The Sixth Article of Faith

Original site can be found by clicking on title above, or clicking here

In the Mormon theology, there is a list of 13 core beliefs held by every member and they are collectively called Articles of Faith. This post is about #6, which is recorded thus:

We believe in the same organization that existed in the Primitive Church, namely, apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists, and so forth.


One of the claims of the Mormon Church is that it is a restoration of the Church that Jesus Christ set up at the end of his ministry on Earth before his crucifixion. The current Mormon Prophet, Gordon B. Hinckley noted this in his book Truth Restored.

What church was it?

Joseph Smith (1805-1844), taught a theology of restorationism: He preached that the true Christian church died out in the early 2nd century CE, and did not survive in any form until he restored it as the LDS Church, early in the 19th century. However, religious scholars and historians note that during the first century of the Christian church there were many sects and various groups teachings differing beliefs about Jesus of Nazareth.

During the 1st century there were three distinct and readily identifiable groups of Christians: The Jewish Followers of Jesus led by James, the Brother of Jesus, the Pauline Christians, and the Gnostics.

Which of these three did Joseph Smith restore? Or are we missing a church that no historian or religious scholar knows about? If the latter is the case then it is similar to the problem of lack of evidence for the Book of Mormon.

Now, if Smith restored either the Jerusalem Church, the Pauline Church or a Gnostic Church, do they actually match?

Before giving some of the attributes of early sects of Christianity, a discussion of Mormon Church hierarchy is appropriate. The Mormon Church is organized as follows:


Stakes are lead by a Stake President and two councilors. These men are High Priests in the Melchezedek or Higher/Greater Priesthood.
Assisting the Stake Presidency is the Stake High Council, a body of High Priests who visit the local branches of the Church (called Wards) to council the membership and bring messages from the Stake Presidency.
Wards are the local congregations and are lead by a bishop and two councilors.
The bishop is the primary local ecclesiastical leader.

You will not find in the Primitive church as laid down by the apostles and early bishops the positions of stake president, high councilmen, or a presiding bishopric. You will also not find the apostles leading the primitive church as a united body with a prophet and two counselors at the head.

It is my belief that Joseph Smith modeled his church loosely after some titles taken from the New Testament but certainly gave them his own flair and did not use the organization that was laid out by the early church leaders. Also, we have only the teachings of Paul, who was not one of Jesus’ original followers while he lived, that delineates some of the “offices” in the church.

So, where did Smith obtain the ideas for at least some of the church positions?

Pauline Christianity

Mormonism may be compared to Pauline Christianity but there are problems with this model.

First we must look to Ephesians 4:11 in the New Testament: And he gave some apostles and some prophets and some evangelists and some pastors and some teachers. Here Paul is indicating some of the workers in the church that were appointed. Unfortunately he does not list each one's duty. This is from the King James version of the Bible. I believe that Smith was a student of the Bible. Perhaps even a serious student. These positions were given for the work of the ministry. That is the spreading of the Word. The word apostle comes from the Greek word apostolous (apostolous), meaning a delegate, messenger, one sent forth with orders. As far as I can tell it does not intone the meaning of someone in charge. With the apostles we have evangelists (euaggelistas in Greek “euaggelistas”). The Greek word signifies a biblical and ecclesiastical worker, a bringer of good tidings, an evangelist. This name is given to those heralds of salvation through Christ who are not apostles. Along with these two we have prophets, shepherds and teachers. However, it appears that these ministers of Christ's word were not in charge of the church. The Didache (a first century Christian treatise) states that apostles and prophets should stay only a short while in any area. If they stay longer they are false teachers. So, if a ministry is necessary (which it may still be) there will be these traveling teachers as noted in Ephesians but they do not run the church.

In The Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power, author D. Michael Quinn on page 126 discusses Brigham Young, the Quorum of the Twelve and the succession after the death of Joseph Smith. Previous to Smith’s death, the Twelve’s role had been that of a traveling “high council”. This council had jurisdiction over areas where stakes were formed. This is more in line with the duties of the original apostles as recounted in the New Testament and early Christian writings. It was after the death of Smith and the wresting of power by Brigham Young that the Twelve took complete authority at this crucial junction in Mormon history.

But what of established home-churches/congregations or the early church itself?

The Bishop and the Deacon.

