The Role of Women in the Plates of Brass
One of the most striking distinctions between the traditional Torah and the Torah written to the seed of Joseph on the plates of brass is the portrayal of women.
God is Love!
“A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” -John 13:34-35
Sometimes we justify our dislike for others by saying things like “but they’re sport-stars (they play for the opposite team etc)” or “they’re celebrities, I don’t know them personally so…” The fact is that when we start to justify our displeasure for others, we are beginning to loose sight of the Celestial love of Christ, that we should all be aiming to have in our hearts at all times.
Why the Book of Mormon is True
“And [God] gave him power from on high, by the means which were before prepared, to translate the Book of Mormon; which contains a record of a fallen people, and the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles and to the Jews also; which was given by inspiration, and is confirmed to others by the ministering of angels, and is declared unto the world by them—proving to the world that the holy scriptures are true, and that God does inspire men and call them to his holy work in this age and generation, as well as in generations of old; thereby showing that he is the same God yesterday, today, and forever. Amen.” -Doctrines of the Saints 2a:8-11
All holy books have truth and wisdom in them; yet we do not accept all holy books as scripture the way we do the Bible and Book of Mormon. We claim the Book of Mormon is “true.” We say that the Gospel is “true.” But what does this mean? What is “truth?”
Jesus Taught the Kingdom
Note: The following was originally published March 6, 2019
“And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy.” -Acts 2:17-18
I shared in my book, “The Destiny of Ephraim and the Restoration of the House of Israel” that around the year 2000, a message came to rest very powerfully in my conscience. I believed it to be a message from the Holy Spirit. “It is the end of the Church Age and the beginning of the Kingdom Age.” After this, I wrote an entire book on the subject, as the the Lord confirmed this word, again and again, through many witnesses and in many dreams, visions, and testimonies.
Seeking Truth
“And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ. I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able.” 1 Corinthians 3:1-2
Joseph Smith actually didn’t know that much after the First Vision, it was a great comfort to him, but the lessons that it taught him didn’t click with him until he got older. That’s why there are so many “different accounts” (see Avahr: Appendix). Each account varies in information, because as Joseph progressed spiritually, new understandings of the First Vision were opened up to him. It’s the same with us right? When we read scripture, we can read it over and over again and each time (if we’re reading it trough spiritual eyes) we will get new things from it, or new lessons will be taught to us. It’s the same thing with Joseph Smith and his first Vision.
The Divine Feminine in the Apocrypha
“And Wisdom was with thee: which knoweth thy works, and was present when thou madest the world, and knew what was acceptable in thy sight, and right in thy commandments. O send her out of thy holy heavens, and from the throne of thy glory, that being present she may labor with me, that I may know what is pleasing unto thee.” -Wisdom of Solomon 9:9-10
In the Fellowship of Christ, we talk about the idea of a Mother in Heaven or Divine Feminine. In the Old Testament wisdom is a personified heavenly female power. The author of Proverbs says of the Divine Feminine: “Take fast hold of instruction; let Her not go: keep Her; for She is thy life” (4:13). We see in Proverbs 8 that Wisdom is described as more than a good quality. She was with God before the foundation of the world, she is co-eternal with Him. In the Book of Mormon we see Her as the tree that bears the fruit that is Jesus Christ in Lehi’s dream and Nephi’s vision (1 Nephi 3:49 RAV, 11:9 OPV).
With this understanding, we can bring Her reality back. This is after all the restoration of all things. Our Mother in Heaven is someone to identify with, to know.
The Book of Remembrance
The Book of Remembrance is a series of dreams, visions, and revelations given through David Ferriman, First Elder of the Church of Jesus Christ in Christian Fellowship.
Jesus Came to Mary
The following is the transcript of Kristine’s Easter 2020 message.
On this Easter Sunday, we worship together in celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. After the atonement, Jesus was crucified, his spirit left his body, and his body was laid to rest in a sepulcher or tomb. On the first day of the week, Sunday, Jesus’ spirit and body were reunited and He rose.
Meeting in Reverence Before the Lord
“And [Raphael] said unto them, in the temple of the Lord: Behold eight tasks shall I give unto thee, teach thy people to do these each in their proper order.” -Book of Remembrance 25:2
As we meet together as Saints, some have asked the proper way to organize services. The correct answer of course is, by the Spirit. That said, the Lord has given us instructions on this topic through Raphael, as he spoke to Adam and Eve. These instructions should be used in our home temples, in our Synagogues, Tabernacles, and Temples for personal and group worship. And these may be used by seekers, disciples, and ministers. They are given to the world to be received in the spirit.
Called of God
In the Latter Day Saint movement people of all walks of life are called of God as “apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists, and so forth” to help move individuals, congregations, churches, and the kingdom forward in Christ.
Climate Change, a Sign of Sins of Mankind
“For the world shall fall ill to the iniquity of mankind; yea, the greed of men shall be as a poison that will drain the earth of its life, and she shall become sick.” -Neum 13:4
I grew up being told that we live in the last days. Looking at the view I was raised in, if the last days began with Joseph Smith’s First Vision, then we have been in the last days for over 200 years now. I grew up reading the thoughts of past leaders of the church my family had joined when I was a small boy. For 200 years, these men saw the end just around the corner.
Love and Lishmah
“I directed my soul unto her, and I found her in pureness: I have had my heart joined with her from the beginning, therefore shall I not be forsaken.” -Ecclesiasticus 51:20 KJV
Lishmah (לישמה), literally translated means “for her sake,” or “for her name.” In Kabbalah it is generally translated as “for its sake,” or “for its name.” “It” here refers to the study of the Torah, stating why we focus on the Torah and the Mitzvah—we study the Torah for the sake or our love of the Torah. However, this term, lishmah, may be used for anything we do for YHVH; thus it can also mean “for the Lord’s sake”.
As we practice lishmah we are in the Shekinah, the Presence of God; and we are the Shekinah, the congregation (Isaiah 54:5, 62:5; Matthew 25:1-46). This is why Heavenly Mother or the Divine Feminine, and the Congregation, the Church, or the Assembly of the Saints are both referred to as Shekinah: a feminine force representing the will to receive. But what does this have to do with love? Maybe everything.