Three Different Glories of Heaven:Babies Do Not Go to Hell for Never Hearing the Gospel

35 But some man will say, How are the dead raised up? and with what body

do they come?

36 Thou fool, that which thou owest is not quickened, except it die:

37 And that which thou sowest, thou sowest not that body that shall be,

but bare grain, it may chance of wheat, or of some other grain:

38 But God giveth it a body as it hath pleased him, and to every seed his

own body.

39 All flesh is not the same flesh: but there is one kind of flesh of men,

another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, and another of birds.

40 There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory

of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another.

41 There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and

another glory of the stars: for one star differeth from another star in

glory.

1 Corinthians 15:35-41

Ogden Kraut's "The Resurrection"

Chapter 11

THREE DEGREES OF GLORY

It has been said that the most enlightening revelation ever given to mankind

may be Section 76 in the Doctrine and Covenants. This revelation explains

and clarifies more about man's eternal destiny than any other recorded

revelation. It could easily put an end to the strange and confusing precepts

of men concerning heaven and hell.

Information in this chapter is divided into the following four categories:

(1) General, (2) Telestial, (3) Terrestrial, and (4) Celestial.

General

Joseph Smith: (TPJS, p. 311)

"But," says one, "I believe in one universal heaven and hell, where all go,

and are all alike, and equally miserable or equally happy." What! where all

are huddled together--the honorable, virtuous, and murderers, and

whoremongers, when it is written that they shall be judged according to the

deeds done in the body? But St. Paul informs us of three glories and three

heavens. He knew a man that was caught up to the third heavens. Now, if the

doctrine of the sectarian world, that there is but one heaven, is true,

Paul, what do you tell that lie for, and say there are three? Jesus said

unto His disciples, "In my Father's house are many mansions; if it were not

so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you, and I will come

and receive you to myself, that where I am ye may be also."

[133] Brigham Young: (JD 8:154)

The sectarian world, as we call them, is a professed church of God without

the Priesthood. Sectarians have not the Priesthood; but all of them who live

according to the best light and intelligence they can obtain through

faithfulness to what they believe, as taught unto them, will receive a

kingdom and glory that will far transcend all their expectations,

imaginations, or visions in their most excited moments, whether in their

falling-down power, jumping power, or squawling power. All they have ever

desired or anticipated they will receive, and far more; but they cannot

dwell with the Father and Son, unless they go through these ordeals that are

ordained for the Church of the First born. The ordinances of the house of

God are expressly for the Church of the First born.

Brigham Young: (JD 8:152-153)

I will read a portion of the vision Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon had

concerning various kingdoms that God has prepared for his subjects: (See

Sec. 92:7 Doc. and Cov., the then current edition--1860. Now Sec.

76:96-113.) I do not know that I have any particular desire to dwell upon

this any more than any other subject of the Gospel, although, this subject,

in the abstract, occupies more of my affection, adoration, and heartfelt

gratitude to our Father and God than any other that has ever been revealed

to my knowledge, from the days of Adam to the present. I can truly say

that, in my estimation, no other revelation so glorious was ever given. You

may read the character of the Deity as portrayed in all that has ever been

revealed, until you come to this vision, in relation to his justice, his

judgment, his power, his life, his glory, his excellence, his goodness, his

mercy, and the fullness of every gift, of every trait, of every principle

inherent in the character of the Supreme Being, and it is not equal in [134]

magnitude, in my reflections, to that which God revealed to Joseph Smith and

Sidney Rigdon in the vision from which I have read. We are far advanced in

the things of the kingdom of God. To say nothing about any other principle

or doctrine that has ever been revealed, the transcending glory, excellency,

wisdom, goodness, virtue, and power that God has revealed in this vision far

outweigh all the Christian tenets, doctrines, and systems they have drawn

from the Bible. No cistern, to use a figure, hewn by man, can hold water;

and every human doctrine and principle, professing to point the way of

salvation, fades away. The doctrine God has revealed here is more precious

to me, and is worth more than all the doctrines of Christendom.

Brigham Young: (JD 17:159)

I expect one thing will be true that Joseph said when living. A gentleman

came to see him and asked him a great many questions, and among the rest he

said: "I suppose you calculate that you are just right, and that you

"Mormons" are all going to be saved and everybody else will be damned." Said

Joseph, "Sir, I will tell you this one thing, all the rest of the world will

be damned, and I expect that most of the "Mormons" will be unless they do

better than they have done." The man did not stop for an explanation. What

Joseph meant by being damned was that people will go into the spirit world

without the Priesthood, and consequently they are under the power of Satan,

and will have to be redeemed, or else they will be forever under his power.

That is all there is about that.

John Taylor: (JD 26:133, 1883)

We are told that if we cannot abide the law of the celestial kingdom we

cannot inherit a celestial glory. Is [135] not that doctrine? Yes. "But,"

says one, "are not we all going into the celestial kingdom?" I think not,

unless we turn round and mend our ways very materially. It is only those who

can abide a celestial glory and obey a celestial law that will be prepared

to enter a celestial kingdom. "Well," says another, "are the others going to

be burned up?" No. "Do you expect everybody to walk according to this higher

law?" No, I do not. And do I expect those that do not are going into the

celestial kingdom? No, I do not. "Well, where will they go?" If they are

tolerably good men and do not do anything very bad, they will get into a

terrestrial kingdom, and if there are some that cannot abide a terrestrial

law, they may get into the telestial kingdom, or otherwise, as the case may

be.

Parley P. Pratt: (Key to Theology, pp. 143-144)

The final state of man, though varying in almost infinite gradations and

rewards, adapted to his qualifications and deserts, and meted out in the

scale of exact justice and mercy, may be conceived or expressed under three

grand heads or principal spheres, viz.: First. The Telestial, or least

heaven, typified by the stars of the firmament. Secondly. The Terrestrial,

or intermediate heaven, typified by the moon. Thirdly. The Celestial, or

third heaven, of which the sun of the firmament is typical. The

qualifications which fit and prepare intelligences for these different

spheres or rewards are an all important consideration, and well worthy of

the sincere attention of all people. These several kingdoms or degrees, and

their comparative happiness, and what characters are candidates for each

degree, are revealed in a most concise, clear, lucid and beautiful manner,

in one of the visions of our great Prophet and founder.

[136] Joseph Fielding Smith: (Doctrines of Salvation 2:287-288)

Elder Orson Pratt many years ago in writing of the resurrection and the kind

of bodies which would be raised in these kingdoms said: "In every species of

animals and plants, there are many resemblances in the general outlines and

many specific differences characterizing the individuals of each species. So

in the resurrection. There will be several classes of resurrected bodies;

some celestial, some terrestrial, some telestial, and some sons of

perdition. Each of these classes will differ from the others by prominent

and marked distinctions; yet, in each, considered by itself there will be

found many resemblances as well as distinctions." Some of the

functions in the celestial body will not appear in the terrestrial body,

neither in the telestial body, and the power of procreation will be removed.

I take it that men and women will, in these kingdoms, be just what the

so-called Christian world expects us all to be--neither man nor woman,

merely immortal beings having received the resurrection.

Joseph Fielding Smith: (Doctrine and Covenants 138:58-59, "Vision of

Redemption of the Dead")

The dead who repent will be redeemed, through obedience to the ordinances of

the house of God, and after they have paid the penalty of their

transgressions, and are washed clean, shall receive a reward according to

their works, for they are heirs of salvation.

[137] Telestial Kingdom

Times and Seasons: (p. 84)

These are they that deny not the spirit of God, But are thrust down to hell,

with the devil, for sins, As hypocrites, liars, whoremongers, and thieves,

And stay 'till the last resurrection begins.

Doctrine and Covenants 76:81-90, 98-112:

And again, we saw the glory of the telestial, which glory is that of the

lesser, even as the glory of the stars differs from that of the glory of the

moon in the firmament. These are they who received not the gospel of Christ,

neither the testimony of Jesus. These are they who deny not the Holy Ghost.

These are they who are thrust down to hell. These are they who shall not be

redeemed from the devil until the last resurrection, until the Lord, even

Christ the Lamb, shall have finished his work. These are they who receive

not of his fulness in the eternal world, but of the Holy Spirit through the

ministration of the terrestrial; And the terrestrial through the

ministration of the celestial. And also the telestial receive it of the

administering of angels who are appointed to minister for them, or who are

appointed to be ministering spirits for them; for they shall be heirs of

salvation. And thus we saw, in the heavenly vision, the glory of the

telestial, which surpasses all understanding; and no man knows it except him

to whom God has revealed it. And the glory of the telestial is one,

even as the glory of the stars is one; for as one star differs from another

star in glory, even so differs one from another in glory in the telestial

world; for these are they who are of Paul, and of Apollos, and of Cephas.

These are they who say they are some of one and some of another--some of

Christ and some of John, and some of Moses, and some of Elias, and some of

Esaias, and some of Isaiah, and some of Enoch; But received not the gospel,

neither the testimony of Jesus, neither the prophets, neither the

everlasting covenant. [138] Last of all, these all are they who will not be

gathered with the saints, to be caught up unto the church of the Firstborn,

and received into the cloud. These are they who are liars, and sorcerers,

and adulterers, and whoremongers, and whosoever loves and makes a lie. These

are they who suffer the wrath of God on earth. These are they who suffer the

vengeance of eternal fire. These are they who are cast down to hell and

suffer the wrath of Almighty God, until the fulness of times, when Christ

shall have subdued all enemies under his feet, and shall have perfected his

work; when he shall deliver up the kingdom, and present it unto the Father,

spotless, saying: I have overcome and have trodden the wine-press alone,

even the wine-press of the fierceness of the wrath of Almighty God. Then

shall he be crowned with the crown of his glory, to sit on the throne of his

power to reign forever and ever. But behold, and lo, we saw the glory and

the inhabitants of the telestial world, that they were as innumerable as the

stars in the firmament of heaven, or as the sand upon the seashore; and

heard the voice of the Lord saying: These all shall bow the knee, and every

tongue shall confess to him who sits upon the throne forever and ever; for

they shall be judged according to their works, and every man shall receive

according to his own works, his own dominion, in the mansions which are

prepared; and they shall be servants of the Most High; but where God and

Christ dwell they cannot come, worlds without end.

Joseph Fielding Smith: (Doctrines of Salvation 2:297-298)

All liars, and sorcerers, and adulterers and all who love and make a lie,

shall not receive the resurrection at this time, but for a thousand years

shall be thrust down into hell where they shall suffer the wrath of God

until they pay the price of their sinning, if it is possible, by the things

which they shall suffer. [139] These are the "spirits of men who are to be

judged, and are found under condemnation; And these are the rest of the

dead; and they live not again until the thousand years are ended, neither

again, until the end of the earth." (D. & C. 88:100-101) These are the hosts

of the telestial world who are condemned to "suffer the wrath of God on

earth"; and who are "cast down to hell and suffer the wrath of Almighty God,

until the fulness of times, when Christ shall have subdued all enemies under

his feet, and shall have perfected his work." (D. & C. 76:104-106)

Orson Pratt: (JD 15:322)

Now let us come to still inferior glories. I have mentioned those who

inherit the glory of the stars. Who are they? They are not the heathen, for

they come up higher--into the terrestrial glory. Who are they, then, who are

permitted only to inherit a glory typified by the stars? They are the

general world of mankind, those who have heard the Gospel of the Son of God

but have not obeyed it. They are to be punished. How long? Until Jesus has

reigned here on the earth a thousand years. How much longer? Until the

"little season" has passed away after the end of the thousand years, and

then when the final end shall come and the trump of God shall sound, and the

great white throne shall appear and the heaven and the earth shall flee

away; when that time shall come, the sound of the trump shall call forth

those sleeping millions of all ages, generations and nations who have heard

the sound of the Gospel and have not obeyed it, but until then their bodies

must sleep. They are not worthy of the first resurrection.

[140] Terrestrial Kingdom

Times and Seasons: (p. 84)

These are they that are hon'rable men of the earth; Who were blinded and

dup'd by the cunning of men: They receiv'd not the truth of the Savior at

first; But did, when they heard it in prison, again.

Doctrine and Covenants 76:71-79; 91, 97:

And again, we saw the terrestrial world, and behold and lo, these are they

who are of the terrestrial, whose glory differs from that of the church of

the Firstborn who have received the fulness of the Father, even as that of

the moon differs from the sun in the firmament. Behold, these are they who

died without law; And also they who are the spirits of men kept in prison,

whom the Son visited, and preached the gospel unto them, that they might be

judged according to men in the flesh; Who received not the testimony of

Jesus in the flesh, but afterwards received it. These are they who are

honorable men of the earth, who were blinded by the craftiness of men. These

are they who received of his glory, but not of his fulness. These are they

who receive of the presence of the Son, but not of the fulness of the

Father. Wherefore, they are bodies terrestrial, and not bodies celestial,

and differ in glory as the moon differs from the sun. These are they who are

not valiant in the testimony of Jesus; wherefore, they obtain not the crown

over the kingdom of our God. And thus we saw the glory of the

terrestrial which excels in all things the glory of the telestial, even in

glory, and in power, and in might, and in dominion. And the glory of

the terrestrial is one, even as the glory of the moon is one.

[141] Cleon Skousen: (Imp. Era, July 1969, see pp. 72-75)

Verses 71-79 (of Section 76) state that if a person has an opportunity to

embrace the fullness of the gospel during earth life but postpones,

accepting it until he reaches the spirit world, then he cannot be an heir to

the celestial kingdom. He drops down to the next level, the terrestrial. Of

course, if a person never even hears the gospel until he reaches the spirit

world (and that has been the case with the majority of mankind), then he can

accept it in the spirit world without any penalty, provided he would have

accepted it in the flesh. In due time the ordinance work will be done for

him vicariously (such as baptism for the dead referred to by Paul in 1

Corinthians 15:29), and then that person will be resurrected to the

celestial glory just as though he had accepted the gospel while in earth

life.

Joseph Fielding Smith: (Doctrines of Salvation 2:296-297)

Following this great event, and after the Lord and the righteous who are

caught up to meet him have descended upon the earth, there will come to pass

another resurrection. This may be considered as a part of the first,

although it comes later. In this resurrection will come forth those of the

terrestrial order, who were not worthy to be caught up to meet him, but who

are worthy to come forth to enjoy the millennial reign.

It is written that the second angel shall sound, which is the second trump,

"and then cometh the redemption of those who are Christ's at his coming; who

have received their part in the prison which is prepared for them, that they

might receive the gospel, and be judged according to men in the flesh." (D.

& C. 76:73-75) This other class, which will also have right to the first

resurrection, are those who are not members of the Church of the Firstborn,

but who have led honorable lives, although they refused to accept the

fulness of the gospel. [142] Also in this class will be numbered those who

died without law and hence are not under condemnation for a violation of the

commandments of the Lord. The promise is made to them of redemption from

death in the following words: "And then shall the heathen nations be

redeemed, and they that knew no law shall have part in the first

resurrection; and it shall be tolerable for them." (D. & C. 45:54) These,

too, shall partake of the mercies of the Lord and shall receive the

reuniting of spirit and body inseparably, thus becoming immortal, but not

with the fulness of the glory of God.

Brigham Young: (Contributor 11:87)

With your mind's eye look at the millions of them in all nations who are

doing according to the best knowledge they possess. What! the Roman

Catholics? Yes, and then every one of her daughters down to the latest

Protestant Church that has been organized. They are all doing just as well

as they can, and living according to the best light they have--a great many

of them, though not all. What shall we do with them? They pass from the

world, their spirits go into the spiritual world, and their bodies go back

to their mother earth, and there sleep while their spirits are before the

Lord. Are they happy? Every son and daughter of Adam who live according to

the best light and knowledge they have, when they go into the spiritual

world, are happy in proportion to their faithfulness. For instance, take a

view of some of our late reformers; take the best specimen of reformers that

we have, who are all the time full of glory and happiness and full of praise

to the Lord--who meet together oft to sing and pray and preach and shout and

give thanks to the Lord Almighty; and in a great many instances and in a

great degree they enjoy much of a good spirit, which is the Spirit of the

Lord, or the light of Christ, which lighteth the world. Now, this may be

singular to some. What! they enjoy the Spirit of the Lord? Yes, every man

and woman, ac-[143]cording to their faith and the knowledge they have in

their possession. They enjoy the goodness of their Father in heaven. Do they

receive the Spirit of the Lord? They do, and enjoy the light of it, and walk

in it, and rejoice in it. What will be their state hereafter? Every faithful

Methodist that has lived up to and faithfully fulfilled the requirements of

his religion, according to the best light he had, doing good to all and evil

to none, injuring no person upon the earth, honoring his God as far as he

knew, will have as great a heaven as he ever anticipated in the flesh, and

far greater. Every Presbyterian, and every Quaker, and every Baptist, and

every Roman Catholic member--every reformer, of whatever class or grade,

that lives according to the best light they have, and never have had an

opportunity of receiving a greater light than the one in their possession,

will have and enjoy all they live for. I am telling you the truth as it is,

and you may write it down if you please, and call it revelation if you will.

But it has been revealed before I revealed it here to-day. This is the

situation of Christendom after death. You may go among the Pagans, or among

all the nations there are, and they have their religion, their sacraments

and ceremonies, which are as sacred to them as ours are to us; they are just

as precious and dear to them, though we call them heathen. They are

idolatrous worshippers; yet their religion is as sacred to them as ours is

to us. If they live according to the best light they have in their religion,

God is God over all and the Father of us all; we are all the workmanship of

His hands; and if they are ignorant, filled with superstition, and have the

traditions of the fathers interwoven like a mantle around and over them,

that they cannot see any light, so will they be judged; and if they have

lived according to what they did possess, so they will receive hereafter.

And will it be glory? you may inquire. Yes. Glory, glory, glory to our

merciful Father in heaven; for the least glory is so great and so exquisite

that it is altogether beyond mortal perception.

[144] Orson Pratt: (JD 15:322)

But how about these terrestrials, can they come up into the celestial? No,

their intelligence and knowledge have not prepared and adapted them to dwell

with those who reign in celestial glory, consequently they cannot even be

angels in that glory. They have not obeyed the law that pertains to that

glory, and hence they could not abide it. But will there be blessings

administered to them by those who dwell in celestial glory? Yes, angels will

be sent forth from the celestial world to minister to those who inherit the

glory of the moon, bearing messages of joy and peace and of all that which

is calculated to exalt, to redeem and ennoble those who have been

resurrected into a terrestrial glory. They can receive the Spirit of the

Lord there, and the ministration of angels there.

Celestial Kingdom

Times and Seasons: (p. 84)

They are they, of the church of the first born of God,-And unto whose hands

he committeth all things; For they hold the keys of the kingdom of heav'n,

And reign with the Savior, as priests, and as kings.

