With meetings, temple attendance, food storage, the strive to be perfect - it's overwhelming and far from having peace in knowing Christ. The kingdom of Israel was divided about 975 B.C. The Mormon Church takes part in a unique ritual where they receive a patriarchal blessing. Too many members use it the wrong way. Regarding Patriarchal blessings and the declaration of lineage, President James E. Faust stated: . While a patriarchal blessing contains inspired counsel and promises, it should not be expected to answer all of the recipients questions or to detail all that will happen in his or her life. The Lord said to Abraham, I give unto thee a promise that this right [meaning the right to receive the gospel and the priesthood] shall continue in thee, and in thy seed after thee (Abr. Those who are not literal descendants are adopted into the family of Abraham when they receive baptism and confirmation (see Law of Adoption ). Rumors were his wife did it as well. Lineage, I have concluded, belongs in the same category as all those promises in patriarchal blessings about the recipient living long enough to go back and build up Jackson County. Am I Less Worthy Not Being From the Tribe of Ephraim? James Russell Uhl. EG- you most definitely should have the opportunity to receive another blessing, as do others in this situation. 2:10). I tried to explain these population dynamics to some relatives this past weekend and failed spectacularly. They like the rituals, and even some of the garb of the priesthood. They are then entitled to all the rights and privileges of heirs (TPJS, pp. (2 Kgs. It has been suggested that because of the . Frankly, lineage doesnt make a lot of sense in todays world, as the OP suggests. What it means to me is that we are ALL, every one of us on the face of the earth, brothers and sisters, literally. The number of genes is finite, as is the number of chromosomes and the way they combine. No, the slots increase geometrically, not arithmetically, so the answer is 256 (16 x 16). No blessings have been alike that weve come across in the stake. It is a sacred, spiritual calling that usually will continue the remainder of the patriarchs life. one child may be declared to be from the tribe of Ephraim and another of the same family from Manasseh or one of the other tribes. The only name that counts in the temple is the name of Jesus Christ. A patriarchal blessing is a prophetic utterance. In other words, does it matter exclusively that I have my ordinances done and am part of the big old family of God connected (sealed) in a great chain from Adam to Zed, or is there great eternal importance to _my_ particular familythat Im sealed to my spouse, my parents, my children, etc.? So its likely that we have many many literal ancestors in those kajillions of pedigree slots from whom weve received no genetic contribution whatsoever. Your an idiot is a deliciously ironic phrase. By seed we mean the heirs of the body. I said I did not want to read theirs but wanted to know if there were any differences. And perhaps they were just as literally the descendants of Ephraim/10 tribes as the rest of us with no particularly unique claim to a literal blood connection (as Israel is to be gathered from all nations), but it seems this early group of pioneers were called and chosen to lay the foundation of this marvelous work. According to other Book of Mormon scriptures, Lehi belonged to the tribe of Manasseh. This happened to me 30+ years ago and my leaders came to me and made the offer for me to receive a new blessing. Church members are counted as a descendant of Abraham and an heir to all the promises and blessings contained in the Abrahamic covenant (see Abrahamic Covenant). An examination of the LDS' latest teachings from the presidency to the women's groups. In such a case, there may be more of a powerful effect upon the body, and visible to the eye, than upon an Israelite, while the Israelite at first might be far before the Gentile in pure intelligence. First, the patriarch will be inspired to declare your lineagethe tribe of Israel to which you belong. Maybe he was getting some dementia. Joseph Smith taught that when the Holy Ghost falls upon one of the literal seed of Abraham, it is calm and serene; while the effect of the Holy Ghost upon a Gentile, is to purge out the old blood, and make him actually of the seed of Abraham. 