Adam and Eve (Mormonism)
Encyclopedia
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) teaches that Adam and Eve were the first man and the first woman to live on the earth and that their fall was an essential step in the plan of salvation
. Adam in particular is a central figure in Mormon cosmology
:
and Jesus Christ in a pre-mortal life
. Adam and Eve were "among our Father's noblest children" and they were "foreordained" to be the parents of the human race. In the pre-mortal life, Adam was the archangel
Michael
. As Michael, Adam "led the forces of God against the armies of Lucifer" in the War in Heaven. LDS Church scripture
provides no information about Eve
prior to her earth life, but it is believed that "she must have been a choice daughter of God".
In the LDS Church's temple
Endowment
, it is taught that Adam is Michael and that he assisted Jesus Christ in the creation.
and Jesus Christ and were placed in the Garden of Eden
, which church founder Joseph Smith, Jr. taught was located in Jackson County
, Missouri
. When they were created, their bodies were not mortal
and they could not die or have children, and they did not know right from wrong.
God commanded Adam and Eve to "have children and learn to control the earth". God told them they could eat of any tree in the garden except for the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil
, and that the day they ate the fruit from that tree they would die. Adam was made “lord or governor of all things on earth, and at the same time [enjoyed] communion … with his Maker, without a veil to separate between.”
tempted Adam and Eve to eat of the prohibited fruit. Eve yielded to temptation and ate of the fruit; when Adam learned that Eve had done so, he ate the fruit too.
Because they ate of the forbidden fruit, Adam and Eve underwent the "fall". As God had promised, the bodies of Adam and Eve became mortal and they became subject to physical death, as well as sickness and pain. They also underwent "spiritual death": they were cast out of the Garden of Eden and separated from the presence of God. Due to the fall, Adam and Eve also came to know the difference between good and evil and became capable of having children, as God had originally commanded.
s, Latter-day Saints generally do not see the fall of Adam and Eve as a serious sin
or as an overwhelmingly negative event. Rather, the fall is viewed as "a necessary step in the plan of life and a great blessing to all of us. Because of the Fall, we are blessed with physical bodies, the right to choose between good and evil, and the opportunity to gain eternal life. None of these privileges would have been ours had Adam and Eve remained in the garden." Latter-day Saint scripture reports that Adam and Eve later rejoiced that they had chosen to partake of the fruit, and the Book of Mormon
teaches that the fall was necessary for humankind to exist and for them to develop and eventually experience joy, which is the ultimate purpose of existence: "Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy." Furthermore, the LDS version of the fall of Adam and Eve emphasizes the fall was a part of God's plan: "But behold, all things have been done in the wisdom of him who knoweth all things."
and Seth
. Adam and Eve worshipped God, offered animal sacrifice
s, and were taught by an angel
about Jesus Christ. Adam is believed to be "the world's first Christian." Adam was taught the plan of salvation, was baptized in water in the name of Jesus Christ, received the gift of the Holy Ghost
, and was given the Melchizedek priesthood. Adam ordained his descendants to the priesthood, including Seth
, Enos, Cainan
, Mahalaleel
, Jared
, Enoch
, and Methuselah
.
Three years prior to his death, Adam and his righteous posterity gathered in the valley of Adam-ondi-Ahman
in present-day Daviess County, Missouri, where Adam and Eve had settled after being expelled from the Garden of Eden. At this meeting, Adam bestowed his last blessing on his descendants. Jesus Christ appeared at the meeting to bless Adam and Adam uttered prophecies, which are said to have been recorded by Enoch. Adam died when he was 930 years old.
said that he saw Adam and Eve in the world of spirits when Jesus visited there between his death and resurrection
. Joseph Smith also said that the voice of Adam was heard near the Susquehanna River
"detecting the devil when he appeared as an angel of light".
Joseph Smith, Jr. prophesied that Adam would one day return to Adam-ondi-Ahman
"to visit his people". Thousands will attend this meeting with Adam, which will be prior to and in preparation of the Second Coming
of Jesus. Adam is believed to be the "Ancient of Days
" prophesied of in the Book of Daniel
. At the Second Coming, Adam will "sound his trump", which will signal the resurrection
of the dead. At the end of the millennial rule of Christ
, Adam will lead the forces of good against Satan
in the final "battle of the great God", also known as the battle of Gog and Magog
.
One LDS Church apostle has suggested that it was Adam who was sent as the angel Michael to "strengthen" Jesus when he was praying in the Garden of Gethsemane during his passion
.
and was supported by other high ranking leaders of the church. However, the Adam–God doctrine never gained wide support by the church as a whole and was not taught as canon by Brigham Young. It was later repudiated by a church president Spencer W. Kimball
.
