Tag: Ensign

  • More Good

    More Good

    From the Times and Seasons, 4:194 (1843): 1

    Sir:-Through the medium of your paper, I wish to correct an error among men that profess to be learned, liberal and wise; and I do it the more cheerfully, because I hope sober-thinking and sound-reasoning people will sooner listen to the voice of truth, than be led astray by the vain pretentions [pretensions] of the self-wise. The error I speak of, is the definition of the word “Mormon.” It has been stated that this word was derived from the Greek word mormo. This is not the case. There was no Greek or Latin upon the plates from which I, through the grace of God. translated the Book of Mormon. Let the language of that book speak for itself. In the 523d page, of the fourth edition, it reads: “And now behold we have written this record according to our knowledge in the characters, which are called among us the Reformed Egyptian, being handed down and altered by us, according to our manner of speech; and if our plates had been sufficiently large, we should have written in Hebrew: but the Hebrew hath been altered by us, also; and if we could have written in Hebrew, behold ye would have had no imperfection in our record, but the Lord knoweth the things which we have written, and also, that none other people knoweth our language; therefore he that prepared means for the interpretation thereof.”

    Here then the subject is put to silence, for “none other people knoweth our language,” therefore the Lord, and not man, had to interpret, after the people were all dead. And, as Paul said, “the world by wisdom know not God,” so the world by speculation are destitute of revelation; and as God in his superior wisdom, has always given his saints, wherever he had any on the earth, the same spirit, and that spirit, is John says, is the true spirit of prophesy, which is the testimony of Jesus, I may safely say that the word Mormon stands independent of the learning and wisdom of this generation.-Before I give a definition, however, to the word, let me say that the Savior says according to the gospel of John, I” am the good shepherd;” and it will not be beyond the common use of terms, to say that good is among the most important in use, and though known by various names in different languages, still its meaning is the same, and is ever in opposition to bad. We say from the Saxon, good; the Dane, god,; the Goth, goda; the German, gut; the Dutch, goed; the Latin, bonus; the Greek, kalos; the Hebrew, tob; and the Egyptian, mon. Hence, with the addition of more, of the contraction, mor, we have the word Mormon; which means, literally, more good.

    Yours,

    Joseph Smith.

     

    Excerpt from an October General Conference address by Gordon B. Hinckley (1990): 2

    “Look,” he went on to say, “if there is any name that is totally honorable in its derivation, it is the name Mormon. And so, when someone asks me about it and what it means, I quietly say—‘Mormon means more good.’” (The Prophet Joseph Smith first said this in 1843; see Times and Seasons, 4:194; Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pp. 299–300.)

    His statement intrigued me—Mormon means “more good.” I knew, of course, that “more good” was not a derivative of the word Mormon. I had studied both Latin and Greek, and I knew that English is derived in some measure from those two languages and that the words more good are not a cognate of the word Mormon. But his was a positive attitude based on an interesting perception. And, as we all know, our lives are guided in large measure by our perceptions. Ever since, when I have seen the word Mormon used in the media to describe us—in a newspaper or a magazine or book or whatever—there flashes into my mind his statement, which has become my motto: Mormon means “more good.”

     

     

     

  • Simply Fiction

    Simply Fiction

    Excerpt from a 2000 BYU paper by Joseph Fielding McConkie (Professor of Ancient Scripture, BYU) and Craig J. Ostler (Assistant Professor of Church History and Doctrine, BYU) titled ‘The Process of Translating the Book of Mormon’: 1

    “Spanning a period of twenty years (1869-1888), some seventy recorded testimonies about the coming forth of the Book of Mormon claim David Whitmer as their source. Though there are a number of inconsistencies in these accounts, David Whitmer was repeatedly reported to have said that after the loss of the 116 pages, the Lord took both the plates and the Urim and Thummim from the Prophet, never to be returned. In their stead, David Whitmer maintained, the Prophet used an oval-shaped, chocolate-colored seer stone slightly larger than an egg. Thus, everything we have in the Book of Mormon, according to Mr. Whitmer, was translated by placing the chocolate-colored stone in a hat into which Joseph would bury his head so as to close out the light. While doing so he could see “an oblong piece of parchment, on which the hieroglyphics would appear,” and below the ancient writing, the translation would be given in English. Joseph would then read this to Oliver Cowdery, who in turn would write it. If he did so correctly, the characters and the interpretation would disappear and be replaced by other characters with their interpretation

    Such an explanation is, in our judgment, simply fiction created for the purpose of demeaning Joseph Smith and to undermine the validity of the revelations he received after translating the Book of Mormon.”