3:12; D&C 27:5). Good questionand I dont feel confident that I have a handle on an answer. Astrology, witchcraft, Satanism, Masonry, Universalism, Hinduismit's all there in one package called Mormonism. Those who have received a patriarchal blessing should treasure its words, ponder them, and live to be worthy to receive the promised blessings in this life and in the life to come. At some level much of it might not matter, in other ways, there may be meaningful differences. "And they [others of the tribes of Israel] shall bring forth their rich treasures unto the children of Ephraim, my servants…and there shall they fall down and be crowned with glory, even in Zion, by the hands of the servants of the Lord, even the children of Ephraim, and they shall be filled with songs of everlasting joy" (D&C 133:30-33; see also Israel: Gathering of Israel). The views expressed by individual users are the responsibility of those users and do not necessarily represent the position of the Church. A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z, Book of Mormon: Title Page From Book of Mormon, https://eom.byu.edu/index.php?title=Ephraim&oldid=4550. But I really like what was said in the OP about the tribes basically being all mixed in with the entire world population. Know the Difference between Christianity and pseudo-Christianity! Heres another way to look at it. I served with hispanics, most of whom are manassah. Ten of the tribes revolted and followed Jeroboam as their king and became known as the Kingdom of Israel or the Kingdom of Ephraim. These sacred blessings also strengthen the testimonies of those worthy persons who are the recipients of such blessings, provided those recipients live so as to merit the blessings pronounced therein. . It has been a testimony to me that God knows His children well and as individuals. Paul makes repeated references to adoption into the house of Israel through faith: But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. G. Homer Durham (1960), 75. (a total guess just for illustrative purposes), the number of pedigree chart slots at that time depth for our baby born in A.D. 2000 would be something like 16 to the 38th power (16 ^ 38) (the 38 reflects 19 centuries before Christ and 19 after). The majority of modern blessings have designated Ephraim or manasseh as the main link in this tracing, but others of every tribe of Israel have also been named. Most of those people are dead now. I think the point of this post and thread is to get past a bit labels like son of a whore and son of a prophet at least in a certain sense (the sense of are we not all beggars, or are we not all children of Adam and Eve?), Coincidentally, since my last post, I came across this germane passage in Romans 9: .. ", The Mormon pioneers trekking across America is re-enacted every year by faithful Mormons to honor the faith of their ancestors. All the rules of how to pray and what to say leaves no room for a conversation with the Lord! An essential part of a patriarchal blessing is a declaration of lineage. There was a disappearance of the dividing line between time and eternity. Her blessing is her and is true to what has transpired down to the details and order of things. Everyone baptized into the gospel belongs to one of these 12 tribes, but what does it mean if you don't belong to the same tribe as your family? My MP shared this as part of a zone conference talk on patriarchal blessings in hopes of increasing our appreciation for the blessingshis take was that every blessing he had read as SP had been unique. Find out who and why we shouldn't trust their testimonies. When the Lord has thoroughly proved him, and finds that the man is determined to serve Him at all hazards, then the man will find his calling and his election made sure, then it will be his privilege to receive the other Comforter, which the Lord hath promised the Saints, as is recorded in the testimony of St. John, in the 14th chapter, from the 12th to the 27th verses. "We believe in the literal gathering of Israel and in the restoration of the Ten Tribes; that Zion (the New Jerusalem) will be built upon the American continent" (A of F 10; cf. An essential part of a patriarchal blessing is a declaration of lineage. 1. tribe of ephraim lds patriarchal blessing [Patriarchal Blessings] Patriarchal Blessing of Joseph Smith, Jr., given by Joseph Smith, Sr. stated "thou shalt stand on Mount Zion when the tribes of Jacob come shouting from the north, and with thy brethren, the sons of Ephraim, crown them in the name of Jesus Christ: Thou shalt see thy Redeemer come in the clouds of heaven (2) The Gathering of . Kevin sneaks in a Patriarchal Lineages, Ranked without Scott or Steve noticing. Lineage seems a very odd concern for contemporary people. There are that many slots at that time depth on the pedigree chart, but theyre not all unique names; the same name is probably going to appear kajillions of times on the pedigree chart. I will say this, my father is a Patriarch, and Ive bounced this question of what the lineage means around with him several times. I think he also mentioned reviewers (SP and SLC). It's like having your own personalized section of the Doctrine and Covenants. Ill try to explain the problem with that view. Whom do I talk to about getting a patriarchal blessing? In the