Hi, I'm Janie

I am a stay-at-home mom with a husband, 4 children and 2 shih tzus! I live in the Pacific North West and I'm a Mormon.

About Me

I have a husband, 4 children (the oldest is serving in the Navy), and 2 dogs. I love to camp with my family, walk my dogs, read, and ride on the back of my husband's motorcycle.

Why I am a Mormon

I joined the Mormon Church when I was 15 years old. I noticed a difference between my Mormon friends at school and other kids. I wanted to know where I came from and why I was here on earth. I started coming to Church and read the Book of Mormon. I felt a feeling inside me that I knew the Book of Mormon was the word of God. I was baptized and eventually served a mission for the Church in Japan.

Personal Stories

Why do Mormons go on missions?

Mormons go on missions to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with other people. Serving a mission to Japan was a defining point in my life. I learned so much about working hard for the Lord and finding people searching for truth, and the gospel of Jesus Christ. One of the biggest blessings in my life has been going on a mission.

How I live my faith

I am in charge of the Young Women's organization at Church. This means I get to spend every Wednesday doing activities with girls between ages 12 and 18. I get a lot of enjoyment and blessings from being with such strong youth - they are just awesome! Sometimes they teach me more than I teach them.

I love attending church with my family and watching my children learn about the gospel and find out for themselves what the gospel of Jesus Christ means to them.

Why did your church previously practice plural marriage (polygamy)?

James Bowen answered...

At various times, the Lord has commanded His people to practice plural marriage. For example, He gave this command to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, David, and Solomon (Doctrine and Covenants 132:1). At other times the Lord has given other instructions. In the Book of Mormon, the Lord told the prophet Jacob “for there shall not any man among you have save it be one wife: and concubines he shall have none... for if I will, saith the Lord of Hosts, raise up seed unto me, I will command my people; otherwise they shall hearken unto these things” (Jacob 2:27-30).

In this dispensation, the Lord commanded some of the early Saints to practice plural marriage. The Prophet Joseph Smith and those closest to him, including Brigham Young and Heber C. Kimball, were challenged by this command, but they obeyed it. Church leaders regulated the practice. Those entering into it had to be authorized to do so, and the marriages had to be performed through the sealing power of the priesthood. In 1890, President Wilford Woodruff received a revelation that the leaders of the Church should cease teaching the practice of plural marriage (Official Declaration 1).

The Lord’s law of marriage is monogamy unless he commands otherwise to help establish the House of Israel (see Encyclopedia of Mormonism Vol. 3, pp. 1091-1095).
Maia Lynay Rodriguez answered...

Many of the prophets of the old testament practiced plural marriage under Gods direction; among them Abraham, Issac, Jacob, David and Solomon. It is an ancient practice. I know that God only allows it's use under his authorization. There have been instances, one in the Book of Mormon to be exact (Jacob 2:27-30) where God has condemned the practice. Given the fact that God has, throughout history, alternately prescribed and condemned the practice I believe that it is a situational doctrine where God, having all of the information, and us not having it all, reserves the right to make a judgment call, taking all things into consideration, and either prescribes it or ends its use, basing his decision on the needs of the moment and all other factors involved. So the answer to this question is that the church practiced polygamy because God prescribed it at that time, and we don't anymore because God revealed that the practice was to be discontinued. When plural marriage was practiced only a handful of men were selected by God to participate. It was, by far, not practiced by all men or women in the church. The ones who participated were obeying a commandment from God, not necessarily seeking out the practice.

Do Mormons worship Joseph Smith?

Ken answered...

Joseph Smith was a great man and we revere him as such because of the great and important things he accomplished. We do not worship Joseph Smith or serve him. We study about his life, because of the great significance of Joseph Smith's first vision and the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ and the priesthood authority. It is a series of remarkable historical events.

I recently had the opportunity to visit Rochester, New York on a business trip and I found time to visit the nearby town of Palmyra and the Sacred Grove. I was able to see and study and review the circumstances surrounding the events and experiences of Joseph Smith. This was no chance happening or coincidence.

We worship Our Heavenly Father and His Son, the resurrected Lord, Jesus Christ.