Truth (addition)

I just found a quote that I was hoping to use to support my previous entry "Truth."

The convincing power of the Holy Ghost is so great that there can be no doubt that what he reveals to us is true. President Joseph Fielding Smith said:

“When a man has the manifestation from the Holy Ghost, it leaves an indelible impression on his soul, one that is not easily erased. It is Spirit speaking to spirit, and it comes with convincing force. A manifestation of an angel, or even the Son of God himself, would impress the eye and mind, and eventually become dimmed, but the impressions of the Holy Ghost sink deeper into the soul and are more difficult to erase” (Answers to Gospel Questions, 2:151).

President Smith also said, “Through the Holy Ghost the truth is woven into the very fibre and sinews of the body so that it cannot be forgotten” (Doctrines of Salvation, 1:48).

Pretty profound. And people complain about High Councilman talks.

Is There Not Anything That is Sacred Anymore?

I was walking into the Gunther Trades Building and noticed a kid in front of me (he was most definitely close to my age, but my use of the word kid is important, for I am denoting a child and not a man). He wore a t-shirt and tight jeans which hung well below his waist. I have never understood this fashion; however, when one is wearing some sort of patterned or brightly colored undergarment, the fashion is plausible (though still questionable). Upon reaching this slow moving individual I came to the realization that we shared something in common: garments.

I was meandering about Facebook the other day. An old friend of mine has recently become engaged. His status mentioned his new love of nearly two months. Plain to see to anyone who was noticing was a statement alluding to the frustration pressed upon my friend by his not having a physical relationship with his "love." While said in jest, my friend's view of marriage was stark and clear.

I attended a Masterclass with the renowned operatic baritone Sherill Milnes. I was early of course, not wanting to be the one to come wandering in after the 7:30 mark. As I sat, a set of couples planted themselves beside me. Not having anything else to draw my attention, their conversation became my masterclass prelude. Not even five minutes had passed and I began to notice a pattern in one of the couples' conversation. Continuous mocking stabs back and forth between the young husband and wife. While a giggled "no" always accompanied the end of such an exchange, the onslaught continued within.

I was sitting in Philosophy class, and we were discussing The Communist Manifesto. One of the persons, a graduated student now employed by the department, made the comment, "any revolution is progress." He made mention of the that of the French, stating that while many were killed the aristocracy never attempted to reclaim what was taken. Upon my asking him, "So you view the deaths of twenty million Russians as progress?" His answer was short but weighted.

Within my text are four personal encounters which have caused me to reflect. Do we mean to be so impious? Even as I write this question the morality of my judgments on my fellow inhabitants weighs heavily on my mind. Yet, I must ask, is anything sacred anymore? Does anything truly matter to us? Can my friend not understand what he is doing with his choice of clothing? Can my friend not understand what he is saying about his future wife? Can my friends not understand what habits they are creating in their fragile beginning? Can my friend not understand the full force of his seemingly simple words? As I ponder upon these points, I realize that the answer must be yes, for how could they do so otherwise? We must become the change we wish to see.

Weakness

"Why gave they such a name to you?" She asked as i sat at the gate.

because i sought for truth i could not find
because i desired for love i could not possess
because i reached for perfection and claimed failure instead

"Arise," said She, "for you shall be weakness no longer."
"Today You shall find the Truth for which You sought."
"Today You shall possess the Love for which You desired."
"Today You shall claim the Perfection for which You reached."

She took My hand in Hers,
and We walked into the city.

Truth

I attended a philosophy forum in which the topic was "Blind faith vs. Blind science" (an article by Dallis Willard). Mr. Willard's seeming intent was to help the authorities of religion and science to respectfully acknowledge the differences in each and be more open to peaceful conversations on such topics as the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Mr. Willard related an incident involving a ("devout") student, who upon mentioning the resurrection of Jesus Christ to a physics professor was immediately shot down with the response, "resurrection denies the laws of physics." Mr. Willard sent out a call
to arms for all Christian members of the educational community to permeate society with the spirit of Christ, and put an end to the scientific monopoly. (http://www.dwillard.org/articles/artview.asp?artID=104)

The physics professor was right. The resurrection is impossible. It denies the very laws of physics. THAT IS WHAT MAKES IT THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST! Why do we as individuals and as a society seemingly need science to reinforce religion? The resurrection? That was the least of the impossibilities. We believe that there is a Being Whose power and presence influence every atom, and that He can sense everything from the fall of a sparrow to the sorrow of the human heart. We believe that this Being has a body, like ours in the sense that it is made of both flesh and bones though not like ours in the sense that it does not have blood (for blood is corruptible), and can only be in one place at one time. With this being proposed, we believe this Being to be omniscient, omnipresent, and omnipotent. We also credit this Being with overseeing the creation of our present world, and believe that He has created many such worlds that have past away, are present now, and will be created in the future. We believe that we are the spiritual children of this Being and that our brother, known as Jehovah to us in the "Pre"existence, came down to assume the form of a man and was known as Jesus Christ. While on the earth Christ somehow took upon Himself the consequences of every sin that would ever be committed by any person who would ever dwell on this earth (with the possibilities of those who dwell on other earths like ours). We believe that this Jesus Christ personally has felt the effects of our personal sins on our own lives--He intimately knows our souls and the pain and joy that we experience here on earth. Because of this He is able to comfort us and advocate our position with the Supreme Being, both our and His Father. With both our Father and our Brother there is a third who is a Holy Spirit, who, unlike the other two, does not have a body of flesh and bone but is spirit (which is finer and purer than the matter which comprises our bodies) thus allowing Him to enter our hearts and guide us on our journey through this life. If we live after the patterns outlined in ancient books which we hold to have been written by men and women who had personal visits by this Supreme Being, or His Son, or the Holy Spirit (and even in three books which were published in the 1800's--one of which purports to have been written during the corresponding events of both the Old and New Testament of the Holy Bible--with additions being made to them even in our present day) and upon the words and feelings that we believe to receive from time to time from this Supreme Being, His Son, or the Holy Spirit, we shall be crowned with Glory and Immortality and become Supreme Beings ourselves in a continuous cycle of gods in embryo. The earth upon which we live shall become a fiery glassy sphere and we shall dwell here eternally with those members of our earth family who qualify. And this is without even mentioning Kolob.