great majority of cases, Latter-day Saints are of the tribe of Ephraim, the tribe to which has been committed the leadership of the Latter-day work. https://rsc.byu.edu/archived/story-judah-and-tamar, Levi (no territorial allotment, except a number of cities located within the territories of the other tribes). Historically other assignments were relatively rare, but in recent years they have been becoming more common; I believe that assignments to every one of the Twelve Tribes have been made by patriarchs. The original tribe of Levi did not receive a land inheritance (other than the levitical cities), so that its priestly members could live throughout the land, so Joseph (the dominant tribe in the north) was basically bifurcated into two representing his sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, to keep the tribal number at ten. My ancestry is both from old england, and spain with many crypto and sephardic jews mixed in. I suspect that Australian Aboriginies have been interacting with the rest of the world for long enough that their DNA has spread into most of our family trees in one of the 29 trillion, trillion, trillion spaces. A patriarchal blessing is a sacred guideline of counsel, promises, and information from the Lord. Im sure everyones grandpa was a great man with unique experiences and uplifting stories. Should we trust someone who's involved with these things? These chosen men live lives that entitle them to the inspiration of heaven. We all, hopefully, believe the gospel and try to live it as best as we can. Why arent prophets giving us specific signs to watch for? Some rights reserved. I dont like the fact that patriarchal blessings (which I consider to be very personal) are being read by SPs without permission. Salt Lake City, 1985. Frankly, I believe Patriarchal Blessings are pointless. As a person studies his or her patriarchal blessing and follows the counsel it contains, it will provide guidance, comfort, and protection. But we know from modern population genetics that when were talking about that kind of time depth, our near-term genealogical view of things simply doesnt work anymore. A patriarchal blessing includes a declaration of lineage, stating that the person is of the house of Israela descendant of Abraham, belonging to a specific tribe of Jacob. Original Content Copyright 2008-2011 J. Max Wilson. Who, or what, is the foundation of your Christian faith? blessing is nothing like hers. What I can say is that Im certain the lineage does not come by rote thinking on the part of the Patriarch if they are in tune with the Spirit which they should be but Ill accept that there could be exceptions. Imagine if we had the knowledge to complete a massive pedigree chart going back to the time of the biblical patriarchs. My daughter at age 14 received her pat. One of the tools to be used in the gathering is the Book of Mormon, also known among Latter-day Saints as the stick of Joseph or the stick of Ephraim (Ezek. These privileged blessings are a powerful witness of the mission of the Lord Jesus Christ in bringing exaltation to each of us. I believe the prophesy (D&C 133:26-34) of a specific group representing the 10 tribes gathered in from the North has already been fulfilled with the influx of converts from Northern Europe who came and made up a large portion of the membership in Utah and laid the foundation for full work of the gathering of Israel from every nation, kindred, tongue, and people (D&C 77:11) in these last days. over a 20-year period several thousand Israelites were taken captive to Assyria and resettled there. The patriarch seeks inspiration to specify the dominant family line that leads back to Abraham. Ask any patriarch and they will tell you that the Stake President is supposed to regularly review the blessings given. Otherwise its like the name in the temple. Are comments like "blacks are slaves mentally" really from the God of the Bible or racist men? I pray that we will live worthily and seek the blessings that are promised us by the Lord through our family patriarchs and through our ordained patriarchs, and that we will strive to help conditions and circumstances so that these great promises can be realized. So, can tribes truly be found if they are no longer distinct? The most distinguished Benjamite was the apostle Paul ( Rom. This has bothered me for over thirty years. Their godhead is nothing like that of the Christian Trinity - find out why! Patriarchal blessings may contain promises, admonitions, and warnings. This page was last modified on 27 May 2011, at 16:25. 