Apologies and a Link

Due to circumstances of life and health beyond my control, I haven't had a chance to post here lately. (I don't know how many of you actually read this blog, but, for those who do, I apologize for the silence!) I will do my best to get a summary of yesterday's lesson up as soon as possible. In the meantime, I wanted to post a link to the talk I referred to yesterday by Bonnie D. Parkin. It was originally given as a BYU Devotional address entitled "Personal Ministry: Sacred and Precious", the text of which can be found here. It was later adapted as an article in BYU Magazine called simply "Personal Ministry", which you can read here. Well worth reading and applying!

Lesson 42: "Continuing Revelation to Latter-day Prophets"

I'm coming to terms with the fact that, on the weeks when I don't teach, I will be spending Sunday School time in the hall with my infant daughter. (I am grateful that my husband takes his turn on the weeks when I do teach!) Unfortunately, this means I won't be able to provide a summary of or any reactions to the actual lesson. If you had the chance to attend class, what did you learn or think about?

The focus of the lesson in the manual was on continuing modern revelation. Specifically, it addressed revelations involving materials correlation in the Church, extending the blessings of the Priesthood to all worthy males in the Church, publishing new editions of the scriptures, and the organization of additional quorums of the Seventy. I liked, though, how it pointed out that not all revelations are so far-reaching or the effects so widely-known. Instead, the leaders of the Church are constantly receiving revelations on various aspects of "running" the Church that most of us may never know about. This story told by President Harold B. Lee illustrates this truth:

"Elder John A. Widtsoe of the Council of the Twelve once told of a discussion he had with a group of stake officers. In the course of the discussion someone said to him, 'Brother Widtsoe, how long has it been since the Church received a revelation?' Brother Widtsoe rubbed his chin thoughtfully and said in reply, 'Oh, probably since last Thursday'" (Stand Ye in Holy Places, 1974, pp. 132-33).

Most recently, I was impressed by the evidence of continuing revelation in this address by Julie B. Beck, the Relief Society General President. She relates how, in counsel with the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve, the name and focus of Relief Society meetings has been changed. Basically, the responsibility for determining the purpose, content, and frequency of meetings outside of the Sunday Relief Society class now rests more fully on local leaders. The purpose of this decision is to "help meet the needs of individuals and families in the [local] ward". I love this example of how, although the Gospel remains constant, the Church is always changing to better meet the needs of its members. This is done through continuing revelation.

More Food for Thought

I want to thank Brian for posting the link to this talk by Henry B. Eyring. If you haven't had a chance to read it, I highly recommend it. It dovetails perfectly with the lesson topic from this week, and presents some powerful insights into sharing the Gospel.

I was especially touched by two points from this talk. The first was this insight into what makes a person successful at sharing the Gospel:

There is no single pattern in what they do. There is no common technique. Some always carry a Book of Mormon to give away. Others set a date to find someone for the missionaries to teach. Another has found questions which draw out feelings about what matters most in life to a person. Each has prayed to know what to do. They each seem to get a different answer, suited especially to them and to the the people they meet. (Henry B. Eyring, "A Child and a Disciple," Ensign, May 2003, p. 29)

I love this, because it takes into account the truth that we are all different, with different strengths and weaknesses, and different styles. The Lord wants to and will work through us in different ways to touch individuals. The key is to seek the Lord's guidance. We can ask Him, "How can I lift someone up today?" and then be willing to act on the answers we receive.

The second point that struck me was this:

You must not wait until you feel closer to Heavenly Father or until you are sure that you have been purified through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. Pray for the chance to encounter people who sense there could be something better in their lives. Pray to know what you should do to help them. Your prayers will be answered. You will meet people prepared by the Lord. You will find yourself feeling and saying things beyond your past experience. And then in time you will feel yourself drawing closer to your Heavenly Father, and you will feel the cleansing and the forgiveness the Savior promises His faithful witnesses. And you will feel His approval, knowing you have done what He asked of you, because He loves you and trusts you.

What an amazing promise! We just need to keep trying and doing the best we can. If we are truly humble in our weakness, the Lord will be able to use us as instruments in his hands. Then, as a result, we will experience the feelings of love and acceptance that we long for.

