No Man Hath Seen God at Any Time

John 1: 18 and 1 Jn. 4: 12 talk of no man ever seeing God. Some use this to dispute Joseph Smith's vision of God the Father and Jesus. They also dispute that in the Joseph Smith translation of the Bible the verse was changed to read:
19 And no man hath seen God at any time, except he hath borne record of the Son; for except it is through him no man can be saved.

Exodus 24:9-11 states that at least 74 people saw Him with Moses.

9 ¶ Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and ^aseventy of the ^belders of Israel:

10 And they ^asaw the God of Israel: and there was under his ^bfeet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as ^cit were the body of heaven in his clearness.

11 And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they ^asaw God, and did eat and drink.

Exodus 33:11 - States that Moses spoke to God face to face.
11 And the Lord ^aspake unto Moses ^bface to face, as a man ^cspeaketh unto his ^dfriend. And he turned again into the camp: but his servant ^eJoshua, the son of ^fNun, a young man, departed not out of the tabernacle.

Gen 32:30 - states that Jacob saw God.
30 And Jacob called the name of the place ^aPeniel: for I have ^bseen God ^cface to face, and my life is preserved.

Deuteronomy 5:4 - States that Moses spoke to God face to face.
4 The Lord talked with you ^aface to face in the mount out of the midst of the ^bfire,

Modest Earrings

President Hinckley stated, "Do not disfigure yourself with tattoos or body piercings. If girls or women desire to have their ears pierced, they are encouraged to wear only one pair of modest earrings." (For the Strength of Youth, 16)

What is a modest pair of earrings?

Dictionary.com defines modesty as:
–noun, plural -ties.
1. the quality of being modest; freedom from vanity, boastfulness, etc.
2. regard for decency of behavior, speech, dress, etc.
3. simplicity; moderation.

Definition 3 may be instructive for what "modest earrings" means.

When women heard President Hinckley's statement did they think of the types of earrings they owned or just the number of earrings their wear at a time? Did they ask themselves if they had an immodest earrings?

Is a modest earring one that hangs from a hole one has punched in their body (ear) or that one has had someone else punch?

...As Far As It Is Translated Correctly

Part of the 8th Article of Faith states "We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly;..."

Often the Church is criticized for thinking that the bible is flawed. I think sometimes we as members do sometimes take that point of view. As I have studied this out I find that the Bible is a miracle that we have what we have in the good condition that it is in. Here I will list some comments on this that I find relating to this part of the 8th Article of Faith.

This statement by Richard R. Hopkins gives us a point of view to ponder about the 8th Article of Faith. "This simple statement speaks worlds more about acceptance of the biblical texts than many realize. It acknowledges that the currently accepted texts, transmitted over the ages from the original autographa (the original pages written by the prophets and apostles, or their scribes), are sufficiently accurate that men need only be concerned about the accuracy of their translation." (Biblical Mormonism, p17)

In commenting on criticisms of the Church which state that we do not use the Bible Hopkins states, "Those who level such criticisms at the Mormon Church and its leaders have little or no practical experience with LDS teaching. For example, at the direction of the very apostles maligned in the forgoing quotations, two years out of every four are spent in the study of the Old and New Testaments at weekly Sunday School classes attended by all adult Mormons. LDS leaders constantly teach from the Bible, about the Bible, and that every Mormon should study the Bible." (Biblical Mormonism, p18)

I would add that our teenages spend two years taking a course on the Bible. Many take that course every school day before school starts, generally around 6 or 7 in the morning.

Another book by the same author is How Greek Philosophy Corrupted the Christian Concept of God, which I have not read yet.

The Worth of Souls

President Monson related this story:
"Early in my service as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve, I was attending a conference in the Monument Park West Stake in Salt Lake City. My companion for the conference was a member of the General Church Welfare Committee, Paul C. Child. President Child was a student of the scriptures. He had been my stake president when I was an Aaronic Priesthood youth. Now we were together as conference visitors.

When it was his opportunity to participate, President Child took the Doctrine and Covenants and left the pulpit to stand among the priesthood to whom he was directing his message. He turned to section 18 and began to read: 'Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God. … And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!' 1

President Child then raised his eyes from the scriptures and asked the question of the priesthood brethren: 'What is the worth of a human soul?' He avoided calling on a bishop, stake president, or high councilor for a response. Instead, he selected the president of an elders quorum—a brother who had been a bit drowsy and had missed the significance of the question.

The startled man responded: 'Brother Child, could you please repeat the question?' The question was repeated: 'What is the worth of a human soul?' I knew President Child’s style. I prayed fervently for that quorum president. He remained silent for what seemed like an eternity and then declared, 'Brother Child, the worth of a human soul is its capacity to become as God.' (Ensign September 1997 p 2)