Encyclopedia of Mormonism Quotes - 30 quotes

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Encyclopedia of Mormonism

The Encyclopedia of Mormonism is a comprehensive reference work that covers the history, scripture, doctrine, and procedures of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Edited by Daniel H. Ludlow and published in 1992, it consists of nearly 1,500 articles written by over 730 con... show more

quote icon This earth life is a mortal probation for all those who have the opportunity to accept and live by the new and everlasting covenant while in the mortal flesh. Those who do not have a full opportunity in this earth life will have their probation extended through the spirit world existence that follows it. By the time of resurrection, each of the Father's children will have made a final choice between good and evil, and each will be rewarded with the good or the evil chosen during the probation (Alma 41:10-15).

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon In a general sense, the Resurrection may be divided into the resurrection of the just, also called the first resurrection, and the resurrection of the unjust, or the last resurrection.

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon In a general sense, the Resurrection may be divided into the resurrection of the just, also called the first resurrection, and the resurrection of the unjust, or the last resurrection. The first resurrection commenced with the resurrection of Christ and with those who immediately thereafter came forth from their graves. In much larger numbers, it will precede the thousand-year millennial reign, inaugurated by the “second coming” of the Savior (D&C 45:44-45; cf. 1 Thes. 4:16-17). At the time, some will be brought forth to meet him, as he descends in glory. This first resurrection will continue in proper order through the Millennium.

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon The Plan of salvation teaches of a partial judgment at the time of death, when the spirit leaves the mortal body and enters the world of spirits (Alma 40:11-14), of another partial judgment at the time of resurrection, when the spirit and the physical body are permanently resurrected and reunited (Alma 11:45); and of a final judgment (Rev. 20:12; D&C 38:5) that will consign individuals to an eternal status (D&C 29:27-29; 3 Ne. 26:4). Thus, the final judgment will take place following the reuniting of body and spirit in the resurrection (Alma 11:44; 12:12). By that time, every person will have been given an opportunity to receive an understanding of the gospel of Jesus Christ (1 Peter. 3:19-20; Luke 4:18; Isa. 42:7).

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon In a figurative sense, the book of life is the complete record of one’s life, the sum total of thoughts, words, and deeds written in the soul, of which the Lord will take account in the day of judgment (Rev. 20:12; Alma 12:14). The scriptures also speak of a book of life, or “the Lamb's book of life,” as “the record kept in heaven” (D&C 128:7) in which are written both the names and deeds of the faithful. It is also the heavenly register of those who inherit eternal life (Heb. 12:23; Alma 5:58; D&C 76:68), “the book of the names of the sanctified, even them of the celestial world” (D&C 88:2; cf. Mal. 3:16-17).

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon Latter-day Saints who have seriously contravened or ignored cardinal Church teachings (publicly or privately) are considered apostates, whether or not they have officially left the Church or affiliated with another religion. By not participating in Church meetings one is not considered apostate …LDS scriptures establish a loving and hopeful attitude toward apostates. Latter-day Saints are strongly counseled to love those who have left the faith, and to encourage, plead, and work with those who have strayed, inviting "the lost sheep" back to the fold (Luke 15:3-7). Of the wayward, the resurrected Savior taught, “Ye shall not cast him out of your … places of worship, for unto such shall ye continue to minister; for ye know not but what they will return and repent, and come unto me with full purpose of heart, and I shall heal them; and ye shall be the means of bringing salvation unto them” (3 Ne. 18:32).

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon Twelve-year-old LDS males usually receive the Aaronic Priesthood and are ordained deacons, continuing in that priesthood office until age fourteen. Deacons receive assignments from their bishops that may include distributing the Sacrament to the congregation, serving as messengers, collecting fast offerings, providing assistance to the elderly or disabled, and caring for the meetinghouse and grounds … Deacons are organized into quorums of twelve or fewer members, with one called as president, two as counselors, and another as secretary (see Priesthood Quorums). The bishopric assigns an adult adviser to teach and help train the quorum members to emulate the example of Jesus Christ in word and deed and helps prepare them for ordination to the Melchizedek Priesthood and for missionary service.

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon The gift of discernment consists of the spiritual quality or skill of being able to see or understand, especially that which is hidden or obscure. This ability is shared in a general way by all of God’s children, but “discerning of spirits” is one of the gifts of the spirit that comes, under certain circumstances, specially from God (1 Cor. 12:10; D&C 46:23). The fuller gift of discerning in all spiritual matters—to know whether their occurrence is of God or not—is given by the Lord to “such as God shall appoint and ordain to watch over the church” (D&C 46:27). To possess this gift is to receive divinely revealed understanding of opposing spirits-the spirit of God and the spirit of the devil. Persons possessing such a gift also correctly perceive the right course of action . (D&C 63:41).

