The Weekly Svithe

2010-06-20T01:22:00.000-07:00

Compelled to be humble
(a svithe)

.

Being humble is not my forte. Or, rather, pretending to be less awesome than I am has never been my forte. Which is not how I define humility, though, in my observation, that is the most commonly used definition of the word.

Humility (in my definition) is keeping one's by-virtue-of-being-a-child-of-god awesomeness in perspective. Or, in other words, most people are at least a little awesome some of the time and --- strikes me as likely --- the parents of all this awesome must be awesomer still.

None of which is what I mean to be writing. As per the title, circumstances are compelling me to be humble. Which leads closely to my second definition of humility: placing one's awesomeness higher than such things as faith hope and charity. This is a crime I am quite adept at, as hinted in that initial hyperlink.

And therefore, the vital question posed for me is what's most important.

What is most important.

this post as a thmusing
last week's svithe

2010-06-06T20:00:00.000-07:00

Embodied svithe

.

Today we spoke of Ruth who used her womanly wiles to do something good.

See? Sexuality ain't evil.

this svithe as a thutopian
previous svithe

2010-06-03T21:14:00.000-07:00

Heart, might, mind and soul (a midweek makeup svithe)

.

I've been getting to bed at 2am more nights than not the last two weeks which has made me cranky and scattered and so, while I have thought about what I will be teaching in elders quorum this Sunday, I have not connected the dots. And I would love to get your input on this because odds are my cognitive capacities will not be restored by Sunday.

When Lynsey and I lived in Provo, I remember one meeting at which spoke a member of the stake presidency. As he began to segue from talking about his former mustache to his topic, it quickly became clear that it was time for a discussion on porn, much like that my ward had with the bishop last week. But he surprised me. Most of the counseling issues in our stake, most!, were because newly married men were neglecting their wives in favor of video games. You heard me right. Video games were winning the race against nubile young wives.

That's dot one.

Dot two is a terrific article I just read about Brigham Young's take on novels (hint: he hated them).

Dot three is something that sounds very similar, but this time it's our own Elder Bednar tchtching my Twitter habit

Then, just last night as I was brushing my teeth, I read a great article on the world's cognitive surplus. People have donated 100,000,000 hours of time to Wikipedia. Isn't that incredible? And, flipside, Americans watch 2,000,000,000 hours of tv every year. Isn't that incredible. Cognitive surplus. What are we doing with the talents with which the Lord hath given us amble time to magnify?

Which leads to another apostle, Elder Ballard this time, and his take on the digital world.

These are our texts for elders quorum. And, I submit, the issues raised here are of significant importance to everyone --- to both our success as human beings, and our eventual salvation (particularly if we're interested in trading up from salvation to the salvation/exaltation package deal).

Please. Help me connect the dots.

this svithe as thutopian
previous svithe

2010-05-30T23:27:00.000-07:00

Svithey toves outgrabe

.

The great desire of postenlightenment minds seems to be clarity, but sometimes religion does not easily provide that. In reading Jared Diamond's The Third Chimpanzee this week, I came close to "understanding" the divinity-directed genocides in the Old Testament. And, as I think pretending they don't exist is a mistake, surely therefore working to understand them is a virtue? But is something so . . . that . . . possible to fully understand? And if not, is it worth wasting brains on? And if not, then am I a head-in-the-sand religionist?

To be a postenlightenment religionist is to grapple with these question.

So. How shall we grapple?

this svithe in thutopia
last week's svithe

2010-05-23T23:35:00.000-07:00

.

Today I heard a simile from Carlos which, he alleges, originates from Richard G. Scott. But I am too lazy just now to confirm.

Here it is:

The Holy Spirit is like a grape, a soft and sweet taste.

In our plugged-in world, with all our zangwow, we are trying to taste the grape while simultaneously eating a jalapeno.

Not easy.

this svithe in thutopia
previous svithe

2010-05-09T18:16:00.000-07:00

the Happy-Heavenly-Mother's-Day svithe

.

Of all the mysteries in Mormonism, perhaps the most perplexing is the seeming absence of the requisite Heavenly Mother. I don't have an answer to that question, nor am I choosing to let it bother me at this moment, but it does remain a source of curiosity.

So happy Mother's Day. A day of mysteries.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2010-05-01T20:01:00.000-07:00

A special svithe for Berkeley Warders

.

I am currently a regular substitute teacher in our ward's Sunday School. But I will be late this week. These are my notes for whoever takes my place those first few minutes, to get things started:

Here is a well known story ending in a moral we often like to cite, Numbers 11:24-29 (have someone read)

Questions:

Moses chooses 70 men to assist him and the Lord sends his Spirit. Then there are these two other guys. (A slightly clearer translation (NIV) of verse 26: "However, two men, whose names were Eldad and Medad, had remained in the camp. They were listed among the elders, but did not go out to the Tent. Yet the Spirit also rested on them, and they prophesied in the camp.") Why do you suppose they still received the Spirit even though they missed their meeting?

Why even have a meeting if you could skip it and still get the blessing of the Spirit?

Regarding verses 28 and 29.....

Why was Joshua alarmed?

Why wasn't Moses?

Do we feel more like Joshua or Moses?

What is the lesson here?

