I told my parents I would be converting to the Mormon denomination when I am 18, and they were furious(we live in an entirely non-denomenational family) and they told me a bunch of things about Mormons.. One thing I am in particular worried about. I read on wikipedia that Joseph Smith believed that by doing enough righteous deeds in this life, a person could actually BECOME a God in the afterlife. I believe that no human being could ever match the power of God or come close to it, for that matter. I believe He is the greatest being in existence and no entity could ever be his equal. Do Mormons believe that you can become one? Because on Wikipedia it said that at some point, Brigham Young performed a ceremony for one of the members of the Church to be given God status in the afterlife. Is any of this true?
5 Responses to “I told my parents I would be converting to the Mormon denomi…”
Jorge Prado
2011-08-21 22:40:26
Hi Caleb. I'm sorry to hear that your parents are requiring you to wait until you're 18 before joining the church. What a difficult situation. In the Book of Mormon, God teaches us that we are not obligated to run faster than we have strength (Mosiah 4:27). This means that God only expects us to do the possible; he doesn't expect us to do the impossible. In your case, since you can't attend church meetings, I suggest that you do all you can do to develop your own spirituality. Here are some webpages that might be helpful:
Every once in a while, lovingly ask your parents again for their authorization. If you can't convince them, perhaps you will have to wait until you're 18 years old, when you'll be an adult and can make your own decisions. I know that God will bless you if you follow Him as best you can. Sometimes the things we have to wait for are the sweetest things in our lives. One day, when you can finally visit the Church, it will be an amazing experience.
There's a lot of confusion regarding the Mormon concept of "exaltation" or "theosis." Additionally, the Mormon understanding of this concept has evolved and will likely continue to evolve. The short answer to your question is that Mormons do not believe they will ever be greater than God the Father or Jesus Christ (God the Son). We will always worship them as our Father, Savior, and God.
Mormons do believe that after death God wants His children (us human beings) to progress spiritually to become more like Him. It is true, then, that we can become more like God, just as the Bible teaches. What would we call a being that has evolved to become more like God the Father, under His tutelage and with His divine permission? An angel? A glorified servant of the Father? A god (with a lower-case 'g'), the term some ancient Israelites used ('elohiym, see Psalms 82:6)? The name is not so important. What is important is that God will always be our father, the sovereign over all the universe.
Tony
2011-08-21 18:42:49
Caleb,
I'm not a Latter Day Saint and I have no ties to the LDS Church (I'm a "Methodhist"), so I'm speaking from a non-bias standpoint. Wikipedia is a great resource to jump start any type of research, BUT it can be edited by anyone, that reason alone is why all college professors forbid using wikipedia as source of research. If you're converting I trust that you've met with missionaries on a semi-daily basis, attended services, classes, and Bible study every Sunday. If you have, then you should share your questions with the missionaries and the Bishop, and they should give you a stright answer because a bond has been created. Also listen to what your parents have to say, somtimes it's the fear of the unknown that causes negative emotions.
Richard
2011-08-21 20:43:22
Wikipedia really isn't the top source on this earth for reliable informaiton. We will never be as God is as He will continue to increase in wisdom, glory, and greatness. As I understand the gospel, we too can grow in our individual sphere of inteligence, with Him as our teacher, director, and guide, and in that sense we can become silimair (in our own sphere) as He is in His.
When you become a parent you will understand that your children will never be on the same level of inteligense that you already have, but you will desire that they become like you are. Yet by training your children to improve, you in a sense are made more glorious by your posterity and their accomplishments.... Thus the scripture in Moses gives new meaning, (God speaking to Moses said), "39 For behold, this is my work and my glory--to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." (Moses 1:39)
Art Sherwood
2011-08-21 15:58:58
A statue of Jesus Christ at temple square in Salt Lake City.
Caleb, consider the following verses from the Bible...
Psalms 82:6 I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High.
John 10:34 Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods?
Here we have Isaiah and Jesus declaring that [we] are gods. What does this mean? To understand this doctrine, we need to understand who God is and then understand who we are in relation to Him.
You are right that no human being could ever match the power of God or come close to it, for that matter. God is all powerfull, he created the heavens and the earth and everything in it.
