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Came across a copy of this c. 1950s, but the original was written in 1931. By Joseph Fielding Smith. Lots of deep doctrine, and old fashioned doctrine.
Lots of disturbing ideas about race and priesthood.
Interesting ideas about the spirit world, celestialization etc.
Anyone else read it?
Sam, I haven’t seen it. What’s your take on it so far, is it pretty out-dated teachings? Since I don’t sustain people as prophets, seers and scientists (biological OR social) . . . I haven’t read this book, but I generally don’t read things from that time that deal with social issues in any way. If I were to read it, and if I got to the parts about race, I’d skip them. I know what his (incorrect) take on that issue was. Why risk raising my blood pressure when it’s not necessary?
Old-Timer wrote:Since I don’t sustain people as prophets, seers and scientists (biological OR social) . . .
I haven’t read this book, but I generally don’t read things from that time that deal with social issues in any way. If I were to read it, and if I got to the parts about race, I’d skip them. I know what his (incorrect) take on that issue was. Why risk raising my blood pressure when it’s not necessary?
with you on that…I wonder about a lot of the institutional speculation. When I hear or read our church’s take on cosmology, i don’t really accept any of it, nor do I find it relevant. spirit world and celestialization, whatever these may mean, are outside the realm of knowable things, and I question their relevance to my daily life. the beginning of speculation is whether there is or is not an afterlife. If we proclaim that Christ is risen from the dead according to the scriptures (this phrase is of course a creed and not part of the ‘articles of faith’), then we proclaim a belief in the afterlife — and this is a point at which I struggle, because I simply don’t know. I would like to believe, i think it’s comforting to believe, I hope for that which we cannot see, but I don’t know if they’re ‘true’, and a lot of the physical evidence stretches credulity about the persistent of what are now known to be part of the physical architecture of the brain. So for those things that I don’t know, I ‘suspend judgment’, and try not to speak or write of them. It’s hard, because we teach a lot of things about the afterlife, and premortal life, and cosmology/structure of the heavens.
LDS in the past have done a LOT of institutional speculation: Kolob, celestial time, structure of the spirit world, specific qualifications for various kingdoms, structure of kingdoms, ontology of god, wow — the list goes on. Yet, today, the trend is toward minimization of LDS institutional speculation toward the more mainstream christian speculations. That means, typically, less speculation, but speculation and church policy seem to be a moving target.
Thus, the ‘policy’ is to ‘follow the prophet
‘: meaning go with the current understanding and teachings of the church, and sort-of ignore the old manuals, books, Journal of Discourses, etc., that are not 100% in synch with current teaching. I go along with this policy to a point, but it’s a convention, not anything by belief or conviction. When I hear something that rings true to my own spiritual understanding, then I consider it. When not…well I must have nodded off at that point, or passed over it on the buffet.No, but I’m pretty sure I tossed one out just the other day. Hopefully that feeling I had wasn’t the Spirit telling me not to do it. I couldn’t imagine ever having the energy to sort through it, so I admire your efforts and wish you good luck with it. Actually I find it an easy read (the type’s fairly large), it’s the content that’s curious. Some of it is very inspiring, but other parts are almost written as ammunition for anyone who thinks that we’re some kind of hive of racists. Quote:“Not only was Cain called upon to suffer, but because of his wickedness he became the father of an
inferior race“ , p 101
Given that the whole race question was a large factor in making me leave the church, it’s painful for me to read this kind of stuff again.
Sure enough, when I googled it, I was not surprised to see it linked up with the whole issue.
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