if someone is baptised by proxy for someone who's dead in the Mormon faith, how does that work? does the dead person's soul enter the body of the living to be cleansed of sin?
2007-07-04 13:13:20 · 11 answers · asked by KellyKapowski 3 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
There is one of the many unscriptural Mormon errors. The Bible says that each one of us is appointed once to die, and then the judgement.
2007-07-04 13:17:51 · answer #1 · answered by TroothBTold 5 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Baptism for the dead was practiced in the early Christian church. Paul mentions baptism for the dead in 1 Corintheans 15:29, "Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the dead?" Note that he did not condemn baptisms for the dead as a wicked practice. Jesus says that baptism is an essential ordinance when he said in John 3:5,"Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God."
Because baptism is an essential ordinance and because not everybody will have the opportunity in this life to hear of the gospel of Christ it makes sense that a merciful God would still provide a way to be baptized after one is dead. Those that did not have an opportunity to hear the gospel in this life will hear it in the next. 1 Peter 4:6 says, "For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit."
The person's soul does not enter the body of the living to be cleansed of sin. After they are taught the gospel they will have the opportunity to accept or reject the baptism that was performed for them. If they accept the baptism it is the same effect as if they had been the one's who went down into the water and they are cleansed of their sins.
2007-07-04 20:35:30 · answer #2 · answered by Matt M 2 · 2⤊ 1⤋
It does not work at all, according to the Bible the person dead is beyond saving by any means. When a person dies they have used up their allotted time to be saved. It is like saying that Adolph Hitler has a great grandson/daughter that happens to be a believer. That grandchild hates the fact that Hitler did what he did, so they pray and repent on behalf of Hitler and seek baptism. That sounds crazy right? Without actual repentance possible because Hitler is dead, they can not have baptismal. Repenting from sins means a person stops sinning, a dead person can not repent hence they can not be saved. A child or baby that dies early on is not accountable for the sins of their parents in the event of death. There is a time of knowing, for instance during the time of the exodus from Egypt. God allowed all the children that did not know evil, to enter the promised land. However the adults from twenty upwards had to die out first in the wilderness. Dt1:37
2007-07-04 20:38:36 · answer #3 · answered by from above 2 · 2⤊ 1⤋
No, we believe that those who didn't get the chance to hear and accept the gospel in life are given that chance after death. They are there, and we are here. We are baptised for and in behalf of the dead person, and up there, they are asked if they accept the baptism done in their name. They have free agency to accept or reject it. And since we are taught that we will take with us all ouro feelings and emotions and prejudices, etc., then some will reject it.
2007-07-05 14:00:25 · answer #4 · answered by mormon_4_jesus 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It doesn't work!
Mormons teach that one person can be baptized for another who has already died. Jesus taught "He that believes and is baptized shall be saved". (Mark 16:16) Notice, "He... shall be saved". Not he is baptized and someone else shall be saved.
We will each be judged by what we have done, not on the basis of what someone else has done. (2 Cor. 5:10)
The Bible says, "The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him." (Ezekiel 18:20) We cannot believe or obey for our dead relatives as the Mormon church teaches!
The only one who can mediate on our behalf is Jesus Christ! "For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus"! (1 Timothy 2:5)
He will mediate only on behalf of those who have believed and obeyed Him! (Mark 16:16, Hebrews 5:9)
2007-07-05 18:02:49 · answer #5 · answered by JoeBama 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It doesn't. Every person is responsible for their own trust in God. When a person accepts Christ as their personal savior the next step is baptism. It is an outward expression of an inward experience.
2007-07-04 20:34:42 · answer #6 · answered by Gram 3 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Immediately after death, a person is prepared for heaven or hell. I don't belief in ceremonies on earth affecting that.
I'm an ex-mormon but I didn't believe their theories even when I was in their church.
Now I have found the Universal Theology of the New Jerusalem by Swedenborg and I love it!
2007-07-04 20:17:25 · answer #7 · answered by WhyNotAskDonnieandMarie 4 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Na, if a person dies without being baptized they're damned. This proxy thing doesn't really work, it's a placebo.
2007-07-04 20:17:52 · answer #8 · answered by Uryx 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
It is not Biblical based; The dead are dead and can not be baptized, etc. by proxy.
2007-07-04 20:18:14 · answer #9 · answered by coffee_pot12 7 · 2⤊ 1⤋
There is only one baptism, baptism by immersion.
2007-07-04 20:17:57 · answer #10 · answered by shovelead 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