Now let's skip ahead to the next chapter. Aaron and Miriam (but especially Miriam) get in trouble for talking bad about Moses. Even though they've been kind of emergency backup prophets in the past. Now notice how God phrases his displeasure with them in Numbers 12:6-8 (again in the slightly clearer NIV):

[God] said, "Listen to my words:
   "When a prophet of the LORD is among you,
   I reveal myself to him in visions,
   I speak to him in dreams.

But this is not true of my servant Moses;
   he is faithful in all my house.

With him I speak face to face,
   clearly and not in riddles;
   he sees the form of the LORD.
   Why then were you not afraid
   to speak against my servant Moses?"

And then Miriam has to be leprous for a week to learn a lesson.

My question is this: Is God's take on our chapter 11 discussion more akin to Joshua's or to Moses's? Explain.

this svithe on thutopia
previous svithe

2010-04-18T10:49:00.000-07:00

Svithe: Thou shalt not write by way of commandment, but by wisdom

.

I'm taking this line out of context, so I'm not giving a reference, but it's scriptural and you can find it yourself if you want. Suffice it to say that although I am misinterpreting scripture, I'm pretty sure I'm actually wresting it to my salvation.

Thou shalt not write by way of commandment, but by wisdom.

While I am trying to make more efforts to swing my pendulum from the God-expects-me-to-do-things-myself extreme to the God-expects-me-to-listen-up-and-do-what-he-says extreme (or, more accurately, to find some accurate middle ground), I will never stop believing that a successful pass at mortality requires figuring paths out and executing them on our own volition. Not separate from God, mind you, but through our agency. Our own ability to think and to choose.

Which, as a writer, explains why I like that line so much.

Thou shalt not write by way of commandment, but by wisdom.

Because it's a slothful and not a wise servant who has to be compelled in all things.

So.

Thou shalt not write by way of commandment, but by wisdom.

this svithe as a thmusing
last week's svithe

2010-04-11T20:38:00.000-07:00

Moses und Aron (a svithe posted to late to attract much response)

.

Exodus 7:1 And the Lord said unto Moses, See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh: and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet.

================

Moses und Aron

by Will Bishop
(in The Fob Bible)

And so it was that God gave us Aaron
for Moses was slow of speech
and didn’t look right in a business suit,
for we yanked on his bulrush-bred beard
and mocked him,

mocked him, the man who would that we might meet God,
lab-coated, sulfury-smelling and steaming-mad down from Mount Sinai.
The master of the shape-shifting serpent pen—
rejected, returned the manila envelope,
advised to apply at the library.

And so it was that God gave his genius to Aaron,
the great dilutor, p.r. man of the Pentateuch,
to trim that burning bush into topiary
and punch-up the prose with a little sports metaphor,
and a little golden calf.

And so it was that we came to prefer the spokesman
while the prophet was buried in an unmarked grave
and was not permitted into our Promised Land,
where we would burn the fat of rams
and would ask God for a king.

================

What's the deal here?

this svithe on thutopia
last week's svithe

2010-04-04T14:49:00.000-07:00

Svithetacular!

.

SATURDAY MORNING

I'm caught totally off guard by President Monson speaking before a second song. Slow down, there!

He's talking about new converts and helping in disasters et cetera. Humanitarian Aid as part of the welfare effort.

I'm forced to wonder if this is a response to Glenn Beck....

Also, more temples. Payson Utah doesn't have quite the same ring as Bolivia, does it?

Cebuuuuuuuu------

Temple ordinances.

Francis's broken hip.

The story of the Monson who converted her parents.

Wow. He's really waxing nostalgic today. He's even breaking character.

Boyd K Packer

Correlation as function of priesthood--? 180 years since priesthood restoration, and still a tiny fraction of the Earth's billions. "I include the sisters because everyone needs to know what's required of the brethren"? I think I smell this conf's controversial quote. Boy headed to Vietnam who went away sorrowing, yet did what the prophet said. Nice tale. Abbreviated ending. (I'm engaged in preventing my children from throwing playdoh around the house.) I the lord am bound when you do what I say . . . . The adversary more interested in attacking the home than church meetings.
I think I'm skipping Twitter this year. It's overpopulated by #ldsconf-hashing. Can't possibly keep up and still even half-listen.

Sister Beck

I love Sister Beck. Mostly because she's good at starting discussions online. We need to avoid the desire for greater ease. Alas, I fear that is true. Listening and reacting to the Spirit the greatest thing to learn in this life. Important to be daily with scriptures and prayer. (I really need to do better at revisiting these talks after the weekend. It's hard to type and listen and parent small children all at the same time.) as the women of the church as seen as distinct in happy ways.....
Bishop McMullin

Discord and Disaster Are Everywhere! I forgive you, brother! I cried, With all my heart! I had never known God's love as intently as I did then. How do we know our path of duty in time of Crisis? We pray. Pray always lest you play into temptation. (I think my quoting ability is pretty shabby today.) It's as important to be guided by the Spirit when praying as to be guided by the Spirit in receiving answers.
Wilford Anderson

Parley Street in Nauvoo. Quotes from the happy hopeful homeless as they walked through horrors. (Been reading a lot about happiness research lately and it's true: the obvious things aren't the things that make us happy.) products of faith in the lord HOPE faith comes from obeying the commandments "Does anyone in this room have a problem with the plan of salvation? Well? Do ya punk?"
M Russell Ballard

