Our Friends the Atheists

This morning's New York Times has a front-page article by Laurie Goodstein regarding the resurgence of atheism in the United States. The Secular Humanists of the Lowcountry, an atheist organization in South Carolina, has been overwhelmed by the positive response to its billboard campaign. "The Secular Student Alliance now has 146 chapters" at colleges and universities, "up from 42 in 2003," as Ms. Goodstein reports.

There are those who would be disturbed or even offended by such news. As I was reading this article, however, it occurred to me that the resurgence of atheism actually presents a great opportunity for Latter-day Saints to share the gospel. This is because the reasons that many people become atheists is quite similar to the reasons that some people become Latter-day Saints. The outcomes of their searches are miles apart, but the questions and issues are actually rather similar.

Does that sound surprising to you? I have no survey data, but I have known more than a few atheists during my life, and of course I have known many LDS converts, as well. Consider the following:

• Many people are disillusioned with the Bible as the fundamental source of religious truth. As Ms. Goodstein notes in describing a meeting of college student atheists in South Carolina, "many of the ... students at the meeting were highly literate in the Bible and religious history." However, there are many different and conflicting ways to interpret the Bible, some of which have been used to justify horrific behaviors, such as sexism, racism, slavery, and genocide. Within most of mainstream Christianity, what is used to justify belief in the Bible itself is often some variety or another of tradition--and tradition simply isn't a sufficient basis to direct one's life; different peoples have different traditions, which often conflict. As far as "having faith" is concerned--well, the people of Jonestown had a lot of faith, too. Disillusionment with the Bible as the sole source of doctrine is a factor in some LDS conversions, as well, by my experience.
• Many people are disgusted with the anti-reason / anti-science bias of many Christians. The persecution of Galileo is often cited in the atheism literature as an example of how religion treats science that seems to conflict with the Bible. The recent disputes regarding the teaching of evolution in schools have convinced many people that committed Christians simply are not open to the evidence of science--an untenable position in the twenty-first century. For some LDS converts, as well, the aspect of the Gospel that embraces learning and knowledge is a factor in their attraction to the LDS Church.
• Many people are disgusted with Christian attempts to violate the separation of Church and State. In ways large and small, attempts are made every year to give Christian beliefs some special status under the law. This is offensive to the many people who understand the American Constitution to state that no such special status is legal--which is indeed part of the point of the First Amendment. For some LDS converts, as well, it is a relief to associate with a church that embraces the Constitution as a revealed document (see D&C 101:77, 80).

To people with concerns like these, the LDS faith and its understanding of the Christian gospel can have special appeal:

• Latter-day Saints base their belief primarily upon personal revelation, not primarily upon the Bible or other written scriptures. Oh, sure, we have more written scriptures than any other Christian church; indeed, although I am not sure of this, I suspect that, when it comes to what are considered central scriptures, the LDS have more than any other religion of any flavor. And, yes, we stress knowing the scriptures. However, all of this is secondary, in terms of what our faith is actually based on. The ultimate basis of an individual's faith, for the LDS, should not be confidence in the scriptures, or in allegiance to tradition, but rather on personal revelation directly from God to the individual. This is the most radical and distinctive approach to justifying religious claims about truth in the history of religious thought. We LDS should embrace our distinctiveness, and make this the centerpiece of our discussion with our atheist friends (and others, for that matter).
• The Latter-day Saints embrace modern science. In particular, I think of the example in chemistry of Henry Eyring, the late father of Elder Henry B. Eyring, a current member of the Quorum of the Twelve. (See Henry J. Eyring's book, Mormon Scientist: The Life and Faith of Henry Eyring, published by Desert Book in 2008.) Although individual General Authorities have had opinions on the issue--sometimes conflicting with each other--there is no official position of the Church specifically regarding evolution. To my way of thinking, the closest description of an official position is that mentioned in the brief article on "Evolution" in the LDS Church-sponsored Encyclopedia of Mormonism: "The scriptures tell why man was created, but they do not tell how, though the Lord has promised that he will tell that when he comes again (D&C 101:32-33)" (Evenson, 1992). One way of looking at it is that the LDS assume that there cannot really be a conflict between science and religion: we expect that many things are yet to be revealed to us. Here again, ongoing revelation, this time as a communal event, is a revolutionary position within the history of religious thought, especially within Christianity. And, here again, we should embrace our uniqueness, and make this a centerpiece for discussion with our atheist friends. It is worth pointing out that it is a scriptural tenet with us that "The glory of God is intelligence, or, in other words, light and truth" (D&C 93:36, emphasis added).
• The Latter-day Saint faith embraces the separation of Church and State. It is literally an article of faith with us--our Eleventh Article of Faith, to be precise--that we embrace the separation of Church and State: "We claim the privilege of worshipping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may."

