Insights to the Creation

Section 59 of the Doctrine and Covenants is great. It talks about the Sabath Day, worshiping God, and the blessings there in.

In verse 16 it says, "as ye do this, the fulness of the Earth is yours, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the air, and that which climbeth upon the trees and walketh upon the earth." But what is "this?"

This is worshiping God on his Sabath Day, offering sacraments, confessing sin, fasting, and rejoicing with thanksgiving. God explained the blessing of keeping the Sabath Day holy.





I also like verse 20 which says, "And it pleaseth God that he hath given all thses things unto man; for unto this end were they made to be used, with judgement, not to excess, neither by extortion." We will be blessed with the "fulness of the Earth" if we keep the sabath day but we are not to use it unwisely. God is pleased when we use the Earth for our benefit but it is not to "excess" or by "extortion." What does that mean to you?

To me, it means that I should not be wasteful. I should be economical in the things I buy and use. I should recycle and love nature. I'm greatful for the Earth and its beauty. I'm thankful to God, who gave us life on this Earth that we might learn, grow, and return to him through His Son, Jesus Christ.

How do you see?

Art. What is it?

There are so many different mediums, writing, music, clothing, paint, gardening, the list could go on. Sometimes I wish I was a more traditional artist expressing an idea through paint and sculpture. True art seems to convey an idea more poignantly than words. But in the end, words, music, or art all do the same thing. These things communicate a feeling, a thought, a deed that should be remembered.

This week I went to the BYU Museum of Art to look at the religious collection exhibition entitled “Types and Shadows” I want to share three paintings that I saw.



This first one is entitled “Man of Sorrows” by Chris Young. I like the picture because it explains that the perfect man, Jesus Christ has carried us, the very imperfect cross. This painting seems to embody the mission of Jesus Christ. It produces gratitude in the viewer because we notice that the most perfect person has born our grief.



This second painting by Trevor Southey entitled “After Jesus and Mary. This is the moment after the resurrection of Christ. I like the colors of the painting because they give the painting an feeling that it has been placed somewhere between the living and the dead but also between the heavenly and the mundane. What would it have been like to really see Jesus after his resurrection? Have you ever truly thought about what it would have been like for Mary to see Jesus living? Even after she saw him die? I believe this painting captures this moment of unbelief and awkwardness. What a odd feeling Mary must have experienced.



This third piece is a sculpture entitled “Christ Bearing the Cross” by Sledz a polish folk artist. I like it number one, because it is from Poland, but I also like the simplicity of the folk art. It is not sophisticated. It is a snapshot of time, when all of heaven must have been watching Christ carrying his cross. How difficult it must have been to watch as he struggled and strained to finish that which God had commanded. I know that Jesus Christ suffered, died, and resurrected that we might live.

Moses and Brigham Young: Exoduses

When you look at the world, what do you see first? Water, the continents, your favorite country, or the ice caps? I've started thinking and I've noticed how similar Utah, in the United States is similar to Israel in geography and climate. Both of these places have a saltwater lake connected to a fresh water lake with a river in between. Here are some pictures.






Can you tell which one is the Great Salt Lake in Utah? They look so similar. After studying for a semester in Israel, at the BYU Jerusalem Center for Near Eastern Studies, I've come to realize how simliar the regions are. Both are deserts; both receive snow; both have a salty lake.

That is what brings me to the next similarity. God led his people to both regions by a prophet. In my last post, I mentioned how Brigham Young and Moses were similar. American Historians even call Brigham Young the American Moses because he led thousands of people across the plains into the Great Salt Lake Valley and settled many place in the intermountain west. Las Vegas even started as a Mormon settlement.

Why is this important? What is the coincidence that a man in America, who claimed to be a prophet, would lead his people to a similar place as the promised land in the Bible? Either God works in patterns, or Brigham Young studied the Bible and American geography really well.

There are certain parallelisms between the two narratives that are hard to ignore. A Prophet, receiving the law on a mountain or temple, an exodus, a journey, a salt water lake, a river, a promised land.

