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There is one God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, a unity of three coeternal Persons. God is immortal, all-powerful, all-knowing, above all, and ever present.

The Father and the Son have tangible bodies of flesh and bones, and the Holy Ghost is a personage of spirit. Although the members of the Godhead are distinct beings with distinct roles, they are one in purpose and doctrine.

The Holy Scriptures are the supreme, authoritative, and the infallible revelation of His will. They are the standard of character, the test of experience, the definitive revealer of doctrines, and the trustworthy record of God’s acts in history.

We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God.

One of the most prominent co-founders of the Seventh-day Adventist church, Ellen G. White, demonstrated the gift of prophecy and also met the criteria of the above tests of a prophet. Her writings speak with prophetic authority and provide comfort, guidance, instruction, and correction to the church. She also made clear that the Bible is the standard by which all teaching and experience must be tested.

Revelation is communication from God to His children. This guidance comes through various channels according to the needs and circumstances of individuals, families, and the Church as a whole. When the Lord reveals His will to the Church, He speaks through His prophet.

The sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments are the clear, infallible revelation of God’s will and His salvation.

The official, canonized scriptures of the Church, often called the standard works, are the Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price.

The Holy Scriptures, Old and New Testaments, are the written Word of God, given by divine inspiration. The inspired authors spoke and wrote as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.

The Bible is the work of many prophets and inspired writers acting under the influence of the Holy Spirit (2 Pet. 1:21).

Select a Bible version for study that is faithful to the meaning contained in languages in which the Bible originally was written, giving preference to translations done by a broad group of scholars and published by a general publisher above translations sponsored by a particular denomination or narrowly focused group.

As the Bible was compiled, organized, translated, and transcribed, many errors entered the text. The existence of such errors becomes apparent when one considers the numerous and often conflicting translations of the Bible in existence today.

The Holy Scriptures are the supreme, authoritative, and the infallible revelation of His will.

Latter-day Saints revere the Bible. They study it and believe it to be the word of God. However, they do not believe the Bible, as it is currently available, is without error.

God has revealed in Scripture the authentic and historical account of His creative activity. He created the universe, and in a recent six-day creation the Lord made “the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them” and rested on the seventh day.

Under the direction of Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ created the heavens and the earth. From scripture revealed through the Prophet Joseph Smith, we know that in the work of the Creation, the Lord organized elements that had already existed. He did not create the world “out of nothing,” as some people believe.

Sent by the Father and the Son to be always with His children, He extends spiritual gifts to the church, empowers it to bear witness to Christ, and in harmony with the Scriptures leads it into all truth.

From the Prophet’s account of the First Vision and from his other teachings, we know that the members of the Godhead are three separate beings. The Father and the Son have tangible bodies of flesh and bones, and the Holy Ghost is a personage of spirit.

Salvation is all of grace and not of works, and its fruit is obedience to the Commandments.

We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel.

Abiding in Him we become partakers of the divine nature and have the assurance of salvation now and in the judgment.

Enduring to the end means remaining true to our commitment to God and His commandments throughout our lives. It includes making covenants with Him, repenting each day, and relying upon the power of Jesus Christ to help us overcome trials, temptations, and opposition. All who endure to the end will receive the gift of eternal life and return to live with God (see Matthew 10:22).

The Bible teaches a doctrine of predestination which is based on God’s foreknowledge of individual future choices. Basically, predestination is God’s decision to put in place a plan to save His yet to be created world.

Agency is the ability and privilege God gives us to choose and to act for ourselves. Agency is essential in the plan of salvation. Without agency, we would not be able to learn or progress or follow the Savior.

The universal church is composed of all who truly believe in Christ, but in the last days, a time of widespread apostasy, a remnant has been called out to keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.

Each of us will accordingly receive an eternal dwelling place in a specific kingdom of glory. The Lord taught this principle when He said, “In my Father’s house are many mansions.” There are three kingdoms of glory: the celestial kingdom, the terrestrial kingdom, and the telestial kingdom.

When our first parents disobeyed God, they denied their dependence upon Him and fell from their high position. The image of God in them was marred and they became subject to death. Their descendants share this fallen nature and its consequences.

We believe that men will be punished for their own sins, and not for Adam’s transgression.

Man and woman were made in the image of God with individuality, the power and freedom to think and to do. Though created free beings, each is an indivisible unity of body, mind, and spirit, dependent upon God for life and breath and all else.

