The Answer is Simple When We Dissect the Mormon Doctrine of Baptism for the Dead
In the early 19th Century, Protestant Christians in America debated a number of theological issues. Some of the questions that were often the focus of heated doctrinal controversy were as follows:
(1) What is the true meaning and proper mode for baptism (sprinkling, immersion, or pouring)? (We answered the first part of that question in a previous article: see Is Baptism Necessary for Salvation? http://www.marketfaith.org/2017/07/why-are-latter-day-saints-so-obsessed-with-genealogical-research-part-1/)
(2) Who is a valid candidate for baptism; an infant, or a believing child or adult?
(3) What happens to infants, or young children, who die without having received Christ, and/or being baptized?
(4) What is the eternal fate of people (including Jews) who lived and died before the time of Jesus Christ, and thus never had a chance to hear or respond to the Gospel?
(5) What is the eternal fate of people, even today, who, because of where they live, never hear the Gospel? (This is the old, “What about the heathen in Africa?” objection.)
Those doctrinal issues are still contested today, but perhaps without the same level of rancor that characterized 19th century arguments. Indeed, most mainline protestant denominations rarely, if ever, even discuss difficult doctrinal issues.
One man, in the 1820s, 30s, and 40s, claimed that God revealed to him the definitive answers to those questions. He was Joseph Smith, Jr., the founder and first president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS/ Mormons). Smith maintained that, beginning in the late 1820s, God led him to recover previously concealed inspired ancient scriptures (the Book of Mormon and sections of the Pearl of Great Price).
He also claimed that God actually revealed new information directly to him that he wrote down verbatim. Those revelations, and others supposedly given to later LDS presidents, are preserved in the Doctrine and Covenants (D&C). Thus, those three texts, along with the King James Version of the Bible, compose what Mormons call the “Four Standard Works” (their canonical scriptures). We have, in previous articles, demonstrated the overwhelming historical and textual deficiencies of those extra-biblical LDS books.
In the last installment, we addressed the erroneous ways Smith answered the first two questions above about the meaning of baptism for the LDS church. The key point he made was that in order for someone to receive salvation in its fullest sense (qualifying one for the Celestial Kingdom in heaven) he or she would need to be baptized by immersion by a man holding the LDS Aaronic priesthood (usually at age eight). We demonstrated that the LDS’ claim to bestow that priesthood is fallacious.
To solve the other three questions, Smith claimed that God revealed to him how those who have died without being properly baptized could nonetheless have it done for them. This would conveniently resolve the problems of what happens to infants or children who die too early to be baptized, what is the fate of those who lived before Christ, and what can be done in the future for those who die without hearing the Mormon gospel.
It also leads to the answer to our primary question in this two part series, “Why are Latter-day Saints so obsessed with genealogical research?” In this part 2, we will examine the LDS doctrine of baptism for the dead, and see why genealogical research is so important in their system.
In the first installment we mentioned that Gospel Principles is the current official textbook used to teach new converts the basic beliefs and practices of the LDS church (online at https://www.lds.org/manual/gospel-principles?lang=eng – ©1978, 2009, 2011 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc.). In one section of that book it states (my clarifications in parentheses).
“Many of our ancestors are among those who died without hearing about the (Mormon) gospel while on the earth. They now live in the spirit world. There they are taught the gospel of Jesus Christ. Those who have accepted the gospel are waiting for the temple ordinances (especially baptism) to be performed for them. As we perform these ordinances in the temple for our ancestors, we can share their joy.” (Gospel Principles, Chapter 40 – Temple Work and Family History, pp. 233-239)
This means that faithful Mormons are expected to research their family trees in order to find the names of their dead ancestors. Why? So they can submit their names to the church ancestry library so they can receive, by proxy, the temple ordinances of baptism for the dead, eternal marriage, and the endowments (we are not examining the latter two in this article).
LDS Baptism for the Dead
Thus Mormons believe that all people can be saved and join the LDS church after they have died, if a good living Mormon will go to a LDS temple (it must be performed in a temple) and is baptized on their behalf. So, we ask, on what bases does the LDS assert that baptism or the other temple ordinances can be done for dead people?
Gospel Principles quotes several “scriptures” to justify the LDS practice. (Note: D&C refers to the LDS book Doctrine and Covenants)
1 Peter 4:6 (gospel was preached to the dead)
For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit. (KJV)
Malachi 4:5-6;
5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord: 6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse. (KJV)
D&C 2:2 (Doctrine and Covenants)
2 And he shall plant in the hearts of the children the promises made to the fathers, and the hearts of the children shall turn to their fathers.