Doctrine and Covenants 76:50-70; 92-96

And again we bear record--for we saw and heard, and this is the testimony of

the gospel of Christ concerning them who shall come forth in the

resurrection of the just--They are they who received the testimony of Jesus,

and believed on his name and were baptized after the manner of his burial,

being buried in the water in his name, and this according to the commandment

which he has given--That by keeping the commandments they might [145] be

washed and cleansed from all their sins, and receive the Holy Spirit by the

laying on of the hands of him who is ordained and sealed unto this power;

and who overcome by faith, and are sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise,

which the Father sheds forth upon all those who are just and true. They are

they who are the church of the Firstborn. They are they into whose hands the

Father has given all things--They are they who are priests and kings, who

have received of his fulness, and of his glory; And are priests of the Most

High, after the order of Melchizedek, which was after the order of Enoch,

which was after the order of the Only Begotten Son. Wherefore, as it is

written, they are gods, even the sons of God--Wherefore, all things are

theirs, whether life or death, or things present, or things to come, all are

theirs and they are Christ's, and Christ is God's. And they shall overcome

all things. Wherefore, let no man glory in man, but rather let him glory in

God, who shall subdue all enemies under his feet. These shall dwell in the

presence of God and his Christ forever and ever. These are they whom he

shall bring with him, when he shall come in the clouds of heaven to reign on

the earth over his people. These are they who shall have part in the first

resurrection. These are they who shall come forth in the resurrection of the

just. These are they who are come unto Mount Zion, and unto the city of the

living God, the heavenly place, the holiest of all.

These are they who have come to an innumerable company of angels, to the

general assembly and church of Enoch, and of the Firstborn. These are they

whose names are written in heaven, where God and Christ are the judge of

all.

These are they who are just men made perfect through Jesus the mediator of

the new covenant, who wrought out this perfect atonement through the

shedding of his own blood. These are they whose bodies are celestial, whose

glory is that of the sun, even the glory of God, the highest of all, whose

glory the sun of the firmament is written of as being typical. [146]

And thus we saw the glory of the celestial, which excels in all

things--where God, even the Father, reigns upon his throne forever and ever;

Before whose throne all things bow in humble reverence, and give him glory

forever and ever. They who dwell in his presence are the church of the

Firstborn; and they see as they are seen, and know as they are known, having

received of his fulness and of his grace; And he makes them equal in power,

and in might, and in dominion. And the glory of the celestial is one, even

as the glory of the sun is one.

Joseph Smith: ("Vision of the Celestial Kingdom", D.H.C. 2:380-381; TPJS, p.

107; D. & C. 137:1-10)

The heavens were opened upon us, and I beheld the celestial kingdom of God,

and the glory thereof, whether in the body or out I cannot tell. I saw the

transcendent beauty of the gate through which the heirs of that kingdom will

enter, which was like unto circling flames of fire; also the blazing throne

of God, whereon was seated the Father and the Son. I saw the beautiful

streets of that kingdom, which had the appearance of being paved with gold.

I saw Father Adam and Abraham, and my father and my mother, my brother,

Alvin, that has long since slept, and marvelled how it was that he had

obtained an inheritance in that kingdom, seeing that he had departed this

life before the Lord had set his hand to gather Israel the second time, and

had not been baptized for the remission of sins. Thus came the Voice of the

Lord unto me, saying--All who have died without a knowledge of this Gospel,

who would have received it if they had been permitted to tarry, shall be

heirs of the celestial kingdom of God; also all that shall die henceforth

without a knowledge of it, who would have received it with all their hearts,

shall be heirs of that kingdom, for I, the Lord, will judge all men

according to their works, according to the desire of their hearts. [147] And

I also beheld that all children who die before they arrive at the years of

accountability, are saved in the celestial kingdom of heaven.

Joseph Fielding Smith: (Doctrines of Salvation 2:296)

In modern revelation given to the Church, the Lord has made known more in

relation to this glorious event. There shall be at least two classes which

shall have the privilege of the resurrection at this time: First, those who

"shall dwell in the presence of God and his Christ forever and ever"; (D. &

C. 76:62) and second, honorable men, those who belong to the terrestrial

kingdom as well as those of the celestial kingdom. At the time of the coming

of Christ, "They who have slept in their graves shall come forth, for their

graves shall be opened; and they also shall be caught up to meet him in the

midst of the pillar of heaven--They are Christ's, the first fruits, they who

shall descend with him first, and they who are on the earth and in their

graves, who are first caught up to meet him; and all this by the voice of

the sounding of the trump of the angel of God." (D. & C. 88:97-98) These are

the just, "whose names are written in heaven, where God and Christ are the

judge of all. These are they who are just men made perfect through Jesus the

mediator of the new covenant, who wrought out this perfect atonement through

the shedding of his own blood." (D. & C. 76:68-69)

Parley P. Pratt: (Key to Theology, pp. 168-170)

To contemplate man in his true light, we must, as it were, forget that death

is in his path; we must look upon him as an eternal, ever-living being,

possessing spirit, flesh and bones, with all the mental and physical organs,

and all the affections and sympathies which characterize [148] him in this

world. Or, rather, all his natural affections and sympathies will be

purified, exalted and immeasurably increased. Let the candidate for

celestial glory forget, for a moment, the groveling sphere of his present

existence, and make the effort to contemplate himself in the light of

eternity, in the higher spheres of his progressive existence, beyond the

grave, a pure spirit, free from sin and guile, enlightened in the school of

heaven, by observation and experience, and association with the highest

order of intelligences, for thousands of years, and clothed with immortal

flesh, in all the vigor, freshness and beauty of eternal youth, alike free

from pain, disease, death, and the corroding effects of time, looking back

through the vista of far distant years, and contemplating his former sojourn

amid the sorrows and pains of mortal life, his passage through the dark

valley of death and his sojourn in the spirit world, as we now contemplate a

transient dream, or a night of sleep, from which we have awakened, renewed

and refreshed, to enter again upon the realities of life. O candidates for

celestial glory! Would your joys be full in the countless years of eternity

without forming the connections, the relationship, the kindred ties which

concentrate in the domestic circle, and branch forth, and bud and blossom,

and bear the fruits of eternal increase? Or, would you, like your

heavenly Father, prompted by eternal benevolence and charity, wish to fill

countless millions of worlds with your begotten sons and daughters, and to

bring them through all the gradations of progressive being, to inherit

immortal bodies and eternal mansions in your several dominions? If such be

your aspirations, remember that this present probation is the world of

preparation for joys eternal. This is the place where family organization is

first formed for eternity, and where the kindred sympathies, relationships

and affections take root, spring forth, shoot upward, bud, blossom and bear

fruit to ripen and mature in eternal ages.

[149] Orson Pratt: (The Seer, p. 37)

The celestial beings who dwell in the Heaven from which we came, having been

raised from the grave in a former world, and having been filled with all the

fulness of these eternal attributes, are called Gods, because the fulness of

God dwells in each. Both the males and the females enjoy this fulness. The

celestial vegetables and fruits which grow out of the soil of this redeemed

Heaven, constitute the food of the Gods. This food differs from the food

derived from the vegetables of a fallen world; the latter are converted into

blood, which, circulating in the veins and arteries, produces flesh and

bones of a mortal nature, having a constant tendency to decay; while the

former, or celestial vegetables, are, when digested in the stomach,

converted into a fluid, which, in its nature, is spiritual, and which,

circulating in the veins and arteries of the celestial male and female,

preserves their tabernacles from decay and death. Earthly vegetables form

blood, and blood forms flesh and bones; celestial vegetables, when digested,

form a spiritual fluid which gives immortality and eternal life to the

organization in which it flows. Fallen beings beget children whose bodies

are constituted of flesh and bones, being formed out of the blood

circulating in the veins of the parents. Celestial beings beget children,

composed of the fluid which circulates in their veins, which is spiritual;

therefore, their children must be spirits, and not flesh and bones. This is

the origin of our spiritual organization in heaven. The spirits of all

mankind, destined for this earth, were begotten by a father, and born of a

mother in Heaven, long anterior to the formation of this world. The

personages of the father and mother of our spirits, had a beginning to their

organization, but the fulness of truth (which is God) that dwells in them,

had no beginning; being "from everlasting to everlasting." (Psalm 90:2)

[150] Orson Pratt: (JD 19:176)

The Saints then will be resurrected, and they will also be the inhabitants

of this globe. They are singing about it in heaven, while their bodies are

sleeping in the grave. Read the 5th chapter of John's Revelations, that will

give you an idea what the Saints of heaven anticipate. The words of the new

song which John heard them sing, were: "Thou art worthy to take the book,

and to open the seals thereof; for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to

God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue and people and nation. And

hast made us unto our God kings and priests; and we shall reign on the

earth!" How plain! "We shall reign on the earth!" They hope for it; they

sing about it; they expect it, just as much as we hope to go with them, and

mingle with them, and just as much as we have faith that we will, when we

lay our bodies down in the grave, go to our former abode where we once were,

to the mansions prepared, and that we will join with the heavenly hosts. We

will not forget the earth; it is our native abode; but instead of forgetting

it, we will join with them in their new song, and with them we will look

forward with joyful anticipation to the day when we shall return to reign on

the earth, having been made kings and priests unto our God.

Brigham Young: (JD 15:137)

And when our spirits receive our bodies, and through our faithfulness we are

worthy to be crowned, we will then receive authority to produce both spirit

and body. But these keys we cannot receive in the flesh. Herein, brethren,

you can perceive that we have not finished, and cannot finish our work,

while we live here, no more than Jesus did while he was in the flesh. We

cannot receive, while in the flesh, the keys to form and fashion kingdoms

and to organize matter, for they are beyond our capacity and calling, beyond

this world. In the resurrection, men who have been faithful and [151]

diligent in all things in the flesh, have kept their first and second

estate, and worthy to be crowned Gods, even the sons of God, will be

ordained to organize matter.

Doctrine and Covenants: 131:1-4

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.

Cleon Skousen: (Imp. Era, July 1969, see pp. 72-75)

Modern revelation has further disclosed that the celestial kingdom is

divided into three heavens or degrees. (D. & C. 131:1) To attain the highest

degree, one must be married for time and eternity by the power of God's holy

priesthood. (D. & C. 131:2-3) Only those who qualify for this highest

discipline enjoy a continuing family relationship in the eternal worlds. (D.

& C. 132:19) And only those who qualify for this level will have the

privilege of being tutored to follow in the footsteps of the Father and

share in his infinite power. (D. & C. 132:20) To these the Father says he

will give "all things." Then the scripture adds, "They are they who are

priests and kings, who have received of his fulness, and of his glory. . . .

Wherefore, as it is written, they are gods, even the sons of God." (D. & C.

76:55-56, 58)

Orson Pratt: (JD 21:292)

But here arises another question,--one of the greatest importance to the

children of men of all generations, and that is, are there any marriages

that God will recognize which he is not the author of? In other words,

sup-[152]posing that two persons in the Roman Catholic church, in the Greek

church, in any Protestant church, or two persons that do not belong to any

religious denomination, are married by a minister, by a justice of the

peace, by any person professing to have authority among men, to celebrate

the marriage ceremony--have they any claim upon each other when death

separates them? According to their own covenants they do not. The minister

only married them till death should them part. When death comes along and

separates these two persons, their marriage covenant has expired; it has run

out, it is at an end. But, inquires one, will not the Lord permit them to

live together as husband and wife, after the resurrection? Why should he? If

he had joined them together, according to the marriage ceremony that was

administered to the first pair of immortality, then they could claim each

other, after the resurrection; but inasmuch as the ceremony was performed by

an uninspired man, not sent of God, and having no power to seal on earth

that it should be sealed in heaven, of course their marriage covenant

expires; that is the eternal end of their association. Now, the Latter-day

Saints are not willing to go according to the tradition of the sectarian

denominations of the earth; but we desire this great, this important

ceremony to be performed so that it may be enduring, so that it never shall

have an end, but last while eternal ages shall last.

Brigham Young: (JD 16:166)

Now, where a man in this Church says, "I don't want but one wife, I will

live my religion with one," he will perhaps be saved in the celestial

kingdom; but when he gets there he will not find himself in possession of

any wife at all. He has had a talent that he has hid up. He will come

forward and say, "Here is that which thou gavest me, I have not wasted it,

and here is the one talent," and he will not enjoy it, but it will be taken

and given to those who have improved the talents they received, and he will

find himself without any wife, and he will remain [153] single forever and

ever. But if the woman is determined not to enter into a plural marriage,

that woman when she comes forth will have the privilege of living in single

blessedness through all eternity.

Charles W. Penrose: (JD 25:227)

.. . . but shall wed under the everlasting covenant and have their wives

given them of the Lord and sealed to them by an holy ordinance revealed from

heaven, in a holy place prepared for the purpose--sealed for time and all

eternity, so that death shall not be able to break the bond of union; that

though death may separate them for a little season, when they come up in the

resurrection, there will be no need to marry or give in marriage, because

they were married on the earth by authority of God Almighty for time and all

eternity, ...

Orson Pratt: (JD 15:252)

Another question. Having been married for eternity, we die and our spirits

go into celestial paradise. We come forth in the morning of the first

resurrection as immortal males and immortal females. Our wives, married to

us for eternity, come forth, and they are ours by virtue of that which God

has pronounced upon them through those whom he has appointed, and to whom he

has given authority. We have a legal claim upon them at the resurrection.

But here comes forth a person that is married outside. She comes up without

a husband, he without a wife, or any claim upon any of the blessings. Here

is the difference between these two classes of beings. One dwells as an

angel, without any power to increase their species, family or dominions,

without the power to beget sons and daughters. This class will be angels.

Perhaps many of them will be worthy of obtaining a degree of power, glory,

and happiness, but not a fullness. Why? Because they have not come up to

[154] that position of their Father and their God. He has power to beget and

bring forth sons and daughters in the spirit world; and after he has brought

forth millions and millions of spirits, he has power to organize worlds, and

send these spirits into these worlds to take temporal bodies to prepare them

in turn to be redeemed and become Gods, or in other words, the sons of God,

growing up like their father, possessing all his attributes, and propagating

their species through all eternity. Here then is the difference between

these two classes of beings--one having lost what they might have obtained

and enjoyed if they had had faith in God and been willing to obey his

commandments. But the others are worthy, as the Apostle Paul has said, to

obtain a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while the others

will be angels or servants, to go and come at the bidding of those who are

more exalted.

Joseph Smith: (TPJS, p. 312)

Gods have an ascendancy over the angels, who are ministering servants. In

the resurrection, some are raised to be angels, others are raised to become

Gods.

Orson Pratt: (JD 15:319)

.. . . I wish more particularly to inquire concerning the nature of this

higher state of glory called celestial. Will there be any difference among

those who are redeemed into that glory? There will, in some respects. They

will all be equal in the enjoyment of some blessings, and so far their glory

will be the same, but yet in some respects there will be a difference. Some

who will inherit a portion of that glory will have no families; they will be

deprived of that blessing to all ages of eternity, while others will receive

an exaltation and kingdom, and will have wives, children, dominion,

greatness and power far above those I first referred to. [155] Now why

should there be this distinction in the celestial kingdom, and what is the

cause of it? It is because certain persons who have obeyed the Gospel have

become careless and indifferent in regard to securing that high exaltation

which was within their reach. God has revealed to this people what is

needful for an exaltation in his kingdom. He has revealed to us that

marriage is destined for eternity as well as time,--that the marriage

covenant between male and female must be entered into in this life, and the

ordinance performed here by those whom God has appointed and ordained to

hold the keys and authority to seal on earth that it may be sealed in

heaven; for in heaven there is neither marrying nor giving in marriage, no

such thing can be attended to there. Now persons among the Latter-day Saints

who do not enter into this covenant of marriage but prefer to lead a single

life cannot enjoy all that fullness of exaltation which will be possessed by

those who have had this covenant sealed upon them. They might not have

forfeited the blessing of celestial glory altogether, but they have

forfeited the right to have wives by which only they could have a posterity

in the eternal worlds. Who will be the subjects in the kingdom which they

will rule who are exalted in the celestial kingdom of our God? Will they

reign over their neighbors' children? Oh no. Over whom then will they reign?

Their own children, their own posterity will be the citizens of their

kingdoms; in other words, the patriarchal order will prevail there to the

endless ages of eternity, and the children of each patriarch will be his

while eternal ages roll on.

Franklin D. Richards: (JD 25:233-235)

He <Christ> taught the doctrine of the resurrection, saying that He was the

resurrection and the life, and that the day will come when all they that are

in their graves shall hear His voice and shall come forth. It was because He

taught this doctrine that the Sadducees sought to entangle and confuse Him

concerning this principle by bringing up the case of the woman who married a

man and he [156] died without any children; then because he died childless

she married his brother, which was according to the law of Moses. He also

died without children, and so on, each of the brothers marrying her, until

the seven brothers had her to wife, and last of all the woman died also.

These Sadducees did not believe in any resurrection, and they thought to be

very crafty with the Savior, so they put the question squarely to Him:

"Therefore in the resurrection, whose wife shall she be of the seven? for

they all had her." They evidently thought they had caught the Savior then;

but He replied to them saying: "Ye do err, not knowing the Scriptures, nor

the power of God." Now, who was He talking to? He was speaking to those

Sadducees who denied there being any resurrection; who lived

contemporaneously with the seven men and this woman who had lived and died

among them. He was talking to a race of people to whom John the Baptist had

come, and many had received his testimony; but these had not. It was

to this class of people, who were living under these circumstances, that He

makes the answer saying, "For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are

given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven." Luke the

Evangelist, stating this case in his 20th chapter, says: "The children of

this world marry and are given in marriage, but they which shall be

accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead,

neither marry, nor are given in marriage; neither can they die any more; for

they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the

children of the resurrection." Had they hearkened to the Prophets, the

Apostles, the words of the Savior, and received the everlasting covenant,

they would have been made heirs of God and joint heirs with our Lord Jesus

Christ, and would have been made heirs of the celestial world, with power to

increase eternally, being Gods, even the sons of God, but now that they

would not receive the Gospel, the Prophets, nor the everlasting covenant

which they might have received, they can only become as the angels in

heaven, who in that world neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are

equal to the angels in heaven.

[157] Orson Pratt: (JD 16:177)

Says one--"What are you going to do with that Scripture which says that in

the resurrection, they neither marry nor are given in marriage?" I am going

to let it stand precisely as it is, without the least alteration. A man who

is so foolish as to neglect the divine ordinance of marriage for eternity,

here in this world, and does not secure to himself a wife for all eternity,

will not have the opportunity of doing so in the resurrection; for Jesus

says, that after the resurrection there is neither marrying nor giving in

marriage. It is an ordinance that pertains to this world, and here it must

be attended to; and parties neglecting it wilfully, here in this life,

deprive themselves of the blessings of that union forever in the world to

come. It is so with regard to baptism. We are bringing up these two divine

ordinances to show you how they harmonize. A man who, in this life, hears

the Gospel and knows that it is his duty to be baptized in order that he may

come forth in the morning of the resurrection with a celestial, glorified

body, like unto that of our Lord Jesus Christ, and neglects baptism and dies

without attending to the ordinance, cannot be baptized himself after the

resurrection of the dead, any more than he can be married after the

resurrection of the dead. Why not? Because God has appointed that both

marriage and baptism shall be attended to in the flesh, and if neglected

here, the blessings are forfeited.

