Maybe this is a dumb question, but I am curious because as I read through the http://www.lds.org site, there is so much that comes from the Holy Bible and so little that comes from the Book of Mormon. I find so many similarities between yours and my religion. How much do you use one vs. the other? Why do you consider yourselves Christian but others refer to you as an Occult? (Figured I would try to get more than 1 question into this one.) I will not acknowledge any sarcastic answers from those of you looking to get 2 pts.
2007-03-26 16:14:52 · 29 answers · asked by Angels 3 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Wow, you are really doing a lot of looking!
1. We use the Book of Mormon because it is another testament of Jesus Christ. The Book of Mormon was translated from ancient records made by prophets on this, the American continent. Like the Bible tells the story of the Jews in the Old World, the Book of Mormon tells the story of the people of the New World.
2. The Bible is a great book. We revere it as scripture. We love the Bible. We teach the Bible. We read the Bible. But having another record of Jesus Christ is another proof of Him, of His existence, His divinity, His resurrection. The Book of Mormon is in no way meant to contradict, replace or ignore the Bible. They are used in companionship. In fact, in many places Book of Mormon prophets quote prophets of the Old Testament....like Isaiah...in order to show that God does not change.
3. lds.org is a great site. The Bible is referenced there so much so that people might see that we DO use and believe in the Bible. It also gives people a reference if they are not familiar with the Book of Mormon....you can look at it and say "oh, yeah, I remember in the Bible where it says that..."
4. We are similar and dissimilar to many religions. We have some beliefs that other religions don't understand or believe. Personally, I really LIKE the idea that my marriage is eternal, that my family is eternal and that there is a purpose to my mortal life.
5. I would say that we use the Bible and the BOok of Mormon equally. We also have another book of scripture called the Docterine and Covenants. Every year in Sunday School we switch which book we use as our basis of study...but we reference from all four. This year we study the New Testament....which is good because it's the book I feel least familiar with...the Gospels excepting! I am looking forward to getting more familiar with the missions and ministries of Paul the Apostle. Last year was the Old Testament...I love the OT! I took an Old Testament class when I was in Calgary through the Church and learned so much. In 2008 we will study the Book of Mormon and in 2009 it will be the Docterine and Covenants...and so on.
6. We consider ourselves Christian because "we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins" (Book of Mormon, 2Nephi 25:26).
People who refer to us as a "cult" either don't know or don't care to understand what we really believe. Either way it's not very nice, not Christian, is it?
You have done a lot of research! Why don't you get a copy of the Book of Mormon and read it for yourself and see what you think? (I'm not telling you to get baptized! Just get informed...)
All the best...
2007-03-30 04:51:45 · answer #1 · answered by Fotomama 5 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Why do christians use the New Testament and not just the Old Testament? Why didn't God have Adam write down everything that we needed and then we could all just use that?
The old and new testament were written over a 4000 year period and on three different continents. Why should it surprise us if God wanted scriptures to continue to be written by prophets in another time and place?
The Bible is a holy and inspired book, but if other prophets wrote their revelations in another time and place, shouldn't we read and study those as well?
The Lord reveals his word and his will to prophets. Those prophets teach the people of Gods will. The prophets write their teaching down so that those who follow will know of God's teachings. We have a record of this occurring for 4000 years. Why would God suddenly stop?
As for your second question, any religion could be referred to accurately as Occult. However the word tends to carry a very negative connotation, therefore those that don't like Mormons use it liberally, however Mormons are no more or less Occult than any of the other mainstream religions.
2007-03-31 23:09:24 · answer #2 · answered by Ender 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You've already received many good answers to your question. Here is what I add:
Why use the BoM: We believe Christ came to America, too. Why not use more of his word, and why limit the word of God to the bible? That would kindof silence him and limit his power. To say that God only speaks through the bible is to say that he no longer speaks to man or that we have no more need of him in our day. We not only believe that God spoke to others at that time, but that he also speaks to prophets now. After all, God did not give Adam the instructions on how to build an arc, and there are many things we still need today which are not in the bible, including the testimonies of special witnesses of Christ to reaffirm that Christ is indeed the very son of God and that he did suffer for our sins, even in this day.