Yes, I am well aware--painfully aware--that not all Latter-day Saints live up to these ideals. However, we must distinguish between our core principles, and the imperfect ways in which the Saints live those core principles. Those core principles are what some of our atheist friends will find attractive. They, and our personal testimonies, should inform the discussions (illustrated) that we have with our atheist friends, acquaintances, and family members.

Overall, with regards to our friends the atheists, we need to keep in mind the principles taught in D&C 123, particularly verse 12:

For there are many yet on the earth among all sects, parties, and denominations, who are blinded by the subtle craftiness of men, whereby they lie in wait to deceive, and who are only kept from the truth because they know not where to find it--

Let us be the ones who show these people where to find the truth.

References

Evenson, W. E. (1992). Evolution. Encyclopedia of Mormonism, p. 478.

Laurie Goodstein. (2009, April 27). More atheists are shouting it from rooftops. The New York Times, pp. A1, A13.


(The photo--"KJ, Delphine, and THD discussing Wikimania at warm up party," by Cary Bass, dated 30 July 2007--was obtained from Wikimedia Commons under the Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 3.0 license.)

Announcing a New Blog: "LDS 101: The Latter-Day Saint / 'Mormon' Faith"

I was touched in my heart by the very direct remarks made by Elder L. Tom Perry in the Sunday afternoon session of General Conference on April 5th, regarding our need to open our mouths and inform people about the Gospel. Consequently, I have opened a blog describing the basic beliefs and practices of the Church for non-members: "LDS 101: The Latter-Day Saint / 'Mormon' Faith." I invite you to visit that blog, and to send a link to that blog to your non-LDS family members, friends, and acquaintances as a way to help inform people about the Gospel.

Why did I do this? Because spreading the Gospel is important.

Why did I do this? Because I believe a blog like this can be an effective way to share the Gospel in a low-pressure way.

Why did I do this? Because I think I have some small ability in the blogging department. In addition: I thought I could do some good by following Elder Perry's counsel regarding the first three topics to discuss when we open our mouths about the Gospel: the Savior and his Atonement; the First Vision of Joseph Smith; and, the Book of Mormon. Also, I thought there was some value to my personal perspective.

Didn't I think some else could/should do this? Of course I do. Let a thousand flowers bloom.

Your comments and suggestions would be much appreciated.

Reflections on Sunday Afternoon Session, and Conference Overall

Some purely personal reflections on what stood out for me in the Sunday afternoon session of General Conference, followed by some thoughts on April 2009 General Conference overall.

We Must Not Walk as Others Do

Elder Oaks, in describing how it is necessary for Latter-day Saints to follow the Savior rather than the fashions of the world, quoted from an April 1940 General Conference address by Elder John A. Widtsoe, an address I somehow have missed in the past. Elder Widtsoe said, in part:

We cannot walk as other men, or talk as other men, or do as other men for we have a different destiny, obligation, and responsibility placed upon us, and we must fit ourselves for that great destiny and obligation.

Over the years, I have met a number of Latter-day Saints who have not understood this basic distinction. They have tried to fit into the world. That is just the opposite from what should happen: we are here to transform the world.

We Must Do More to Get the Word Out About the Gospel

Elder Perry pointed out that half the population of North America knows nothing of our beliefs. (This, after close to two centuries of missionary work, and tons of public messages of one type or another.) He challenged us to do more as members to get the word out about the Gospel.

