polygamy. Second President Brigham Young stated, “Our sisters need not be worried about any doctrine. Brother Penrose said it would be better for them if they believed in the doctrine of polygamy. But they do believe it; they know it is true, and that is their torment. It perplexes and annoys…
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Celestial Kingdom (Defined)
Celestial kingdom. The highest kingdom of glory in the LDS concept of heaven, available only to Mormons who exhibited complete obedience to LDS laws and ordinances during their entire lifetimes. This is the only kingdom of glory where one may enjoy the presence of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. Within the Celestial kingdom there are…
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Doctrines/Theology Index
Want to know what we at MRM believe?How to Have a Relationship with GodNEW! How can a person get into heaven?NEW! How can
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Water Baptism (Definition)
Baptism, Water. Required for the remission of sins. Performed by immersion and valid only if administered by a Mormon male holding priesthood authority. Twelfth President Spencer Kimball explained in a general conference, “Baptism into Christ’s true church by proper authority opens the doors for exaltation in the eternal kingdoms of glory, exaltation to be earned…
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Adam-God (Definition)
Adam-God. First taught openly in a conference message by second President Brigham Young on April 9, 1852, Young claimed that Adam was Michael the Archangel, the Ancient of Days, and that Eve was “one of his wives.” Young also said Adam “is our Father and our God, and the only God with whom we have to do” (Journal of…
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From the Mailbag (9/5/2012)
[Tess, quoting from “Redefining the Virgin Birth: Mormonism on the Natural Conception of Jesus” by McKeever and Shafovaloff]: “When one considers that Mormonism teaches that every human born on earth is a literal spirit child of God, the concept that Jesus was conceived in a natural manner becomes even more blasphemous. Why? Because it means…
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Mormonism and Polytheism
The September/October 2012 issue of Stand To Reason’s newsletter, Solid Ground, focuses on this question: Is Mormonism just another Christian denomination? In the author’s forward, Greg Koukl explains, “In this month’s Solid Ground, I do what the LDS is failing to do. My aim is ‘simply to educate’ on some of the foundational differences between…
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BYU Professors Daniel C. Peterson and Stephen D. Ricks Think You’re a Prude if God Having Sex With Mary Is a Problem for You
If you object to the teaching of Mormon leaders that God the Father had physical sex with Mary, then BYU professors Daniel C. Peterson and Stephen D. Ricks say you have “a Neoplatonic and gnosticizing disdain for the material cosmos, a discomfort with the body and with sexuality.” Get ready for a roller coaster ride.…
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Mormonism’s Caffeine Debacle and Why It Matters
Jesus used disputes over kosher law to point people to the true nature of the kingdom of God. This is a similar opportunity. Do you really want to be like Jesus? Jesus was pushy and provocative about this sort of thing. First, I’m going to talk about the “successful failure” of the Mosaic Law, and…