Lots of girls in the Ballard family. Girls, your mothers adore you. Even if they don't have a Facebook page. Listen to your mother, trust her, respect her, etc. Untie her.... Throughout the history of the world, women have been instructors of moral values. consistent message whether mother/daughter or father/son
Pr Eyring

The Perilous Journey Home needing rescue as teenagers / need for a strong spiritual foundation doesn't take a formal calling in primary our youth can be brought to heaven . . . in a noncreepy way

SATURDAY AFTERNOON

Elder Perry

preparation from overpreparation never wasted parenting among the most powerful things for the good of society home as insulation from the outside
Christoffersen

Oct 6, 1536 - Tyndale killed for translating Bible (Lost some stuff. Safari crashed (Apples......) and Large S threw a big tantrum. But I'm back now.) bringing the gospel to all people in their own language
Elder Aoyagi

(Thank you, Twitter, for supplying that spelling.) (so much chaos at home right now I'm catching very little of this) His conversion from Buddhism. popcorn seeds in a bottle
Bruce

pilot crashes into the lake about 100 yards from where he crashed last year as they keep the commandments, blessings will follow interesting how many examples of lousy older brothers and excellent younger brothers are in the scriptures --- how do we interpret this in terms of directing us to THE Elder Brother?
B-B-B-Bednar!

word choice in the Word of Wisdom Invite children as gospel learners to act and not merely be acted upon. Clarity of BofM's teachings. plainness that they may learn discussions on BofM let parents listen to observe and teach children youth of all ages --- even infants --- respond to BofM; I have baby; will test Here are this three main points (thx again to twitter): 1. Reading and talking about BoM, 2. Bear testimony of gospel truths spontaneously, 3. Invite children to act and not be acted upon Parents need to be ready to catch spontaneous opps to teach Now we're getting to inviting kids to act. We are agents to act, and not merely be acted upon. Parents are not in the business of handing out fish. Which is why on take-your-kids-to-work day, I let them go and I just stay home. Good FHEs not caused by people who package crap for sell. spiritual discernment and inspiration from these three habits are something --- good I presume
Elder Holland!

The Pornography Talk Sure hope I don't have a porn problem since I spent this whole talk stopping fights and changing diapers. "The only real control in life is self control." A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step. So. Watch your step. "You shouldn't be serving tea anyway." Best conference joke of recent memory. Why? Great setup. Remember the symbols you take with you. Let's work a little harder at always remembering him. Like, that he hath borne our griefs. charity comes from the grace of Christ himself "el diablo" --- to connect to "the diabolical one"? to take the edge off the naming for a primarily English audience, but still with a word they are apt to recognize?

EVENING SESSION

EASTER SUNDAY MORNING

Pr Uchtdorf

Bombing a statue of Jesus. I think I can smell some Easter symbolism coming up."You are my hands." Not what I expected. Very nice.Humanitarian aidTasting the sweetness of the gospel led canned-food Saints to being saved alsoIn our zeal we can confuse sin with sinner. (And preference with sin, I might add.)talk and poetry and song means nothing till accompanied by actionChrist removed himself from the crowd.
Richard G Scott

I remember the last time Easter and Conference coincided --- 2001 or '2 --- and there was very little directly on Christ Jesus proper. This time, we're off to one two.vital that we learn what we can about the atonementfamily again; teaching therein seems to be the theme this time aroundHe Lives
Donald Hallstrom (possibly two Ls)

Uh oh. Dead baby story.Uh oh. Revenge story.Destruction of the entire family's spirituality.Uh oh. More dead babies. And the mother.This time grief turns them to the Lord.Wow. Lots of dead babies in this talk.Without sorrow we cannot know joy.Implication: it's worth it.guy who fell away because his name was spelled wrong v. those in Liberty Jailthe very jaws of hell . . . shall give thee experience and be for thy goodJoseph's confidence in overcoming constant opposition based in his somethingsomethingsomething the Lord
Lant

(sounds like Megan Mullaly)another talk about the responsibilities of parents to teachersteach the childrenwe as parents the angels sent to teach the children (ahhh)
QL Cook

holiness of sacrament meeting tsunami in Samoa
Thomas S. Monson

of all the facts of mortality, none is so certain as its endIf a man die, shall he live again?man with a brain and a mind and a soul --- should come to an endto understand the purpose of death, we must understand the purpose of lifefrom our preexistant state onwardthe perfect example for us to followtelling the story of the final hours of Christ's life------>story, even oft repeated story, is still great teachingSo if a man die, shall he live again? He shall. We know by the light of revealed truth.darkness of death etc can always be dispelled by the light of revealed truthJason opened his eyes and sat up and said NEVER in a loud resolute voice.called to serve their missions together on both sides of the veilin our hour of deepest sorrow we can receive profound peacehe is not here for he has risen(I thought the both-sides-of-the-veil line was cheesy, but apparently it was a hit)
direct a smooth segue into the choir singing He Is Risen

EASTERDAY AFTERNOON

Elder Nelson

more familymore Jesus(POWER OUTAGE)striving to make a family tree for all God's children
Elder Hales

re:theyouthduty to rising geninfluence of parents who understand the hearts of their childrenit's not the food but the interaction that feeds the soul (family dinner)youth cannot walk on borrowed light long
Bradley Foster

mothers...... (if you only read one story from conference......)
Martino

happiness dependent on how we react to adversityimmunizations as metaphor for earthly tribulation
Sweitzer

redeeming Marthamaking prioritiesleaving the Holy Ghost on the shelf
Ninas

Haitians v Nephites
Anderson o' the 12

the is the age in which the devil has a big budgetso do our kids know Jesus's message as well?spirit of the lord accompanying late-night conversations (feel free to use this out of context)his name be praised for ever and ever
President Monson

We're all here because we love the Lord, we want to serve him.we leave more determined than we cameStudy the messages in the month to come.Thanks, folks.

