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Church Teachings Articles
Repentance in Mormonism
Repentance is a wonderful gift from a loving Heavenly Father. Mormons believe that repentance should be viewed in a positive light as an opportunity to improve. The root of the word repentance in both Hebrew and Greek refers to a turning from sin toward God and a change of heart. Repentance is not synonymous with penance, but refers rather to the inner spiritual change. The Book of Mormon refers to it as a change of heart. Repentance is therefore the act of trying to bring one’s life more in accord with God’s teachings.
To repent we must acknowledge our mistakes and weaknesses. We must take responsibility for our own actions and recognize that what we have done has hurt others and offended God. Second, we must forsake the sin. This means we must stop doing it and never return to it again. We must, if possible, make restitution. This means that if we stole something, we should return it or pay the person... Read the rest of this article »
Mormon Prayer and Fasting
What is prayer?
Our God, though all powerful and all knowing, the creator of all things, is also a personal God, who knows each of His children intimately and cares for their welfare. He desires us to approach Him in personal prayer and promises that those prayers are always heard and answered.
Prayer is perhaps the most important aspect of worship, both public and private. Many people pray, but some people find it difficult because they do not understand its purpose or who it is to whom they pray. When we realize that God is our Father, we will realize that prayer is way of talking to our Heavenly Father. In our prayers we can share our burdens with God, thank Him for His goodness to us, and seek answers or help from Him.
How should I pray?
Jesus taught us the basic outline for prayer. He said:
But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.... Read the rest of this article »
Health and Morality in Mormonism
Mormons believe that spiritual and physical things are linked. If we abuse our bodies, we are abusing our spirit. You may have noticed that when you are physically ill, you tend to feel emotionally and spiritually ill as well, and when you are sad, you may feel its effects physically. In this way it is obvious that the spirit and the body affect each other. In a revelation given to Joseph Smith, the Lord Jesus Christ said, “Wherefore, verily I say unto you that all things unto me are spiritual, and not at any time have I given unto you a law which was temporal; neither any man, nor the children of men; neither Adam, your father, whom I created” (Doctrine & Covenants 29:34). Thus, Mormons believe that all commandments and everything we do affect both our spirit and our body, and whatever influences one, affects the other.
The Word of Wisdom
Mormons believe that the body is sacred and should be taken care... Read the rest of this article »
The Plan of Salvation
Mormon doctrine centers around the Plan of Salvation, which is God’s plan to “bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man” (Moses 1:39). The plan of salvation represents the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ as it is experienced and lived by mankind. This plan, also called the plan of happiness, plan of mercy, and plan of redemption, teaches us where we came from, why we are here, and where we are going. It answers the important questions in life about who we are and what our relation to God is.
The PreMortal Life
We lived before we were born. A book of modern revelation states:
“Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, the intelligences that were organized before the world was; and among all these there were many of the noble and great ones” (Abraham 3:22).
We existed as spirit children of God in Heaven. Everyone knew and worshiped God the Father, and Christ, who was the First-Born spirit. During... Read the rest of this article »
Learn more about your Mormon Ward
Your Ward
Families and individuals make up the membership of each ward. Most wards average around 200 to 300 members. If you live in an area where there are few Mormons, you will have a branch, which is similar to a ward, but usually has from 50 to 150 members. Branches have Branch Presidents instead of Bishops who perform very similar functions to that of a Bishop. For both wards and branches the following represents the basic leaders of the congregation and the various programs available.
Find your local Mormon Chapel.
Bishop (or Branch President):
Your Bishop is one of the busiest and most important men in the ward. He oversees the whole ward with the help of his two counselors and the presidents of the various other organizations like the Sunday School, the Relief Society, the Primary, and the Young Men/Young Women programs. His calling is to be a “common judge in Israel” (Doctrine and Covenants 107:72,... Read the rest of this article »
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon Church)
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as the Mormon Church is officially called, represents the Kingdom of God on earth with a “foundation of apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone” (Ephesians 2:20). In the Mormon Church there is no professional clergy. All work together to do the work of the Kingdom, and every position in the Church is filled by members of the congregation who receive no salary.
In Ephesians Paul says, “And he [Jesus Christ] gave some apostles; some prophets; and some evangelists; and some pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ” (Ephesians 4:11-12). This means that the true Church of God has all these various positions to help perfect the saints, which means members of Christ’s church, and spread the Gospel. The Mormon Church... Read the rest of this article »
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Because searching out one’s ancestors and performing temple ordinances on their behalf is important to Mormons, many Mormon chapels have Family History Libraries open on certain days throughout the week to assist members and the local population in doing genealogical and family history research. These libraries have computers, microfilm, and microfiche which enable a person to examine census data, baptism, and death records, and many other types of records to help locate and organize one’s personal genealogy. The staff are all volunteers who donate their spare time each week to helping those who have run into problems or do not know how to begin their genealogical research. The Family History library and its resources are free to the public. The hours it is open should be posted on the door to the library.
Visit Familysearch.org, the Mormon Church premiere family history search site, to begin... Read the rest of this article »
The Godhead: God, [block]0[/block], and the Holy Ghost
The very first Article of Faith of the Mormon Church is very definitive and quite simple in stating our belief concerning God: We believe in God, the eternal Father, and in his Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.
God our Heavenly Father
Mormons believe that God is all-powerful (Alma 26:35, pg. 275), all-knowing (Mosiah 4:9, pg 155), and that His Spirit can be felt by all people, everywhere (Psalms 139:7-12). He possesses an absolute perfection of all good attributes; He is merciful, loving, patient, truthful, and does not judge us by our outward appearance. While Mormon Church members look to the scriptures for instructive information about God, their primary knowledge concerning His nature comes from revelations given to modern prophets like Joseph Smith. In a vision, Joseph Smith saw God the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ. They are separate personages, but are both united... Read the rest of this article »
Relief Society in the Mormon church
Relief Society:
The Relief Society is one of the oldest and largest women’s organizations in the world and is the Mormon Church’s main organization for women. The Prophet Joseph Smith founded it in 1842 in Nauvoo, Illinois, with the motto “Charity Never Faileth.” Today the Relief Society has over 5 million members in over 170 different countries. All Mormon women age 18 and older are members of the Relief Society.
The Relief Society Declaration states:
We are beloved spirit daughters of God, and our lives have meaning, purpose, and direction. As a worldwide sisterhood, we are united in our devotion to Jesus Christ, our Savior and Exemplar. We are women of faith, virtue, vision, and charity who:
Increase our testimonies of Jesus Christ through prayer and scripture study.
Seek spiritual strength by following the promptings of the Holy Ghost.
Dedicate ourselves to strengthening marriages, families,... Read the rest of this article »
Seminary and Institute in the Mormon Church
Seminary and Institute:
The Mormon Church believes that education is very important. That is why it runs schools like Brigham Young University. However, not everyone can go to a Church-owned school, and so the Church has established the Seminary and Institute programs.
Seminary
Seminary for Mormons is not a school where people go to become ministers; it is instead a program to provide weekday religious education for high school students. In places where there are lots of Mormons, the Church is able to sponsor release-time seminary during school hours, though students do not receive school credit for their religious study. In these places Mormon youth meet at special seminary buildings or local chapels to study the Gospel together and to learn how it can be used in their everyday lives.
Most Mormons, however, don’t live in places where this can happen. Instead, they have early-morning seminary. ... Read the rest of this article »