Very well, Elder Perry. Readers, expect to hear more about a new blog for non-members--I'm thinking about calling it "LDS 101"--which I plan to start soon. It's one thing I can do.

Some Overall Reflections on April 2009 General Conference

Focus on the Temple

The Big Love episode, 'Outer Darkness,' which depicted the producer's version of the last minutes of the temple endowment, was not explicitly mentioned by any of the conference speakers. However, the Big Love issue was clearly on the minds of several speakers, several of whom mentioned that public controversy about the temple is nothing new, and that such controversy is, in part, a reaction to the Church's standing up for unpopular moral standards.

Perhaps one outcome of all this will be an increased focus on the meaning of the temple ceremonies. Elder Bednar's discourse on Sunday afternoon was particularly powerful in this respect.

I first experienced the endowment in August, 1978 at the Washington, DC temple (above). Over the years, I have found that there is wide variation among the Latter-day Saints in the degree to which they 'get' the inner spiritual meaning of the endowment, and the other ceremonies of the temple. The LDS temple ceremonies have a greater power to transform the individual's inner life, in several ways, then the power available (based on available information) in the initiatic ceremonies of the mystery religions and other organizations of the world; I include in that list the Eleusinian and Orphic mysteries of the ancient world, the various rites of the ancient gnostic communities, and much more besides. However, this transformation is not automatic: one must seek to have that transformation occur; one must internalize the temple ceremonies, as well as their associated doctrines--all of them public, scriptural doctrines, I might add--for this transformation to take effect.

As far as I am concerned, the more we focus on this transformative, 'inner' perspective regarding the temple, the better--and the higher temple attendance shall be, to boot, I strongly suspect.

(Thank you for the temple picture, Photobucket contributor.)

Focus on Grimmer Circumstances Than the Current Day

This General Conference stood out for the grim nature of so many of the stories and examples that were related to the audience:

• President Monson's talk in the Sunday morning session described at length the extraordinary trial faced by a WWII-era sister in Prussia, who, newly widowed, was forced to walk a thousand miles to German territory and lost her 3 children to starvation and freezing along the way.
• I have mentioned President Uchtdorf's description in the priesthood session of a terrible airplane disaster.
• In that same priesthood session, as I've mentioned, President Eyring described the ultimate sacrifices of the soldiers who sought to save injured comrades in the 'Black Hawk down' incident.
• In the Sunday morning session, even Elder Snow's description of the trials of his pioneer ancester, Robert Gardner, Jr., was noteworthy for how so much went wrong for this man (the stream to his mill runs dry; he loses all his crops), and for the sacrifices he made to fulfill mission calls--twice.

If there is a common thread here, it is that, even in the midst of this Mother of All Recessions (dare I say it? this New Depression), we can be be inspired, by those who have suffered much more than us, to keep to the path, to not give up, to hold to the faith, and even in the worst of our circumstances to lengthen our stride.

Video of the General Conference talks are already available on the Church website. Transcripts of these discourses are scheduled be available in the same place as of Thursday, April 9. Enjoy.

Previous Posts on April 2009 General Conference

• Saturday morning session
• Saturday afternoon session
• Priesthood session
• Sunday morning session

Reflections on Sunday Morning Session

Some purely personal reflections on what stood out for me in the Sunday morning session of General Conference.

Hour of Prayer

The first thing to stand out for me was--and this is unusual for me--the opening hymn, sung by the Tabernacle Choir! The hymn was "Sweet Hour of Prayer." Yes, I know that the word 'hour' here is used lyrically, to indicate something like 'an appointed time.' However, what struck me was the idea of taking it literally. I wondered: "When's the last time that I spent an hour in prayer?" It's happened, but not for a long time. Perhaps it's time to return to that practice, at least once in a while.

We Are Never Alone

In this session, this was the discourse that made me cry: Elder Holland's discourse, directed to those who are or feel alone, or abandoned.

These last nine months or so have been very rough on me. July: I discover that my mother's condition has deteriorated, and I move from the vicinity of Orlando back to New York City. October: My mother dies (multiple infections and lung cancer). October through March: I clear out my mother's apartment and house, encountering many artifacts from her life, which evokes a great deal of emotion; in addition, a great deal of conflict comes up between me and some of the surviving family. I very much appreciate the support of mi esposa Kathleen throughout this process, but overall I've felt pretty hammered: the phrase 'alone and abandoned' goes a long way towards describing my inner life of late.

