The Lighter Side of the Word of Wisdom

My life has been blessed by the LDS health code called the Word of Wisdom found in Section 89 of the Doctrine & Covenants (D&C). The modern interpretation of the law requires abstaining from coffee, tea, alcohol, and tobacco. Also, recreational use of illegal or "street" drugs is considered as prohibited. To be a Latter-day Saint in good standing, one must adhere to these minimal standards of the health code.

The Word of Wisdom is of critical importance to the Latter-day Saints, and yet there is also a lighter side to it. By suggesting there is a "lighter side," I am not meaning to imply there is a "darker side." Further, I am not referring to something humorous. I concretely mean lighter – as in weight.

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A natural experiment is readily evident before my eyes in the context of my extended family. By "extended family" I am referring to thousands of individuals, living and dead. The natural experiment is my observation that those who have avoided substance abuse (whether LDS or not) have lived happier and healthier lives on average than those who have found themselves addicted.

The principle of the Word of Wisdom is based in the law of averages. Of course, one can find plenty of examples of outstanding individuals who smoke and drink coffee, and one can find troubled individuals who do not. However, living the Word of Wisdom from birth eliminates alcoholism, reduces the chances of lung cancer, reduces the chances of heart disease, and so on. These benefits are summarized in verse 21, which reads: "the destroying angel shall pass by them."

Far too often I have seen alcohol destroy people's lives. People think they consume alcohol. It is actually the reverse. Alcohol consumes them.

The blessings of the Word of Wisdom go far beyond health. There are spiritual components. Section 89 of the D&C promises that one "shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures" (v. 19) Those able to attend LDS temple services understand the precise meaning of this verse.

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If one lived the Church requirements of the Word of Wisdom, Section 89 of the D&C, then one would abstain from coffee, tea, alcohol, tobacco, and illegal drugs. But, there are also aspects of the Word of Wisdom that still have an advisory status. For example, verse 12 suggests eating meat in moderation. One could easily read between the lines and conclude that the Word of Wisdom is consistent with a lifestyle of avoiding fatty foods, exercising and staying in shape, losing excess weight, and eating moderately. Although this lifestyle interpretation is NOT a Church requirement, I think most LDS members would agree that such a lifestyle fits well within the spirit of the Word of Wisdom.

For the last 10 years I have gained about 3 pounds per year, which means I am right now about 30 pounds overweight. There is no one to blame but myself. If I had done a better job of fine-tuning my eating habits, and if I had been exercising properly, then I am sure there would be an extra spring in my step. Alas, I have had to repent. Among other things, I am walking one-half hour per day, taking Omega-3 fish oil, Niaspan, aspirin, and I am praying.

I would like to pray my excess pounds off by magic, but actually I don't think REAL prayer works that way. Rather, I should be praying to be able to do the necessary dieting and exercising. Darn. Actual work is needed.

Elder David A. Bednar recently said (“Ask in Faith,” Ensign, May 2008, 94–97), " I long have been impressed with the truth that meaningful prayer requires both holy communication and consecrated work."

I am reminded of the great words written in an epistle of John:

NCV: 1 John 3: 7, 9, 18
7 Dear children, do not let anyone lead you the wrong way. Christ is righteous. So to be like Christ a person must do what is right. …
…
9 … Those who are God's children do not continue sinning… . They are not able to go on sinning, because they have become children of God.
…
18 My children, we should love people not only with words and talk, but by our actions and true caring.

The blessings of the Word of Wisdom do not just reside in believing it; they reside in doing the WORK to live it.

And… can you believe it … after all this talk about eating wisely, I have a strong hankering for tortilla chips and salsa. I am not making this up.

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NOTE: Please see "INVITATION TO CHURCH" video at the bottom of this blog page.

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Scripture marked NCV is taken from the New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Copyright 2008 S.Faux (Email: foxgoku54 [at] gmail [d0t] c0m; URL: http://mormoninsights.blogspot.com). Readers may distribute this post for noncommercial purposes provided such distributing is of the entire post, including author's copyright and contact information. All other rights reserved.




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Living in a Multiracial LDS Ward

It is my privilege to live in a LDS Ward in which a wide variety of races are represented. The Ward has individuals who would identify themselves as African, African-American, Asian, Native American, Hispanic, and others. Although everyone can speak English, it is not unusual to hear multiple foreign languages spoken at Church. Of course, language diversity is amplified when some returned missionaries speak in various languages.

Sometimes, Sunday is referred to as the most segregated day in America. But, racial integration is a theme in my LDS Ward. Of course, we need even more diversity, but we are moving in the right direction. For example, it is not unusual for our Ward missionaries to bring African-American visitors to our meetings. The Stake has a special Spanish-speaking branch, and so our English-speaking Ward is not visited by as many Hispanics as it might.

Members of ALL races are equal. In my Ward there is no evidence of discriminatory behavior. Everyone is made to feel welcome and needed.

Lest we should forget, Jesus during his earthly mission was Middle-eastern and of Jewish descent. In the LDS temple we are reminded that everyone descended from a common set of parents, Adam and Eve.

LDS scripture teaches:

2 Nephi 26:33
33 … he [the Lord God] inviteth them all to come unto him and partake of his goodness; and he denieth none that come unto him, black and white, bond and free, male and female; and he remembereth the heathen; and all are alike unto God, both Jew and Gentile.

3 Nephi 18:22
22 And behold, ye shall meet together oft; and ye shall not forbid any man from coming unto you when ye shall meet together, but suffer them that they may come unto you and forbid them not;

Nephi 17:35
35 Behold, the Lord esteemeth all flesh in one. …

One of my favorite quotes from John Taylor, the 3rd President of the Church, is the following:

John Taylor, The Gospel Kingdom, p.63
ALL ARE GOD'S CHILDREN. -- How does God feel towards the human family? He feels that they are his children. What, all? Yes, the white, the black, the red, the Jew, the gentile, the heathen, the Christian, and all classes and grades of men. He feels interested in all. He has done so from the beginning and will continue to do so to the end. He will do all that lies in his power for the benefit, blessing, and exaltation of the human family, both in time and eternity, consonant with those laws and those eternal principals that I have referred to, from which he himself cannot deviate. -- JD, 21:16, February 8, 1880.

The LDS Church teaches humility, NOT racial superiority. All human beings fall under the auspices of the atonement. We ALL need the saving grace of Jesus. Further, the benefits and blessings of the LDS Church are available to ALL, without exception.

To me, racial prejudice (racism) is one of the greatest sins and offenses to God. It is a violation of the second great commandment to love thy neighbor as thyself. Proper love of God MUST be associated with proper love of His children.

The multiracial characteristic of my LDS Ward is a great positive. As the Church grows, I look forward to even more diversity and racial representation.

For a good article from the official LDS Newsroom, see: "Church Diversity Breaks Stereotypes."

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Copyright 2008 S.Faux (Email: foxgoku54 [at] gmail [d0t] c0m; URL: http://mormoninsights.blogspot.com). Readers may distribute this post for noncommercial purposes provided such distributing is of the entire post, including author's copyright and contact information. All other rights reserved.




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How to Get to Church on Time by Shaving with Occam's Razor

For years and years my family has run late to Church – even if only by a couple of minutes. Of course, I always claim to be ready to go while everyone else in my family is still getting dressed. But, I still must take the blame. If I had been a better leader, then I could have got my family to shave off that extra couple of minutes to be on time. Eventually, thank goodness, I discovered Occam's razor.

Prior to Occam's razor, I tried a variety of techniques.

One year I got in the car and warmed it up, and every once in awhile I would honk the car horn. I think this technique (known as "warm-up") was the worst of all those I have tried. It takes one from the theater of action (the bathrooms), where one can effectively yell, "Move it!"