Thanks again, Brian, for pointing out this talk!

Chapter 41: "Every Member a Missionary" (Part 2)

So, sharing the Gospel is part of our responsibility to lift others up toward Christ. Why, then, are we sometimes hesitant to do it? I asked the class what kinds of things kept them from talking to others about the Gospel, and I got a variety of answers: fear of seeming pushy, fear of seeming weird, fear of awkwardness, fear of losing a friendship, fear of not knowing what to say, and fear of not knowing how to explain difficult doctrines. I think we have all experienced these fears.

One thing that has helped me overcome some of these fears is to think of all of Heavenly Father's children on a big ladder. At the top is Eternal Life (being with God and like God), and at the bottom is Eternal Death (being eternally separated from God). Somewhere on the ladder, one of the rungs is baptism, and somewhere above that is a rung for temple ordinances. Somewhere below those is gaining a testimony of the Book of Mormon, somewhere else is knowing that God exists, and another is feeling his love. There are an infinite number of rungs with different steps toward Eternal Life, and all of us are on a rung somewhere.

This model gives me a better perspective on sharing the Gospel, because the point is to always be lifting each other up a rung. Instead of being intimidated by the pressure to invite our non-member neighbors to be baptized, we can focus on finding out where they are on the "ladder" and how we can help them move "up". Perhaps even more importantly, this idea helps me see that it is not only non-members that need our love and encouragement! We should always be concentrating on lifting everyone up a rung--our children, our spouses, our parents, our friends and neighbors, members of our ward, ancestors who have passed away . . . everyone! If we just make it the habit of our lives to get to know people well enough to find out where they are on the ladder and help them up a rung, will it be so difficult to share the Gospel?

When I was serving as a missionary, the Primary children from my home ward wrote letters to the missionaries. The Primary presidency photocopied the letters and sent them to all the missionaries serving from our ward. What a joy it was to read those letters! One of them stood out to me above the others, though, and I will never forget it. At the end of one line, a young boy wrote, "How many people have you . . . ". In the instant before my eyes moved to the beginning of the next line, my mind had already filled in the word "baptized". I was surprised, however, to find out what he had really written: "How many people have you served?" This is, I believe, the essence of what the Lord would have us do. If we are loving and serving everyone around us, lifting each other up toward Christ--including sharing the Gospel--will naturally follow. In fact, if we had to express the Plan of Salvation in just one word, I believe that word would be "love".

President Henry B. Eyring shared a beautiful example of the effects of this kind of love and service toward others. He told the story of participating with other ward members to help a new neighbor put in a lawn and landscaping. The man expressed appreciation, but assured them that he was satisfied with his own beliefs. Over the years, they continued to extend friendship and love toward this family. Later, President Eyring had this experience:

In all that time, the acts of kindness extended to him and his family never ceased, because the neighbors really came to love them. One evening I came home to see a truck in their driveway. I had been told they were moving to another state. I approached to see if I could help. I didn’t recognize the man I saw loading household things into the truck. He said quietly as I drew near, “Hello, Brother Eyring.” I hadn’t recognized him because he was the son, now grown older, who had lived there, married, and moved away. And because of the love of many for him, he was now a baptized member of the Church. I don’t know the end of that story because it will have no end. But I know that it began with love (“Let Us Raise Our Voice of Warning,” Ensign, Jan 2009, 4–9).

It always begins with love, doesn't it?

Chapter 41: "Every Member a Missionary" (Part 1)

A couple of years ago, Elder M. Russell Ballard gave a General Conference address in which he suggested a tool Church members could use in sharing the Gospel:

“You may want to prepare your own list of talking points that will assist you in explaining what we believe to your friends and acquaintances of other faiths. It may be helpful for you, as it is for me, to have on one page a few facts about the Church as it is today to give to them along with a copy of the Articles of Faith” (M. Russell Ballard, “Faith, Family, Facts, and Fruits,” Ensign, Nov 2007, 25–27.)