Because we are all God’s children, every person who was ever born on earth is our spirit brother or sister. And because we are the spirit children of God, we each have inherited the potential to develop His divine qualities.

Through the Spirit we are born again and sanctified; the Spirit renews our minds, writes God’s law of love in our hearts, and we are given the power to live a holy life. Abiding in Him we become partakers of the divine nature and have the assurance of salvation now and in the judgment.

Perfect can also mean without sin or evil. Only Christ was totally perfect. True followers of Christ may become perfect through His grace and Atonement.

The great principles of God’s law are embodied in the Ten Commandments and exemplified in the life of Christ. They express God’s love, will, and purposes concerning human conduct and relationships and are binding upon all people in every age.

Much of the ceremonial law was fulfilled at the death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, which ended sacrifice by the shedding of blood (Alma 34:13–14). The law was administered under the Aaronic Priesthood and was a preparatory gospel to bring its adherents to Christ.

In the Adventist church, baptisms involve new believers being fully immersed under water then immediately brought back up.

Baptism by immersion in water by one having authority is the first ordinance of salvation and exaltation in the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is also necessary for an individual to become a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and to receive eternal salvation.

Baptism is a symbol of our union with Christ, the forgiveness of our sins, and our reception of the Holy Spirit.

We believe that the first principles and ordinances of the Gospel are: first, Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, Repentance; third, Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; fourth, Laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost.

By baptism we confess our faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and testify of our death to sin and of our purpose to walk in newness of life.

By performing proxy baptisms on behalf of those who have died, Church members offer these blessings to deceased ancestors. Individuals can then choose to accept or reject the ordinances that have been performed on their behalf.

The Lord’s Supper is a participation in the emblems of the body and blood of Jesus as an expression of faith in Him, our Lord and Saviour. In this experience of communion Christ is present to meet and strengthen His people.

Today the sacrament is an ordinance in which Church members partake of bread and water in remembrance of Jesus Christ’s atoning sacrifice. This ordinance is an essential part of worship and spiritual development. Through this ordinance, Church members renew the covenants they made with God when they were baptized.

The communion service is open to all believing Christians.

Although the sacrament is for members of the Church, nothing should be done to prevent others from partaking of it.

Neither the wine nor the bread contained elements of fermentation because on the evening of the first day of the Hebrew Passover all leaven, or fermentation, had been removed from their dwellings (Ex. 12:15, 19; 13:7). Therefore, only unfermented grape juice and unleavened bread are appropriate for use in the communion service, and great care must be exercised in providing these elements.

The broken bread is a reminder of His body and His physical suffering—especially His suffering on the cross. It is also a reminder that through His mercy and grace, all people will be resurrected and given the opportunity for eternal life with God. The water is a reminder that the Savior shed His blood in intense spiritual suffering and anguish, beginning in the Garden of Gethsemane and concluding on the cross.

The communion service customarily is celebrated once per quarter. The service includes the ordinance of foot-washing followed by the Lord’s Supper.

The priesthood includes the authority to administer gospel ordinances that are necessary for salvation and exaltation. People make sacred covenants with God as they receive these ordinances.

The Seventh-day Adventist form of governance is representative, which recognizes that authority rests in the membership and is expressed through duly elected representatives at each level of organization, with executive responsibility delegated to representative bodies and officers for the governing of the Church at each separate level.

The President of the Church is a prophet, seer, and revelator. He is also the senior Apostle. Under the Lord’s direction, he presides over the Church and is the only person on earth authorized to exercise all priesthood keys (see Matthew 16:16–19; see also 3.4.1.1 in this handbook).

While ordination contributes to Church order, it neither conveys special qualities to the persons ordained nor introduces a kingly hierarchy within the faith community.

Under the direction of those who hold priesthood keys, the Aaronic Priesthood and the Melchizedek Priesthood are conferred on worthy male Church members (see Doctrine and Covenants 84:14–17). After the appropriate priesthood is conferred, the person is ordained to an office in that priesthood, such as deacon or elder.

In 2015 the General Conference Session voted against allowing regions of the world to choose whether to ordain women to the gospel ministry.

Worthy male Church members receive priesthood authority through priesthood conferral and ordination to priesthood offices. All Church members can exercise delegated authority as they are set apart or assigned to help accomplish God’s work.

Since returning to Heaven, Jesus serves as our Advocate and Intercessor. He stands between us and Satan, and also connects us directly to the Father.