Parley P. Pratt: (Key to Theology, pp. 180-181)

"And after death, in distant spheres The union still renew."

The eternal union of the sexes, in and after the resurrection, is mainly for

the purpose of renewing and continuing the work of procreation. In our

present or rudimental state, our offspring are in our own image and partake

of our natures, in which are the seeds of death. In [158] like manner will

the offspring of immortal and celestial beings be in the likeness and

partake of the nature of their divine parentage. Hence, such offspring will

be pure, holy, incorruptible and eternal. They will in no wise be subject

unto death, except by descending to partake of the grosser elements, in

which are the inherent properties of dissolution or death. To descend thus

and to be made subject to sorrow, pain and death, is the only road to the

resurrection and to the higher degrees of immortality and eternal life. It

is by contrast that intelligences appreciate and enjoy. How shall the sweet

be known without the bitter? How shall joy be appreciated without sorrow?

Or, how shall life be valued, or its eternal duration appreciated, without a

contact with its mortal antagonist, death? Hence, the highest degrees of

eternal felicity are approached by the strait gate and the narrow path which

leads through the dark valley of death, to eternal mansions in the realms of

endless life. This path has been trodden by the Eternal Father, by His Son,

Jesus Christ, and by all the sons and daughters of God who are exalted to a

fullness of joys celestial.

Brigham Young: (JD 6:275)

After man have got their exaltations and their crowns--have become Gods,

even the sons of God--are made Kings of kings and Lords of lords, they have

the power then of propagating their species in spirit; and that is the first

of their operations with regard to organizing a world. Power is then given

to them to organize the elements, and then commence the organization of

tabernacles. How can they do it? Have they to go to that earth? Yes, an Adam

will have to go there, and he cannot do without Eve; he must have Eve to

commence the work of generation, and they will go into the garden, and

continue to eat and drink of the fruits of the corporeal world, until this

grosser matter is diffused sufficiently [159] through their celestial bodies

to enable them, according to the established laws, to produce mortal

tabernacles for their spiritual children. This is a key for you. The

faithful will become Gods, even the sons of God; but this does not overthrow

the idea that we have a father. Adam is my father; (this I will explain to

you at some future time;) but it does not prove that he is not my father, if

I become a God: it does not prove that I have not a father.

Orson Pratt: (JD 15:220)

The increase of those who are exalted in that kingdom will endure forever;

and the bringing forth of children will not be attended with sorrow, pain

and distress as it is here: these evils have come in consequence of the fall

of man and the transgression by him of God's holy laws. But when men are

redeemed to immortality and eternal life, there will be no pain, sorrow or

affliction of body, and yet children will be brought forth, and to their

increase there will be no end. Hence the promise of God to the patriarchs

Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, that their seed should be as numerous as the stars

of heaven, or as the sands upon the sea shore. We all know that the sand on

the sea shore is innumerable to us. If we take a handful it numbers in tens

of thousands of grains, and if Abraham's seed are to become as numerous as

the sands on the sea shore, they will fill a great many worlds like this of

ours. There is to be no end to the increase of the old Patriarch, and, as

his posterity increases, world on world will be created and brought into

existence, and those children will be sent forth from the presence of the

Patriarch to take upon themselves bodies, as we have done here in this

world. I mean their spirits. Understand me now, resurrected parents are the

parents not of bodies of flesh and bones, but of spirits the same as we were

before we came and took these mortal bodies, that is, when we lived up in

yonder world in the presence of our Father, and in the [160] company of the

thousands of millions of our brother and sister spirits. They will be of the

same class and nature, and they will have to take their position in worlds

that will be created for them the same as we came from heaven to this world,

that we might gain knowledge and experience that we could not gain in any

other way. Thus will the Lord continue his work and purposes, and there will

be one eternal round in creation, and redemption, in the formation and

redemption of worlds, and bringing them back into his presence.

<Note: Further recommended reading on this subject--Orson Pratt's discourse,

JD 15:312-324.>

--

Listen to Zion Redemption's Radio hosted by Art Bulla and Aaron Kim on

Sunday from 3 to 4 (pst). Just go to

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/hostpage.aspx?host_id=3513 All are invited to

call in live, email at art@artbulla.com, or by MSM artbulla@hotmail.com.

This show is dedicated to the redemption of Zion, revelations of Jesus

Christ, authority, Priesthood, Kingdom of God, doctrine discussed pertaining

to the salvation of Ephraim and Manasseh. During non broadcast hours you can

also listen to archived shows.

Aaron Kim

http://www.artbulla.com

On Thu, 06 Sep 2007 15:38:13 -0700, Aaron Kim wrote:

> Babies Do Not Go to Hell

Of course not, "hell" doesn't exist...

--

Mark K. Bilbo a.a. #1423

EAC Department of Linguistic Subversion

------------------------------------------------------------

"How come God gets credit whenever something good happens? Where was he

when her heart stopped?"

- Dr. House

"Mark K. Bilbo" <gmail@com.mkbilbo> wrote in message

news:MsednTRwOu7WFn3bnZ2dnUVZ_gOdnZ2d@giganews.com...

> On Thu, 06 Sep 2007 15:38:13 -0700, Aaron Kim wrote:

>

>> Babies Do Not Go to Hell

>

> Of course not, "hell" doesn't exist...

Too bad. I'd like to send all my SILs there - Fucking hypocritical bitches

--

Robyn

Resident Witchypoo

BAAWA Knight!

#1557

"Aaron Kim" <aaron@artbulla.com> wrote in message

news:5kbdqoF2v9meU1@mid.individual.net...

>

<plonk>

On Thu, 6 Sep 2007 15:38:13 -0700, "Aaron Kim" <aaron@artbulla.com>

wrote:

>It has been said that the most enlightening revelation ever given to mankind

>may be Section 76 in the Doctrine and Covenants.

What loon said that?

---

"Faith may not move mountains, but you should see what it does to skyscrapers..."

On Sep 6, 6:33 pm, raven1 <quoththera...@nevermore.com> wrote:

> On Thu, 6 Sep 2007 15:38:13 -0700, "Aaron Kim" <aa...@artbulla.com>

> wrote:

>

> >It has been said that the most enlightening revelation ever given to mankind

> >may be Section 76 in the Doctrine and Covenants.

>

> What loon said that?

> ---

>

> "Faith may not move mountains, but you should see what it does to skyscrapers..."

Maybe a cartoon.

Mormons are taught that celestial is the "best", and by paying tithing and

holding a Temple recommend they can go there. They all "strive" to comply

with this checklist to be admitted to the Celestial Kingdom.

Mormon teaching is a deception.

Actually, there are many mansions, each one the best suited to every

particular individuum. There are three big groups:

1. Celestial. Those who are inclined and get most joy from helping others,

denying oneself, going extra mile, good Samaritans, peacemakers, etc. These

will become Gods or angels to Gods and will have the widest access to the

Universe to help other (planets). Gods are never dictators, but servants.

2. Terrestrial. Those receive joy from their own work and achievements,

talents, admiration of others, etc. These are the majority.

Question: Are the doctors who save lifes celestial? Answer: No. Most of the

doctors do not care about lives of others (unless it can cause a lawsuit),

but are proud about the uniqueness and complexity of operations they make

and money they get. Doctors are terrestrial. Artists, engineers, and

majority of professions are terrestrial.

3. Telestial. Those are delighted when receive service from others. They are

after money, power, control, dictatorship or simply lazily going around

their lives, being entertained, but not giving much to the society. These

will be given the most limited access to the Universe, so that they do not

try to conquer and colonise other planets. These will be served by the

celestial ones.

So why do you, mormons, "strive" to go to celestial? Those who do not feel

like wiping other's bottoms and are concerned more about their bank

accounts, will feel better in the terrestrial...

Regards,

Alex

"Aaron Kim" <aaron@artbulla.com> wrote in message

news:5kbdqoF2v9meU1@mid.individual.net...

> 35 But some man will say, How are the dead raised up? and with what body

> do they come?

> 36 Thou fool, that which thou owest is not quickened, except it die:

> 37 And that which thou sowest, thou sowest not that body that shall be,

> but bare grain, it may chance of wheat, or of some other grain:

> 38 But God giveth it a body as it hath pleased him, and to every seed

his

> own body.

> 39 All flesh is not the same flesh: but there is one kind of flesh of

men,

> another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, and another of birds.

> 40 There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the

glory

> of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another.

> 41 There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and

> another glory of the stars: for one star differeth from another star in

> glory.

> 1 Corinthians 15:35-41

>

> Ogden Kraut's "The Resurrection"

>

> Chapter 11

>

> THREE DEGREES OF GLORY

>

> It has been said that the most enlightening revelation ever given to

mankind

> may be Section 76 in the Doctrine and Covenants. This revelation explains

> and clarifies more about man's eternal destiny than any other recorded

> revelation. It could easily put an end to the strange and confusing

precepts

> of men concerning heaven and hell.

>

> Information in this chapter is divided into the following four categories:

> (1) General, (2) Telestial, (3) Terrestrial, and (4) Celestial.

>

> General

>

> Joseph Smith: (TPJS, p. 311)

>

> "But," says one, "I believe in one universal heaven and hell, where all

go,

> and are all alike, and equally miserable or equally happy." What! where

all

> are huddled together--the honorable, virtuous, and murderers, and

> whoremongers, when it is written that they shall be judged according to

the

> deeds done in the body? But St. Paul informs us of three glories and three

> heavens. He knew a man that was caught up to the third heavens. Now, if

the

> doctrine of the sectarian world, that there is but one heaven, is true,

> Paul, what do you tell that lie for, and say there are three? Jesus said

> unto His disciples, "In my Father's house are many mansions; if it were

not

> so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you, and I will

come

> and receive you to myself, that where I am ye may be also."

>

>

> [133] Brigham Young: (JD 8:154)

>

> The sectarian world, as we call them, is a professed church of God without

> the Priesthood. Sectarians have not the Priesthood; but all of them who

live

> according to the best light and intelligence they can obtain through

> faithfulness to what they believe, as taught unto them, will receive a

> kingdom and glory that will far transcend all their expectations,

> imaginations, or visions in their most excited moments, whether in their

> falling-down power, jumping power, or squawling power. All they have ever

> desired or anticipated they will receive, and far more; but they cannot

> dwell with the Father and Son, unless they go through these ordeals that

are

> ordained for the Church of the First born. The ordinances of the house of

> God are expressly for the Church of the First born.

>

>

> Brigham Young: (JD 8:152-153)

>

> I will read a portion of the vision Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon had

> concerning various kingdoms that God has prepared for his subjects: (See

> Sec. 92:7 Doc. and Cov., the then current edition--1860. Now Sec.

> 76:96-113.) I do not know that I have any particular desire to dwell upon

> this any more than any other subject of the Gospel, although, this

subject,

> in the abstract, occupies more of my affection, adoration, and heartfelt

> gratitude to our Father and God than any other that has ever been revealed

> to my knowledge, from the days of Adam to the present. I can truly

say

> that, in my estimation, no other revelation so glorious was ever given.

You

> may read the character of the Deity as portrayed in all that has ever been

> revealed, until you come to this vision, in relation to his justice, his

> judgment, his power, his life, his glory, his excellence, his goodness,

his

> mercy, and the fullness of every gift, of every trait, of every principle

> inherent in the character of the Supreme Being, and it is not equal in

[134]

> magnitude, in my reflections, to that which God revealed to Joseph Smith

and

> Sidney Rigdon in the vision from which I have read. We are far advanced in

> the things of the kingdom of God. To say nothing about any other principle

> or doctrine that has ever been revealed, the transcending glory,

excellency,

> wisdom, goodness, virtue, and power that God has revealed in this vision

far

> outweigh all the Christian tenets, doctrines, and systems they have drawn

> from the Bible. No cistern, to use a figure, hewn by man, can hold water;

> and every human doctrine and principle, professing to point the way of

> salvation, fades away. The doctrine God has revealed here is more precious

> to me, and is worth more than all the doctrines of Christendom.

>

>

> Brigham Young: (JD 17:159)

>

> I expect one thing will be true that Joseph said when living. A gentleman

> came to see him and asked him a great many questions, and among the rest

he

> said: "I suppose you calculate that you are just right, and that you

> "Mormons" are all going to be saved and everybody else will be damned."

Said

> Joseph, "Sir, I will tell you this one thing, all the rest of the world

will

> be damned, and I expect that most of the "Mormons" will be unless they do

> better than they have done." The man did not stop for an explanation. What

> Joseph meant by being damned was that people will go into the spirit world

> without the Priesthood, and consequently they are under the power of

Satan,

> and will have to be redeemed, or else they will be forever under his

power.

> That is all there is about that.

>

>

> John Taylor: (JD 26:133, 1883)

>

> We are told that if we cannot abide the law of the celestial kingdom we

> cannot inherit a celestial glory. Is [135] not that doctrine? Yes. "But,"

> says one, "are not we all going into the celestial kingdom?" I think not,

> unless we turn round and mend our ways very materially. It is only those

who

> can abide a celestial glory and obey a celestial law that will be prepared

> to enter a celestial kingdom. "Well," says another, "are the others going

to

> be burned up?" No. "Do you expect everybody to walk according to this

higher

> law?" No, I do not. And do I expect those that do not are going into the

> celestial kingdom? No, I do not. "Well, where will they go?" If they are

> tolerably good men and do not do anything very bad, they will get into a

> terrestrial kingdom, and if there are some that cannot abide a terrestrial

> law, they may get into the telestial kingdom, or otherwise, as the case

may

> be.

>

>

> Parley P. Pratt: (Key to Theology, pp. 143-144)

>

> The final state of man, though varying in almost infinite gradations and

> rewards, adapted to his qualifications and deserts, and meted out in the

> scale of exact justice and mercy, may be conceived or expressed under

three

> grand heads or principal spheres, viz.: First. The Telestial, or least

> heaven, typified by the stars of the firmament. Secondly. The Terrestrial,

> or intermediate heaven, typified by the moon. Thirdly. The Celestial, or

> third heaven, of which the sun of the firmament is typical. The

> qualifications which fit and prepare intelligences for these different

> spheres or rewards are an all important consideration, and well worthy of

> the sincere attention of all people. These several kingdoms or degrees,

and

> their comparative happiness, and what characters are candidates for each

> degree, are revealed in a most concise, clear, lucid and beautiful manner,

> in one of the visions of our great Prophet and founder.

>

>

> [136] Joseph Fielding Smith: (Doctrines of Salvation 2:287-288)

>

> Elder Orson Pratt many years ago in writing of the resurrection and the

kind

> of bodies which would be raised in these kingdoms said: "In every species

of

> animals and plants, there are many resemblances in the general outlines

and

> many specific differences characterizing the individuals of each species.

So

> in the resurrection. There will be several classes of resurrected bodies;

> some celestial, some terrestrial, some telestial, and some sons of

> perdition. Each of these classes will differ from the others by prominent

> and marked distinctions; yet, in each, considered by itself there will be

> found many resemblances as well as distinctions." Some of the

> functions in the celestial body will not appear in the terrestrial body,

> neither in the telestial body, and the power of procreation will be

removed.

> I take it that men and women will, in these kingdoms, be just what the

> so-called Christian world expects us all to be--neither man nor woman,

> merely immortal beings having received the resurrection.

>

>

> Joseph Fielding Smith: (Doctrine and Covenants 138:58-59, "Vision of

> Redemption of the Dead")

>

> The dead who repent will be redeemed, through obedience to the ordinances

of

> the house of God, and after they have paid the penalty of their

> transgressions, and are washed clean, shall receive a reward according to

> their works, for they are heirs of salvation.

>

>

> [137] Telestial Kingdom

>

> Times and Seasons: (p. 84)

>

> These are they that deny not the spirit of God, But are thrust down to

hell,

> with the devil, for sins, As hypocrites, liars, whoremongers, and thieves,

> And stay 'till the last resurrection begins.

>

> Doctrine and Covenants 76:81-90, 98-112:

>

> And again, we saw the glory of the telestial, which glory is that of the

> lesser, even as the glory of the stars differs from that of the glory of

the

> moon in the firmament. These are they who received not the gospel of

Christ,

> neither the testimony of Jesus. These are they who deny not the Holy

Ghost.

> These are they who are thrust down to hell. These are they who shall not

be

> redeemed from the devil until the last resurrection, until the Lord, even

> Christ the Lamb, shall have finished his work. These are they who receive

> not of his fulness in the eternal world, but of the Holy Spirit through

the

> ministration of the terrestrial; And the terrestrial through the

> ministration of the celestial. And also the telestial receive it of the

> administering of angels who are appointed to minister for them, or who are

> appointed to be ministering spirits for them; for they shall be heirs of

> salvation. And thus we saw, in the heavenly vision, the glory of the

> telestial, which surpasses all understanding; and no man knows it except

him

> to whom God has revealed it. And the glory of the telestial is one,

> even as the glory of the stars is one; for as one star differs from

another

> star in glory, even so differs one from another in glory in the telestial

> world; for these are they who are of Paul, and of Apollos, and of Cephas.

> These are they who say they are some of one and some of another--some of

> Christ and some of John, and some of Moses, and some of Elias, and some of

> Esaias, and some of Isaiah, and some of Enoch; But received not the

gospel,

> neither the testimony of Jesus, neither the prophets, neither the

> everlasting covenant. [138] Last of all, these all are they who will not

be

> gathered with the saints, to be caught up unto the church of the

Firstborn,

> and received into the cloud. These are they who are liars, and sorcerers,

> and adulterers, and whoremongers, and whosoever loves and makes a lie.

These

> are they who suffer the wrath of God on earth. These are they who suffer

the

> vengeance of eternal fire. These are they who are cast down to hell and

> suffer the wrath of Almighty God, until the fulness of times, when Christ

> shall have subdued all enemies under his feet, and shall have perfected

his

> work; when he shall deliver up the kingdom, and present it unto the

Father,

> spotless, saying: I have overcome and have trodden the wine-press alone,

> even the wine-press of the fierceness of the wrath of Almighty God. Then

> shall he be crowned with the crown of his glory, to sit on the throne of

his

> power to reign forever and ever. But behold, and lo, we saw the glory and

> the inhabitants of the telestial world, that they were as innumerable as

the

> stars in the firmament of heaven, or as the sand upon the seashore; and

> heard the voice of the Lord saying: These all shall bow the knee, and

every

> tongue shall confess to him who sits upon the throne forever and ever; for

> they shall be judged according to their works, and every man shall receive

> according to his own works, his own dominion, in the mansions which are

> prepared; and they shall be servants of the Most High; but where God and

> Christ dwell they cannot come, worlds without end.

