A Kid in Candyland

Let´s get down to business!  Had an extra long something to do on the side this week - as usual - so I´ll jump right into it.  This week will be short - sorry!  Just know that I´m doing very well, happy as a kid in candyland, getting along excellently with my comp, and the work is moving along like a well-oiled machine.  Just a few squeaky wheels is all :).

Article of Faith...I think it´s 7?  I don´t remember the number haha, but here it is.
"We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly.  We also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God."
We believe in the Holy Bible.  It is unequivocally the word of God.  It contains doctrines of salvation and of the gospel of Jesus Christ.  However, because of the history of the Bible, the compilation of works we have today known as the Bible are not the same as they were originally written by the hands of the Lord´s prophets and apostles.  Things have been changed or taken out.  This is because of 1.) people intentionally changed/removed them, or 2.) the true meaning was lost in translation.
 

I cannot say I remember the exact year, but somewhere between 400AD and 6500AD (I´m inclined to say something like 625AD), the Emperor Constantine converted to Christianity.  However, at this time, the apostles and true servants of the Lord of old had all been brutally assasinated or martyred.  The true authority of the priesthood of God was not on the earth.  The priests and professors of religion had lost the privilige of divine revelation, and thus were left to their own judgements to distinguish the word of God.  People understand and interpret things differently, and thus the understanding of the doctrines that Jesus Christ taught changed from being eternal truths to subjective opinions (see Acts of the Apostles ch. 1, approx verses 10-20).  the Emperor Constantine wanted to unite the faiths, and he held a grand council to resolve the differences of doctrine.  After a great period of debate, the council produced a list of what I call an ugly mush pot of bartered ideas.  The world calls it the Nicene Creed.  It is what all the great professors of religion - without any sort of authority or commission from God - agreed upon as "the truth".  Some are in accordance with the Bible.  Some are not.  Thus, parts of the Bible were changed to agree with this Creed of men.  From this act of a human think-tank, not from divinely inspired revelation from the Lord, parts of the original writings of the apostles and prophets were changed or taken out of the book compiled to be the Holy Bible.

The Bible has undergone many translations as well through various languages.  Being somebody who speaks two languages, I can tell you that things rarely translate word for word and retain their original meaning.  Sentences need to be rearranged or altered in order to convey the same general idea, and sometimes it doesn´t come out right.  In this way, parts of the original Bible were lost in translation.

However, these errors are errors of men.  In spite of the inherited and un-authorized modifications to the Holy Bible, it does not discredit it as being just as its name states: Holy.  It is the word of God.  The way that He intended it to be written is pure doctrine that is necessary for every man, woman, and child on the earth to learn and apply.  It tells us of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and His mortal ministry.  It contains the commandments necessary for salvation.  It is a sacred work inspired by God, and all would do well to study it dilligently and apply its principles.  It is God´s instruction manual for men in their earthly lives.  It is the word of God.

The Book of Mormon....I could write volumes about.  With the time I have and the past emails I have written, it suffices me to say that the Book of Mormon is exactly what it claims to be:  the word of God...the most correct book on the face of the earth...and a man will draw nearer to God by learning its values applying its principles than by any other way.  It is a testimony of the divinity of the Lord Jesus Christ and of this His latter-day work.  It is safety for the soul, and contains the fullness of the everlasting gospel of Jesus Christ.  All the principles and laws required for the salvation of the family are found in the Book of Mormon, and if anybody should wish to dispute that it is absolutely 100% without equivocation the word of God, let me know and I would be more than happy to correct you.  The Book of Mormon is heaven-sent, and speaks the peace the world so desperately needs in these last days.

Miss and love you all.

-Elder Moore