I have a question. If a person has to be baptized, either on earth or through baptism for the dead, to gain access to heaven, what about all of the millions of people with no written record of their existence? Too bad? What is the church's explanation for this?

In my D&C class the teacher said that more will be revealed to us and we will have all the instructions :-p You know, the classic answer to everything.

No problem. They've got it covered. They just do the ones they can. God will take care of the rest.

God will sort out all the omissions, errors and make everything right.

Isn't that convenient?

It's all so stupid.

Ok...so why do it at all? If God can sort it out and is obviously going to have to do some himself, why bother?

Curious minds are baffled!

Really, it serves multiple purposes.

It is the Mormon way of connecting with dead ancestors. Most religions involve ancestor worship in some way.

It serves to keep Mormons engaged and busy. They make up things to do to keep the members busy.

It serves as the mechanism for the higher initiates in the religion- the temple worthy folks- to have some special privilege that the lower less invested members do not have. They feel all righteous and that they have performed a service for the dead.

It serves as something the church can present as a privilege to do and make rules that tithing has to be paid to do it.


They could have one proxy person be symbolically baptized and endowed (temple rites) for all humans who ever lived at once if they wanted. But no, they have convinced the members they have to keep going back over and over to do this ritual one person at a time.

Don't try to over think it. It is just a religious practice that pretty much seems like nonsense to people on the outside (because it is nonsense). Just think of all the resources spent on this ritual with the buildings and time. It's such a waste.

I'm embarrassed to say I did this for years. What a giant mind numbing waste of time.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/26/2014 09:30PM by dagny.

Thank you for the explanation. I guess I can't help but overthink some things because it really just boggles my mind. I appreciate your perspective.

dagny Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Really, it serves multiple purposes.
>
>... way of connecting with dead
>... serves to keep engaged, busy.
>... mechanism for higher initiates
>... special privilege
>... service for the [self]
>... "one proxy symbolically baptized and endowed (temple rites) for all humans who ever lived at once".

! Keep going back over and over to do this ritual one person at a time. !

°this°

AND

^Baptism cannot be for the dead, but rather the living^, in "eternity", the present moment and the "future".

When someone thinks they have found the truth, they usually give up looking - which defeats the purpose.

The purpose of life is the plan of death.

"Can't Play Jesus Forever"©M@t



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/28/2014 02:42AM by moremany.

More records will be available to us during the 1000 year millennium. This is the period of time between the 1st and 2nd coming of Christ.

Right. I remember hearing that too. Sounds like fun!

Good question. And how far back in human history will it go back? To Neanderthals, Ergaster, Habilis? I mean really, where do you draw the line? No one ever seems to question that. When did God begin to love humans enough to allow them into Heaven?

Those fossils were put here to confuse us. You know,like dinosaurs

That's why they need as many conversions in this life as possible, so that they have more missionaries to teach all those people that have died and never had the chance to hear of the mormon church. Mormon existence is being an eternal missionary until you progress far enough to get your own planet.

Of course, like all MLM schemes only those in on the ground floor get anything. The rest are toiling away trying to get ahead, in this case for all eternity. Mormon heaven (Celestial Kingdom) sounds more like hell to me.

Ok, this answers my second question. Thanks!

Anonymous church members.

Dead people can't baptize living people * They can try all they want but... can't do it!

¡Living Dead^

M@t

God takes care of everything during the Millennium.

The dead baptise the living (not the other way around).

If Jesus Christ was the head of the Church (as the name suggests) he would only have to do it once. Oh yea, he already did. The ritual occurs to get the kids busy.

People are sent down to be baptized for someone else?

Are they "unbaptised" when the baptise "unbaptises" him or herself?