Was the Fall of Adam and Eve a Tragedy or Essential to God’s Plan?

            My Come, Follow Me studies this week took me to Genesis 3-4 and Moses 4-5. Many people consider the story of the Fall of Adam and Eve to be a tragedy. Adam and his wife Eve lived living in the beautiful Garden of Eden until they partook of the forbidden fruit. Then they were cast out into a world where they would know sorrow, pain, and death (see Genesis 3:16-19). In addition, they were separated from Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

            Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints know that the story of Adam and Eve is not a tragedy. Truths were restored through the Prophet Joseph Smith in the book of Moses. These truths tell us that the story of Adam and Eve is a story of hope and that the Fall of Adam and Eve was an essential part of Heavenly Father’s plan for the eternal happiness of His children.

            The Garden of Eden was a beautiful place to live, but it provided no challenges. Without challenges, they could not grow – just as you and I need opportunities to stretch and grow. Adam and Eve took the necessary first step toward returning to God’s presence and becoming like Him when they left the Garden of Eden.

            Living in the world outside the Garden of Eden brought opposition to Adam and Eve. They made mistakes, but they learned to repent and to trust the Savior. Heavenly Father’s plan provided for a Savior – even Jesus Christ whose Atonement made progression possible. As we study the Fall of Adam and Eve, we should focus on the glory of their choice – for them and for us – instead of the tragedy of leaving the Garden of Eden.

            When Adam and Eve partook of the forbidden fruit, their action brought physical and spiritual death into the world. It also brought adversity, sorrow, and sin. All of those conditions seem negative, but the Fall of Adam and Eve and the Atonement of Jesus Christ were both part of the Father’s plan to redeem and exalt His children. (See Moses 5:7.)

            After Adam and Eve were driven from the Garden of Eden, they began to have “sons and daughters” (Moses 5:2). The “sons and daughters of Adam began to divide two and two in the land, and to till the land, and to tend flocks, and they also begat sons and daughters” (Moses 5:3). Some time later, Cain, Abel, and later Seth were born (Moses 5:16-17; 6:2.) The Pearl of Great Price Student Manual for Moses 5:1-15 has the following introduction.

The significance of Moses 5:1-2 is profound in light of the many attacks and challenges being made today regarding marriage and family relationships. In their proclamation on the family, the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles stated:

“Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children. ‘Children are an heritage of the Lord’ (Psalm 127:3). Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, to teach them to love and serve one another, to observe the commandments of God and to be law abiding citizens wherever they live. …

“… Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities. By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children. In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners” (Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2010, 129; italics added).

            Adam and Eve were married in the Garden of Eden by Heavenly Father, and their marriage was for time and eternity. Today, marriages for time and eternity are performed in the temples of God by men holding the power and authority to seal on earth and in heaven. Adam and Eve were the first family on earth, and they made life on earth possible for each of us. Our task is to so live that we can also be married and have our families with us for eternity.

Do You Know the Why’s, What’s, and How’s of Family Finance?

             Strong families, communities, and nations practice profound principles of stewardship with regards to finances. This is a post about family finances, but the principles apply to communities and nations. In their book titled Fundamentals of Family Finance – Living Joyfully within your Means, E. Jeffrey Hill and Bryan L. Sudweeks, professors at Brigham Young University, share the “Why? What? How?” of the importance of family finance.

            According to the authors, the “Why’s?” fall into four categories: (1) Spiritual – to bring you to Christ, (2) Temporal – To help you become a wise steward, (3) Individual – To accomplish your divine mission, and (4) Family – To return with your family back to Heavenly Father’s presence. Under the “What’s?” the professors list four important principles upon which the stewardship perspective is based. (See pages 4-6.)

Principle 1: Ownership

The Psalmist wrote: “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein” (Psalms 24:1). … Nothing you have is your own – it is all God’s. Therefore, you should not feel proud because of the things you acquire.

Principle 2: Stewardship

Because God owns everything, you have a responsibility to use your resources for His purposes….