     

    Excerpt from Joseph the Seer, Ensign (October 2015): 2

    “The stone Joseph Smith used in the Book of Mormon translation effort was often referred to as a chocolate-colored stone with an oval shape. This stone passed from Joseph Smith to Oliver Cowdery and then to the Church through Brigham Young and others.”

     

    References

    References
    1 The Process of Translating the Book of Mormon, BYU (2000) – http://emp.byui.edu/satterfieldb/Rel121/Process%20of%20Translating%20the%20BofM.pdf
    2 Joseph the Seer, Ensign (October 2015) – https://www.lds.org/ensign/2015/10/joseph-the-seer?lang=eng
  • Unconditional Love

    Unconditional Love

    Excerpt from a 1993 Christmas Devotional address by Gordon B. Hinckley: 1

    “And so at this Christmas season we reach out to all in a spirit of love and reconciliation, even to those who speak evil against us. We sing beautiful carols that tell of the night of His birth, that silent and holy night. In moments of quiet, we reflect upon His matchless life and His unconditional love for each of us. As unworthy recipients of His mercy, we thank Him for His redeeming sacrifice.”

     

    Excerpt from a 2003 Ensign article by Apostle Russell M. Nelson: 2

    “While divine love can be called perfect, infinite, enduring, and universal, it cannot correctly be characterized as unconditional. The word does not appear in the scriptures. On the other hand, many verses affirm that the higher levels of love the Father and the Son feel for each of us—and certain divine blessings stemming from that love—are conditional.”

     

    References

    References
    1 December 11, 1993, Christmas Devotional – http://www.ldschurchnewsarchive.com/articles/23911/Devotional-focuses-on-the-Savior.html
    2 February 2003 Ensign, ‘Divine Love’ – https://www.lds.org/ensign/2003/02/divine-love?lang=eng
  • We Don’t Have That

    We Don’t Have That

    Excerpt from a 2017 YSA Face to Face with Russell Ballard and Dallin Oaks:1

    MALE HOST:
    “…we have a lot of questions in the YSA about their friends dealing with doubts. A question from Utah asks what advice/guidance would you give for answering tough questions about church history when we are asked about them by someone who is struggling with their faith?”

    OAKS:
    “I think the first thing is to distinguish between questions and doubts. Some people merge those as if they were the same. A question asked with a sincere desire to increase one’s knowledge and understanding is the way to increase knowledge. We encourage questions. On the other hand, a doubt is an ambiguous word. Sometimes a doubt is a synonym for a question—you just want to know the truth about something. One dictionary definition of doubt is “accompanied by distrust, a rejection of something.” That’s the kind of thing that the scriptures have condemned. The savior, for instance, said “oh, thou of little faith wherefore didst thou doubt?” He said that to his apostles when they were in the midst of the storm. And, “doubt not but be believing,” comes out of Moroni, chapter 9. And “look unto me in every thought, doubt not, fear not,” that’s Doctrine and Covenants section 6.
    So, doubt is a confusing word. In some aspects we don’t encourage doubt and the scriptures condemn it. On the other hand, questions—sincere desire to know that aren’t accompanied by a presumption of rejection—are something that we wish to encourage.”

    BALLARD:
    “And some are saying that the Church has been hiding the fact that there’s more than one version of the first vision, which is just not true. The facts are we don’t study; we don’t go back and search what has been said on the subject. For example, Dr. James B. Allen of BYU, in 1970 he produced an article for the church magazines explaining all about the different versions of the first vision.”

    OAKS: “How long ago was that article?”

    BALLARD: “1970, that was back in 1970.”

    OAKS: “We’ve been hiding that for a long time…”
    [Audience laughter] [Oaks laughter]

    BALLARD continues:
    “It’s this idea that the Church is hiding something, which we would have to say as two apostles that have covered the world and know the history of the Church and know the integrity of the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve from the beginning of time. There has been no attempt on the part, in any way, of the Church leaders trying to hide anything from anybody. Now we’ve had the Joseph smith papers. We didn’t have those where they are in our hands now. And so we’re learning more about the Prophet Joseph. It’s wonderful we are. There’s volumes of it. There’s so much in those books now on my book shelf. Maybe you’ve read them all [gestures toward Oaks], but I haven’t got there. I’m a slow reader. So, just trust us wherever you are in the world, and you share this message with anyone else who raises the question about the Church not being transparent. We’re as transparent as we know how to be in telling the truth. We have to do that. That’s the Lord’s way.”

