Mormon Temples: Panamá City Temple
A statue of the angel Moroni was added atop the single spire of the Panamá City Panamá Temple last week, May 4, 2007. Members report that the Moroni setting was a glorious moment for all the Saints of Panamá. To view photographs, see Panamá Mormon Temple.
The Mormon Church teaches that the eternal plans and purposes of God the Father become accomplished through Jesus Christ, “the living embodiment of the Father’s will”. Jesus Christ is also called the “word of my power” (Book of Mormon, Mosiah, 1:32, 35) meaning that the Father conferred his spiritual power upon his Son, so that he might be capacitated to fulfill those vital missions which lie at the very heart of the plan of salvation.
All Mormons also know that the unending work and ever-increasing glory of the Father is centered in the immortality and eternal life of man (Pearl of Great Price, Moses, 1:39).
According to Rodney Turner (an LDS scholar), “the atonement and resurrection wrought by Jesus Christ…is indispensable to the Father, who is added upon in glory by and through his Son. HOWEVER, each need the other: as the Father is glorified through the Son, so is the Son glorified through the father (Bible, John, 17:1). In like manner worthy Saints (members of the Mormon Church) will be glorified through their children and their children through their parents (D&C, 88:60)”.
The above paragraphs are obviously incomprehensible to those Christians who still can’t make sense of the concept that God, the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Ghost are three separate beings. They are united in purpose, but not physically, as a confuse Christianity insists to believe. However, for those who understand the beauty of these simple truths, it adds a deeper meaning to family relationships, especially between parents and children.
Joseph Smith and the Restoration of the Priesthood
Perhaps many people already know these topics better than I do, but yesterday I was reading from an essay by Charles R. Harrell and I learned a few interesting things about the Restoration of the Melchizedek Priesthood.
For example, did you know that there are no first-hand accounts of this event and nobody knows for sure the date of such restoration? However, it happened in a time of great distress. This second-hand description comes from Mr. Everett, who overheard a conversation between Joseph Smith and Hyrum Smith, a few days before their martyrdom.
Joseph and Oliver at the time of the restoration were held at the home of the Justice of Peace of Colesville because of their preaching. They were helped to escape by their attorney and it was night and they traveled through brush and water and mud, felled over logs, etc. until Oliver was exhausted; then Joseph Smith helped him along through the brush and water, almost carrying him. They traveled all night, and just at the break of day Oliver gave out entirely and exclaimed, “O Lord! Brother Joseph, how long have we got to endure this thing?” They sat down on a log to rest and Joseph said that at that very time Peter, James, and John came to them and ordained them to the Apostleship. They had 16 or 17 miles to get back to Mr. Hales, but Oliver did not complain any molre of fatigue.
Internet Mormonism: Threat or Opportunity?
I have taken this title from a great blog on Mormon Inquiry
I am particularly interested in the fact that in countries were the language is not English very little is available about the History of the Mormon Church. Dave reported an article about the Japanese experience:
[There was] a minor crisis that developed for Japanese Mormons because of the Internet. The Internet is an increasingly important source of information in Japan. The Japanese surfer will find that a majority of websites and bulletin boards on Mormonism are either critical or antagonistic toward the Church, giving historical information on Mormonism unfamiliar to most members.
Then Dave continues:
Once again, the Church really shot itself in the foot a few years ago when it made every ward and stake shut down their nascent websites in favor of LDS.org and its numerous subdomains. I call this the “One True Website” model. The flaw is that you end up with One True Hit on a Google search page, along with nine antagonistic sites. If every ward had been allowed to set up and run its own website five years ago, a search for “LDS Church” or “Mormon missionary” or even “Mormon polygamy” might have brought up a cascade of LDS ward sites. With the sudden appearance of several pseudo-official weblogs by COB staffers (such as here, here, and here), I’m guessing they’ve finally realized that what they need is a thousand good LDS sites, not one great one.
Later Dave wrote as an exhortation to all Mormon Bloggers:
Your Mission, Jim
…The message in this analysis to all LDS bloggers should be clear: Your mission is to create searchable, linkable LDS content that comes up on Google searches using LDS search terms…
Considering the news about Jim Engebretsen, see the article Foundation explaining polygamy via the Net… I think that Dave choose the right generic name… “Jim”. So Jim and More Good Foundation move forward and do it!
