Secularism

Ezra Taft Benson As a nation, we have become self-sufficient. This has given birth to a new religion in America which some have called secularism. This is a view of life with the idea that God is not in the picture and that He has nothing to do with the picture in the first place. […]

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Socialism

Joseph Smith Wednesday, 13. I attended a lecture at the Grove, by Mr. John Finch, a Socialist, from England, and said a few words in reply… Thursday, 14. I attended a second lecture on Socialism, by Mr. Finch; and after he got through, I made a few remarks, alluding to Sidney Rigdon and Alexander Campbell […]

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Apostasy

Definition of “apostasy” “When Latter-day Saints are asked for a definition of apostasy, they frequently turn to 2 Thessalonians 2:3 and cite the King James Version phrase ‘a falling away.’ Unfortunately, the translation of this word is inadequate, and it has been the cause of some historical misinformation in the Church that has made it […]

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Intelligent Design

Intelligent Design theory is often criticized for being “religion in disguise”. This is caused by confusion about the implications of science. In other words, Intelligent Design is not religious, it is science, but it has religious implications. The same could and should be said for Darwinism. Darwinism and Neo-Darwinism have anti-religious implications, that no Creator […]

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Parable of the Talents

Interpretation Benjamin Johnson recounted the following story: “Early on Sunday morning he [the Prophet Joseph Smith] said, “Come Brother Bennie, let us have a walk.” I took his arm, and he led the way into a by-place in the edge of the woods surrounded by tall brush and trees. Through the swale ran a small […]

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Compass and Square

Restoration Vision of Parley P. Pratt Not long after his baptism in 1830, Parley P. Pratt experienced a remarkable vision. “I had been on a visit to a singular people called Shakers, at New Lebanon, about seven miles from my aunt Van Cott’s, and was returning that distance, on foot, on a beautiful evening of […]

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Eternity

Age of the Universe, Age of an Eternity Some feel that the universe was created at approximately the same time as the earth. Others speculate that the universe is 13.75 billion years old. With Latter-day revelation, we understand that the Father has created worlds without number, and many of these are earths which are inhabited […]

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Abrahamic Covenant

Promises of the Abrahamic Covenant Abraham 1:18-19 “I will take thee, to put upon thee my name, even the Priesthood” “Through thy ministry my name shall be known in the earth forever” Abraham 2:6, 9, 11 “A strange land … I will give unto thy seed after thee for an everlasting possession.” “I will … […]

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American Israel

Statements from Prominent Americans Pastor John Cotton, Puritan Clergyman In 1630, prior to the departure of the ship Arabella for America with Massachusetts Bay Colony Governor John Winthrop and his fellow Puritans aboard, the young Puritan minister John Cotton preached a stirring farewell message taken from 2 Samuel 7:10: I will appoint a place for My people Israel and […]

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Promised Land of America

The Book of Mormon is clear that in general God has covenanted America to those who will be led here out of other countries because of their righteousness. There is a covenant on this land which any nation that possesses the land has an obligation to abide. This covenant can be best understood in its […]

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Heartland Model

Declared a Movement “There is a swelling movement within the Church, though, that prefers to believe that the story took place in Illinois, among other North American locales.  …‘Prophecies and Promises: The Book of Mormon and the United States of America’ is the latest salvo in this argument. …When and if such features begin to shift, the impulse […]

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