Meanwhile, I have been taking Foundations of the Restoration which is basically all about the LDS church and what we believe. We talk about some history of the church, doctrine, and specifically the things we believe in (even more specifically, the Articles of Faith).
I have found it very fascinating to see how everything in history since he Great Apostasy was all leading towards the Restoration. I mean, clearly it took a very long time, but it was all leading there.
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| Constantine |
I know that the Christian church strayed very far from what was originally taught when Christ came to the earth, but it was a miracle that it did not die out completely. All the persecution and death threats. It was not until the Roman emperor Constantine came about that Christianity was finally legalized.
Each unit in my Restoration class is focused on an Article of Faith. As we’ve focused on each of them, I’ve really come to appreciate our church and our beliefs more fully. It just makes so much sense. I mean, I’ve always know this stuff, I grew up with it, I’ve recited these Articles of Faith more times than I can count, but now, studying them like this, it’s all clicking into place.
“We believe in God the Eternal Father, and in His son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.” It’s so simple, but it’s true. We do! And something we have discussed in class is the fact that, unlike many other churches, we believe that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost are three separate beings. In Joseph Smith History 1:17, Joseph Smith distinctly “saw two Personages” (emphasis added), God the Father and the Son. And the most clear definition of the three members of the Godhead is Doctrine and Covenants 130:22 in which it says, “The Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man’s; the Son also; but the Holy Ghost has not a body of flesh and bones, but is a personage of Spirit. Were it not so, the Holy Ghost could not dwell in us.”
One day in class, we were talking about “God the Father” and “Jesus the Father.” God is the father of our spirits while Christ is the father of our redemption.
Christ’s father is always Heavenly Father. When he came to earth, he was born of Mary, but his father was still Heavenly Father. Joseph was a stepfather. Since he performed the Atonement and was resurrected, His father is still Heavenly Father.
In the pre-mortal life, Heavenly Father created us. When we came to earth, our dads helped provide a body for us and thus became our earthly father. After death, Christ performed the Atonement for us to help us become “born again.” He is the Father of our redemption.
I just really liked seeing that in that perspective.
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| Without Adam's transgression, they would have been unable to have children and then none of us would haven been born. |
The second article of faith talks about how “we believe that men will be punished for their own sins, and not for Adam’s transgression.” This is one of the biggest misconceptions in the other churches. At the exact same time that we were discussing this article of faith, we were talking about all the different splits in the Christian churches in my World Foundations class. This church believes this and this church believed that. Thus, the reason why there were so many different churches in Joseph Smith’s day and the reason he felt the need to go and ask for help in the grove that one spring day.
Nowadays though, I hear most churches say that it was originally God’s plan for us to be born into paradise, but because Adam and Even ate the fruit, they sinned and were kicked out, therefore God had to revise His plan that included a Savior coming to Earth to atone for our sins and such. They believe that man is born evil and that it is Adam and Eve’s fault that we are not in paradise right now. Latter-day Saints do not believe that. 2 Nephi 2:25 reads, “Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy.” We believe that it was always part of God’s plan for Adam to partake of the fruit. He gave Adam and Eve two conflicting commandments: have children and do not eat the fruit. They could not keep both. The first commandment was to have children. Why would He give two conflicting commandments if He didn’t intend for one of them to be broken?
The third article of faith is sort of a heavy one because it talks about the Atonement. The Atonement is so central to the plan of salvation. Like I just said above, we are imperfect, so how could we possibly be expected to return to God’s presence? It was planned from the very beginning by the Father so that we could return to Him one day. It is the plan according to Moses 6:62, “This is the plan of salvation unto all men, through the blood of mine Only Begotten, who shall come in the meridian of time.” We know that “no unclean thing can enter into his kingdom” (3 Nephi 27:19), and since we are so imperfect, we need an Atonement. There is hope for us to be saved if we just ask, (“I know that God will give liberally to him that asketh” 2 Nephi 4) and also through the Atonement of Christ. Because we are so imperfect, we need something/someone that is perfect to redeem our sins so that we can return to our Father’s presence. The Atonement was Christ’s sacrifice for us, both physically and spiritually. It was the most important event in the history of the world. Alma 7:7 says, “behold, there is one thing which is of more importance than they all... that the Redeemer liveth and cometh among his people.”
The fourth Article of Faith starts to get a bit more specific because it talks about baptism, the laying on of hands, repentance, and such. I know a big thing that other churches often have a misconception about is baptism. The fourth Article of Faith specifically says “baptism by immersion.” Many churches believe in infant baptism. This goes back to the idea that we are born evil. Therefore, we need to be cleansed of that evil right way. The LDS church believes that the Atonement covers children’s sins until the age of accountability (which is eight years old). Also, sprinkling is unacceptable, it must be full immersion. 2 Nephi 38 talks about how we need to be baptized: “if the Lamb of God, he being holy, should have need to be baptized by water, to fulfil all righteousness, O then, how much more need have we, being unholy, to be baptized, yea, even by water!” D&C 68:27 lays out baptism and the laying on of hands very plainly: “And their children shall be baptized for the remission of their sins when eight years old, and receive the laying on of the hands.”
I cannot imagine what my life would be like without the gospel in my life. I believe that gospel principles keep me from the worst of the worldly indulgences because I know they are wrong and that I am a daughter of God. The Book of Mormon, Joseph Smith, having a prophet today, proper priesthood authority, and other Latter-day, restored principles are such blessings in my life. They give me so much hope. I have a firm belief in the Atonement of Christ. I know that it is entirely for our benefit and that we would not be able to make it back to our Heavenly Father without it. Whether it is our sins or actual physical trials, He is there. I am so grateful to be a member of the one true church. Amen.
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