I have found an interesting article by President Spencer W. Kimball, former president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon Church). The title is: The False Gods We Worship.
The articles is very long but it is worth of a careful reading, especially in light of the happenings of the last few years and considering that it was written in 1976.
The articles is mainly about two false gods: materialism and military might. Here I just want to comment on the second one, trust in military might as opposite to faith.
President Spencer W. Kimball wrote:
“We are a warlike people, easily distracted from our assignment of preparing for the coming of the Lord. When enemies rise up, we commit vast resources to the fabrication of gods of stone and steel—ships, planes, missiles, fortifications—and depend on them for protection and deliverance. When threatened, we become antienemy instead of pro-kingdom of God; we train a man in the art of war and call him a patriot, thus, in the manner of Satan’s counterfeit of true patriotism, perverting the Savior’s teaching:
“Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;“That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven.” (Matt. 5:44–45.)
‘We forget that if we are righteous the Lord will either not suffer our enemies to come upon us—and this is the special promise to the inhabitants of the land of the Americas (see 2 Ne. 1:7)—or he will fight our battles for us (Ex. 14:14; D&C 98:37). This he is able to do, for as he said at the time of his betrayal, “Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?” (Matt. 26:53.) We can imagine what fearsome soldiers they would be. King Jehoshaphat and his people were delivered by such a troop (see 2 Chr. 20), and when Elisha’s life was threatened, he comforted his servant by saying, “Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with them” (2 Kgs. 6:16). The Lord then opened the eyes of the servant, “And he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.” (2 Kgs. 6:17.)
In light of what happened on September 11 and later in the US this really seems to be an inspired advise. it is a question of where we put our trust, it is a question of faith.
“Few men have ever knowingly and deliberately chosen to reject God and his blessings. Rather, we learn from the scriptures that because the exercise of faith has always appeared to be more difficult than relying on things more immediately at hand, carnal man has tended to transfer his trust in God to material things. Therefore, in all ages when men have fallen under the power of Satan and lost the faith, they have put in its place a hope in the “arm of flesh” and in “gods of silver, and gold, of brass, iron, wood, and stone, which see not, nor hear, nor know” (Dan. 5:23)—that is, in idols. This I find to be a dominant theme in the Old Testament. Whatever thing a man sets his heart and his trust in most is his god; and if his god doesn’t also happen to be the true and living God of Israel, that man is laboring in idolatry.”
I think that there is a lot to think about…
A five-story building of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon Church) has been completed and will accommodate approximately 2,500 Mormons in Singapore.
The building not only has a place for worship, but also has been equipped with an indoor basketball court, family history research center, emergency preparedness facility and other rooms to be used for community programs.
Full story at Mormon Church Newsroom.
The multipurpose building will also benefit members of the community. People of other faiths are welcome to participate in the various activities and programs hosted in the newly constructed building.
Mormons Famosos: David Neeleman
Alguem me mandou este email muito interessante sobre um um famoso e bem sucedido CEO Mormon, David Neeleman, o CEO da companhia aérea Jet Blue. O artigo é de 2004 mas ainda é interessante para quem quer conhecer melhor David Neeleman.
“A trajetória do brasileiro David Neeleman, que foi missionário da Igreja Mormon no Nordeste e hoje comanda a mais bem sucedida companhia aérea dos Estados Unidos” (Por Darcio Oliveira - Março de 2004).
Não tinha jeito. Ele jurava que era brasileiro, mas a meninada de Campina Grande, na Paraíba, insistia em chamá-lo de gringo. Também pudera: aquele missionário da Igreja de Jesus Cristo dos Santos dos Últimos Dias tinha um nome complicado – David Neeleman – quase dois metros de altura, pele clara, olhos azuis e falava com um sotaque tão carregado que ficava difícil acreditar na sua brasilidade.