General Conference Svithetaculars at Thutopia
176.0 176.5 177.0 177.5 178.0 178.5 179.0 179.5 180.0

-----

General Conference Svithetaculars at The Weekly Svithe
176.0 176.5 177.0 177.5 178.0 178.5 179.0 179.5 180.0

last week's svithe - thutopia
last week's svithe - weekly svithe

2010-03-28T21:36:00.001-07:00

A note on next week's svithetacular

.

It is looking like, that, for the first time since beginning svithetaculars in 2005, I may not be able to catch every session. In fact, I could miss as many as two sessions on Saturday. And so, this week, for my svithe, from me, a plea to please take notes and either send them to me (email to theric[]thmazing[]com) or post them and I will then post or link your notes in lieu of mine (or in addition to or something).

This only comes twice a year and darn it if Thutopia doesn't have a record, it will be like it never happened. So please help!

Thanks.

General Conference Svithetaculars at Thutopia
176.0 176.5 177.0 177.5 178.0 178.5 179.0 179.5

-----

General Conference Svithetaculars at The Weekly Svithe
176.0 176.5 177.0 177.5 178.0 178.5 179.0 179.5

last week's svithe
this svithe on thutopia

2010-03-20T21:55:00.000-07:00

Sexy Svithe

.

This week we have three women with wiles in starring roles: Tamar, Dinah and Potiphina.

I'm most interested in Tamar, but in passing let me see that Potopher needs to accept some blame for his wife's actions and that I'm far from convinced that Dinah was raped.

Tamar is, of the three, the most rounded and self-directed character. And while all three stories involve sex, only Tamar's sexual activities are in accordance with religious law. And while seducing your father-in-law is generally looked down upon these-a-days, Tamar's actions were, with validity, a means to save her father-in-law from his own sins. And thus, in a way, she is a type for Jesus. Who is born through her line.

Something to think about.

this svithe as a thmusing
last week's svithe

2010-03-14T11:05:00.000-07:00

At home with three sick kids (a svithe)

.

Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

I guess that means I'll keep wiping noses and cease the strangling. But I have to tell you. The immediate cessation of that snotty breathing sounds pretty danged good.....

this svithe on thutopia
last week's svithe

AND WITH THAT BIT OF WISDOM
I CELEBRATE MY 200TH SVITHE

2010-03-07T21:50:00.000-08:00

Abraham and Isaac (postview svithe)

.

As I mentioned last svithe, my Abraham and Isaac thought for Sunday School were inspired by a list of art Bored in Vernal provided over on Mormon Matters. I ended up not getting into much of the art, although many of the rabbinical traditions surrounding the story and alternate versions came up in our discussion. (Note that some of those came up in the MM posts's comments and not the post itself.)

One thing I had not intended to bring up but very nearly did because it was apropos (but telling it would have been much like sharing This Funny Thing happened when You Really Had to Be There) was this:

Something I printed off and had with me but ended up not using was this from Woody Allen:

I want to step back here and point out that, usually, I feel very strongly that lessons should be grounded in the actual scriptures under discussion. In fact, I started the lesson by reading the entire darned Genesis account. But this story is horrifying and demands more effort than that. The Bible, Nephi tells us, is missing many plain and precious parts. And this story seems to be one example of that. The popular interpretation that the sacrifice of Isaac represents the sacrifice of Jesus is extrabiblical already, so why not go even farther abreast.

When I was pressing the class to decide what the story means to them, someone through the question back at me. I started by talking about Master Fob's "Abraham's Purgatory" (note, it's not unsvithey to suggest you buy a Fob Bible as all proceeds go to LDS Humanitarian Services) and how in researching this lesson I learned that in many traditions, Abraham was not intended to sacrifice his son at all. Perhaps he got the wrong idea in his head, perhaps God expected him to say no (thus fulfilling the promise of Knowing Good and Evil) --- but the point is, perhaps he was never supposed to accept that he should through with it.

That version of the story has a lot of meaning for me. Granted, verses from the Book of Mormon and D&C (which we read) suggest that is not the true version of events, but it seems a version that has more applicability in my life. I have the power to say no --- to live my life in a way that can take Isaac off the alter. (Of course, no matter how well I live my life, I cannot take Christ off the cross --- I still need grace. But I'm sure you get the point.)

Anyway. Even though it wasn't as wild and crazy as threatened*, it turned out well and I at least learned a lot during the lesson. I hope it worked out okay for others as well.

-------------

* I don't usually post these, but three or four lessons a month and every other lesson for Sunday School (as long as I'm doing it --- it's still not my calling or anything) I shoot an email off to the ward as a preview of coming attractions. The reason I'm posting this one is because for the first time people talked to me about it. So I'm using that fact to think about how to write future emails.

-------------

this svithe as a thmusing
last week's svithe

2010-02-28T21:55:00.000-08:00

Abraham and Isaac Preview (svithe)

.

