Originally Posted by usgrant7

USG: Why did the "lost book of Abraham" turn out to be a hoax? Yet it is still trusted as sacred by the LDS church?

If you are a good Mormon, and I believe you are, then you know exactly what I mean. Because in the front of every Pearl of Great Price, there is the Illustration depicting the papyrus that Joseph Smith bought from the antiquities dealer and claimed it was delivered by God to his hands as the “lost book of Abraham”, more commonly known as the “Book of Abraham” in the POGP.
In a nut shell, the papyrus was lost for about 100 years, then found, examined by experts and determined to be a fraud perpetrated by Joseph Smith. The Pearl of Great price went from being a Miki-moto to a cheap faux-pearl in a matter of days…
Read more.
I think this is a fair and just discussion of this issue.
Here is a film about it.

Originally Posted by usgrant7

USG: Why do Mormon's believe that being black (having dark skin) was a curse of God?

First of all, in English, we believe that proper nouns should be capitalized. It is a custom among our people.
I couldn’t help but notice you show a tremendous degree of honesty in this response, as well. I particularly point out that you “now” believe something different than your church has held for nearly two centuries. From out of the infallible mouth of the profit, from God’s own messenger to Joseph Smith’s ears we must believe that what he said was true. But now when it is a political reality that the “sons of Cain”, “cursed people of the tribe of Nephi”, are now “ok” (but they still have that little ole cursed skin color problem) that we are to assume that came on some golden tablet as well? Or was that one tin?
Should the African American’s remind Brigham Young that the Apostate Church (most recently example of the apostates is William Wilberforce) had that information long before the Mormon Presidency figured that out in the 1970’s.

Originally Posted by usgrant7

Sure. Here is one of many. But if you Google the specific words of his quote. You will come up with more context.

Originally Posted by usgrant7

USG: Do you ever believe that plural wives was a "God given divine right"?

I think Warren Jeffs would disagree with you. But thank you for clarifying this for me.
Here is some background:
In 1899 the church ran B.H. Roberts as a candidate to the United States Congress. They failed, because he took Joseph Smith at his word. He was a polygamist! They forbade him from serving in the Congress. So on January 9th, 1900, President Snow of the LDS Church stated this now infamous quote:

…the Church has positively abandoned the practice of polygamy, or the solemnization of plural marriages, in this and every other State; and . . . no member or officer thereof has any authority whatever to perform such plural marriages or enter into such relations. Nor does the Church advise or encourage unlawful cohabitation on the part of any of its members.

So the LDS church softens their stand on yet another canon, because it was politically expedient for them to do so? Do I sense that it is likely they told Mitt not to run because those apostates would expose their little profit for what he really was? Or maybe they would have to declare another seasonal doctrine. If you guys run more people to national office, pretty soon you will be letting colored people actually run the place! Wow! What if that happened?

Originally Posted by Link S.

How have I been dishonest? According to the quote you provided I was in perfect standing with my religious principles.

Originally Posted by Link S.

I will ask you this only once please respect my religion if I am to answer any of your questions. It is true that we claim exclusive powers in our church that are not offered to those in other churches but if God instituted another religion or religious body with the sealing power one could still be sealed for eternity. It is not a third heaven it is the Third degree of glory there is a difference.

Yes you must be a mormon to enter the Temple of God but you must also be found worthy to enter the temple. This is not too different from many other religions in the catholic church one must be a catholic to partake of the sacrament or enter confession.

The sacredness of the temple ceremonies are not discussed outside the temple so I will not discuss the garments.

This may be the reason for the adversion to the media because some people will discuss sacred things outside of sacred places.

Originally Posted by usgrant7

Did you ever believe that native American’s came from Israel?

That is amazing. I think I am reading for the first time, the notion that people from Asia, actually migrated to Israel, passed themselves off as Jews, then received divine direction, to cross over the Arctic Circle and enter into the new world! That is amazing. Or… God miraculously transplanted them from Asia, to the Mid-east, then to the new world!
The reason why I say this, is that prior to 1492, ancient DNA was exhumed from many sources, and has been shown to contain no MDNA from anywhere other than Asia. Secular and former Mormon bio-chemists alike discuss this in great detail. It seems that Joseph Smith lied about the origins of the Niphi and the Lehi. No such evidence leads anyone to conclude that the BoM is truthful about the history of Latin America.
Here is another great example why we should not have trusted Mitt in the white house. He has no credibility. If the leaders of countries hostile to the United States ever saw a Mormon in the white house, the flare would go up! American’s are now electing neophytes! Go and attack!

First, as discussed above, we do not have enough information from the Book of Mormon to confidently determine a source population for the Lehites or Mulekites, and so we cannot compare this population with modern-day Native American results.

I think it is also very interesting that this quote from an LDS spin source, would state this as being fact. Since LINK has stated something different.
But there are much smarter people than I am talking about this.

Originally Posted by usgrant7

USG: Why is it that Mormon's have an excuse for the COMPLETE lack of historical, archeological evidence of the BOM, DOC, and POGP?

Hmmm. Not sure that this is Church Doctrine. Weren’t the Laminties the bad ones… For wiping out the Nephites? And wasn’t the Angel Moroni the last of the Nephites? Maybe I am wrong…
In any case, I didn’t catch where you talk extensively about the abundant archeological evidence provided to us. Or is Joseph Smith the only guy that knew all about this stuff?

Originally Posted by Link S.

I am sorry but I do believe this but not in the way that you do. you have pointed out that there are "three heaven's"

Originally Posted by Link S.

I have discussed two the third and the first (celestial and telestial respectively in this thread) but what about the second and what about those who don't know the truth. we believe that when we die our spirits will go to spirit prison though it would be better described as spirit school.

Originally Posted by Link S.

This is where those who do not know or understand the truth may be taught and they will have the ability to accept or deny the knowledge that they are given. The second degree of glory is the terrestial kingdom for those who were good people yet denied the truth or remained unsealed.

Originally Posted by Link S.

Jesus also said "Behold this is my work and my glory to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man"

Originally Posted by usgrant7

USG: How is it that you can offer us a candidate who has committed murder by proxy, by endorsing abortion, would ever stand to stay in the Mormon Church?

USG: Once enlightened, isn't it "outer darkness" to those who committed such a sin?

Let me see if I have this straight.

1. Those who murder, period, are in a lesser “glory”?
2. Those who kill innocent children inside the womb are guilty of abortion, but not “rebelling against God”?
3. The only thing that will land me in the Mormon version of hell, is just failing to recognize that God exists, once I found out that he really does?

I wonder if you actually listen to yourself when you talk about these things?