In this context, it meant a lot to me to hear Elder Holland discussing how the Savior walked alone, the loneliest journey of all--the working out of the Atonement--and walked it in faith, for love of us--even for love of me. It reminded me of a poster from The New Era, originally published in 1994, captioned: "You are never alone" (above). All that ever I have felt, the Savior has felt, and suffered my pain. For this, and for His ongoing concern, I am profoundly grateful.

Previous Posts on April 2009 General Conference

• Saturday morning session
• Saturday afternoon session
• Priesthood session

Reflections on Priesthood Session

As is so often the case, priesthood session seemed especially concentrated with powerful discourses. Again, I offer a few purely personal reactions, which I will focus on the last three talks, given by the members of the First Presidency.

Do Not Be Distracted by the Inessential

President Uchtdorf used the example of an horrific airplane disaster, the Eastern Airlines Flight 401 crash of 1972. In this incident, the crew became so obsessed with one flight indicator--basically, a single light bulb, which had burned out--that they did not pay attention to the larger issue: they were flying lower and lower, ultimately headed directly into the Everglades. Pres. Uchtdorf used this as a metaphor for the need for us not to be distracted from what matters most, as we approach our priesthood responsibilities. I was particularly moved by his call to action, which my notes record thus: "Think what could happen in our personal lives, our professional lives, our families, and our wards and branches, if we rose up, committed to building the Kingdom of God without distraction."

Society would focus us on the inessential: that's where the money is, for advertisers. I found Pres. Uchtdorf's remarks to be very timely and a propos. (Incidentally, I did not consider his remark about blogging as implying that all blogging is inessential, but rather to imply that blogging certainly can be a distraction.)

"No Man Left Behind"

Pres. Eyring related the real-life 'Black Hawk down' incident in Somalia as a metaphor for the devotion that priesthood holders should have for such work as home teaching. As my notes put it: "When you accepted the priesthood, you accepted the responsibility for whatever you did or failed to do for the salvation of others."

Since my baptism as a convert, I have been deeply moved by the devotion that many priesthood holders have shown to their priesthood duty. On the other hand, I have always been stunned by the casual way in which some priesthood holders approach these same duties. I found Pres. Eyring's remarks to be moving and important, and personally relevant. Family responsibilities have called me out of town for most of the last three months; I look forward to doing my fair share and more in terms of my priesthood responsibilities.

A Three-Fold Formula for Life

President Kimball's statement of the three-fold mission of the Church has been quoted now for something like 30 years; it is a succinct formula that continues to serve us well. President Monson delivered a discourse in which he mentioned a three-fold set of suggestions to help Church members deal with temptation and gain spiritual strength, suggestions that deserve to be as widely quoted as President Kimball's statement, in regard to the topic that President Monson took up. His suggestions:

1. Study diligently.
2. Pray fervently.
3. Live righteously.

Amen.

Previous Posts on April 2009 General Conference

• Saturday morning session
• Saturday afternoon session

Reflections on Saturday Afternoon Conference

Just a brief entry here. There is much I could focus upon regarding the talks given in this session. However, there is one overwhelming theme, perhaps not intended by any of the speakers, that has touched me: Cherish your sweethearts while you are fortunate enough to have them with you.

Elder Pino talking about losing his child; Elder Scott talking about losing his children, and his wife, all to death. Life is fragile; life is short, under the best of circumstances. And, too often, we do not have the best of circumstances.

Kiss your spouse and your children and call your parents to tell them you love them. Call the people you've been meaning to call.

Me, I'm going to go pick up my wife from the bus stop. It's a dangerous world out there.

Previous Post on April 2009 General Conference

• Saturday morning session

Reflections on Saturday Morning Conference

We break from our series on the doctrine of deification for a couple of days, to focus on General Conference this weekend. (I electronically "attended" the first general session by watching the live feed from the Church website, http://www.lds.org/ .) Different messages will resonate with different people Thus, I offer a few highlights that are purely personal in nature. I suspend the usual 800-word limit for posts reflecting on General Conference.