This is one of the Old Testament's most terrifying stories. Sure, sure, filtered through a New Testament lens it makes some sense, but Abraham and Isaac is --- awful. Admit it. (And really, if God the Father is standing above us with a knife --- is that really the image of him we want?)

I'll be teaching this story in Sunday School next Sunday and I've been struck by the list of takes on the story by Bored in Vernal at Mormon Matters (note the comments also).

One of the stories she mentions, Master Fob's "Abraham's Purgatory" has proven to be one of the most thought-provoking bits of Bible-based fiction I've ever read. It started me on the path of thinking on all this.

I'm still just percolating how I will approach this topic, but I am definitely planning something more like BiV's list than the traditional way of looking at the story.

Your suggestions are welcome.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2010-02-21T19:44:00.000-08:00

Svithing the Quadrennial

.

Four years and two days ago, I posted my first svithe (thutopia, weekly svithe. Four weeks later I explained what my svithing was all about (thutopia, weekly svithe):

Lately I've been observing a shift in the blogosphere. I think we can blame the lessened audiences on Facebook and Twitter. It's about impossible for me to get conversations going in the comments section anymore --- if a conversation about one of my posts happens, it happens on, wait for it, Twitter. What do you know.

What's the implication for svithery? Is it still needful? Should I just try to be, I don't know, a holy tweeter?

Who knows. It may be broke, but that diagnosis isn't certain yet.

So I'm going to keep svithing. Shall we not go forward in so great a cause, etc.

It's not like I'm doing anything more important.

Ah, the littleness of a person.

There's religion in here somewhere. We don't have to look hard.

this svithe as a thmusing
last week's svithe

2010-02-14T13:10:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day, Abraham! Have some virtue! (a svithe)

.

1. The sociologist suggested today that perhaps we call it the Abrahamic Covenant for similar reasons to why we call it the Melchizedek Priesthood. I find this a very striking possibility and I will leave you to ponder it.

2. From Ben Crowder:

3. Happy Valentine's Day. Though not even Pope Gelasius I has the foggiest idea who he was.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxthis svithe on thmusingsxoxoxoxoxoxox
xoxoxoxoxoxoxprevious svithexoxoxoxoxoxox

2010-02-07T15:05:00.000-08:00

Super Bowl Svithe (a metaphor)

.

So I just learned why football is so boring: on television, you only see about 11 minutes of the actual game (this is supposed to make it more interesting --- by adding a story --- but if that's so then the NFL would be fatally boring and lose fans one stadium-full at a time and I can't accept that).

On the theory that professional football is actually interesting in person, I'm going to make a metaphor about life.

Life = football in this metaphor and watching it on tv is sitting around watching life pass you by. Actually attending a game and being part of the cheering crowd makes you more involved and less bored and, one presumes, actually putting on a helmet and getting concussions will be less boring of all.

To svithify this, may I suggest that God put us on earth to play a game and not sit around and watch others play.

That is all.

00:00

this svithe in thutopia
last week's svithe

2010-02-01T08:30:00.000-08:00

Enoch's eyes (a svithe)

.

Yesterday I taught Sunday School and this is something we did not get to:

We were talking about opposites, good and evil, in the world and within ourselves. What I love about Enoch is how he demonstrates that weaknesses can become strengths, etc. (1,, 2, 3)

The scene above is particularly interesting. Clearly we are meant to read this as symbolic of Christ, but Enoch is playing both roles, Messiah and blind man. Because, being a fallen man, being a child of God, he is both.

And so are we.

What a beautiful message.

this svithe on thutopia
last week's svithe

2010-01-24T18:56:00.000-08:00

Hypocritical svithe

.

Courtesy of Recession Cone, this week's svithe comes from Neal Stephenson's The Diamond Age

I hereby resolve to celebrate intended high morality, rather than nitpick the inability to attain it. I think the world would be better if we all did as much.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2010-01-17T19:18:00.000-08:00

Svithe: four levels of interpretation

.

Yesterday at the Contemporary Jewish Museum, at one exhibit I learned a bit about a lot of things, all related to the Torah.

What I want to share is out of the kabbalistic tradition, which suggests there are four levels of interpretation to scripture. I will mostly just state them and invite your comment, rather than comment excessively myself.

1. Literal meaning.

2. Allegorical meaning.

3. Meaning in connection with similar passages.

4. Kabbalistic meaning; or meaning through inspiration or direct, personal revelation; mystical meaning.

Now. In studying scripture, how many levels of interpretation are we finding? What can we do to seek more? Or are we being satisfied with too few?

this svithe in thutopia
last week's svithe

2010-01-10T21:12:00.000-08:00

Svithe: (the grandeur of god)

.

Somebody said that the great hubris of humanity is that we created god in our own image.

Is it not equally hubristic to deny god that form? Are we so unwilling to have the divine like us?

It's a significant question.

These are two radically different forms of worship.

+

this svithe as a thmusing
last week's svithe

2010-01-02T20:52:00.000-08:00

Svithing Moses 1

.

(I'm posting this early in case you're teaching an LDS Gospel Doctrine class tomorrow and are avoiding preparing your lesson. These are my notes as they stand now. I'll print them off and fill in more, but this is a skeleton built onto the source material.)

.