Another year I set alarms to tell me when certain people should be in the bathroom. But, this technique (known as "organizing") was too prone to rationalizing. For example, I might say to one of my teenagers, "It's time to get in the bathroom and start getting ready." The typical response is: "Dad, it is an hour and a half before Church starts. There is plenty of time." Well, yes, there is plenty of time if each person in the family has his/her own private bathroom. Sorry, but our house has two bathrooms for five people.

One technique (known as "revenge") was used for a few weeks only. It involved turning the temperature down on the water heater. My hypothesis was that people would avoid taking cold showers by spreading themselves out in time. They did, but I was wrong about one thing. Instead of getting to Church earlier, we just got to Church even more late.

A few times I tried the "abandonment" technique, but it violates "green" theory among others. It involved taking two or three cars to Church. Yes, I would get to Sacrament meeting on time, but I was miserable until my family arrived. Besides, I hated trying to save a bunch of seats in the chapel, especially when it was overflowing and seats were at a premium.

What is amazing is that the last two or three years my family has consistently arrived to Sacrament on time. The only thing that really changed was that I gave up trying to "manage" the family. I simply got ready and then read my scriptures. I suppose one could call this the "Occam" technique. It was the simplest process, and involved NO headache on my part. Further, I would bet the average blood pressure levels of the entire family went down. I wish I had practiced the "Occam" technique years earlier.

In a way, one could say I learned to shave with Occam's razor, which says truth is usually found in the smallest and simplest packages.

It is tempting to say Occam's razor does not apply to religion, only science. That was my initial thought. Upon deeper reflection, Occam's razor probably is a sharp spiritual tool. At least, it seems to help me get my family to Church on time.

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Note: Thanks to Dee Oviatt for the provocation to write this.

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Copyright 2008 S.Faux (Email: foxgoku54 [at] gmail [d0t] c0m; URL: http://mormoninsights.blogspot.com). Readers may distribute this post for noncommercial purposes provided such distributing is of the entire post, including author's copyright and contact information. All other rights reserved.




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Scattered Thoughts on the Elephant Trail: Our Overland Pioneers as Educators

A century and a half ago a great education was taking place in this country. That education took place on the dirt roads of the Oregon, Santa Fe, and Mormon trails. Robert Frost in one of his great poems ("The Road Not Taken") captured the essence of that education when he wrote:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

The overland pioneers were constantly faced with choices, and fortunately for us, most of those choices were correct ones. Actually, I think the great homespun philosopher and New York Yankee, Yogi Berri, captured this dilemma, even better than Frost did. He said, "When you come to a fork in the road, take it." With that unpretentious philosophy in mind, I hope you will forgive me if I take you on a short journey of "loose associations" and nonsequiturs.

In these troubled times, let me simply declare, "Beware of the elephants." Perhaps without knowing it, most of you have directly faced them, stared them in the eye, and warded them off. No, I have NOT gone off my rocker. Beware of the elephants!

"Seeing the elephant" was the favorite metaphor of the overland pioneers on the Oregon and Mormon trails between the 1840s and 1860s. The phrase "seeing the elephant" referred to the travails and tribulations that would often occur while traveling on the trail by prairie schooner. Those pioneers who started west toward Oregon but turned back because of excessive hardships were described as "having seen enough of the elephant."

An anonymous 1852 overlander wrote in the St. Joseph, Missouri Gazette:

Quoted in: John David Unruh, The Plains Across, University of Illinois Press, 1979
To enjoy such a trip ... a man must be able to endure heat like a Salamander, mud and water like a muskrat, dust like a toad, and labor like a jackass. He must learn to eat with his unwashed fingers, drink out of the same vessel as his mules, sleep on the ground when it rains, and share his blanket with vermin, and have patience with musketoes ... .

When I first came to the Midwest from Boston in 1990, my New England friends warned me that I would have to live the pioneer life. I suppose they envisioned nothing but cornfields surrounded by tractors kicking up dust on the treeless plains. "No," I insisted, "there is civilization in the heartland." But, after enduring many winters with temperatures ranging in the minus teens or worse, I must admit that my friends might have been at least partially correct. Winters in the Midwest do push the human limit.

The harsh Midwest winters have given me renewed appreciation for the Mormon pioneers who crossed Iowa in the winter and spring of 1846. It was the second week of April somewhere near Chariton (pronounced "chair – it – ton"), Iowa when the Mormon pioneer George A. Smith wrote:

Diary of George A. Smith, April 9, 1846, Locust Creek, Iowa:
It snowed this morning. …[T]he roads began to get very bad. We had to double our teams and get each other out of the mud. About noon it began to rain in torrents and every driver soon got wet to the hide. It seemed as though the bottom of the road had now fallen out, for wagons sunk in the mud up to their beds, and the women and children had to get out in the rain so that their teams might pull the wagons through the mud.

That night, George wrote that his family slept "wet and cold, having no fire."

Now it's true that my college students, whom I am hoping to train for 21st century life, will not have to worry about 19th century problems like: how to extract a loaded wagon bogged down in the mud up to its axles, or where to ford the river without sinking the teetering wagon, or where to find the next patch of green grass to feed the disgruntled oxen. But, my beloved students will have their own versions of these challenges. Those challenges will be significantly more than "avoiding" cafeteria food or those pesky vermin called roommates.

Admittedly, the travails and tribulations (the elephants) of college life are rarely life threatening, but they are often life determining. The obstacles of daily campus life, such as those incessant deadlines, papers, tests, and lectures are the journey, and at journey's end, just as on the overland trail, there is a new and hopefully better life.

We modern peoples make a real mistake when we ignore the lessons taught by our overland ancestors. Take, for example, the 19 year old of 1846, Susan Magoffin, who waxed poetic in her diary as she endured a most frightening storm in the middle of the Santa Fe trail. She wrote:

Down the Santa Fe Trail and into Mexico: The Diary of Susan Magoffin, 1846-1847, S. M Drumm, Ed., Univ. of Nebraska Press, p. 55.
The lightening flashed its awful tongue in all directions, till the whole heavens seemed in one light blaze. The angry thunder raised its coarse notes, peal after peal. And the dark clouds, jealous lest they should be overcome by their two combatants, poured down rain, till it was quite impossible to hear a word spoken within or without.

Would it not be wonderful if all 19 year olds could write as well?

Susan Magoffin described being attacked by clouds of mosquitoes. She wrote: "Millions upon millions were swarming around me, and their knocking against the carriage reminded me of a hard rain." Later, her wagon rolled over while going down a steep hill, and she was knocked unconscious. While still in a daze she wrote: "we were whirled completely over with a perfect crash." The Magoffin diary is superior reading because with each disaster or momentous event, of which there were many, she became more and more eloquent.

Now, I am not recommending personal calamity as a key to creative prose or the cure to writer's block. But, I am arguing that the lessons of the pioneers parallel those taught in our modern universities. The pioneers taught: We are tough; we can surmount challenges; and we can change the course of our lives and that of others.

Pioneer diaries teach us that human problems remain essentially the same, even if found in different guises. Thus, as we weather the storms, as we ford the next river, and as we pull ourselves out of the mud, in the end there is arrival and accomplishment. And, with that accomplishment there may be the realization that the journey was not that bad. In the process we learned that most problems were solvable.

I think the overland pioneers had a sense of expanded freedom, the kind of freedom that caused William Hazlitt to write: "The soul of a journey is liberty, perfect liberty to think, [to] feel, [and to] do ... ." But, no matter how free they felt, they still had to rely upon others. For example, someone had to make the overland map; someone had to establish good campsites; and someone even had to post directional signs.

One can imagine the diminished sense of liberty that the overland pioneers must have felt when they came to a fork in the road that had no signs and wasn't on the map. Fortunately, for us, most of those pioneers not only "took" the fork, but they SEIZED it.