3 Nephi 25:5-6 (mission of Elijah) (From the Book of Mormon)
5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord; 6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.
1 Corinthians 15:29
29 Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? Why are they then baptized for the dead? (KJV)
D&C 128:15-18 (work for the dead) (From a letter written by Joseph Smith, Jr. to the church in 1842 – vss. 15-17 are Smith’s interpretations of 1 Cor. 15:29 and Malachi 4:5-6 – we quote beginning in vs. 18)
18 I might have rendered a plainer translation to this, but it is sufficiently plain to suit my purpose as it stands. It is sufficient to know, in this case, that the earth will be smitten with a curse unless there is a welding link of some kind or other between the fathers and the children, upon some subject or other-and behold what is that subject? It is the baptism for the dead. For we without them cannot be made perfect; neither can they without us be made perfect. Neither can they nor we be made perfect without those who have died in the gospel also; for it is necessary in the ushering in of the dispensation of the fulness (SIC) of times, which dispensation is now beginning to usher in, that a whole and complete and perfect union, and welding together of dispensations, and keys, and powers, and glories should take place, and be revealed from the days of Adam even to the present time. And not only this, but those things which never have been revealed from the foundation of the world, but have been kept hid from the wise and prudent, shall be revealed unto babes and sucklings in this, the dispensation of the fulness of times.
D&C 138 (redemption of the dead)
(D&C 138 is a rather lengthy explanation of a revelation supposedly given to Joseph F. Smith, the sixth president to the LDS in 1918. In it, he reiterates Joseph Smith’s views on Malachi 4:5-6 and 1 Cor. 15:29, and also describes how people who have died hear and receive the LDS gospel.)
In response we must first analyze the three verses quoted from the Bible. Gospel Principles interprets them as evidence for baptism for the dead. 1 Peter 4:6 is quoted to prove that the LDS gospel is preached to non-Mormons who have died and now reside in what they refer to as “Spirit Prison.” That term was coined from the LDS’ spurious interpretation of 1 Peter 3:19. Both of those verses are, at best, ambiguous and difficult to interpret. New Testament scholars disagree as to what exactly Peter was talking about. In any case, the verses must not be pulled out of context as Joseph Smith does, but must be read in the full context of 1 Peter. Simply put, to use them to justify baptism for the dead is a major hermeneutical overstretch.
As for Malachi 4:5-6, it is also used out of its context. It is part of a section describing the ministry of Elijah in the eschatological age. The text says nothing at all about baptism, and must be read in light of what Jesus said in Matthew 11:14. Jesus says the promise is fulfilled by John the Baptist “in the spirit and power of Elijah” (though he was not literally Elijah – John 1:21-23). Of course, John only baptized living people who had repented and confessed their sins (Matt. 3:1-6).
Smith takes the Malachi phrase “turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers,” to be a command to be baptized on behalf of their forefathers who have long sense died. He implies that if this work for the dead is not done, a curse will fall on the people. This phrase, however, says nothing about baptism at all. It is obviously a promise that in the Messianic era the loving hearts of fathers and children, rightly, will be toward one another, and most importantly toward God. This promise was also fulfilled in John the Baptist (see Luke 1:16-17).
The other New Testament verse used by the LDS to justify baptism for the dead is 1 Corinthians 15:29 (KJV). This is another obscure passage that even biblical scholars wonder about. Who and what exactly Paul was referring to is unsaid. However, the context of chapter 15 concerns the reality and nature of the resurrection of Christ and of his followers. Paul simply mentions, in what is a rhetorical question, that someone, or group, in that time was baptizing for the dead. Note he refers to them in the third person plural pronoun (they), not in the first person (we). Paul does not say he is participating in the practice or that he endorses it, only that someone, he does not say who, is doing it. He does not even say they were Christians. His point was that, if they did not believe in a bodily resurrection of the dead, then why would they bother to be baptized for them?
For the LDS to use 1 Corinthians 15:29 as a biblical justification for their baptisms for the dead is a major hermeneutical leap from what Paul was saying, and completely misses the point of his writing chapter fifteen.
The other above scriptures quoted in this section of Gospel Principles are, of course, as we pointed out in part one, not biblical at all. They are Joseph Smith’s supposed modern revelations that confirm his already established doctrinal position on baptism for the dead. Some are plainly just plagiarisms of Bible verses.
D&C 2:2, for instance, is identified in its subscript introduction as part of… “An extract from Joseph Smith’s history relating the words of the angel Moroni to Joseph Smith the Prophet, while in the house of the Prophet’s father at Manchester, New York, on the evening of September 21, 1823. Moroni was the last of a long line of historians who had made the record that is now before the world as the Book of Mormon.”