DID YOU KNOW? Joseph transcribed this chapter the same month the Book of Mormon was originally published.

This is Moses’s intended prologue to the Torah. So it’s useful, perhaps, to consider what the message of this personal story is. Moses thought it important enough to place it before even the creation of the world.

THE words of God, which he spake unto Moses at a time when Moses was caught up into an exceedingly high mountain,

2 And he saw God face to face, and he talked with him, and the glory of God was upon Moses; therefore Moses could endure his presence.

3 And God spake unto Moses, saying: Behold, I am the Lord God Almighty, and Endless is my name; for I am without beginning of days or end of years; and is not this endless?

4 And, behold, thou art my son; wherefore look, and I will show thee the workmanship of mine hands; but not all, for my works are without end, and also my words, for they never cease.

“My son” appears four times in this chapter, as spoken by God. But the idea of sonship runs deeper than that---Satan calls Moses “son of man” for instance, and God refers to his Only Begotten more than once.

5 Wherefore, no man can behold all my works, except he behold all my glory; and no man can behold all my glory, and afterwards remain in the flesh on the earth. [?]

6 And I have a work for thee, Moses, my son; and thou art in the similitude of mine Only Begotten; and mine Only Begotten is and shall be the Savior, for he is full of grace and truth; but there is no God beside me, and all things are present with me, for I know them all.

7 And now, behold, this one thing I show unto thee, Moses, my son, for thou art in the world, and now I show it unto thee.

8 And it came to pass that Moses looked, and beheld the world upon which he was created; and Moses beheld the world and the ends thereof, and all the children of men which are, and which were created; of the same he greatly marveled and wondered.

9 And the presence of God withdrew from Moses, that his glory was not upon Moses; and Moses was left unto himself. And as he was left unto himself, he fell unto the earth.

10 And it came to pass that it was for the space of many hours before Moses did again receive his natural strength like unto man; and he said unto himself: Now, for this cause I know that man is nothing, which thing I never had supposed.

In thinking about why God feels the need to show prophets, now and then, this show, it occurs to me that this epiphany of Moses’s may make him less likely to prioritize himself over God’s purposes. (D&C 123: 12-17 [waste and wear out])

11 But now mine own eyes have beheld God; but not my natural, but my spiritual eyes, for my natural eyes could not have beheld; for I should have withered and died in his presence; but his glory was upon me; and I beheld his face, for I was transfigured before him.

12 And it came to pass that when Moses had said these words, behold, Satan came tempting him, saying: Moses, son of man, worship me.

13 And it came to pass that Moses looked upon Satan and said: Who art thou? For behold, I am a son of God, in the similitude of his Only Begotten; and where is thy glory, that I should worship thee?

14 For behold, I could not look upon God, except his glory should come upon me, and I were transfigured before him. But I can look upon thee in the natural man. Is it not so, surely?

15 Blessed be the name of my God, for his Spirit hath not altogether withdrawn from me, or else where is thy glory, for it is darkness unto me? And I can judge between thee and God; for God said unto me: Worship God, for him only shalt thou serve.

16 Get thee hence, Satan; deceive me not; for God said unto me: Thou art after the similitude of mine Only Begotten.

17 And he also gave me commandments when he called unto me out of the burning bush, saying: Call upon God in the name of mine Only Begotten, and worship me.

18 And again Moses said: I will not cease to call upon God*, I have other things to inquire of him: for his glory has been upon me, wherefore I can judge between him and thee. Depart hence, Satan.

* 3 Ne. 20: 1 (one of the Jesus's-visit ones), 1 Sam. 12: 23 (a sin for a leader not to pray for his charges), Col. 1: 9 (leaders pray for us), 1 Thes. 5: 17 (preparing for Second Coming)

19 And now, when Moses had said these words, Satan cried with a loud voice, and ranted upon the earth, and commanded, saying: I am the Only Begotten, worship me.

20 And it came to pass that Moses began to fear exceedingly [2 Tim. 1: 7]; and as he began to fear, he saw the bitterness of hell. Nevertheless, calling upon God, he received strength, and he commanded, saying: Depart from me, Satan, for this one God only will I worship, which is the God of glory.

21 And now Satan began to tremble, and the earth shook; and Moses received strength, and called upon God, saying: In the name of the Only Begotten, depart hence, Satan.

22 And it came to pass that Satan cried with a loud voice, with weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth; and he departed hence, even from the presence of Moses, that he beheld him not.

23 And now of this thing Moses bore record; but because of wickedness it is not had among the children of men.

24 And it came to pass that when Satan had departed from the presence of Moses, that Moses lifted up his eyes unto heaven, being filled with the Holy Ghost, which beareth record of the Father and the Son;

25 And calling upon the name of God, he beheld his glory again, for it was upon him; and he heard a voice, saying: Blessed art thou, Moses, for I, the Almighty, have chosen thee, and thou shalt be made stronger than many waters; for they shall obey thy command as if thou wert God.

26 And lo, I am with thee, even unto the end of thy days; for thou shalt deliver my people from bondage, even Israel my chosen.

27 And it came to pass, as the voice was still speaking, Moses cast his eyes and beheld the earth, yea, even all of it; and there was not a particle of it which he did not behold, discerning it by the spirit of God.

28 And he beheld also the inhabitants thereof, and there was not a soul which he beheld not; and he discerned them by the Spirit of God; and their numbers were great, even numberless as the sand upon the sea shore.