In life there are many "forks" in the road that are not on the "map." Sometimes our choices take us across the great wasteland. But, as we travel the established trail, or as we blaze new ones, we will learn assuredly more of the lessons of the ELEPHANT. As long as we do NOT run away from the ELEPHANT, and we have the courage to climb on top of it, then we will be the pioneers of the next generation, and from some future place our lives will be seen, heard, and remembered.

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Note: The text above is a slightly modified version of a speech given to a Honors Convocation of undergraduate university students by S.Faux in April of 1996.

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Copyright 2008 S.Faux (Email: foxgoku54 [at] gmail [d0t] c0m; URL: http://mormoninsights.blogspot.com). Readers may distribute this post for noncommercial purposes provided such distributing is of the entire post, including author's copyright and contact information. All other rights reserved.




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We Sleepyheads in Church…

It is a good thing that the Church welcomes all kinds of personalities, because we sleepyheads need a place to rest on Sunday. I will admit it – I cannot get through an entire Sacrament meeting without falling asleep at least once. What is my excuse? It is old age. That is my excuse, anyway.

My sleepyhead personality probably fits well with the old LDS joke. It goes something like: A LDS mother approached a Bishop one Sunday, and she complained that her baby boy was doing too much crying in Sacrament meetings.

The Bishop responded, "I can fix that. Let me take your baby into my office for a minute."

The next Sunday the baby boy slept peacefully through Sacrament meeting without a peep. After the meeting the very pleased mother asked the Bishop about his secret for getting the baby to sleep in meetings.

He replied, "I ordained him to be a High Priest."

Well, jokes aside, we oldsters are sleep deprived.

Newborn babies speed about 16 hours per day of sleeping on average. About half that time is dream (REM) sleep. The ability to sleep declines with age, and oldsters like me are lucky to get 4-5 hours per night, with about 15% of that time spent in dream (REM) sleep.

I often lay awake at night worrying about inane things like: Is it better to drink a Fresca for lunch or have a V8? Do they have banana ice cream in the Celestial Kingdom, and can I eat all I want? Sometimes I think about more philosophical thoughts (having nothing to do with food) like: If nerve velocities in the brain are slow (e.g., it takes about a fifth of a second for nerves from the eyes to communicate with the inferior temporal lobe where complex perception takes place), then how can visual consciousness seem instantaneous? Wow, that last question would drive almost anyone insane …, or at least asleep. Eventually, I do fall asleep.

Since I have spent night after night worrying about such things during the workweek, I am pretty tired by Sunday mornings. Sacrament meetings are a struggle. Youth speakers in my Ward usually begin their talks with the words, "The Bishop asked me to speak on my favorite Article of Faith… ." Those words are my cue. My head is nodding before the second sentence.

Now, don't get me wrong. I am not saying the meetings are boring. Actually, I want to stay awake and listen. But, my brain can only take so much.

Take, for example, chess. I love chess, and I love to play timed games (15 minutes per side) against my computer. But, my computer has a main advantage. Its opponent (me) typically falls asleep in the middle of the game. When I wake up, the computer has declared itself the winner, because I have run out of time.

My point is that level of interest does not matter. Even if I am concentrating, I am still capable of falling asleep. Anybody want to drive with me?

Actually, I am arguing for compassion for us oldsters. Yeah, we fall asleep in meetings, but we still NEED to go to Church just like everyone else.

Fortunately, I have a wife who does not hesitate to poke me if I do fall asleep. A good elbow in the ribs is usually good for about 10 minutes of alert consciousness. Unfortunately, Sacrament meetings are about 65 minutes long.

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Now, there is plenty in the Bible that could make me feel guilty. For example, the following verse:

1 Thessalonians 5:6
6 Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.

It is not hard to find the same advice in the Book of Mormon:

2 Nephi 1:13 [emphasis mine]
13 O that ye would awake; awake from a deep sleep, yea, even from the sleep of hell, and shake off the awful chains by which ye are bound, which are the chains which bind the children of men, that they are carried away captive down to the eternal gulf of misery and woe.

For me, it is best to interpret such verses as being metaphorical.

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Copyright 2008 S.Faux (Email: foxgoku54 [at] gmail [d0t] c0m; URL: http://mormoninsights.blogspot.com). Readers may distribute this post for noncommercial purposes provided such distributing is of the entire post, including author's copyright and contact information. All other rights reserved.




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Navigating the Blurry Night

Life often requires us to navigate through darkness. In this context, President Thomas S. Monson has often quoted the following words by Minnie Louise Haskins, which state:

'Go into the darkness and put your hand into the hand of God
That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way!'

The question of how to navigate darkness is answered by one of President Gordon B. Hinckley's favorite passages of scripture, which was recited during his funeral (2/2/08) by his daughter Virginia Pearce:

D&C 50:24
24 That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the perfect day.

"The perfect day" is not attained within 24 hours or even 24 years, but it is possible through Christ's enabling power to progress toward that ideal over a lifetime.

The 50th Section (quoted above) continues with these thoughts:

D&C 50:40-42
40 Behold, ye are little children and ye cannot bear all things now; ye must grow in grace and in the knowledge of the truth.
41 Fear not, little children, for you are mine, and I have overcome the world, and you are of them that my Father hath given me;
42 And none of them that my Father hath given me shall be lost.

In daily life we may not be perfect, but we still may grow in grace and truth. If we grow in our faith, then we will not be lost.

In our long search for perfection, it is easy to become over-zealous about aspects of religion and miss the point. Life requires that we make judgments and set priorities, because even the best rules often have exceptions. For example, we are told to “rest” on the Sabbath, but hospitals (and many other kinds of necessary businesses) must stay open 7-days a week. We are told not to kill, but D&C 98:33-36 teaches us that soldiers in wartime can be authorized to go to battle. A few things (such as freedom and family) are worth the fight. Even so, peace is the ideal.

None of us (except Jesus) are in the position to claim perfection. For this reason, Jesus hated self-righteousness, but he loved meekness and humility.

Jesus was always in a constant battle with the scribes (lawyers) and Pharisees (Jews who strongly believed in purity rules). When the disciples picked grain on the Sabbath and the Pharisees complained, Jesus taught that they were over-estimating the importance of Sabbath restrictions: the Sabbath was made for man not the reverse (Mark 2: 27).

It bothered Jesus when he saw the Pharisees put on a big religious show. They would pray to be seen of men (Matt. 6: 5-6); they would brag about being descendents of Abraham (Luke 3: 8); and they would sit in the front rows of the synagogue (Luke 11: 43).

When the Pharisees were overly judgmental, Jesus would say things like: Why do you notice the speck in your friend’s eye, when you have a timber in your own? (Matt 7: 3-5).

Remember Jesus’ great answer when he was asked, “Why do ye eat and drink with publicans [the hated tax collectors] and sinners? Jesus said, “the whole need not a physician” (Luke 5: 31-32).

Here is the response of Jesus to the missionary effort of the Pharisees:

NIV: Matthew 23:15
15 Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.

Simply obeying the rules without engaging the Holy Spirit causes one to fall short. This is what Jesus observed in the Pharisees and people like them. Such individuals fail to learn how to navigate through the blurry night.

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Jesus taught the importance of loving God (Matthew 22:37), loving others (Matthew 5:43-44), and seeking first the kingdom of God (Matthew 6:33). Further, he taught the importance of judgment (wisdom), mercy (compassion) and faith (fidelity). See: Matthew 23:23 and Luke 11:42. These verses have similar wording and read as follows:

Matthew 23:23
23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

The word "judgment" in the verse above comes from the Greek "krisis" (Strong's #G2920), referring to the wise ability to discern right from wrong. The word "mercy" comes from the Greek "eleos" (Strong's #G1656), referring to a strong desire to help the afflicted. The word "faith" comes from the Greek "pistis" (Strong's #G4102, referring to a strong conviction in the existence of God.