    Excerpt from a 1978 interview with Apostle Legrand Richards: 2

    WALTERS: “Well I thought somebody said that Joseph Fielding had had Joseph Smith’s seer stone.”
    RICHARDS:”No. We don’t have that.
    WALTERS:”You don’t have that?”
    RICHARDS:”No.”
    WALTERS:”Oh.”
    RICHARDS::”We have got some of the early writings of the Prophet Joseph and things of that kind, and testimony of when Joseph Smith performed a plural marriage for them, but – things of that kind in the Historian’s office. But we have [unintelligible] church.”
    VLACHOS:”Is the seer stone in the historical department?”
    RICHARDS: “We don’t have a seer stone. That went back with the plates when [unintelligible]”
    WALTERS:”Oh! Okay, I hadn’t heard that. I see. I thought that somebody said that it was still out there somewhere.”
    VLACHOS:”Do you know what it looked like?”
    RICHARDS:”What?”
    VLACHOS:”Do you know what the stone looked like?”
    RICHARDS:”No. I’ve never seen it. And I don’t think there is any living man who has seen it.”

    Excerpt from the October 2015 Ensign, Joseph the Seer: 3

    “After Brigham Young died, one of his wives, Zina D. H. Young, who later became the third Relief Society general president, obtained a chocolate-colored seer stone from his estate that matched descriptions of the stone Joseph used to translate the Book of Mormon, and donated it to the Church.  Since that time, subsequent Church leaders have acknowledged the Church’s ownership of the seer stone.”

    See also:

    Church as transparent as it knows how to be – wasmormon.org
    Joseph Smith and “The” “First” “Vision” – wasmormon.org

    References

    References
    1 Apostle M. Russell Ballard, November 2017, YSA Face to Face – https://www.lds.org/broadcasts/face-to-face/oaks-ballard?cid=HP_SU_19-11-2017_dPFD_fBCAST_xLIDyL1-B_&lang=eng
    2 Apostle Legrand Richards, August 1978, Interview with Wesley Walters – http://thoughtsonthingsandstuff.com/the-legrand-richards-interview/
    3 Joseph the Seer, October 2015 Ensign – https://www.lds.org/ensign/2015/10/joseph-the-seer?lang=eng
  • Church Historian

    Church Historian

    Excerpt from Church News, 1 January 2012: 1

    “The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints recently announced the call of Elder Steven E. Snow of the Presidency of the Seventy as Church Historian and Recorder, a role previously filled by Elder Marlin K. Jensen of the Seventy.”

     

    Excerpt from the August 2007 Ensign, ‘Three Called to Serve in Presidency of the Seventy’: 2

    “Elder Snow earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting at Utah State University and a juris doctorate degree at Brigham Young University.

    Prior to his call to serve as a General Authority, Elder Snow was a senior partner in the law firm of Snow Nuffer. He has actively supported education, having served as a member and president of his local school board, Chairman of the Utah State Board of Regents, and Chairman of the Western States Commission of Higher Education.”

     

    References

    References
    1 Church News, 11 January 2012 – https://www.lds.org/church/news/steven-e-snow-called-as-church-historian?lang=eng
    2 Three Called to Serve in Presidency of the Seventy, Aug. 2007 Ensign – https://www.lds.org/ensign/2007/08?lang=eng
  • Gender Equality

    Gender Equality

    Wikipedia, Gender Equality: 1

    ‘Gender equality, also known as sexual equality, is the state of equal ease of access to resources and opportunities regardless of gender, including economic participation and decision-making; and the state of valuing different behaviors, aspirations and needs equally, regardless of gender.’

    May 2017, General Authorities and General Officers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints – 2

     

    References

    References
    1 Wikipedia, Gender Equality – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gender_equality
    2 May 2017, General Authorities and General Officers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints  https://www.lds.org/ensign/2017/05/general-authorities-and-general-officers-of-the-church-of-jesus-christ-of-latter-day-saints?lang=eng
  • Worldwide Flood

    Worldwide Flood

    Excerpt from ‘The Flood and the Tower of Babel’ published in the January 1998 Ensign:1

    There is a third group of people—those who accept the literal message of the Bible regarding Noah, the ark, and the Deluge. Latter-day Saints belong to this group. In spite of the world’s arguments against the historicity of the Flood, and despite the supposed lack of geologic evidence, we Latter-day Saints believe that Noah was an actual man, a prophet of God, who preached repentance and raised a voice of warning, built an ark, gathered his family and a host of animals onto the ark, and floated safely away as waters covered the entire earth. We are assured that these events actually occurred by the multiple testimonies of God’s prophets.