Plan of salvation
According to doctrine of the Latter Day Saint movement, the plan of salvation is a plan that God created to save, redeem, and exalt humankind...
. Adam in particular is a central figure in Mormon cosmology
Mormon cosmology
Mormon cosmology is the description of the history, evolution, and destiny of the physical and metaphysical universe according to Mormonism, which includes the doctrines taught by leaders and theologians of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , Mormon fundamentalism, the Restoration...
:
Few persons in all eternity have been more directly involved in the plan of salvation—the creation, the fall, and the ultimate redemption of the children of God—than the man Adam. His ministry among the sons and daughters of earth stretches from the distant past of premortality to the distant future of resurrection, judgment, and beyond.
Identity of Adam and Eve
According to LDS Church teachings, all people born on the earth lived with God the FatherGod the Father
God the Father is a gendered title given to God in many monotheistic religions, particularly patriarchal, Abrahamic ones. In Judaism, God is called Father because he is the creator, life-giver, law-giver, and protector...
and Jesus Christ in a pre-mortal life
Pre-existence
Pre-existence , beforelife, or pre-mortal existence refers to the belief that each individual human soul existed before conception, and at conception one of these pre-existent souls enters, or is placed by God, in the body...
. Adam and Eve were "among our Father's noblest children" and they were "foreordained" to be the parents of the human race. In the pre-mortal life, Adam was the archangel
Archangel
An archangel is an angel of high rank. Archangels are found in a number of religious traditions, including Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Michael and Gabriel are recognized as archangels in Judaism and by most Christians. Michael is the only archangel specifically named in the Protestant Bible...
Michael
Michael (archangel)
Michael , Micha'el or Mîkhā'ēl; , Mikhaḗl; or Míchaël; , Mīkhā'īl) is an archangel in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic teachings. Roman Catholics, Anglicans, and Lutherans refer to him as Saint Michael the Archangel and also simply as Saint Michael...
. As Michael, Adam "led the forces of God against the armies of Lucifer" in the War in Heaven. LDS Church scripture
Standard Works
The Standard Works of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are the four books that currently constitute its open scriptural canon.* The Holy Bible * The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ...
provides no information about Eve
Eve (Bible)
Eve was, according to the creation of Abrahamic religions, the first woman created by God...
prior to her earth life, but it is believed that "she must have been a choice daughter of God".
In the LDS Church's temple
Temple (LDS Church)
In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , a temple is a building dedicated to be a House of the Lord, and they are considered by Church members to be the most sacred structures on earth. Upon completion, temples are usually open to the public for a short period of time...
Endowment
Endowment (Latter Day Saints)
In the theology of the Latter Day Saint movement, an endowment refers to a gift of "power from on high", typically associated with Latter Day Saint temples. The purpose and meaning of the endowment varied during the life of movement founder Joseph Smith, Jr...
, it is taught that Adam is Michael and that he assisted Jesus Christ in the creation.
In the Garden of Eden
Adam and Eve's mortal bodies were created by God the FatherGod the Father
God the Father is a gendered title given to God in many monotheistic religions, particularly patriarchal, Abrahamic ones. In Judaism, God is called Father because he is the creator, life-giver, law-giver, and protector...
and Jesus Christ and were placed in the Garden of Eden
Garden of Eden
The Garden of Eden is in the Bible's Book of Genesis as being the place where the first man, Adam, and his wife, Eve, lived after they were created by God. Literally, the Bible speaks about a garden in Eden...
, which church founder Joseph Smith, Jr. taught was located in Jackson County
Jackson County, Missouri
Jackson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Missouri. With a population of 674,158 in the 2010 census, Jackson County is the second most populous of Missouri's counties, after St. Louis County. Kansas City, the state's most populous city and focus city of the Kansas City Metropolitan...
, Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
. When they were created, their bodies were not mortal
Immortality
Immortality is the ability to live forever. It is unknown whether human physical immortality is an achievable condition. Biological forms have inherent limitations which may or may not be able to be overcome through medical interventions or engineering...
and they could not die or have children, and they did not know right from wrong.
God commanded Adam and Eve to "have children and learn to control the earth". God told them they could eat of any tree in the garden except for the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil
Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil
In the Book of Genesis, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil or the tree of knowledge was a tree in the middle of the Garden of Eden. . God directly forbade Adam to eat the fruit of this tree...
, and that the day they ate the fruit from that tree they would die. Adam was made “lord or governor of all things on earth, and at the same time [enjoyed] communion … with his Maker, without a veil to separate between.”
Fall
SatanSatan
Satan , "the opposer", is the title of various entities, both human and divine, who challenge the faith of humans in the Hebrew Bible...
tempted Adam and Eve to eat of the prohibited fruit. Eve yielded to temptation and ate of the fruit; when Adam learned that Eve had done so, he ate the fruit too.