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon MEANING OF DOCTRINE. The word “doctrine” in the scriptures means “a teaching” as well as “that which is taught.” Most often in the Church it refers to the teachings or doctrine of Jesus Christ, understood in a rather specific sense. Scripturally, then, the term “doctrine” means the core message of Jesus Christ—that Jesus is the Messiah, the Redeemer. All other teachings are subordinate to those by which all people “know how to come unto Christ and be saved”—that is, to the “points of doctrine,” such as faith, repentance, baptism, and receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost. At one time, stressing the preeminence and foundational nature of this message, Jesus taught, “And whoso shall declare more or less than this, and establish it for my doctrine, the same cometh of evil, and is not built upon my rock” (3 Ne. 11:40).

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon The Plan of salvation teaches of a partial judgment at the time of death, when the spirit leaves the mortal body and enters the world of spirits (Alma 40:11-14).

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon RECORD FROM THE GROUND. Latter-day Saints teach that Isaiah foresaw that part of this branch of Joseph’s family would eventually be destroyed. He likened it to David’s city Ariel, that would also be destroyed when hostile forces “camped against” or laid siege to it (Isa. 29:3). But despite the fact that many of the people of this branch would be slain, both Isaiah and Nephi explained that the voice of Joseph’s descendants would be heard again as a voice “out of the ground”; their speech would “whisper out of the dust” (Isa. 29:4; 2 Ne. 26:16). For “the words of the faithful should speak as if it were from the dead” (2 Ne. 27:13; cf. 26:15-16; see “Voice From the Dust”) … The last writer in the Book of Mormon, Moroni 2, wrote about A.D. 400: “I speak unto you as though I spake from the dead; for I know that ye shall have my words” (Morm. 9:30; cf. Moro. 10:27). As he was about to bury the records, he wrote: “No one need say [the records] shall not come, for they surely shall, for the Lord hath spoken it; for out of the earth shall they come, by the hand of the Lord, and none can stay it” (Morm. 8:26; cf. TPJS, p. 98).

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon In LDS doctrine, to be damned means to be stopped, blocked, or limited in one’s progress. Individuals are damned whenever they are prevented from reaching their full potential as children of God. Damnation is falling short of what one might have enjoyed if one had received and been faithful to the whole law of the gospel. In this sense, all who do not achieve the highest degree of the Celestial Kingdom are damned, even though they are saved in some degree of glory. They are damned in the sense that they will not enjoy an eternal increase or the continuation of the family unit in eternity (D&C 132:4, 19). In this context, damnation does not necessarily refer to eternal suffering in hell with the devil, for loss of blessings is in itself a type of hell and damnation.

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon Latter-day Saints believe in God the Father; his Son, Jesus Christ; and in the Holy Ghost. These three Gods form the Godhead, which holds the keys of power over the universe. Each member of the Godhead is an independent personage, separate and distinct from the other two, the three being in perfect unity and harmony with each other.

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon “Eternal lives” is a term that refers to the right and power to beget children after the resurrection, granted to those who are exalted in the highest degree of the Celestial Kingdom. This is an aspect of eternal progression. “In the celestial glory there are three heavens or degrees; and in order to obtain the highest, a man must enter into this order of the priesthood [meaning the new and everlasting covenant of marriage]; And if he does not, he cannot obtain it. He may enter into the other, but that is the end of his kingdom; he cannot have an increase” D&C 131:1-4) … Latter-day Saints believe that all worthy men and women, through righteous living and being sealed by the power of the priesthood, will in eternal life inherit, with Adam and Eve, Abraham and Sarah, and all the faithful, those same blessings and enjoy a continuation of seeds forever, or eternal increase.

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon “Latter-day Saints believe in God the Father; his Son, Jesus Christ; and in the Holy Ghost. These three Gods form the Godhead, which holds the keys of power over the universe. Each member of the Godhead is an independent personage, separate and distinct from the other two, the three being in perfect unity and harmony with each other.”

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon “Damnation” is a term derived from the Latin damnum, meaning “injury” and “loss,” and often connotes deprivation of what should have been possessed. Just as there are varying degrees and types of salvation, coupled with eternal progression in some areas (D&C 76:96-98; 131:1-4), so are there varying degrees and types of damnation.

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon Resurrection is as universal as death. All must die and all must be resurrected. It is a free gift to everyone. It is not the result of the exercise of faith or accumulated good works. The Book of Mormon prophet Amulek declares, “Now this restoration shall come to all, both old and young, both bond and free, both male and female, both the wicked and the righteous” (Alma 11:44).

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon Ultimate and total damnation comes only to the devil and his angels, who rebelled in the first estate, and to the sons of perdition, who are damned eternally and denied entrance into any kingdom of glory hereafter (D&C 76:32-34). The sons of perdition are those guilty of unpardonable sin against the Holy Ghost (D&C 132:27; cf. Mark 3:29), which includes the willful denial of the “Only Begotten Son of the Father, having crucified him unto themselves and put him to an open shame.” (D&C 76:35).

