A Continuance of a Full-Time Mission in the Spirit World?

      Elder Lynn Arave, left, with 3 other members of the Bath, England Mission District in late 1973.

THERE is some evidence from my own family's history and at least one other -- that at least some former full-time missionaries now in the Spirit World are continuing to proselyte former members of the same nations where they served on Earth.

My Grandfather Ray Rigby was still teaching Canadians in the Spirit World, a few years after his passing. That was also where he served during the World War I time period -- in Canada -- on a full-time mission. (I know this because of a special spiritual experience my mother had in the Logan Temple.)

One of my sisters said a member of her ward told a similar tale in her sacrament meeting involving a continued missionary effort in the Spirit World.

                                   My grandfather, Ray Rigby, on his Canadian Mission in about 1918.

(Now, everyone apparently speaks the same, single language in the Spirit World-- Adamic Tongue -- and so no special language skills are needed there, but knowing more about the national orientation of Spirit World residents and having an extra special love for them, may help in the work there.)

So, for myself someday, I may find myself teaching Southwest England residents the Gospel when I arrive in the Spirit World ...

That would be Mission Part II.

The 20 Largest LDS Temples

 

           The Salt Lake Temple in its pre-renovation state.              Photo by Liz Arave Hafen.

WHAT are the largest temples in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints?

Bigger is not always better, but nevertheless, here are the top 20, ranked by square footage -- AND, the Salt Lake Temple is more than twice the size of number two...

1.Salt Lake Temple, 382,207 square feet.

2.Los Angeles, 190,614.

3.Washington, D.C., 156,558.

4. Jordan River, 148,236.

5.St. George, 143,969.

6.Logan, 119,619.

7.Mexico City, 116,642.

8.Ogden, 112,232.

9.Seattle, 110,000.

10.Mount Timpanogos, 107,240.

11.Bountiful, 104,000.

12.Manti, 100,373.

13.Teton River Idaho, 100,000.

14.Saratoga Springs, 97,836.

15. Payson, 96,630.

16.Red Cliffs, 96,277.

17. Layton, 94,539.

18.Syracuse, 90,526.

19.Cardston, Canada, 88,562.

20.Heber Valley, 87,026.

NOTE 1: As explained by the LDS Church, "Square footage figures may be approximate since countries and regions determine square footage differently, and figures may include additions, annexes, or auxiliary buildings."

NOTE 2: The Provo Utah Rock Canyon Temple is still under construction and no size is yet listed by the Church.

NOTE 3: There are 205 dedicated temples, as of May 28, 2025; 56 under construction; 121 announced; for a total of 382 temples.

SOURCE: https://churchofjesuschristtemples.org/statistics/dimensions

An LDS Look at the Cosmos….

 

A 1904 book by Nels L. Nelson, that barely scratched the surface on the cosmos and the gospel.

 

IF scriptural references to the cosmos in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are to be taken literally, then man’s physical science is pitifully off the mark in accuracy.

Here are 9 scriptural highlights:

1.   Take planets, for example. There are mortal planets, that can die; and there are immortal ones. This very concept would astound scientists.

According to D&C 88:25-26:

25. “And again, verily I say unto you, the earth abideth the law of a celestial kingdom, for it filleth the measure of its creation, and transgresseth not the law—

26. Wherefore, it shall be sanctified; yea, notwithstanding it shall die, it shall be quickened again, and shall abide the power by which it is quickened, and the righteous shall inherit it.”

So, the Earth is currently in a mortal state, but will die before it is quickened, made immortal and is an abode for the most righteous of God’s children. How many planets out there are still mortal? Unknown, but this seems significant. Man’s scientific understanding is that planets and stars have limited lifespans, but God seems to have made a way for them to exist forever and forever.

 

2.   The Earth is a “she,” the moon is a “she” and our sun is a “he.” Thus, gender exists among stars and planets.

D&C 88:45:

45. “The earth rolls upon her wings, and the sun giveth his light by day, and the moon giveth her light by night, and the stars also give their light, as they roll upon their wings in their glory, in the midst of the power of God.”

