RELIGION: 101 PART SEVEN

According to Latter Day Saints a prophet named Mormon lived in the area, of what is now called America, in 4th century A.D. It is believed that he was called by God to abridge and compile the records of his people and their dealings with God into a single book. His son Moroni buried the book and 1400 years later he returned as an angel and led Joseph Smith to the burial place. Smith translated the book into English and it is now recognized as the Book of Mormon.

The people described in the Book of Mormon fall into two groups: believers in Jesus and non-believers. Believers took upon themselves the name of Christ, were baptized in His name, and were called Christians.

The term Latter Day Saints derives from the teaching of Joseph Smith. Saints in the same sense that Paul of the New Testament used the term, meaning followers of Christ. To distinguish them from saints of the early church [former day saints] they were called latter day. Usage of the term Latter Day Saints first appeared in the mid 1830’s when Smith’s Church of Christ was renamed the Church of Latter Day Saints. Smith taught that this church was a restoration of the 1st century Christian church.

Today the term Mormon is colloquially applied to members of the church. It was first used in the 1830’s as a pejorative to describe whose who believed that Joseph Smith had been called as a prophet of God and accepted the Book of Mormon as scripture.

This collection of thirteen statements known as the Articles of Faith were written by Joseph Smith when asked about the basic beliefs of the church. This overview is generally accepted by most
Latter Day Saint denominations.
1. We believe in God the Eternal Father, and in his son Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.

2. We believe that men will be punished for their own sins and not for Adam's transgression.

3. We believe that through the Atonement of Christ all mankind may be saved by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel.

4. We believe that these ordinances are: 1st, Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; 2nd, Repentance; 3rd, Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; 4th, Laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost.

5. We believe that a man must be called of God by prophesy, and by the laying on of hands by those who are in authority, to preach the gospel and administer in the ordinances thereof.

6. We believe in the same organization that existed in the primitive church, namely, apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists and so forth.

7. We believe in the gift of tongues, prophesy, revelation, visions, healing, interpretation of tongues and so forth.

8. We believe the bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God.

9. We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that he will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God.

10. We believe in the literal gathering of Israel and in the restoration of the Ten Tribes. That Zion (the New Jerusalem) will be built upon this [the American] continent. That Christ will reign personally upon the earth, and that the earth will be renewed and receive its paradisiacal glory.

11. We claim the privilege of worshipping Almighty God according to the dictates of our conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.

12. We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law.

13. We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul—we believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy we seek after these things.

"As a church we have critics--many of them. They say we do not believe in the traditional Christ of Christianity. There is some substance to what they say. Our faith, our knowledge, is not based on ancient tradition, the creeds which came of a finite understanding and out of the almost infinite discussions of men trying to arrive at a definition of the risen Christ. Our faith, our knowledge comes of the witness of a prophet in this dispensation who saw before him the great God of the universe and His Beloved Son, the resurrected Lord Jesus Christ."
(Gordon B. Hinckley, “We Look to Christ,” Ensign, May 2002, 9

In the 17th century in England many were questioning the established beliefs of that age. George Fox (1625-1691) did not find answers to his questions in any of the churches of his day. Out of his searching came the spiritual message which swept a large part of the country and which resulted in the formation of the Religious Society of Friends.

Friends witnessed to Alternative Christianity quite distinct from the churches of the time. As a result they were persecuted both by Cromwell's Puritan government and by the restored government of Charles II. Fox did not intend to start a new sect. He wanted to persuade the church to return to what it had been in the days of the Apostles. He proclaimed the early preaching of Peter (Acts, chapter 2 and 3) that Jesus, who had been present in the flesh, had risen from the dead and was now come in the Spirit. That Jesus acted in the hearts of his followers purifying and empowering them.

Pursuing Peter's teaching, Fox called for a radical, egalitarian, spirit-filled Christianity that would not be oppressive of people on account of race, sex, or class. He maintained that the message of the early church had been lost when the church became institutionalized and believed that he, and others with him, could stand in exactly the same state as Apostles, with the same power to teach, to heal, and to prophesy that the Apostles had.

George Fox challenged the belief of the Roman Catholic and Episcopal churches in the necessity for, and the authority of, a hierarchical structure of Priests and Bishops. He claimed that everyone was able to have a personal relationship with the living Jesus without having to depend on the intercessions of a Priest or Minister. He taught that there is one, Jesus Christ, who can speak to each person's condition and the responsibility for ministry therefore rested upon all.