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon Damnation comes as the result of not believing in the gospel (Mark 16;16), of not accepting additional light and knowledge (Alma 12:9-11), of believing in false doctrines (2 Pet. 2:1), of being slothful and having to be commanded in all things (D&C 58:26-29), and of refusing to humble oneself, repent, and live according to gospel principles.

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon In a general sense, the Resurrection may be divided into the resurrection of the just, also called the first resurrection, and the resurrection of the unjust, or the last resurrection … The final resurrection, or resurrection of the unjust, will occur at the end of the Millennium. In the words of the apocalypse, “the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished” (Rev. 20:5). This last resurrection will include those destined for the telestial glory and perdition.

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon At the Judgment, each person will be required to give an accounting of the use of his or her moral agency during mortality (D&C 101:78). The final judgment is the final point of eternal accountability for all voluntary actions, words, thoughts, desires, and works of the individual … No mortal act, no matter how righteous or wicked, will provide exemption from this judgment.

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon It is the LDS doctrine that human spirits are the literal offspring of perfected, exalted parents, a Father and a Mother in Heaven.

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon The principle of judgement was operative in the premortal estate, is continuously operative during mortal life, and will continue in the spirit world and beyond, through resurrection and final judgment. In the premortal state Satan and “a third part” of God’s children were denied bodies the opportunity of mortality because they rebelled against God (Abr. 3:24-28; D&C 29:36-38). In mortal life nations and peoples have been destroyed or scattered when they have become ripened in iniquity and the judgments of God have thereby come upon them (1 Ne. 17:37). Judgment during mortality is a continuous process to assess people’s worthiness to participate in the saving ordinances of the gospel and to serve in the Church … Judgment also occurs at death as individuals are received into the spirit world either in happiness or in misery (Alma 40:9-14).

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints teaches that the Holy Ghost is a spirit man, a spirit son of God the Father. It is a fundamental Church doctrine that God is the Father of the spirits of all men and women, that Jesus is literally God’s Son both in spirit and in the flesh, and that the Holy Ghost is a personage of spirit separate and distinct from both the Father and the Son.

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon Exaltation. To Latter-day Saints, exaltation is a state that a person can attain in becoming like God-salvation in the ultimate sense (D&C 132:17). Latter-day Saints believe that all mankind (except the sons of perdition) will receive varying degrees of glory in the afterlife. Exaltation is the greatest of all the gifts and attainments possible. It is available only in the highest degree of the Celestial Kingdom and is reserved for members of the Church of the Firstborn. This exalted status, called eternal life, is available to be received by a man and wife. It means not only living in God’s presence, but receiving power to do as God does, including the power to bear children after the resurrection (TPJS, pp. 300-301; D&C 132:19). Blessings and privileges of exaltation require unwavering faith, repentance, and complete obedience to the gospel of Jesus Christ … All Church ordinances lead to exaltation, and the essential crowning ordinances are the Endowment and the eternal marriage covenant of the temple (D&C 131:1-4, 132).

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon An individual who receives extensive spiritual knowledge, enters into sacred covenants, and then turns away from those promises to the Lord may be left to the buffetings of Satan until complete repentance has occurred. This sin differs in nature and category from one committed in ignorance. Paul alluded to such in 1 Corinthians 5:1-5), but a clearer understanding of the doctrine is found in latter-day revelation.

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon Baptism of fire and the Holy Ghost refers to the experience of an individual who receives the ordinance of the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost. It is the second in a two-part sequence following baptism by immersion in water through which a repentant person committed to Christ and his gospel is born of God or born again. As Jesus explained to Nicodemus, “Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God” (John 3:5) … The doctrine of the two baptisms was taught by John the Baptist: “I indeed baptize you with water … but he that cometh after me … shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire” (Matt. 3:11).

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon An endowment generally is a gift, but in a specialized sense it is a course of instruction, ordinances, and covenants given only in dedicated temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The Words “to endow” from the Greek enduein), as used in the New Testament, mean to dress, clothe, put on garments, put on attributes, or receive virtue. Christ instructed his apostles to tarry at Jerusalem “until ye be endued with power from on high” (Luke 24:49), a promised fulfilled at least in part, on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2)

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon From antiquity God has commanded his people to keep records. In the days of Adam the people wrote a book of remembrance “by the spirit of inspiration” (Moses 6:5) to identify the faithful, to “know” their fathers (Moses 6:45-46), to define “the right of priesthood” (Abr. 1:31), and to promote literacy (see Moses 6:60) … Latter-day Saints are encouraged to prepare family records as a Book of Remembrance, containing patriarchal blessings, records of ordinations and other sacred information, as well as personal and family histories, spiritual experiences, and other evidences of God's goodness and love (D&C 85:9; 128:7-8, 24).

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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quote icon Damnation is not to be equated with never-ending torment or punishment. An early revelation to Joseph Smith explains, “It is not written that there shall be no end to this torment, but it is written endless torment. Again, it is written eternal damnation; wherefore it is more express than other scriptures, that it might work upon the hearts of the children of men.”

- Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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