Based on the principles discussed above, it is easy to summarize the BIG teachings of Jesus. One should come to know God and love Him. One's actions should be grounded in a firm conviction of God's existence and His purpose. One should build the kingdom of God as a first priority. One should serve God by loving others, even one's enemies. One should be compassionate and kind toward others, always ready to serve. Finally, followers of Jesus must learn to see beyond mere rules by having a spiritual (inner) sense of that which is truly right and wrong.

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There is no such thing as the “Righteous Ones" who are going to heaven because they belong to the right church, or right family, or right party. Everything in the scriptures teaches against that attitude. To Jesus, it was the “good Samaritan” (a non-Jew) who was more righteous than the Sadducees or Pharisees.

Hugh Nibley makes the same point:

Collected Works of Hugh Nibley, Vol.8, Ch.17, p.339 - p.340
Laman and Lemuel had insisted that they were doing right because they were identified with the dominant traditionalist party in Jerusalem (who happened to be Zedekiah's king-men), who were righteous because they were the Chosen People and because they went to church. Nonsense! said Nephi: "Do ye suppose that the children of this land, . . . who were driven out by our fathers, do ye suppose that they were righteous? . . . Do ye suppose that our fathers would have been more choice than they if they had been righteous? I say unto you, Nay. Behold, the Lord esteemeth all flesh in one; he that is righteous is favored of God" (1 Nephi 17:33-35).

Collected Works of Hugh Nibley, Vol.8, Ch.17, p.336 - p.337
You will notice that every time the dedication of the people to the cause of God is mentioned, it is followed immediately by a qualifying clause, proclaiming that the people who enter the covenant are not to be considered righteous simply by virtue of party affiliation. They do not represent the Good People as opposed to the Bad People: their own transgression can spoil everything at any time; they are quite as capable of sinning and incurring destruction as their enemies; they can bring down upon themselves the same calamities as the dissenters; their garments can be rent along with the most wicked; and they can be as completely destroyed as the Jaredites of old, for there is no guarantee that they are the Good People. This is an extremely important lesson driven home repeatedly in the Book of Mormon, that righteousness does not consist in being identified with this or that nation, party, church, or group.

(I have made sure that the first sentence in 1 Nephi 17: 35, quoted above, was underlined in my scriptures).

God can (and does) work with ALL peoples to bring about His purposes (see 2 Nephi 29:12; Alma 29:8). Of course, the Church is called to a great work – to build a righteous people to prepare the way for the Second Coming of Christ. It is a necessary work, particularly the ordinances of the priesthood. However, all of that being true does not negate the meaningfulness of other non-LDS people’s lives. The Lord “esteemeth all flesh in one.” Everyone can live a meaningful life, which can be made even more meaningful by righteousness and a connectedness with God. Eventually, the blessings of the gospel will be made available to all, if not in this life, then in the next.

This latter point is reinforced by the following scripture:

D&C 138:30
30 But behold, from among the righteous, he [Jesus] organized his forces and appointed messengers, clothed with power and authority, and commissioned them to go forth and carry the light of the gospel to them that were in darkness, even to all the spirits of men; and thus was the gospel preached to the dead.

There are appointed messengers in this life and in the spirit world of the next who will preach and teach the gospel. Effective progress through darkness eventually requires truth (see 2 Nephi 2:8).

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Latter-day Saints seek purity, but how do we avoid becoming Pharisees? Humility is key. We Latter-day Saints are servants. It is incumbent upon us to make good judgments and set proper priorities.

Living rules without a true love of God or without a love of neighbor gets one nowhere, certainly not into heaven.

We need a deep spiritual understanding of our religion. Thus, blind obedience to rules is inadequate, and is like trying to drive a car in the blur of darkness. Proper religious behavior has both light and direction. We need the spiritual equivalent of headlights and maps. As Latter-day Saints our headlights are (authorized) prophets, and our maps are scriptures. Thus, knowledge combined with spiritual insight is the key to being able to drive through the blurry night.

*****

Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. All rights reserved throughout the world. Used by permission of International Bible Society.

Copyright 2008 S.Faux (Email: foxgoku54 [at] gmail [d0t] c0m; URL: http://mormoninsights.blogspot.com). Readers may distribute this post for noncommercial purposes provided such distributing is of the entire post, including author's copyright and contact information. All other rights reserved.




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Soldiers Meet God in the Powerhouse

In a recent Church News (ldschurchnews.com) Army officer John Petty, who served in Kandahar, Afghanistan, was quoted as saying,

Church News, "Saints at war: Preserving Stories," January 31, 2009, p. 15
We [LDS service members] met in the powerhouse. The powerhouse was our makeshift chapel, an old mud building built to house the generators that ran the Kandahar Airfield during Taliban rule. … We called it the powerhouse because it gave us the power to resist temptation – which was, unfortunately, everywhere you turned in the form of DVDs, movies, magazines, tobacco, gambling and bad language used to occupy most soldiers during free time.

After reading the quote above I could not resist generalizing. Wherever Christians meet in sincerity and humility in the name of Jesus Christ the location becomes a kind of powerhouse. Consequently, LDS temples, chapels, and even "old mud buildings" can become our source of power to connect with God in order to shield us from destruction. In a sense, all Latter-day Saints are soldiers of God, and we all need "powerhouses" to restore our spiritual energies in order to carry on our duties.

*****

Having the priesthood is not a requirement for receiving the spirit of Christ. For example, this is what the Lord said to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery in April of 1829, a month prior to receiving the Aaronic priesthood:

D&C 6:32
32 Verily, verily, I say unto you, as I said unto my disciples, where two or three are gathered together in my name, as touching one thing, behold, there will I be in the midst of them--even so am I in the midst of you.

However, there is a clear role for priesthood leadership. Jesus expanded on this role when speaking to his apostles:

Matthew 18:18-20
18 Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
19 Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.
20 For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.

In this context, the priesthood is the power to bind in heaven the spiritual promises made here on earth. It is also the ability to unbind those promises. Jesus also taught us that, "in the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established" (D&C 6:28; also, Matthew 18:16, 2 Corinthians 13:1).

*****

There is a spiritual power in the aggregate of numbers that must have been greatly missed by Moroni. He was the prophet who wrote the last chapters in the Book of Mormon, and who wandered the last years of his life alone for 36 years, being the last of his people. Thus, it is little wonder that his writings often focused on the procedures, ordinances, and meetings that were absent in his life.

Moroni 6:4-9
4 And after they had been received unto baptism, and were wrought upon and cleansed by the power of the Holy Ghost, they were numbered among the people of the church of Christ; and their names were taken, that they might be remembered and nourished by the good word of God, to keep them in the right way, to keep them continually watchful unto prayer, relying alone upon the merits of Christ, who was the author and the finisher of their faith.
5 And the church did meet together oft, to fast and to pray, and to speak one with another concerning the welfare of their souls.
6 And they did meet together oft to partake of bread and wine, in remembrance of the Lord Jesus.
7 And they were strict to observe that there should be no iniquity among them; and whoso was found to commit iniquity, and three witnesses of the church did condemn them before the elders, and if they repented not, and confessed not, their names were blotted out, and they were not numbered among the people of Christ.
8 But as oft as they repented and sought forgiveness, with real intent, they were forgiven.
9 And their meetings were conducted by the church after the manner of the workings of the Spirit, and by the power of the Holy Ghost; for as the power of the Holy Ghost led them whether to preach, or to exhort, or to pray, or to supplicate, or to sing, even so it was done.

One can be sure that the Holy Spirit was NOT absent in Moroni's life. His writings are a testament to that fact. However, one can easily surmise that his loneliness also created a dimension of spiritual emptiness that could only be filled by being surrounded by those he most loved. Because he must have known that his editing and writing efforts would lay the scriptural foundation for the last gospel dispensation prior to the Second Coming, his strength of character and mind evidently overcame those 36 years of emptiness.

