5 Responses to “Did Mormons believe in the past or present believe that all …”
Bruno Paz
2011-07-24 21:48:31
Hi friend. The Mormon Church teaches that there is some truth in all religions. As our Church said in an official proclamation in 1978, "The great religious leaders of the world such as Mohammed, Confucius, and the Reformers, as well as philosophers including Socrates, Plato, and others, received a portion of God's light. Moral truths were given to them by God to enlighten whole nations and to bring a higher level of understanding to individuals."
That having been said, Mormons are Mormons for a reason. Where Mormon doctrine differs from the teachings of other churches, we generally think that our doctrine is correct. If we thought we were generally wrong on important theological points, we wouldn't choose to be active, practicing Mormons. The same could be said of Baptists, Catholics, Muslims, Hindus, etc. People generally follow a religion because they believe it to be true.
Mormons do believe that following the death of the apostles, Christendom was in crisis. Many disperse Christian congregations were departing in part from Christ's gospel, as described in multiple Bible verses (see, for example, 2 Timothy 1:15, Galatians 1:6, 1 Timothy 1:6-7, Galatians 2:4, 1 Corinthians 1:11-13, 2 Corinthians 11:13-15, 2 Timothy 2:16-18, Titus 1:10-11, 1 John 2:18, and Jude 1:3-4). Outside influences like the Greek and Roman empires began to alter some of Christ's original teachings, as most objective biblical scholars will attest. Many noble Christians tried valiantly to preserve Christ's original authority, the keys He'd given to Peter, but they could not stem the tide of Hellenization and fragmentation. Consequently, the keys of the kingdom were taken from the Earth. Noble Christians continued to keep many of Christ's teachings, but, in the absence of the keys and in the absence of direct revelation from God, the church slowly drifted in part from Christ's original organization.
Mormons believe that God restored the original Christian Church, together with the authority to act in His name, in 1820 through a man named Joseph Smith.
Pamela Dean Bonta
2011-07-23 13:58:56
We believe that because people turned away from the principles of the Gospel and the teacings of Christ were corrupted, that Heavenly Father withdrew the authority of the priesthood from the earth. The church website tells us that "During the Great Apostasy, people were without divine direction from living prophets. Many churches were established, but they did not have priesthood power to lead people to the true knowledge of God the Father and Jesus Christ. Parts of the holy scriptures were corrupted or lost, and no one had the authority to confer the gift of the Holy Ghost or perform other priesthood ordinances." http://lds.org/study/topics/apostasy?lang=eng
The authority to act in God's name was restored to the earth by Heavenly Father through the prophet Joseph Smith, and we have been promised by God that this authority will never again be removed from the earth.
That being said, we also believe that there is much good to be found in many churches, and we state in our Articles of Faith that "If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things." http://lds.org/study/topics/articles-of-faith?lang=eng In fact, our church works with many other religious and secular organizations to do charitable works. More information about the church's humanitarian efforts can be found at http://lds.org/service/humanitarian/church?lang=eng.
On a personal note, I investigated the church for about six years before I decided to become a member. I was also investigating many other churches in my search for a church where I believed all the doctrine. Without fail, I *always* found things that I believed in every other church I researched, but it was only this church that I felt brought together a fullness of what I personally believed already. Many good people come from other faiths, and we appreciate them for trying to live God's commandments according to their own understanding.
Richard Nance
2011-09-12 23:15:21
I remember the missionaries explaining Christ's origional church as a stained glass window that was broken and became fragmented. Different religious people took parts from the origional and by so doing sincerely tried to recreate Christ's church.
These noble efforts aside, the ancient Church needed to be restored, not recreated. The apostolic authority found in the LDS, or Mormon, Faith, came from John the Baptist restoring the Aaronic (or prepatory) priesthood as recorded in D&C 13:1 and Joseph Smith's history 1:69... Then later Peter, James and John restored the higher (or Melchizedek) priesthood under their hands. (Again see D&C 13:heading)
Anonymous
2011-07-23 23:57:50
Throughout history God established his teachings to a receptive people through prophets. After some time, the people always fell into apostacy and rejected or corrupted the word of God. According to the wisdom of God, his religion would again be established.
