JOEL - There are no scriptures or official church doctrine
that states that those in the spirit world can see
everything we are doing here. I think it might be a
rather confusing existance for them, seeing both
worlds at the same time.
It is obvious, however, that those in the spirit world
are at least aware of what we do here on earth;
otherwise they would not know that their baptisms or
endowments have been performed for them in the temples.
Brigham Young said:
"Through our efforts in their behalf their chains of
bondage will fall from them, and the darkness
surrounding them will clear away, that light may shine
upon them and they shall hear in the spirit world of
the work that has been done for them by their children
here and will rejoice with you in your performance of
these duties.
(Brigham Young, Journal of Discourses 12:163-164)
We do have the personal opinions of church leaders and others about how much those in the spirit world can see.
President Joseph F. Smith said:
"For I believe that those who have been chosen in this
dispensation and in former dispensations, to lay the
foundation of God's work in the midst of the children
of men, for their salvation and exaltation, will not
be deprived in the spirit world from looking down upon
the results of their own labors, efforts and mission
assigned them by the wisdom and purpose of God, to
help to redeem and to reclaim the children of the
Father from their sins. So I feel quite confident that
the eye of Joseph, the prophet, and of the martyrs of
this dispensation, and of Brigham, and John, and
Wilford, and those faithful men who were associated
with them in their ministry upon the earth, are
carefully guarding the interests of the kingdom of God
in which they labored and for which they strove during
their mortal lives. I believe they are as deeply
interested in our welfare today, if not with greater
capacity, with far more interest, behind the veil,
than they were in the flesh. I believe they know more;
I believe their minds have expanded beyond their
comprehension in mortal life, and their interests are
enlarged and expanded in the works of the Lord to
which they gave their lives and their best service.
Although some may feel and think that it is a little
extreme to take this view, yet I believe that it is
true; and I have a feeling in my heart that I stand in
the presence not only of the Father and of the Son,
but in the presence of those whom God commissioned,
raised up, and inspired, to lay the foundations of the
work in which we are engaged." (Selections from the
Sermons and Writings of Joseph F. Smith)
President Spencer W. Kimball said:
"I am sure that the veil is thin. My grandfather,
being one of a family, searched all his life to get
together his genealogical records; and when he died,
in 1868, he had been unsuccessful in establishing his
line back more than the second generation beyond him.
I am sure that most of my family members feel the same
as I do-that there was a thin veil between him and the
earth, after he had gone to the other side, and that
which he was unable to do as a mortal he perhaps was
able to do after he had gone into eternity. After he
passed away, the spirit of research took hold of
men-his family in the West and two distant relatives,
not members of the Church, in the East. For seven
years these two men-Morrison and Sharples-unknown to
each other, and unknown to the members of the family
in the West, were gathering genealogy. After seven
years, they happened to meet and then for three years
they worked together. The family feels definitely that
the spirit of Elijah was at work on the other side and
that our grandfather had been able to inspire men on
this side to search out these records; and as a
result, two large volumes are in our possession with
about seventeen thousand names." (Teachings of Spencer
W. Kimball)
There are numerous personal stories of those who have done temple work for their ancestors, who have received some kind of vision, saw a spirit, heard a voice, or had some kind of spiritual communication from the dead, comfirming that they accepted what was done for them. I am certain that your parents will be made aware of what you did for them.
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