Principle 3: Agency

Your financial stewardship enables you to make choices…. The blessing of agency is an unconditional gift from God. The choices you make with money are at the heart of mortality’s test…. The way you use the gift of financial resources shows what you truly believe and how much you really love God and His Son, Jesus Christ.

Principle 4: Accountability

The Lord counseled, “For it is required of the Lord, at the hand of every steward, to render an account of his stewardship, both in time and in eternity” (Doctrine and Covenants 72:3). The first three principles outlined above are God’s gift to you. The fourth principle of accountability, if followed wisely, can be your gift back to God. You will be required to give Him an account of your stewardship over the blessings you have received.

            The “How’s?” teach us how to understand and apply the “Why’s?” and the “What’s?.” Having an “eternal perspective” helps in knowing “how to apply family finance principles.” The authors wrote, “You must build your financial house upon the rock of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Fortunately, prophets, seers, and revelators – Christ’s representatives on the earth – have given clear financial guidance.” (See pages 6-11.)

1. Pay the Lord first in tithes, fast offerings, and other contributions.

2. Create, use, and update a budget.

3. Minimize and eventually eliminate debt.

4. Prepare for emergencies and build a reserve.

5. Invest early, consistently, and wisely.

6. Protect yourself and your family through adequate insurance.

7. Share finances as equal partners in your marriage.

8. Teach your children and family about finances

            The authors ended the first chapter in their book with a summary. They asked their readers and students to remember: “With every dollar you spend, you choose which perspective you will take – either the eternal perspective or the world’s materialistic perspective.,” They explained that “managing your finances is part of living the gospel of Jesus Christ, the greater your motivation will be to obey the commandments and get your financial house in order.” They concluded with the following statement:

Understanding the why’s what’s, and how’s – the doctrines, principles, and applications – of family finance is critical. With an eternal perspective, we can be laying up for ourselves true “treasures in heaven” (Helaman 5:8) while simultaneously planning for our careers and supporting our families (page 11).

            I appreciate how the authors taught the doctrine, principles, and applications of family finance. Money cannot buy happiness, but the wise use of family finances can bring security and peace of mind as well as show the Lord that we love Him.

 

How Can We Dismantle the Myths Being Taught about Socialism?

            The liberty principle for this Freedom Friday is the myth that socialism is better than democracy. Progressives, socialists, and communists continue to push America toward “fundamentally transforming” America in a socialist country. They work diligently to convince Americans – and the younger the better – that socialism is better than democracy, and they disguise it by calling it “democratic” socialism.

            Educators should be teaching the values of the free market system. However, they must first teach the dangers of socialism. Lee Edwards exposed some of the myths being taught in American schools. 

Myth 1: Karl Marx, the founder of socialism, was one of the great thinkers of the 19^th century. In truth, Marx was wrong about nearly everything. Nearly 200 years after “The Communist Manifesto” was published, the nation state has not withered away, and capitalism rules most of the global economy….

Myth 2: Socialism places power in the hands of the people. In truth, socialism cedes power to the government and the political elites who run it. After more than 60 years, the Cuban people are still waiting for the free and open elections that Fidel Castro promised….

Myth 3: Socialism is working in Denmark and the other Scandinavian countries. In truth, Denmark has a free market economy – and it is capitalism that enables the Danish government to finance a bountiful welfare state through top-to-bottom personal income and value-added taxes….

Myth 4: Socialism has never failed, because it has never been truly tried. In fact, socialism has failed everywhere it has been attempted for over a century, from the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 to present-day Chavez-Maduro socialism in Venezuela. Nowhere has democratic socialism been more faithfully practiced and then rejected by public demand than in Israel, India, and the United Kingdom following the end of World War II….

Whether it was a small Middle Eastern country, a large agricultural country with a population of 1.3 billion, or the nation that sparked the Industrial Revolution, capitalism topped socialism every time.

            Edwards wrote, ‘Millennials do have a choice: the suffocating embrace of socialism, under which individual freedom and responsibility are surrendered, or the freedom of democratic capitalism, under which people of all colors and classes can work to be whatever they want to be.”