*****

There are ALWAYS ways to cope.

I love it when the Church News reports upon the special efforts of our LDS soldiers. In another recent article ("Seminary from Iraq," February 14, 2009) there was a report of an Army Captain Aaron Cheadle, now serving in the Sunni Triangle of Iraq. Every school day morning he has been making phone calls to rural Minneota, Minnesota in order to teach seminary lessons to his teenaged boys, Joseph and Jacob.

The Church Educational System, of course, approves such home schooling of seminary. Additionally, the article makes the important (and inspiring) point that the time and scheduling involved in allowing Captain Cheadle to give these seminary lessons over the phone has "the full support and cooperation of his commanding officer and the soldiers who work for him."

The article concludes:

Church News, "Seminary from Iraq," February 14, 2009
Brother Cheadle is a little surprised that other people find the seminary story so inspiring. He wonders if maybe people are moved by the symbolism of a soldier who, though far from home, remains faithful to the things that matter the very most. Perhaps he is right. But the faith shown by the Cheadle family in the face of enormous sacrifice and terrible danger is also inspiring. Their devotion to studying the word of the Lord during this difficult period of separation seems to echo the spirit of the psalm, "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble" (Psalm 46:1.)

We are all faced with challenges. As Church leaders teach us, we are all capable of "phoning home" and talking with our Heavenly Father in order to receive our own customized seminary lessons. (See, for example, Elder Robert D. Hales, “Personal Revelation: The Teachings and Examples of the Prophets,” Ensign, Nov 2007, 86–89).

*****

The point has been made that there is a spiritual strength in numbers. However, Church meetinghouses are NOT merely places to congregate with others. The meetinghouse is primarily the place wherein we can meet with God. It is a place of contemplation, prayer, repentance, sacrament, and renewal. It is the place where we can reenlist with Christ.

*****

Copyright 2008 S.Faux (Email: foxgoku54 [at] gmail [d0t] c0m; URL: http://mormoninsights.blogspot.com). Readers may distribute this post for noncommercial purposes provided such distributing is of the entire post, including author's copyright and contact information. All other rights reserved.




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Alma's Advice for Changing Behavior (Part #2)

A Discussion of Alma 36 to 39 in the Book of Mormon

Although it is not critical to read Part #1 to understand this post, click on the link if desired.

*****

In Alma chapter 36 we find the best example of ancient chiasmus in the Book of Mormon. Chiasmus is a method of ancient poetry in which a list of concepts is repeated in reverse order. Often the repeated item is elaborated, resolved, or improved in some way. A very nice structural chart (requiring "mouse clicks") of this chiasmatic poem can be found at BYU STUDIES.

Chapter 36 consists of a listing of at least fourteen elemental ideas that are then repeated in reverse order. The organization of the chapter is deliberate and not a product of chance. The complexity of the chapter would require the originating author to organize the words in written form, since oral dictation would put too much demand upon an author's memory. That is, the originating author would have to remember the fourteen elements (or more) woven into some complex text, and then repeat those elements into even more complex text. Given our understand of how Joseph Smith dictated the contents of Alma to Oliver Cowdery, the scribe, it seems improbable that Alma 36 could have originated from such dictation.

The words of Alma given to his son, Helaman, in chapter 36 contain the very kind of themes a father might deliver to a son during the Passover holiday. Alma may have originally composed these words for that celebration.

The themes of the Passover are bondage, deliverance, redemption, and freedom in the context of the exodus of the Hebrews from Egypt as they escaped slavery. During this holiday families discuss the ancient exodus from Egypt. This bit of Jewish history is then applied metaphorically to one's personal or family history of enslavement and escape to freedom. Families discuss being “enslaved in mitzrahyim” (pronounced “mitz-rah-yim” and means Egypt). God is the great liberator of nations and individuals. Alma 36 teaches these lessons.

Alma, like the Apostle Paul, is one of the great stories of God's grace. He began his story this way:

Alma 36: 1-2
1 MY son, give ear to my words; for I swear unto you, that inasmuch as ye shall keep the commandments of God ye shall prosper in the land.
2 I would that ye should do as I have done, in remembering the captivity of our fathers; for they were in bondage, and none could deliver them except it was the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob; and he surely did deliver them in their afflictions.

The words are highly reminiscent of the words found in the Shema ("Hear") prayer (Deut. 6: 4-9). The following comes from a modern translation:

NCV: Deuteronomy 6:4-7
4 Listen, people of Israel! The Lord our God is the only Lord.5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength.6 Always remember these commands I give you today.7 Teach them to your children, and talk about them when you sit at home … .

In order to understand Alma's motives in this discussion with his son Helaman, one should remember these words also found in Deuteronomy 6 that set the tone for Passover conversations and lessons:

NCV: Deuteronomy 6: 20-25
20 In the future when your children ask you, "What is the meaning of the laws, commands, and rules the Lord our God gave us?" 21 tell them, "We were slaves to the king of Egypt, but the Lord brought us out of Egypt by his great power. 22 The Lord showed us great and terrible signs and miracles, which he did to Egypt, the king, and his whole family. 23 The Lord brought us out of Egypt to lead us here and to give us the land he promised our ancestors. 24 The Lord ordered us to obey all these commands and to respect the Lord our God so that we will always do well and stay alive, as we are today. 25 The right thing for us to do is this: Obey all these rules in the presence of the Lord our God, as he has commanded."

Every parent trying to help a son (or a daughter) to gain a testimony can relate to the following beautiful words:

Alma 36: 3, 5-6 [emphasis mine]
3 And now, O my son Helaman, behold, thou art in thy youth, and therefore, I beseech of thee that thou wilt hear my words and learn of me; for I do know that whosoever shall put their trust in God shall be supported in their trials, and their troubles, and their afflictions, and shall be lifted up at the last day. …

5 Now, behold, I say unto you, if I had not been born of God I should not have known these things; but God has, by the mouth of his holy angel, made these things known unto me, not of any worthiness of myself;
6 For I went about with the sons of Mosiah, seeking to destroy the church of God; but behold, God sent his holy angel to stop us by the way.

No one in the process of repentance gains a testimony because of past "worthiness." Of course, Alma was actively attempting to destroy the Church, a characteristic far removed from any standard concept of worthiness. Then, miraculously, God sent an angel. Sometimes that is what it takes. Alma changed his ways, but the larger point is that we are all subject to God's grace – even if the process is not as dramatic.

The climax of Alma's story is his conversion, told this way:

Alma 36: 17-19
17 And it came to pass that as I was thus racked with torment, while I was harrowed up by the memory of my many sins, behold, I remembered also to have heard my father prophesy unto the people concerning the coming of one Jesus Christ, a Son of God, to atone for the sins of the world.
18 Now, as my mind caught hold upon this thought, I cried within my heart: O Jesus, thou Son of God, have mercy on me, who am in the gall of bitterness, and am encircled about by the everlasting chains of death.
19 And now, behold, when I thought this, I could remember my pains no more; yea, I was harrowed up by the memory of my sins no more.

A most fascinating verse often overlooked is the following:

Alma 36: 22
22 Yea, methought I saw, even as our father Lehi saw, God sitting upon his throne, surrounded with numberless concourses of angels, in the attitude of singing and praising their God; yea, and my soul did long to be there.

This verse is an internal quotation of 1 Nephi 1:8. The significance of the quotation is that Alma comes after Nephi in the chronology of the Book of Mormon. Yet, scholars are confident that Joseph Smith translated the book of Alma before he translated the book of First Nephi. The approximate order of translation was Mosiah through Moroni; title page; and then First Nephi through Words of Mormon (see: Book of Mormon Reference Companion, D. Largey, Ed., p. 159; also, D&C 10:3). While working on Alma, Joseph Smith dictated something in First Nephi that had NOT been transcribed yet by Oliver Cowdery (Joseph's assistant).