Did you try this? (If so, I'd love to hear about your experience!) When I heard this talk, I thought, "That's a great idea!" I wrote it down, and then I never seemed to get around to doing it. A few months later, I was assigned to teach a Relief Society lesson on Elder Ballard's talk, so I decided it was time to make my own one-page summary of beliefs.

Now, I have not yet had the opportunity to use the summary I created, but I did learn something very important from the experience--that it is amazingly difficult to summarize my beliefs in one page! When you stop and think about it, we as Latter-day Saints believe so many things. We believe in prophets. We believe in tithing. We believe in food storage, family history, and the pre-mortal existence. And the list goes on and on. How do you choose what to put on that one-page summary and what to leave off?

The answer, I believe, is that we need to understand how those doctrines all fit together. In the Church, we most often study the Gospel topically--focusing on one doctrine at a time, but seldom stepping back to see how everything connects in the "big picture". The key is to "boil down" the Gospel to its most basic level and work out from there.

So, what is the Gospel in its most basic form? Doctrine & Covenants 76:40-42 teaches that the Gospel is

"That he came into the world, even Jesus, to be crucified for the world, and to bear the sins of the world, and to sanctify the world, and to cleanse it from all unrighteousness; That through him all might be saved."

In other words, the core of the Gospel is the Plan of Salvation. Every doctrine, if it is true, must somehow connect to this core.

Because the Plan of Salvation is very simple and, at the same time, very profound, people have come up with various models that can help us visualize the Plan. (See this Ensign article in text or pdf format for a great discussion of several such models.) The most commonly used model is one we could call "circles and lines" or "circles and arrows". (Click here for a visual.) The strength of this model is that it answers the questions, "Where did we come from?", "Why are we here?", and "Where do we go after we die?" One major weakness of this model, though, is that it leaves out what Bruce R. McConkie called "The Three Pillars of Eternity": the Creation, the Fall, and the Atonement.

Another way to look at the Plan of Salvation is represented by the words found in Moses 1:39: "For behold, this is my work and my glory--to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." This is truly the Gospel in a nutshell! For all of you Star Trek fans, this reminds me a lot of the concept of the Prime Directive--a basic principle that we can refer to when we have a question about something or a difficult decision to make. Moses 1:39 really should be our "Prime Directive"! Everything we do--especially in our families and in the Church--should be referred to it by asking: Is this helping to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man?

So the next question is, what is our role as Church members in the Plan? As President Ezra Taft Benson taught, "We have a sacred responsibility to fulfill the threefold mission of the Church--first, to teach the gospel to the world; second, to strengthen the membership of the Church wherever they may be; third, to move forward the work of salvation for the dead" ("A Sacred Responsibility," Ensign, May 1986, p. 77). So, basically, the purpose of the Church is "to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life" of three groups of people: Church members, non-members, and those who have passed away. In other words, all of God's children.

How do we do that? By bringing others to Christ, so that He can bring them to the Father. I love the imagery found in 3 Nephi 27:13-15 of Christ on the cross--lifted up with arms outstretched, inviting us to come to Him: "that as I have been lifted up by men even so should men be lifted up by the Father" (v. 14). Our responsibility, then, is to lift each other up toward Christ.

Lesson 40: "Finding Joy in Temple and Family History Work"

I missed class today because of family illness, so I would love it if someone could give a recap of the Gospel Doctrine lesson for those who weren't able to attend. I would also appreciate any comments on what you thought about and learned on this topic.

Personally, I've always felt a little guilty about not getting into family history research like my mom, aunt, brother, and husband do (or have done at different points in their lives). I tried to make myself feel good about tediously searching through records, reminding myself that this was IMPORTANT, that people were WAITING for this. It wasn't working, though.

One day, I had a breakthrough. I decided IT WAS GOING TO BE OKAY for me to feel that this aspect of family history research was tedious. I realized that different people have different strengths and interests. Some people enjoy the thrill of the hunt, the aspect of mystery, the exultant feeling of victory when information is found and another name can be submitted. Me? I find more satisfaction in the personal aspects of family history--journals, memoirs, oral histories, photos, and the like. Although searching for names is a very important part of family history, it is not the only part.

