Earthly Indiscretions

And, as a leader of the Church and in a measure being responsible for youth and their well-being, I raise my voice to say to you: Tighten your belts, hold on, and you can survive the turbulence. I have interviewed thousands of young people and many seem to flounder. Some give excuses for their errors and indulge in unwarranted rationalizations.

I hope I may be able to clarify at least in some areas the stand of the God of heaven and his church on some vital issues. First, let us pause to remind ourselves that we are the spiritual children of God, and that we are his supreme creation. In each of us there is the potentiality to become a God—pure, holy, true, influential, powerful, independent of earthly forces. We learn from the scriptures that we each have eternal existence, that we were in the beginning with God see Abr. But there are false teachers everywhere, using speech and pornographic literature, magazines, radio, TV, street talk—spreading damnable heresies which break down moral standards, and this to gratify the lust of the flesh.

Lucifer in his diabolical scheming deceives the unwary and uses every tool at his command. Seldom does one go to a convention, a club meeting, a party, or a social gathering without hearing vulgarity, obscenity, and suggestive stories. And the Savior said that the very elect would be deceived by Lucifer if it were possible. He will use his logic to confuse and his rationalizations to destroy.

He will shade meanings, open doors an inch at a time, and lead from purest white through all the shades of gray to the darkest black. So I wish today to help define meanings of words and acts for you young people, to fortify you against error, anguish, pain, and sorrow. I will begin with a true story.

The characters are real. With him at his side was a lovely girl, slight of frame and beautiful of face and form. It was obvious that they loved one another, for as they sat together across the desk from me, he reached quietly for her hand and there were meaningful glances. The melodious voice was hesitant and a bit choked with emotion as he introduced his girl friend, and there was pleading in their eyes. We prayed and fasted and agonized and finally came to the conclusion that we must try to make adjustments.

Joan Early

It started out a very special one. But as I see it now, it turned out to be a tragic one, the beginning of our troubles. When I saw her coming downstairs that night, I thought no girl was ever so beautiful and so sweet. We danced through the evening; and then when we sat in the car, long and silently afterward, my thoughts became unruly as we became more and more intimate.

We did not notice time—the hours passed. The simple kisses we had often exchanged gradually developed into petting. We stopped at that. But there were other nights—the bars were down. We loved each other so much that we convinced ourselves that it was not so wrong merely to pet since we sort of belonged to one another anyway. Where we ended one night became the starting point for the next night, and we continued on and on, until finally it happened—almost as though we could not control ourselves—we had intercourse. We had even talked about it and agreed that whatever else we did we would not go that far.

And then when it was late—so late—so everlastingly late—we woke up to the meaning of what we had done. Immorality does not begin in adultery or perversion. It begins with little indiscretions like sex thoughts, sex discussions, passionate kissing, petting and such, growing with every exercise. The small indiscretion seems powerless compared to the sturdy body, the strong mind, the sweet spirit of youth who give way to the first temptation. But soon the strong has become weak, the master the slave, spiritual growth curtailed.

1. Alışveriş Sepeti.
2. Books by Joan Early.
3. Remember When!
4. Miscellaneous Writings/Chapter 05.
5. A Kitchen Mockery!
6. Dance of Love (Montbryce~The Next Generation Medieval Romance Series Book 3).
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But if the first unrighteous act is never given root, the tree will grow to beautiful maturity and the youthful life will grow toward God, our Father. The way of the transgressor is hard. It always has been and it always will be. But I went on to tell them that in his goodness he provided for us a way to forgiveness. One may do as he pleases, but he cannot evade responsibility. He may break laws, but he cannot avoid penalties. One gets by with nothing.

Miscellaneous Writings/Chapter 05 - Wikisource, the free online library

Serious as is the sin of fornication sexual intercourse by the unmarried , there is forgiveness upon condition of total repentance. But first one must come to a realization of the seriousness of his sin. Since the beginning there has been in the world a wide range of sins.

Many of them involve harm to others, but every sin is against ourselves and God, for sins limit our progress, curtail our development, and estrange us from good people, good influences, and from our Lord. The early apostles and prophets mention numerous sins that were reprehensible to them. Many of them were sexual sins—adultery, being without natural affection, lustfulness, infidelity, incontinence, filthy communications, impurity, inordinate affection, fornication.

Included are every hidden and secret sin and all unholy and impure thoughts and practices. One of the worst of these is incest. The First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve have determined that the penalty for incest shall be excommunication.