Smith claimed it was said to him by an angel, yet it is obviously a rehash of Malachi 4:5-6. The same is true about 3 Nephi 25:5-6 (from the Book of Mormon).
LDS Genealogical Research
From this evidence it is easy to see why the LDS spends literally millions of dollars and thousands of hours of its member’s time researching and cataloging genealogical information.
Gospel Principles explains the process:
“What are the basic steps of doing family history work? Latter-day Saints are encouraged to participate in family history activities. Through these activities we learn about our ancestors so that we can perform ordinances for them. Family history involves three basic steps: 1. Identify our ancestors. 2. Find out which ancestors need temple ordinances performed. 3. Make certain that the ordinances are performed for them.” (Gospel Principles, Chapter 40 – Temple Work and Family History, pp. 233-239)
In the Mormon theological system, doing “work for the dead” is considered an essential duty for members. It is their responsibility to find the names of their deceased ancestors in order to provide for them the chance for post-mortem salvation in Spirit Prison. To aid in this endeavor, the LDS operates the world’s largest Family History Library. A database of millions of deceased people and their genealogies are kept there. Also, detailed files are kept on each dead person who has been baptized by proxy (or received other post-mortem ordinances). Those names are cataloged, along with the member’s name who was baptized on their behalf, along with the date and temple location where it was performed.
The LDS teaches that Mormon missionaries will be sent from Paradise (where dead Mormons go to await the resurrection) to preach the Mormon gospel to the unbaptized dead in Spirit Prison. There, non-Mormons will have the opportunity, if they so choose, to accept the message and become members of Christ’s church (the LDS of course). However, as we have indicated, it requires that a Mormon now living in the flesh go to the temple to be baptized on their behalf. The same post-mortem principle applies to marriage and receiving the endowments.
Conclusion
So then, “Why are Latter-day Saints so obsessed with genealogical research?” The answer is that Mormons feel they must passionately care about the eternal fate of the dead. Their dead family members depend on it. The truth must be said, however, that the doctrine of baptism for the dead, as practiced by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is totally without biblical justification. Therefore, Mormons who zealously research their family histories to find the names of dead ancestors for that purpose are in great error and simply wasting their time.
In fact it is contrary to Paul’s admonitions in 1 Timothy 1:3-4 and Titus 3:9.
3 As I urged you upon my departure for Macedonia, remain on at Ephesus so that you may instruct certain men not to teach strange doctrines, 4 nor to pay attention to myths and endless genealogies, which give rise to mere speculation rather than furthering the administration of God which is by faith. (1 Timothy 1:3-4 NASB)
But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and strife and disputes about the Law, for they are unprofitable and worthless. (Titus 3:9 NASB)
Also, it could be said that the LDS obsession with the dead is a violation of the biblical teaching against occult mediums and necromancy (communication with the dead). Many Mormons have testified that their deceased non-Mormon loved ones actually appeared to them visibly or in dreams to ask that temple work be done fore them. However, the Bible clearly warns:
9 When you come into the land which the Lord, your God, is giving you, you shall not learn to imitate the abominations of the nations there. 10 Let there not be found among you anyone … who casts spells, consults ghosts and spirits (mediums), or seeks oracles from the dead. 12 Anyone who does such things is an abomination to the Lord, and because of such abominations the Lord, your God, is dispossessing them before you. 13 You must be altogether sincere with the Lord, your God.” (Deuteronomy 18:9-10, 12-13 NASB)
The Bible says, “And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment” (Hebrews 9:27 NASB). In other words, there is no second chance for salvation. The lost must come to Christ in this lifetime. As for infants and others who lack the maturity or mental capacity to be held accountable for their sins, we can reasonably trust that God will find room for them in His eternal kingdom (ca. Jesus’ words about children in Matt. 18:2-4; 19:13-15; Mark 10:13-15; and Luke 18:1-17). The fate of the “heathen” is not explicitly delineated in Scripture. Nonetheless, we can rest assured God will deal justly and righteously with every person.
That being said, the works based gospel of Mormonism is unbiblical and will save no one. Salvation is by grace through faith in Jesus alone. It is not by baptism or membership in the LDS or any other church. Complete and total salvation is not by anything except trusting in Jesus. People must repent of their sins and place their faith in Jesus as Savior and Lord. (John 1:12; 3:16; 14:3-6; Acts 3:19; 4:12; 16:30-31; 26:18-20; Rom. 3:19-24; 6:23; 10:9-10; Eph. 2:8,9).
That is something worth being obsessed about!
© 2017 Tal Davis