Today I began a new project in this vein--recording my parents' oral histories, then transcribing and editing them into a book. I have the equipment, skills, and motivation to work on this project (though time is another issue!), so I'm going to do it. Not everyone finds this aspect of family history interesting. Many might find the transcription and editing processes tedious, but I love it! Just another example of different gifts working together to make a complete whole.

So, how do you find joy in temple and family history work?

Lesson 39: What did you learn from Section 138?

I wish there was a way for me to reproduce the class discussion here, but that, unfortunately, is not possible. I do want to thank everyone that has been participating in class, though. I honestly learn so much from all the ideas and insights that you share, even if I don't mention them specifically here. I also know that not everyone feels comfortable speaking out in a class of this size. I do hope that all of you are thinking and feeling the Spirit during the discussions, even if you don't vocalize those thoughts and feelings.

I posed the question, "What touched or inspired you in Section 138?" I was especially touched by the insight of one class member who wondered how it must have felt for Joseph F. Smith to see his own father Hyrum there as one of "the noble and great ones" (see v. 53-56). Another person talked about a beautiful truth to be learned from this same passage--that the spirits not yet born to earth and those of the righteous who had already passed from this life mingled together. It is apparent from these verses that those who had progressed further assisted in the training and teaching of those who would be born at a later time.

A question came up during the discussion about what happens to those who reject the Gospel in this life. I love how clear Section 138 is on this topic! In verses 57-59, it becomes apparent that the Gospel will be preached to all in the Spirit World. Those who have not repented in this life will be given the chance to do so then, although they will be responsible to pay the "penalty for their transgressions" instead of taking advantage of Christ's sacrifice in their behalf. As we discussed this idea, I was struck by the amazing love and long-suffering God offers us. As someone in the class put it, he gives us so many chances to repent in this life, then keeps on giving us chances afterwards. This reminds me so much of the words of Ammon in Alma 26:16:

"Behold, who can glory too much in the Lord? Yea, who can say too much of his great power, and of his mercy, and of his long-suffering towards the children of men? Behold, I say unto you, I cannot say the smallest part which I feel."

So, now I ask the question of you--what did you learn from Section 138?

Lesson 39: What I Learned from Section 138

One thing that really impressed me from Doctrine & Covenants 138 was President Smith's description of what he was doing that led to this remarkable vision. His words reflect a tried-and-true pattern for receiving revelation, not just for prophets, but for all of us. These are the steps I see in his narrative:

1. He was pondering and reflecting (see v. 1-2). Class members pointed out two significant points here: that he was in a quiet place alone to do this pondering, and that he was thinking about a specific doctrine. I think we sometimes assume that a prophet receives "lightning bolt"-type revelations. Although this might sometimes be true, I believe that, more often, the revelation they receive--like the revelation we all most often receive--is the result of quiet, specific pondering of doctrine. The thought came to me that it is impossible to get an answer if you don't have a question!
2. He opened the scriptures (see v. 6). One person gave a great perspective on this verse, showing how President Smith not only thought about these ideas, but he acted on them by going to the scriptures for more information. This led to a brief discussion of Elder Richard G. Scott's talk from this past General Conference, where he counseled us to "respond to, record, and apply the first promptings that come to you" in order to receive further revelation. I also thought it was significant that this was not the first time President Smith had read these particular passages of scripture--in fact, he had apparently studied them many times before. This shows that we need to continually be studying the word of God, because specific revelation can come to us even from well-known verses when the time is right.
3. He says "the eyes of my understanding were opened" (v. 11). I love this beautiful description of how it feels to receive direct revelation!
4. He felt the presence of the Holy Ghost (see v. 11). The Spirit is the vehicle of revelation--there can be no revelation without it (see Alma 5:46).
5. He testified of what was revealed to him (see v. 60). Although some revelations are too sacred to share with others, we should always follow the guidance of the Spirit and be willing to testify of what we have learned when prompted to do so. When we testify appropriately, the Spirit can witness to others of the truth of what we have shared. This is vital to kindling the "fire" of testimony in each others' hearts.