            The rising generation has a good excuse – not a good reason – for not understanding the value of the free market system in maintaining liberty. Their excuse is that they have not been taught. However, what is the excuse of the older generations? Why haven’t we insisted that our children and teens be taught American history, American government, economics, and civics? They are our children. Why did we allow the schools to drop these classes that are so valuable to maintaining the American way of life?

What Is the Greatest Danger to America Today?

            The Department of Justice is looking for domestic terrorists among conservatives and even watching parents at school board meetings. The Attorney General claims that white supremacy is the greatest threat to America. Meanwhile, Democrats claim that Donald Trump is the biggest danger to democracy. They have tried every way possible to stop Trump, including Russian collision, two impeachments, and the January 6, 2021, investigation. Some Democrats claim that the attack on the Capitol Building on January 6, 2021, is on the same level of threat as Pearl Harbor and 9/11.

            Mark Levin believes – and I agree with him – that the greatest threat to the American republic is the Democrat Party and the corporate media. Together, they have been using the Capitol Riot as a political tool to beat conservatives and try to take over elections. This is how Levin describes the threat. 

The Democrat Party, the media, and the American Marxists want to make January 6 the date that will live in infamy. They want it to be remembered like the attack on Pearl Harbor or 9/11 or the Civil War or anything of the sort, because their goal isn’t really to find out how that building was breached.

Because if they wanted to know how the building was breached, the number-one witness who’d be under oath, who’d be giving testimony, who’d have to provide her texts, her emails, and so forth and so on would be Nancy Pelosi, the speaker of the House. It’s her job primarily to protect that building. And we’ve had plenty of information that she was offered the National Guard from the president, that in fact some law enforcement there on the Capitol had requested National Guard, and she turned it down because she was concerned about the optics.

            According to Levin, “Pelosi has refused to provide any information about security measures leading up to and on the day of the Capitol riot and has blocked the House sergeant at arms from answering questions.” Could this be the reason Pelosi did not approve of the Republicans appointed to the January 6 committee? She knows Jim Jordan and Jim Banks well enough to know that they would ask tough questions and dig deep to find answers. She did not want them digging into her phone records and emails.

            Levin claims that Pelosi is responsible for dereliction of duty. “It’s the duty of the House of Representatives to defend the House of Representatives. It’s the duty of the speaker of the House to ask the president [of] the United States for the National Guard. The president [of] the United States cannot do that himself.”

            Some of us remember back in the summer of 2020 when Trump wanted to send federal troops into Minneapolis, Seattle, Portland, and other cities that were being destroyed by the BLM mobs. He could not send in the troops unless the mayors or governors asked for them. When Minneapolis finally asked for troops, the burning and looting quickly ended. Levin continued with his opinion about challenging elections.

Now they want you to believe that January 6 is the greatest threat ever in American history to our government. That … challenging the results of the election [has] never been done…. It was done in 2000 by [Democratic presidential candidate Al] Gore… it was done on the floor of the House of representatives, January 6, 2001, when Democrats were challenging the election of George W. Bush. It was done in 2004 when they were challenging [Bush’s] re-election and claiming that “Democratic presidential candidate] John Kerry had actually won the Electoral College in a number of these states…

            Levin continued by suggesting that “the most dangerous attack on the integrity of America’s election system” took place “in 2016, when the Democrat Party, when the Biden and Obama administration, when the FBI and the intelligence services, and, of course, Hillary Clinton, her campaign, and the DNC actually unleashed the greatest assault on our republic, internally, that we’ve ever seen, which was the Russia collusion lie.

            Trump was not colluding with Russia as shown by the results of the lengthy investigation. However, there was collusion “between the Obama administration, the law enforcement bureaucracy in the federal government, the left-wing slip-and-fall lawyers working for Perkins Coie and the Hillary [Clinton] campaign, and the DNC.”

The lies and the coverup for this collusion went on for two and a half years and cost American taxpayers millions of dollars. Yes, I agree with Levin that the Democrat Party and the corporate media is the real danger to America today.

Why Did Biden Go Down to Georgia?

