baptism

Baptism or Temple Marriage Requisite to Enter the Kingdom?

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I have had a question in my mind for some time over the many instances in the scriptures which tell us that baptism is the key to being saved in the kingdom of God. For example, when Christ appears to the Nephites and teaches them His doctrine:

And whoso believeth in me, and is baptized, the same shall be saved; and they are they who shall inherit the kingdom of God.
And whoso believeth not in me, and is not baptized, shall be damned. (3 Nephi 11:33-34)

I have often thought, “What about the temple? Aren’t the temple ordinances, and particularly being sealed to your spouse in the temple (or celestial marriage), required for entrance into God’s kingdom also?”

I read some material somewhere this past week that helped resolve this question.

Both baptism and celestial marriage are required to enter into the kingdom of God, but in differing degrees of inheritance. Both of these ordinances are called new and everlasting covenants (see D&C 22:1 and D&C 132:4). They are the only ordinances to be so named because they permit us to enter different portions of God’s kingdom. Baptism is required to enter the celestial kingdom (D&C 76:51-52). Everyone so baptized, and worthy, may enter there. In addition to baptism, celestial marriage is required to enter into the highest degree of the celestial kingdom, and receive a fulness and exaltation (D&C 132:19). So, in a sense, one or the other ordinance can be said as the key necessary to enter into the kingdom of God, depending on whether we’re talking about the front door or our throne room.

It is also interesting to note that these two ordinances are exclusive in that they are the only two ordinances of the gospel that invoke the titles of the three members of the Godhead—”in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost” (D&C 20:73). Perhaps this is the case because all three members of the Godhead dwell in the celestial kingdom (D&C 76:62, 77, 86), and thus all three may be required for authorization to pass from one area to another in that exalted sphere.

Baptism “of” the Dead in Eastern Christianity

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St. Michael’s Monastery in Kiev, Ukraine

I have a certain affinity or appreciation for Eastern Orthodox Christianity, having visited Ukraine two years ago where I had the opportunity to visit many of the beautiful cathedrals all across the country.  I found many of the practices, architecture, and artifacts of the faith to be intriguing from an LDS standpoint, showing parallels to our own traditions and beliefs.  From the structure of the cathedrals, to the mosaics and frescoes, to the belief system, many things stood out to me.  Could it be that the apostasy has had less of an affect upon the Eastern tradition than other sects of Christiandom?

This morning an article by Marvin R. VanDam on Meridian Magazine was brought to my attention.  VanDam most recently was the director for temporal affairs of the Eastern European and Central Asian Area of the Church.  In his article VanDam explores the studies of a well-known Russian religious scholar, Sergey Antonenko, who finds many striking parallels between Eastern Orthodoxy and the LDS Church.  Antonenko finds that, like the Latter-day Saints, Eastern Christianity has a tradition of “taking care [concerned] about the deceased, instead of forsaking [them].”  Such a concern, he says, can be traced back to early Christianity.

Most particularly, VanDam informs us that Antonenko finds that the practice of baptism for the dead has its roots in ancient Christianity, citing Paul in Corinthians as evidence:

Those who are advanced in the religious studies may conclude that vicarious baptism existed in the history of the Christian Church. . . . Direct [literal] meaning of the verse implies that “baptism for the dead” for the ancient Christians was confirmation of their confession [faith] – of their belief in resurrection.

VanDam then cites striking examples that Antonenko gives of the practice of baptism for the dead in Kiev, medieval Russia, an area which is now part of Ukraine.  In contrast to the Latter-day Saint practice of vicarious baptism “for” the dead, these baptisms were very literally baptisms “of” the dead, where the bones of deceased relatives were exhumed, baptized, and reburied, such was the overarching concern of these people for the salvation of their dead, but citing precedence and reason for doing so from the early Christians.

Read the entire article at Meridian Magazine.

A 12th Century Baptismal Font Upon Twelve Oxen

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Liège (Belgium), St. Barhélemy (Bartholomew) - Baptismal font of Renier de Huy (first part of the XIIth century). Author: Jean-Pol Grandmont (Private collection).

Liège (Belgium), St. Barhélemy (Bartholomew) - Baptismal font of Renier de Huy (first part of the XIIth century). Author: Jean-Pol Grandmont (Private collection).

And he made a molten sea, ten cubits from the one brim to the other: it was round all about, and his height was five cubits: and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round about.

And under the brim of it round about there were knops compassing it, ten in a cubit, compassing the sea round about: the knops were cast in two rows, when it was cast.

It stood upon twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east: and the sea was set above upon them, and all their hinder parts were inward.

And it was an hand breadth thick, and the brim thereof was wrought like the brim of a cup, with flowers of lilies: it contained two thousand baths. ((1 Kings 7:23-26))

I came across this interesting artifact while touring through Liège, Belgium, a few years ago. Unfortunately, we were in a rush and could not see it in person, but we spoke with members of the Church there who told us about it and who gave us pamphlets of the city which included it as one of the city’s premiere landmarks.

It is a baptismal font that was fashioned by the goldsmith Renier de Huy in the first half of the 12th century and now sits in the Eglise Saint Barhélemy (Church of St. Bartholomew). Originally it was made for the Eglise Notre-Dame-aux-Fonts (Church of Our Lady of the Baptismal Font), and was the only font in Liège where the faithful could be baptized for a time. The moldings which surround the font are all centered on a baptismal theme with five different baptismal scenes, including the baptism of Christ. It is a great example of Mosan or Rheno-mosan art.

The most unique thing about the font is that it was designed upon the backs of twelve oxen, in accordance with the description of the molten sea given in the Old Testament. One commenter describes it:

The font is placed on four stones and is carried by 10 oxen (originally 12 oxen) that symbolize the twelve apostles. ((http://www.trabel.com/luik/liege-baptismalfont.htm))

I’m not sure why the commenter chose to select the twelve apostles as the symbolism, as most scholars would probably agree that they represent the twelve tribes of Israel, but it is interesting nonetheless. The members of the Church in Liège consider this landmark as an evidence of the truth of the restoration of the gospel. It shows that others did, in fact, baptize in a font upon the backs of twelve oxen, just as the Latter-day Saints do within every temple of the Church throughout the world.

Read more here – http://www.trabel.com/luik/liege-baptismalfont.htm.

What Transcends the Temple?

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There is an interesting doctrinal discussion on a post by KC Kern over at Mormon Matters entitled “The Reason for the World.” In it, KC compares the lyrics of the song “The Riddle” by the group “Five for Fighting” to Mormon theology. It is an intriguing comparison in which he analyzes the song’s lyrics of what the purpose of this earth is and why we are all here. What he boils it down to is the principle of love. If it were not for love, the purposes of the earth’s creation would be utterly wasted (JS-H 1:38-39).

This made me think of a scripture in 1 Corinthians which also speaks of the ideals of love, [Read more…]

An Early Christian Church Exhibit

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An exhibition back in 2000 at The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, which was curated by Yael Israeli and David Mevorah, shows artifacts from the early years of the Christian church. The exhibition was entitled “The Cradle of Christianity“:

The exhibition attempts to synthesize the literary sources with finds that have been excavated in this country, particularly over the past fifty years: architectural remains, liturgical objects from churches, personal belongings of the Christian inhabitants of this land, and souvenirs made for pilgrims.

They have made an effort to separate the artifacts from the religious doctrines, trying to present the artifacts as they are, objectively.

I found several things interesting as I browsed the website of the exhibition: [Read more…]