God will never be revealed by science. His ways are higher than ours. The glorious nature of faith is found in the ability to proclaim the existence of everything mentioned above without any physical, tangible evidence to prove irrefutably its existence. Creationism is not science--and it shouldn't be. God lives and His Son Jesus Christ has performed the Atonement for us that we too may live in everlasting glory. The Holy Ghost will tell any who seek for this knowledge of the truthfulness of these words. We don't need science to prove that God is there. We have God.

“What is this knowledge, intelligence, and light and truth that our Heavenly Father would have us receive? Does it consist solely of the truths God has revealed through his prophets? What place does knowledge gleaned from secular sources and with secular means have in the scheme of eternal progression?

“In considering these questions, we must recognize that secular knowledge alone can never save a soul nor open the celestial kingdom to anyone.

“The Apostles Peter and John, for example, had little secular learning—being termed ignorant, in fact. But Peter and John knew the vital things of life, that God lives and that the crucified, resurrected Lord is the Son of God. They knew the path to eternal life. They learned that mortality is the time to learn first of God and his gospel and to receive the saving priesthood ordinances.

“Yet secular knowledge can be most helpful to the children of our Father in Heaven who, having placed first things first, have found and are living those truths which lead one to eternal life. These are they who have the balance and perspective to seek all knowledge—revealed and secular—as a tool and servant for the blessing of themselves and others” (Spencer W. Kimball, “Seek Learning, Even by Study and Also by Faith,” Ensign, Sept. 1983, 3).

sitting in church*

the man has a beard
and a yellow tie
he focuses downward
as we all gaze high
and he won't make a sound
and I wonder why

he sits all alone
with a book in his hand
a blue sweater covering
the yellow strand
and his eyes beg someone
to understand

his brow is fierce
his expression is strong
and his hair is curled
and loose and long
and I can't help but wonder
what might have gone wrong

and I'm trying to think
why he's in this place
why he carries on this
mysterious case
why he grows a beard
to cover his face

-emomer

*A very interesting poem by a friend.

Jamaica

As the doors of the jet open you feel an intense warmth filling the air of the cabin. Everywhere you turn there is life--noises of cars, music, laughter, good conversation fill the very air and pulse from the ground on which you drive in a bus overflowing with humanity. The people are kind but harsh, too honest to worry about offense. You are always offered food, and it is always good. At night you sleep with a fan to keep the mosquitoes from draining every last drop of blood from your tired body. The stars cover the sky and Venus stands constant and secure. There is poverty all around you--the schools often look like prisons with barbed wire protecting the innocence within. Almost everyone has had a loved one taken from them. Yet they survive. Yet they laugh, and love, and live--taking you into their souls as one of their own. There is so much pain and yet so much beauty. The very land cries for the blood of those who have returned to it, and yet the beauty is indescribable. When asked what I miss the most about Jamaica the answer is short and constant, "the energy--there is life in the very air they breath."

What makes someone a killer?

So I was reading an article for my Metaphysics class about Free Will and Determinism. As I was reading the question came to my mind, "does killing once make someone 'a killer'?" Now, think about it. If a pregnant woman kills a man who is in the act of physically attacking her and her unborn child would she be considered a killer? If a pregnant woman killed a man who had physically attacked her and her unborn child two days ago would she be considered a killer? If Mr. X killed a man immediately upon finding him in bed with Mrs. X would Mr. X be a killer? If Mr. X killed a man two days after finding him in bed with Mrs. X would Mr. X be a killer? If a man killed a person before being diagnosed with schizophrenia and receiving treatment would he be a killer? If a man with schizophrenia, while taking his medication, had a internal chemical lapse and killed a person would he be considered a killer? If a man with schizophrenia decided to go off his medication and killed a person would he be considered a killer?

What determines moral responsibility? Why would the killing of an attacker in the moment be considered self defense while the killing of an attacker twenty years after the crime be considered murder? Does moral responsibility step out the moment we can't see the outcome of our future? Even then, if the pregnant woman were being attacked by her boyfriend daily and waited one day for him to attack her to kill him, would this truly be considered self defense?

Even more controversially, if a man attacks an armed soldier who is entering his home without a warrant or due notice, is he a killer? If citizens of a nation attack an occupying force, are they terrorists or nationalists? Is there a difference?

What are your thoughts?