Christmas is a wonderful time of year. Our thoughts turn to others as we try to find our friends and family members the perfect gift. Ideally, this will be a gift they will love and cherish for many years to come.
What if you could give yourself a gift like that? A gift that would actually last forever, and change your life for the good. A gift that would not only bless you, but generations to come. This gift comes through Jesus Christ, whose birth we celebrate. Watch this touching two-minute video narrating the nativity from the Bible.
This video was made by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, more commonly known by its nickname, The Mormon Church.
Here are some surprising things you may not know about Mormons.
- The Book of Mormon is another testament of Jesus Christ. It is not the “Mormon Bible.” The Mormon bible is the King James version of the Holy Bible–the same bible used by the majority of the Christian world. The Book of Mormon offers another witness that Jesus Christ really did live, and that people in other lands also knew of his birth and testified of his divine mission and saving power. The Book of Mormon does not detract from the Bible–it is its biggest supporter!
- Mormons believe almost everybody goes to heaven. There is a misconception that members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints think that they are the only ones who are going to heaven, and everybody else is going to hell. This could not be further from the truth. We believe that there are actually three “heavens,” and that almost everybody on earth will eventually live in one of these heavens. The Bible supports this doctrine of the three heavens (or “degrees of glory,” in Mormon parlance). In 2 Corinthians, Chapter 12, it says that Paul was caught up into the “third heaven.” Even those who have been wicked on earth, after they have suffered for their sins, will inherit one of these degrees of glory because of the mercy of God.
- There are prophets and apostles on the earth today. The ancient church in Jesus’s day had 12 apostles. In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we also have 12 apostles and a prophet who receives revelation from God to guide us in our day. There are things in this world that generations past have never had to deal with. If there is ever a time when we need specific guidance from God, this is it. In Amos (in the Old Testament), Chapter 3 verse 7 says, “Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.” You can click on this link to see the current prophets and apostles. You can then click on the picture of each one to find out more about their background.
- Mormons do not baptize their babies. We believe that all children who die before the age of eight are automatically saved through the atonement of Christ. At the age of eight, our children are given the opportunity to be baptized. At this age, (which we call “the age of accountability,”) children know right from wrong and can make decisions based on this knowledge.
- We get a “do-over” every week. When a person is baptized by proper priesthood authority into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, all their sins are washed away, and they become completely clean. In the eyes of God, it’s as though the sins and mistakes they made in the past never happened. Inevitably, all of us after our baptism have made mistakes and sinned and are no longer spiritually clean. But God has given us a way to be clean again, every week. At church on Sundays, we have the opportunity to partake of the sacrament (what other churches may call “communion.”) When we take the sacrament, we renew our baptismal covenants, and if we have repented, it is as though we are being baptized again. We are made completely clean and get to start the new week as pure as we were after baptism. God once again forgets our sins and we are given another chance to progress and become more like Him.
To request a free copy of the Book of Mormon, or to learn more, please visit Mormon.org.