Where To Start

[FrankJL]

Kinda an offshoot from the scripture marking thread.

I know compared to some of the deeper spiritual pondering in this forum, the may seem kinda simple.

I joined the Church when I was 18, was quasi-active for a few months, before goining the army, then just totally quit going, up until about 2 months ago.

I read most of these discussions, and I'm in awe of the knowledge people have. I don't respond to any of the theological threads because I don't even know what the central idea is most of the time. I don't come from any other kinda of religious background, before I joined the Church, the closest thing you could call me regarding my faith is agnostic. So I know so little about this.

I don't expect to learn everything at once, but there is so much information out there it seems so hard to even find a starting point to digest it all, and I do want to learn as much as I can.

Where do you start though?

I understand to read through the standard works. I've read through the BoM and PoGP, scattered portions of the DnC, only genesis in the OT, and up to 1 Corinthians in the NT (which I am reading now). I have also read through the Gospel Principles book, the elders gave me.

There is no institute program in my school, and I have looked at doing the online study programs through BYU, but they are fairly expensive.

So what would you all suggest as a general path to follow in trying to gain a greater understanding of the Church?

[Gabelma]

A cheap and instant port of call would be to type All About Mormons into google its a wonderful site and you could also type LDS apologetics into the search engine but that leads you into a minefield be prepared to get a lot of bad with the fun stuff

Do you have a branch/ward clerk? at least in the UK ours has a copy of the church distribution catalogue its a good and cheap place to start for materials to read. Books that really helped me before I realised the church had a whole community lol were

Marvellous Work and a Wonder
Jesus The Christ
Also recommend scripture on audio tape or CD you get through it much quicker and pick up things you wouldn't reading.
You can also get Institute Manuals from the church and study yourself - my favourite I notice isn't an Institute course anymore and its still the most expensive manual is the Religions of the World one.


Charley

[FrankJL]

I have Talmage's "Jesus The Christ" on my mp3 player, and have been listening to that on the way to school, forgot to mention that..

That is something I did consider, is just getting the manuals on my own to study. Do they have those somewhere online?

nevermind finding them online....
I was googling and discovered ldsces.org
They are all there, execpt that one you meantioned....and its 20 bucks from the Church catalog site..

[Gabelma]

I have Talmage's "Jesus The Christ" on my mp3 player, and have been listening to that on the way to school, forgot to mention that..

That is something I did consider, is just getting the manuals on my own to study. Do they have those somewhere online?
[/b]

I'm sure you can in the US the church distribution centre is on the site online - they don't post here we still have to do paper etc

Charley

[FrankJL]

I meant the text of the manuals themselves online...

But I found them on that ldsces.org site, it has them all in .pdf format.

[Gabelma]

I meant the text of the manuals themselves online...

But I found them on that ldsces.org site, it has them all in .pdf format.
[/b]

I'm a bit of a technophobe sorry didn't think of that

Charley

My husband has found some wonderful study helps on byutv.com I just went there and it looks a bit confusing, when he gets home from work tonight ('er tomorrow morning) I will ask him to send me some links and then I will post them.

He downloads them to his mp3 player so he can listen to them at work.

Right now I am in the process of downloading the scriptures to my computer so that I can put them on my SanDisk so that I can listen to them at work too.

Edited to correct some spelling errors!

[a-train]

My honest opinon:

The Standard Works
Jesus The Christ
A Marvelous Work and A Wonder
The Great Apostasy
Lectures On Faith
Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith

Read the modern works cover to cover and with a good unabridged dictionary on the table next to you. Do a minimum 30 minutes a day in the Standard Works, don't worry about where to start, just get in there. If you haven't read any of the Gospels, do that early.

Manual? The Standard Works ARE the manual.

-a-train

[snipe123]

Kinda an offshoot from the scripture marking thread.

I know compared to some of the deeper spiritual pondering in this forum, the may seem kinda simple.

I joined the Church when I was 18, was quasi-active for a few months, before goining the army, then just totally quit going, up until about 2 months ago.

I read most of these discussions, and I'm in awe of the knowledge people have. I don't respond to any of the theological threads because I don't even know what the central idea is most of the time. I don't come from any other kinda of religious background, before I joined the Church, the closest thing you could call me regarding my faith is agnostic. So I know so little about this.

I don't expect to learn everything at once, but there is so much information out there it seems so hard to even find a starting point to digest it all, and I do want to learn as much as I can.

Where do you start though?

I understand to read through the standard works. I've read through the BoM and PoGP, scattered portions of the DnC, only genesis in the OT, and up to 1 Corinthians in the NT (which I am reading now). I have also read through the Gospel Principles book, the elders gave me.

There is no institute program in my school, and I have looked at doing the online study programs through BYU, but they are fairly expensive.