>

> Joseph Fielding Smith: (Doctrines of Salvation 2:297-298)

>

> All liars, and sorcerers, and adulterers and all who love and make a lie,

> shall not receive the resurrection at this time, but for a thousand years

> shall be thrust down into hell where they shall suffer the wrath of God

> until they pay the price of their sinning, if it is possible, by the

things

> which they shall suffer. [139] These are the "spirits of men who are to be

> judged, and are found under condemnation; And these are the rest of the

> dead; and they live not again until the thousand years are ended, neither

> again, until the end of the earth." (D. & C. 88:100-101) These are the

hosts

> of the telestial world who are condemned to "suffer the wrath of God on

> earth"; and who are "cast down to hell and suffer the wrath of Almighty

God,

> until the fulness of times, when Christ shall have subdued all enemies

under

> his feet, and shall have perfected his work." (D. & C. 76:104-106)

>

>

> Orson Pratt: (JD 15:322)

>

> Now let us come to still inferior glories. I have mentioned those who

> inherit the glory of the stars. Who are they? They are not the heathen,

for

> they come up higher--into the terrestrial glory. Who are they, then, who

are

> permitted only to inherit a glory typified by the stars? They are the

> general world of mankind, those who have heard the Gospel of the Son of

God

> but have not obeyed it. They are to be punished. How long? Until Jesus has

> reigned here on the earth a thousand years. How much longer? Until the

> "little season" has passed away after the end of the thousand years, and

> then when the final end shall come and the trump of God shall sound, and

the

> great white throne shall appear and the heaven and the earth shall flee

> away; when that time shall come, the sound of the trump shall call forth

> those sleeping millions of all ages, generations and nations who have

heard

> the sound of the Gospel and have not obeyed it, but until then their

bodies

> must sleep. They are not worthy of the first resurrection.

>

>

> [140] Terrestrial Kingdom

>

> Times and Seasons: (p. 84)

>

> These are they that are hon'rable men of the earth; Who were blinded and

> dup'd by the cunning of men: They receiv'd not the truth of the Savior at

> first; But did, when they heard it in prison, again.

>

> Doctrine and Covenants 76:71-79; 91, 97:

>

> And again, we saw the terrestrial world, and behold and lo, these are they

> who are of the terrestrial, whose glory differs from that of the church of

> the Firstborn who have received the fulness of the Father, even as that of

> the moon differs from the sun in the firmament. Behold, these are they who

> died without law; And also they who are the spirits of men kept in prison,

> whom the Son visited, and preached the gospel unto them, that they might

be

> judged according to men in the flesh; Who received not the testimony of

> Jesus in the flesh, but afterwards received it. These are they who are

> honorable men of the earth, who were blinded by the craftiness of men.

These

> are they who received of his glory, but not of his fulness. These are they

> who receive of the presence of the Son, but not of the fulness of the

> Father. Wherefore, they are bodies terrestrial, and not bodies celestial,

> and differ in glory as the moon differs from the sun. These are they who

are

> not valiant in the testimony of Jesus; wherefore, they obtain not the

crown

> over the kingdom of our God. And thus we saw the glory of the

> terrestrial which excels in all things the glory of the telestial, even in

> glory, and in power, and in might, and in dominion. And the glory of

> the terrestrial is one, even as the glory of the moon is one.

>

>

> [141] Cleon Skousen: (Imp. Era, July 1969, see pp. 72-75)

>

> Verses 71-79 (of Section 76) state that if a person has an opportunity to

> embrace the fullness of the gospel during earth life but postpones,

> accepting it until he reaches the spirit world, then he cannot be an heir

to

> the celestial kingdom. He drops down to the next level, the terrestrial.

Of

> course, if a person never even hears the gospel until he reaches the

spirit

> world (and that has been the case with the majority of mankind), then he

can

> accept it in the spirit world without any penalty, provided he would have

> accepted it in the flesh. In due time the ordinance work will be done for

> him vicariously (such as baptism for the dead referred to by Paul in 1

> Corinthians 15:29), and then that person will be resurrected to the

> celestial glory just as though he had accepted the gospel while in earth

> life.

>

>

> Joseph Fielding Smith: (Doctrines of Salvation 2:296-297)

>

> Following this great event, and after the Lord and the righteous who are

> caught up to meet him have descended upon the earth, there will come to

pass

> another resurrection. This may be considered as a part of the first,

> although it comes later. In this resurrection will come forth those of the

> terrestrial order, who were not worthy to be caught up to meet him, but

who

> are worthy to come forth to enjoy the millennial reign.

>

> It is written that the second angel shall sound, which is the second

trump,

> "and then cometh the redemption of those who are Christ's at his coming;

who

> have received their part in the prison which is prepared for them, that

they

> might receive the gospel, and be judged according to men in the flesh."

(D.

> & C. 76:73-75) This other class, which will also have right to the first

> resurrection, are those who are not members of the Church of the

Firstborn,

> but who have led honorable lives, although they refused to accept the

> fulness of the gospel. [142] Also in this class will be numbered those who

> died without law and hence are not under condemnation for a violation of

the

> commandments of the Lord. The promise is made to them of redemption from

> death in the following words: "And then shall the heathen nations be

> redeemed, and they that knew no law shall have part in the first

> resurrection; and it shall be tolerable for them." (D. & C. 45:54) These,

> too, shall partake of the mercies of the Lord and shall receive the

> reuniting of spirit and body inseparably, thus becoming immortal, but not

> with the fulness of the glory of God.

>

>

> Brigham Young: (Contributor 11:87)

>

> With your mind's eye look at the millions of them in all nations who are

> doing according to the best knowledge they possess. What! the Roman

> Catholics? Yes, and then every one of her daughters down to the latest

> Protestant Church that has been organized. They are all doing just as well

> as they can, and living according to the best light they have--a great

many

> of them, though not all. What shall we do with them? They pass from the

> world, their spirits go into the spiritual world, and their bodies go back

> to their mother earth, and there sleep while their spirits are before the

> Lord. Are they happy? Every son and daughter of Adam who live according to

> the best light and knowledge they have, when they go into the spiritual

> world, are happy in proportion to their faithfulness. For instance, take a

> view of some of our late reformers; take the best specimen of reformers

that

> we have, who are all the time full of glory and happiness and full of

praise

> to the Lord--who meet together oft to sing and pray and preach and shout

and

> give thanks to the Lord Almighty; and in a great many instances and in a

> great degree they enjoy much of a good spirit, which is the Spirit of the

> Lord, or the light of Christ, which lighteth the world. Now, this may be

> singular to some. What! they enjoy the Spirit of the Lord? Yes, every man

> and woman, ac-[143]cording to their faith and the knowledge they have in

> their possession. They enjoy the goodness of their Father in heaven. Do

they

> receive the Spirit of the Lord? They do, and enjoy the light of it, and

walk

> in it, and rejoice in it. What will be their state hereafter? Every

faithful

> Methodist that has lived up to and faithfully fulfilled the requirements

of

> his religion, according to the best light he had, doing good to all and

evil

> to none, injuring no person upon the earth, honoring his God as far as he

> knew, will have as great a heaven as he ever anticipated in the flesh, and

> far greater. Every Presbyterian, and every Quaker, and every Baptist, and

> every Roman Catholic member--every reformer, of whatever class or grade,

> that lives according to the best light they have, and never have had an

> opportunity of receiving a greater light than the one in their possession,

> will have and enjoy all they live for. I am telling you the truth as it

is,

> and you may write it down if you please, and call it revelation if you

will.

> But it has been revealed before I revealed it here to-day. This is the

> situation of Christendom after death. You may go among the Pagans, or

among

> all the nations there are, and they have their religion, their sacraments

> and ceremonies, which are as sacred to them as ours are to us; they are

just

> as precious and dear to them, though we call them heathen. They are

> idolatrous worshippers; yet their religion is as sacred to them as ours is

> to us. If they live according to the best light they have in their

religion,

> God is God over all and the Father of us all; we are all the workmanship

of

> His hands; and if they are ignorant, filled with superstition, and have

the

> traditions of the fathers interwoven like a mantle around and over them,

> that they cannot see any light, so will they be judged; and if they have

> lived according to what they did possess, so they will receive hereafter.

> And will it be glory? you may inquire. Yes. Glory, glory, glory to our

> merciful Father in heaven; for the least glory is so great and so

exquisite

> that it is altogether beyond mortal perception.

>

>

> [144] Orson Pratt: (JD 15:322)

>

> But how about these terrestrials, can they come up into the celestial? No,

> their intelligence and knowledge have not prepared and adapted them to

dwell

> with those who reign in celestial glory, consequently they cannot even be

> angels in that glory. They have not obeyed the law that pertains to that

> glory, and hence they could not abide it. But will there be blessings

> administered to them by those who dwell in celestial glory? Yes, angels

will

> be sent forth from the celestial world to minister to those who inherit

the

> glory of the moon, bearing messages of joy and peace and of all that which

> is calculated to exalt, to redeem and ennoble those who have been

> resurrected into a terrestrial glory. They can receive the Spirit of the

> Lord there, and the ministration of angels there.

>

>

> Celestial Kingdom

>

> Times and Seasons: (p. 84)

>

> They are they, of the church of the first born of God,-And unto whose

hands

> he committeth all things; For they hold the keys of the kingdom of heav'n,

> And reign with the Savior, as priests, and as kings.

>

> Doctrine and Covenants 76:50-70; 92-96

>

> And again we bear record--for we saw and heard, and this is the testimony

of

> the gospel of Christ concerning them who shall come forth in the

> resurrection of the just--They are they who received the testimony of

Jesus,

> and believed on his name and were baptized after the manner of his burial,

> being buried in the water in his name, and this according to the

commandment

> which he has given--That by keeping the commandments they might [145] be

> washed and cleansed from all their sins, and receive the Holy Spirit by

the

> laying on of the hands of him who is ordained and sealed unto this power;

> and who overcome by faith, and are sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise,

> which the Father sheds forth upon all those who are just and true. They

are

> they who are the church of the Firstborn. They are they into whose hands

the

> Father has given all things--They are they who are priests and kings, who

> have received of his fulness, and of his glory; And are priests of the

Most

> High, after the order of Melchizedek, which was after the order of Enoch,

> which was after the order of the Only Begotten Son. Wherefore, as it is

> written, they are gods, even the sons of God--Wherefore, all things are

> theirs, whether life or death, or things present, or things to come, all

are

> theirs and they are Christ's, and Christ is God's. And they shall overcome

> all things. Wherefore, let no man glory in man, but rather let him glory

in

> God, who shall subdue all enemies under his feet. These shall dwell in the

> presence of God and his Christ forever and ever. These are they whom he

> shall bring with him, when he shall come in the clouds of heaven to reign

on

> the earth over his people. These are they who shall have part in the first

> resurrection. These are they who shall come forth in the resurrection of

the

> just. These are they who are come unto Mount Zion, and unto the city of

the

> living God, the heavenly place, the holiest of all.

> These are they who have come to an innumerable company of angels, to the

> general assembly and church of Enoch, and of the Firstborn. These are they

> whose names are written in heaven, where God and Christ are the judge of

> all.

> These are they who are just men made perfect through Jesus the mediator of

> the new covenant, who wrought out this perfect atonement through the

> shedding of his own blood. These are they whose bodies are celestial,

whose

> glory is that of the sun, even the glory of God, the highest of all, whose

> glory the sun of the firmament is written of as being typical. [146]

> And thus we saw the glory of the celestial, which excels in all

> things--where God, even the Father, reigns upon his throne forever and

ever;

> Before whose throne all things bow in humble reverence, and give him glory

> forever and ever. They who dwell in his presence are the church of the

> Firstborn; and they see as they are seen, and know as they are known,

having

> received of his fulness and of his grace; And he makes them equal in

power,

> and in might, and in dominion. And the glory of the celestial is one, even

> as the glory of the sun is one.

>

>

> Joseph Smith: ("Vision of the Celestial Kingdom", D.H.C. 2:380-381; TPJS,

p.

> 107; D. & C. 137:1-10)

>

> The heavens were opened upon us, and I beheld the celestial kingdom of

God,

> and the glory thereof, whether in the body or out I cannot tell. I saw the

> transcendent beauty of the gate through which the heirs of that kingdom

will

> enter, which was like unto circling flames of fire; also the blazing

throne

> of God, whereon was seated the Father and the Son. I saw the beautiful

> streets of that kingdom, which had the appearance of being paved with

gold.

> I saw Father Adam and Abraham, and my father and my mother, my brother,

> Alvin, that has long since slept, and marvelled how it was that he had

> obtained an inheritance in that kingdom, seeing that he had departed this

> life before the Lord had set his hand to gather Israel the second time,

and

> had not been baptized for the remission of sins. Thus came the Voice of

the

> Lord unto me, saying--All who have died without a knowledge of this

Gospel,

> who would have received it if they had been permitted to tarry, shall be

> heirs of the celestial kingdom of God; also all that shall die henceforth

> without a knowledge of it, who would have received it with all their

hearts,

> shall be heirs of that kingdom, for I, the Lord, will judge all men

> according to their works, according to the desire of their hearts. [147]

And

> I also beheld that all children who die before they arrive at the years of

> accountability, are saved in the celestial kingdom of heaven.

>

>

> Joseph Fielding Smith: (Doctrines of Salvation 2:296)

>

> In modern revelation given to the Church, the Lord has made known more in

> relation to this glorious event. There shall be at least two classes which

> shall have the privilege of the resurrection at this time: First, those

who

> "shall dwell in the presence of God and his Christ forever and ever"; (D.

&

> C. 76:62) and second, honorable men, those who belong to the terrestrial

> kingdom as well as those of the celestial kingdom. At the time of the

coming

> of Christ, "They who have slept in their graves shall come forth, for

their

> graves shall be opened; and they also shall be caught up to meet him in

the

> midst of the pillar of heaven--They are Christ's, the first fruits, they

who

> shall descend with him first, and they who are on the earth and in their

> graves, who are first caught up to meet him; and all this by the voice of

> the sounding of the trump of the angel of God." (D. & C. 88:97-98) These

are

> the just, "whose names are written in heaven, where God and Christ are the

> judge of all. These are they who are just men made perfect through Jesus

the

> mediator of the new covenant, who wrought out this perfect atonement

through

> the shedding of his own blood." (D. & C. 76:68-69)

>

>

> Parley P. Pratt: (Key to Theology, pp. 168-170)

>

> To contemplate man in his true light, we must, as it were, forget that

death

> is in his path; we must look upon him as an eternal, ever-living being,

> possessing spirit, flesh and bones, with all the mental and physical

organs,

> and all the affections and sympathies which characterize [148] him in this

> world. Or, rather, all his natural affections and sympathies will be

> purified, exalted and immeasurably increased. Let the candidate for

> celestial glory forget, for a moment, the groveling sphere of his present

> existence, and make the effort to contemplate himself in the light of

> eternity, in the higher spheres of his progressive existence, beyond the

> grave, a pure spirit, free from sin and guile, enlightened in the school

of

> heaven, by observation and experience, and association with the highest

> order of intelligences, for thousands of years, and clothed with immortal

> flesh, in all the vigor, freshness and beauty of eternal youth, alike free

> from pain, disease, death, and the corroding effects of time, looking back

> through the vista of far distant years, and contemplating his former

sojourn

> amid the sorrows and pains of mortal life, his passage through the dark

> valley of death and his sojourn in the spirit world, as we now contemplate

a

> transient dream, or a night of sleep, from which we have awakened, renewed

> and refreshed, to enter again upon the realities of life. O candidates for

> celestial glory! Would your joys be full in the countless years of

eternity

> without forming the connections, the relationship, the kindred ties which

> concentrate in the domestic circle, and branch forth, and bud and blossom,

> and bear the fruits of eternal increase? Or, would you, like your

> heavenly Father, prompted by eternal benevolence and charity, wish to fill

> countless millions of worlds with your begotten sons and daughters, and to

> bring them through all the gradations of progressive being, to inherit

> immortal bodies and eternal mansions in your several dominions? If such be

> your aspirations, remember that this present probation is the world of

> preparation for joys eternal. This is the place where family organization

is

> first formed for eternity, and where the kindred sympathies, relationships

> and affections take root, spring forth, shoot upward, bud, blossom and

bear

> fruit to ripen and mature in eternal ages.

>

>

> [149] Orson Pratt: (The Seer, p. 37)

>

> The celestial beings who dwell in the Heaven from which we came, having

been

> raised from the grave in a former world, and having been filled with all

the

> fulness of these eternal attributes, are called Gods, because the fulness

of

> God dwells in each. Both the males and the females enjoy this fulness. The

> celestial vegetables and fruits which grow out of the soil of this

redeemed

> Heaven, constitute the food of the Gods. This food differs from the food

> derived from the vegetables of a fallen world; the latter are converted

into

> blood, which, circulating in the veins and arteries, produces flesh and

> bones of a mortal nature, having a constant tendency to decay; while the

> former, or celestial vegetables, are, when digested in the stomach,

> converted into a fluid, which, in its nature, is spiritual, and which,

> circulating in the veins and arteries of the celestial male and female,

> preserves their tabernacles from decay and death. Earthly vegetables form

> blood, and blood forms flesh and bones; celestial vegetables, when

digested,

> form a spiritual fluid which gives immortality and eternal life to the

> organization in which it flows. Fallen beings beget children whose bodies

> are constituted of flesh and bones, being formed out of the blood

> circulating in the veins of the parents. Celestial beings beget children,

> composed of the fluid which circulates in their veins, which is spiritual;

> therefore, their children must be spirits, and not flesh and bones. This

is

> the origin of our spiritual organization in heaven. The spirits of all

> mankind, destined for this earth, were begotten by a father, and born of a

> mother in Heaven, long anterior to the formation of this world. The

> personages of the father and mother of our spirits, had a beginning to

their

> organization, but the fulness of truth (which is God) that dwells in them,

> had no beginning; being "from everlasting to everlasting." (Psalm 90:2)

>

>

> [150] Orson Pratt: (JD 19:176)

>

> The Saints then will be resurrected, and they will also be the inhabitants

> of this globe. They are singing about it in heaven, while their bodies are

> sleeping in the grave. Read the 5th chapter of John's Revelations, that

will

> give you an idea what the Saints of heaven anticipate. The words of the

new

> song which John heard them sing, were: "Thou art worthy to take the book,

> and to open the seals thereof; for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us

to

> God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue and people and nation.

