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Lectures On Faith
"Lectures on Faith" is a set of seven lectures on the doctrine and theology of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, first published as the doctrine portion of the 1835 edition of the canonical Doctrine and Covenants (D&C), but later removed from that work by both major branches of the faith. The lectures were originally presented by Joseph Smith to a group of elders in a course known as the " School of the Prophets" in the early winter of 1834–35 in Kirtland, Ohio. Authorship Although authorship of the lectures is uncertain, studies suggest that the actual wording was largely by Sidney Rigdon, with substantial involvement and approval by Smith and possibly others. Smith was involved, both in their authorship in November 1834 and in their later preparation for publication in January 1835. The original title of each lecture was "Of Faith". It was not until 1876, in an edition of the D&C edited by Church Historian, Orson Pratt, of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Theology
Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the supernatural, but also deals with religious epistemology, asks and seeks to answer the question of revelation. Revelation pertains to the acceptance of God, gods, or deities, as not only transcendent or above the natural world, but also willing and able to interact with the natural world and, in particular, to reveal themselves to humankind. While theology has turned into a secular field , religious adherents still consider theology to be a discipline that helps them live and understand concepts such as life and love and that helps them lead lives of obedience to the deities they follow or worship. Theologians use various forms of analysis and argument ( experiential, philosophical, ethnographic, historical, and others) to help u ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Sacrifice
Sacrifice is the offering of material possessions or the lives of animals or humans to a deity as an act of propitiation or worship. Evidence of ritual animal sacrifice has been seen at least since ancient Hebrews and Greeks, and possibly existed before that. Evidence of ritual human sacrifice can also be found back to at least pre-Columbian civilizations of Mesoamerica as well as in European civilizations. Varieties of ritual non-human sacrifices are practiced by numerous religions today. Terminology The Latin term ''sacrificium'' (a sacrifice) derived from Latin ''sacrificus'' (performing priestly functions or sacrifices), which combined the concepts ''sacra'' (sacred things) and ''facere'' (to do or perform). The Latin word ''sacrificium'' came to apply to the Christian eucharist in particular, sometimes named a "bloodless sacrifice" to distinguish it from blood sacrifices. In individual non-Christian ethnic religions, terms translated as "sacrifice" include the Indic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Love Of God In Christianity
The love of God is a prevalent concept both in the Old Testament and the New Testament. Love is a key attribute of God in Christianity, even if in the New Testament the expression "God is love" explicitly occurs only twice and in two not too distant verses: 1 John . The love of God has been the center of the spirituality of a number of Christian mystics such as Teresa of Avila. Old Testament The Old Testament uses a rich vocabulary to express the love of God, as a concept that appears in many instances. For example, the prophet Hosea saw God's love as the basis for the election of Israel (cf. Hosea 11:1). In Isaiah 38, God expresses his love for individuals as well. Many Christians see Solomon as symbolizing Christ's relation to his church. The love of God appears in a number of texts (e.g. Hosea 1-3, and then in Ezek 16 and Isa 62, etc.); however, the exegesis of the love of God in the Old Testament has presented problems for modern scholars, especially resolving the refere ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Judgement
Judgement (or US spelling judgment) is also known as ''adjudication'', which means the evaluation of evidence to make a decision. Judgement is also the ability to make considered decisions. The term has at least five distinct uses. Aristotle suggested we think of the ''opposite'' of different uses of a term, if one exists, to help determine if the uses are really different. Some opposites will be included here to help demonstrate that their uses are really distinct: * Informal – opinions expressed as facts. * Informal and psychological – used in reference to the quality of cognitive faculties and adjudicational capabilities of particular individuals, typically called ''wisdom'' or ''discernment''. The opposites are ''foolishness'' or ''indiscretion''. * Formal - the mental act of affirming or denying one thing of another through comparison. Judgements are communicated to others using agreed-upon ''terms'' in the form of words or algebraic symbols as meanings to form ''pr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Immutability (theology)
The Immutability of God is an attribute that " God is unchanging in his character, will, and covenant promises." The Westminster Shorter Catechism says that " odis a spirit, whose being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth are infinite, eternal, and unchangeable." Those things do not change. A number of Scriptures attest to this idea (such as Num. 23:19; 1 Sam. 15:29; Ps. 102:26; Mal. 3:6; 2 Tim. 2:13; Heb. 6:17–18; Jam. 1:17) God's immutability defines all God's other attributes: God is immutably wise, merciful, good, and gracious. The same may be said about God's knowledge: God is almighty/ omnipotent (having all power), God is omnipresent (present everywhere), God is omniscient (knows everything), eternally and immutably so. Infiniteness and immutability in God are mutually supportive and imply each other. An infinite and changing God is inconceivable; indeed, it is a contradiction in definition.The Immutability of God. http://www.tecmalta.org/tft ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Good
In most contexts, the concept of good denotes the conduct that should be preferred when posed with a choice between possible actions. Good is generally considered to be the opposite of evil and is of interest in the study of ethics, morality, philosophy, and religion. The specific meaning and etymology of the term and its associated translations among ancient and contemporary languages show substantial variation in its inflection and meaning, depending on circumstances of place and history, or of philosophical or religious context. History of Western ideas Every language has a word expressing ''good'' in the sense of "having the right or desirable quality" ( ἀρετή) and ''bad'' in the sense "undesirable". A sense of moral judgment and a distinction "right and wrong, good and bad" are cultural universals. Plato and Aristotle Although the history of the origin of the use of the concept and meaning of "good" are diverse, the notable discussions of Plato and Aristotle ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Anger