So what would you all suggest as a general path to follow in trying to gain a greater understanding of the Church?
[/b]

You have a really great question there, and I would like to agree with all of what has been suggested...I would also like to point out that a lot of us Mormons seem to not use the tools we have in the scriptures themselves...These tools will give you a tremendous ammount of knowledge just by using them...Here are some suggestions>

1) Mark your footnotes in color codes. There are various types of footnotes in LDS addition of the scriptures...particularly the Bible which are very important. They include not just references to the bible dictionary(BD), and the Topical guide(TG), but also these abreviations: OR, GR,HEB, JST and one other that I cannot think of...hahaha...So the JST are footnotes quoting the Joseph Smoth Translation of the scriptures, GR are alternate words from the Greek (for new testament) etc... The footnotes are explained further in the opening pages of The LDS addition of the King James Bible... I mark my GR footnotes with a green colored pencil...just a small dot...so that as I am reading along and see that green dot, I know there is a different Greek word meaning in the footnotes that might help me to understand the text...These footnotes are then set apart from the topical guide footnotes that make up the bulk, and can be a bit cumbersome...

You will also be amazed by some of Joseph Smiths contributions...small example is when Christ is tempted by Satan when he is fasting for 30 days, in the New Testament and how Satan seems to be able to take Jesus at will, wherever he want to go and show him things...on top of a mountain, the temple etc...It always bothered me that Satan seemingly had this power over Jesus...Joseph Smith clarifies...by saying that God took Jesus to these various locations to show him things, and THEN Satan came and tempted him...It also says that Jesus went out to fast for 30 days "to be with God" and THEN Satan came and tempted...King James Bible says Jesus went into the wilderness to "be tempted of the devil". Seems far more reasonable that Jesus would go into the wilderness to be with God, than with Satan, and then the devil would come out after the fact and try to persuade Jesus to worship him instead, don't you think? Joseph Smith gets it right, and it's right there in the footnotes... Sounds like a lot of effort, but it does not take to long, and you will learn a lot as you go through it!

2) Use the Bible Dictionary...In fact, read it...It is official church doctrine and has every topic you can think of, including a lot of background information on the books of the bible themselves...Articles such as The Gospels, Pauline Epistles, and any other articles written about each book of the Bible would be great places to start...knowing the background of what you are reading, helps you to understand...

3) Use the Harmony of The Gospels (again, in the Bible Dictionary) to read the accounts of Jesus' life from each of the four Gospels in the order in which the events occur...and use the maps...Great way to get to know the life and ministry of Jesus...

4) I also highly recomend the institute manuals, particularly for the D&C, Old Testament (two manuals) and New Testament...They are fairly inexpensive and can be ordered online...Again, they are church doctrine...Good rule of thumb on that is if the church's logo is printed in the title page, or if it is published by the church...you know its doctrine.

5) The other books mentioned on the other posts are all excellent...I am envious of the fact that you have Jesus The Christ on your Mp3 player...I don't have one, and now I think I just found a reason to get one, so thank you for that!

6)Don't be discouraged by what you read on the forums from all the "experts"...I have heard that if you study a subject for an hour a day for 5 years, you will be an expert! Most of what I know, from a foundational standpoint (including all these suggestions)was learned in two years as a missionary 15 years ago...so I think the Gospel can be learned even faster... Remember also the principle that The Apostle Paul teaches that just like a Baby requires milk before he can eat meat, so it is with a study of the Gospel...start with the basics...much of the discussions on the forum are pretty meaty and you might decide to spit it out, much like a baby would reject a steak...

7) accept church callings particularly if you are asked to teach...you will learn far more as a teacher, than you will as a student, and every adult in the church can either be a home, or visiting teacher...My favorite callings in the church have been as a teacher...also be willing to speak in sacrament meeting...you will learn a lot in your preperation and your confidence will grow...

8)"...Seek learning, even by study, and also by faith..." Can't think of the reference there, but use the topical guide and you will find it...hahaha

If you have any questions or wish me to clarify something, please respond...

I hope this helps, and God bless you brother for embarking on this lifelong journey of study!

[Doctor Steuss]

So what would you all suggest as a general path to follow in trying to gain a greater understanding of the Church?
[/b]

A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature by Bauer, Arndt, Gingrich and Danker
Adventures of a Church Historian by Leonard Arrington
Analysis of Textual Variants of the Book of Mormon Part's One through three by Royal Skousen
Anchor Bible Dictionary
An Exhaustive Concordance of the B of M, D & C, & P of G P by Shapiro
Ancient Texts and Mormonism by Eugene Seaich
B.H. Roberts: Studies of the Book of Mormon by Brigham D. Madsen
Backgrounds of Early Christianity by Everet Ferguson
Bahá’u’lláh and the New Era by J. E. Esslemont (might seem like a strange suggestion, but it has the "Grand Fundamental Principles of Mormonism" written within many of its tenets).
Barbarian Philosophy: the Religious Revolution of Early Christianity by Guy G. Stroumsa
Biblical Nonsense by Dr. Jason Long
Book of Mormon Authorship by Noel Reynolds
Book of Mormon Authorship Revisited: The Evidence for Ancient Origins by Noel Reynolds
Building the City of God by Arrington, Fox, & May
By Study and Also by Faith by John Lundquist and Stephen Ricks
The Bible Says 1830 by Chris Tolworthy


Hopefully the A's through B's will keep you busy for at least a little while.