And

> hast made us unto our God kings and priests; and we shall reign on the

> earth!" How plain! "We shall reign on the earth!" They hope for it; they

> sing about it; they expect it, just as much as we hope to go with them,

and

> mingle with them, and just as much as we have faith that we will, when we

> lay our bodies down in the grave, go to our former abode where we once

were,

> to the mansions prepared, and that we will join with the heavenly hosts.

We

> will not forget the earth; it is our native abode; but instead of

forgetting

> it, we will join with them in their new song, and with them we will look

> forward with joyful anticipation to the day when we shall return to reign

on

> the earth, having been made kings and priests unto our God.

>

>

> Brigham Young: (JD 15:137)

>

> And when our spirits receive our bodies, and through our faithfulness we

are

> worthy to be crowned, we will then receive authority to produce both

spirit

> and body. But these keys we cannot receive in the flesh. Herein, brethren,

> you can perceive that we have not finished, and cannot finish our work,

> while we live here, no more than Jesus did while he was in the flesh. We

> cannot receive, while in the flesh, the keys to form and fashion kingdoms

> and to organize matter, for they are beyond our capacity and calling,

beyond

> this world. In the resurrection, men who have been faithful and [151]

> diligent in all things in the flesh, have kept their first and second

> estate, and worthy to be crowned Gods, even the sons of God, will be

> ordained to organize matter.

>

>

> Doctrine and Covenants: 131:1-4

>

> 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.

>

>

> Cleon Skousen: (Imp. Era, July 1969, see pp. 72-75)

>

> Modern revelation has further disclosed that the celestial kingdom is

> divided into three heavens or degrees. (D. & C. 131:1) To attain the

highest

> degree, one must be married for time and eternity by the power of God's

holy

> priesthood. (D. & C. 131:2-3) Only those who qualify for this highest

> discipline enjoy a continuing family relationship in the eternal worlds.

(D.

> & C. 132:19) And only those who qualify for this level will have the

> privilege of being tutored to follow in the footsteps of the Father and

> share in his infinite power. (D. & C. 132:20) To these the Father says he

> will give "all things." Then the scripture adds, "They are they who are

> priests and kings, who have received of his fulness, and of his glory. . .

..

> Wherefore, as it is written, they are gods, even the sons of God." (D. &

C.

> 76:55-56, 58)

>

>

> Orson Pratt: (JD 21:292)

>

> But here arises another question,--one of the greatest importance to the

> children of men of all generations, and that is, are there any marriages

> that God will recognize which he is not the author of? In other words,

> sup-[152]posing that two persons in the Roman Catholic church, in the

Greek

> church, in any Protestant church, or two persons that do not belong to any

> religious denomination, are married by a minister, by a justice of the

> peace, by any person professing to have authority among men, to celebrate

> the marriage ceremony--have they any claim upon each other when death

> separates them? According to their own covenants they do not. The minister

> only married them till death should them part. When death comes along and

> separates these two persons, their marriage covenant has expired; it has

run

> out, it is at an end. But, inquires one, will not the Lord permit them to

> live together as husband and wife, after the resurrection? Why should he?

If

> he had joined them together, according to the marriage ceremony that was

> administered to the first pair of immortality, then they could claim each

> other, after the resurrection; but inasmuch as the ceremony was performed

by

> an uninspired man, not sent of God, and having no power to seal on earth

> that it should be sealed in heaven, of course their marriage covenant

> expires; that is the eternal end of their association. Now, the Latter-day

> Saints are not willing to go according to the tradition of the sectarian

> denominations of the earth; but we desire this great, this important

> ceremony to be performed so that it may be enduring, so that it never

shall

> have an end, but last while eternal ages shall last.

>

>

> Brigham Young: (JD 16:166)

>

> Now, where a man in this Church says, "I don't want but one wife, I will

> live my religion with one," he will perhaps be saved in the celestial

> kingdom; but when he gets there he will not find himself in possession of

> any wife at all. He has had a talent that he has hid up. He will come

> forward and say, "Here is that which thou gavest me, I have not wasted it,

> and here is the one talent," and he will not enjoy it, but it will be

taken

> and given to those who have improved the talents they received, and he

will

> find himself without any wife, and he will remain [153] single forever and

> ever. But if the woman is determined not to enter into a plural marriage,

> that woman when she comes forth will have the privilege of living in

single

> blessedness through all eternity.

>

>

> Charles W. Penrose: (JD 25:227)

>

> . . . but shall wed under the everlasting covenant and have their wives

> given them of the Lord and sealed to them by an holy ordinance revealed

from

> heaven, in a holy place prepared for the purpose--sealed for time and all

> eternity, so that death shall not be able to break the bond of union; that

> though death may separate them for a little season, when they come up in

the

> resurrection, there will be no need to marry or give in marriage, because

> they were married on the earth by authority of God Almighty for time and

all

> eternity, ...

>

>

> Orson Pratt: (JD 15:252)

>

> Another question. Having been married for eternity, we die and our spirits

> go into celestial paradise. We come forth in the morning of the first

> resurrection as immortal males and immortal females. Our wives, married to

> us for eternity, come forth, and they are ours by virtue of that which God

> has pronounced upon them through those whom he has appointed, and to whom

he

> has given authority. We have a legal claim upon them at the resurrection.

> But here comes forth a person that is married outside. She comes up

without

> a husband, he without a wife, or any claim upon any of the blessings. Here

> is the difference between these two classes of beings. One dwells as an

> angel, without any power to increase their species, family or dominions,

> without the power to beget sons and daughters. This class will be angels.

> Perhaps many of them will be worthy of obtaining a degree of power, glory,

> and happiness, but not a fullness. Why? Because they have not come up to

> [154] that position of their Father and their God. He has power to beget

and

> bring forth sons and daughters in the spirit world; and after he has

brought

> forth millions and millions of spirits, he has power to organize worlds,

and

> send these spirits into these worlds to take temporal bodies to prepare

them

> in turn to be redeemed and become Gods, or in other words, the sons of

God,

> growing up like their father, possessing all his attributes, and

propagating

> their species through all eternity. Here then is the difference between

> these two classes of beings--one having lost what they might have obtained

> and enjoyed if they had had faith in God and been willing to obey his

> commandments. But the others are worthy, as the Apostle Paul has said, to

> obtain a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while the others

> will be angels or servants, to go and come at the bidding of those who are

> more exalted.

>

>

> Joseph Smith: (TPJS, p. 312)

>

> Gods have an ascendancy over the angels, who are ministering servants. In

> the resurrection, some are raised to be angels, others are raised to

become

> Gods.

>

>

> Orson Pratt: (JD 15:319)

>

> . . . I wish more particularly to inquire concerning the nature of this

> higher state of glory called celestial. Will there be any difference among

> those who are redeemed into that glory? There will, in some respects. They

> will all be equal in the enjoyment of some blessings, and so far their

glory

> will be the same, but yet in some respects there will be a difference.

Some

> who will inherit a portion of that glory will have no families; they will

be

> deprived of that blessing to all ages of eternity, while others will

receive

> an exaltation and kingdom, and will have wives, children, dominion,

> greatness and power far above those I first referred to. [155] Now why

> should there be this distinction in the celestial kingdom, and what is the

> cause of it? It is because certain persons who have obeyed the Gospel have

> become careless and indifferent in regard to securing that high exaltation

> which was within their reach. God has revealed to this people what is

> needful for an exaltation in his kingdom. He has revealed to us that

> marriage is destined for eternity as well as time,--that the marriage

> covenant between male and female must be entered into in this life, and

the

> ordinance performed here by those whom God has appointed and ordained to

> hold the keys and authority to seal on earth that it may be sealed in

> heaven; for in heaven there is neither marrying nor giving in marriage, no

> such thing can be attended to there. Now persons among the Latter-day

Saints

> who do not enter into this covenant of marriage but prefer to lead a

single

> life cannot enjoy all that fullness of exaltation which will be possessed

by

> those who have had this covenant sealed upon them. They might not have

> forfeited the blessing of celestial glory altogether, but they have

> forfeited the right to have wives by which only they could have a

posterity

> in the eternal worlds. Who will be the subjects in the kingdom which they

> will rule who are exalted in the celestial kingdom of our God? Will they

> reign over their neighbors' children? Oh no. Over whom then will they

reign?

> Their own children, their own posterity will be the citizens of their

> kingdoms; in other words, the patriarchal order will prevail there to the

> endless ages of eternity, and the children of each patriarch will be his

> while eternal ages roll on.

>

>

> Franklin D. Richards: (JD 25:233-235)

>

> He <Christ> taught the doctrine of the resurrection, saying that He was

the

> resurrection and the life, and that the day will come when all they that

are

> in their graves shall hear His voice and shall come forth. It was because

He

> taught this doctrine that the Sadducees sought to entangle and confuse Him

> concerning this principle by bringing up the case of the woman who married

a

> man and he [156] died without any children; then because he died childless

> she married his brother, which was according to the law of Moses. He also

> died without children, and so on, each of the brothers marrying her, until

> the seven brothers had her to wife, and last of all the woman died also.

> These Sadducees did not believe in any resurrection, and they thought to

be

> very crafty with the Savior, so they put the question squarely to Him:

> "Therefore in the resurrection, whose wife shall she be of the seven? for

> they all had her." They evidently thought they had caught the Savior then;

> but He replied to them saying: "Ye do err, not knowing the Scriptures, nor

> the power of God." Now, who was He talking to? He was speaking to those

> Sadducees who denied there being any resurrection; who lived

> contemporaneously with the seven men and this woman who had lived and died

> among them. He was talking to a race of people to whom John the Baptist

had

> come, and many had received his testimony; but these had not. It was

> to this class of people, who were living under these circumstances, that

He

> makes the answer saying, "For in the resurrection they neither marry nor

are

> given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven." Luke the

> Evangelist, stating this case in his 20th chapter, says: "The children of

> this world marry and are given in marriage, but they which shall be

> accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead,

> neither marry, nor are given in marriage; neither can they die any more;

for

> they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the

> children of the resurrection." Had they hearkened to the Prophets,

the

> Apostles, the words of the Savior, and received the everlasting covenant,

> they would have been made heirs of God and joint heirs with our Lord Jesus

> Christ, and would have been made heirs of the celestial world, with power

to

> increase eternally, being Gods, even the sons of God, but now that they

> would not receive the Gospel, the Prophets, nor the everlasting covenant

> which they might have received, they can only become as the angels in

> heaven, who in that world neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but

are

> equal to the angels in heaven.

>

>

> [157] Orson Pratt: (JD 16:177)

>

> Says one--"What are you going to do with that Scripture which says that in

> the resurrection, they neither marry nor are given in marriage?" I am

going

> to let it stand precisely as it is, without the least alteration. A man

who

> is so foolish as to neglect the divine ordinance of marriage for eternity,

> here in this world, and does not secure to himself a wife for all

eternity,

> will not have the opportunity of doing so in the resurrection; for Jesus

> says, that after the resurrection there is neither marrying nor giving in

> marriage. It is an ordinance that pertains to this world, and here it must

> be attended to; and parties neglecting it wilfully, here in this life,

> deprive themselves of the blessings of that union forever in the world to

> come. It is so with regard to baptism. We are bringing up these two divine

> ordinances to show you how they harmonize. A man who, in this life, hears

> the Gospel and knows that it is his duty to be baptized in order that he

may

> come forth in the morning of the resurrection with a celestial, glorified

> body, like unto that of our Lord Jesus Christ, and neglects baptism and

dies

> without attending to the ordinance, cannot be baptized himself after the

> resurrection of the dead, any more than he can be married after the

> resurrection of the dead. Why not? Because God has appointed that both

> marriage and baptism shall be attended to in the flesh, and if neglected

> here, the blessings are forfeited.

>

>

> Parley P. Pratt: (Key to Theology, pp. 180-181)

>

> "And after death, in distant spheres The union still renew."

>

> The eternal union of the sexes, in and after the resurrection, is mainly

for

> the purpose of renewing and continuing the work of procreation. In our

> present or rudimental state, our offspring are in our own image and

partake

> of our natures, in which are the seeds of death. In [158] like manner will

> the offspring of immortal and celestial beings be in the likeness and

> partake of the nature of their divine parentage. Hence, such offspring

will

> be pure, holy, incorruptible and eternal. They will in no wise be subject

> unto death, except by descending to partake of the grosser elements, in

> which are the inherent properties of dissolution or death. To descend thus

> and to be made subject to sorrow, pain and death, is the only road to the

> resurrection and to the higher degrees of immortality and eternal life. It

> is by contrast that intelligences appreciate and enjoy. How shall the

sweet

> be known without the bitter? How shall joy be appreciated without sorrow?

> Or, how shall life be valued, or its eternal duration appreciated, without

a

> contact with its mortal antagonist, death? Hence, the highest degrees of

> eternal felicity are approached by the strait gate and the narrow path

which

> leads through the dark valley of death, to eternal mansions in the realms

of

> endless life. This path has been trodden by the Eternal Father, by His

Son,

> Jesus Christ, and by all the sons and daughters of God who are exalted to

a

> fullness of joys celestial.

>

>

> Brigham Young: (JD 6:275)

>

> After man have got their exaltations and their crowns--have become Gods,

> even the sons of God--are made Kings of kings and Lords of lords, they

have

> the power then of propagating their species in spirit; and that is the

first

> of their operations with regard to organizing a world. Power is then given

> to them to organize the elements, and then commence the organization of

> tabernacles. How can they do it? Have they to go to that earth? Yes, an

Adam

> will have to go there, and he cannot do without Eve; he must have Eve to

> commence the work of generation, and they will go into the garden, and

> continue to eat and drink of the fruits of the corporeal world, until this

> grosser matter is diffused sufficiently [159] through their celestial

bodies

> to enable them, according to the established laws, to produce mortal

> tabernacles for their spiritual children. This is a key for you. The

> faithful will become Gods, even the sons of God; but this does not

overthrow

> the idea that we have a father. Adam is my father; (this I will explain to

> you at some future time;) but it does not prove that he is not my father,

if

> I become a God: it does not prove that I have not a father.

>

>

> Orson Pratt: (JD 15:220)

>

> The increase of those who are exalted in that kingdom will endure forever;

> and the bringing forth of children will not be attended with sorrow, pain

> and distress as it is here: these evils have come in consequence of the

fall

> of man and the transgression by him of God's holy laws. But when men are

> redeemed to immortality and eternal life, there will be no pain, sorrow or

> affliction of body, and yet children will be brought forth, and to their

> increase there will be no end. Hence the promise of God to the patriarchs

> Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, that their seed should be as numerous as the

stars

> of heaven, or as the sands upon the sea shore. We all know that the sand

on

> the sea shore is innumerable to us. If we take a handful it numbers in

tens

> of thousands of grains, and if Abraham's seed are to become as numerous as

> the sands on the sea shore, they will fill a great many worlds like this

of

> ours. There is to be no end to the increase of the old Patriarch, and, as

> his posterity increases, world on world will be created and brought into

> existence, and those children will be sent forth from the presence of the

> Patriarch to take upon themselves bodies, as we have done here in this

> world. I mean their spirits. Understand me now, resurrected parents are

the

> parents not of bodies of flesh and bones, but of spirits the same as we

were

> before we came and took these mortal bodies, that is, when we lived up in

> yonder world in the presence of our Father, and in the [160] company of

the

> thousands of millions of our brother and sister spirits. They will be of

the

> same class and nature, and they will have to take their position in worlds

> that will be created for them the same as we came from heaven to this

world,

> that we might gain knowledge and experience that we could not gain in any

> other way. Thus will the Lord continue his work and purposes, and there

will

> be one eternal round in creation, and redemption, in the formation and

> redemption of worlds, and bringing them back into his presence.

>

>

> <Note: Further recommended reading on this subject--Orson Pratt's

discourse,

> JD 15:312-324.>

>

>

> --

> Listen to Zion Redemption's Radio hosted by Art Bulla and Aaron Kim on

> Sunday from 3 to 4 (pst). Just go to

> http://www.blogtalkradio.com/hostpage.aspx?host_id=3513 All are invited to

> call in live, email at art@artbulla.com, or by MSM artbulla@hotmail.com.

> This show is dedicated to the redemption of Zion, revelations of Jesus

> Christ, authority, Priesthood, Kingdom of God, doctrine discussed

pertaining

> to the salvation of Ephraim and Manasseh. During non broadcast hours you

can

> also listen to archived shows.

>

> Aaron Kim

>

> http://www.artbulla.com

>

"Alex" <apogosso@bigpond.com> wrote in message

news:uU3Ei.32111$4A1.146@news-server.bigpond.net.au...

> Mormons are taught that celestial is the "best", and by paying tithing and

> holding a Temple recommend they can go there. They all "strive" to comply

> with this checklist to be admitted to the Celestial Kingdom.

>

> Mormon teaching is a deception.

>

> Actually, there are many mansions, each one the best suited to every

> particular individuum. There are three big groups:

>

> 1. Celestial. Those who are inclined and get most joy from helping others,

> denying oneself, going extra mile, good Samaritans, peacemakers, etc.

> These

> will become Gods or angels to Gods and will have the widest access to the

> Universe to help other (planets). Gods are never dictators, but servants.

>

> 2. Terrestrial. Those receive joy from their own work and achievements,

> talents, admiration of others, etc. These are the majority.

>

> Question: Are the doctors who save lifes celestial? Answer: No. Most of

> the

> doctors do not care about lives of others (unless it can cause a lawsuit),

> but are proud about the uniqueness and complexity of operations they make

> and money they get. Doctors are terrestrial. Artists, engineers, and

> majority of professions are terrestrial.

>

> 3. Telestial. Those are delighted when receive service from others. They

> are

> after money, power, control, dictatorship or simply lazily going around

> their lives, being entertained, but not giving much to the society. These

> will be given the most limited access to the Universe, so that they do not

> try to conquer and colonise other planets. These will be served by the

> celestial ones.

>

> So why do you, mormons, "strive" to go to celestial? Those who do not feel

> like wiping other's bottoms and are concerned more about their bank

> accounts, will feel better in the terrestrial...

You're fabricating your own doctrines again. The celestial glory is for only

those who are baptized by the proper legal authority which used to be the

Mormon Church before they apostasies and live every part of the Gospel for

the rest of their life. The terrestrial kingdom is for those who lived

honorable lives based on what they believed to be true and did not receive

the Gospel but will get an opportunity to accept it in the spirit world

after they die.

18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust,

that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but

quickened by the Spirit:

19 By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison;

20 Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God

waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that

is, eight souls were saved by water.

1 Peter 3:18-20

> Regards,

> Alex

>

> "Aaron Kim" <aaron@artbulla.com> wrote in message

> news:5kbdqoF2v9meU1@mid.individual.net...

>> 35 But some man will say, How are the dead raised up? and with what

>> body

>> do they come?

>> 36 Thou fool, that which thou owest is not quickened, except it die:

>> 37 And that which thou sowest, thou sowest not that body that shall be,

>> but bare grain, it may chance of wheat, or of some other grain:

>> 38 But God giveth it a body as it hath pleased him, and to every seed

> his

>> own body.