This same pattern, with slight variations, appears in many places in the scriptures, including 1 Nephi 1, 1 Nephi 5, Ether 3, and Moses 7. I challenge you to read these passages to find this pattern for yourself, as well as noticing it in other scripture accounts you read in the future.

Lesson 39: "The Hearts of the Children Shall Turn to their Fathers" (Background)

I always have to laugh a little when I look at the teacher's manual and see how much information they suggest you cover in one class period. In this chapter, for example, there were four large sections that could each have been its own lesson. Trying to be a little more realistic, I decided to focus only on Doctrine and Covenants Section 138. This is a transcript of a General Conference address by President Joseph F. Smith in October of 1918.

I started out doing some research about Joseph F. Smith, as well as learning a little about what life was like for members of the Church in 1918. None of this was absolutely necessary to understanding Section 138, of course, but I found that it gave me a greater appreciation for this revelation and its meaning. Some of the places I found information were:

• An article on the history of General Conference
• A "snapshot" of the world in 1918 (The focus of this site is the flu pandemic of 1918-19, but it has some great general information as well)
• Teachings of the Presidents of the Church: Joseph F. Smith

I think it is helpful to know that Joseph F. Smith was the son of Hyrum Smith and nephew of the prophet Joseph Smith, that he was five years old when they were killed, that his mother died when he was thirteen, and that "between 1869 and 1898, he buried nine little children of his own" (quoted from here). The last year of his life was also one in which millions of people world-wide were dying in a frightening and little-understood flu pandemic. The topics of death and post-mortal life must have been constantly on his mind.

In 1918, Joseph F. Smith was 79 years old. He had been president of the Church for nearly seventeen years, and his health was failing. I don't think he or anyone else knew if he would be able to attend October conference. But, when the time came, he was there, and he began his address this way:

"I have been undergoing a siege of very serious illness for the last five months. . . . I have not lived alone these five months. I have dwelt in the spirit of prayer, of supplication, of faith and of determination; and I have had my communication with the Spirit of the Lord continuously" (in Conference Report, Oct. 1918, 2).

The talk he then proceeded to give is now known as Section 138 of the Doctrine and Covenants. In the section heading, it says further that "President Smith declared that he had received several divine communications during the previous months." When I read this, I couldn't help wondering, what if President Monson stood up in Conference today and said that "he had received several divine communications" and wanted to share one of them with us in detail? Wouldn't you be on the edge of your seat, pen and paper in hand? I'm going to continue this summary and discussion in the next post, but I hope you will take the time to re-read Section 138 with this perspective.

Thoughts on Lesson 38: "In Mine Own Way"

On the weeks when I'm not teaching the lesson, I won't have as much background research to share. I thought it might still be worth it to post some of my own impressions and reactions, though, and hopefully to read about yours as well.

This past Sunday, the topic was self-reliance and the Welfare program of the Church. I'll go out on a limb here and admit that this topic always bothers me a little. (Just to be clear, I am NOT criticizing the current lesson or teacher. I just want to express some thoughts I have about the way we always seem to approach the idea of self-reliance in the Church.) The teacher mentioned that, if we were all self-reliant, we wouldn't need the Welfare program. She referenced Moses 7:18, where it describes the people of Zion as a group with "no poor among them." This would, of course, be a wonderful thing!

My question, though, is whether that means they were all perfectly independent of each other (one way we often define "self-reliance") or if, instead, it means that they were perfectly interdependent--creating a community where the strengths and weaknesses of each member were balanced through pure, Christlike love. I can't help but reference 1 Corinthians 12, where the concept of "the body of Christ" is explained. It talks about the variety of spiritual gifts available to the followers of Christ, and how we are commanded to use them to complement each other. Where one member is weak, another is strong, and vice versa.

It is unrealistic to imagine that any of us could ever be truly "self-reliant" in the sense of not needing anyone else. (I was glad to see that one class member in Sunday's discussion pointed this out in reference to our reliance on God.) Instead, the ideal congregation is described this way:

That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another. And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one members be honoured, all the members rejoice with it. (1 Corinthians 12:25-26)

In other words, the ideal group of saints is not a collection of people who don't need each other's help, but a body of unselfish followers of Christ who take care of each other and truly love neighbor more than self (see Luke 10:27).