9:4). My most famous Mormon ancestor was Thomas Grover, who was my great, great, great grandfather (on my mothers side). JSJ preached a little on physical blood changes upon conversion, which we dont teach today but which clearly influenced the patriarchal blessing process and how we view lineage today: 14. Since Mormons like to rely on their own works they should take heed to what God said in Micah 5:12-13 , And I will cut off witchcrafts out of thine hand; and thou shalt have no more soothsayers: 13 Thy graven images also will I cut off, and thy standing images out of the midst of thee; and thou shalt no more worship the work of thine hands., Posted in Book of Mormon | Tagged Ephraim, false gospel, Lehi, Mannasseh, Nephi, patriarchal blessings | 2 Comments. And if the 12 patriarchs all had descendants that survived until today, then each of those patriarchs is going to fill many, many slots on that pedigree chart for our hypothetical child. The office of patriarch is one of the great separate priesthood offices of the Melchizedek Priesthood. The 10 th President of the LDS Church, Joseph Fielding Smith, said, "A blessing given by a Patriarch is intended to point out the path which the recipient should travel. On Judah and some harlot- https://rsc.byu.edu/archived/story-judah-and-tamar. This was well illustrated in my fathers patriarchal blessing. Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise: thy hand shall be in the neck of thine enemies; thy fathers children shall bow down before thee. Good choice of image. A study of those patriarchs will show that regardless of which tribe you fall in, your blessing is bounteous. It does not matter if a persons lineage in the house of Israel is through bloodlines or by adoption. The golden rule takes on much greater meaning when you realize everyone you meet is related to you. A prophetic promise fulfilled but one which with modern knowledge seems rather unimportant. Opinions on this subject differ widely. My Home Eco Grants, 90 New Town Row, Birmingham, England, B6 4HZ ; Mon - Fri 9:00am - 5:00pm How do I get rid of inappropriate thoughts? This doctrine of adoption was understood by ancient prophets and apostles (e.g., Rom. My hometeacher was a patriarch, mission president and a bishop. The Lord says to disregard the prophet who speaks a lie in His name - Deuteronomy 18:20-22, See how the Mormon canon of scripture contradicts itself & the Bible, The Early Christian Church's Statements of Faith. I found his perspective to be rather blurry, administrative and academic as compared to other patriarchs in the church, but was appreciative of his personal honesty and openness to the processes and policies. According to Religion 430-431 - Doctrinces of the Gospel Student Manual, the tribe of Ephraim is greatly praised by the LDS Church. tribe of ephraim lds patriarchal blessing. In this easy-to-comprehend volume, Pinegar and Allen clarify what a patriarchal blessing is and is not, where it comes from, and what you need to do . Besides, the giver of the blessings, the Lord, reserves the right to have them become active in our lives as suits his divine purposes. The overwhelming number of such assignments of lineage are to Ephraim, with substantial numbers being assigned to Manasseh (especially in central and south America and the Pacific Islands), and Jews are generally assigned to Judah. Mormonism has its own folklore on the subject, such as folk beliefs that the Ten Tribes are living at the north pole or at the center of the earth. Gramps I have a grandson and it stated in his blessing he was of the Tribe of Juda. He was told in his blessing that he would be blessed with many beautiful daughters. He and my mother became the parents of five sons. It really makes no difference if the blessings of the house of Israel come through the lineage or through the spirit of adoption. Does a true prophet of God preach racism? True Mormon salvation = godhood with multiple wives and countless spirit babies. I was declared to be of the tribe of Manasseh and an institute director told us once that Ephraim is the leadership tribe, and this was why all of the quorum of the 12 and first presidency were from the tribe of Ephraim. Abr. They verify the divinity of Christ and the truthfulness of the Church. Of course, we meet about every week at the table of Christ, and we have a place at that table too. 4:27-31;28;29;30; 3 Ne. So if the patriarchs lived circa 1900 B.C. Bishops will soon be selected based on a DNA test. Perhaps there is a reason that specific other tribe names are occasionally declared, maybe assigned to a specific role in the kingdom in this life, but I think being declared of Joseph Ephraim and Manasseh is a way of generically representing the 10 tribes, and perhaps separating Manasseh out is also significant as the BofM has many prophesies related to the descendants of the Nephites/Lamanites (which similarly to most of the world becoming the seed of Abraham, it seems as if generally almost all those converted with primary ancestry native to the Americas belong to this group).

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