Dear Dawn,

Your question relates to our belief that after we depart from this life, we all go to a place where we will have the opportunity to continue our preparation to return to our Heavenly Father’s presence after our resurrection.

The Apostle Peter referred to the spirit world as a prison, which it is for some. See 1 Peter 3:18–20

This is where we go if we have not yet received the gospel of Jesus Christ. These spirits have agency and may be influenced by both good and evil. If they accept the gospel and the ordinances performed for them in the temples, they may leave the spirit prison and dwell in a place called Paradise.

Among other things, that preparation involves receiving essential ordinances by proxy if they have not received those ordinances in mortality. These are the “Ordinances” that you discovered on FamilySearch.org.

The apostle Paul taught that proxy baptism was also practiced for the dead (1 Corinthians 15:29). Earlier, Christ told Peter and his other apostles that what they bound on earth would be bound in heaven (Matthew 16:19; and Matthew 18:18). These scriptures teach that baptism and other ordinances the living receive for themselves (or the dead receive by proxy) are binding on earth and in heaven if the recipients (alive or dead) remain true to Christ’s teachings. Of course, the validity of those ordinances also requires that they be performed with God’s authority, referred to as the Priesthood.

In Christ’s restored Church, Peter and other heavenly messengers came to Joseph Smith and gave him that same authority.

Thus, the ordinances we perform for those who have gone onto the next life – baptism, marriage, etc. – are all performed by that authority in our many temples all across the earth,

This is where ordinances for your husband’s great grandmother were performed. She and others who died without knowing about such authority have a chance to hear about it in the spirit world and have proxy ordinances performed by loved ones here.

It’s also important to note that these sacred ordinances are also performed in our temples for the living. Most notably, worthy living couples in our Church can be married for NOT just this life, but for all eternity. Debbie and I had the privilege of receiving those ordinances in 1978 when we got married in the Salt Lake City temple by the same authority that Peter had to bind on earth and in heaven.

My wife and I cherish our eternal marriage. The man who performed our temple marriage used authority delegated to him from the President and Prophet of our Church. Others throughout the world also use delegated authority to perform eternal marriages to worthy couples in every nation.

Because two of our sons served missions for our Church in Italy, the Rome Italy Temple is of particular interest. We were able to see it just prior to it’s completion. It’s so beautiful as are all the other temples.

Click HERE to see some pictures of what it looks like inside the Rome Italy Temple

I want to point out something in one of the pictures that is very interesting. If you scroll down to the third picture, you’ll see sculptures of the 12 apostles that were sculpted back in the 1800’s by the famous Danish sculptor, Bertel Thorvaldsen. If you look at Peter’s hand, he’s holding keys. Why is he doing that? The keys are symbolic of Matthew 16:19, where Christ tells Peter, “I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” This means that the original twelve apostles were given the authority and keys to seal on earth and heaven. That same authority along with the keys exist today with the current 12 apostles.

As you may know, family means everything to me. It gives me such purpose in my life and a sense of belonging. It seems more and more these days, people are interested in where they came from and why they have certain traits.

I have this desire to search and learn of my ancestors. I find that the more I get to know them, the more I discover and understand why I am the way I am. Sometimes, I wonder what they’re doing since they’ve moved on beyond this life. I also believe that they are still personally interested in me and my family and the things we’re doing. FamilySearch.org is a way to fill that yearning for all of it families.

Dawn, I hope my response has been helpful to you. Please feel free to use the Church website to explore other questions you might have.

And feel free to contact the receptionist at Church headquarters who can direct you to other family history resources or for any other questions you might have.

Thanks again for your great questions!
Sincerely,
Donny

By the way, here are some great scripture to refer to regarding this topic:

1 Peter 4:6 (gospel preached to the dead)
Moses 7:37–39 (spirit prison prepared for the wicked)
D&C 76 (revelation about the three kingdoms of glory)
Luke 16:19–31 (fate of beggar and rich man in the spirit world)

In our 13 Articles of Faith, the 1st one states that “We believe in God the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost” — in other words, the Trinity. We accept the doctrine that they are separate and distinct personages. We believe that God is not incomprehensible, immaterial, and without body, parts or passion. It is agreed that there is no way that we can fully comprehend God in our finite and mortal state. There is, though, enough scriptural support in the Bible that we may progressively increase our knowledge and understanding of Him. In fact, our eternal life depends upon our knowing Him. Jesus declared, “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent.” (John 17:3)

We need to learn what the true nature and personalities of the Godhead or Trinity really are before we can discuss whether The Father, The Son and the Holy Spirit are one or three separate beings.