So, what does self-reliance truly mean, then? What are your thoughts?

Lesson 37: Bonus Features

Whenever I prepare a lesson, I always end up with way more material than time to discuss it. (This is, of course, much better than the opposite problem!) I appreciate learning all those other things for my own sake, but I thought it would be nice to share them with others, too. I've been thinking of this blog as a place to publish the "bonus features" of the Gospel Doctrine lesson, like all of the extra material you get on a DVD. Similar to deleted scenes and out-takes, the ideas here won't necessarily be as polished as the ones that actually make it into Sunday's discussion. Hopefully, we can flesh them out by exploring them together.

One topic that was addressed in the lesson manual was the different roles of a prophet. This is a list that most of us could come up with without much thought, I believe:

• acts as a mouthpiece of the Lord (see D&C 1:38)
• calls the world to repentance (D&C 6:9)
• acts as a seer (Mosiah 8:17)
• presides over the Church (D&C 107:91)
• reveals the word of the Lord (D&C 43:2)
• acts as a special witness of Christ (D&C 20:26)

I was thinking a lot about the prophet's role as a revelator, in particular. Here's another instance where a word's roots can teach us something important. The "re-" in "reveal" means "back", and "veal" comes from the same root as "veil". So part of what a prophet does is to move back the veil! I love this idea, and it resonated with many things from the General Conference addresses. Did you notice the theme of revelation running through many of the talks? (See this one, this one, and parts of this one for three examples in just the first session!)

I especially loved the reference Elder Neil L. Anderson made to "pull[ing] the shades down over our open window into heaven". I think that, in terms of personal revelation, we often have more power than we realize to "pull the shades" up or down--to move back the veil and "see into" heaven. What kinds of things cause the veil to move back in your life?

Lesson 37: "We Thank Thee, O God, For a Prophet"

Because I used the first part of class to discuss the purposes and blessings of studying Gospel Doctrine, we were only able to focus on a couple of points from the scheduled lesson. I wanted to emphasize the importance of current revelation, so it made sense to discuss the most recent General Conference. Specifically, I asked, "What is something from Conference that impressed or touched you?" Many people responded, and the Spirit was strong as class members testified of truths they had learned.

Of course, I could never do justice here to all that was shared there. I would like to touch on a couple of things that came out in the discussion, though. One brother, for example, said that he had been impressed by the overall spirit of Conference and felt confirmation that these messages are not only for members of the Church. He felt prompted to share some of the ideas with his co-workers and friends. Another member of the group noticed that a common thread ran throughout many of the talks, and that some of the messages seemed to be directed right to him. Someone else mentioned that Elder Holland's testimony of the Book of Mormon was particularly powerful, and many others agreed. Yet another class member learned some important things from Elder Ballard during the Priesthood session, where he addressed the relationships between fathers and sons. Several others shared their feelings as well, and I learned many things from the discussion.

Let's continue that discussion here. What things impressed or touched you from General Conference?

Edifying Each Other (Part 2)

If we keep exploring the roots of the word "edify", we discover that the original meaning of the Latin word aedis was "hearth", which in turn comes from the Indo-European root *aidh-, "to burn". If you think about ancient temples (Judeo-Christian and otherwise) as places where burnt sacrifices were offered and certain fires were constantly kept burning, it makes sense to think of a hearth as a representation of a temple. When we think of the word "edify" coming from these roots, we start to see edification as the metaphorical act of kindling a fire (and keeping it burning) in another person's "temple" or "hearth". In other words, when we edify each other, we renew, strengthen, or add to the "fire" of testimony in one another's hearts.

