Adam and Eve were married before they became mortal, thus, if what God joins let no man cast asunder. When Jesus answered the question about there being no marriage in the resurrection, there is no evidence he meant anything other than what he said. Eastern Orthodoxy teaches that marriage is a holy sacrament and that when one is married in the church, it remains in force after the resurrection. In other words, they teach a very similar doctrine to that of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It's one of the basic disagreements they have with the Roman Catholic Church. In a number of early Christian extra-biblical writings, it's also clear there were many in the very early church who believed in eternal marriage as a sacrament.
Tertuillian, an early church father also interprets the scriptures as do the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints:
"If we believe the resurrection of the dead, of course we shall be bound to them with whom we are destined to rise, to render an account the one of the other…But if 'in that age they will neither marry nor be given in marriage, but will be equal to angels,' is not the fact that there will be no restitution of the conjugal relation a reason why we shall not be bound (to them), because we are destined to a better estate - destined (as we are) to rise to a spiritual consortship, to recognize as well our own selves as them who are ours…Consequently, we who shall be with God shall be together, since we shall all be with the one God - albeit the wages be various, albeit there be 'many mansions,' in the house of the same Father - having labored for the 'one penny' of the selfsame hire, that is, of eternal life; in which (eternal life) God will still less separate those whom He has conjoined, than in this lesser life He forbids them to be separated." Ante-Nicene Fathers, edited by Philip Schaff (Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1886)4:56, 67.
When Jesus answered the Saducees (who believed not in the resurrection), the story of the seven men goes back to the apocryphal book of Tobit, where a woman named Sara is betrothed to seven men, each of who die on the night of their marriage. The text adds, "Raphael [the archangel] was sent…to give Sara the daughter of Raguel for a wife to Tobias the son of Tobit…because she belonged to Tobias by right of inheritance." Thus, the text of Jesus' exchange appears to be significntly more complicated than it first appears.
Additionally, Jewish tradition is full of eternal marriage, and appears to be a strong belief all the way back to the days of the second temple. In the extrabiblical account of Joseph and Aseneth 15:6 a heavenly messenger tells Aseneth, "Behold, I have given you today to Joseph for a bride, and he himself will be your bridegroom, forever (and) ever." Later, the Egyptian king tells Joseph, "Behold, is not this one betrothed to you since eternity? And shall be your wife from now on and forever (and) ever?" (Joseph and Aseneth 21:3). Pharaoh then tells Asenth, "justly the Lord, the God of Joseph, has chosen you as a bride for Joseph, because he is the firstborn of God. And you shall be called a daughter of the Most High and a bride of Joseph from now and forever" (Joseph and Aseneth 21:4).
One non-Mormon writer talks about the gnostic Gospel of Philip's suggestion that Jesus may have been married:
The Gospel of Philip mentions Mary Magdalene in saying number 63:35 as the companion that Jesus often kissed. This has led to much modern speculation about the relationship between Jesus and Mary Magdalene. The Gospel of Philip does not reveal whether or not the two were married and neither do the canonical gospels. In fact, there is no historical proof whatsoever of the two being married. There is, however, a lot of speculation. Some assert that Jesus was a Jewish rabbi, and in his time Jewish men were expected to marry and bear children. In fact, his mother Mary's own father Joachim was ostracized for being barren until he and his wife Ann prayed for the birth of a child. Tradition says that God heard and granted their prayer, allowing them to bring forth Mary.
Another biblical apologist (non-Mormon) writes:
There are a growing number of people who believe that not only was Jesus married, but like many of the prophets before him, had more than one wife. According to this theory, these additional wives, along with other notable women, followed him around as he went about preaching, providing sustenance for him and his twelve apostles.
From the scriptures, we know that there was a contingent of women who, in fact, did follow Jesus around. Some of them were named and some were not. Some relationships were given; others were not.
Is it possible that some of these “were nots” may have been Jesus’ wives? We can’t really know without a new revelation. And I’m wondering, if there were a new revelation, and it revealed that Jesus was, in fact, married and had several wives, how many Christians would believe it?
The reason the Gospel of Philip was labeled a "gnostic" text is because it was found in a Coptic library called the Nag Hammadi writings. As with most libraries, the collections consist of various writings, some which were canonized by the early church.
As for cartoons, yes, we've all seen the South Park take on Mormons. But realize it is factually wrong and that Martin Harris actually saw the angel, Moroni, heard the voice of God and saw and handled the plates. If Smith were a con man, as Mrs. Harris believed, and if Harris were as miserably stupid as South Park indicates, trying to make him part of a conspiracy would have been a gross miscalculation on the part of Joseph Smith because Harris bankrolled the printing of the Book of Mormon. To have asked him to say he had seen the plates, the angel, the sword of Laben, and heard the voice of God would have proved to Harris that his wife had been right. Instead, neither Harris nor the other witnesses EVER recanted their testimonies, nor did he EVER complain about expending his money in the publication of the book, for which he never recovered a dime. To me, that's an impressive point. Even when Harris turned against Smith and the church over personal matters, he was always quick to tell questioners about his experience as a witness, even when very old. He also gave a deathbed testimony regarding the matter to his family.
BE IT KNOWN unto all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people, unto whom this work shall come: That we, through the grace of God the Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, have seen the plates which contain this record, which is a record of the people of Nephi, and also of the Lamanites, their brethren, and also of the people of Jared, who came from the tower of which hath been spoken. And we also know that they have been translated by the gift and power of God, for his voice hath declared it unto us; wherefore we know of a surety that the work is true. And we also testify that we have seen the engravings which are upon the plates; and they have been shown unto us by the power of God, and not of man. And we declare with words of soberness, that an angel of God came down from heaven, and he brought and laid before our eyes, that we beheld and saw the plates, and the engravings thereon; and we know that it is by the grace of God the Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, that we beheld and bear record that these things are true. And it is marvelous in our eyes. Nevertheless, the voice of the Lord commanded us that we should bear record of it; wherefore, to be obedient unto the commandments of God, we bear testimony of these things. And we know that if we are faithful in Christ, we shall rid our garments of the blood of all men, and be found spotless before the judgment-seat of Christ, and shall dwell with him eternally in the heavens. And the honor be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, which is One God. Amen. Signed: Oliver Cowdrey, David Whitmer, Martin Harris
For those who desire further evidence, outside of the cartoon world that Cofty is so enamoured of, I recommend the following:
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