I think I don't have anything helpful to add about the abuse topic (except that I feel similarly to the others here, and I have been to the temple many times). But I think I could usefully address this. The undergarments are only worn by adults who have made the covenants that adults make--as above, you don't do it until you're about to go on a mission or get married (or if neither of those things has happened and you feel ready--if you're like 25 or so). So the only teenagers who get them are going on missions or getting married really young. The burning part--we treat the undergarments with reverence, and when they're worn out, we don't just throw them out. There are a couple of ways to dispose of them, and burning is one, though I don't think many people do it that way. I never have. So you don't need to think of it like bra-burning, or flag-burning at a protest. She most likely was disposing of old ones and was not venting ill feelings. Hope that clarifies things?

Yeah, that pretty much says it all. There is no limit to the ability of humankind for selfishness and pride and self-justification, so there will always be someone willing to do something like this.

It is a collection of revelations from God (often from Jesus Christ) to--mostly--Joseph Smith. A few sections are revelations to other, later prophets. So for us, it's a collection of modern scripture. I kind of messed this up--see my last post.

I have no problem with the Apostle's Creed, but I as a matter of personal preference I don't join groups that have statements of faith. (Not that that matters, since the groups I've ever run into that did have one had written the statements to keep LDS people out, so I guess it sounds kind of like sour grapes, but even if it was a group I could join, I wouldn't.) TXMary2, I understand your question, but you're going to have to come up with some examples. I think there will be difficulties with that, because you'll find tons of stuff on the Internet, but there will be a lot of misinformation, and several cases where the LDS folks will just disagree with the interpretation of what happened, or we will be of the opinion that not everything has happened yet, and it will get very long. But it's a perfectly good question, just kind of messy. :001_smile:

Well, if any of your children decide to become LDS, you can tell them not to. Otherwise I wouldn't worry about it; the chances are quite low unless your descendants are LDS.

Assuming your POV, my guess would be that people who aren't in heaven can't hear your request, thus nothing much would happen. Though Heavenly Father still hears it, which seems to me to be the important part.

To chime in with all the thread-love, I have to say that I have never had such a nice discussion thread on my faith anywhere. So yay Hive Mind!

Yes, but that was then. Here on earth, we have to make our choices without Heavenly Father standing right there watching us. It's no longer so obvious, and we don't remember all that came before. This life is meant (partly) for us to develop a little bit more on our own, I guess; to learn for ourselves about good and evil and the true desires of our hearts. Here is a simple lesson on this topic, with scripture references. One scripture explains it like this: Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself. --2 Nephi 2:27 Nope. You can always choose to say no to God. You can always choose to separate yourself from him.

Yes, I think your summary is accurate. And you've put your finger on a clear difference there. Mormon theology says that God has many children and that we are all, so to speak, of one race. He is the Father of our spirits, and he wants us to inherit as much as we are willing to inherit. There aren't other, non-human entities in our theology; angels are messengers of God, but they are human beings. Depending on their job, they may be spirits who are not yet born or people who have already died, but they will always, at some point, live on earth.

It isn't the same, in that there's no need to regularly confess all your sins to the bishop. That's pretty much reserved for serious sin, or whenever you feel you need help. But I think in the end it serves a similar function; the bishop is there to help you figure out how to put things right and repent, which I think is what the Catholic priest is doing too, right?

Well, becoming mortal, acquiring a body, etc. is an essential part of our learning process, part of the plan for us to learn and become more like our Father in Heaven. We believe that a body is a great blessing. So, there were two choices--follow Jesus and get born, or follow Satan and stay a spirit. Those who chose to follow Satan are stuck in their development; they cannot learn and progress. Anyone who chose to follow Jesus will get born on earth sooner or later, and be able to learn and choose further. There isn't a third path.