The two primary offices noted in the New Testament and other early Christian writings are those of the bishop and the deacon. First Timothy chapter 3 is quite explicit on some of the qualifications for a bishop and deacon. First and foremost the bishop must be the husband of one wife. In chapter 3 verse 1 it also states that people should aspire to the office of a bishop. My feeling is that it is not just being called to the position but working towards the position. Clement Chapter XLII discusses the order of the ministers in the church and covers the offices of bishop and deacon. Clement was a first century Christian writer.

“The apostles have preached the Gospel to us from the Lord Jesus Christ; Jesus Christ [has done so] from God. Christ therefore was sent forth by God, and the apostles by Christ. Both these appointments, then, were made in an orderly way, according to the will of God. Having therefore received their orders, and being fully assured by the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, and establish in the word of God, with full assurance of the Holy Ghost, they went forth proclaiming that the kingdom of God was at hand. And thus preaching through countries and cities, they appointed the first-fruits [of their labours], having first proved them by the Spirit, to be bishops and deacons of those who should afterwards believe. Nor was this any new thing, since indeed many ages before it was written concerning bishops and deacons. For thus saith the Scripture in a certain place, "I will appoint their bishops in righteousness, and their deacons in faith."”

Deacons are workers in the church. The word deacon comes from the Greek diakonias (diakonias) which means service, ministering, especially those who execute the commands of others. In first Timothy 3:12 it states that deacons should be the husbands of one wife. If Joseph Smith knew the New Testament inside and out he would not have missed this. In the Mormon Church young men at 12 years old are ordained as deacons. Polycarp in his epistle to Philipi lays out the duties of deacons, youths and virgins. He treated them separately and at least as to deacons and youth we can say that they were not the same. It is also a possibility that there were female deacons.

We also know that the church had elders (presbyters). Polycarp outlines their duties in his epistle to Philipi in chapter VI.

“Knowing, then, that "God is not mocked," we ought to walk worthy of His commandment and glory. In like manner should the deacons be blameless before the face of His righteousness, as being the servants of God and Christ, and not of men. They must not be slanderers, double-tongued, or lovers of money, but temperate in all things, compassionate, industrious, walking according to the truth of the Lord, who was the servant of all. If we please Him in this present world, we shall receive also the future world, according as He has promised to us that He will raise us again from the dead, and that if we live worthily of Him, "we shall also reign together with Him," provided only we believe. In like manner, let the young men also be blameless in all things, being especially careful to preserve purity, and keeping themselves in, as with a bridle, from every kind of evil. For it is well that they should be cut off from the lusts that are in the world, since "every lust warreth against the spirit; " and "neither fornicators, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, shall inherit the kingdom of God," nor those who do things inconsistent and unbecoming. Wherefore, it is needful to abstain from all these things, being subject to the presbyters [elders] and deacons, as unto God and Christ. The virgins also must walk in a blameless and pure conscience.”

In the centuries following the death of Jesus, some Christians had difficulties with the rise of the new Christian priesthood and the ecclesiastical leaders and the rules laid down by them. In the Nag Hammadi texts, one of the books, called Testimony of Truth, discusses this. Elaine Pagels in her book The Origin of Satan touches upon this subject: “But the author of the Testimony, reflecting on his own alienation from the majority of “worldly” Christians, suddenly believes he understands Jesus’ warning to his disciples to “beware of the leaven of the scribes and pharisees” (Mark 8:15). Jesus’ words are not to be taken literally, as if they referred only to Jewish teachers; instead, taken symbolically, they warn against Christian teachers like the author of Barnabas or the Teaching of the Twelve Apostles, who invoke the Scriptures to sanction ordinary life. According to the Testimony, the “scribes and Pharisees” and the “blind guides” against whom Jesus warns (Matt. 23) are none other than the majority of Christians – Christians who have been tricked into worshiping not God but supernatural “rulers” who are less than divine.”

1 Corinthians 12:4 states “There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit; and different kinds of ministries and the same Lord”. I interpret this scripture to mean that as there are many different types of spiritual gifts, there are also many different types of ministries. That there is not just one type of ministry as in a one-size-fits-all type of mentality.

If Mormonism is not a restoration of Pauline Christianity, could it be a restoration of the Jerusalem following or some gnostic sect?

The Jerusalem Church

The Church led by James was ostensibly a Jewish Sect and it is my belief that James and the other original followers of Jesus walked in Jesus’ footsteps. James and the Apostles at this time were synagogue attending, temple attending Jews. I believe that this group was the proper following of Jesus and most true to his teachings and the group lasted until shortly after the fall of Jerusalem and the burning of the Temple by the Romans. For the Mormon Church to have restored this “church” Mormonism would look like Messianic Judaism and would have the following attributes:

● Abide by the Law of Moses
● Practice circumcision
● Worship on the Jewish Sabbath with special services (agape meals) on the Lord’s Day.
● Practice Synagogue Worship

Just looking at these four criteria will show that the Mormon Church is not a restoration of this church.

