The Kirtland Endowment
The Kirtland endowment ceremonies consisted of preparatory washings, at first administered in the homes of the Saints.
The Kirtland endowment ceremonies consisted of preparatory washings, at first administered in the homes of the Saints.
“I directed my soul unto her, and I found her in pureness: I have had my heart joined with her from the beginning, therefore shall I not be forsaken.” -Ecclesiasticus 51:20 KJV Lishmah (לישמה), literally translated means “for her sake,” or “for her name.” In Kabbalah it is generally translated as “for its sake,” or “for its name.” “It” here refers to the study of the Torah, stating why we focus on the Torah and the Mitzvah—we study the Torah…
Returning to the topic of Jesus a Christ vs Jesus the Christ, we must ask the question: do we even need Jesus Christ? And if so, why? Why can we not merely “work out [our] own salvation with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:12)?
“Verily, thus saith the Lord: It shall come to pass that every soul who forsaketh their sins and cometh unto me, and calleth on my name, and obeyeth my voice, and keepeth my commandments, shall see my face and know that I am; and that I am the true light that lighteth everyone that cometh into the world; and that I am in the Father, and the Father in me, and the Father and I are one—the Father because He…
Joseph Smith and Paul (as well as all true prophets and messengers) will only give the milk (the milk is teaching people how to receive the meat), but the meat is only given directly by God.
The Dragnet Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind: Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away. So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, and shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall…
Dr. Michelle G. Wiener has written an excellent paper on the temple and unity. As her paper points out, the four traditional methods of unifying the Saints, “(1) Faith and Order, (2) Life and Work, (3) Common missionary efforts, and (4) A renewed commitment to theological education,” historically fall flat repeatedly.