The Lord Is the Way Out of Behavioral Addictions

Elder Robert D. Hales of the Quorum of the Twelve spoke, in part, on behavioral addictions (shopping, pornography, expressions of anger), pointing out that the only way out of them is through devotion to the Father, and through receiving His power. He noted that addictions come out of the natural man, and that the hungers of the natural man are insatiable.

How often I've known people to want to give up all their sins--except that one, or that little piece of that one (whatever that be for the individual involved). However, nothing but total devotion is acceptable; the Lord has not the least tolerance for our sins. One of the deep truths of our religion is that the Gospel really does call for a total transformation away from the natural man; the world, which is devoted to trying to fill the gaping maw of the hungers of the natural man, the world which celebrates the failings of the natural man, does not understand this. I found it good to be reminded of the Gospel call for total transformation.

Minor point: Has anyone ever pointed out the connection between the LDS take on the insatiable hungers of the natural man, and the Buddhist take on essentially the same thing?

Respect for Other Faiths, Lifestyles, and Political Positions

I report with shame that, given that my youngest offspring turns 21 this month, these days I don't usually pay especially close attention to speakers from the presidencies of the youth organizations at General Conference. However, I was stopped in my tracks by some things mentioned by Sr. Margaret S. Lifferth, first counselor in the General Primary Presidency, who spoke on increasing reverence and appropriate respect among the youth. Quite rightly, she noted that one way to increase these qualities among youth was to increase it among their parents and adult leaders. She said, as I recall:

Ask yourself: "Do I show respect for others who differ from me in terms of religion, lifestyle, or politics?"

Tolerance of different points of view is important to me. (Growing up a bi-ethnic kid in Greenwich Village had something to do with that, I'm sure--as well as being an LDS convert in the Northeast, where the LDS are often ridiculed.) However, among the Saints, I have encountered now and again a real lack of toleration for other points of view. It is by no means the norm, but 35 years in eleven different wards in five of the United States have given me some exposure to the occasional show of intolerance.

I have heard ridicule directed at those who hold other religious beliefs, at those who have made different lifestyle choices, and at those who hold political positions other than those of the (often far-) right wing. Being myself a convert from another church, from a neighborhood renowned for its social experimentation, and being someone whose political positions generally fall within the left wing, I myself have sometimes been on the receiving end of those comments, without those making the comments being aware of this--they have assumed that the white shirt, conservative tie and jacket that I wear to church mean that I think just as they do. So, when they ridicule some religious belief I once held, when they make disparaging remarks about "hippies," "liberals," and "tree huggers," I've found this quite offensive.

Over the years, I've known investigators and new members to be turned off to the Church because of some stupid remark like this. It is not what the Savior would do. I hope that Sr. Lifferth's remarks are taken to heart throughout the Church.

Covenants and Divine Power

Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Twelve spoke, in part, about how covenants lead to a bestowal of divine power, including the gifts of the Holy Ghost. These days, when the Saints have endured some hits from the media regarding the temple ceremonies in the wake of the "Big Love" hoo-hah, it was good to be reminded that the temple's purpose is such a bestowal of power.

Adversity

This was the talk that made me cry.

President Henry B. Eyring, 1st counselor in the First Presidency, spoke about the role of adversity in our lives. He taught very clearly that the purpose of mortality was to prepare us for eternal life--not mere immortality, but the kind of life that God has, along with the power to have offspring forever. Part of that preparation involves us becoming the kind of people who can be trusted with that kind of power. The only way to do that is to expose us to adversity, hard challenges, the kinds of tests that shake one to one's foundations.

Pres. Eyring described several types of adversity. When he came to the last, age and sickness, my composure fell apart. Having just lived through my mother's final illness and death, I could not help but think of the the difference between how she faced her challenges and the way she could have faced them, had she had the perspective of the Gospel that she had so frequently and vigorously rejected.

