joseph smith

ThyMindOMan.com – Exploring the Mind’s Relationship to God

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"Thy Mind, O Man," photograph of original manuscript.

“Thy Mind, O Man,” photograph of original manuscript. The Joseph Smith Papers.

Friends, many of you have been wondering where I’ve been over the last few years, and what I’ve been up to. I’ve been involved with a variety of projects, and I’ve also been studying. Over the past five years or so I have studied many different subjects, and I’ve studied them deeply. I feel I have learned much, and grown in many ways, and I would like to begin to share what I’ve learned, with you. Although what I have to share has everything to do with the temple, it approaches the subject matter differently. John Welch notes that after Joseph Smith Jr. had been incarcerated in the hellhole of Liberty Jail for almost five months, “the Prophet burst beyond the walls of his surroundings with these expansive words”: ((Welch, John W. (2011) “”Thy Mind, O Man, Must Stretch”,” BYU Studies Quarterly: Vol. 50 : Iss. 3 , Article 4. Available at: http://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/byusq/vol50/iss3/4 or at https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/john-w-welch_thy-mind-o-man-must-stretch/. Welch gave this address as the recipient of the 2010-2011 Karl G. Maeser Distinguished Faculty Lecturer Award on May 17, 2011, at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah.))

The things of God are of deep import, and time and experience and careful and ponderous and solemn thoughts can only find them out. Thy mind, O Man, if thou wilt lead a soul unto salvation, must stretch as high as the utmost Heavens, and search into and contemplate the lowest considerations of the darkest abyss, and expand upon the broad considerations of eternal expanse; he must commune with God. ((“Letter to the Church and Edward Partridge, 20 March 1839,” p. 12, The Joseph Smith Papers, accessed April 6, 2017, http://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/letter-to-the-church-and-edward-partridge-20-march-1839/12. Spelling, grammar, and punctuation standardized. A photograph of the original manuscript can be seen at the top of this post.))

So I thought that I would start a new website at ThyMindOMan.com to better capture this new approach to the subject—exploring the mind’s relationship to God. I will explore how we might be able to use our mind and consciousness to explore those heights and depths that Joseph referred to, and to commune with and ultimately become one with God, something Joseph said we must do. And I want to share my thoughts with you.

Thank you for your dear friendship and conversations that we’ve had on TempleStudy.com. It’s been a truly remarkable decade.

Videos of Science & Mormonism Symposium Now Available for Free Viewing

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The Interpreter Foundation sponsored a conference on November 9, 2013, entitled “Science & Mormonism: Cosmos, Earth & Man” in Provo, Utah.  It was filmed.  Videos of each of the presentations are now available for free viewing on The Interpreter Foundation’s YouTube channel, or at MormonInterpreter.com.  They are also embedded below. [Read more…]

On Mysticism, Transcendence, Meditation, Seers & Stones

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What is mysticism?  That is the million dollar question.

It is incredibly difficult to define. Wikipedia defines it as the “pursuit of communion with, identity with, or conscious awareness of an ultimate reality, divinity, spiritual truth, or God through direct experience, intuition, instinct or insight.”  What?  By combining all possible definitions into one, they have created an incomprehensible one.

Let’s turn to some closer associates.  Hugh Nibley once defined it, quoting Eduard Lehmann, as “an intuitive and ecstatic union with the deity obtained by means of contemplation and other mental exercises.” Professor William Hamblin turns to oft-repeated definitions such as “a domain of religion that deals with the search for and the attainment of a profound experiential knowledge of God or of ultimate reality,” or, “mysticism is … a type of religious experience which involves a sense of union or merging with either God or an all-pervading spiritual force in the universe,” but finds even these lacking.  In Kevin Christensen’s recent Interpreter review of Margarget Barker’s book Temple Mysticism: An Introduction he indicated that his “favorite LDS approach” to the topic has become Mark E. Koltko’s essay “Mysticism and Mormonism: An LDS Perspective on Transcendence and Higher Consciousness,” found in the April 1989 issue of Sunstone. We’ll come back to this shortly. Christensen notes that while Nibley’s view tends to be the more conventional definition, Margaret Barker’s own use of the term in her book is very different still, focusing on the experience of “seeing the Lord,” i.e. a temple theophany. While different, there is clearly overlap between the ideas of “a union with deity,” and “seeing God,” as Matthew Bowen also elucidates in his recent article in Interpreter. Koltko’s essay also perhaps helps bridge the gap. [Read more…]

Acetaldehyde: A Good Reason For the Word of Wisdom

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Chemical composition of Acetaldehyde. (UAwiki, Wikipedia)

Chemical composition and structure of Acetaldehyde. (UAwiki, Wikipedia)

Ever since the revelation referred to as the “Word of Wisdom,” and now contained in D&C 89, was given to the Prophet Joseph Smith there has been talk of whether or not it is an effective physical health standard. I think it is perhaps beyond argument that it is effective spiritually, at least for those who believe that obedience to God’s word will bring them closer to Him (John 14:23), but the revelation also notes physical and mental benefits for keeping this word of wisdom, which can also have spiritual side effects:

  • “shall receive health in their navel and marrow to their bones” (v18)
  • “shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures” (v19)
  • “shall run and not be weary” (v20)
  • “shall walk and not faint” (v20)
  • “the destroying angel shall pass by them, as the children of Israel, and not slay them” (v21)

I shared my relative’s story, Creed Haymond, in my last post (or rather Creed shared it), which is a clear example of obedience to the Word of Wisdom blessing one to be able to “run and not be weary” and “walk and not faint.”

But there are many who still question the physical benefits of the Word of Wisdom, for one reason or another. For example, some might point to studies which show that there might be a health benefit to a low consumption of alcohol, as evidence against the Word of Wisdom. However, I believe there exists an abundance of scientific evidence that the proscriptions contained in the Word of Wisdom are for our general health benefit, both physically and mentally, and therefore also spiritually, much of which evidence has come to light since the revelation was given to Joseph Smith in 1833.  I will give only one good example, which I just today came across. [Read more…]

Revelations to Build Temples

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Building the Kirtland Temple. Walter Rane, 2003.

Building the Kirtland Temple. Walter Rane, 2003.

Professor Daniel C. Peterson wrote a column in the Deseret News today about temples.  In particular, he focuses on how temples have anciently been revealed through prophets of God, and how that pattern continues in these latter days.  Examples include:

  • Kirtland Temple as was revealed to Joseph Smith, Sidney Rigdon, and Frederick G. Williams
  • Salt Lake Temple was revealed to Brigham Young
  • Smaller temples design was revealed to Gordon B. Hinckley

Peterson concludes, “Temples are a central element in the restoration of all things, and, often even in the details of their origins, they represent powerful evidence for the divine calling of Joseph Smith and his successors.”

Read the article at the Deseret News.