            “The devil went down to Georgia” is a song written and performed by the Charlie Daniels Band. It was released in a 1979 album titled “Million Mile Reflections.” The title of the song went through my mind today as I thought about President Joe Biden going down to Atlanta, Georgia, to push the passage of two bills in the U.S. Senate. The bills are so bad for America that he might as well have been the devil.

The Constitution puts the responsibility for elections on state legislatures, but Democrats want to take the power from the states and give it to the federal government. According to Fred Lucas, the bills are “designed to expand the federal government’s role in state and local election laws.” Why does anyone want the federal government more involved in their lives? 

            Biden and other Democrats claim that the bills are about “voting rights,” but they are not. In his speech in Georgia, Biden made several claims, and Lucas fact checked six of them.

1) ‘Democracy Over Autocracy’?

“The next few days, when these bills come to a vote, will mark a turning point in this nation.” Biden said. “Will we choose democracy over autocracy, light over shadow, justice over injustice? I know where I stand. I will not yield. I will not flinch.

“I will defend your right to vote and our democracy against all enemies, foreign and domestic. And so the question is, where will the institution of the United States Senate stand?”

Biden referred to 19 states that enacted new election reforms in 2021 that generally expanded voter ID requirements for mail-in ballots; curbed the controversial practice of ballot harvesting, in which political operatives are allowed to collect and distribute large quantities of ballots; and required states to remove the names of dead people and other ineligible voters from voter registration rolls….

The Georgia law, like other state laws adopted in 2021, extends voter ID requirements to absentee ballots. The law does narrow the time to request an absentee ballot to 11 days before the election, when it was previously the Friday before the election.

The Peach State’s law further expands weekend voting hours and further codifies the use of ballot drop boxes that become common during the 2020 election because of the COVID-19 lockdown….

Democrats have also attacked election law reforms in Arizona, Florida, and Texas. Texas in particular prompted attention when Democratic state legislators fled to Washington to deny the Republican majority in Austin a quorum.

 

2) ‘Changing Senate Rules’

Biden, as a senator from Delaware for more than three decades, staunchly defended the filibuster. In recent weeks, however, Biden has back carving out an exception to it to pass Democrat-backed federal election legislation….

“Because abuse of what was once a rarely used mechanism that is not in the Constitution has injured the body enormously, and its use to protect extreme attacks on the most basic constitutional right is abhorrent,” Biden [wants to change the rules in the Senate].

It’s true that the Senate filibuster is not in the Constitution. However, Biden said in July that doing away with the filibuster would thrust Congress into “chaos.”

And as a senator in a floor speech in May 2005, when Republicans controlled the Senate and were considering eliminating the filibuster, Biden objected:

“At its core, the filibuster is not about stopping a nominee or a bill, it’s about compromise and moderation. The ‘nuclear option’ extinguishes the power of independents and moderates in the Senate. That’s it; they’re done. Moderates are important if you need to get to 60 votes to satisfy cloture. They are much less so if you only need 50 votes….”

Democrats initially pushed HR1, which they dubbed the For the People Act, but which Republicans called “the Corrupt Politicians Act.” The proposal would have eliminated most state voter ID laws, mandated same-day voter registration in all states, and expanded ballot harvesting, among other measures. [Emphasis added.]

The Freedom to Vote Act, which is a scaled down version of HR1, creates national laws for automatic voter registration, universal mail-in voting, new redistricting laws, and campaign finance laws. The companion John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act would increase the federal government’s veto power over many state election law changes. (Emphasis added.]

All three measures have passed the House, but have been stalled in the Senate, unable to meet the 60-vote threshold.

 

3) Jan. 6 and ‘End of Democracy’

Biden invoked the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the Capitol, in which pro-Trump rioters attempted to stop the certification of the Electoral College votes for Biden.

“The battle for the soul of America is not over,” Biden said. “We must stand together so that Jan. 6 does not mark the end of democracy, but the beginning of a renaissance for our democracy.”

A bipartisan group of nine senators, five Republicans and four Democrats, are working on a plan to reform the Electoral Count Act of 1887. The law allows members of Congress to make objections to counting electoral votes. It was also going to be the last-ditch effort by the Trump campaign to reverse the 2020 election result….