First, it will be arguable to state our opinion on the Trinity based on just the Bible because since there are so many different religions, all claiming to believe in the Bible, there are just about as many different views on the Trinity. This is why I’m glad there is another testament, namely, The Book of Mormon that clarifies this. Having stated that however, there are scriptures in the Bible that I would like to point out but the irony of using only the Bible for this specific topic is that there are contradicting statements within the Bible itself. Any Biblical scholar can agree to this fact. Bible students today know that the Bible has not come down to us in its perfect and original appearance in the manuscripts. Scribes left out words and phrases, just as we do at times in word processing, missing words, phrases, etc. At times the scribes even added or interpreted according to their own opinions. These things are quite generally understood. Therefore we find errors and contradictions. For instance, in the Old Testament, you’ll find: Exodus 33:20, “And he said, thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live.” Yet in the same chapter, Verse 11, it reads: “And the Lord spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend.”

Let’s turn our attention for a moment to the nature of God. In Genesis 1:26 we read: “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness . . . ” Now, the same author, Moses, 5 chapters later using the same rhetoric states (Genesis 5:3): “And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and beget [a son] in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth.” This explains how God the Father and His son Jehovah can in fact be in the same likeness, just as you and me. The words “Image” and “Likeness” mean the same thing regarding the relationship from Adam to Seth as it does with God to Adam. It would be inconsistent to say that the scriptures mean one thing when speaking of the Lord creating in his likeness, but a very different thing when speaking of Adam begetting in his likeness.

It has been commonly accepted in a lot of religions that God is “a most pure spirit, invisible, without body, parts, or passions,” and this applies to the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost as one spirit. There are three scriptures that the world depends upon to support this. Two of them from John and the third from Paul.

1. No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him. –John 1:18.

2. No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us. –1 John 4:12.

3. Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen. –1 Timothy 1:17.

One thing’s for certain, truth does not contradict truth. We must accept passages of scripture with this in mind. There are so many other scriptures that clearly say that men have seen God and talked with him face to face. “Enoch walked with God.” “The Lord appeared to Abraham in the plains of Mamre.” As I stated above, there are contradictions in the Bible so something must have happened to the translation of John. He himself saw God, and talked with him face to face – Moses did and many other prophets.

If you don’t accept Joseph Smith as a prophet, you will have a hard time with this next statement. The two scriptures of John stated above were corrected by the Lord in a revelation to Joseph Smith. And no man has seen God at any time, except he hath borne record of the Son; for except it is through him no man can be saved.–John 1:18. No man hath seen God at any time, except them who believe. –1 John 4:12. With this translation, there is complete consistency. They agree with other scripture and get rid of all contradictions. So, “God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.” (Genesis 1:27) It’s plainly written and often repeated in the Bible. Why does the world insist that these words don’t mean what they say? How can the world find it easy to believe that we are created in some other image, and not like the body or features of our Lord?

When our Lord rose from the tomb he appeared to his disciples. Luke records that they thought they were seeing a spirit, but Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Why are ye troubled? And why do thoughts arise in your hearts? Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have.”

They began to embrace him. They saw the nail impressions in his hands. When he left and returned to his Father, he took that same pierced body with him. Then, two heavenly messengers stood by and said, “Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.” He lives. He is not without body, parts, or passions. How can anyone who believes that Jesus Christ has now, since his crucifixion, become an essence, an invisible Spirit, without body, without parts, without passions? What was the purpose of his resurrection? Was it only to make it possible for us to be raised from the dead? Has Jesus Christ been absorbed into the great incomprehensible body of God, which is everywhere, yet nowhere? Did he lose his body and individuality? If so, how did Jesus get rid of his body after his resurrection? Did he just “shed” his body? To my knowledge there is nowhere in the scriptures where it says this.

