今日、世界にはさまざまな宗教が存在するのはなぜですか。

今日、世界にはさまざまな宗教が存在するのはなぜですか。

ローマ寺院

2022年8月12日

教育

Kaleb Smullin と Stockton Lott 著

There are over 4,000 different religions that cover the Earth,¹ with some of the most widely recognized including Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism. Ephesians 4:5 in the New Testament reads that there is “One Lord, one faith, and one baptism.” This scripture makes me wonder: if there is to be only one of each of these things, why are there so many different religions that teach about the same topics in different ways? Have you ever asked if any of these denominations hold the fullness of the truth? 

この質問は、200年以上前にジョセフ・スミスという若者によって尋ねられました。彼が書きました： 

「さまざまな宗派間の混乱と争いが非常に大きかったので、私のように若く、人や物事に精通していない人にとって、誰が正しくて誰が間違っているかという特定の結論に達することは不可能でした.この言葉の戦いと意見の騒動の中で、私はしばしば自分自身に言いました：何をすべきか？これらすべての当事者の誰が正しいですか。または、それらはすべて一緒に間違っていますか？そのうちのどれかが正しいとすれば、それはどれで、どうやってそれを知ることができますか?」²

Amidst this great time of confusion during the early 1800s in upstate New York, U.S.A., Joseph was determined to find an answer. He read in the Bible, James, chapter one, verse five which states, “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all 男性 寛大に、そして非難しない。それは彼に与えられる。」これほど彼に影響を与えた聖書はありませんでした。彼は、自分の質問に対する答えを見つけることができるとしたら、それは神からしか得られないことを知っていました.この聖句は、彼の人生の分岐点となるでしょう。

One day, he decided to put the scripture to the test. He went into a grove of trees near his house, where he could be alone. Once he reached the point where he wanted to offer his prayer, he knelt down and began the first vocal prayer of his life to ask of God to know which church was true. During his prayer, Joseph said in his own account: “I saw a pillar of light, exactly over my head above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me. When the light rested upon me, I saw two personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spoke unto me, calling me by name, and said pointing to the other, “This is my beloved Son, Hear him”³. 

God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, appeared to Joseph Smith, and both of them had bodies of flesh and bone. They explained that all the current religions on the Earth “draw near to [them] with their lips, but their hearts [were] far from [them],” which I understand to mean that they all had a part of the truth but had not yet received the fullness of Christ’s Gospel. But, Heavenly Father and the Savior promised that the Gospel of Jesus Christ, in its entirety, would be restored through Joseph. 

But why was it necessary for the truths to be restored? Where did they go? Did Christ not establish a perfect Church while He was on the Earth?

キリスト やりました establish a perfect Church. However, after His Resurrection and Ascension, and the apostles were killed, I understand that the power and authority that Christ had given to them to lead the Church became lost. Changes to His doctrine ensued as man no longer had the authority to receive such revelation on a church-wide level. With the passing of time, man realized that the doctrine that was being taught was not the same as that which Christ had established. Trying to bring back the truth by themselves, they established their own churches founded upon their own interpretations of the Bible. This, according to my belief, is why there are so many different sects of religion. 

Many years after Joseph’s vision, under God’s direction, he was able to find another record of scripture. With the power and gift of God, he was able to translate it into what is now called: The Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ. This record does not replace the Holy Bible, but instead, goes perfectly together to testify of the divinity of Jesus Christ. This record was given to us as proof, to know for ourselves if The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is Christ’s Church on the Earth today. Everyone is invited to read the Book of Mormon. I have read this book, and after praying about it, have felt the truth of it confirmed to me by the Holy Ghost. Anyone who prays about its message with a sincere heart, a genuine desire to find the truth, and faith in Christ will have God manifest the truth of the Book of Mormon to them by the power of the Holy Ghost. (Moroni 10:3-5).

についての詳細 Book of Mormon.

¹ フェアチャイルド、メアリー。 2021.「世界にはいくつの宗教がありますか?」宗教を学ぶ。 https://www.learnreligions.com/how-many-religions-are-there-in-the-world-5114658.

^2,3 スミス、ジョセフ。 「ジョセフ・スミス – 歴史」第 1 章。