However, God is also our Heavenly Father.
Have you ever stopped to think about that? How often have you heard that God is our Father in Heaven? This is not just a nice title, but it is the literal truth. We are literal spiritual children of God. Being such, we have the capacity to some day grow up.
Now consider this verse:
Romans 8:17 And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.
As I said, we as mere human beings could never hope to become like Christ on our own. However, God, in all His power, and through the power of His son, Jesus Christ, has provided the way that we can become new creatures. Not just mere human beings but sons and daughters of God, capable of inheriting all that the Father hath. It has nothing to do with what we can do, but everything to do with what God can do.
John Jeremiah Conroy
2011-09-08 02:54:16
The North Visitors' Center on Temple Square has an 11-foot replica of Thorvaldsen's Christus on display.
In the scriptures in the gospel of Matthew on the sermon on the mount chapter 6 verse 48 be ye perfect as your Heavenly Father is perfect. In 2 Peter in the New Testament says we are prtakers of his divine nature. To become like our Heavenly Father and be God are two differant things. We will always be under Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. Even when we attain the qualities and attributes of becoming like God we will never be above God the Father and Jesus Christ.
Every once in a while, lovingly ask your parents again for their authorization. If you can't convince them, perhaps you will have to wait until you're 18 years old, when you'll be an adult and can make your own decisions. I know that God will bless you if you follow Him as best you can. Sometimes the things we have to wait for are the sweetest things in our lives. One day, when you can finally visit the Church, it will be an amazing experience.
There's a lot of confusion regarding the Mormon concept of "exaltation" or "theosis." Additionally, the Mormon understanding of this concept has evolved and will likely continue to evolve. The short answer to your question is that Mormons do not believe they will ever be greater than God the Father or Jesus Christ (God the Son). We will always worship them as our Father, Savior, and God.
Mormons do believe that after death God wants His children (us human beings) to progress spiritually to become more like Him. It is true, then, that we can become more like God, just as the Bible teaches. What would we call a being that has evolved to become more like God the Father, under His tutelage and with His divine permission? An angel? A glorified servant of the Father? A god (with a lower-case 'g'), the term some ancient Israelites used ('elohiym, see Psalms 82:6)? The name is not so important. What is important is that God will always be our father, the sovereign over all the universe.
I'm not a Latter Day Saint and I have no ties to the LDS Church (I'm a "Methodhist"), so I'm speaking from a non-bias standpoint. Wikipedia is a great resource to jump start any type of research, BUT it can be edited by anyone, that reason alone is why all college professors forbid using wikipedia as source of research. If you're converting I trust that you've met with missionaries on a semi-daily basis, attended services, classes, and Bible study every Sunday. If you have, then you should share your questions with the missionaries and the Bishop, and they should give you a stright answer because a bond has been created. Also listen to what your parents have to say, somtimes it's the fear of the unknown that causes negative emotions.
When you become a parent you will understand that your children will never be on the same level of inteligense that you already have, but you will desire that they become like you are. Yet by training your children to improve, you in a sense are made more glorious by your posterity and their accomplishments.... Thus the scripture in Moses gives new meaning, (God speaking to Moses said), "39 For behold, this is my work and my glory--to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." (Moses 1:39)
Psalms 82:6 I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High.
John 10:34 Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods?
Here we have Isaiah and Jesus declaring that [we] are gods. What does this mean? To understand this doctrine, we need to understand who God is and then understand who we are in relation to Him.
You are right that no human being could ever match the power of God or come close to it, for that matter. God is all powerfull, he created the heavens and the earth and everything in it.
However, God is also our Heavenly Father.
Have you ever stopped to think about that? How often have you heard that God is our Father in Heaven? This is not just a nice title, but it is the literal truth. We are literal spiritual children of God. Being such, we have the capacity to some day grow up.
Now consider this verse:
Romans 8:17 And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.
As I said, we as mere human beings could never hope to become like Christ on our own. However, God, in all His power, and through the power of His son, Jesus Christ, has provided the way that we can become new creatures. Not just mere human beings but sons and daughters of God, capable of inheriting all that the Father hath. It has nothing to do with what we can do, but everything to do with what God can do.