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TANYA - Source for these is The Parallel Joseph:
"The Father has a body of flesh & bones as tangible as mans the Son also but the HG is a personage of spirit
and a person cannot have the personage of the HG in his heart, he may recieve the gift...."
"The HG is a personage and a person cannot have the personage of the HG in his heart..."(William Clayton diary)
I got this from the Fairs Org. Feast Upon the Word, they said it is actually wrong in the D&C and will possibly be changed in the next decade. Could this possibly be true that the D&C was wrong and people are actually believing that because the HG has a spirit body it can dwell in us (D&C 130:22) in a literal sense?
JOEL - Here are the scriptures in question:
"The Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man’s; the Son also; but the Holy Ghost has not a body of flesh and bones, but is a personage of Spirit. Were it not so, the Holy Ghost could not dwell in us.
A man may receive the Holy Ghost, and it may descend upon him and not tarry with him." (D&C 130:22-23)
When section 130 was added to the Doctrine and Covenants, it was taken from B.H. Robert's edited History of the Church. Earlier in that historical record the prophet explained that "the idea that the Father and the Son dwell in a man’s heart is an old sectarian notion, and is false." (compare D&C 130:3).
He then explains the reason why it is false and how this same teaching also applies to the Holy Ghost when he said the following; which was how it was originally recorded in Joseph Smith's diary:
"The Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man's; The Son also; but the holy Ghost is a personage of spirit and a person cannot have the personage of the Holy Ghost in his heart. He may receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. It may descend upon him but not to tarry with him. (The Diaries and Journals of Joseph Smith, p. 341 April 2, 1843)
Originally, the wording shown above was the same as in the original draft of the History of the Church taken from Joseph's diary entry, but in the 1850s the Church historians reworded it to read the way it appears now in the Doctrine and Covenants. Other than this alteration, the Joseph Smith Diary is the source for D&C 130:22-23.
Obviously, since the Father and Son have flesh and bone bodies they would not literally dwell in anyone's heart. The phrase, "but is a personage of Spirit. Were it not so, the Holy Ghost could not dwell in us." Seems to imply that the reason the Holy Ghost remains a spirit is so that he could dwell inside us.
However, because the Holy Ghost is a personage of spirit and part of the Godhead, while it may be possible for Him to physically occupy the same space as our bodies(I don't know), since His personage can only be in one place at a time, it is very unlikely that He would do that.
From a theological point of view the original wording from Joseph Smith's diary is more correct and perhaps a good reason to revert back to what he originally said. Whenever the scriptures tell us that the Holy Ghost can dwell in our bodies or hearts it should probably be taken more figuratively rather than literally. His spiritual influence can and will dwell in the hearts of those who seek his guidance. Another scripture which should be understood in this way is in a D&C scripture where God tells us:
"Yea, behold, I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart." (D&C 8:2D&C 8:2)
I have no idea why Joseph Smith's original version was changed. But note that this D&C scripture is not identified as a revelation, but is called "Items of instruction given by Joseph Smith the Prophet" in the heading of section 130. So it is not like they were changing a direct revelation from God.
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