So, does this mean that the Earth can produce planets as offspring, the Moon too, and yet the Sun not? Certainly our understanding is limited here, but the term “Mother Earth” appears correct. And, assuming it takes a union of a male and female planet to produce offspring, then that must be how planets and stars are created. (Again, we lack detail, but man’s science is light years behind the cosmic truth of God.

3. Our sun will NOT ever run out of energy, as it is sustained by a link to greater stars.

Facsimile 2 in the Book of Abraham:

“Fig. 5. Is called in Egyptian Enish-go-on-dosh; this is one of the governing planets also, and is said by the Egyptians to be the Sun, and to borrow its light from Kolob through the medium of Kae-e-vanrash, which is the grand Key, or, in other words, the governing power, which governs fifteen other fixed planets or stars, as also Floeese or the Moon, the Earth and the Sun in their annual revolutions. This planet receives its power through the medium of Kli-flos-is-es, or Hah-ko-kau-beam, the stars represented by numbers 22 and 23, receiving light from the revolutions of Kolob.”

So, while gravity may hold planets and stars in orbit, there clearly is another chain of energy, invisible to man, that maintains the power of stars and planets in the universe.

 

4.   The Earth abides the Celestial law of God, but it clearly does not like the sins of mankind, who live on it.

Doctrine and Covenants Section 88, verse 25 states:

"The earth abideth the law of a celestial kingdom, for it filleth the measure of its creation, and transgresseth not the law—."

LDS Church Scriptures also states that the Earth is groaning under the weight of sin by mankind.

Doctrine and Covenants section 123, verse 7 states:

"The whole earth groans under the weight of its (mankind's) iniquity."

To groan is in response to pain or despair, based on dictionary definitions and so could man’s sins be the cause of so-called “Climate Change,” earthquakes, volcanoes and the like? Perhaps.

 

5.  Light is light. The same light that shines forth from the sun is the same light that sparks our understanding of spiritual matters.

D&C 88: 6-13:

6. “He that ascended up on high, as also he descended below all things, in that he comprehended all things, that he might be in all and through all things, the light of truth;

7. Which truth shineth. This is the light of Christ. As also he is in the sun, and the light of the sun, and the power thereof by which it was made.

8. As also he is in the moon, and is the light of the moon, and the power thereof by which it was made;

9. As also the light of the stars, and the power thereof by which they were made;

10. And the earth also, and the power thereof, even the earth upon which you stand.

11. And the light which shineth, which giveth you light, is through him who enlighteneth your eyes, which is the same light that quickeneth your understandings;

12. Which light proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space—

13. The light which is in all things, which giveth life to all things, which is the law by which all things are governed, even the power of God who sitteth upon his throne, who is who is in the bosom of eternity, who is in the midst of all things.”

Again, these verses highlight how little man really knows about light and the universe. Yet, it is clear that God, Christ and Celestial beings can produce an unending and infinite amount of light, to sustain the universe forever and ever. And, it may be as simple as when God needs more matter, it produces more light; stops that light and it becomes matter and thus there is an unending supply of that too. It may be that simple.

6. There was NO "big bang," as the universe has always existed.

Eternity is forever and we, as mortals, cannot grasp that endless concept.
Whenever one tries to ponder eternity, the mortal mind rebels and lets one know it can't comprehend that idea.

However, the Prophet Joseph Smith taught: "That which has a beginning will surely have an end, take a ring, it is without beginning or end -- cut it for a beginning place and at the same time you have made an ending place ... so it is with God." ("Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, page 181.)
Thus, there has always been a God.
Our God, the Father, has his own Father and so forth backward into eternity. There is a plurality of endless Gods.
There's no "Big bang" needed here -- that's man's cop out for understanding.
Somehow, a "God" has always existed. If not, there will be an end.
The universe has always been here in some degree.
Joseph Smith also stated that "God himself could not create himself." And, he stated that the spirit of man has always existed.
(Joseph Smith Teachings, page 354.)
Somehow God can stop light and create matter. Since he can likely also produce endless light, there's endless matter around. He just adds "intelligences," when needed to the mix, to create life, though there may be life to some degree in all matter.