Gnostic Sects

If a person picks and chooses which Gnostic writings to use as examples of Mormonism having the same beliefs as early Christians it is easy to show the corollaries. However, picking and choosing is problematic as it does not show the general philosophy of each of those varying sects and misrepresents their beliefs. In my study of Gnostic belief systems it is apparent that the underlying theologies are different than Mormonism. For more information on this refer to the Gnostic Gospels and The Gnostic Paul by Elaine Pagels.

In 1945 a set of books were found in Nag Hammadi Egypt. The Nag Hummadi Library of books showed that there was a broad range of beliefs among the various independent Gnostic systems or schools in antiquity. In studying the texts, a core system of beliefs could be outlined:

● Their Role: They believed that they alone truly understood Christ's message, and that other streams of thought within Christianity had misinterpreted Jesus' mission and sayings.

This belief is shared by Mormons. Mormons believe they alone have full access to God’s truth.

● Gnosis: Knowledge to them was not an intellectual exercise; it was not a passive understanding of some aspect of spirituality. Rather, knowledge had a redeeming and liberating function that helped the individual break free of bondage to the world.

A quote from Mormon teachings is “The Glory of God is Intelligence” (D&C 93:36). However does intelligence redeem in Mormonism? No.

● Deity: The Supreme Father God or Supreme God of Truth is remote from human affairs; he is unknowable and undetectable by human senses. She/he created a series of supernatural but finite beings called Aeons. One of these was Sophia, a virgin, who in turn gave birth to an defective, inferior Creator-God, also known as the Demiurge. (Demiurge means "public craftsman" in Greek.) This lower God is sometimes called Yaldabaoth or Ialdabaoth/Jaldabaoth -- from Aramaic words meaning "begetter of the Heavens." This is Jehovah, the God of the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament). He is portrayed as the creator of the earth and its life forms. He is viewed by Gnostics as fundamentally evil, jealous, rigid, lacking in compassion, and prone to genocide. The Demiurge "thinks” that he is supreme. His pride and incompetence have resulted in the sorry state of the world as we know it, and in the blind and ignorant condition of most of mankind."

The Mormon God is an anthropomorphic entity (exalted Man) who is not remote from human affairs. The other aspects of God listed above do not match Mormon teachings.

● Duality of spirit and body: Spirit is of divine origin and good; the body is inherently earthly and evil. Gnostics were hostile to the physical world, to matter and the human body. But they believed that trapped within some people's bodies were the sparks of divinity or seeds of light that were supplied to humanity by Sophia.

One aspect of Gnosticism is that there is no bodily resurrection, that in order to become fully enlightened one had to cast off the evil body which held the spirit in thrall. This type of belief is counter to Mormon belief which teaches that the Body and Spirit will be reunited in the resurrection. See below.

● Salvation: A person attains salvation by learning secret knowledge of their spiritual essence: a divine spark of light or spirit. They then have the opportunity to escape from the prison of their bodies at death. Their soul can ascend to be reunited with the Supreme God at the time of their death. Gnostics divided humanity into three groups:
○ The spiritual, who would be saved irrespective of their behavior while on earth.
○ The Soulish, who could be saved if they followed the Gnostic path.
○ The carnal who are hopelessly lost.

The Mormon temple ceremony imparts secret knowledge that must be learned in order to enter the Kingdom of God. However, the aspect of escaping the body in counter to Mormon beliefs.

● Evil: They did not look upon the world as having been created perfectly and then having degenerated as a result of the sin of Adam and Eve. Rather the world was seen as being evil at the time of its origin, because it had been created by an inferior God.

Mormonism has no view of an inferior God. The God of Mormonism is the same God of the Old Testament; Elohim.

● Christ: The role of the redeemer in Gnostic belief is heavily debated at this time. Gnostics seem to have looked upon Christ as a revealer or liberator, rather than a savior or judge. His purpose was to spread knowledge which would free individuals from the Demiurge's control and allow them to return to their spiritual home with the Supreme God at death. Some Gnostic groups promoted Docetism, the belief that Christ was pure spirit and only had a phantom body; Jesus just appeared to be human to his followers. They reasoned that a true emissary from the Supreme God could not have been overcome by the evil of the world, and to have suffered and died. These beliefs were considered heresy by many non-Gnostic Christians. Some Gnostics believed that Christ's resurrection occurred at or before Jesus' death on the cross. They defined his resurrection as occurring when his spirit was liberated from his body. Many Gnostics believed that Jesus had both male and female disciples.

