From: slhw4@cc.usu.edu (Jason Hunsaker)
Newsgroups: talk.religion.misc
Subject: Re: Mormon Claims Answered 7
Date: 26 Sep 92 12:10:09 MDT
Organization: Utah State University

In article <a7Tv02i0236A01@JUTS.ccc.amdahl.com>, 
agr00@ccc.amdahl.com (Anthony G Rose) writes:
> slhw4@cc.usu.edu (Jason Hunsaker) writes:
[...]
>>"The Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man's;
>>the Son also; but the Holy Ghost has not a body of flesh and
>>bones, but is a personage of Spirit.  Were it not so, the Holy
>>Ghost could not dwell in us."  (Doctrine and Covenants 130:22.)
> 
> This is an accurate quote from Doctrine & Covenants 130:22. Thanks
> Jason for bringing that up.  However, the Bible teaches us that God
> IS Spirit (John 4:24). The King James Version says God is a Spirit, but
> the Greek actually read, God IS Spirit.

If God *is* spirit, that does not exclude him from being more
that spirit.

I am spirit.  I am also flesh and bone.

The Joseph Smith inspired translation (JST) [which I'm sure you
will reject] renders John 4:24 as:

"[For unto such hath God promised his] Spirit.  And they [who]
worship him, must worship him in spirit and truth."

The rendering, although not based upon the Greek, fits nicely with
the context of the surrounding verses.

> Interestingly enough, the Book Of Mormon also disagrees with the
> description of God found in the Doctrine & Covenants 130:22
> 
>      "And Ammon began to speak unto him with boldness and said
>       unto him: Believest thou that there is a God? And he
>       answered, and said unto him: I do not know what thou
>       meaneth.  And then Ammon said: Believest thou that there
>       is a Great Spirit? And he said, Yea. And Ammon said:
>       This is God. And Ammon said unto him again: Believest thou
>       that the Great Spirit, who is God, created all things which
>       are in heaven and earth? And he said Yea..."
>                    Book Of Mormon, Alma 18:24-29
> 
>      "And the king said: Is God that Great Spirit that brought
>       the fathers out of the land of Jerusalem? And Aaron said
>       unto him: yea, he is that Great Spirit, and he created all
>       things both in heaven and in earth. Believest thou this?
>       And he said: Yea I believe that the Great Spirit created
>       all things..."
>                    Book Of Mormon, Alma 22:9-11

Replace "Great Spirit" above with "Supreme Being" and you'll get
the level of understanding of the king that Ammon was trying to
preach to.

Ammon doesn't say "the Great Spirit is no more than a spirit."

Also compare with Ether 3:16.  Where the ante-mortal Christ
appeared to the brother of Jared:

"Behold this, which ye now behold, is the body of my spirit; and
man have I created after the body of my spirit; and even as I now
appear unto thee [the brother of Jared] to be in the spirit will
I appear unto my perople in the flesh."  (BoM: Ether 3:16.)

> So both the Book of Mormon and Doctrine & Covenants are cannonized
> Scripture according to the LDS church.  Which of these verse is
> correct and which is incorrect?  

They both are correct.  Only the thing that is incorrect is the
meaning that you attach to them.

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Jason Hunsaker  -|-  Logan, Utah  -|-  Internet: slhw4@cc.usu.edu