Let’s now turn to the issue of “all in one” or “separate” distinct individuals. Some people construed that Christ and his Father are one person from John 14:10: “And that I am in the Father, and the Father in me, and the Father and I are one.” It is understandable that this verse can confuse someone when left isolated to interpret. Jesus and his Father are not one person, but merely that they are one in knowledge, in truth, in wisdom, in understanding, and in purpose; just as Jesus himself counseled his disciples to be one with him, and to be in him, that he might be in them. (John 17:21) Christ was constantly addressing his Father in prayer. He taught his disciples to pray to the Father, not to him. The seventeenth chapter of John is evidence of this and is so touching. Everyone, (Christ included) was born as the sons of God in the spirit; one person (Christ only) was born as the Son of God in this mortal world. He is the “Only Begotten” in the flesh. God was his Father; Mary was his mother. His Father was an immortal man; his mother was a mortal woman. He is the Son of God in the same literal, full, and complete sense in which he is the son of Mary. There is nothing symbolic or figurative about it. He is God’s Almighty Son and as such is distinguished from the Father in the same way any son is a separate person from his father.

The scriptures state that there are not “three Eternals” but” one Eternal.” It further confuses the reader that the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, must be one God then. Yes they are, in purpose as stated above, but the scriptures are definitely clear that the three members of the Godhead are separate and distinct from each other; each with a definite mission to perform. For instance, the Savior told his apostles that when he went away he would send them the Comforter, who is the Holy Ghost.

I use an analogy about “One Godhead” that sometimes makes it a little clearer to understand this “Allison” theory. Suppose for a moment that you and I had the opportunity to gain all knowledge of the universe. We would know all things about everything if you can even imagine such an astonishing thing. There would be no doubt in our minds what events would take place under any circumstance that would present itself. We would know how the planets would rotate, how they would interact with each other’s gravitational pull, how the environments on the respective planets would act, etc. All of these things we would know in harmony because both you and I have all knowledge of such things. We would be of one mind!

So it is with the individual members of the Godhead. We believe that The Father, The Son and the Holy Ghost are omniscient or in other words, ones having complete or unlimited knowledge of all things; a fullness of knowledge, truth, and power. Each is a God. They work as one yet are separate individuals who are perfect. This separate distinction from one another is proven by the sacred records of God’s dealings with man. One example was when the Savior was baptized. John recognized the Holy Ghost in the sign of a dove while Christ stood before him in the tabernacle of flesh, and they heard the voice of the Father acknowledging the son, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:17)

So you see, we do in fact believe in the Trinity, but it is the clarification of the separate and distinct individuals within the Trinity that separates us from others.

Hello Stacy.

Thank you for your question about my testimony of the Book of Mormon. It’s such a great question and it’s wonderful that you are seeking truth and for your unshakeable belief in God. That is a priceless gift that I also enjoy. And just like you, I know that God is our Father and that he loves us and wants the best for us. He wants us to be happy and He has promised that He will direct those who sincerely search for answers to their questions.

There’s a powerful scripture in James 1:5. It begins with “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God…” God knows everything! He is anxious for us to turn to Him. He wants us to know truth. He wants us to ask Him.

Just simply “asking God” sounds pretty easy. But sometimes we forget that God expects us to put forth an effort by thinking, working and pondering for the answers we seek. There’s a Book of Mormon prophet who answered your very same question. The prophet’s name was Moroni. After you finish reading, studying and pondering the Book of Mormon, Moroni exhorts, “…ask of God…if these things are [true].” He promises that if we ask with a “sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, [God} will manifest the truth of it {to us}.” (Moroni 10:4)

I think it’s remarkable that your question is one that God wants to answer personally. You don’t have to depend on any human to decide for you, and this is exactly how I know the Book of Mormon is true. I have read it many times. I have prayed about it. I have been uplifted by the testimony of Christ that it contains. And the Holy Ghost has testified to me that it is true. The more often I read it and pray about it, the stronger my witness of Christ becomes, and the more direction I feel from God.

Here’s a profound testimony of the Book of Mormon from an Apostle of our day, Jeff Holland. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rAvvAHqnIKk

Thanks for your question, Stacy.

Sincerely,

Donny