Neeleman estava com 19 anos e vinha de uma longa temporada nos EUA – era a primeira vez que voltava ao País desde que deixou São Paulo, sua cidade natal, aos sete anos de idade. A missão no Nordeste era difundir os ensinamentos mormons e ajudar na educação das crianças carentes. Ele cumpriu o ofício e retornou aos Estados Unidos. Hoje (em 2004), aos 43 anos, o gringo de Campina Grande virou estrela internacional, “doutrinando” o mundo dos negócios. A seu modo, o brasileiro transformou a Jet Blue na sensação da aviação americana…
…O presidente da Jet Blue é apaixonado pelo Brasil. Ao menor pretexto, arruma as malas e desembarca em São Paulo. Em New Cannan (Connecticut) , onde mora, já ficaram famosos os churrascos para os compatriotas. Também fez questão de que sua mulher, Vicky, e os nove filhos tivessem cidadania brasileira. A ligação afetiva dos Neeleman com o Brasil teve início em meados dos anos 50. Gary, pai de David, havia sido transferido pela UPI Services (energia) para montar o escritório da empresa em São Paulo. Gostou tanto do País que o adotou como sua segunda pátria. Em outubro de 1959, nasceu David. Foi Gary, aliás, quem encaminhou o menino para a religião Mormon.
Em 66, a família foi transferida de volta aos EUA. E uma década depois, David desembarcou no Nordeste para cumprir sua obrigação missionária. Com o Brasil o meu envolvimento é emocional, revela Neeleman. Tanto que investi US$ 1 milhão para o fundo perpétuo de educação. É um programa da Igreja Mormom que oferece bolsas de estudos, dando oportunidade para que jovens brasileiros freqüentem universidades. O fundo existe desde 2001 e já atendeu 7,5 mil estudantes.
O Brasil precisa investir em educação, pede o empresário. David Neeleman não terminou a faculdade. O problema de déficit de atenção, diagnosticado ainda na adolescência, o impedia de realizar qualquer tarefa que necessitasse de concentração. Por isso mesmo, poucas vezes se aventurou como empregado de alguma companhia. Tinha receio de decepcionar o patrão. Já que havia esse problema a saída era ser criativo e montar o próprio negócio, conta. Com a ajuda da família, ele criou uma pequena agência de viagens. Vendeu a companhia e partiu para uma empresa de vôos charter, a Morris Air. Em 1993, a Southwest Airlines se interessou pela Morris. E Neeleman nem pensou duas vezes: embolsou US$ 130 milhões com a venda. Chegou a assumir um cargo na Southwest, mas acabou demitido.
Com o tempo livre, se dedicou a outro projeto: o desenvolvimentode um sistema de venda de bilhetes pela Internet. O Open Skies foi um sucesso e, em 1999, Neeleman o repassou para a HP, por US$ 150 milhões. Foi então que começou a desenhar a Jet Blue. E conquistou aliados de peso para o projeto: o investidor George Soros e o banco Chase.Soros e o Chase só toparam se juntar a Neeleman se ele realmente trouxesse algo novo ao mercado. O brasileiro caprichou, baseado no tripé estrutura enxuta–tecnologia– preço baixo. Para começar, seu salário como CEO (não estamos falando dos ganhos como acionista) é modesto para os padrões americanos: US$ 200 mil ao ano. Ele trabalha também num escritório espartano, no oitavo andar de um prédio localizado em Forrest Hills, subúrbio de Nova York. Hoje, o número de funcionários por avião na Jet Blue é um dos mais baixos do setor: 106. E a empresa escolheu operar com Airbus, em vez do americano Boeing, porque, segundo Neeleman, os aviões europeus tem menor custo de manutenção e mais economia de combustível. Decisão ousada. Num país que defende suas empresas com unhas e dentes, ver uma companhia “.
Ate 2011, o empresário promete quintuplicar sua frota: quer chegar a 290 aviões. A expansão seria feita principalmente com aviões de 100 lugares da Embraer, que serão entregues a partir de 2005. Ao todo, Neeleman pretende investir US$ 7 bilhões em oito anos. Analistas da aviação civil, no entanto, acham arriscada tal expansão da Jet Blue. Receiam que ao se tornar grande demais a companhia perca sua principal arma: a austeridade…
O artigo completo sobre David Neeleman