God the Father, His Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost

The first Article of Faith for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints states "We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost."

Latter-day Saints believe that although one in purpose and unity, the three persons in the Godhead are distinct and separate from one another. God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ have physical bodies of flesh and bone. The Holy Ghost is a personage of spirit, which allows him to dwell in our hearts and witness the truthfulness of the gospel.

Each member of the Godhead has specific roles. The Father and the Holy Ghost bear witness of the Son. Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost bear witness of the Father. The Holy Ghost bears witness to us of the truthfulness of all things. All three in the Godhead are "one" in purpose. Just as the Godhead are "one" in unity, we too may be "one" with them. When Christ prayed to the Father in John 17, He prayed that all those who believe in Him would "be one, as thou, Father art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us." (John 17:21).

This belief differs from Protestant and Catholic teachings, who believe that the persons in the Godhead are not separate--but instead, are three persons in one. We believe that the true nature and character of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost was one of the principles lost during the Great Apostasy (the falling away of the truth following the death of Christ and His apostles). The truth regarding the Godhead was revealed in latter-days primarily through the visitation of God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ to the Prophet Joseph Smith in 1820.

For further reading on this important doctrinal topic, click here for a message by President Gordon B. Hinckley (1910-2008), former President of the Church.