The Wall Street Journal separately editorialized, “We agree the riot was disgraceful, but then why not rewrite the law that encouraged Donald Trump’s supporters to think Congress could overturn the 2020 election?”

However, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and the Biden White House have so far said addressing the Electoral Count Act would be insufficient.

 

4) ‘Suppression’ and ‘Subversion’

Biden claimed that ‘history has never been kind to supporters of voter suppression.”

He said the choice is between whether people want to be remembered as Martin Luther King Jr., the late civil rights leader, or the late segregationist Democratic Alabama Gov. George Wallace.

He also said it’s a choice between being remembered as President Abraham Lincoln or being remembered as Confederate President Jefferson Davis.

“This is a moment to decide,” Biden said.…

Democratic politicians have warned of voter suppression since the Supreme Court rules in favor of Indiana’s voter ID law in 2008. They made similar warnings after subsequent high court rulings that allowed states to purge and update voter rolls in 2018 and a major 2013 decision that certain states are no longer required to obtain federal approval for state election law changes.

Republican-led states enacted numerous election law reforms that have focused on voter ID requirements and on cleaning up voter rolls.

Biden asserted that the right to vote is under attack.

In the past two decades, voter participation has increased for the most part, reaching a record turnout in 2020, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

In 2000, 59.5% of eligible voters turned out. That increased to 63.8% four years later, and remained about the same – 63.6% -- in 2008. There was a slight drop to 61.8% in 2012 and to 61.4% in 2016. During the pandemic, when mail-in voting was prominent, voter participation shot up to 66.8%. Over that time span, voter registration rates rose from 69.5% in 2000 to 72.7% in 2020.

It’s unknown at this point whether the 2021 election reforms passed in any of the 19 states will have any effect on voter turnout….

A poll from August by Honest Elections Project Action showed 81% supported voter ID laws, and that included 77% of African American voters. Some 67% of Democrats support voter ID laws. The Washington, D.C.-based Honest Elections Project Action is a conservative group that backs those laws.

Meanwhile, The Heritage Foundation’s Voter Fraud Database shows there have been 1,340 proven cases of voter fraud since 1982, with 1,152 ending in a criminal conviction….

 

5) Absentee and Mail-In Voting

Some state election reform bills would not allow mass mail-in voting as occurred under the special circumstances of the COVID-19 lockdowns in 2020….

However, there are significant differences between traditional absentee voting and the mass mail-in voting that occurred in 2020 across the United States.

The biggest difference is that voters are required to apply for an absentee ballot, whereas mail-in ballots or applications are automatically mailed out. Both are prone to fraud.

 

6) Voting Rights Act and Republicans

Biden also conflated the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that no one in Congress has opposed, at least not publicly, with the two bills that he wants to see pass the Senate.

He noted that Republican Presidents Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, and George W. Bush all supported renewing the Voting Rights Act when they were president….

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 is still in place.

            Why did Biden go down to Georgia, and why are Democrats seeking to move control of elections to the federal level? I cannot say, but I can surmise that it is the same reason that they have opened the borders and brought unvetted Afghanistan residents to our nation. From the actions and policies of the Biden administration over the past year, I suppose that they are doing all of it as a means to overrun the American system and make it possible to turn our “democracy” into a socialist state.

Who Is Kay C. James?

            My VIP for this week is Kay C. James, the former president of The Heritage Foundation. Virginia Governor-elect Glenn Youngkin named James as the next secretary of the commonwealth. She has fought for conservative values for much of her career and will continue to assist the incoming governor in several capacities as well as maintain the official state records. 

Youngkin claimed that James will be “a true asset to the administration.” James commented on her new appointment, “As a lifelong Virginian who has devoted much of my career to public service, I see serving as secretary as one more opportunity to give back to the commonwealth that has given so much to me. Virginia Allen stated the following about James.

James’ career in public service began as a school board member in Fairfax County, Virginia, and then as a member of the Virginia State Board of Education.

Service in the field of education has been a continual theme throughout James’ career.