>> 39 All flesh is not the same flesh: but there is one kind of flesh of

> men,

>> another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, and another of birds.

>> 40 There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the

> glory

>> of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another.

>> 41 There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and

>> another glory of the stars: for one star differeth from another star in

>> glory.

>> 1 Corinthians 15:35-41

>>

>> Ogden Kraut's "The Resurrection"

>>

>> Chapter 11

>>

>> THREE DEGREES OF GLORY

>>

>> It has been said that the most enlightening revelation ever given to

> mankind

>> may be Section 76 in the Doctrine and Covenants. This revelation explains

>> and clarifies more about man's eternal destiny than any other recorded

>> revelation. It could easily put an end to the strange and confusing

> precepts

>> of men concerning heaven and hell.

>>

>> Information in this chapter is divided into the following four

>> categories:

>> (1) General, (2) Telestial, (3) Terrestrial, and (4) Celestial.

>>

>> General

>>

>> Joseph Smith: (TPJS, p. 311)

>>

>> "But," says one, "I believe in one universal heaven and hell, where all

> go,

>> and are all alike, and equally miserable or equally happy." What! where

> all

>> are huddled together--the honorable, virtuous, and murderers, and

>> whoremongers, when it is written that they shall be judged according to

> the

>> deeds done in the body? But St. Paul informs us of three glories and

>> three

>> heavens. He knew a man that was caught up to the third heavens. Now, if

> the

>> doctrine of the sectarian world, that there is but one heaven, is true,

>> Paul, what do you tell that lie for, and say there are three? Jesus said

>> unto His disciples, "In my Father's house are many mansions; if it were

> not

>> so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you, and I will

> come

>> and receive you to myself, that where I am ye may be also."

>>

>>

>> [133] Brigham Young: (JD 8:154)

>>

>> The sectarian world, as we call them, is a professed church of God

>> without

>> the Priesthood. Sectarians have not the Priesthood; but all of them who

> live

>> according to the best light and intelligence they can obtain through

>> faithfulness to what they believe, as taught unto them, will receive a

>> kingdom and glory that will far transcend all their expectations,

>> imaginations, or visions in their most excited moments, whether in their

>> falling-down power, jumping power, or squawling power. All they have ever

>> desired or anticipated they will receive, and far more; but they cannot

>> dwell with the Father and Son, unless they go through these ordeals that

> are

>> ordained for the Church of the First born. The ordinances of the house of

>> God are expressly for the Church of the First born.

>>

>>

>> Brigham Young: (JD 8:152-153)

>>

>> I will read a portion of the vision Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon had

>> concerning various kingdoms that God has prepared for his subjects: (See

>> Sec. 92:7 Doc. and Cov., the then current edition--1860. Now Sec.

>> 76:96-113.) I do not know that I have any particular desire to dwell upon

>> this any more than any other subject of the Gospel, although, this

> subject,

>> in the abstract, occupies more of my affection, adoration, and heartfelt

>> gratitude to our Father and God than any other that has ever been

>> revealed

>> to my knowledge, from the days of Adam to the present. I can truly

> say

>> that, in my estimation, no other revelation so glorious was ever given.

> You

>> may read the character of the Deity as portrayed in all that has ever

>> been

>> revealed, until you come to this vision, in relation to his justice, his

>> judgment, his power, his life, his glory, his excellence, his goodness,

> his

>> mercy, and the fullness of every gift, of every trait, of every principle

>> inherent in the character of the Supreme Being, and it is not equal in

> [134]

>> magnitude, in my reflections, to that which God revealed to Joseph Smith

> and

>> Sidney Rigdon in the vision from which I have read. We are far advanced

>> in

>> the things of the kingdom of God. To say nothing about any other

>> principle

>> or doctrine that has ever been revealed, the transcending glory,

> excellency,

>> wisdom, goodness, virtue, and power that God has revealed in this vision

> far

>> outweigh all the Christian tenets, doctrines, and systems they have drawn

>> from the Bible. No cistern, to use a figure, hewn by man, can hold water;

>> and every human doctrine and principle, professing to point the way of

>> salvation, fades away. The doctrine God has revealed here is more

>> precious

>> to me, and is worth more than all the doctrines of Christendom.

>>

>>

>> Brigham Young: (JD 17:159)

>>

>> I expect one thing will be true that Joseph said when living. A gentleman

>> came to see him and asked him a great many questions, and among the rest

> he

>> said: "I suppose you calculate that you are just right, and that you

>> "Mormons" are all going to be saved and everybody else will be damned."

> Said

>> Joseph, "Sir, I will tell you this one thing, all the rest of the world

> will

>> be damned, and I expect that most of the "Mormons" will be unless they do

>> better than they have done." The man did not stop for an explanation.

>> What

>> Joseph meant by being damned was that people will go into the spirit

>> world

>> without the Priesthood, and consequently they are under the power of

> Satan,

>> and will have to be redeemed, or else they will be forever under his

> power.

>> That is all there is about that.

>>

>>

>> John Taylor: (JD 26:133, 1883)

>>

>> We are told that if we cannot abide the law of the celestial kingdom we

>> cannot inherit a celestial glory. Is [135] not that doctrine? Yes. "But,"

>> says one, "are not we all going into the celestial kingdom?" I think not,

>> unless we turn round and mend our ways very materially. It is only those

> who

>> can abide a celestial glory and obey a celestial law that will be

>> prepared

>> to enter a celestial kingdom. "Well," says another, "are the others going

> to

>> be burned up?" No. "Do you expect everybody to walk according to this

> higher

>> law?" No, I do not. And do I expect those that do not are going into the

>> celestial kingdom? No, I do not. "Well, where will they go?" If they are

>> tolerably good men and do not do anything very bad, they will get into a

>> terrestrial kingdom, and if there are some that cannot abide a

>> terrestrial

>> law, they may get into the telestial kingdom, or otherwise, as the case

> may

>> be.

>>

>>

>> Parley P. Pratt: (Key to Theology, pp. 143-144)

>>

>> The final state of man, though varying in almost infinite gradations and

>> rewards, adapted to his qualifications and deserts, and meted out in the

>> scale of exact justice and mercy, may be conceived or expressed under

> three

>> grand heads or principal spheres, viz.: First. The Telestial, or least

>> heaven, typified by the stars of the firmament. Secondly. The

>> Terrestrial,

>> or intermediate heaven, typified by the moon. Thirdly. The Celestial, or

>> third heaven, of which the sun of the firmament is typical. The

>> qualifications which fit and prepare intelligences for these different

>> spheres or rewards are an all important consideration, and well worthy of

>> the sincere attention of all people. These several kingdoms or degrees,

> and

>> their comparative happiness, and what characters are candidates for each

>> degree, are revealed in a most concise, clear, lucid and beautiful

>> manner,

>> in one of the visions of our great Prophet and founder.

>>

>>

>> [136] Joseph Fielding Smith: (Doctrines of Salvation 2:287-288)

>>

>> Elder Orson Pratt many years ago in writing of the resurrection and the

> kind

>> of bodies which would be raised in these kingdoms said: "In every species

> of

>> animals and plants, there are many resemblances in the general outlines

> and

>> many specific differences characterizing the individuals of each species.

> So

>> in the resurrection. There will be several classes of resurrected bodies;

>> some celestial, some terrestrial, some telestial, and some sons of

>> perdition. Each of these classes will differ from the others by prominent

>> and marked distinctions; yet, in each, considered by itself there will be

>> found many resemblances as well as distinctions." Some of the

>> functions in the celestial body will not appear in the terrestrial body,

>> neither in the telestial body, and the power of procreation will be

> removed.

>> I take it that men and women will, in these kingdoms, be just what the

>> so-called Christian world expects us all to be--neither man nor woman,

>> merely immortal beings having received the resurrection.

>>

>>

>> Joseph Fielding Smith: (Doctrine and Covenants 138:58-59, "Vision of

>> Redemption of the Dead")

>>

>> The dead who repent will be redeemed, through obedience to the ordinances

> of

>> the house of God, and after they have paid the penalty of their

>> transgressions, and are washed clean, shall receive a reward according to

>> their works, for they are heirs of salvation.

>>

>>

>> [137] Telestial Kingdom

>>

>> Times and Seasons: (p. 84)

>>

>> These are they that deny not the spirit of God, But are thrust down to

> hell,

>> with the devil, for sins, As hypocrites, liars, whoremongers, and

>> thieves,

>> And stay 'till the last resurrection begins.

>>

>> Doctrine and Covenants 76:81-90, 98-112:

>>

>> And again, we saw the glory of the telestial, which glory is that of the

>> lesser, even as the glory of the stars differs from that of the glory of

> the

>> moon in the firmament. These are they who received not the gospel of

> Christ,

>> neither the testimony of Jesus. These are they who deny not the Holy

> Ghost.

>> These are they who are thrust down to hell. These are they who shall not

> be

>> redeemed from the devil until the last resurrection, until the Lord, even

>> Christ the Lamb, shall have finished his work. These are they who receive

>> not of his fulness in the eternal world, but of the Holy Spirit through

> the

>> ministration of the terrestrial; And the terrestrial through the

>> ministration of the celestial. And also the telestial receive it of the

>> administering of angels who are appointed to minister for them, or who

>> are

>> appointed to be ministering spirits for them; for they shall be heirs of

>> salvation. And thus we saw, in the heavenly vision, the glory of the

>> telestial, which surpasses all understanding; and no man knows it except

> him

>> to whom God has revealed it. And the glory of the telestial is one,

>> even as the glory of the stars is one; for as one star differs from

> another

>> star in glory, even so differs one from another in glory in the telestial

>> world; for these are they who are of Paul, and of Apollos, and of Cephas.

>> These are they who say they are some of one and some of another--some of

>> Christ and some of John, and some of Moses, and some of Elias, and some

>> of

>> Esaias, and some of Isaiah, and some of Enoch; But received not the

> gospel,

>> neither the testimony of Jesus, neither the prophets, neither the

>> everlasting covenant. [138] Last of all, these all are they who will not

> be

>> gathered with the saints, to be caught up unto the church of the

> Firstborn,

>> and received into the cloud. These are they who are liars, and sorcerers,

>> and adulterers, and whoremongers, and whosoever loves and makes a lie.

> These

>> are they who suffer the wrath of God on earth. These are they who suffer

> the

>> vengeance of eternal fire. These are they who are cast down to hell and

>> suffer the wrath of Almighty God, until the fulness of times, when Christ

>> shall have subdued all enemies under his feet, and shall have perfected

> his

>> work; when he shall deliver up the kingdom, and present it unto the

> Father,

>> spotless, saying: I have overcome and have trodden the wine-press alone,

>> even the wine-press of the fierceness of the wrath of Almighty God. Then

>> shall he be crowned with the crown of his glory, to sit on the throne of

> his

>> power to reign forever and ever. But behold, and lo, we saw the glory and

>> the inhabitants of the telestial world, that they were as innumerable as

> the

>> stars in the firmament of heaven, or as the sand upon the seashore; and

>> heard the voice of the Lord saying: These all shall bow the knee, and

> every

>> tongue shall confess to him who sits upon the throne forever and ever;

>> for

>> they shall be judged according to their works, and every man shall

>> receive

>> according to his own works, his own dominion, in the mansions which are

>> prepared; and they shall be servants of the Most High; but where God and

>> Christ dwell they cannot come, worlds without end.

>>

>> Joseph Fielding Smith: (Doctrines of Salvation 2:297-298)

>>

>> All liars, and sorcerers, and adulterers and all who love and make a lie,

>> shall not receive the resurrection at this time, but for a thousand years

>> shall be thrust down into hell where they shall suffer the wrath of God

>> until they pay the price of their sinning, if it is possible, by the

> things

>> which they shall suffer. [139] These are the "spirits of men who are to

>> be

>> judged, and are found under condemnation; And these are the rest of the

>> dead; and they live not again until the thousand years are ended, neither

>> again, until the end of the earth." (D. & C. 88:100-101) These are the

> hosts

>> of the telestial world who are condemned to "suffer the wrath of God on

>> earth"; and who are "cast down to hell and suffer the wrath of Almighty

> God,

>> until the fulness of times, when Christ shall have subdued all enemies

> under

>> his feet, and shall have perfected his work." (D. & C. 76:104-106)

>>

>>

>> Orson Pratt: (JD 15:322)

>>

>> Now let us come to still inferior glories. I have mentioned those who

>> inherit the glory of the stars. Who are they? They are not the heathen,

> for

>> they come up higher--into the terrestrial glory. Who are they, then, who

>are

>> permitted only to inherit a glory typified by the stars? They are the

>> general world of mankind, those who have heard the Gospel of the Son of

> God

>> but have not obeyed it. They are to be punished. How long? Until Jesus

>> has

>> reigned here on the earth a thousand years. How much longer? Until the

>> "little season" has passed away after the end of the thousand years, and

>> then when the final end shall come and the trump of God shall sound, and

> the

>> great white throne shall appear and the heaven and the earth shall flee

>> away; when that time shall come, the sound of the trump shall call forth

>> those sleeping millions of all ages, generations and nations who have

> heard

>> the sound of the Gospel and have not obeyed it, but until then their

> bodies

>> must sleep. They are not worthy of the first resurrection.

>>

>>

>> [140] Terrestrial Kingdom

>>

>> Times and Seasons: (p. 84)

>>

>> These are they that are hon'rable men of the earth; Who were blinded and

>> dup'd by the cunning of men: They receiv'd not the truth of the Savior at

>> first; But did, when they heard it in prison, again.

>>

>> Doctrine and Covenants 76:71-79; 91, 97:

>>

>> And again, we saw the terrestrial world, and behold and lo, these are

>> they

>> who are of the terrestrial, whose glory differs from that of the church

>> of

>> the Firstborn who have received the fulness of the Father, even as that

>> of

>> the moon differs from the sun in the firmament. Behold, these are they

>> who

>> died without law; And also they who are the spirits of men kept in

>> prison,

>> whom the Son visited, and preached the gospel unto them, that they might

> be

>> judged according to men in the flesh; Who received not the testimony of

>> Jesus in the flesh, but afterwards received it. These are they who are

>> honorable men of the earth, who were blinded by the craftiness of men.

> These

>> are they who received of his glory, but not of his fulness. These are

>> they

>> who receive of the presence of the Son, but not of the fulness of the

>> Father. Wherefore, they are bodies terrestrial, and not bodies celestial,

>> and differ in glory as the moon differs from the sun. These are they who

> are

>> not valiant in the testimony of Jesus; wherefore, they obtain not the

> crown

>> over the kingdom of our God. And thus we saw the glory of the

>> terrestrial which excels in all things the glory of the telestial, even

>> in

>> glory, and in power, and in might, and in dominion. And the glory

>> of

>> the terrestrial is one, even as the glory of the moon is one.

>>

>>

>> [141] Cleon Skousen: (Imp. Era, July 1969, see pp. 72-75)

>>

>> Verses 71-79 (of Section 76) state that if a person has an opportunity to

>> embrace the fullness of the gospel during earth life but postpones,

>> accepting it until he reaches the spirit world, then he cannot be an heir

> to

>> the celestial kingdom. He drops down to the next level, the terrestrial.

> Of

>> course, if a person never even hears the gospel until he reaches the

> spirit

>> world (and that has been the case with the majority of mankind), then he

> can

>> accept it in the spirit world without any penalty, provided he would have

>> accepted it in the flesh. In due time the ordinance work will be done for

>> him vicariously (such as baptism for the dead referred to by Paul in 1

>> Corinthians 15:29), and then that person will be resurrected to the

>> celestial glory just as though he had accepted the gospel while in earth

>> life.

>>

>>

>> Joseph Fielding Smith: (Doctrines of Salvation 2:296-297)

>>

>> Following this great event, and after the Lord and the righteous who are

>> caught up to meet him have descended upon the earth, there will come to

> pass

>> another resurrection. This may be considered as a part of the first,

>> although it comes later. In this resurrection will come forth those of

>> the

>> terrestrial order, who were not worthy to be caught up to meet him, but

> who

>> are worthy to come forth to enjoy the millennial reign.

>>

>> It is written that the second angel shall sound, which is the second

> trump,

>> "and then cometh the redemption of those who are Christ's at his coming;

> who

>> have received their part in the prison which is prepared for them, that

> they

>> might receive the gospel, and be judged according to men in the flesh."

> (D.

>> & C. 76:73-75) This other class, which will also have right to the first

>> resurrection, are those who are not members of the Church of the

> Firstborn,

>> but who have led honorable lives, although they refused to accept the

>> fulness of the gospel. [142] Also in this class will be numbered those

>> who

>> died without law and hence are not under condemnation for a violation of

> the

>> commandments of the Lord. The promise is made to them of redemption from

>> death in the following words: "And then shall the heathen nations be

>> redeemed, and they that knew no law shall have part in the first

>> resurrection; and it shall be tolerable for them." (D. & C. 45:54) These,

>> too, shall partake of the mercies of the Lord and shall receive the

>> reuniting of spirit and body inseparably, thus becoming immortal, but not

>> with the fulness of the glory of God.

>>

>>

>> Brigham Young: (Contributor 11:87)

>>

>> With your mind's eye look at the millions of them in all nations who are

>> doing according to the best knowledge they possess. What! the Roman

>> Catholics? Yes, and then every one of her daughters down to the latest

>> Protestant Church that has been organized. They are all doing just as

>> well

>> as they can, and living according to the best light they have--a great

> many

>> of them, though not all. What shall we do with them? They pass from the

>> world, their spirits go into the spiritual world, and their bodies go

>> back

>> to their mother earth, and there sleep while their spirits are before the

>> Lord. Are they happy? Every son and daughter of Adam who live according

>> to

>> the best light and knowledge they have, when they go into the spiritual

>> world, are happy in proportion to their faithfulness. For instance, take

>> a

>> view of some of our late reformers; take the best specimen of reformers

> that

>> we have, who are all the time full of glory and happiness and full of

> praise

>> to the Lord--who meet together oft to sing and pray and preach and shout

> and

>> give thanks to the Lord Almighty; and in a great many instances and in a

>> great degree they enjoy much of a good spirit, which is the Spirit of the

>> Lord, or the light of Christ, which lighteth the world. Now, this may be

>> singular to some. What! they enjoy the Spirit of the Lord? Yes, every man

>> and woman, ac-[143]cording to their faith and the knowledge they have in

>> their possession. They enjoy the goodness of their Father in heaven. Do

> they

>> receive the Spirit of the Lord? They do, and enjoy the light of it, and

> walk

>> in it, and rejoice in it. What will be their state hereafter? Every

> faithful

>> Methodist that has lived up to and faithfully fulfilled the requirements

> of

>> his religion, according to the best light he had, doing good to all and

> evil

>> to none, injuring no person upon the earth, honoring his God as far as he

>> knew, will have as great a heaven as he ever anticipated in the flesh,

>> and

>> far greater. Every Presbyterian, and every Quaker, and every Baptist, and

>> every Roman Catholic member--every reformer, of whatever class or grade,

>> that lives according to the best light they have, and never have had an

>> opportunity of receiving a greater light than the one in their

>> possession,

>> will have and enjoy all they live for. I am telling you the truth as it

> is,

>> and you may write it down if you please, and call it revelation if you

> will.