Mormonism teaches that Jesus is the Savior of the World unlike many of the beliefs of Gnostic sects. They also teach that Jesus had a physical body and had to have that physical body to become a God. Not The God but a God in the realm of diety. Gnostic resurrection as noted previously is different than the physical resurrection that Mormons teach.

● The Universe: This is divided into three kingdoms:
○ 1. The "Earthly Cosmos": The earth is the center of the universe, and is composed of the world that we know of and an underworld. It is surrounded by air and by 7 concentric heavenly spheres: one for each of the Moon, Venus, Mercury, Sun, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. (Although the planet Uranus is visible to the naked eye, it was not recognized as a planet in ancient times.) Beyond Saturn resides Leviathan, a snake coiled in a single circle, devouring its own tail. Within these spheres live demonic, tyrannical entities called Archons. Beyond them lies Paradise which contains the "Tree of Life", the "Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil", and the flaming, turning sword of Genesis 3:24. Beyond Paradise was the sphere of the fixed stars, divided into the 12 signs of the zodiac.
○ 2. The "Intermediate Kingdom is composed of an inner blue circle of darkness and an outer yellow ring of light. Within these rings is a sphere which is the realm of Sophia.
○ 3. The "Kingdom of God" consists of two spheres: an outer one of the unknowable Supreme God, and inner ring of the Son.

Mormonism teaches a different cosmology. The following web site gives some explanation to Mormon Cosmology and current apologist understanding of it:

http://www.lightplanet.com/mormons/basic/scripture/astronomy.html

The cosmological and other views of Mormons and Gnostics in general disagree. So, in general it may be stated that Mormonism was not a restoration of the early Gnostic church.


Conclusion

Determining which primitive Church Mormonism restored is problematic. Being able to detail this would give some credence to the Mormon establishment and would show some type of continuity with 1st century Christianity. However, like placing the location of the events in the Book of Mormon, isolating which following of Jesus the Mormon Church restored is problematic at best.


***Thanks to William (aka Grape Nephi) who maintains a very informative site here

***My Thoughts***

I often wonder if the people I have talked to who claimed to have read, studied and wrote papers in college about Gnosticism are lying to me. It seems that every time I mention some book, article, DVD, movie, or website to certain individuals I am acquainted with, I am met with insistance that they have already read the material, checked out all the things I mention, studied it all out, and have remained true and faithful to Mormonism, (which of course, is meant to imply that I could have done the same, but through some personality flaw, I was unable to maintain my faith). This could not possibly be true, in my mind. Someone is lying here.

Now, I know that I have read these things, studied them thoroughly, have a continued belief in the complete FALSEHOOD of the Mormon religion. Here are my questions:

How can we both be right?
Does 'loss of spirit' really mean that I can no longer determine right from wrong?
Does getting down on your knees and praying REALLY help you figure out the correct course of action to take in ALL your daily endeavors?
Is there no room for common sense and logic?
What about times where you make a correct decision based on facts presented, without the use of prayer, is that just a lucky guess?

Let's say you are sound asleep in your home at 3 am, when suddenly the fire alarms go off. What would be your first action, getting on your knees to pray for guidance, or following your instincts and getting the hell out?

Let's say your car breaks down and you can't drive it any further. Would you have to pray to figure out how to call a tow truck? Would you need to get confirmation that it was the right thing to do first?

How would you function in the real world if you had to stop and pray every minute in order to make correct choices and get your confirmation?

My point here is: God (or whatever higher creator power) supplied you with a brain. You can make decisions all on your own. The only reason you would ever have to use prayer is if you are convinced that you can't make decisions on your own. Who would teach you such a thing? That's right, those 'ecclesiastical' leaders tell you from day one that you can't trust your mind, it's carnal and devilish in nature. Your only hope become trusting your heart, your feelings, and the 'spirit of confirmation'. But what does the Bible say about trusting your heart?

Jeremiah 17:9
The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?

Proverbs 28:26
He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool: but whoso walketh wisely, he shall be delivered.

And what about Doctrine and Covenants Section 93:36?
The glory of God is intelligence, or, in other words, light and truth.

Are you really willing to let someone else tell you what is good to read, what things to avoid, and what to do when confronted with conflicting evidence? Can't you decide on your own?