29 And he beheld many lands; and each land was called earth, and there were inhabitants on the face thereof.

30 And it came to pass that Moses called upon God, saying: Tell me, I pray thee, why these things are so, and by what thou madest them?

31 And behold, the glory of the Lord was upon Moses, so that Moses stood in the presence of God, and talked with him face to face. And the Lord God said unto Moses: For mine own purpose have I made these things. Here is wisdom and it remaineth in me.

Coming up next, an introduction to Genesis:

32 And by the word of my power, have I created them, which is mine Only Begotten Son, who is full of grace and truth.

33 And worlds without number have I created; and I also created them for mine own purpose; and by the Son I created them, which is mine Only Begotten.

34 And the first man of all men have I called Adam, which is many.

35 But only an account of this earth, and the inhabitants thereof, give I unto you. For behold, there are many worlds that have passed away by the word of my power. And there are many that now stand, and innumerable are they unto man; but all things are numbered unto me, for they are mine and I know them.

36 And it came to pass that Moses spake unto the Lord, saying: Be merciful unto thy servant, O God, and tell me concerning this earth, and the inhabitants thereof, and also the heavens, and then thy servant will be content.

37 And the Lord God spake unto Moses, saying: The heavens, they are many, and they cannot be numbered unto man; but they are numbered unto me, for they are mine.

38 And as one earth shall pass away, and the heavens thereof even so shall another come; and there is no end to my works, neither to my words.

39 For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.

40 And now, Moses, my son, I will speak unto thee concerning this earth upon which thou standest; and thou shalt write the things which I shall speak.

41 And in a day when the children of men shall esteem my words as naught and take many of them from the book which thou shalt write, behold, I will raise up another like unto thee; and they shall be had again among the children of men—among as many as shall believe.

42 (These words were spoken unto Moses in the mount, the name of which shall not be known among the children of men. And now they are spoken unto you. Show them not unto any except them that believe.* Even so. Amen.)

* A common command in ancient texts that have been found over the last couple hundred years. Why?

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2009-12-27T20:11:00.000-08:00

Svithe: A review of the new Ensign

.

The Ensign is an official magazine published by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for English-speaking adults in North America. It comes out monthly and serves as an official organ for Church leaders as well a providing a variety of practically-minded and human-interest stories.

.

The Ensign underwent a major redesign a couple years ago, and the January issue pushes that design aesthetic a little further along. It wasn't until I took it out of the plastic today that I noticed the slight changes in the cover design and the interior, similarly, is more a progression in the previously chosen design direction rather than a new design entirely.

Essentially, the design is now slicker and more attractive. It's looking more and more like something a teenager might be interested in reading.

(Incidentally, I don't get The New Era [the Church's mag for teens] so I can't compare them, but The Friend [for kids] also underwent a design change this month. It's cover design is the most notable change. A brief glance-through didn't reveal any other changes.)

The changes to the cover are slight. Font refinements, the title is now transparent. It's nice. It's not killer. It won't be winning any awards, but I think we can assume that the Church magazines aren't trying to be hipper than thou, just hip enough. (I'm not commenting on the art because in the last few years, we've seen improvement in cover-art selections. This is an image most Mormons have seen many times, so it's a bit tired, but I'm choosing not to whine.)

Anecdote:

(The story I'm about to tell you is hearsay, but my source is excellent. I may have a some of the details wrong, but I have full confidence in the gist of the story.)

Once upon a time, the Church paid a research company to find out how the members were using the magazines. One of the findings was that the Ensign is the most-subscribed-to-/-least-read magazine in America. Or, in other words, considering the size of its subscription, no one was actually reading the thing.

The editor made big plans to fix this problem but no one liked his plans and so they stuck with producing a boring magazine that no one actually read.

I heard this story in connection with fiction, but I can't remember now if the editor wanted to bring fiction back for this reason, or if taking fiction out was part of the seemingly deliberate attempt to make the magazine even more boring and less read.

(If you think it's boring, then you're obviously not worthy enough to read it anyway.)

Clearly, the magazine department now desperately wants people to read the magazine. As we will see.

They're also making a serious effort to bring people online. They offer mp3 readings from the magazine, it's available in forms easily accessed by handheld whatsits, etc. They've even finally got a web address you can easily type to get directly to the magazine's site: ensign.lds.org (although once you type it in, it switches to http://lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=a6246a008952b010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD&locale=0 and the First Presidency Message is http://lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?hideNav=1&locale=0&sourceId=81be47a27a2b5210VgnVCM100000176f620a____&vgnextoid=2354fccf2b7db010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD, neither of which are particularly pleasant to link to).

The table of contents offers teasers (their word, see page eleven) to tell you more about an article before you waste all those calories turning to "Prophets of the Old Testament" only to discover it's just a buncha lousy pictures. (Incidentally, I am overall happy with the quality of art that's been appearing in the Ensign of late, though I was a bit disappointed with this set.)

The ToC also has a goodly amount of whitespace which I am always in favor of and which, for a table, I think is necessary for readability.

In all, the ToC is inviting. It's not something just to skip over, it's something to read. My favorite general-interest magazine, Wired, always has an engaging ToC and it often significantly alters the order in which I read things. The Ensign's teasers are a step in that direction, though they're still a bit hermetic at present.