Alma finishes his testimony to his son in terms that are consistent with the Passover themes of deliverance from captivity:

Alma 36: 28-30
28 And I know that he will raise me up at the last day, to dwell with him in glory; yea, and I will praise him forever, for he has brought our fathers out of Egypt, and he has swallowed up the Egyptians in the Red Sea; and he led them by his power into the promised land; yea, and he has delivered them out of bondage and captivity from time to time.
29 Yea, and he has also brought our fathers out of the land of Jerusalem; and he has also, by his everlasting power, delivered them out of bondage and captivity, from time to time even down to the present day; and I have always retained in remembrance their captivity; yea, and ye also ought to retain in remembrance, as I have done, their captivity.
30 But behold, my son, this is not all; for ye ought to know as I do know, that inasmuch as ye shall keep the commandments of God ye shall prosper in the land; and ye ought to know also, that inasmuch as ye will not keep the commandments of God ye shall be cut off from his presence. Now this is according to his word.

Alma chapter 36 is not only a great chiasmatic poem, it is a great lesson on the Passover themes of exodus from enslavement, both in terms of Biblical history but also personal history (in this case, Alma's).

*****

Alma taught his son Helaman the following in chapter 37:

Alma 37: 6
6 … behold I say unto you, that by small and simple things are great things brought to pass; and small means in many instances doth confound the wise.

And then he said:

Alma 37:37
37 Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good; yea, when thou liest down at night lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God; and if ye do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day.

The chapter ends (v. 47) with this great mandate to a son:

“Look to God and live.”

*****

Since I find “self-righteousness” to be very irritating, I have always remembered and enjoyed this verse found in chapter 38 – the words of Alma to his son Shiblon:

Alma 38:14
14 Do not say: O God, I thank thee that we are better than our brethren; but rather say: O Lord, forgive my unworthiness, and remember my brethren in mercy--yea, acknowledge your unworthiness before God at all times.

*****

In chapter 39, Alma cussed out his missionary son Corianton for lapsing into sexual error with the harlot Isabel (see v. 3). Alma had been a judge for eight years, and it is interesting that he uses legal terminology when he advised the following:

Alma 39: 10
10 And I command you to take it upon you to counsel with your elder brothers in your undertakings; for behold, thou art in thy youth, and ye stand in need to be nourished by your brothers. And give heed to their counsel.

The good news is that Corianton must have repented because Alma 49:30 indicates that he was back to being a successful missionary with his brothers.

*****

Bible quotations marked NCV are taken from the New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Copyright 2008 S.Faux (Email: foxgoku54 [at] gmail [d0t] c0m; URL: http://mormoninsights.blogspot.com). Readers may distribute this post for noncommercial purposes provided such distributing is of the entire post, including author's copyright and contact information. All other rights reserved.




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Alma's Advice for Changing Behavior (Part #1)

A Discussion of Alma 29 to 35 in the Book of Mormon

Some of the best advice for soldiers and missionaries is given in Alma 29 through 39, which are among my favorite verses in all scripture.

Alma 29:1 begins with “O that I were an angel … that I might … speak with the trump of God.” The trump of God is an allusion to the Jewish shofar, a ram’s horn, used to sound the first day of the year on the Jewish calendar – Rosh Hashanah. This was a day of repentance, which is why Alma would use the trump to “cry repentance unto every people.”

The Book of Mormon is an announcement that the gospel is available to ALL people, and further, that the gospel HAS been available to a wide-range of people on earth who have been ready to receive it:

Alma 29:8
8 For behold, the Lord doth grant unto all nations, of their own nation and tongue, to teach his word, yea, in wisdom, all that he seeth fit that they should have; therefore we see that the Lord doth counsel in wisdom, according to that which is just and true.

All, in a real sense, are God’s people, and God’s revelation is available to all. The verse above is just another affirmation of the doctrines introduced in 2 Nephi 29:12, given below:

2 Nephi 29:12 [emphasis mine]
12 For behold, I shall speak unto the Jews and they shall write it; and I shall also speak unto the Nephites and they shall write it; and I shall also speak unto the other tribes of the house of Israel, which I have led away, and they shall write it; and I shall also speak unto all nations of the earth and they shall write it.

Elder B.H. Roberts (New Witness for God, vol. 3, p. 258), one of Mormonism’s foremost early scholars, wrote concerning this verse: “It [2 Ne. 29:12] lifts us entirely out of narrow, sectarian views of revelation, and breaths a universal spirit… .”

In other words, truth is all around us, even among non-LDS Army Chaplains, Catholic Priests, the Buddhists, the Hindus, etc. Mormonism, by definition, embraces truth wherever it is found (see my fictional story about "Sergeant Moroni").

The challenge of life is to find truth, even when it is mixed with falsehood. Latter-day Saints are taught to see clearly. We are taught skills and are given a set of tools to help us discriminate the truth from the false. (Mastery takes a lifetime and beyond).

*****

In the next chapter, Alma, 30:2 declared the date to be the 16th year of the reign of judges (acknowledging that the new year had arrived). In the same verse, Alma referred to “the days of fasting, and mourning, and prayer,” which allude to the Jewish “Days of Awe,” the 10 days from the holiday Rosh Hashanah to the holiday Yom Kippur. Such holidays were observed, because as Alma stated in verse 3, the people kept the Law of Moses.

*****

In Alma 31:5, there is a recognition of the power behind God’s word to move people and to change their lives:

Alma 31:5
5 And now, as the preaching of the word had a great tendency to lead the people to do that which was just--yea, it had had more powerful effect upon the minds of the people than the sword, or anything else…

Please understand that I am NOT against the scientific study of behavior, as I have devoted much of my life to it. However, science is NOT atonement or the power of spiritual salvation. The gospel has infinitely greater power to turn around people’s lives than anything else. Boyd K. Packer (Conference Reports, Oct. 1986) expressed this principle this way: “The study of … the gospel will improve behavior quicker than a study of behavior will improve behavior.”

*****

It is interesting that Alma 31: 13 and 21 refers to a “Rameumptom,” a high pulpit placed above the audience's heads in the synagogues of the wicked Zoramites. It is probably NOT coincidence that the Hebrew word for “high place of illicit worship” is “ramah” or “rameh” (Strong’s #07413), which appears to be the first root of Rameumptom. Naturally, Joseph Smith could not have known all these things about Jewish culture and language.

*****

Alma’s great missionary prayer extends through Alma 31: 26-35. His words in verse 30 spark me: “O Lord, wilt thou give me strength, that I may bear with mine infirmities. For I am infirm, and such wickedness among this people doth pain my soul.” The words remind me of a verse in the 140th Psalm which reads:

Psalms 140: 4
4 Keep me, O LORD, from the hands of the wicked; preserve me from the violent man; who have purposed to overthrow my goings.”

Then, Alma said:

Alma 31:38
38 And the Lord provided for them that they should hunger not, neither should they thirst; yea, and he also gave them strength, that they should suffer no manner of afflictions, save it were swallowed up in the joy of Christ. Now this was according to the prayer of Alma; and this because he prayed in faith.

The basic lesson of Alma 31 is that the Lord provides and prayers work.

*****

In Alma chapter 32, verse 27 it says, “awake and arouse your faculties, even to an experiment upon my words, and exercise a particle of faith.” Believing is seeing. Believe in God’s word, and then put it to the test.

Alma said in verse 36: “plant the seed that ye might try the experiment to know if the seed was good.” What seed? The answer is the seed of faith.

Then, in verses 41 and 42 of chapter 32, Alma alluded to the white fruit in Lehi’s tree of life vision (see also, 1 Nephi 8:11). The most remarkable phrase is “white above all that is white, yea, and pure above all that is pure.”