>> But it has been revealed before I revealed it here to-day. This is the

>> situation of Christendom after death. You may go among the Pagans, or

> among

>> all the nations there are, and they have their religion, their sacraments

>> and ceremonies, which are as sacred to them as ours are to us; they are

> just

>> as precious and dear to them, though we call them heathen. They are

>> idolatrous worshippers; yet their religion is as sacred to them as ours

>> is

>> to us. If they live according to the best light they have in their

> religion,

>> God is God over all and the Father of us all; we are all the workmanship

> of

>> His hands; and if they are ignorant, filled with superstition, and have

> the

>> traditions of the fathers interwoven like a mantle around and over them,

>> that they cannot see any light, so will they be judged; and if they have

>> lived according to what they did possess, so they will receive hereafter.

>> And will it be glory? you may inquire. Yes. Glory, glory, glory to our

>> merciful Father in heaven; for the least glory is so great and so

> exquisite

>> that it is altogether beyond mortal perception.

>>

>>

>> [144] Orson Pratt: (JD 15:322)

>>

>> But how about these terrestrials, can they come up into the celestial?

>> No,

>> their intelligence and knowledge have not prepared and adapted them to

> dwell

>> with those who reign in celestial glory, consequently they cannot even be

>> angels in that glory. They have not obeyed the law that pertains to that

>> glory, and hence they could not abide it. But will there be blessings

>> administered to them by those who dwell in celestial glory? Yes, angels

> will

>> be sent forth from the celestial world to minister to those who inherit

> the

>> glory of the moon, bearing messages of joy and peace and of all that

>> which

>> is calculated to exalt, to redeem and ennoble those who have been

>> resurrected into a terrestrial glory. They can receive the Spirit of the

>> Lord there, and the ministration of angels there.

>>

>>

>> Celestial Kingdom

>>

>> Times and Seasons: (p. 84)

>>

>> They are they, of the church of the first born of God,-And unto whose

> hands

>> he committeth all things; For they hold the keys of the kingdom of

>> heav'n,

>> And reign with the Savior, as priests, and as kings.

>>

>> Doctrine and Covenants 76:50-70; 92-96

>>

>> And again we bear record--for we saw and heard, and this is the testimony

> of

>> the gospel of Christ concerning them who shall come forth in the

>> resurrection of the just--They are they who received the testimony of

> Jesus,

>> and believed on his name and were baptized after the manner of his

>> burial,

>> being buried in the water in his name, and this according to the

> commandment

>> which he has given--That by keeping the commandments they might [145] be

>> washed and cleansed from all their sins, and receive the Holy Spirit by

> the

>> laying on of the hands of him who is ordained and sealed unto this power;

>> and who overcome by faith, and are sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise,

>> which the Father sheds forth upon all those who are just and true. They

> are

>> they who are the church of the Firstborn. They are they into whose hands

> the

>> Father has given all things--They are they who are priests and kings, who

>> have received of his fulness, and of his glory; And are priests of the

> Most

>> High, after the order of Melchizedek, which was after the order of Enoch,

>> which was after the order of the Only Begotten Son. Wherefore, as it is

>> written, they are gods, even the sons of God--Wherefore, all things are

>> theirs, whether life or death, or things present, or things to come, all

> are

>> theirs and they are Christ's, and Christ is God's. And they shall

>> overcome

>> all things. Wherefore, let no man glory in man, but rather let him glory

> in

>> God, who shall subdue all enemies under his feet. These shall dwell in

>> the

>> presence of God and his Christ forever and ever. These are they whom he

>> shall bring with him, when he shall come in the clouds of heaven to reign

> on

>> the earth over his people. These are they who shall have part in the

>> first

>> resurrection. These are they who shall come forth in the resurrection of

> the

>> just. These are they who are come unto Mount Zion, and unto the city of

> the

>> living God, the heavenly place, the holiest of all.

>> These are they who have come to an innumerable company of angels, to the

>> general assembly and church of Enoch, and of the Firstborn. These are

>> they

>> whose names are written in heaven, where God and Christ are the judge of

>> all.

>> These are they who are just men made perfect through Jesus the mediator

>> of

>> the new covenant, who wrought out this perfect atonement through the

>> shedding of his own blood. These are they whose bodies are celestial,

> whose

>> glory is that of the sun, even the glory of God, the highest of all,

>> whose

>> glory the sun of the firmament is written of as being typical.

>> [146]

>> And thus we saw the glory of the celestial, which excels in all

>> things--where God, even the Father, reigns upon his throne forever and

> ever;

>> Before whose throne all things bow in humble reverence, and give him

>> glory

>> forever and ever. They who dwell in his presence are the church of the

>> Firstborn; and they see as they are seen, and know as they are known,

> having

>> received of his fulness and of his grace; And he makes them equal in

> power,

>> and in might, and in dominion. And the glory of the celestial is one,

>> even

>> as the glory of the sun is one.

>>

>>

>> Joseph Smith: ("Vision of the Celestial Kingdom", D.H.C. 2:380-381; TPJS,

> p.

>> 107; D. & C. 137:1-10)

>>

>> The heavens were opened upon us, and I beheld the celestial kingdom of

> God,

>> and the glory thereof, whether in the body or out I cannot tell. I saw

>> the

>> transcendent beauty of the gate through which the heirs of that kingdom

> will

>> enter, which was like unto circling flames of fire; also the blazing

> throne

>> of God, whereon was seated the Father and the Son. I saw the beautiful

>> streets of that kingdom, which had the appearance of being paved with

> gold.

>> I saw Father Adam and Abraham, and my father and my mother, my brother,

>> Alvin, that has long since slept, and marvelled how it was that he had

>> obtained an inheritance in that kingdom, seeing that he had departed this

>> life before the Lord had set his hand to gather Israel the second time,

> and

>> had not been baptized for the remission of sins. Thus came the Voice of

> the

>> Lord unto me, saying--All who have died without a knowledge of this

> Gospel,

>> who would have received it if they had been permitted to tarry, shall be

>> heirs of the celestial kingdom of God; also all that shall die henceforth

>> without a knowledge of it, who would have received it with all their

> hearts,

>> shall be heirs of that kingdom, for I, the Lord, will judge all men

>> according to their works, according to the desire of their hearts. [147]

> And

>> I also beheld that all children who die before they arrive at the years

>> of

>> accountability, are saved in the celestial kingdom of heaven.

>>

>>

>> Joseph Fielding Smith: (Doctrines of Salvation 2:296)

>>

>> In modern revelation given to the Church, the Lord has made known more in

>> relation to this glorious event. There shall be at least two classes

>> which

>> shall have the privilege of the resurrection at this time: First, those

> who

>> "shall dwell in the presence of God and his Christ forever and ever"; (D.

> &

>> C. 76:62) and second, honorable men, those who belong to the terrestrial

>> kingdom as well as those of the celestial kingdom. At the time of the

> coming

>> of Christ, "They who have slept in their graves shall come forth, for

> their

>> graves shall be opened; and they also shall be caught up to meet him in

> the

>> midst of the pillar of heaven--They are Christ's, the first fruits, they

> who

>> shall descend with him first, and they who are on the earth and in their

>> graves, who are first caught up to meet him; and all this by the voice of

>> the sounding of the trump of the angel of God." (D. & C. 88:97-98) These

> are

>> the just, "whose names are written in heaven, where God and Christ are

>> the

>> judge of all. These are they who are just men made perfect through Jesus

> the

>> mediator of the new covenant, who wrought out this perfect atonement

> through

>> the shedding of his own blood." (D. & C. 76:68-69)

>>

>>

>> Parley P. Pratt: (Key to Theology, pp. 168-170)

>>

>> To contemplate man in his true light, we must, as it were, forget that

> death

>> is in his path; we must look upon him as an eternal, ever-living being,

>> possessing spirit, flesh and bones, with all the mental and physical

> organs,

>> and all the affections and sympathies which characterize [148] him in

>> this

>> world. Or, rather, all his natural affections and sympathies will be

>> purified, exalted and immeasurably increased. Let the candidate for

>> celestial glory forget, for a moment, the groveling sphere of his present

>> existence, and make the effort to contemplate himself in the light of

>> eternity, in the higher spheres of his progressive existence, beyond the

>> grave, a pure spirit, free from sin and guile, enlightened in the school

> of

>> heaven, by observation and experience, and association with the highest

>> order of intelligences, for thousands of years, and clothed with immortal

>> flesh, in all the vigor, freshness and beauty of eternal youth, alike

>> free

>> from pain, disease, death, and the corroding effects of time, looking

>> back

>> through the vista of far distant years, and contemplating his former

> sojourn

>> amid the sorrows and pains of mortal life, his passage through the dark

>> valley of death and his sojourn in the spirit world, as we now

>> contemplate

> a

>> transient dream, or a night of sleep, from which we have awakened,

>> renewed

>> and refreshed, to enter again upon the realities of life. O candidates

>> for

>> celestial glory! Would your joys be full in the countless years of

> eternity

>> without forming the connections, the relationship, the kindred ties which

>> concentrate in the domestic circle, and branch forth, and bud and

>> blossom,

>> and bear the fruits of eternal increase? Or, would you, like your

>> heavenly Father, prompted by eternal benevolence and charity, wish to

>> fill

>> countless millions of worlds with your begotten sons and daughters, and

>> to

>> bring them through all the gradations of progressive being, to inherit

>> immortal bodies and eternal mansions in your several dominions? If such

>> be

>> your aspirations, remember that this present probation is the world of

>> preparation for joys eternal. This is the place where family organization

> is

>> first formed for eternity, and where the kindred sympathies,

>> relationships

>> and affections take root, spring forth, shoot upward, bud, blossom and

> bear

>> fruit to ripen and mature in eternal ages.

>>

>>

>> [149] Orson Pratt: (The Seer, p. 37)

>>

>> The celestial beings who dwell in the Heaven from which we came, having

> been

>> raised from the grave in a former world, and having been filled with all

> the

>> fulness of these eternal attributes, are called Gods, because the fulness

> of

>> God dwells in each. Both the males and the females enjoy this fulness.

>> The

>> celestial vegetables and fruits which grow out of the soil of this

> redeemed

>> Heaven, constitute the food of the Gods. This food differs from the food

>> derived from the vegetables of a fallen world; the latter are converted

> into

>> blood, which, circulating in the veins and arteries, produces flesh and

>> bones of a mortal nature, having a constant tendency to decay; while the

>> former, or celestial vegetables, are, when digested in the stomach,

>> converted into a fluid, which, in its nature, is spiritual, and which,

>> circulating in the veins and arteries of the celestial male and female,

>> preserves their tabernacles from decay and death. Earthly vegetables form

>> blood, and blood forms flesh and bones; celestial vegetables, when

> digested,

>> form a spiritual fluid which gives immortality and eternal life to the

>> organization in which it flows. Fallen beings beget children whose bodies

>> are constituted of flesh and bones, being formed out of the blood

>> circulating in the veins of the parents. Celestial beings beget children,

>> composed of the fluid which circulates in their veins, which is

>> spiritual;

>> therefore, their children must be spirits, and not flesh and bones. This

> is

>> the origin of our spiritual organization in heaven. The spirits of all

>> mankind, destined for this earth, were begotten by a father, and born of

>> a

>> mother in Heaven, long anterior to the formation of this world. The

>> personages of the father and mother of our spirits, had a beginning to

> their

>> organization, but the fulness of truth (which is God) that dwells in

>> them,

>> had no beginning; being "from everlasting to everlasting." (Psalm 90:2)

>>

>>

>> [150] Orson Pratt: (JD 19:176)

>>

>> The Saints then will be resurrected, and they will also be the

>> inhabitants

>> of this globe. They are singing about it in heaven, while their bodies

>> are

>> sleeping in the grave. Read the 5th chapter of John's Revelations, that

> will

>> give you an idea what the Saints of heaven anticipate. The words of the

> new

>> song which John heard them sing, were: "Thou art worthy to take the book,

>> and to open the seals thereof; for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us

> to

>> God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue and people and nation.

> And

>> hast made us unto our God kings and priests; and we shall reign on the

>> earth!" How plain! "We shall reign on the earth!" They hope for it; they

>> sing about it; they expect it, just as much as we hope to go with them,

> and

>> mingle with them, and just as much as we have faith that we will, when we

>> lay our bodies down in the grave, go to our former abode where we once

> were,

>> to the mansions prepared, and that we will join with the heavenly hosts.

> We

>> will not forget the earth; it is our native abode; but instead of

> forgetting

>> it, we will join with them in their new song, and with them we will look

>> forward with joyful anticipation to the day when we shall return to reign

> on

>> the earth, having been made kings and priests unto our God.

>>

>>

>> Brigham Young: (JD 15:137)

>>

>> And when our spirits receive our bodies, and through our faithfulness we

> are

>> worthy to be crowned, we will then receive authority to produce both

> spirit

>> and body. But these keys we cannot receive in the flesh. Herein,

>> brethren,

>> you can perceive that we have not finished, and cannot finish our work,

>> while we live here, no more than Jesus did while he was in the flesh. We

>> cannot receive, while in the flesh, the keys to form and fashion kingdoms

>> and to organize matter, for they are beyond our capacity and calling,

> beyond

>> this world. In the resurrection, men who have been faithful and [151]

>> diligent in all things in the flesh, have kept their first and second

>> estate, and worthy to be crowned Gods, even the sons of God, will be

>> ordained to organize matter.

>>

>>

>> Doctrine and Covenants: 131:1-4

>>

>> 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.

>>

>>

>> Cleon Skousen: (Imp. Era, July 1969, see pp. 72-75)

>>

>> Modern revelation has further disclosed that the celestial kingdom is

>> divided into three heavens or degrees. (D. & C. 131:1) To attain the

> highest

>> degree, one must be married for time and eternity by the power of God's

> holy

>> priesthood. (D. & C. 131:2-3) Only those who qualify for this highest

>> discipline enjoy a continuing family relationship in the eternal worlds.

> (D.

>> & C. 132:19) And only those who qualify for this level will have the

>> privilege of being tutored to follow in the footsteps of the Father and

>> share in his infinite power. (D. & C. 132:20) To these the Father says he

>> will give "all things." Then the scripture adds, "They are they who are

>> priests and kings, who have received of his fulness, and of his glory. .

>> .

> .

>> Wherefore, as it is written, they are gods, even the sons of God." (D. &

> C.

>> 76:55-56, 58)

>>

>>

>> Orson Pratt: (JD 21:292)

>>

>> But here arises another question,--one of the greatest importance to the

>> children of men of all generations, and that is, are there any marriages

>> that God will recognize which he is not the author of? In other words,

>> sup-[152]posing that two persons in the Roman Catholic church, in the

> Greek

>> church, in any Protestant church, or two persons that do not belong to

>> any

>> religious denomination, are married by a minister, by a justice of the

>> peace, by any person professing to have authority among men, to celebrate

>> the marriage ceremony--have they any claim upon each other when death

>> separates them? According to their own covenants they do not. The

>> minister

>> only married them till death should them part. When death comes along and

>> separates these two persons, their marriage covenant has expired; it has

> run

>> out, it is at an end. But, inquires one, will not the Lord permit them to

>> live together as husband and wife, after the resurrection? Why should he?

> If

>> he had joined them together, according to the marriage ceremony that was

>> administered to the first pair of immortality, then they could claim each

>> other, after the resurrection; but inasmuch as the ceremony was performed

> by

>> an uninspired man, not sent of God, and having no power to seal on earth

>> that it should be sealed in heaven, of course their marriage covenant

>> expires; that is the eternal end of their association. Now, the

>> Latter-day

>> Saints are not willing to go according to the tradition of the sectarian

>> denominations of the earth; but we desire this great, this important

>> ceremony to be performed so that it may be enduring, so that it never

> shall

>> have an end, but last while eternal ages shall last.

>>

>>

>> Brigham Young: (JD 16:166)

>>

>> Now, where a man in this Church says, "I don't want but one wife, I will

>> live my religion with one," he will perhaps be saved in the celestial

>> kingdom; but when he gets there he will not find himself in possession of

>> any wife at all. He has had a talent that he has hid up. He will come

>> forward and say, "Here is that which thou gavest me, I have not wasted

>> it,

>> and here is the one talent," and he will not enjoy it, but it will be

> taken

>> and given to those who have improved the talents they received, and he

> will

>> find himself without any wife, and he will remain [153] single forever

>> and

>> ever. But if the woman is determined not to enter into a plural marriage,

>> that woman when she comes forth will have the privilege of living in

> single

>> blessedness through all eternity.

>>

>>

>> Charles W. Penrose: (JD 25:227)

>>

>> . . . but shall wed under the everlasting covenant and have their wives

>> given them of the Lord and sealed to them by an holy ordinance revealed

> from

>> heaven, in a holy place prepared for the purpose--sealed for time and all

>> eternity, so that death shall not be able to break the bond of union;

>> that

>> though death may separate them for a little season, when they come up in

> the

>> resurrection, there will be no need to marry or give in marriage, because

>> they were married on the earth by authority of God Almighty for time and

> all

>> eternity, ...

>>

>>

>> Orson Pratt: (JD 15:252)

>>

>> Another question. Having been married for eternity, we die and our

>> spirits

>> go into celestial paradise. We come forth in the morning of the first

>> resurrection as immortal males and immortal females. Our wives, married

>> to

>> us for eternity, come forth, and they are ours by virtue of that which

>> God

>> has pronounced upon them through those whom he has appointed, and to whom

> he

>> has given authority. We have a legal claim upon them at the resurrection.

>> But here comes forth a person that is married outside. She comes up

> without

>> a husband, he without a wife, or any claim upon any of the blessings.

>> Here

>> is the difference between these two classes of beings. One dwells as an

>> angel, without any power to increase their species, family or dominions,

>> without the power to beget sons and daughters. This class will be angels.

>> Perhaps many of them will be worthy of obtaining a degree of power,

>> glory,

>> and happiness, but not a fullness. Why? Because they have not come up to

>> [154] that position of their Father and their God. He has power to beget

> and

>> bring forth sons and daughters in the spirit world; and after he has

> brought

>> forth millions and millions of spirits, he has power to organize worlds,

> and

>> send these spirits into these worlds to take temporal bodies to prepare

> them

>> in turn to be redeemed and become Gods, or in other words, the sons of

> God,

>> growing up like their father, possessing all his attributes, and

> propagating

>> their species through all eternity. Here then is the difference between

>> these two classes of beings--one having lost what they might have

>> obtained

>> and enjoyed if they had had faith in God and been willing to obey his

>> commandments. But the others are worthy, as the Apostle Paul has said, to

>> obtain a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while the others

>> will be angels or servants, to go and come at the bidding of those who

>> are

>> more exalted.

