Millenium approaches...
Welcome to the second instalment of my e-mail interview series, in which I seek to examine a a variety of Apocalypse scenarios, as suggested by the 'End Times' prophecies of different religious groups. This time around, LDS Church Examiner Danette Ariotti shares her faith's beliefs on how and why the world will end.
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Danette Ariotti reports on developments within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints- also known as the Church of Mormon- as a popular National Examiner, featuring regularly as a 'top five' contributor for the Religion and Spirituality channel. Danette moonights as the Salt Lake City Fast Food Examiner.
Question 1
What is your religion's classical interpretation (if any) of the Apocalypse?
ANSWER: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believes that there will be a Second Coming of Christ (also known as the Millennium) to the earth and that the earth will be cleansed at that time. We also believe that a resurrection of souls to their physical bodies will occur. The resurrection will bring souls and bodies back together but our bodies will then be immortal or without blood. The Millennium was prophesied in the Old Testament, and as its name specifies, will last one-thousand years. During the Millennium, LDS belief is that the earth will be cleansed from its current telestial state to a celestial state (this will be at the end of the Millennium). The degrees/kingdoms of glory are a large subject and full descriptions of all three (telestial, terrestrial and celestial) degrees can be found in the Doctrine and Covenants section 76, verses 81-113. Also, we believe there will be more than one resurrection at that time. We also believe that the Millennium will be a time of peace when Christ is on the earth. Events leading up to His coming, will not be peaceful.
Question 2
How do you believe this particular interpretation fits into the events that currently shape our world? Do you believe we are now living in the End of Days?
ANSWER: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believes in the last days or the dispensation of the fullness of times (how it is commonly referred). In the Doctrine and Covenants – this is scripture according to the revelation received by modern-day prophets – Joseph Smith received a revelation in December 1832 specifically about signs of the Millennium. Doctrine and Covenants section 87, verse 6 reads, “And thus, with the sword and by bloodshed the inhabitants of the earth shall mourn; and with famine, and plague, and earthquake, and the thunder of heaven, and the fierce and vivid lightning also, shall the inhabitants of the earth be made to feel the wrath, and indignation, and chastening hand of an Almighty God, until the consumption decreed hath made a full end of all nations.” As with Christ’s first earthly visit, we believe there already have been and will be more signs as His coming draws closer.
Question 3
Do you (even slightly) believe in any of the myriad theories suggesting a 2012 apocalyptic event? If so, how do they integrate within the dogmatic structure of your faith?
ANSWER: We do not believe in a specific time for the Millennium. We believe that no one, not even the angels in heaven know exactly when the Millennium will occur. Joseph Smith prophesied of the ultimate sign of the Millennium. This prophecy can be found in the History of the Church. This particular passage was in a letter Joseph Smith wrote to the editor of the Times and Seasons in Nauvoo, IL, in 1843. The passage was published on March 1, 1843 and was in regard to a man who claimed to have seen the sign of the Second Coming. It reads, “He has not seen the sign of the Son of Man (Christ), as foretold by Jesus; neither has any man, nor will any man, until after the sun hall have been darkened and the moon bathed in blood; for the Lord hath not shown me any such sign; and as the prophet saith, so it must be – ‘Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets (Old Testament book of Amos, chapter 3, verse 7).’” Joseph Smith then said in his letter, “Therefore here this, O earth: The Lord will not come to reign over the righteous, in the world, in 1843, nor until everything for the Bridegroom (a common reference the LDS church uses for Christ) is ready.”
I've always found the LDS Church very interesting, and it seems it's apocalyptic prophecies don't disappoint either.
Join me next time for another religion's unique viewpoint on the End of Days.
There are now only 1374 days left until the End of the World.
Comments
There's just a slight error in the last answer.
Yes the Church teaches what's clear in the New Testament that nobody then, nor at the time of Joseph Smith, knew or knows when Christ will come again. But the Church has made clear, both through things said by modern day prophets and by properly looking at the scriptural context, that as God "will do nothing save he revealeth his secrets unto his servants the prophets" (see the book of Amos in the Old Testament in The Bible) that God WILL reveal his second coming to our modern prophets PRIOR to the second coming. It'd also be silly to believe the New Testament outside of it's own context as that would give us the image of Jesus Christ not knowing when he was coming until he had come. Clearly the limitations on who knew the day and hour of the second coming were limitations unique to the time, our Church has taught such since the days of it's inception and has even re-emphasized such in recent years in it's monthly publication "the Ensign."
HiveRadical states an error, whilst they may welll be in her statement there is a deeper one in yours. The quote from AMos 3:7 does NOT sat "secrets" but "secret" which gives a whole different meaning to the phrase when you read it in its intended Hebrew. I encourage to find out more!
HiveRadical : We are also warned pls see below.
Test the Spirits
1Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.
Here's a little more insight on the scripture passages in the interview. Hopefully this helps. Thanks, Wyatt, for this opportunity.
Amos 3:7 says, “Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but (until) he revealeth (coming forth of scripture) his secret (reference to Daniel 2:19) unto his servants the prophets.”
Daniel 2:19 reads, “Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision. Then Daniel blessed (praised) the God of heaven.”
The passage of scripture in Daniel refers to a dream Nebuchadnezzar had about a great image destroyed by a stone cut out of a mountain without hands. In the dream, the great image was constructed of gold, silver, brass, iron and clay (parts of the image were made from different materials). The stone smote the image and the image was scattered by the wind. The stone then became a great mountain and filled the whole earth. The stone is an analogy for the latter-day kingdom of God. The great image represents different kingdoms starting strong (gold) and changing (as the different materials of the great image do) until the last kingdom (iron and clay – two materials that do not mix) easily falls apart. At this time in the dream, all the materials are scattered by the wind and the stone grew and filled the earth.
None of the people (magicians, astrologers, sorcerers, Chaldeans) Nebuchadnezzar called on could interpret the dream. He needed the dream to be interpreted because it was troubling his spirit and he could not sleep. Daniel was able to interpret the dream through the Lord from a “night vision” (as noted in verse 19 of chapter 2 in the book of Daniel). The secret – which is the Millennium – at that time, was revealed to Daniel.
In Amos 3:7, it states God will do nothing until the Millennium comes forth as noted in the scriptures. It also implies that all his servants (the prophets) have seen signs of the Millennium. We, as God’s children, are all his servants and in these the latter-days, are seeing signs of Christ’s Second Coming. The LDS Church uses the King James Version of the Bible.
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