April 12, 2008

  • The Eternal Nature of Man

      I am so glad I was taught that the soul of man existed before birth and
    will continue after death.  To me, that is a significant belief that
    provides hope, accountability, self worth, and a desire to seek greater
    things.  Knowing that you existed before you were born gives meaning to this life.  There must be a purpose to this earthly existence if your soul is bigger than this mortal span.  Why else would we come here?  Latter-day Saints acknowledge individual purposes to existence, as well as collective purpose.  We are to be tested, to see if we will seek God and follow His will.  For me, this illustrates why there is such a need for religion and spirituality.  It is because we do seek God and His will.  We have a longing to know Him based in the instincts and residual recollections of a pre-birth, eternal existence.  Knowing that we existed before we were born also elevates the status of man, giving him importance and significance.  While the teaching is not unique to Mormonism, the Church is
    certainly one of the few Christian sects to emphasize and teach the
    idea of a pre-mortal existence.

    Knowing that we will continue to exist after we die also makes this time in mortality significant.  It makes us feel accountable because it makes us concerned about what our state will be like in the next life.  It also gives us hope that death is not the end and that we can be reunited with those who have already passed on.  A belief in the continuation of the soul is perhaps the most fundamental longing of all people in all cultures and across all religions.

    Teachings pertaining to post-mortal life are more specific than on pre-mortal life.  I am grateful for the LDS notion of the spirit world.  This teaching indicates that there is a space of time between death and resurrection.  When we die, our spirits continue on with the same knowledge and experience and memory as when we died.  We have the opportunity to continue to interact with others (other spirits), and to grow and develop.  Our happiness in that state will depend on what did when we were alive--how comfortable we are with ourselves.  Those who know they did wrong or who don't know what is going on will be fearful.  Those who know they did right will be assured of their future.  I like this idea.