This is Scripture Roundtable 171 from The Interpreter Foundation, in which we discuss the Book of Mormon Gospel Doctrine Lesson #27, All Things Denote There Is a God, focusing on scriptures in Alma 30-31, bringing in various insights to help us better understand the scriptures. These roundtables will generally follow the 2016 Gospel Doctrine schedule of scriptures, a few weeks ahead of time.
Panelists for this roundtable are Stephen Smoot, Martin Tanner, Daniel Peterson, and Bruce Webster.
This roundtable is also available as an audio podcast, and will be included in the podcast feed. You can listen by pressing the play button or download the podcast below:
Podcast: Download (Duration: 55:40 — 19.1MB)
So enjoy the comments that are made. Always gives me many things to think about. Please continue these discussions. I appreciate the time and effort made by many!
I have a friend who, before her conversion, was very much into the occult. She told me that her parents were involved in it as well, especially by having people, who supposedly could channel dead relatives and friends, come into their home and allow them to talk to the dead. They didn’t believe in God though.
So, I can see how someone might believe in spirits and other mystical stuff, but not really believe in God as defined in the way that the ancient Hebrews or Nephites did.
I enjoyed the Roundtable discuss Alma 30, 31, agreeing with all of it. I would have liked for the Roundtable to have discussed Alma’s statement that all things denote there is a god. I think that Alma’s statement may be misinterpreted to mean that in mortality we can prove the existence of God to others. In premortality we were all tested to see what we would do IN THE PRESENCE OF GOD. Now in mortality we are being tested to see what we will do when we’re NOT in the presence of God, to see if we will seek him. I believe that God purposely made mortality such that the ONLY way to know if He exists, is to go to Him in prayer. I love the agnostic prayer of King Lamoni’s father in Alma 22: 18:
18 O God, Aaron hath told me that there is a God; and if there is a God, and if thou art God, wilt thou make thyself known unto me, and I will give away all my sins to know thee, and that I may be raised from the dead, and be saved at the last day. And now when the king had said these words, he was struck as if he were dead.
Thus, I think that Alma’s statement that all things denote there is a god, means that IF in mortality we seek God (as King Lamoni’s father did in his wonderful agnostic prayer), all of nature tells us that we will receive an answer – a glorious answer (as King Lamoni’s father did) – to the question “Does God exist?” Once we receive this glorious answer, then nature and all things support that answer. I would have liked to have heard the Roundtable’s comments on Alma’s statement that all things denote there is a god.
Holy cow! I thought for a while I’d have to go to GD without first listening to your timely imput. Thanks for catching up!,?