These days there is plenty of adversity to go around, plenty of storms (hence my illustration), and your correspondent is not exempt. It was very helpful to me to have Pres. Eyring remind me of the useful perspective that the Gospel supplies regarding our troubles, and how to transcend them. Note that I did not say 'avoid' them, or even 'solve' them. Not every challenge yields a direct solution. Some things are, and will continue to be, outside my control. However, I can control my response. Choosing the Gospel will get us through.

(Minor point, perhaps, evoked by what Pres. Eyring had to say on the purposes of mortality and adversity: that series on the doctrine of exaltation is looking more timely every day.)

The Doctrine of Exaltation, Part 2: Why This Doctrine Will Come Up in Future Public Discussion

(For the preceding post in this series, see link at end of this post.)

This series, "The Doctrine of Exaltation," concerns the distinctly LDS doctrine that, under the right circumstances, in the next life, righteous men and women may become gods. As I promised at the end of Part 1, today I shall consider why I think the doctrine of exaltation will come up with increasing frequency in future public discussions of the LDS faith. This has important practical implications: Latter-day Saints need to thoughtfully consider how they shall discuss this doctrine with their neighbors (a matter that I shall consider further in a future post).

As I see it, there are several reasons why the doctrine of exaltation will likely come up more frequently in public and private discussions of the LDS faith in the future:

• the growth of the LDS Church


• the growth of opposition to the LDS Church


• the rise of the Internet
  

I consider each of these below.

The Growth of the LDS Church

The growth of the LDS Church has been nothing short of phenomenal. When I was baptized as a college sophomore in the Fall of 1975, the Church had about 4 million members worldwide--a smaller population than my home town (NYC), by a large margin--and I was regularly mocked about our ambitions to grow throughout the world. Today, the Church has over 13.5 million members, and is rapidly growing. With this growth, it is only natural that more people would know someone who is LDS, and that they would be curious about LDS beliefs.

One can estimate the degree of interest in and curiosity about the LDS Church, in a rough and indirect way, by looking at the degree to which there are depictions of Latter-day Saints in popular culture. I do not recall a single mention of the LDS church on the television comedies and dramas that I watched, the movies that I viewed, or the plays that I saw on Broadway, during the years when I was growing up in New York City during the 1960s and 1970s. However, during the 1990s and subsequently, Latter-day Saints and their faith were portrayed--albeit in a highly distorted, often insulting manner--on such television shows as Frasier (in the episode "The Zoo Story"), South Park (in the episodes "Probably" and "All About the Mormons?", the latter pictured above), the series House (where an LDS character is a regular), and of course the series Big Love (which I have discussed in a previous post), as well as on the stage in Angels in America (Parts I and II). The public does not get us, yet, but they do know that we exist, in a way that they did not, only a generation ago--and they are curious about us.

With a net LDS growth rate of about 5% or more annually, more and more people are going to know some Latter-day Saint, and hence more people will be curious about our beliefs. When people have questions about us, they want to know what makes us different, and few things are more distinctive about us than the doctrine of exaltation.

The Growth in Opposition to the LDS Church

Perhaps because of the growth of the LDS Church, which draws converts from the membership of other Christian churches, the opposition to the LDS Church has grown as well. Anti-Mormonism is a complex phenomenon that I hope to treat in detail in later posts on this blog. However, one aspect worth mentioning here is that one strategy of anti-Mormonism is to focus on distinctive aspects of the LDS faith in the hope of making these aspects seem "strange." The doctrine of exaltation has received a lot of attention from anti-Mormon authors over the years, and as the volume of anti-Mormon voices rises, we shall certainly hear more about this doctrine from the anti-Mormon perspective.

The Rise of the Internet

The Internet also has a role in making more frequent discussion of the doctrine of deification almost inevitable. Pre-1993 or so, those who wished to cast aspersions on the LDS Church had certain inherent limitations on the extent to which their views could be spread. Anti-Mormonism was a really narrow niche market, with narrow channels of propagation. Anti-Mormon writings were done up on typewriters and photocopied, or were published otherwise with relatively low production values, distributed through certain Christian bookstores. With these limitations, the distorted claims of the anti-Mormon community regarding the doctrine of exaltation would only reach so many people.