I'm back! So I can try to keep things going. Until dinner time. Yes, if they're close I'd suggest that she go and wait outside. I know it sounds like you're being left out in the cold, but any of the bride's friends who aren't married yet themselves will be there too, and it's generally considered to be a fun, nice thing to do. When I was a college student and my friends were getting married, it was not at all unusual to drive long distances in order to... wait outside the temple and go to the reception. Once I drove from CA to Utah to do that, and the bride aimed her bouquet at me, and the rest is history. Next thing I knew, I was engaged. ;)

Yes. No. We believe that they had children of their own, and that there was no reason for things to be otherwise. We do not believe in original sin at all, for anyone. Children are born completely innocent and without sin. We believe that Mary was a very special, but ordinary, person--that is, she was very righteous and blessed, but an ordinary human being.

That requires a long answer! :001_smile: I would love to be able to explain it but people are about to show up. So I will just direct you to Black LDS.org in the hope that it will help answer your questions. Maybe the "history" page will help. I will also say that I have seen many, many interracial marriages in the LDS Church--I think more than the norm--and have never seen anyone have a problem with it. My own SILs come in many colors. :001_smile:

Yeah, what they said. Little children, of whatever faith, are alive in Christ and would go home to God without the need for baptism.

They weren't in the first place--baptism is how you become a member. Children are usually blessed when they are born, and that puts them on the membership rolls until they're 8, but they aren't actually members until they get baptized. We would still keep track of them, they're not lost, but for administrative purposes we wouldn't count them as absent if they didn't come on a Sunday, etc. Anytime between 8 and 9, I think. Usually a child will be baptized within a couple of months of the 8th birthday, but there's no requirement that it be on the day (I actually was, but that was a coincidence).

Trying again--you should not worry about that at all. We produce a lot of white dresses and I'm glad one worked out for you! (By the same token, when my daughter was getting baptized, I looked at a lot of Catholic sites for Communion dresses...)

Goodness, you shouldn't have worried about that at all! :001_smile:

In the Garden, he took upon himself the weight of all the sin and pain of the world. In doing so he paid the price for all of our sins. Then he was also sacrificed on the cross. I don't know that I would put it in the same words as Ambitious Housewife did, but the Garden and the Cross were both part of the Atonement.

Certainly! :001_smile:

No, we don't do the liturgical calendar. We get confused when confronted with phrases like "5th Sunday after Pentecost." :D We celebrate Christmas and Easter. Ordinances have been covered, I see on preview. We don't exactly have confirmation classes like you do. A child's parents are expected to teach the gospel before baptism, which is when the child formally joins the church. A child goes in for an interview with the bishop to ensure that she is prepared for baptism, but then ordinary Primary is all the classes she'll have (~2 hours every Sunday).

The Eucharist, or Communion.

Yes, there is a priesthood! Proper priesthood authority is very important to us. The priesthood is limited to men, but any worthy man can have it. Once a boy turns 12, he gets the beginning level, so to speak, and that continues all the A man can't go to the temple if he doesn't hold the priesthood--nor can he go on a mission or serve in most callings--all routine parts of an LDS guy's life. In the LDS Church we all have jobs (callings) and we switch around. So a guy may do several jobs and move in and out of different areas--my husband has taught Sunday School, been ward financial clerk, and is currently in the Elders' Quorum presidency (elder is a priesthood office--he works with the adult men under 45, pretty much). Any leadership position for a man requires the priesthood, but it would not be unusual for a man to, say, be bishop for 5 years and then go out of that leadership position into teaching a Sunday School class. That would not be considered a 'demotion.' So the prophet is chosen from the 12 apostles, and there's a whole administrative structure, with area authorities and whatnot, kind of like the Catholics only with different terms.

It's fine by me--but it's impossible to keep up! :D

We do particular ordinances in the temple. Especially, it's a place to make serious covenants with God. As such, you don't go there right away, but when you're an adult and feel prepared to take on those covenants. To go, you get a 'recommend,' which is on a little card. The temple is also a good place to pray and worship. :) She will have meant a particular congregation, I think. We call our congregations wards and they are geographically based--I go to church with the people who live in my area of town, and it would need a special circumstance to justify going to a different ward. Single folks often go to a singles' ward, sometimes divided into young singles and older singles (I think it's over 30). I bet that's what she was talking about. It depends on where you live--here in my town, if you're over 30 and unmarried you just go to a family ward. The reason to have a singles ward at all is to make administration easier and get everybody mingling and married off! (That's sort of a joke...)