Baptism for the dead: What Mormons and non-Mormons should understand about each other

Baptisms for the dead are currently stirring up some media attention. While a lot has been said on the topic, and a lot more can be said, I thought I would respond to a debate that I read on Slate.com about the topic. What struck me most is that there are misunderstandings on both sides of the debate and I would like to do what I can here to clear at least some of them up.

First, I’ll start with misunderstandings that non-Mormons have about Mormons. While we Mormons do believe that ours is the one true church, that doesn’t mean that we believe that all others are eternally damned. We don’t believe in an afterlife consisting of two catch all divisions of heaven and hell, but in an afterlife with three “Degrees of Glory.” While the highest degree, or the “Celestial Kingdom,” is what we aspire to as Mormons, even the lowest degree, or the “Telestial Kingdom,” does not fit the common description of hell as a place of endless agony. Basically, while we believe that the ultimate purpose of our life is to live with God again in the Celestial Kingdom, those who do not will be content with their eternal reward.

Additionally, we Mormons believe that God created us for this purpose, and gave us a path to accomplish it. That path is the gospel of Jesus Christ and, you might say, it lies within the church that Jesus Christ himself established and continues to direct. That is why we believe that ours is the one true church and why comments about our being arrogant because of this belief have the potential to offend us. This belief comes from some of our most basic beliefs about God, so belittling it strikes a very deep chord. While we don’t demand that others accept that ours is the one true church, or that there even is one, we do hope that this belief is respected, since it is a logical extension of our beliefs about God and since, without it, our belief in God and what he created us for is rendered practically meaningless.

Lastly, while it seems like Mormons are a homogeneous body, there is great diversity in our congregations. The church has rules in place to ensure that baptisms don’t happen for Holocaust victims. We respect the wishes of their descendants by not performing these ordinances. However, every Mormon knows at least one person who is so overzealous for the work that they disregard the rules. Please don’t judge us all harshly because of these baptisms when they never should have happened.

There are more misunderstandings to comment on, and I’m sure that what I’ve written so far has prompted more questions that I simply can’t address in this format at this time. Perhaps I can address them in future posts, but for now I will turn my attention to what Mormons need to understand about non-Mormons.

First of all, if we want our belief about being members of the one true church to be respected, we need to respect those who don’t share that belief. We can’t expect them to be happy about their ancestors being “made Mormons,” when they don’t want to be Mormons themselves. While we want to give everyone an opportunity to accept or reject these ordinances, we risk doing more harm than good by doing them against the wishes of their descendants.

As we talk to people about these events, let’s not forget that our beliefs about baptism for the dead are an extension of our beliefs about God. We believe that God, in his infinite mercy, granted all of his children an opportunity to accept or reject the ordinances needed to reach the Celestial Kingdom and that that opportunity has not passed once a person passes on. These proxy baptisms are a way for us to give the dead a chance to accept or reject the ordinances of salvation. We should not make the mistake of thinking that all proxy baptisms are accepted. Some of them will not be, and that person who rejects it will still end up in a Kingdom of Glory. Remember, we don’t believe in a God who would divide us into two catch all divisions of heaven and hell.

Again, there is more to write about on this topic, but I’ve probably gone on too far for this post anyway. I hope we can all wait to come to an understanding of each other before we make judgements and that we assume that mistakes are the result of good intentions and not malicious motives.