Dating Standards

Also, one excommunicated for incest shall not be baptized again into the Church without the written permission of the First Presidency. Can anyone truthfully say he did not know such things were wrong? These unholy practices, whatever may be their unmentionable names with all their approaches and numerous manifestations, are condemned by the Lord and his church.

Some may be more heinous than others, but all are sin, in spite of statements to the contrary of those who falsely pretend to know. The world may have its norm; the Church has a different one.

Account Options

The world may countenance premarital sex experiences, but the Lord and his church condemn in no uncertain terms any and every sex relationship outside of marriage. Paul lashed out against these unholy evidences of the vulgar mind and of uncontrolled passion and desire:. Since courtship is prelude to marriage and encourages close associations, many have convinced themselves that intimacies are legitimate—a part of the courting process.

Many have cast off bridle and harness and have relaxed the restraints. Necking is the younger member of this unholy family. Who would say that he or she who pets has not become lustful, has not become passionate? Is it not this most abominable practice that God rebuked in his modern reiteration of the Ten Commandments: What, may I ask you, is like unto adultery if it is not petting? Can anyone convince himself that this is not deep sin? We must repeat what we have said many times: The Church has no tolerance for any kind of perversions.

The Lord has indicated his lack of tolerance, stating:.

Donald Trump, According To Dante's Inferno.

When the scriptures are so plain, how can anyone justify immoralities and call them love? Old values are upheld by the Church not because they are old, but rather because through the ages they have proved right. It will always be the rule. In order to avoid difficulty and possible temptation, I suggest again the following standard.

Any dating or pairing off in social contacts should be postponed until at least the age of 16 or older, and even then there should still be much judgment used in selections and in the seriousness. Young people should still limit the close contacts for several years, since the boy will be going on his mission when he is 19 years old. Dating and especially steady dating in the early teens is most hazardous. It distorts the whole picture of life. It deprives you of worthwhile and rich experiences; it limits friendships; it reduces the acquaintances which can be so valuable in selecting a partner for time and eternity.

There is definitely a time for the dance, for travel, for associations, for the date, and even for the steady date that will culminate in the romance which will take young people to the holy temple for eternal marriage. But it is the timing that is so vital. It is wrong to do even the right things at the wrong time in the wrong place under the wrong circumstances. I believe the youth of Zion want to hear the clear and unmistakable tones of the trumpet, and it is my hope, that I can play the tune with accuracy and precision so that no honest person will ever be confused.

I hope fervently that I am making clear the position of the Lord and his church on these unmentionable practices. Latter-day Saints are urged to avoid this practice. Do we care that Donald Trump does not believe in climate change? That he encourages nuclear proliferation? Or that he says he 'loves war'? He wants to want to Make America Great Again. What form will the greatness take in the midst of such chaos?

Donald Trump is encouraging America to pave the road to our own destruction. By embracing the angry, violent and xenophobic attitudes he encourages at his rallies, we forsake the higher values --faith in the future, personal responsibility, empathy for others and creative problem-solving-- that would enable us to create jobs at home and work with our allies. Our political discourse has instead devolved into a morass of greed, self-aggrandizement, self-loathing and entitlement. The white, working class American men who support Trump? His policies will leave them high and dry as well.

At first I didn't want to seem too 'political'. I was like one of those wishy-washy souls at the Dantean vestibule. I have, in the last year, seen too many people accept Trumpism as a kind of religion and embrace The Donald as a strong man savior to remain silent. So many seem all too eager to dismiss his verbal barbarity and innuendo as long as it is directed at 'others' who do not look like them, or worship as they do, or speak the same language as long as their standard of living does not change. Then they came for me, and by that time there was no one left to speak up.

While Hillary Clinton is not a flawless candidate, I am very much looking forward to voting for her on November 8th. Her extensive experience on the world stage, coupled with her controlled temperament Did you see how she kept her composure during those debates? I am not voting for Hillary simply because she is a woman, but because I believe she possesses the preparation, commitment and judgment necessary to make difficult decisions at home and abroad and to command respect on the world stage.

In the deeply red area where I live, my views are unpopular, to say the least.

There is still a latent and not-so-latent misogyny in America. I feel the sideways looks and eye-rolls when I talk about politics; partly, I know, because of my gender. I am surrounded by people proudly wearing 'Life's A Bitch: Don't Vote For One" t-shirts at my local fair. We're all aware of the verbal encouragement extended to little girls--you can be anything you want to be!

Many women still bear the lion's share of childcare, eldercare and housework, often with little support or acknowledgment.