I read that Joseph Smith stated in “Lectures of Faith” that God was a spirit, that Jesus was a tabernacle of clay and the Holy Ghost was the mind of both, or something like that. Could you explain the God is a spirirt part or all of it?
2 Responses to “I read that Joseph Smith stated in “Lectures of Faith” that …”
Manuel Leal
2008-03-30 19:50:34
Hi friend. I'm not very familiar with Lectures on Faith, so I can't confirm or dismiss your quote. As you probably know, Lectures on Faith is not canonical in Mormonism. While I'm sure it contains much truth, it is not theologically binding. Not everything in Lectures on Faith is true; frankly, not even everything Joseph Smith said was true, except when he spoke as a prophet and his theology was accepted by the church body as a whole. It is also true that Joseph's understanding of Deity changed over the years as he received additional revelation from God. Earlier statements may not reflect the fuller understanding Joseph obtained in his later years.
Strictly speaking, however, the alleged quote from Lectures on Faith that you cite is not incorrect. We believe that both God the Father and Jesus Christ are spirit beings who choose to dwell in bodies of flesh and bone. They are both spirits, and they are both physical beings. It's also not inaccurate to describe the Holy Ghost as the metaphorical "mind of God," though that's not the metaphor most modern Mormons would use.
Richard
2008-04-07 05:00:44
God is a spirit and so are you and I. We all have spirits within our tabernacle of clay (bodies). Jesus is the same, but "the Holy Ghost is a personage of spirit," to quote Christ's revealed, through his prophet Joseph, explanation on this matter we quote doctrine and covenants 130:22:
"The Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man's; the Son also; but the Holy Ghost has not a body of flesh and bones, but is a personage of spirit. Were it not so, the Holy Ghost could not dwell in us." The part of your question referring to the Holy Ghost being the mind of both we go to a scripture and seek to expound upon it. Christ's own words as He ministered to the Nephites on the American continent post his resurrection. 3 Nephi 11:36:
"And thus will the Father bear record of me, and the Holy Ghost will bear record unto him of the Father and me; for the Father, and I, and the Holy Ghost are one."
Now this does not mean they are one in body, as the Niceane creed dictates, but one in mind and purpose. They have the ability to share thought with the other in order to do the will, and accomplish the mind, of the Father. Like a united committee seeking for the same purposes and goal.
To give witness that in fact they are not the same person we simply need to turn to Joseph Smith's vision, which is true as you are, in which Joseph states:
"I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me... When the light rested upon me I saw two personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other—This is my beloved son. Hear him!"
Strictly speaking, however, the alleged quote from Lectures on Faith that you cite is not incorrect. We believe that both God the Father and Jesus Christ are spirit beings who choose to dwell in bodies of flesh and bone. They are both spirits, and they are both physical beings. It's also not inaccurate to describe the Holy Ghost as the metaphorical "mind of God," though that's not the metaphor most modern Mormons would use.
"The Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man's; the Son also; but the Holy Ghost has not a body of flesh and bones, but is a personage of spirit. Were it not so, the Holy Ghost could not dwell in us." The part of your question referring to the Holy Ghost being the mind of both we go to a scripture and seek to expound upon it. Christ's own words as He ministered to the Nephites on the American continent post his resurrection. 3 Nephi 11:36:
"And thus will the Father bear record of me, and the Holy Ghost will bear record unto him of the Father and me; for the Father, and I, and the Holy Ghost are one."
Now this does not mean they are one in body, as the Niceane creed dictates, but one in mind and purpose. They have the ability to share thought with the other in order to do the will, and accomplish the mind, of the Father. Like a united committee seeking for the same purposes and goal.
To give witness that in fact they are not the same person we simply need to turn to Joseph Smith's vision, which is true as you are, in which Joseph states:
"I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me... When the light rested upon me I saw two personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other—This is my beloved son. Hear him!"
Hope that helps.