7. God is the master of time and space.

The author knows little of the mathematical nature of Einstein's theory of relativity, but he believes to God much of it is not a theory, it is practical way God does important things.
 
For example, look at Facsimile No. 2, the Figure one explanation from the Book of Abraham and you find this startling material: "Kolob, signifying the first creation, nearest to the Celestial, or the residence of God. First in government, the last pertaining to the measurement of time.The measurement according to celestial time, which CELESTIAL TIME SIGNIFIES ONE DAY TO A CUBIT. One day in Kolob is equal to a thousand years, according to the measurement of this earth ..."
Interchanging a day (time) with a cubit (physical measurement)  is time/space inversion. (And this scripture was written long before Einstein came alone.)
To God then, does time becomes a short physical measurement -- one step or less?
Perhaps.
Also, the above verse states one day in Kolob equals a thousand years on earth.
Does that mean that the theory of relativity's time dilation effect is used by God to better serve his purposes? Does it mean that no one in the Pre-Earth life waits more more than a week to be born, because time is moving faster on Earth?
If so, the author perhaps waited just over 30 minutes in the Celestial realm to be born after his mother was born.

If Kolob is traveling near the speed of light, time moves much more slowly there than on Earth. Thus, our earthly test can be done in a fraction of time and it is not just h
--Now the author is certainly not the first LDS Church member, or leader to touch on relativity and the gospel, just one of the more passionate on the subject.
The book, "Science and Mormonism" did.
Also, the church's last general patriarch, Emeritus Patriarch Eldred G. Smith, talked about time dilation and and our time in mortality in his April 1966 General Conference talk, "Can You Abide Two Hours?" (Improvement Era, June 1966, pp. 512-513.
-If you would like to read Patriarch Smith's talk, go to:
http://scriptures.byu.edu/gettalk.php?ID=1461
(-NOTE: This kind of material in the Book of Abraham --plus its feel of being "scripture" -- make any dispute/debate on the Book of Abraham's origin meaningless to myself. The proof of divinity is in its content!)

8. There are "kingdoms" everywhere and there is no space where there is not one.

Doctrine and Covenants 88:36-38:

36. "All kingdoms have a law given;

37 And there are many kingdoms; for there is no space in the which there is no kingdom; and there is no kingdom in which there is no space, either a greater or a lesser kingdom.

38 And unto every kingdom is given a law; and unto every law there are certain bounds also and conditions."

So, there are at least 9 planets in our solar system and apparently all are part of a kingdom. All are useful to God and all have specific laws given. (God's universe is one of order.)

"Outer Darkness" is where sons/daughters of perdition will end up and that may well be the empty, dark space between galaxies?

But, there is no empty of a kingdom kind of space per se in outer space.

9. A Celestial Kingdom may well be on the surface of a star.

Doctrine and Covenants 130:6-9:

6 "The angels do not reside on a planet like this earth;

7 But they reside in the presence of God, on a globe like a sea of glass and fire, where all things for their glory are manifest, past, present, and future, and are continually before the Lord.

8 The place where God resides is a great Urim and Thummim.

9 This earth, in its sanctified and immortal state, will be made like unto crystal and will be a Urim and Thummim to the inhabitants who dwell thereon, whereby all things pertaining to an inferior kingdom, or all kingdoms of a lower order, will be manifest to those who dwell on it; and this earth will be Christ’s."

A "sea of glass and fire" sure sounds like a star. 

And, while the traditional view of hell in Christianity is a hot place amidst fires, the truth may actually be the opposite. Hell will be a cold, lightless place, while heaven will be a golden place full of flaming glory and plenty of heat.

-These are just some of the Gospel truths, relating to the cosmos, contained in LDS Scripture.