Because they ate of the forbidden fruit, Adam and Eve underwent the "fall". As God had promised, the bodies of Adam and Eve became mortal and they became subject to physical death, as well as sickness and pain. They also underwent "spiritual death": they were cast out of the Garden of Eden and separated from the presence of God. Due to the fall, Adam and Eve also came to know the difference between good and evil and became capable of having children, as God had originally commanded.
Positive interpretation of the fall
Unlike some ChristianChristian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
s, Latter-day Saints generally do not see the fall of Adam and Eve as a serious sin
Sin
In religion, sin is the violation or deviation of an eternal divine law or standard. The term sin may also refer to the state of having committed such a violation. Christians believe the moral code of conduct is decreed by God In religion, sin (also called peccancy) is the violation or deviation...
or as an overwhelmingly negative event. Rather, the fall is viewed as "a necessary step in the plan of life and a great blessing to all of us. Because of the Fall, we are blessed with physical bodies, the right to choose between good and evil, and the opportunity to gain eternal life. None of these privileges would have been ours had Adam and Eve remained in the garden." Latter-day Saint scripture reports that Adam and Eve later rejoiced that they had chosen to partake of the fruit, and the Book of Mormon
Book of Mormon
The Book of Mormon is a sacred text of the Latter Day Saint movement that adherents believe contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the American continent from approximately 2600 BC to AD 421. It was first published in March 1830 by Joseph Smith, Jr...
teaches that the fall was necessary for humankind to exist and for them to develop and eventually experience joy, which is the ultimate purpose of existence: "Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy." Furthermore, the LDS version of the fall of Adam and Eve emphasizes the fall was a part of God's plan: "But behold, all things have been done in the wisdom of him who knoweth all things."
Post-fall lives
Latter-day Saint scripture teaches that Adam and Eve had "sons and daughters" after the fall, including Cain and AbelCain and Abel
In the Hebrew Bible, Cain and Abel are two sons of Adam and Eve. The Qur'an mentions the story, calling them the two sons of Adam only....
and Seth
Seth
Seth , in Judaism, Christianity and Islam, is the third listed son of Adam and Eve and brother of Cain and Abel, who are the only other of their children mentioned by name...
. Adam and Eve worshipped God, offered animal sacrifice
Animal sacrifice
Animal sacrifice is the ritual killing of an animal as part of a religion. It is practised by many religions as a means of appeasing a god or gods or changing the course of nature...
s, and were taught by an angel
Angel
Angels are mythical beings often depicted as messengers of God in the Hebrew and Christian Bibles along with the Quran. The English word angel is derived from the Greek ἄγγελος, a translation of in the Hebrew Bible ; a similar term, ملائكة , is used in the Qur'an...
about Jesus Christ. Adam is believed to be "the world's first Christian." Adam was taught the plan of salvation, was baptized in water in the name of Jesus Christ, received the gift of the Holy Ghost
Gift of the Holy Ghost
In the Latter Day Saint movement, Confirmation , is an ordinance essential for salvation. It involves the laying on of hands and is performed after baptism. Through confirmation, the initiate becomes an official member of the church and receives the gift of the Holy Ghost...
, and was given the Melchizedek priesthood. Adam ordained his descendants to the priesthood, including Seth
Seth
Seth , in Judaism, Christianity and Islam, is the third listed son of Adam and Eve and brother of Cain and Abel, who are the only other of their children mentioned by name...
, Enos, Cainan
Kenan
Kenan , , or Cainan, was a Biblical patriarch first mentioned in the Hebrew Bible Book of Genesis as living before the Great Flood.- Family :...
, Mahalaleel
Mahalalel
Mahalalel, Mahalaleel, or Mihlaiel Hebrew מהללאל was a patriarch named in the Hebrew Bible.- Family :Mahalalel was a son of Kenan, son of Enos, son of Seth, son of Adam in the Old Testament of the Bible...
, Jared
Jared (ancestor of Noah)
Jared, or Jered, in Judeo-Christian religious belief was a fifth-generation descendant of Adam and Eve.- Tradition :...
, Enoch
Enoch (ancestor of Noah)
Enoch is a figure in the Generations of Adam. Enoch is described as Adam's greatx4 grandson , the son of Jared, the father of Methuselah, and the great-grandfather of Noah...
, and Methuselah
Methuselah
Methuselah is the oldest person whose age is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. Extra-biblical tradition maintains that he died on the 11th of Cheshvan of the year 1656 , at the age of 969, seven days before the beginning of the Great Flood...
.
