Avraham’s Mailbox

Question: How do the seven laws of Noah, which some people advocate, relate to the gospel of Jesus Christ? Answer: The so-called “Seven Laws of Noah” or “Seven Noahide Laws” are a universal moral code formulated by Jewish rabbis for non-Jews. While several of these laws overlap with the Ten Commandments God gave Moses, all […]

Question: Where does the Jewish expectation of a “messiah the son of Joseph” come from, and how does it relate to a “messiah the son of David”? Answer: Jewish tradition espouses the idea of four messianic persons, the additional two being Elijah and a righteous high priest. It derives these expectations from a wide variety

Question: When I tried to interest my bishop in the words of Isaiah, he instead encouraged me to listen to the words of the living prophets. Another church member told me to be careful with the words of Isaiah, that they cause people to leave the church. Do the scriptures suggest what we should do

Question: Some say the living prophets supersede the dead prophets. I’m confused because aren’t all scriptures true and of God? What do the scriptures themselves say about this? Answer: Scriptural patterns show that every generation of prophets supports and builds upon those previous to it. No scriptural precedent exists of one generation of prophets’ abrogating

Question: What is the right thing to do when we encounter things being taught in church that contradict the scriptures? Answer: Because misinterpretations of the scriptures are symptomatic of a much larger issue, church members aren’t required of God to act as “thought police” and attempt to counter every instance they hear of false ideas

Question: Is it possible that the entitled and accusatory attitude many members of the restored church exhibit today could be cause for concern that if we are not bringing forth “fruit meet for repentance” (Matthew 3:8; Alma 13:13) and “fruit meet for their Father’s kingdom” (Doctrine & Covenants 84:58) “the kingdom of God will be

Question: Several church authorities have claimed that those who are called Lamanites today, some of whose traditions resemble temple ordinances in the restored church of Jesus Christ, are a “dead branch”—that today those traditions have no essential value, and that indigenous peoples should simply join the church and put those things away. Does that accord

Question: It is disturbing to see several prominent figures in the church being persecuted by vocal LDS and anti-LDS individuals and outlets that slander and accuse them of the murderous acts of prophet-pretenders when nothing in their persons or publications contains the slightest motivation for acting out such bizarre behaviors. How do you explain people

The book Visions of Glory by John Pontius, based on the near death experiences of “Spencer,” has been the cause of much division and condemnation from people who find it incredulous or who feel threatened by its graphic depictions of the earth’s end-time phase we have now entered. Because of that, soon after its publication,

Question: “My anti-LDS friend says “See! According to Avraham’s answer he proves that Joseph Smith took chapters of Isaiah from the King James Version and inserted them into the Book of Mormon. It is a fraud because Nephi didn’t actually write or quote Isaiah from the brass plates, including 1 Nephi 20:20 (of Isaiah 48),

Question: Some have interpreted Hebrews 10 to say that the Savior is the veil of the temple. Is there support for this in the scriptures generally? Answer: As used throughout the scriptures, the word “veil” signifies something separating people from the Lord that is inherent in humanity’s mortal or fallen nature. It can be physical,

Question: I’m troubled by Brigham Young’s statement that the Gentiles would be just as mistaken about Jesus’ second coming as the Jews were about his first (Journal of Discourses, 8:115). Who was he talking about, members of the church or non-members? And what do you think they would they be mistaken about? Answer: When Brigham