This fits in nicely with the way the scriptures compare the Holy Ghost's influence to a fire or a burning sensation in the body or heart (see Psalms 39:3, Jeremiah 20:9, Luke 24:32, and 3 Nephi 11:3). In fact, according to D&C 50, the only way we can edify each other is through the Holy Ghost or Spirit of truth. This is why it is not just a good idea but vital that we invite the Spirit into all of our interactions--because the Holy Ghost is the "fire" that kindles testimony in a person's heart. In Gospel Doctrine class then (as well as in all other teaching/learning settings in the Church), the most important thing we do is share truth. We do this by relating personal experiences in which we have learned truth, and testifying of this truth to each other.

It makes me think of the days before electricity when the hearth was truly the center of a home, when a well-tended fire was necessary to sustain life. Before the advent of matches, it wasn't a simple thing to start a fire from scratch. People knew how to bank their fires overnight so that they wouldn't go out completely. If it ever happened, the best thing to do was to "borrow" fire from a near neighbor (click here for a story relating just such an incident). You could carry hot coals insulated by ashes home in a bucket and kindle your own fire again more easily than doing it on your own. In the same way, we share the fire of our testimonies with others whose own flames may be dim or dying.

At this point, I hope it's obvious where the title of this blog came from! I learned so much, just from studying this one word, and I hope it was edifying for you as well.

Edifying Each Other (Part 1)

As I was preparing for the discussion on the purposes of Gospel Doctrine class, I thought a lot about the word "edify". It's something I've never paid much attention to before, to tell you the truth. In the scriptures, it shows up mostly in the Doctrine & Covenants and in Paul's New Testament writings, and it has always seemed pretty straightforward to me. Take this passage from D&C 43:8, for example:

"And now, behold, I give unto you a commandment, that when ye are assembled together ye shall instruct and edify each other, that ye may know how to act and direct my church" (emphasis added).

It seems obvious here that the meaning is something like "teach" or "enlighten" or "uplift". I didn't think much about it until it started showing up in several of the verses I was reading. Being the "word nerd" that I am, I started wondering a little more about what it means and where it comes from. Turns out, this word has a rich history with much to teach us about learning together in the Church.

I'm not sure why I never made the connection before, but the word "edify" is a related form of the word "edifice". Even at this basic level, I love what I learned about the meaning of "edify". An edifice is a building, specifically a large, strong, impressive one--no rickety shacks here. So when we "edify" each other, we build one another up and make each other stronger (see Romans 15:1-2). In a Gospel sense, the building material is truth and knowledge, and the edifice we are building is testimony (see D&C 50:17-24).

If we dig a little deeper into the etymology (word history) of "edify" and "edifice", we find that they both come from the Latin word aedificare. This is made up of two parts, meaning "temple" and "to make". So, in its very roots, the word "edify" carries the meaning of building something holy and sacred. In 1 Corinthians 3:9-16, Paul calls the members of the Church "God's building" (v.9), and later asks, "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God[?]" (v. 16). I especially love his statement in verse 9 that "we are labourers together with God" in this work of building each other up. A hugely important part of our responsibility as members of Christ's church is to strengthen and edify one another (see D&C 43:8 and Ephesians 4).

(Topic continued in the next post)

Getting the Most from Gospel Doctrine Class

One night, when I was serving as a missionary in Saint Petersburg, Russia, I had a particularly vivid and memorable dream. Now, at that time, the nearest temple for the members in Saint Petersburg to attend was in Sweden. Although in terms of distance that would be like us needing to travel to the temple in St. George, Utah, it also involved crossing two international borders as well as using several different, expensive, and inconvenient forms of transportation. As a result, relatively few of the members had been to the temple at all, and almost none had ever been able to go back. Once or twice a year, though, a temple trip would be organized, and some of the members would be able to go.

Missionaries, of course, never went on these trips, but in my dream, I was able to go. I was with several members who were attending for the very first time, as well as one brother who had been back to the temple many, many times. During our entire journey, this brother tried to express to those first-time-attenders just what a wonderful experience they were going to have. He described the beautiful grounds of the temple, the inspiring architecture, and the feeling of peace that he always experienced there. The others' sense of happy anticipation grew and grew as we traveled closer to the temple.

When we finally arrived, we all stood in front of the temple and just looked at it for a moment.

"Didn't I tell you it would be wonderful?" this brother asked. We all agreed that it was, and then we entered.