The tree of life and its brilliant white fruit is an ancient concept known to scholars. The Nag Hammadi (discovered in 1945 in Israel, dating to shortly after the time of Christ) codices II.5 and XIII.2) read: “The color of the tree of life is like the sun… . Its fruit is like a bunch of white grapes.” See also, 1 Nephi 11: 8. Generally, the tree of life is viewed as a symbol of Jesus and the love of God (1 Nephi 11:21 – 23). The fruits are the pure joy of the gospel.

*****

Alma chapter 33 contains the “Thanksgiving psalm of Zenos,” found in verses 4 through 11. This psalm is written in the same style as thanksgiving psalms found in the Dead Sea Scrolls. Verse 4 reads: “Thou art merciful, O God, for thou hast heard my prayer, even when I was in the wilderness; yea, thou wast merciful when I prayed concerning those who were mine enemies, and thou didst turn them to me.”

There have always been enemies of the harbingers of truth. Victory is granted by the Lord.

*****

In Alma 34:16, the atonement is described as encircling “in the arms of safety” those who believe in the name of Jesus. But, Alma gave this warning:

Alma 34: 32
32 For behold, this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors.

The purpose of our lives is not mere existence to entertain God. Our purpose involves daily improvement in order to someday meet God face to face.

*****

Chapter 35 is the sad story of the converts of Alma being cast out of the land of the Antionum by the Zoramites. But, these converts were accepted by the people of Ammon in the land of Jershon.

Alma 35: 5-6, 9
5 Now their rulers and their priests and their teachers did not let the people know concerning their desires … .
6 And it came to pass that after they had found out the minds of all the people, those who were in favor of the words which had been spoken by Alma and his brethren were cast out of the land; and they were many; and they came over also into the land of Jershon. …

9 … And now the people of Ammon [who were in Jershon] … did receive all the poor of the Zoramites that came over unto them; and they did nourish them, and did clothe them, and did give unto them lands for their inheritance; and they did administer unto them according to their wants.

Given all the persecution that the Saints experienced in the Book of Mormon, surely these were lessons that Joseph Smith learned as the Book of Mormon was being prepared in 1829. Consequently, when the Church was established in 1830, Joseph must not have been too surprised at the mistreatment that the modern membership received by outsiders frightened by the "Mormonites."

Wars, iniquity, and rejection of the word all seem to be intercorrelated. The last verses in Alma 35 say this:

Alma 35: 15-16
15 Now Alma, being grieved for the iniquity of his people, yea for the wars, and the bloodsheds, and the contentions which were among them; and having been to declare the word, or sent to declare the word, among all the people in every city; and seeing that the hearts of the people began to wax hard, and that they began to be offended because of the strictness of the word, his heart was exceedingly sorrowful.
16 Therefore, he caused that his sons should be gathered together, that he might give unto them every one his charge, separately, concerning the things pertaining unto righteousness. And we have an account of his commandments, which he gave unto them according to his own record.

We are grateful that Alma gathered his sons together and gave them advice – while creating a record of that advice. For example, the next chapter, 36, is one of the most remarkable in the entire Book of Mormon.

*****

Part #2 will continue with an analysis of Alma chapters 36 – 39.

*****

Copyright 2008 S.Faux (Email: foxgoku54 [at] gmail [d0t] c0m; URL: http://mormoninsights.blogspot.com). Readers may distribute this post for noncommercial purposes provided such distributing is of the entire post, including author's copyright and contact information. All other rights reserved.




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*****
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Sergeant Moroni in Afghanistan:

A Tragic Story with Ecumenical Meaning

Warning: This is a fictional story about religion in military combat, and it may not be suitable for some readers.

*****

Sergeant Moroni Colbert laid flat on his back on a hillside in Afghanistan. An enemy roadside bomb had just gone off. The broken bones in Moroni's legs had punctured through his skin, and he was losing blood. His wounds appeared grim. Moroni was half conscious at best.

Medics were on their way, but a military Chaplain, a Catholic Priest, got to Moroni first. The Chaplain applied pressure to a bleeding leg, and told Moroni to lie still.

As the Chaplain bent over him, Moroni could see the Cross affixed over the name "O'Connor" just below the right shoulder on the uniform. Moroni made a smile mixed with pain.

With a free hand the Chaplain searched for Moroni's dog tags, but Moroni blurted, "I'm LDS. I need your help."

Chaplain O'Connor stopped his search, and then humbly declared, "I am a Catholic Priest. May I pray for you?"

Using all his energy, Moroni implored, "VERY MUCH PRAY FOR ME!" Then, all went black. Moroni was unconscious.

The Chaplain prayed aloud:

Most Merciful Jesus,

May the Precious Blood of your agony wash this soldier from his sins and his pain. May this soldier find a way to Paradise wherein he may see the face of his Redeemer. May this soldier stand in Your Presence forever. May this soldier be blessed with revealed truth in its fullness. May this soldier's family find comfort from their forthcoming sorrows.

Amen.

*****

It was morning. An hour or so passed. Moroni did not know how much time. As he awoke for the first time since the medical evacuation, he found himself in a Combat Support Hospital. A nurse was standing near him saying something. He did not understand a word. He was too busy trying to collect his senses. He thrashed, but his arms and legs felt like they were in binds.

Finally, he heard the nurse say, "Doctor, he's awake!"

The doctor came to the bedside, and said something about giving more morphine, internal bleeding, controlling body temperature, and shock.

"I -- don't -- want -- any -- morphine," Moroni complained, trying to get his dry mouth to articulate the words. His mind flashed back to religious lessons about a young Joseph Smith in the early 1800s receiving a leg operation without alcohol. He was not against medicine, but he needed to be alert.

The doctor queried, "How's the pain?"

"My stomach hurts and my legs, -- but no morphine," demanded Moroni. "I want -- the Elders."

"The Mormon Elders?"

"Yes." Moroni wanted a priesthood blessing and he wanted to listen carefully to the words.

A nurse indicated the Elders were on their way. Someone mentioned that one of the Mormon Elders was a Colonel, and that the medical unit should be on its best behavior.

*****

It was early evening, and Moroni had been out of surgery for about two hours. Colonel Ashton arrived at the bedside with another LDS Elder. They were both in military uniform. The dirt on their boots and faces revealed their daytime combat activities. The doctors made them wash their hands, and put on masks, gowns, and boot covers.

Moroni awoke just in time. He whispered, "Need -- blessing."

Ashton in his Colonel's voice announced, "We are here to give you one."

Moroni whispered again, "Thanks. Where's – the – Chaplain?"

For a moment Colonel Ashton thought that Sergeant Colbert was requesting the blessing from a Chaplain.

Moroni's next words barely were breathed out. "I -- want -- to -- thank -- the – Chap -- lain."

A Chaplain Berry stepped forward from the corner of the room. Berry was a Presbyterian minister. "How may I help you, Son?"

"Thanks – for – getting – me – to – the – hos—pital."

Berry did not argue with Moroni. Chaplains Berry and O'Connor were colleagues and knew each other well. Berry had been briefed concerning O'Connor's role in helping to get Moroni safely evacuated. Berry was happy to play the role of O'Connor's surrogate. "You are welcome, my Son," as he mentally told himself to be sure to give Moroni's last words to O'Connor.

Moroni blacked out, but the LDS Elders still performed their duty. Colonel Ashton gave the blessing, which began as "Sergeant Moroni Colbert, by the authority of the Melchizedek priesthood … ." In the blessing Moroni was told that his spirit would pass without further discomfort, that he would serve as a missionary of the fullness of the Gospel in the spirit world, and that he would see the face of the Savior. Moroni was assured his family would be comforted by the presence of his spirit. The Colonel closed "in the name of Jesus Christ, amen, ... ... ... hooah!"