But what does it represent? That we can be saved from our bondage or sin and led to the promised land by Christ our Savior. He lived on the earth, he died for our sins, and he was resurrected with a body. It is great to know the truths of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Revelation of God

The story of the Children of Israel is filled with symbolism. Moses delivered the Children of Israel from Egypt and brought them to the Promised Land, literally showing that Jesus liberates those who believe in him from the captivity of sin allowing those who believe in him, his children, to reach the Promised Land or heaven. Along the way, Moses received the law of God in Mount Sinai, they traveled in the wilderness for 40 days, and then Joshua, which means Jehovah saves and the Hebrew equivalent of the Greek name Jesus, brought them across the Jordan River and into the Promised Land, just as Jesus helps us cross into heaven.

This theme is also present in the New Testament, except, prophets aren’t symbolizing Jesus, but rather He was on the Earth. But it is important to note, that fifty days after the resurrection of Christ, the Pentecost occurred just as it was represented by Moses, after he lead the Children of Israel from Egypt for fifty days.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has much of the same symbolism. After the restoration of the Church of Jesus Christ, a temple was built, the modern equivalent of a mountain, and there the Lord gave his law. After this, the early saints were driven from Kirkland, Ohio then to Nauvoo and finally on to Salt Lake City. They were lead by Brigham Young who some call the American Moses.

I bring up this symbolism because section 42 of the Doctrine and Covenants is sometimes called the Law. Just as Moses received the Law on Mount Sinai, just as the Pentecost in the New Testament, section 42 of the Doctrine and Covenants was given to the members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This revelation is significant because it establishes rules and commandments that Latter-Day Saints are to live by. Such as verse 22 which says, “Thou shalt love thy wife with all they heart, and cleave unto her and none else” or verse 30 that says, “thou wilt remember the poor.”

The Lord had promised this revelation earlier in section 39 of the Doctrine and Covenants. In verse 32 He says, “Wherefore, for this cause I gave unto the commandment that ye should go to the Ohio; and there I will give unto you my law; and there you shall be endowed with power from on high.” We declare that God reveals commandments and counsel concerning man through a living prophet. Section 42is the supreme example.

Print and Power

I went to the Crandall Printing Museum this week. It is on center street here in Provo. I've heard about it over and over again while I've attended BYU. I always wanted to go, and I finally went. Take a look at the website:

http://crandallmuseum.org/

In this museum they have three printing presses. They have a working replica of the Gutenberg press, Benjamin Franklin’s press, and a press that E.B. Grandin used to print the Book of Mormon.

We first watched a demonstration of Gutenberg’s press. Beginning with a demonstration on how he made his movable type. The museum explained that Gutenberg was a metallurgist. This is how he knew what metals to mix so that he could get a good metal combination to make his movable type. They printed a page from the Vulgate bible. I am a Latin student, not a very happy one after my test today, and it was interesting to see a replica of the Vulgate Bible. I’ve also taken a calligraphy class, and I understand what amount of work it takes to produce a illuminated bible. Printers makes my life so easy.

Next we moved to the Benjamin Franklin Room where the replica of Franklin’s press was located. There was also a replica of Franklin himself, one of the curators dressed up. They discussed the power that printing had in the colonies. Franklin was able to print some 500,000 copies of Paine's "Common Sense." When he did this, there were only two million colonists living in America. That means one out of every four colonists living in America had a copy of "Common Sense." I don’t know of any kind of literature today that would represent that type of dissemination. The Museum argued that without the press the American Revolution would have never occurred, saying that the printed word unified the colonists. After learning one in four Americans had a “Common Sense” I believe them.

Lastly, we saw a replica press that printed the Book of Mormon. Joseph Smith went to the E.B. Grandin Print Shop which, as I learned, was the most modern printing press avaliable in the 1820's. For Joseph Smith to have such a modern press so close is remarkable. The museum showed us the entire process of printing the Book of Mormon-- from pressing the sheets, to hanging them, to stitching the binding together. The museum noted that E.B. Grandin, the printer, printed 5,000 books in seven months. This, I guess, was extremely fast for that time period because the printers reset a new page of the Book of Mormon every two minutes. It was incredible that they printed that many books that fast.

I was thinking how lucky I am to have books. Every day I read the newspaper, the Bible and the Book of Mormon. I read things on the internet, about Roman history, about American history. I even am reading Livy. I read ALL the time. We take books and printed material for granted. But are we grateful for the chance to read?