It is a duty of all persons to confess all their sins to the Lord and obtain His forgiveness (D&C 58:42–43). When necessary, sins should be confessed to the person or persons sinned against. Serious sins should be confessed to a Church official (in most cases the bishop).

The fourth commandment of God’s unchangeable law requires the observance of this seventh-day Sabbath as the day of rest, worship, and ministry in harmony with the teaching and practice of Jesus, the Lord of the Sabbath.

The Sabbath is the Lord’s day, set apart each week for rest and worship. In Old Testament times, God’s covenant people observed the Sabbath on the seventh day of the week because God rested on the seventh day when He had created the earth. After the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, which occurred on the first day of the week, the Lord’s disciples began observing the Sabbath on the first day of the week, Sunday.

We should recognize and acknowledge the contribution of different cultures in worshiping God. Musical forms and instruments vary greatly in the worldwide Seventh-day Adventist family, and music drawn from one culture may sound strange to someone from a different culture.

Hymns and worshipful children’s songs are used for all congregational singing in worship services. Hymns, children’s songs, or other sacred musical selections may be used for prelude and postlude music, choir music, and solo or small group presentations.

The veneration of images or icons is not part of the Adventist liturgy. We instinctively dislike the veneration of objects that represent God and Christ because it suggests the violation of the second commandment.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints does not display the cross on its buildings or in its chapels or classrooms or similar places.

Clearly the gift of tongues may best be understood as the gift of speaking foreign languages without having studied them.

A gift of the Holy Ghost that allows inspired individuals to speak in, understand, or interpret unfamiliar languages. We believe in the gift of tongues (A of F 1:7).

The Scriptures testify that one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit is prophecy. This gift is an identifying mark of the remnant church and we believe it was manifested in the ministry of Ellen G. White.

We believe in the gift of tongues, prophecy, revelation, visions, healing, interpretation of tongues, and so forth.

He who subjugated the demonic spirits during His earthly ministry has broken their power and made certain their ultimate doom. Jesus’ victory gives us victory over the evil forces that still seek to control us, as we walk with Him in peace, joy, and assurance of His love.

Individuals do not have to give in to Satan’s temptations. Each person has the power to choose good over evil, and the Lord has promised to help all who seek Him through sincere prayer and faithfulness.

The fact that covering the head was a cultural issue does not mean that what Paul wrote is meaningless for us. The values he was attempting to inculcate in believers are to be preserved by us and embodied in other ways.

In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, there is no special outer religious clothing in regular Sunday worship services.

Forever truly God, He became also truly human, Jesus the Christ. He was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary.

In the New Testament, a virgin chosen by God the Father to be the mother of His Son in the flesh. After Jesus’ birth, Mary had other children (Mark 6:3).

Within the Roman Catholic tradition the need for clarification is necessary because of their belief in the perpetual virginity of Mary. For us this is a historical question, not a theological one.

In the New Testament, a virgin chosen by God the Father to be the mother of His Son in the flesh. After Jesus’ birth, Mary had other children (Mark 6:3).

The Bible says those who have died know nothing. That means we aren’t aware of the passage of time after death. We aren’t aware of what’s happening in the world.

We are all children of God. He loves us and knows our needs, and He wants us to communicate with Him through prayer. We should pray to Him and no one else.

The wages of sin is death. But God, who alone is immortal, will grant eternal life to His redeemed. Until that day death is an unconscious state for all people.

The postmortal spirit world is a place where the spirits of those who have died dwell before the Resurrection. The spirit world consists of paradise, where the righteous dwell, and spirit prison, where those who did not know the gospel or who were wicked in mortality dwell.

The wages of sin is death. But God, who alone is immortal, will grant eternal life to His redeemed. Until that day death is an unconscious state for all people.

The postmortal spirit world is a place where the spirits of those who have died dwell before the Resurrection. The spirit world consists of paradise, where the righteous dwell, and spirit prison, where those who did not know the gospel or who were wicked in mortality dwell.

And when the lost die the second death, they will be like no more, like ash on the ground. They are destroyed forever, not forever burning.

Latter-day revelations speak of hell in at least two ways. First, it is another name for spirit prison, a temporary place in the postmortal world for those who died without a knowledge of the truth or those who were disobedient in mortality. Second, it is the permanent location of Satan and his followers and the sons of perdition, who are not redeemed by the Atonement of Jesus Christ.

The Saviour’s coming will be literal, personal, visible, and worldwide. When He returns, the righteous dead will be resurrected, and together with the righteous living will be glorified and taken to heaven, but the unrighteous will die.