John the baptist ministered to an apostate Israel. Mormons believe that sometime after Christ left, Christs teachings were once again rejected or corrupted.
Like in the past, God once again established his church through the prophet Joseph Smith.
Mormons do not believe that members of other churches are evil but that the gospel in it's fullness did not exist between the time of the early saints and Joseph Smith.
John Jeremiah Conroy
2011-09-08 03:27:04
Mormons do believe that there was a universal "falling away" that took place after the death of the apostles. Official Mormon doctrine teaches that the fullness of the gospel was restored back on the earth thru the prophet Jospeh Smith. However just because mormons beleive there is one true church doesnt mean that other Christian churches and religions dont have some truth. Most of the religions teach many beautiful truths. We do believe that those of other faiths are believers and Christians
That having been said, Mormons are Mormons for a reason. Where Mormon doctrine differs from the teachings of other churches, we generally think that our doctrine is correct. If we thought we were generally wrong on important theological points, we wouldn't choose to be active, practicing Mormons. The same could be said of Baptists, Catholics, Muslims, Hindus, etc. People generally follow a religion because they believe it to be true.
Mormons do believe that following the death of the apostles, Christendom was in crisis. Many disperse Christian congregations were departing in part from Christ's gospel, as described in multiple Bible verses (see, for example, 2 Timothy 1:15, Galatians 1:6, 1 Timothy 1:6-7, Galatians 2:4, 1 Corinthians 1:11-13, 2 Corinthians 11:13-15, 2 Timothy 2:16-18, Titus 1:10-11, 1 John 2:18, and Jude 1:3-4). Outside influences like the Greek and Roman empires began to alter some of Christ's original teachings, as most objective biblical scholars will attest. Many noble Christians tried valiantly to preserve Christ's original authority, the keys He'd given to Peter, but they could not stem the tide of Hellenization and fragmentation. Consequently, the keys of the kingdom were taken from the Earth. Noble Christians continued to keep many of Christ's teachings, but, in the absence of the keys and in the absence of direct revelation from God, the church slowly drifted in part from Christ's original organization.
Mormons believe that God restored the original Christian Church, together with the authority to act in His name, in 1820 through a man named Joseph Smith.
The authority to act in God's name was restored to the earth by Heavenly Father through the prophet Joseph Smith, and we have been promised by God that this authority will never again be removed from the earth.
That being said, we also believe that there is much good to be found in many churches, and we state in our Articles of Faith that "If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things." http://lds.org/study/topics/articles-of-faith?lang=eng In fact, our church works with many other religious and secular organizations to do charitable works. More information about the church's humanitarian efforts can be found at http://lds.org/service/humanitarian/church?lang=eng.
On a personal note, I investigated the church for about six years before I decided to become a member. I was also investigating many other churches in my search for a church where I believed all the doctrine. Without fail, I *always* found things that I believed in every other church I researched, but it was only this church that I felt brought together a fullness of what I personally believed already. Many good people come from other faiths, and we appreciate them for trying to live God's commandments according to their own understanding.
These noble efforts aside, the ancient Church needed to be restored, not recreated. The apostolic authority found in the LDS, or Mormon, Faith, came from John the Baptist restoring the Aaronic (or prepatory) priesthood as recorded in D&C 13:1 and Joseph Smith's history 1:69... Then later Peter, James and John restored the higher (or Melchizedek) priesthood under their hands. (Again see D&C 13:heading)
John the baptist ministered to an apostate Israel. Mormons believe that sometime after Christ left, Christs teachings were once again rejected or corrupted.
Like in the past, God once again established his church through the prophet Joseph Smith.
Mormons do not believe that members of other churches are evil but that the gospel in it's fullness did not exist between the time of the early saints and Joseph Smith.