When we were talking about the light of Christ being some type of matter, it struck me as new. I have taken chemistry classes and have studied physics my whole life. If this really were what makes life work, then why couldn't we figure out what this matter is? This also led me to wonder about cloning. Does the light of Christ or this matter just go into the clones? I don't think someone could clone a person if that were the case. I never put matter and light of Christ together. I'm just curious.

Wow! Your brain seems to be working at warp speed ...

When we refer to the light of Christ as "matter" remember that we mean "spiritual matter," and as the prophet Joseph Smith taught, this kind of matter cannot be discerned with natural eyes. Look at these two passages: D&C 84:45; 131:7-8

As to the role of the light of Christ in cloned beings, let's say for the time being that when the Lord placed Adam and Eve on this planet he gave Adam dominion over all earthly things (Moses 2:26; Abraham 4:26). If we have reached the point of obtaining the knowledge on how to clone life, it only means that this process is available somewhere in eternity. (Notice that the First Presidency still has not manifested itself on the subject of cloning.)

This essay is published as a support for and an extension of classroom discussion and in no way represents an official statement from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or its General Authorities. Dr. Marcus H. Martins assumes full responsibility for the opinions, views, and interpretations contained herein.