When you think about it what kind of loving God would not only make it difficult for his children to find and identify the one true church and 'only path back to him' (make it some obscure cult-like organisation that many good living and intelligent people would stay well clear of), but not only this, he supposedly goes and decides to 'withdraw' his church and priesthood authority from the face of the earth for nearly 1800 years? Hey, that sounds fair! "These idiots rejected and crucified my son so let's just see how they and their ancestors like it with no chance of hearing and accepting the plan of salvation" - if I ever became a God (which I won't), I think I'd be a bit more loving to my own spirit children - at least give them the chance to find the truth.

Also, with so very few destined to succeed in this plan (rough estimates of over 100 billion people born on this earth to date and yet how many of the few million active Mormons alone would even make the highest degree of the CK?)- sounds like one colossal failure in my mind. Heck, we even lost some billions of spirit brothers and sisters in the war in heaven. Way to go God!!

They say he toured the Middle East & Americas, so why not take the show to India, China or Africa?

If spreading the gospel was a priority then TSCC should have been founded in the British Empire.

What about all those poor people in Eastern Europe and Asia? The majority of people in the world live there. Why didn't the gospel start there? Instead it begins with some poor sheep herders in the Middle East. Then it disappears for a long time and comes back with some seemingly random dude in upstate New York. It seemed like God was trying to guarantee millions and millions wouldn't make it. I asked my bish about this and got a pat on the head followed by "The Lord works in mysterious ways. Someday we'll all understand his plan."

I agree with you sherlock, but I would like to clarify one thing, because this has been mentioned on another thread today also.

The number of exalted in LDS terms is not limited to only the faithful members who kept their temple recommends until death. Don't forget, ALL the children ever born who died before the age of eight are automatic heirs of the CK. Over the history of modern man, that amounts to a whole lot of people.

Plus, there will be a whole lot of people born during the fabled millennium to come, and LDS believe that most of these people will also be heirs of the CK. Not to mention the many millions or billions more that lived and died without a knowledge of the "gospel", who will accept it in the spirit world and be exalted.

So the numbers may not represent such an obvious failure of the MO god after all. Still a failure, yes.

I don't mean to counter your point, just to clarify.

Thanks for clarification. So the best chance of success in making it to the CK is if you're unfortunate enough to die young or be born late! Those who have really tried to endure to the end but struggled on a couple of minor things are shut out. Sounds fair?!

This in of itself makes a bit of a mockery of the plan of salvation and the need to be tried and tested. If you make it to puberty then your odds of success fall significantly - much better to be born when Satan will be bound for a thousand years. I guess we're not really then the chosen generation, but we're the schmucks that arrive when things are hardest and most will fail. The real favoured ones are being held back to the millennium.

Yeah, we're the chosen generation, alright. Chosen to be schmucks and losers! :)

Chosen to work our guts out, still fall short, and esad.

You're right, that's basically unfair.

to realize that there is no sand that is not shifting in the so-called Plan of Salvation.

After thinking it over carefully, the Plan of Salvation is a game which can only be bested by being born and taking only one breath. Thus you shoot straight to the CK and avoid the risk of falling prey to Satan.

Anagrammy

BTW, what about those beautiful babies born underwater who open there eyes and look all around while still attached to the umbilical cord and whose lungs are not inflated. No spirit there? Anyone can see the actual curiousity in their eyes- wonderment, "what is this I am seeing?"