As the others were presenting their recommends at the desk, I looked around and noticed that he had not come in with us. I waited for a few minutes, and still he didn't come. So, I went back out and looked around for him. He was strolling around the grounds with a contented look on his face, taking in the beauty around him.

"Aren't you coming?" I asked. "We're waiting for you inside."

He looked at me with amazement. "You mean . . ." he said slowly, "you can go INSIDE?"

Now, of course this was just a dream. It seems ludicrous to think that anyone would repeatedly go to all the effort and expense of traveling to the temple just to see a beautiful building. But over the years, this dream has come back to my mind as a parable for how we miss out on the full blessings available to us in many aspects of the Gospel.

As I prepared my lesson for last Sunday, I felt strongly impressed to apply this parable to Gospel Doctrine class. Do we understand the full blessings available to us through studying and discussing the scriptures together? Do we figuratively (or literally!) stand outside the class, not realizing what we could be receiving if only we would enter the doors?

I decided to spend the first part of the class discussing what the purposes of Gospel Doctrine class are and why. This is the list I came up with ahead of time (though the one that came out in the discussion was not exactly the same):

• Teach doctrine. Why? To bring each other to Christ. (See Alma 31:5 and Alma 36:26.)
• Invite the Spirit. Why? The Holy Ghost is the true teacher, and without his influence, nothing will be actually taught. (See D&C 50:13-22.)
• Increase love for and understanding of the scriptures. Why? That's where the answers are! (See John 5:39 and 2 Nephi 32:3.)
• Help each other apply the truths of the Gospel to real life. Why? In order to know, we need to do. (See John 7:17.)
• Teach the history of the Church (understanding that all scriptures give accounts of the Church at different periods of history). Why? To "gain appreciation for the past, strength for the present, and hope for the future" (Doctrine and Covenants and Church History Teacher's Manual, p. v).
• Share personal experiences and insights. Why? To edify each other. (See D&C 88:122.)

In the course of the discussion, the idea of doctrine changing us and our hearts came out. I was also impressed by someone's comment that we share personal experiences so that we don't feel alone. This led to the need for fellowship with the saints and the way that it strengthens us, and the importance of creating a close relationship with each other as a ward so that others will want to join us. (I also talked about the meaning and significance of the word "edify," but I feel that deserves a post all its own. So, more on that tomorrow!)

Of course, I can't do justice to the full discussion, but it was an edifying one for me. I know I felt the Spirit testifying of the truths we shared, and I hope others did, too!

My Vision for This Blog (or A Place to Start)

In my first post I said, "I'm not entirely sure what this blog will end up being." I do have some ideas of where I would like it to go, though.

Part of what I envision it becoming is a place where anyone who missed the Gospel Doctrine lesson (whether teaching/attending another class, out of town, dealing with the needs of children, etc.) can get a feel for what we discussed. I think it will also be a great way to bring up points we may not have had time to deal with during the lesson, as well as giving people a chance to comment who might not have felt comfortable doing so in class.

Another thing I am looking forward to is being able to write down more of the details of my "research" into the topic--something there just won't be time to get into during the class period. I am planning to break down each lesson into smaller chunks for the purposes of the blog, so as not to result in huge, unmanageable posts.

As we go along, I would appreciate your thoughts on what you would like to see here and what is not as helpful to you. Thanks!

Welcome!

Welcome to "Rejoicing Together". I'm not entirely sure what this blog will end up being, but I am excited to get it started and see where it takes us.

I have been thinking a lot lately about what Gospel Doctrine class is and what it could be. In the midst of this thinking, I was touched by an article in the most recent Ensign about using the Internet as a tool for sharing the Gospel. I have also been wondering if, in our emphasis on sharing that Gospel with those outside the Church, we don't sometimes forget about the equal importance of sharing it with each other within the Church. Long story short, all of these thoughts came together in my vision for this blog.

I welcome your comments and insights. This will be a work in progress, but from the very beginning I hope it will be a place where we can thoughtfully and respectfully discuss the doctrines of the Gospel, "that all may be edified together" (D&C 84:110).