She served as dean of the Robertson School of Government at Regent University in Virginia Beach, Virginia, from the mid-to-late ‘90s. She later served on the Virginia Commonwealth University Board of Visitors from 2010 to 2014.

James became president of The Heritage Foundation, a large Washington, D.C.-based think tank, in 2018. During her tenure as Heritage’s president, she brought attention to the need for school choice programs across the country and pushed back on the teaching of critical race theory.

James’ background and passion for education at all levels will likely serve her well in the Youngkin administration.

            James is highly qualified for her new position. She understands the plight of many people living in poverty because she was raised in the Richmond housing projects. Later, she was “one of the first black children to take part in the desegregation of schools in Virginia. She went on to graduate from Hampton University, a traditionally black college in Hampton, Virginia.

Is Democracy in Danger in Our Democratic Republic?

             The topic of discussion for this Constitution Monday is democracy. In the first place, the United States is not a “democracy.” The Framers of the Constitution were wise men, and they understood that a pure democracy could not last. So, they invented a new kind of government – a democratic republic. This site has some interesting information about democracies and republics. 

In both a republic and a democracy, citizens are empowered to participate in a representational political system. They elect people to represent and protect their interests in how the government functions.

In a republic, an official set of fundamental laws, like the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights, prohibits the government from limiting or taking away certain “inalienable” rights of the people, even if that government was freely chosen by a majority of the people. In a pure democracy, the voting majority has almost limitless power over the minority.

The United States, like most modern nations, is neither a pure republic nor a pure democracy. Instead, it is a hybrid democratic republic.

The main difference between a democracy and a republic is the extent to which the people control the process of making laws under each form of government.

            A democracy is much like a high school popularity contest – the majority controls everything. Citizens vote in both a democracy and a republic. In a democracy, the people vote directly for a president and vice president – the popular vote. In a republic, the people vote for representatives, and the representatives do the voting. Two practices of a republic that the Framers wrote into the Constitution was the selection of Senators and the selection of President and Vice President. The Constitution once required Senators to be chosen by the States. However, the Seventeenth Amendment changed that selection.

            For 125 years from the ratification of the Constitution until 1913, Americans did not vote directly for Senators. “On April 8, 1913, three-quarters of the states had ratified the proposed amendment, and it was officially included as the 17^th Amendment.”

            The second practice is the choosing of President and Vice President. The people vote for their choice for President and Vice President. Then a slate of electors makes the final vote in the Electoral College. This is the reason Democrats and Leftists want to do away with the Electoral College – one of the last things that make the United States a republic. Democracies are much easier to overthrow than are republics.

            President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris both spoke to the nation on January 6, 2022. As expected, they obsessed over January 6, 2021. Biden said, “The former president and his supporters have decided the only way for them to win is to suppress your vote and subvert our elections.” Harris suggested that Trump supporters were “the forces who seek to dismantle our democracy.” Other elected representatives made similar claims.

            Deroy Murdock described our national situation as follows: “Democracy dies in darkness. Democrats relentlessly have jackhammered the pillars of America’s democratic elections. They are democracy’s natural enemies. And rather than own this despicable distinction, Democrats do what they do best: accuse everyone else of their own evil.” 

            Both Democrats and Republicans accuse the other party of destroying our democracy. Americans should think critically about the matter and do their own investigating. Consider these questions and their answers:

·         Which party openly vows to “fundamentally transform” America? (Democrats)

·         Which party desires to do away with the Electoral College? (Democrats)

·         Which party threatens to add four justices to the Supreme Court? (Democrats)

·         Which party wants to control the voting system in America rather than allow States to handle elections – as has been done for more than 235 years? (Democrats) W

·         Which party supports defunding the police and allowing criminals to control the streets? (Democrats)

·         Which party wants to change the rules in the Senate in order to pass their legislation? (Democrats)

Americans may well lose their democratic republic if Democrats have their way. The 

only way to stop the power grab to “fundamentally transform” America is to vote Democrats out of office. Americans must open their eyes and see things as they really are. Are Americans better off today than they were one year ago? Your answer to this question illustrates whether you are part of the problem or part of the solution.