Dr Paul Allen

English: Painting by an unknown painter, circa 1842. The original is owned by the Community of Christ archives. It is on display at the Community of Christ headquarters in Independence Missouri, where its provenance is explained. The painting was originally in the possession of Joseph Smith III (died 1914), who is recorded as commenting on the painting. The c. 1842 date is given by the Community of Christ, the painting's owner. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Mormons are the only true Christians . At least, that’s the official position of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . Shortly after Jesus’ original disciples had passed from the earth, the Christian church lost the Gospel . According to the Mormon scriptures , God restored the true Gospel to the earth through the prophet Joseph Smith , and he established the LDS church ( Pearl of Great Price , Joseph Smith—History , 1:1-75), “the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth” ( Doctrine & Coven...

Joseph Smith Joseph Smith was born on December 23, 1805 in Sharon, Vermont . When he was a child his family moved to Palmyra in western New York where there was a lot of revivalism and religious fervor due to the Second Great Awakening . The wild enthusiasm and the many denominations present confused Smith and he was uncertain of what to believe and how to worship. As he writes in  The Pearl of Great Price : “In process of time my mind became somewhat partial to the Methodist sect, and I felt some desire to be united with them; but so great were the confusion and strife among the different denominations, that it was impossible for a person young as I was, and so unacquainted with men and things, to come to any certain conclusion who was right and who was wrong.” In 1820, in this time of confusion, Smith read James 1:5 which instructs those who lack wisdom to request it from God. He immediately withdrew to a wooded area near his home to pray for wisdom and it was at...

Books (Photo credit: henry… ) Have you ever looked at your Bible and wondered, “Why do we regard these 66 books, and no others, as comprising the inspired Word of God?” That is a critically important question, of course, since there are many today who would deny that these 66 books are truly the complete canon of Scripture . The Roman Catholic Church , for example, claims that the Apocryphal books which were written during the Intertestamental Period (between the Old and New Testaments) ought to be included in the Bible. Cult groups like the Mormons want to add their own books to the Bible—things like the Book of Mormon, The Doctrines and Covenants, and The Pearl of Great Price . And then there are popular books and movies, like The Da Vinci Code from several years back, that claim later Christians (like Constantine) determined what was in the Bible centuries after these books were written. So, how do we know that “all Scripture” consists of these 66 books? How do we know that t...

Image via Wikipedia Maslow was wrong. Well, he was right before he was wrong. It is true enough that we all have a hierarchy of needs .  Some things are more important than others.  Trouble is, he didn’t know what the most important things were. Foundational in his system are those things necessary for survival, things like food and water.  King David had a different, a better perspective. He said that the Lord was His Shepherd, and he shall not want ( Psalm 23:1). David, at this point, has no green grass, and no still water. To be sure God does provide these things, but before He does, David already has everything he needs, the Lord for His Shepherd.  Survival is still up in the air, but David has already finished with his worrying. He has what he needs. One of the most foundational principles in the modern marketing of the church is the notion that we need to tap into not Maslow’s needs, but “felt needs.” This language leaves open the question of w...