With the similarities, yes, there are many. We both believe in Christ as our Savior, our Lord, and our God. That is the very center and the very foundation of our beliefs.
Our belief in Christ is why we claim to be Christian (yes, we do believe he is the son of God and that only through him can we obtain salvation). The reason some call us a cult is the same reason why many aethists call Christians a cult (I do find this ironic sometimes). Basically, it is a label which you can throw at something you don't like. We also have missionary work. Many Christians have called us, the Jehovah's Witnesses, and the Seventh Day Adventists cults, probably because of this. Also, some might call us that because we have religious ceremonies with symbolism in our temples. But then, most churches have wedding ceremonies, symbolism included. I think some speculate about our temple ceremonies and come up with some pretty weird ideas. Our temple ceremonies aren't all that exciting and really I fall asleep half of the time I go. There certainly isn't anything I find strange in them, although there is a whole lot of symbolism and so some may find that strange. I haven't ever attended a Catholic mass, but I've heard it has a lot of symbolism in it and I would imagine it would be probably be about as "ritualistic" as that.
Anyway, I hope this helps and that it answers some of your questions. If you have any more, feel free to email me or anything. God bless.
2007-03-27 19:30:41 · answer #3 · answered by Laurel W 4 · 2⤊ 1⤋
What many people do not understand is that the Bible is from one of the Earth, while the Book of Mormon is from the opposite side. The Book of Mormon is a testament and history of people that lived on the American continent that believed in the christ, just as those that lived in the time of the Bible and afterwards. Christ loves everyone, so why would he not have visited them and taught them about His Gospel? He did, and the book of mormon is a testament of that. We're not adding to the Bible, we've just been given another Testament to prove that there is a God and that He does love us and wants us to know the way home. there is so much that book of mormon clears up where the bible leaves off. Its awesome. Get a copy for yourself, read it, study it, pray about it and do all that with a sincere heart. And this comes from someone that had to do all that before he joined the church!
2007-03-28 18:00:25 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 2⤋
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is a Christian religion. It is no an occult. The people who have told you that information are mistaken. We believe that the Book of Mormon is another testament of Jesus Christ. It was written by the ancient prophets here in the Americas. To answer your question, we use the Book of Mormon a lot. I know at church I at least read something in it once. We believe in the bible, but we understand it may not be translated correctly. The Book of Mormon is a perfect translation of scripture done by the latter day prophet Joseph Smith.
2007-03-27 13:24:35 · answer #5 · answered by Blue Roses 9190 2 · 4⤊ 1⤋
We believe the Book of Mormon is essentially ANOTHER testament of Jesus Christ...not a replacement to the bible. They go hand in hand one with another and both have cross-references to the other one. We (the church as a whole) infact are studying the New Testament this year in Sunday School and studied the Old Testament last year..next year we will go to either the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants or Pearl of Great Price as we rotate every year. I consider myself a Christian because I believe in and try to follow my Savior, Jesus Christ. I think people consider us a cult because they basically don't understand our doctrine completely or think we are secretive about the temple...
Just depends on how you define a Christian I guess. In some ways, we are not like typical Christians (i.e. we don't believe God the Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost are one being, we believe they are three distince and separate beings.) We believe in continued and modern revelation, we don't think the bible is "it"...We are counseled and encouraged to read and study all material that is uplifting and pleasing unto the Lord, whether scripture or books. The Bible and Book of Mormon and many others fall into that category.
If you have any more questions, ask.
2007-03-27 07:48:14 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 4⤊ 1⤋
We believe that the Bible is the word of God, and that the Book of Mormon is the word of God, as long as they are translated correctly. The Bible is a record of prophets and people in Europe and the East, the Book of Mormon is a record of theprophets and peoples in the Americas. It also contains the words of Christ when he visited the people of the Americas after His ressurection. 'other sheep I have which are not of this fold'. The people in the Americas are the 'other sheep'. The Bible and the Book of Mormon work hand in hand. would you say that the old testiment is enough, and ignore the new testiment? vise versa? If you had the opportunity to read more of the word of God, would you? The bookof mormon if ANOTHER testiment of Jesus Christ. I dont know about you, but I will take every word of God that I can get. Every message, every word. We have so much to learn.