At the beginning of the Millennial Era, Christ will return to the earth. This event will mark the end of the mortal probation of this earth. The wicked will be removed from the earth and the righteous will be caught up in a cloud while the earth is cleansed.

Adventists believe, on the basis of biblical predictions, that just prior to the second coming of Christ this earth will experience a period of unprecedented turmoil, with the seventh-day Sabbath as a focal point.

In the latter days, many signs for the Second Coming of the Savior have been prophesied. These signals allow faithful people to recognize God’s plan, be warned, and prepare.

The millennium is the thousand-year reign of Christ with His saints in heaven between the first and second resurrections.

We believe in the literal gathering of Israel and in the restoration of the Ten Tribes; that Zion (the New Jerusalem) will be built upon the American continent; that Christ will reign personally upon the earth; and, that the earth will be renewed and receive its paradisiacal glory.

In continuity with the people of God in Old Testament times, we are called out from the world; and we join together for worship, for fellowship, for instruction in the Word, for the celebration of the Lord’s Supper, for service to humanity, and for the worldwide proclamation of the gospel.

The house of Israel shall be gathered together in the last days before the coming of Christ (A of F 1:10). The Lord gathers His people Israel when they accept Him and keep His commandments.

Marriage was divinely established in Eden and affirmed by Jesus to be a lifelong union between a man and a woman in loving companionship. For the Christian a marriage commitment is to God as well as to the spouse, and should be entered into only between a man and a woman who share a common faith.

The First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles proclaim that “marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children.” When a man and woman are married in the temple, their family can be together forever.

Seventh-day Adventists believe that sexual intimacy belongs only within the marital relationship of a man and a woman. This was the design established by God at creation.

Chastity means not having any sexual relations outside of a legal marriage between a man and a woman. Those who are chaste also strive to have sexually appropriate thoughts, words, and actions. Living this law includes being completely loyal to your spouse within marriage, both physically and emotionally.

Scripture recognizes adultery and fornication (Matt. 5:32) and abandonment by an unbelieving partner (1 Cor. 7:10-15) as grounds for divorce.

When men and women marry, they make solemn covenants with each other and with God. Every effort should be made to keep these covenants and preserve marriage. When divorce occurs, individuals have the obligation to forgive, lift, and help rather than to condemn.

In the event that reconciliation is not effected, the spouse who has remained faithful to the spouse who violated the marriage vow has the biblical right to secure a divorce and also to remarry.

A living woman may be sealed to only one husband at a time. If she and a husband were sealed and later divorced, she must receive a cancellation of that sealing before being sealed to another man during her lifetime (see 38.4.1.5).

In God’s design, sexual intimacy is not only for the purpose of conception. Scripture does not prohibit married couples from enjoying the delights of conjugal relations while taking measures to prevent pregnancy.

The decision about how many children to have and when to have them is extremely personal and private. It should be left between the couple and the Lord. Church members should not judge one another in this matter.

The Seventh-day Adventist Church considers abortion out of harmony with God’s plan for human life. It affects the unborn, the mother, the father, immediate and extended family members, the church family, and society with long-term consequences for all.

Human life is a sacred gift from God and central to His divine plan for the spiritual progression of His children (see Moses 1:39; Abraham 3:23–26). Elective abortion for personal or social convenience is contrary to God’s plan and His commandments.

Seventh-day Adventists, who operate one of the largest network of hospitals and clinics worldwide, support the use of blood transfusions when necessary.

Seeking competent medical help, exercising faith, and receiving priesthood blessings work together for healing, according to the will of the Lord. Members should not use or promote medical or health practices that are ethically, spiritually, or legally questionable.

Since alcoholic beverages, tobacco, and the irresponsible use of drugs and narcotics are harmful to our bodies, we are to abstain from them as well.

The Word of Wisdom is a commandment of God. He revealed it for the physical and spiritual benefit of His children. Prophets have clarified that the teachings in Doctrine and Covenants 89 include abstinence from tobacco, strong drinks (alcohol), and hot drinks (tea and coffee).

This partnership with God through Jesus Christ who came into this world not to destroy men’s lives but to save them causes Seventh-day Adventists to advocate a noncombatant position, following their divine Master in not taking human life, but rendering all possible service to save it.

Many Latter-day Saints choose to join the military to help defend their countries from possible threats and preserve their freedoms. In situations where our desire for peace and our obligation to our country seem to contradict, we can seek the Lord’s guidance and follow His Spirit.