Moroni was comatose and near death, but his spirit could feel the priesthood blessing. If he were awake, he would have said "hooah" back to the Colonel.

*****

Moroni died a few hours later. But, his warm reactions and thanks given to two non-LDS Chaplains lived on. The Chaplains' views of Mormon soldiers were enlarged.

Over the next year of deployment in the Middle East, Colonel Ashton would provide 17 more priesthood blessings of health, but he would never forget this unique blessing given to a dying soldier.

He was always grateful to the non-LDS Chaplains who took care of his LDS soldiers. Colonel Ashton expressed his thoughts gruffly sometimes, even in military Fast & Testimony meeting. He would sometimes exclaim that the Army Chaplains were most inspiring, even though his particular modifiers provided a "stronger" tone. His LDS soldiers loved the thought and forgave the language.

*****

Question to the Reader: Does one's religion limit who God may inspire and bless?

Answer: No. God has no such limitations. Jesus taught his Apostles that "Whoever is not against us is with us" (NCV: Mark 9:40).

At the same time, however, God works through an orderly priesthood to bind in heaven promises made here on earth.

Have I stated a contradiction? I don't think so.

*****

Scripture quotation marked NCV is taken from the New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.


Copyright 2008 S.Faux (Email: foxgoku54 [at] gmail [d0t] c0m; URL: http://mormoninsights.blogspot.com). Readers may distribute this post for noncommercial purposes provided such distributing is of the entire post, including author's copyright and contact information. All other rights reserved.




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The History of Sealings Within Families

Revelation always has been important in the development, order, and organization of the temples. As modern Mormons we think naturally of temples as the mechanisms by which families are bound together for the eternities. We think it is natural when individuals are sealed to their ancestral fathers and mothers, and natural when genealogies are researched for that end. However, this view took about fifty years to develop.

It was Wilford Woodruff, the 4th President of the Church, who gave Latter-day Saints this conception. He said: “We want the Latter-day Saints from this time [1894] to trace their genealogies as far as they can, and to be sealed to their fathers and mothers. Have children sealed to their parents, and run this chain through as far as you can get it” (Millennial Star, May 28, 1894, 338-39).

This method of sealing was an important change in emphasis. Previously, individuals often were sealed to prominent authorities of the Church such as Joseph Smith and Brigham Young (see, Thomas Alexander, Mormonism in Transition, p. 298). This principle was known as “adoption.” The following is one of the best explanations of this historical development:

From: Teachings of Presidents … Wilford Woodruff,
Priesthood Manual, pages xxxiii–xxxv [emphasis is mine]
About three months before the Prophet Joseph Smith was martyred, he delivered a discourse to a large assembly of Saints. … He spoke of the need to be sealed to our parents and to continue that sealing ordinance throughout our generations: “… Go and seal on earth your sons and daughters unto yourself and yourself unto your fathers in eternal glory.”

For the next few decades, the Latter-day Saints knew that there was to be “a welding link of some kind or other between the fathers and the children” (D&C 128:18). However, their procedures were not completely set in order; as President Woodruff observed, the Prophet Joseph had not lived long enough to “enter any further upon these things.” Acting according to “all the light and knowledge [they] had,” they often had themselves sealed, or “adopted,” to Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, or other Church leaders of their day rather than to their own fathers and mothers. As President of the Church, President Woodruff referred to this practice, saying: “We have not fully carried out those principles in fulfillment of the revelations of God to us, in sealing the hearts of the fathers to the children and the children to the fathers. … We have felt that there was more to be revealed upon this subject than we had received.”

That additional revelation came to President Woodruff on April 5, 1894. Three days later, in a general conference address, he told of the revelation: “When I went before the Lord to know who I should be adopted to … , the Spirit of God said to me, ‘Have you not a father, who begot you?’ ‘Yes, I have.’ ‘Then why not honor him? Why not be adopted to him?’ ‘Yes,’ says I, ‘that is right.’ I was adopted to my father, and should have had my father sealed to his father, and so on back; and the duty that I want every man who presides over a temple to see performed from this day henceforth and forever, unless the Lord Almighty commands otherwise, is, let every man be adopted to his father. … That is the will of God to this people. …

“We want the Latter-day Saints from this time to trace their genealogies as far as they can, and to be sealed to their fathers and mothers. Have children sealed to their parents, and run this chain through as far as you can get it. …

Early Saints in the mid-1800s had little or no ability to organize and research genealogies. Perhaps adoptive sealing functioned as an intermediary method until the Saints had a greater ability to do systematic genealogy.

The replacement of adoptive sealings by genealogical-based sealings illustrates the LDS concept of revelation at work. Revelation is not magical. Latter-day Saints believe that revelation expands knowledge (see the 9th Article of Faith). As such, the Church is a work in progress. A Church of revelation is a progressive Church.

True revelation ALWAYS makes things better, not worse. True revelation gives us greater appreciation for the Church, and it gives us greater insight into the Eternities.

*****

Copyright 2008 S.Faux (Email: foxgoku54 [at] gmail [d0t] c0m; URL: http://mormoninsights.blogspot.com). Readers may distribute this post for noncommercial purposes provided such distributing is of the entire post, including author's copyright and contact information. All other rights reserved.




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The Second Letter to the Thessalonians

This letter of Paul strikes a more negative tone than the first letter. It expresses many concerns about the behaviors and beliefs of the Thessalonians. It is possible that this second letter was written during Paul’s “third mission” (See: LDS Bible Map #13 and Bible Dictionary: Paul). In any case, a fair amount of time must have passed between the first and second letters, given all the changes in the Thessalonians.

Evidently, members of the Church were experiencing “persecutions and tribulations” (v. 1:4). Therefore, Paul said:

2 Thessalonians 1:7 – 10
7 And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels,
8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:
9 Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;
10 When he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe (because our testimony among you was believed ) in that day.

While Paul was on the topic of the Second Coming, he tried to make a clarification, as the Thessalonians had some misunderstanding:

Oxford Companion to the Bible, p. 742
There must have been a group in the church who believed that they were living in the very last days. They appear to have been encouraged in this view by some statement that was alleged to have come from Paul himself. Paul, however, stopped short of affirming that the end had actually arrived, and he referred to other events that must happen before the return of the Lord. … Paul envisaged [an] apostasy… .

This is what Paul had to say:

2 Thessalonians 2:1 – 4
1 ¶ NOW we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and [by] our gathering together unto him,
2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.
3 ¶ Let no man deceive you by any means: for [that day shall not come], except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
5 Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?

Paul had evidently taught the Thessalonians that the Second Coming was near but that certain things had to happen first. There had to be a general apostasy and a "son of perdition" (see 2:3-4) had to set himself up in a temple as THE God.

How will we know who these apostate people are? Paul said these people would take “pleasure in unrighteousness” (see 2:10 – 12).

Paul then gave this advice:

2 Thessalonians 3:4 [emphasis mine]
4 And we have confidence … that ye both do and will do the things which we command you.
5 And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ.

Paul indicated that he was concerned about the growing signs of apostasy in the Church. He said things like, “stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught” (v. 2:15), and he instructed the Saints to avoid every brother who “walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which he received of us” (v. 3:6).

Near the very end of his letter, Paul said, “[B]e not weary in well doing” (v. 3: 13).

I have given this advice to my adult boys: Be not weary in your well doing. Concentrate on your work. Learn the gospel. Prepare yourself to be a husband, father and a leader. Do NOT proceed unprepared. Study, pray, and refine yourself. If you do these things, then you will overcome the challenges of life.

*****

Copyright 2008 S.Faux (Email: foxgoku54 [at] gmail [d0t] c0m; URL: http://mormoninsights.blogspot.com). Readers may distribute this post for noncommercial purposes provided such distributing is of the entire post, including author's copyright and contact information. All other rights reserved.




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