Ogden Kraut is a very interesting fellow. Member of the Seventy who was given to research, and realized that the church was falling apart back in the 1920s.
He was intimately connected with the Dream Mine, which I’ll post about later.
Regardless, for our interest here one just need to know that he compiled over 100 books about early church activities. This one is about early visions of the saints. Often, modern LDS prophets, seventies and apostles will cite Ogden Kraut’s compilation of visions in conference, either without citing the source or citing another church source that ultimately ties back to Ogden Kraut’s compilation.
They will usually heavily edit what is cited, however, because the FLDS use Ogden Kraut’s entire works to prove that the modern LDS church is apostate. Of course, this kind of selective editing only supports the claims of the FLDS even more.
http://ogdenkraut.com/Visions%20of%20the%20Latter%20Days.htm
Much of Mr. Kraut’s advocacy was neither polite nor palatable. However, anyone may believe anything they claim today or tomorrow as time changes foundations built on other than Truth. Hypotheses advocated by modern theorists change like shifting desert sands, according to how prevailing winds blow. The histories/developments of the sciences have proven such change happens.
The ancient law of liberty declares God trusts free men while on this earth to make their own choices, while free men trust him alone to judge whether those choices have been good or bad. Those enslaved by foolish traditions or fleeting dogmas are not free to learn, think, or choose. In conjunction with this law the doctrine of the Two Ways claims that there lie before every human being and before any church two roads between which a choice must be made. Therefore, it is recommended decision makers rely upon revelation (e.g., verified scriptures, modern oracles, personal revelation) and not the teachings of men mingled with scripture, man’s reasoning, etc. It is given to free men to judge so what should you do? Should you rely upon the teachings of men expressed as traditions of ancestors or dogmas changing over time as men’s motives, interpretations and evidence change? Do you really think Egyptologists, Archeologists, Philosophers, and Fundamentalists today do not contradict those of the 1800s? Do you think today’s Egyptologists, Archeologists, Philosophers, Fundamentalists, etc. will not be debunked and defamed by those in the next millennium? Jesus and the Prophets have always been contradicted by those who are lettered; however, Truth reigns through the eternities. Experts’ definitions and explanations of doctrinal, historical, cultural and other matters (e.g., practices, principles, parables, patriarchs) should not be accepted as official or revealed endorsements. Such should be used as the best available scholarship of the world and always remain subject to reevaluation based on new research, discoveries, and revelations.
The self-anointed may spiritualize to their believers, the educated may opine for publications, philosophers may rationalize with rhetoric to their schools, and Fundamentalists may seduce the ill-informed now and some to all eternity but none have the credible authority of God—Truth. The particular concern of despots in every age has been to prevent and punish trespasses against their Gods—those sins which they claim shake the very foundation of the universe, according to their advocated dogmas. Are you offering virtue or viciousness? “Man may deceive his fellow-men, deception may follow deception, and the children of the wicked one may have power to seduce the foolish and untaught, till naught but fiction feeds the many, and the fruit of falsehood carries in its current the giddy to the grave; but one touch with the finger of his love, yes, one ray of glory from the upper world, or one word from the mouth of the Savior, from the bosom of eternity, strikes it all into insignificance, and blots it forever from the mind.”
Yes, free men must search, study, and inquire, receiving “line upon line and precept upon precept,” until they come to a perfect knowledge. Hence the Prophet Joseph Smith taught: The things of God are of deep import; and time, and experience and careful and ponderous and solemn thoughts can only find them out. Jesus and Joseph did not advocate vicious dogma nor did they suggest we rely upon man’s understanding of the moment. The mysteries of God have never been easily explained, nor readily accepted, whenever they have been taught by Prophets. Many great truths, in the kingdom’s history and doctrine, have been purposely withheld by God from the general masses of mankind. Those mysteries are not for the Internet or those who seek to be popular, powerful, or praised in this world. Please accept the invitation offered in Moroni 10:3-5 as often as it takes you to join those who have “stepped forward, amid the frowns of bigots and calumny of hypocrites, and embraced the Gospel of Christ.”
> Those mysteries are not for the Internet or those who seek to be popular, powerful, or praised in this world.
Really, a communication medium is improper? Because these things were published as far and wide as the bretheren could get them back in the day.
I think you confuse “Truth” with “Correlation”. Correlation despises the internet, because it’s purpose is to conceal truth, for a palatable sales pitch, but truth was always meant to be shouted from the roof-tops.
You mean god has a Internet really (please)! Did I see you on batman the other night? Let face it after what I heard about the bible, and read of what kind of person paul was, maybe the bible is a joke “and this guy with this web site is so bitter,
And maybe the what we was told about the founding fathers are a lie, and if that a case the constitution is a lie to, and every thing about this nation is a lie, some where on the Internet I found that paul is a antichrist because he done things differently that he was the one start the churches, even christ spoke to him on the road demascus, but maybe that a lie (this is the junk you dredged up”)
Certainly any amount of what I was taught about the founding fathers was untrue. And people get into large and heated debates about whether George Washington was a believer.
You don’t have to read those kind of debates, but people do care about historical accuracy in all walks of life. “Dredging up” history is really only called “junk” by the ignorant.
Amen and amen. It is said that those who forget the past are condemned to repeat it, but that goes double for those who wilfully refuse even to k.n.o.w the past.