Enter the Internet. Now, any claim--no matter how distorted or inaccurate--can reach a large proportion of humankind, in the garb of a nicely designed website. The Internet has made it easy to propagate anti-Mormon views, and anti-Mormonism focuses on the doctrine of exaltation as a distinctly LDS doctrine.

Next: The basis for stating that the doctrine of exaltation is authentic LDS doctrine.

Previous Post in This Series

"The Doctrine of Exaltation, Part 1: Its Content and Controversy"

The Doctrine of Exaltation, Part 1: Its Content and Controversy

In an earlier post, I mentioned that, now that the producers of Big Love have shown a small snippet of their version of the endowment in the episode "Outer Darkness," it seemed likely that we would see other depictions of the LDS temple ceremonies; I suggested that it would be worthwhile for Latter-day Saints to be prepared for discussions of the temple ceremonies as these would inevitably arise with their non-LDS acquaintances. However, this is not the only controversial area that the Saints will need to be prepared to discuss, in this post-"Outer Darkness"-era. Another issue that is likely to arise in the future involves an important LDS doctrine underlying the temple ceremonies: the doctrine that, under certain circumstances, after this life, human beings can become divine--that is, the doctrine that men and women may become gods. This is the doctrine of exaltation

Today, I open a series of posts on the doctrine of exaltation. Over the course of the series, I shall consider the following:

• the content of this doctrine


• the reason that this doctrine is considered controversial in the majority Christian world


• why I think that this doctrine will arise with increasing frequency in future public discussions of the LDS faith


• the basis for stating that this is authentic LDS doctrine


• the basis for stating that this doctrine is authentically Christian


• how to discuss this doctrine with members of the general public
  

The Doctrine of Exaltation: What It Says

Underlying the doctrine of exaltation is the idea that, as the literal children of God, we are meant to obtain the same status as our Heavenly Father. Thus, if we prove ourselves worthy, we are to 'inherit all that the Father has,' including all the divine capacities. Those who attain godhood shall still be subordinate to the Father, but they shall be empowered to have spiritual children and create and populate worlds, as the Father has done.

Why the Doctrine of Exaltation is Controversial

The doctrine of exaltation is controversial because it highlights a fundamental difference between the LDS and other ways of understanding the relationship between God and humanity. The majority Christian understanding of God is deeply influenced by certain currents in ancient Greek philosophy (particularly neo-Platonism). In these forms of Greek philosophy, there is a deep conceptual divide between the realm of the divine (which is entirely spiritual) and the realm of the human (which is basically material). The notion of human beings becoming gods is inconceivable in this kind of philosophy.

The majority Christian churches do not understand the LDS doctrine of exaltation. (For example, they do not understand that only the pure become gods, and that the pure do so only after a lifetime of obedience in this world, followed by a process of training and growth in the next world.) Lacking this understanding, the majority Christian world lumps together the LDS doctrine of deification with the type of polytheistic beliefs seen in the ancient world, such as the traditional popular Greek religion, with its Pantheon of gods. (The popular Greek religion thus had a notion of the divine that was very different from the ideas of the neo-Platonic Greek philosophers.) The gods and goddesses of the ancient Greek Pantheon were basically like regular people given immense power, with all the major human failings--pettiness, jealousy, hunger for control, murderous rage, immorality--writ very large.

Because the majority Christian churches falsely equate the LDS doctrine of exaltation with the ancient Greek notion of polytheism, the majority Christian world is scandalized by the LDS doctrine of exaltation, perhaps more so than by any other LDS doctrine or practice. Sensing this negative reaction, it seems that many Latter-day Saints have responded by simply avoiding this doctrine altogether, in discussion with non-LDS people.

There are several problems with this approach. First, it appears duplicitous to others; it looks as if we preach one set of doctrines to the world outside the Church, and another set within the Church. Second, it leaves the Saints unprepared to discuss the doctrine when it comes up in discussion with non-LDS people. These problems become especially important when we realize that discussions of this doctrine have now become inevitable, and will become a part of our interchanges with the non-LDS world with increasing frequency.

In Part II: Why discussions of this doctrine will become increasingly frequent in the future.