In the comments section of a popular blog, a poster named Rude Dog poked fun at the term "testimony" because we use it as if it were a legitimate term... a term of knowing.
"Using the term... outside the Mormon and Born Again Christian paradigm leaves most with a perplexed expression. Perhaps you should go as far as to contact the various national academies and recommend that their methods of epistemology are archaic, and that the 'burning bosom' method of knowledge acquisition should be employed. When comes the day when one grows up and leaves a bawling immaturity that defines the infancy of our species will we realize that when it comes to the metaphysical, the supernatural, there is nothing that one can 'know', but only what can be believed or not believed. I get it that one can believe, but don't project upon the true reality that somehow God has spoken to you but not to me, for greater hubris and solipsism there is none. I don't think the religious realize how 'proud' they really are."
Sunday, July 26, 2015
"For the Blessing of the Lamanites"
Relief Society Magazine, August 1964
For the entire article, click here.
"In fulfillment of Nephi's prophetic words, the Lamanites in our day are, indeed, being restored to their rightful place in the House of Israel. By their obedience to the principles of the gospel, they are beginning to receive the blessings promised to their ancient fathers.
Today thousands of Lamanites are coming into the Church. More than one hundred Lamanite branches have been organized among the stakes and within the missions. In many of these branches, the leadership is provided by the Lamanite menbers. They are the branch presidents, the teachers, the auxiliary leaders, the music directors. Lives are being transformed, In some cases, whole Indian communities are being affected.
Every Latter-day Saint should be a friend and a champion of the Indian people. We must be certain that blessings are not withheld because of any indifference or intolerance on our part. Our patient labor in behalf of Lehi's seed can help them to reclaim their inheritance in this land."
(Boyd K. Packer)
As I understand it, (correct me if I'm wrong) although Boyd Packer never served as the prophet, seer, and revelator (president of the Church), as an apostle he was considered to be a prophet. I presume then that it is safe to assume that all of the apostles are prophets. I did a quick count and according to the internet, there have been more than 100 apostles since the 1830 organization of the church and every one of them (with the exception of perhaps some of the current apostles) have endorsed the Book of Mormon premise that the American Indians all descended from Laman through Lehi who was an Israelite. Historically, the archives are ripe with testimonials from hundreds of general authorities that the Book of Mormon is a chronicle of the Indian's origins and was written for their benefit.
In the last recent years, Science and its advancements in the field of DNA studies has concluded that this is not the case saying that the vast majority of Indians on this continent migrated here from Asia. There is no connection between them and Lehi, Laman, or Israel. This fact is well enough established and of such high credibility that even the Church has re-written the introduction to the Book of Mormon in an attempt to lighten or obfuscate the directness of the book's and Joseph Smith's claim.
My question is this. Of the more than 100 prophets who supposedly communicate with God and Jesus Christ and have direct access to insight and inspiration, why didn't God tell at least one of them, over the course of the last 150 years or so, to correct the mistaken concept so that the change came from Him and not from science? Why did He hang His prophets out to dry and leave them to suffer the embarrassment of science proving them to be wrong and forcing them to make corrections?
For me, this is huge. It's a deal-breaker. This is not a doubt that I can doubt. This is fact. I saw this happen with my own eyes in my own lifetime. My integrity will not allow me to overlook it or deny to myself that it happened. Based on this one fact, how can I possibly expect myself to believe that the Book of Mormon is true?
For the entire article, click here.
"In fulfillment of Nephi's prophetic words, the Lamanites in our day are, indeed, being restored to their rightful place in the House of Israel. By their obedience to the principles of the gospel, they are beginning to receive the blessings promised to their ancient fathers.
Today thousands of Lamanites are coming into the Church. More than one hundred Lamanite branches have been organized among the stakes and within the missions. In many of these branches, the leadership is provided by the Lamanite menbers. They are the branch presidents, the teachers, the auxiliary leaders, the music directors. Lives are being transformed, In some cases, whole Indian communities are being affected.
Every Latter-day Saint should be a friend and a champion of the Indian people. We must be certain that blessings are not withheld because of any indifference or intolerance on our part. Our patient labor in behalf of Lehi's seed can help them to reclaim their inheritance in this land."
(Boyd K. Packer)
As I understand it, (correct me if I'm wrong) although Boyd Packer never served as the prophet, seer, and revelator (president of the Church), as an apostle he was considered to be a prophet. I presume then that it is safe to assume that all of the apostles are prophets. I did a quick count and according to the internet, there have been more than 100 apostles since the 1830 organization of the church and every one of them (with the exception of perhaps some of the current apostles) have endorsed the Book of Mormon premise that the American Indians all descended from Laman through Lehi who was an Israelite. Historically, the archives are ripe with testimonials from hundreds of general authorities that the Book of Mormon is a chronicle of the Indian's origins and was written for their benefit.
In the last recent years, Science and its advancements in the field of DNA studies has concluded that this is not the case saying that the vast majority of Indians on this continent migrated here from Asia. There is no connection between them and Lehi, Laman, or Israel. This fact is well enough established and of such high credibility that even the Church has re-written the introduction to the Book of Mormon in an attempt to lighten or obfuscate the directness of the book's and Joseph Smith's claim.
My question is this. Of the more than 100 prophets who supposedly communicate with God and Jesus Christ and have direct access to insight and inspiration, why didn't God tell at least one of them, over the course of the last 150 years or so, to correct the mistaken concept so that the change came from Him and not from science? Why did He hang His prophets out to dry and leave them to suffer the embarrassment of science proving them to be wrong and forcing them to make corrections?
For me, this is huge. It's a deal-breaker. This is not a doubt that I can doubt. This is fact. I saw this happen with my own eyes in my own lifetime. My integrity will not allow me to overlook it or deny to myself that it happened. Based on this one fact, how can I possibly expect myself to believe that the Book of Mormon is true?
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