    References

    References
    1 LDS Ensign, ‘The Flood and the Tower of Babel’ (January, 1998) – https://www.lds.org/ensign/1998/01/the-flood-and-the-tower-of-babel?lang=eng
  • I Noah Guy

    I Noah Guy

    Excerpt from the January 1998 Ensign article, The Flood and the Tower of Babel – January 1998 Ensign

    Still other people accept parts of the Flood story, acknowledging that there may have been a local, charismatic preacher, such as Noah, and a localized flood that covered only a specific area of the world, such as the region of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers or perhaps even the whole of Mesopotamia. Yet these people do not believe in a worldwide or global flood. Both of these groups—those who totally deny the historicity of Noah and the Flood and those who accept parts of the story—are persuaded in their disbelief by the way they interpret modern science. They rely upon geological considerations and theories that postulate it would be impossible for a flood to cover earth’s highest mountains, that the geologic evidence (primarily in the fields of stratigraphy and sedimentation) does not indicate a worldwide flood occurred any time during the earth’s existence.

    There is a third group of people—those who accept the literal message of the Bible regarding Noah, the ark, and the Deluge. Latter-day Saints belong to this group. In spite of the world’s arguments against the historicity of the Flood, and despite the supposed lack of geologic evidence, we Latter-day Saints believe that Noah was an actual man, a prophet of God, who preached repentance and raised a voice of warning, built an ark, gathered his family and a host of animals onto the ark, and floated safely away as waters covered the entire earth. We are assured that these events actually occurred by the multiple testimonies of God’s prophets.


    Crash Course:
    The Flood and the Tower of Babel – January 1998 Ensign
    Conflicts with Science – Mormon Think

  • Tithing or Food

    Tithing or Food

    Image: Elder Valeri V. Cordón, Quorum of the Seventy. 


    Excerpt from the April 2017 General Conference, Valeri V. Cordón: [footnote]Full Conference Address (video) – LDS.org[/footnote]

    “One day, during those difficult times, I heard my parents discussing whether they should pay tithing or buy food for the children. On Sunday, I followed my father to see what he was going to do. After our church meetings I saw him take an envelope and put his tithing in it.”

    The LDS Church is likely worth $40 billion today:[footnote]How the Mormons Make Money – Bloomberg, July 2012 [/footnote]

    “…a recent investigation by Reuters in collaboration with sociology professor Cragun estimates that the LDS Church is likely worth $40 billion today and collects up to $8 billion in tithing each year.”

    Recent documents reveal members of the Quorum of the 70, such as Elder Cordón, receive a base salary of $120,000/yr (from 2014): [footnote]First Q70 Living Allowance – Mormon Leaks[/footnote]

    In Accordance with approved procedures, the annual General Authority base allowance has been increased from $116,400 to $120,000. This will begin with your paycheck issued on January 10, 2014 (pay period 1).

    Detailed information on the t2014 medical benefits and related premiums was sent to you earlier by Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators.

     


     

    Crash Course:

    Full Conference Address (video) – LDS.org
    Sacred Transformations, Aaron L. West – 2012 December Ensign
    LDS Church Finances – Wikipedia
    First Q70 Living Allowance – Mormon Leaks
    Church Finances, 1947-Style – By Common Consent

  • Tithing First

    Tithing First

    2012 December Ensign – Sacred Transformations: ““If paying tithing means that you can’t pay for water or electricity, pay tithing. If paying tithing means that you can’t pay your rent, pay tithing. Even if paying tithing means that you don’t have enough money to feed your family, pay tithing. “[footnote]Sacred Transformations, Aaron L. West – 2012 December Ensign [/footnote]

    “…a recent investigation by Reuters in collaboration with sociology professor Cragun estimates that the LDS Church is likely worth $40 billion today and collects up to $8 billion in tithing each year.”[footnote]How the Mormons Make Money – Bloomberg, July 2012 [/footnote]

     



    Crash Course:

    How the Mormons Make Money – Bloomberg, July 2012
    LDS Church Finances – Wikipedia