 NOTE: This article and all of the NighUntoKolob blog are NOT an official website of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They are the author's conclusions and opinions only.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Back Story on a Fabulous Painting inside the Brigham City and the Layton Temples

 

                                                          The Brigham City Temple.

 If you happen to be a Latter-day Saint and go to the Layton Temple, or the Brigham City Temple, there’s a fabulous painting inside of Native Americans being baptized in 1873. Below is the back story on that artwork, that was prompted by the legendary “Three Nephities” --

The U.S. military wiped out more than 300 Native Americans – even women and children -- near Preston, Idaho on January 29, 1863. Now known as the Bear River Massacre, it was the largest loss of life for Native Americans in any military battle.

The survivors, part of the Northwestern Shoshone tribe, faced poverty and poor conditions for years afterward.

Sagwitch, a Shoshone Chief, was one of the few survivors of the that Massacre. In 1873, one of his fellow chiefs had a vision in which three white men visited him. One of the men told him “that the Mormon’s God was the true God … that he must be baptized, with all his Indians … stop Indian life, and learn to cultivate the earth and build houses.”

(The three white men were almost certainly the "Three Nephites.")

All the other chiefs believed the dream was true. They searched for George Washington Hill and found him in Ogden. Hill had been a missionary to the Native Americans, was trusted by them and even spoke their language. As the “Man with Red Hair,” they wanted him to preach to the tribe.

Hill was able to obtain President Brigham Young’s permission to preach to them. So, on May 5, 1873, Hill boarded a train in Ogden for Corinne and then walked 12 miles to their camp. By the day’s end, he had baptized 102 people.

Later, some of the tribal chiefs met with President Young and were soon ordained as elders. By 1875, some received their endowments in the Salt Lake Endowment House.

During the next four years, almost 1,200 members of the tribe had been baptized, buried their weapons and started a new way of life farming and ranching.

 

                                        The Layton Temple's east side.

Prior to the dedication of the Brigham City Temple in 2012, artists Linda Christensen and Mike Malm, with help from Cheryl S. Betenson, painted a mural depicting missionaries and a group of Indians during a baptismal confirmation on the banks of the Bear River in the 1870s.

The colorful mural now hangs in the Brigham City Temple baptistry – and a copy of it is in the Layton Temple baptistry too -- as a fitting tribute to the Native Americans and missionary work. (In the Layton Temple, this painting is directly east of the Baptistry Office.)

“The painting is a beautiful work of art,” Christensen said. “It represents the cooperation of two peoples in the settlement of Box Elder County and the establishment of service in the temple in northern Utah. It’s a wonderful, full-circle moment to see that event from the 1870s acknowledged in that temple, which is located just a few blocks from the Northwestern Shoshone tribal headquarters.”

SOURCE: Based on a January 24, 2013 article in the Deseret News by Trent Toone, titled, “Bear River Massacre's unexpected aftermath includes forgiveness and hope.”

 NOTE: This article and all of the NighUntoKolob blog are NOT an official website of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They are the author's conclusions and opinions only.

The Church's disappearing Statue -- the 'Mortal Moroni' in Manti

This "Mortal Moroni" statue in Manti used to be in a small park west of the Manti Temple, from 1983 to about 2010. Why was it removed and where is it now?                       (Photograph is from Pinterest.)

HAVE you ever heard of any statues disappearing over the decades in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints?

Statues of Joseph and Hyrum Smith sat originally in two alcoves (starting in 1893) on the east side of the Salt Lake Temple, along the entrance steps. Those statues are not there now, but they were simply relocated to another location on Temple Square, some decades later.

However, take Manti, Utah.

From 1983 to about 2010, there was a 9-foot-tall bronze statue of Moroni, from the Book of Mormon, sitting in a small "meditation garden," west of the Manti Temple. This statue was not the Angel Moroni, as atop many temples, but rather this was a unique version of the Scriptural character, as in "Mortal Moroni."