>>

>>

>> Joseph Smith: (TPJS, p. 312)

>>

>> Gods have an ascendancy over the angels, who are ministering servants. In

>> the resurrection, some are raised to be angels, others are raised to

> become

>> Gods.

>>

>>

>> Orson Pratt: (JD 15:319)

>>

>> . . . I wish more particularly to inquire concerning the nature of this

>> higher state of glory called celestial. Will there be any difference

>> among

>> those who are redeemed into that glory? There will, in some respects.

>> They

>> will all be equal in the enjoyment of some blessings, and so far their

> glory

>> will be the same, but yet in some respects there will be a difference.

> Some

>> who will inherit a portion of that glory will have no families; they will

> be

>> deprived of that blessing to all ages of eternity, while others will

> receive

>> an exaltation and kingdom, and will have wives, children, dominion,

>> greatness and power far above those I first referred to. [155] Now why

>> should there be this distinction in the celestial kingdom, and what is

>> the

>> cause of it? It is because certain persons who have obeyed the Gospel

>> have

>> become careless and indifferent in regard to securing that high

>> exaltation

>> which was within their reach. God has revealed to this people what is

>> needful for an exaltation in his kingdom. He has revealed to us that

>> marriage is destined for eternity as well as time,--that the marriage

>> covenant between male and female must be entered into in this life, and

> the

>> ordinance performed here by those whom God has appointed and ordained to

>> hold the keys and authority to seal on earth that it may be sealed in

>> heaven; for in heaven there is neither marrying nor giving in marriage,

>> no

>> such thing can be attended to there. Now persons among the Latter-day

> Saints

>> who do not enter into this covenant of marriage but prefer to lead a

> single

>> life cannot enjoy all that fullness of exaltation which will be possessed

> by

>> those who have had this covenant sealed upon them. They might not have

>> forfeited the blessing of celestial glory altogether, but they have

>> forfeited the right to have wives by which only they could have a

> posterity

>> in the eternal worlds. Who will be the subjects in the kingdom which they

>> will rule who are exalted in the celestial kingdom of our God? Will they

>> reign over their neighbors' children? Oh no. Over whom then will they

> reign?

>> Their own children, their own posterity will be the citizens of their

>> kingdoms; in other words, the patriarchal order will prevail there to the

>> endless ages of eternity, and the children of each patriarch will be his

>> while eternal ages roll on.

>>

>>

>> Franklin D. Richards: (JD 25:233-235)

>>

>> He <Christ> taught the doctrine of the resurrection, saying that He was

> the

>> resurrection and the life, and that the day will come when all they that

> are

>> in their graves shall hear His voice and shall come forth. It was because

> He

>> taught this doctrine that the Sadducees sought to entangle and confuse

>> Him

>> concerning this principle by bringing up the case of the woman who

>> married

> a

>> man and he [156] died without any children; then because he died

>> childless

>> she married his brother, which was according to the law of Moses. He also

>> died without children, and so on, each of the brothers marrying her,

>> until

>> the seven brothers had her to wife, and last of all the woman died also.

>> These Sadducees did not believe in any resurrection, and they thought to

> be

>> very crafty with the Savior, so they put the question squarely to Him:

>> "Therefore in the resurrection, whose wife shall she be of the seven? for

>> they all had her." They evidently thought they had caught the Savior

>> then;

>> but He replied to them saying: "Ye do err, not knowing the Scriptures,

>> nor

>> the power of God." Now, who was He talking to? He was speaking to those

>> Sadducees who denied there being any resurrection; who lived

>> contemporaneously with the seven men and this woman who had lived and

>> died

>> among them. He was talking to a race of people to whom John the Baptist

> had

>> come, and many had received his testimony; but these had not. It

>> was

>> to this class of people, who were living under these circumstances, that

> He

>> makes the answer saying, "For in the resurrection they neither marry nor

> are

>> given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven." Luke the

>> Evangelist, stating this case in his 20th chapter, says: "The children of

>> this world marry and are given in marriage, but they which shall be

>> accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the

>> dead,

>> neither marry, nor are given in marriage; neither can they die any more;

> for

>> they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the

>> children of the resurrection." Had they hearkened to the Prophets,

> the

>> Apostles, the words of the Savior, and received the everlasting covenant,

>> they would have been made heirs of God and joint heirs with our Lord

>> Jesus

>> Christ, and would have been made heirs of the celestial world, with power

> to

>> increase eternally, being Gods, even the sons of God, but now that they

>> would not receive the Gospel, the Prophets, nor the everlasting covenant

>> which they might have received, they can only become as the angels in

>> heaven, who in that world neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but

> are

>> equal to the angels in heaven.

>>

>>

>> [157] Orson Pratt: (JD 16:177)

>>

>> Says one--"What are you going to do with that Scripture which says that

>> in

>> the resurrection, they neither marry nor are given in marriage?" I am

> going

>> to let it stand precisely as it is, without the least alteration. A man

> who

>> is so foolish as to neglect the divine ordinance of marriage for

>> eternity,

>> here in this world, and does not secure to himself a wife for all

> eternity,

>> will not have the opportunity of doing so in the resurrection; for Jesus

>> says, that after the resurrection there is neither marrying nor giving in

>> marriage. It is an ordinance that pertains to this world, and here it

>> must

>> be attended to; and parties neglecting it wilfully, here in this life,

>> deprive themselves of the blessings of that union forever in the world to

>> come. It is so with regard to baptism. We are bringing up these two

>> divine

>> ordinances to show you how they harmonize. A man who, in this life, hears

>> the Gospel and knows that it is his duty to be baptized in order that he

> may

>> come forth in the morning of the resurrection with a celestial, glorified

>> body, like unto that of our Lord Jesus Christ, and neglects baptism and

> dies

>> without attending to the ordinance, cannot be baptized himself after the

>> resurrection of the dead, any more than he can be married after the

>> resurrection of the dead. Why not? Because God has appointed that both

>> marriage and baptism shall be attended to in the flesh, and if neglected

>> here, the blessings are forfeited.

>>

>>

>> Parley P. Pratt: (Key to Theology, pp. 180-181)

>>

>> "And after death, in distant spheres The union still renew."

>>

>> The eternal union of the sexes, in and after the resurrection, is mainly

> for

>> the purpose of renewing and continuing the work of procreation. In our

>> present or rudimental state, our offspring are in our own image and

> partake

>> of our natures, in which are the seeds of death. In [158] like manner

>> will

>> the offspring of immortal and celestial beings be in the likeness and

>> partake of the nature of their divine parentage. Hence, such offspring

> will

>> be pure, holy, incorruptible and eternal. They will in no wise be subject

>> unto death, except by descending to partake of the grosser elements, in

>> which are the inherent properties of dissolution or death. To descend

>> thus

>> and to be made subject to sorrow, pain and death, is the only road to the

>> resurrection and to the higher degrees of immortality and eternal life.

>> It

>> is by contrast that intelligences appreciate and enjoy. How shall the

> sweet

>> be known without the bitter? How shall joy be appreciated without sorrow?

>> Or, how shall life be valued, or its eternal duration appreciated,

>> without

> a

>> contact with its mortal antagonist, death? Hence, the highest degrees of

>> eternal felicity are approached by the strait gate and the narrow path

> which

>> leads through the dark valley of death, to eternal mansions in the realms

> of

>> endless life. This path has been trodden by the Eternal Father, by His

> Son,

>> Jesus Christ, and by all the sons and daughters of God who are exalted to

> a

>> fullness of joys celestial.

>>

>>

>> Brigham Young: (JD 6:275)

>>

>> After man have got their exaltations and their crowns--have become Gods,

>> even the sons of God--are made Kings of kings and Lords of lords, they

> have

>> the power then of propagating their species in spirit; and that is the

> first

>> of their operations with regard to organizing a world. Power is then

>> given

>> to them to organize the elements, and then commence the organization of

>> tabernacles. How can they do it? Have they to go to that earth? Yes, an

> Adam

>> will have to go there, and he cannot do without Eve; he must have Eve to

>> commence the work of generation, and they will go into the garden, and

>> continue to eat and drink of the fruits of the corporeal world, until

>> this

>> grosser matter is diffused sufficiently [159] through their celestial

> bodies

>> to enable them, according to the established laws, to produce mortal

>> tabernacles for their spiritual children. This is a key for you. The

>> faithful will become Gods, even the sons of God; but this does not

> overthrow

>> the idea that we have a father. Adam is my father; (this I will explain

>> to

>> you at some future time;) but it does not prove that he is not my father,

> if

>> I become a God: it does not prove that I have not a father.

>>

>>

>> Orson Pratt: (JD 15:220)

>>

>> The increase of those who are exalted in that kingdom will endure

>> forever;

>> and the bringing forth of children will not be attended with sorrow, pain

>> and distress as it is here: these evils have come in consequence of the

> fall

>> of man and the transgression by him of God's holy laws. But when men are

>> redeemed to immortality and eternal life, there will be no pain, sorrow

>> or

>> affliction of body, and yet children will be brought forth, and to their

>> increase there will be no end. Hence the promise of God to the patriarchs

>> Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, that their seed should be as numerous as the

> stars

>> of heaven, or as the sands upon the sea shore. We all know that the sand

> on

>> the sea shore is innumerable to us. If we take a handful it numbers in

> tens

>> of thousands of grains, and if Abraham's seed are to become as numerous

>> as

>> the sands on the sea shore, they will fill a great many worlds like this

> of

>> ours. There is to be no end to the increase of the old Patriarch, and, as

>> his posterity increases, world on world will be created and brought into

>> existence, and those children will be sent forth from the presence of the

>> Patriarch to take upon themselves bodies, as we have done here in this

>> world. I mean their spirits. Understand me now, resurrected parents are

> the

>> parents not of bodies of flesh and bones, but of spirits the same as we

> were

>> before we came and took these mortal bodies, that is, when we lived up in

>> yonder world in the presence of our Father, and in the [160] company of

> the

>> thousands of millions of our brother and sister spirits. They will be of

> the

>> same class and nature, and they will have to take their position in

>> worlds

>> that will be created for them the same as we came from heaven to this

> world,

>> that we might gain knowledge and experience that we could not gain in any

>> other way. Thus will the Lord continue his work and purposes, and there

> will

>> be one eternal round in creation, and redemption, in the formation and

>> redemption of worlds, and bringing them back into his presence.

>>

>>

>> <Note: Further recommended reading on this subject--Orson Pratt's

> discourse,

>> JD 15:312-324.>

>>

>>

>> --

>> Listen to Zion Redemption's Radio hosted by Art Bulla and Aaron Kim on

>> Sunday from 3 to 4 (pst). Just go to

>> http://www.blogtalkradio.com/hostpage.aspx?host_id=3513 All are invited

>> to

>> call in live, email at art@artbulla.com, or by MSM artbulla@hotmail.com.

>> This show is dedicated to the redemption of Zion, revelations of Jesus

>> Christ, authority, Priesthood, Kingdom of God, doctrine discussed

> pertaining

>> to the salvation of Ephraim and Manasseh. During non broadcast hours you

> can

>> also listen to archived shows.

>>

>> Aaron Kim

>>

>> http://www.artbulla.com

>>

>

>

On Thu, 06 Sep 2007 21:05:31 -0400, Robibnikoff wrote:

> "Mark K. Bilbo" <gmail@com.mkbilbo> wrote in message

> news:MsednTRwOu7WFn3bnZ2dnUVZ_gOdnZ2d@giganews.com...

>> On Thu, 06 Sep 2007 15:38:13 -0700, Aaron Kim wrote:

>>

>>> Babies Do Not Go to Hell

>>

>> Of course not, "hell" doesn't exist...

>

> Too bad. I'd like to send all my SILs there - Fucking hypocritical

> bitches

There's an opening for a quip about New Jersey but I think I'll just back

away slowly from it...

--

Mark K. Bilbo a.a. #1423

EAC Department of Linguistic Subversion

------------------------------------------------------------

"Just because it's inexplicted doesn't mean it's inexplicable."

- Dr. House

A nitwit who has never seen heaven or hell. I have seen devils when cast

out of a young woman, and I saw and hear unutterable things when caught up

to the third heaven. I know also, that you are a brash fool.

12 But these, as anatural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed,

speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly bperish

in their own corruption;

13 And shall receive the areward of unrighteousness, as they that count it

bpleasure to criot in the day time. Spots they are and blemishes, sporting

themselves with their own deceivings while they feast with you;

14 Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling

unstable souls: an heart they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed

children:

15 Which have aforsaken the right bway, and are gone castray, following the

way of dBalaam the son of Bosor, who loved the ewages of unrighteousness;

16 But was rebuked for his iniquity: the dumb aass speaking with man's voice

forbad the madness of the prophet.

17 These are awells without water, clouds that are carried with a tempest;

to whom the bmist of cdarkness is reserved for ever.

18 For when they aspeak great swelling words of bvanity, they callure

through the dlusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were

clean eescaped from them who live in error.

19 While they promise them aliberty, they themselves are the bservants of

ccorruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in

dbondage.

20 For if after they have aescaped the bpollutions of the world through the

knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are cagain dentangled

therein, and eovercome, the latter end is fworse with them than the

beginning.

21 For it had been better for them not to have aknown the way of

brighteousness, than, after they have known it, to cturn from the holy

commandment delivered unto them.

22 But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is

turned to his own avomit again; and the sow that was bwashed to her

wallowing in the mire. 2 Peter 2:12-22.

--

Website: http://www.artbulla.com

5 And it speaketh harshly against sin, according to the plainness of the

truth; wherefore, no man will be angry at the words which I have written

save he shall be of the spirit of the devil.

6 I glory in plainness; I glory in truth; I glory in my Jesus, for he hath

redeemed my soul from hell.

(2 Nephi 33:5 - 6)

26 And ye have murmured because he hath been plain unto you. Ye say that

he hath used sharpness; ye say that he hath been angry with you; but behold,

his sharpness was the sharpness of the power of the word of God, which was

in him; and that which ye call anger was the truth, according to that which

is in God, which he could not restrain, manifesting boldly concerning your

iniquities.

27 And it must needs be that the power of God must be with him, even unto

his commanding you that ye must obey. But behold, it was not he, but it was

the Spirit of the Lord which was in him, which opened his mouth to utterance

that he could not shut it.

(Book of Mormon | 2 Nephi 1:26 - 27)

"What Joseph meant by being damned was that people will go into the spirit

world without the Priesthood, and consequently they are under the power of

Satan, and will have to be redeemed, or else they will be forever under his

power. That is all there is about that."

(Journal of Discourses, 26 vols., 17:, p.159)

"I am like a huge rough stone rolling down from a high mountain; and the

only polishing I get is when some corner gets rubbed off by coming in

contact with something else, striking with accelerated force against

religious bigotry, priestcraft, lawyer-craft, doctor-craft, lying editors,

suborned judges and jurors, and the authority of perjured executives, backed

by mobs, blasphemers, licentious and corrupt men and women, all hell

knocking off a corner here and a corner there. Thus will I become a smooth

and polished shaft in the quiver of the Almighty." (Teachings of the

Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 304.)

"I just tell em the truth, and they think it's hell." Harry Truman

THE GOLDEN RULE OF DISINFORMERS:

Always accuse your adversary of whatever is true about yourself.

"Nothing has more retarded the advancement of learning than the disposition

of vulgar minds to ridicule and vilify what they do not understand."

Dr.Samuel Johnson.

The Revelations of Jesus Christ:

<http://www.iuniverse.com/bookstore/book_detail.asp?isbn=0-595-28287-3>

Discourses of Brigham Young, Pg.68

As it has always been, and will be yet for some time, when the sons

of God assemble together Satan will be on hand as an accuser of the

brethren, to find fault with those who are trying to do good.

"But we ask, does it remain for a people who never had faith enough to call

down one scrap of revelation from heaven, and for all they have now are

indebted

to the faith of another people...does it remain for them to say how much God

has

spoken and how much He has not spoken?" Joseph Smith

"Every generation has flattered itself that it is a little better than the

one that preceded it. Every generation has prided itself in its knowledge

and great advancement in the arts and sciences and its superiority over

preceding generations; yet the power of the adversary and his hatred of

righteousness and truth are as great to-day as they ever were since the

creation of the earth." Journal of Discourses, Vol.11, Pg.228 - Pg.229,

George Q. Cannon, May 6, 1866

"Some men are natural born saints; whenever a principle is advanced they

understand it, and drink it in; while there are others who do not

understand and oppose every principle that is not clear to their mind. This

can be accounted for, that we are not all pure blooded, for Ephraim became

foolish and mixed up with the gentiles. When we find the pure blood of

Ephraim, we find a natural born child of God and there is nothing in the

gospel that is objectionable to them, but the others have to exercise faith

in God and humble themselves before Him and live for it." (Deseret Weekly,

50:250-251)

"Mark K. Bilbo" <gmail@com.mkbilbo> wrote in message

news:MsednTRwOu7WFn3bnZ2dnUVZ_gOdnZ2d@giganews.com...

> On Thu, 06 Sep 2007 15:38:13 -0700, Aaron Kim wrote:

>

>> Babies Do Not Go to Hell

>

> Of course not, "hell" doesn't exist...

>

> --

> Mark K. Bilbo a.a. #1423

> EAC Department of Linguistic Subversion

> ------------------------------------------------------------

> "How come God gets credit whenever something good happens? Where was he

> when her heart stopped?"

>

> - Dr. House

On Sat, 08 Sep 2007 11:59:22 -0700, Art Bulla wrote:

> A nitwit who has never seen heaven or hell. I have seen devils when

> cast out of a young woman, and I saw and hear unutterable things when

> caught up to the third heaven.

Uh huh. You know they have medications for that now...

--

Mark K. Bilbo a.a. #1423

EAC Department of Linguistic Subversion

------------------------------------------------------------

"Morality is doing what is right, no matter what you're

told. Religion is doing what you're told, not matter what

is right."

- Jerry Sturdivant

On Sat, 8 Sep 2007 11:59:22 -0700, "Art Bulla" <art@artbulla.com>

wrote:

>A nitwit who has never seen heaven or hell.

You sure are.

Mark K. Bilbo wrote:

> On Sat, 08 Sep 2007 11:59:22 -0700, Art Bulla wrote:

>

>> A nitwit who has never seen heaven or hell. I have seen devils when

>> cast out of a young woman, and I saw and hear unutterable things when

>> caught up to the third heaven.

>

> Uh huh. You know they have medications for that now...

He sounds over-medicated as it is.