We are Christian because we believe in Christ, God,the Holy Ghost. We believe that Jesus Christ and God have tangible, perfect bodies, and that the Holy Ghost is a spirit, but still a separate being. We believe in the bible. We use whatever passage from either the Bible or Book of Mormon that we need for the message we are teaching, or reading. We teach and learn from both.
Many people on this earth are uncomfortable with those who are different. As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, (mormon) I, like those who are also faithful, do not hide, flaunt, or bend our beliefs to the expectations of others. Many are uncomfortable with us because of either some of our beliefs that they dont agree with, or with our openess of who we are.
2007-03-27 11:23:40 · answer #7 · answered by Mrs. Harley 2 · 4⤊ 1⤋
Because God hasn't stopped communicating his truths to us. If the Bible is enough, why does the Bible mention books that are not in the Bible? Revelation from God continues to this very day, and you can never have enough insight and counsel from God. The Bible contains stories of ancient people who followed God's will and thus inspire us to do so also. Can you have too much inspiration? Can you have too much knowledge? If the Bible is enough, why are there so many different religions that only believe in the Bible but interpret it in so many different ways? Honestly, sometimes I think that those who cry that the Bible is all we need really don't understand what the Bible is or how it came to be. The reason why other religions consider Mormons to be "the occult" is because they have been taught lies and half-truths by those who should be teaching love, tolerance, and understanding. Just look at some of the answers so far! They're more concerned about attacking Mormons than telling the truth. I spoke to a group of Baptists that were absolutely convinced that the Mormon church owns the Pepsi Cola company. (This urban legend is not true. If you don't believe me, look it up at Snopes.com under the religion section.) Who taught them this stupid lie? Their preacher, who should know enough to actually research something before passing it off as the truth. I find find it funny that it was the very people who belonged to those "Christian" religions who were torched the early Mormons' homes, tarred and feathered them, persecuted them mercilessly, and who ran them out of their homes in the dead of winter to become victims to the freezing cold. Where did Jesus teach us to do things like that? If that's being "Christian", I would rather be a member of the occult.
2007-03-26 16:39:55 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 8⤊ 4⤋
Others have stated well why Mormons believe the Book of Mormon also (and you can certainly tell which responses are Mormons, and which you should listen to).
It's interesting how some say Mormons don't believe or contradict the Bible, when Mormons study the Bible and follow its teachings. I see some also say the Book of Mormon was written by man...well, wasn't the Bible? Of course they were written by men, inspired men or those who received revelation from God. Essentially, you just need to ask yourself if you believe God would only reveal His truths to one group of people or whether he would desire for all to hear His truths and would desire that there be clarity. Mormons believe Christ is at the foundation of their faith and that He is their Savior and Redeemer. Just study with an open mind and then decide for yourself. Religion is based on faith and only the individual can make the decision. God does answer prayers.
2007-03-27 04:13:36 · answer #9 · answered by straightup 5 · 5⤊ 2⤋
The Bible is a record of God's dealings with man in the Holy Lands. The Book of Mormon is a record of God's dealings with man in the Americas. Its subtitle is "Another Testiment of Jesus Christ".
Here is an analogy:
Imagine a board nailed to the floor by one nail (the Bible). It can easily be turned or rotated to point any direction. Now imagine using another nail (The Book of Mormon) to fasten it to the floor. It can no longer be turned, but is stationary and secure.
We believe that the Book of Mormon clarifies, supports and teaches about what is in the Bible. There are many scriptures in the Book of Mormon that clear up the misinterpretations of Bible verses that have lead to the establishment of many churches, each claiming to have their own version of the path to God.
2007-03-26 16:34:54 · answer #10 · answered by Free To Be Me 6 · 9⤊ 1⤋