My wife is a High School Teacher. When she began to teach, she was surprised that the reading comprehension of her students. She would say many basic words like synopsis and summary, and they did not know the meanings of these words. Howeever, when we learn to read it changes everything. We gain power because we control what we learn. We gain power because we can spread ideas, concepts, and principles. Without the ability to read and write, we wanderer through life.

Patty Bartlett Sessions

Patty Batlett Sessions joined the LDS Church in 1834. At that time she was living in Maine. After she had joined the Mormon Church, she moved to Missouri with her husband, David Sessions, and family (Wikipedia Patty Barlett Sessions). I am named after this David Sessions. They were forced from their home in Missouri, moved to Nauvoo, and then to Salt Lake City, Utah. Her son, Parrigrine Sessions, settled Bountiful, Utah where his residence still exists at 500 South and Main Street. Patty Sessions was given a journal by her daughter in which she recorded 20 years of daily life (Wikipedia). Patty delivered 248 babies during her lifetime and lived until she was 97 (Wikipedia).

If it was not for this grandmother, I would not be in Utah today. She joined the church and gathered with the saints. The early saints were commanded to move to Ohio (sec 37 of d&c). They came from all over the United States and Europe. This revelation has directly influence in my life because it is the reason that I live in Utah. Had the early LDS saints not gathered to Ohio and to Missouri, they wouldn't have been forced to Nauvoo and later to Salt Lake City. This gathering supported the saints in building the LDS Church. I'm sure if Patty and David had decided to stay in Maine, they would not have remained faithful to the LDS Church.

Today, this gathering still has effect in my life. Not only has it affect my ancestors and thereby affecting me, but also it has helped me to understand that I need to "gather" every Sunday to my ward and help support those who are living today. I'm grateful for the fellowship of the Latter-Day Saints and the help that it has given me.

Emma Smith: A Modern Woman

The Lord directed section 25 of the Doctrine of Covenants to Emma Smith, wife of Joseph Smith. Considering the historical context of this revelation, Emma was truly a modern woman. In a time when women did not even have the right to vote, the Lord gave this revelation to a woman. This revelation shows that God is not a respecter of persons. He considers man and woman equally.

In the first verse of this section, the Lord calls Emma Smith his daughter. The Lord considered her equal because He had called Joseph Smith His son. He didn’t call her the wife of My son Joseph. He didn’t call her wife of the prophet. He called her His daughter. What love God has for us since we are his children. We as LDS Church members believe that we are literal children of God, created in His image. This means that our bodies were patterned after His. I believe all people would act differently if they truly believed that they were a literal son or daughter of God. This knowledge changes how I act and behave when I am alone and with others. This is not only evidence that woman are equal to men but that we are all children of our Father in Heaven.

The Lord asked Emma Smith to be a scribe. Women in the 19th century did little but cook, clean, and care for children. I’m sure it was a shock to Emma Smith for the Lord to command her to be a scribe for her husband. Women at that time simply didn’t do that. In my opinion, this is evidence that the Lord has tailored a specific earth experience for each of his children here on the earth. However, the Lord leaves it to us, to decide how we will live. Emma had a specific role to fulfill and it was more than housework.

Verse 7 also provides more evidence that Emma was truly a modern woman. The Lord says, “thou shalt be ordained under his hand to expound scriptures, and to exhort the church, according as it shall be given thee by my Spirit.” These words must have blasted Emma away. Not only was she to be a scribe, but she was to “expound scriptures” and “exhort the Church” and it would be “given” her “by the spirit” and not by Joseph. These powerful words show that Emma, a 19th century woman, was equal in the Lords sight. It also instructs us that women should be equal in our sight too.

I’m grateful for the women in my life, especially Carly whom I married this past July. I strive to treat her everyday with the equality that the Lord expects. I want her to know that she is a daughter of God. He knows her and her situation here on Earth. I hope she can find her role as a woman in the 21st century. She is smart and very capable in whatever she does. I hope she can find what roles the Lord would like her to play. She is the love of my life and I want her to be happy. I love living life with her. I love her!