Anger, also known as wrath or rage, is an intense emotional state involving a strong uncomfortable and non-cooperative response to a perceived provocation, hurt or threat. A person experiencing anger will often experience physical effects, such as increased heart rate, elevated blood pressure, and increased levels of adrenaline and noradrenaline. Some view anger as an emotion which triggers part of the fight or flight response. Anger becomes the predominant feeling behaviorally, cognitively, and physiologically when a person makes the conscious choice to take action to immediately stop the threatening behavior of another outside force. The English word originally comes from the term ''anger'' from the Old Norse language. Anger can have many physical and mental consequences. The external expression of anger can be found in facial expressions, body language, physiological responses, and at times public acts of aggression. Facial expressions can range from inward angling of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Grace In Christianity
In Western Christian theology, grace is created by God who gives it as help to one because God desires one to have it, not necessarily because of anything one has done to earn it. It is understood by Western Christians to be a spontaneous gift from God to people – "generous, free and totally unexpected and undeserved" – that takes the form of divine favor, love, clemency, and a share in the divine life of God. In the Eastern Orthodox Church, grace is the uncreated Energies of God. Among Eastern Christians generally, grace is considered to be the partaking of the Divine Nature described in 2 Peter 1:4 and grace is the working of God himself, not a created substance of any kind that can be treated like a commodity.Gregory (Grabbe), Archbishop. ''The Sacramental Life: An Orthodox Christian Perspective.'' Liberty TN: St. John of Kronstadt Press, 1986 As an attribute of God it manifests most in the salvation of sinners and Western Christianity holds that the initiative in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Mercy
Mercy (Middle English, from Anglo-French ''merci'', from Medieval Latin ''merced-'', ''merces'', from Latin, "price paid, wages", from ''merc-'', ''merxi'' "merchandise") is benevolence, forgiveness, and kindness in a variety of ethical, religious, social, and legal contexts. In the social and legal context, mercy may refer both to compassionate behavior on the part of those in power (e.g. mercy shown by a judge toward a convict), or on the part of a humanitarian third party, e.g., a mission of mercy aiming to treat war victims.Sarat, Austin and Hussain, Nasser. ''Forgiveness, mercy, and clemency'', 2006 pp. 1-5Menke, Christopher. ''Reflections of equality'' by Christoph Menke 2006 p. 193 Definition "Mercy" can be defined as "compassion or forbearance shown especially to an offender or to one subject to one's power"; and also "a blessing that is an act of divine favor or compassion." "To be at someone's mercy" indicates a person being "without defense against someone." La ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Genesis Creation Narrative
The Genesis creation narrative is the creation myth of both Judaism and Christianity. The narrative is made up of two stories, roughly equivalent to the first two chapters of the Book of Genesis. In the first, Elohim (the Hebrew generic word for God) creates the heavens and the Earth in six days, then rests on, blesses, and sanctifies the seventh (i.e. the Biblical Sabbath). In the second story God (now referred to by the personal name Yahweh) creates Adam, the first man, from dust and places him in the Garden of Eden. There he is given dominion over the animals. Eve, the first woman, is created from Adam’s rib as his companion. The Hebrew creation narrative borrowed themes from Mesopotamian mythology, but adapted them to their unique monotheism, belief in one God. The first major comprehensive draft of the Pentateuch (the series of five books which begins with Genesis and ends with Deuteronomy) is thought to have been composed in the late 7th or the 6th century BCE (the Jahw ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Prayer
Prayer is an invocation or act that seeks to activate a rapport with an object of worship through deliberate communication. In the narrow sense, the term refers to an act of supplication or intercession directed towards a deity or a deified ancestor. More generally, prayer can also have the purpose of thanksgiving or praise, and in comparative religion is closely associated with more abstract forms of meditation and with charms or spells. Prayer can take a variety of forms: it can be part of a set liturgy or ritual, and it can be performed alone or in groups. Prayer may take the form of a hymn, incantation, formal creedal statement, or a spontaneous utterance in the praying person. The act of prayer is attested in written sources as early as 5000 years ago. Today, most major religions involve prayer in one way or another; some ritualize the act, requiring a strict sequence of actions or placing a restriction on who is permitted to pray, while others teach that praye ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Adam And Eve (LDS Church)
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) teaches that Adam and Eve were the first man and the first woman to live on the earth and that their fall was an essential step in the plan of salvation. Adam in particular is a central figure in Mormon cosmology. Robert L. Millet, a Latter-day Saint author, wrote of the church's perspective: Few persons in all eternity have been more directly involved in the plan of salvation—the creation, the fall, and the ultimate redemption of the children of God—than the man Adam. His ministry among the sons and daughters of earth stretches from the distant past of premortality to the distant future of resurrection, judgment, and beyond.. Identity of Adam and Eve According to LDS Church teachings, all people born on the earth lived with God the Father and Jesus Christ in a pre-mortal life. Adam and Eve were "among our Father's noblest children" and they were "foreordained" to be the parents of the human race. In the pre-m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |