Nate and I talk religion and sci-fi June 14, 2009

I had a nice visit with Nate over instant messaging, which ended up using some of the things I had discussed in my High Priest lesson earlier in the day. I enjoyed the sci-fi part of the discussion, too!
Here's the exchange (Don't get too mad, Nate):
Lee says:
boo-hoo! Orlando Magic lost the championship to Lakers!
Nate says:
did they really? lol that funny
Lee says:
Jared asked if I thought you would be watching! Not when he's in a house with non-basketball fanatics!
Lee says:
I just finished Eldest!
Lee says:
Last night!
Nate says:
this is very true! i tried watching the Jazz games, but they thought it was weird when they saw me
Lee says:
Who's weird, huh!
Nate says:
i know, they were just surprised when they saw
Lee says:
Basketball is learning skills, practicing to make perfect, learning team skills! Nothing better than sports for many of those skills!
Lee says:
Did you see my note on Eldest?
Nate says:
no i didnt know you posted anything
Nate says:
did you listen to it all?
Lee says:
All this time I never realized what it said on the jacket. I thought it was some wierd word of a dragon or something and it was just the way it was designed! Eldest as in Eregon's older brother!
Lee says:
Yup!
Lee says:
Finished last night!
Lee says:
You're not paying attention to me!! Are you playing a game or watching TV?
Nate says:
sorry

You have just sent a nudge.

Nate says:
just settling in after getting home from work

You have just sent a nudge.

Lee says:
hey!

You may not send a nudge that often.

Nate says:
im here
Lee says:
I said I finished it last night!
Nate says:
ya i have listened to the 3rd book like 2 1/2 times now
Nate says:
so when do you listen to it?
Lee says:
Mostly on the trip to the Redwoods, then when I could out on the patio while mom watched TV.
Nate says:
ahh
Lee says:
I'm not happy about the idea of it going more than 3 books!
Nate says:
no way why?
Lee says:
I want to get it over in three and kill the king, save Kristina and marry Aireal.
Lee says:
I can't think of any series that has held true and top notch for more than 3.
Lee says:
Mom's helping Jared move things into his apartment in building 14 next to our building 13.
Nate says:
the names are katrina and arya
Lee says:
Good! I didn't read the books.
Nate says:
lol i knew what you were talking about
Lee says:
I kept spelling his name Aregon.
Nate says:
i really liked this 3rd book!
Lee says:
did you read it or listen to it?
Nate says:
i really hope the 4th one is good too
Nate says:
listen
Lee says:
Oh!!!!!
Lee says:
Father's Day is coming up next week!!!!!!
Nate says:

Lee says:
You better talk to Mom about it! Hint hint!
Nate says:
lol will do
Lee says:
did you see that message about mom and jared.
Nate says:
ya i did.
Lee says:
Funny, huh!
Lee says:
Why do you think he did it?
Nate says:
i dont know,
Lee says:
have you talked to him about his moving?
Nate says:
like why did he move so close or why did he move out?
Lee says:
both?
Nate says:
no i dont think i have
Nate says:
i cant remember
Lee says:
He's more likely to tell you than me I'm afraid.
Nate says:
ya, i think he was going to tell me and then somthing came up and he forgot
Nate says:
i need to talk to him
Nate says:
i havent really talked to him in a while
Lee says:
Let me ask you a question from my lesson in High Priest class today: If a good man dies like in India but has never heard of Jesus or his teachings, is he doomed to hell or can he make the Celestial kingdom?
Nate says:
i think so, absolutely.
Lee says:
How many churches do you think teach that he can rise to live with his Father in Heaven?
Nate says:
psh i have no clue im sure not many if any
Nate says:
they all seem more of a here and now
Nate says:
kind of thing
Lee says:
How can it happen if even Jesus said that he is the only way to his Father and that everyone who wants to get there must first be Baptized?
Lee says:
There is only one!
Lee says:
There are two key factors that that one church teaches that no other church teaches or even accepts and they actually condemn.
Lee says:
What do you think Grandma Stanger is doing right now in heaven?
Lee says:
Playing a harp -- or organ -- or what? What was the last major thing she wanted to do but couldn't because of her health?
Nate says:
she wanted to go on a mission didnt she
Lee says:
Yes! So she now is probably on a mission teaching all those people who never heard of Jesus. Why?
Lee says:
Come on, Nate, stay with me a bit longer!
Nate says:
ya sorry jared called me, why not? if they never had a chance on earth then how is that there fault. i think that if god is the way that we were taught then he would at least give them a chance
Lee says:
Are you there? Why would she be spending her time teaching people who have already died about Jesus?
Lee says:
Exactly! A chance at what? Can Christ's atonement have claim even on them in “spirit prison” so that they can repent even though they are dead?
Lee says:
this is all why we have baptism for the dead
Lee says:
That's what it's all about. We're the only church that has that principal, even though Paul talked about it as if it was common knowledge among the first Christians.
Nate says:
so how does the baptism for the dead work?
Lee says:
So if they repent, then they will need baptism, which must be done for them. But if they don't repent and we do a baptism for the dead for them, then it doesn't mean anything for them.
Lee says:
And if they need baptism, then they will need all the other work to be done. That's why we have temples and why we'll have a millennium (1,000) to get all the work done.
Lee says:
And that's why our church is so different!
Nate says:
so we do a baptism for the dead no matter what?
Lee says:
We don't limit God's blessings to just our members but to all our spirit brothers and sisters who now live and who have ever lived.
Nate says:
I don’t get that part
Lee says:
Yup! Say we baptize a person that killed someone 100 years ago. But if he had the law he may never had done it. Then Grandma teaches him about the gospel, he realizes how bad it was and embraces Jesus and his plan and repents. Then he will be waiting for his baptism so he can claim what glory he deserves, whether it be the highest glory or the middle glory or the glory of the stars.
Lee says:
God promised every one of his children they would resurrect with a body and that they would at some point receive what I call a perfect missionary experience. That's what Grandma's doing. Lee says:
Don't you think that Ghandi, a Hindu, who embraced all good in religions, would love to hear the Gospel from Grandma?
Nate says:
ahh ok so they baptize everyone. That way if they do repent then they have that already
Lee says:
Yup! And we do the temple work of sealing families together for the same reason.
Lee says:
You are sealed to us, too!
Lee says:
That's why Pres. Hinckley pushed building temples. When Christ comes again, Temple work will be as important as missionary work because they go hand in hand in relationship to Eternal LIfe -- which is the kind of Life that God lives!
Lee says:
OK, one more question! What kind of life does God offer to his children – the kind of life that he lives?
Lee says:
No, they don't sit around and sing hymns all day! Can you imagine him announcing:
Lee says:
"First we'll open today's session by singing hymns No. 100 - 500!"
Lee says:
There isn't a church in the world that has a clue what we'll do other than we'll be happy -- and no pain.
Lee says:
The Hindus believe we'll spend a glorious time in heaven and then be reincarnated as some form of animal or such.
Lee says:
God said his work and his glory is to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.
Lee says:
His plan is one eternal round!
Lee says:
So, have you gone to sLeep?
Nate says:
lol no
Lee says:
So, I need some feedback on those comments and question above.
Nate says:
lol what is there to say. i have no idea what it is going to be like.
Lee says:
OK, one more question! What kind of life does God offer his children, the kind of life that he lives?
Lee says:
Give it a shot! Every parent wants the same for his/her children!
Nate says:
yes. he said that if we get to his kindom that we would be able to be like him
Lee says:
God says over and over in the scriptures he wants to give ... yup!
Lee says:
So if we are like him, what would we be able to do or have?
Lee says:
This is where we also differ greatly from other churches -- not the scriptures.
Nate says:
make planets like he has and have childen like he has
Lee says:
Hey, you ain't too dump! Grandma taught you something!
Lee says:
So if God is perfect, then how can he still progress or become greater like it says in the scriptures?
Nate says:
from his children
Lee says:
Through, yup, the success of his children.
Nate says:
the whole thing of being able to make other planets and stuff always confused me
Lee says:
If they become like him and have spiritual children and create other worlds, then his glory and dominion grows through his children!
Nate says:
is it like in some other dimensions type of thing or is it all just in one cosmic universe?
Nate says:
and also if space is infinite, then the % chance that there is a planet like ours is a possibility
Lee says:
Einstein was considered one of the smartest men to have ever lived and used only a small part of his brain, though a little more than we do. If a man were perfect or had a perfect body and a perfect brain, what could he do, what would he know? He might know all the laws and how to use them to do everything – maybe even including building worlds. Maybe God is truly a Perfect Man!
Lee says:
Absolutely for sure! That's why I love science fiction -- there are planets out there just like ours with children of our Father in Heaven. Now we're really out there! What we need to do is worry about ourselves. But the point is, there are answers to life's questions -- and you won't find very many questions under a rock!
Lee says:
Our church was teaching about worlds without end long before scientists even had a glimpse that there really might be other planets. Now they are virtually sure.
Nate says:
Soo
Lee says:
I'm sure there is another dimension -- it's called spiritual. That's one. Then there's the other for glorified beings. They may be around us, but we are not alone. We try to think we are when we're trying to hide.
Nate says:
so do you think that he ends a planet before they can go too far in space and that’s why we would not meet anyone from other planets?
Lee says:
There is a veil so we don't see -- but at times that veil is separated and some see angels and glorified beings. Like in Kirtland.
Lee says:
Do you mean ends the work on one planet before they meet others from another?
Lee says:
Possibly. Maybe that's the second coming.
Nate says:
ya like the second coming end
Nate says:
ya exactly
Lee says:
2nd coming isn't the end. It's just the start of the millennium and then eventually the glorification of even the world itself.
Lee says:
Have you seen Nicolas Cage's Knowing?
Lee says:
It has a provocative ending that probably most people think is pretty lame. But I loved it.
Nate says:
because i mean if one planet lived long enough, then we would be able to live among the stars like in science fiction movies and books and then we would eventually meet another planet like our own. But do you think that they have the second comings to stop that kind of thing. Like they don’t have the second coming just for that reason but it is part of the plan?
Nate says:
no i never saw it
Lee says:
You need to rent it and write what you think the ending has to do with the religion and life on our planet.
Lee says:
It's possible that's when the 2nd coming is, but it's more likely that the world gets so corrupt and so good at the same time that it is time. No man knows, the scriptures say, when he will come. But I think we will travel by Instantaneous Molecular Transportation.
Lee says:
or at least the angels and glorified beings do. That's just a thought!
Nate says:
hmm very interesting
Lee says:
So what my children do has meaning to me and my Father in Heaven, their spirit Father.
Lee says:
I know I will resurrect. That I have no doubt of.
Lee says:
What I fear is having come up short of what I should have done.
Lee says:
So ponder these things in your heart and find your way in this weird world.
Lee says:
YOu better hit the sack -- you have work tomorrow!
Nate says:
this is true
Nate says:
Alright, I’ll talk to you later then
Nate says:
gnight
Lee says:
Rent Knowing!
Lee says:
night!
Nate says:
night night