Friends hold that the words of the Bible should not be taken as the final revelation of God. Men who were acting under the power of the Holy Spirit had written the Books and it was necessary to read the words in the power of the same spirit and to listen to what the Spirit then spoke in your heart. The words were active agents in the sense that, when read in the Spirit at the appropriate time, they would spring to life for the reader and take the reader forward on his or her spiritual journey.

Worship is therefore not the performance of a dead ritual, but genuine waiting on the Lord to hear His voice and to know His power at firsthand. There is no written “Rules of Faith” or “Creed” as we normally find in other religions.

The origin of the Seventh Day Adventists can be traced to the Millerite Movement of the 19th century. William Miller [1782-1849] was originally a Diest [a person who believes that God created the universe but was not actively involved since]. After two years of Bible study Miller converted to Christianity and became a lay leader.

Miller was convinced the Bible contained coded information about the end of the world and the Second Coming of Jesus. He felt he had an obligation to teach this to others. In 1831 he began to preach and then he wrote articles on his findings.

In his findings he concluded the Second Coming would occur between March 21, 1843 and March 21, 1844. The end did not come as he predicted. Samuel Snow, a follower interpreted the tarry time to be Oct 22, 1844. When that prophecy also did not come to pass many believers left the movement. Miller withdrew from the leadership and died in 1849.

On May 21, 1863 Ellen Harmon [later known by her married name Ellen White] joined with the other Adventists to form a small group of believers in Washington NH. She believed the 1844 prediction was correct but that it referred to the start of an Investigative Judgment. A time when Christ will judge the dead and the living on earth for righteousness. She predicted the second coming of Jesus soon would follow this.

The SDA church has always taken a special interest in health concerns. They have played a major role in health research into the dangers of smoking and of diets rich in cholesterol and fats. Dr. John Kellogg, founder of "Kellogg's" and a major supplier of breakfast cereals was a well-known member of the church. They promote plans to help people quit smoking and consuming alcohol. They sponsor cooking classes, heart disease teams, narcotics education outreaches and disaster teams. There are 155 SDA hospitals and 276 clinics, dispensaries, etc. in the world. Many congregations have a Dorcas Society, which provide food and supplies to the needy. They currently operate 92 post-secondary institutions, almost 1000 secondary schools and over 4000 elementary schools and kindergartens.

The SDA church is a strong supporter of the principle of separation of church and state. They also promote religious liberty, and publish a periodical called Liberty.

By the middle of 2004, the total world church membership reached 13,663,497.

They follow most of the beliefs of conventional conservative Christianity: creation, the fall of mankind in the Garden of Eden, original sin, the virgin birth, the divinity of Christ, the nature of the Trinity, belief in satan as a rebellious created being, the inerrancy of Scriptures as they were originally written, the resurrection of Jesus, salvation by the atonement of Christ.

They differ on a number of other beliefs. Ellen White is recognized as having the gift of prophecy, and though in the 1980’s it was shown that she had borrowed heavily from contemporary writers, her work is a continuing and authoritative source of truth for the church.

Some suffering is caused by the inheritance of mortality originating from Adam and Eve's disobedience to God, which includes vulnerability to illness and disease. Also, Satan pervades the earth, causing pain and suffering. Many believe that suffering is God's design to test, teach, or strengthen belief in Him; the greater the suffering of innocent believers, the greater will be their reward after life.

Abortion has moral consequences and should only be performed for the most serious reasons. The church acknowledges compelling reasons for a woman to choose abortion, e.g., threat to the life of the woman, rape/incest, extreme congenital abnormalities, etc. After counseling, the final decision is regarded as her own--she is not to be coerced or condemned. Homosexuality is forbidden. Gender equality and women’s rights are promoted, but women are not permitted at the highest levels of the church hierarchy and are generally regarded as subordinate to men. Marriage is permanent and divorce only permitted on grounds of adultery/fornication, abandonment by an unbelieving spouse, or physical violence. Remarriage is only permitted if one's spouse committed adultery/fornication. The SDA church as a Christian value encourages working for peace. Many SDA’s refuse combat status in the armed forces, and the church urges strict control of semi- and automatic assault weapons. The church supports community activities for equal rights and justice, antipoverty, education, and the direct provision of health care facilities. The church operates a worldwide network of schools and health care institutions.

God Bless
rECj/LJG