"Unveiling Saturday for 'Mortal Moroni' statue" was a July 14, 1983 headline in the Manti Messenger newspaper.

Seed money by the late R. Clair Anderson started the project to create a bronze representation of Moroni, in his final years of mortal life. (He is shown holding a box of gold plates in the statue representation.)

None other than Dr. Avard Fairbanks created this one-of-a-kind Moroni statue. (Fairbanks produced more than 100 sculptures during his long career, including the Three Witnesses, Tragedy at Winter Quarters and several Angel Moroni statues atop temples.)

The "Mortal" title was used to distinguish the statue from the Angel Moroni statues that grace the top of some temples.

According to some Manti residents, the Mortal Moroni statue was removed from the site about 2010 and no one seems to know exactly where it went. Speculation is that it was moved to a church warehouse in Salt Lake City.

Why was statue removed? No one in Manti appears to know for sure, but the area where it was located was being renovated at the time of the statue's removal and expanded into today's "Pioneer Heritage Gardens," that opened in June of 2012.

                     The reflective pool in Manti's Pioneer Heritage Gardens, in 2021.

Some Manti residents believe the Church had been questioning the accuracy of a lone, second-hand historical account that states that Moroni wandered the continent in his final years and dedicated various future temple sites, including the Manti Temple site. Thus, is this account accurate? 

Notwithstanding, the cost of the "Mortal Moroni" statue may have been at least $12,000 and some Manti residents said they or family members dedicated to that fund, back in the early 1980s. These residents maintained that no church funds were used in the creation of the statue either.

Even the Angel Moroni statue atop temples has come into restrictions. No temple announced after 2019 will have such an angel atop it. This change comes as the Church strives to stress Jesus Christ more and less for other, even prominent scriptural characters, like Moroni.

(The Author only found out about this Moroni statue in about 2015, when he was contacted by some Church members in Manti, who were concerned that a possible, future renovation of the Manti Temple would lead to a loss of many interior pioneer era features and paintings. They knew what the Logan Temple lost during a 1970s renovation and feared the worst. They also mentioned the loss of the "Mortal Moroni" statue and how bewildered they were on that removal. Since the Author had first visited the Manti Temple area in 1981 and not again until 2021, he had never seen the unique Mortal Moroni statue. The Manti Temple was remodeled from 2021 to 2024 and didn't end up losing most of what local Church members feared it would.)

                          This is another view of the park that is west  of the Manti Temple.

According to an article by H. Donl Peterson of the BYU Religious Studies Center (and in "Life of Heber C. Kimball," by Orson F. Whitney, Salt Lake City, Bookcraft, 1967):

"At a conference held in Ephraim, Sanpete County, June 25th, 1875, nearly all the speakers expressed their feelings to have a temple built in Sanpete County, and gave their views as to what point and where to build it, and to show the union that existed, Elder Daniel H. Wells said “Manti,” George Q. Cannon, Brigham Young, Jr., John Taylor, Orson Hyde, Erastus Snow, Franklin D. Richards, Lorenzo Young, and A.M. Musse said “Manti stone quarry.” I have given the names in the order in which they spoke. At 4 p.m. that day President Brigham Young said: 'The Temple should be build on Manti stone quarry.' Early on the morning of April 25, 1877, President Brigham Young asked Brother Warren S. Snow to go with him to the Temple hill. Brother Snow says: 'We two were alone: President Young took me to the spot where the Temple was to stand; we went to the southeast corner, and President Young said: 'Here is the spot where the prophet Moroni stood and dedicated this piece of land for a Temple site, and that is the reason why the location is made here, and we can’t move it from this spot; and if you and I are the only persons that come here at high noon today, we will dedicate this ground.'” 

That's the lone reference for Moroni dedicating the Manti Temple site. 

Sometimes Church officials frown on historical accounts that rely on a single reference and so that may be the reason for the statue's removal?

 NOTE: This article and all of the NighUntoKolob blog are NOT an official website of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They are the author's conclusions and opinions only.