Three years prior to his death, Adam and his righteous posterity gathered in the valley of Adam-ondi-Ahman
Adam-ondi-Ahman
Adam-ondi-Ahman is an historic site along the east bluffs above the Grand River in Daviess County, Missouri. According to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , it is the site where Adam and Eve lived after being expelled from the Garden of Eden...
in present-day Daviess County, Missouri, where Adam and Eve had settled after being expelled from the Garden of Eden. At this meeting, Adam bestowed his last blessing on his descendants. Jesus Christ appeared at the meeting to bless Adam and Adam uttered prophecies, which are said to have been recorded by Enoch. Adam died when he was 930 years old.
Visions and prophecies about Adam and Eve
Some presidents of the LDS Church have claimed to have had visions of Adam and Eve. In 1836, Joseph Smith, Jr. said that he saw Adam in the celestial kingdom and in 1918 Joseph F. SmithJoseph F. Smith
Joseph Fielding Smith, Sr. was the sixth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
said that he saw Adam and Eve in the world of spirits when Jesus visited there between his death and resurrection
Resurrection
Resurrection refers to the literal coming back to life of the biologically dead. It is used both with respect to particular individuals or the belief in a General Resurrection of the dead at the end of the world. The General Resurrection is featured prominently in Jewish, Christian, and Muslim...
. Joseph Smith also said that the voice of Adam was heard near the Susquehanna River
Susquehanna River
The Susquehanna River is a river located in the northeastern United States. At long, it is the longest river on the American east coast that drains into the Atlantic Ocean, and with its watershed it is the 16th largest river in the United States, and the longest river in the continental United...
"detecting the devil when he appeared as an angel of light".
Joseph Smith, Jr. prophesied that Adam would one day return to Adam-ondi-Ahman
Adam-ondi-Ahman
Adam-ondi-Ahman is an historic site along the east bluffs above the Grand River in Daviess County, Missouri. According to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , it is the site where Adam and Eve lived after being expelled from the Garden of Eden...
"to visit his people". Thousands will attend this meeting with Adam, which will be prior to and in preparation of the Second Coming
Second Coming
In Christian doctrine, the Second Coming of Christ, the Second Advent, or the Parousia, is the anticipated return of Jesus Christ from Heaven, where he sits at the Right Hand of God, to Earth. This prophecy is found in the canonical gospels and in most Christian and Islamic eschatologies...
of Jesus. Adam is believed to be the "Ancient of Days
Ancient of Days
Ancient of Days is a name for God in Aramaic: Atik Yomin; in the Greek Septuagint: Palaios Hemeron; and in the Vulgate: Antiquus Dierum....
" prophesied of in the Book of Daniel
Book of Daniel
The Book of Daniel is a book in the Hebrew Bible. The book tells of how Daniel, and his Judean companions, were inducted into Babylon during Jewish exile, and how their positions elevated in the court of Nebuchadnezzar. The court tales span events that occur during the reigns of Nebuchadnezzar,...
. At the Second Coming, Adam will "sound his trump", which will signal the resurrection
Resurrection
Resurrection refers to the literal coming back to life of the biologically dead. It is used both with respect to particular individuals or the belief in a General Resurrection of the dead at the end of the world. The General Resurrection is featured prominently in Jewish, Christian, and Muslim...
of the dead. At the end of the millennial rule of Christ
Millennialism
Millennialism , or chiliasm in Greek, is a belief held by some Christian denominations that there will be a Golden Age or Paradise on Earth in which "Christ will reign" for 1000 years prior to the final judgment and future eternal state...
, Adam will lead the forces of good against Satan
Satan
Satan , "the opposer", is the title of various entities, both human and divine, who challenge the faith of humans in the Hebrew Bible...
in the final "battle of the great God", also known as the battle of Gog and Magog
Gog and Magog
Gog and Magog are names that appear primarily in various Jewish, Christian and Muslim scriptures, as well as numerous subsequent references in other works. Their context can be either genealogical or eschatological and apocalyptic, as in Ezekiel and Revelation...
.
One LDS Church apostle has suggested that it was Adam who was sent as the angel Michael to "strengthen" Jesus when he was praying in the Garden of Gethsemane during his passion
Passion (Christianity)
The Passion is the Christian theological term used for the events and suffering – physical, spiritual, and mental – of Jesus in the hours before and including his trial and execution by crucifixion...
.
Adam–God doctrine
Several early leaders of the church taught that Adam was a god because he was the first of the human race. This doctrine was taught several times by Brigham Young during general conferencesand was supported by other high ranking leaders of the church. However, the Adam–God doctrine never gained wide support by the church as a whole and was not taught as canon by Brigham Young. It was later repudiated by a church president Spencer W. Kimball
Spencer W. Kimball
Spencer Woolley Kimball was the twelfth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1973 until his death in 1985.-Ancestry:...
.
See also
- Mormon views on evolution
- Original sin according to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
- Tree of life (biblical)