But I suppose they sorta hafta be. Mormons don't fit a narrow demographic and they need to be as worried about pushing people away as drawing people in. Most magazines make inroads with their overall audience by being occasionally outrageous (Sarah Palin in shortshorts! Obama as jihadist!) --- this risks losing some subscribers, but their is the chance of gaining some as well. Being controversial is not a luxury the Ensign has however. Heaven forbid they should promote pipe-smoking. I would love to see them do it, but the closest they've come to controversy was the painstakingly anticontroversial take on Mountain Meadows.

Anyway. Let's move on by skipping to the end, with my favorite new feature.

As any magazine reader knows, it has become expected for the final page to be a standalone thing for readers to turn to first. It may be a cartoon or humor column, it may be an essay from someone famous, it may be a compelling personal experience. The Ensign is now doing this as well with a final-page department called "Until We Meet Again" --- "a brief personal essay offering spiritual insights.

I give this change high marks. I think it has a good chance of becoming a destination for people as they first open up their new Ensign. I think not having a General Authority write the first one was wise --- in fact, I think it's an opportunity to get great writing from outside the Church Office Building. I don't think the Church should get into celebrity culture, so probably Orson Scott Card or Donny Osmond would be a bad idea, but great writers and thinkiners like Angela Hallstrom or Mahonri Stewart or Gideon Burton? I would imagine that even knowing it's not an opportunity to plug their new project, even knowing that they'll need to be perfectly orthodox, even then, you could get a lot of Mormondom's best writers to participate. Sure, most Ensign readers won't know who Ardis Parshall is, but that doesn't mean that they can't appreciate a well-written essay. And who knows --- maybe they'll remember the name, or google it, and that's good for everyone. And unless the page said "Author of People of Paradox", the author's essay on thinking during the sacrament cannot reasonably be understood as Church-approval of the author's other work.

Also at the end of the book are various new departments, some of which are new and some of which have already been seen in the Liahona (the Church's non-English or non-NAmerican magazines, which combine the adult, teen and kid mags into one). These too will be quickly looked at, just as "Latter-day Saint Voices" long has been.

My favorite of this portion is "Small & Simple Things, which contains subdepartsments such as a temple spotlight.

But now we're running into a point where we need to consider possible unintended consequences.

Everything I've talked about so far is good and I like it. But can this streamlining and simplifying and shortening result in a dumbed down magazine? Of course it can. But is it?

Well. I'm not sure.

There seems to be an about par number of longer articles, but one of my problems with the Ensign is it's general shortage of high-interest articles for me. I like the historical articles and the deeper doctrinal delvings. Most of the articles are either too practical or too feelgoody for my taste. Which isn't to say they are awful and I hate them, but I'm getting more articles like that than I strictly require and not enough of the other.

In discussing the redesign, the editors make an valid point:

A couple good points here. 1. The articles I want still exist and if I really want to read them, I can find them. (Although, it's worth mentioning, I probably won't.) 2. With such a broad demographic (all English-speaking NAmerican Mormons), not everyone can be perfectly served. (This I recognize. And I don't feel the Church is obliged to do so. But goshdarn it, this is me we're talking about!)

Well. That's probably more review than you wanted to read.

Take a look at the pdf if you don't subscribe (be warned: it's big) and leave me your thoughts in the comments.

------

this svithe in thutopia
last week's svithe

2009-12-20T00:05:00.000-08:00

Svithe: Notes for today's Sunday School lesson, "The Family is Ordained of God"

(ergo, this is a little sloppy)

Love this job.
Love sticking with the scriptures.
The D&C ones though give few scriptures. (read)
Lesson about “The Family Ordained of God”
Good intro to OT as Genesis will be the story of families: Adam's Noah's, Abraham's

(What forces sought to “attack” those families?)

I ask because that was what the GA quotes in the manual were about.

Let’s move to the NT and Jesus’s birth family and the strains upon them

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Jesus born in an oppressed land to poor parents

Consider the poverty of Jesus’s own family at the time of his birth; a shamed mother and stuck sleeping in a smelly old stable (haw many of our families torn by money issues?)

WITH THAT IN MIND, I want to talk about a few things that have been in the news lately and then use those items to discuss this idea of protecting and promoting families:

FOURTH PURPOSE
AFGHANISTAN
CLOSED TEMPLE

JESUS:

Rich young man

When Jesus announced himself to his townsfolk, this was the scripture he read:

Luke 4

16 ¶ And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.

17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,

18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,

19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.

20 And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.

21 And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.

Note especially verse 18

Family is a curious thing given how important it is to us. Because it’s hardly mentioned in scripture at all. It’s certainly not clearly defined, nor is it clearly suggested why it’s important or how to strengthen it. Plain and precious things, dontchaknow.

We often treat the idea of families being “under attack” as not being terribly literal --- as referring more to primetime television and the pansexual leanings of certain college professors

War:

Afghanistan's been in the news lately, what with President Obama's new plans, so let's use them as an example:

1.5 million widows out of an estimated 26.6 million people in Afghanistan (>5%)>

(the fighting started long before 9/11)

Focus on Jesus teaching about supporting the poor, the widows, the fatherless.

From Bishop Edgley (re: change in handbook language):

"Caring for the poor and needy is one of the ongoing purposes of the church," said Bishop Edgley of caring for the poor and the needy. "Including language about caring for the poor and needy as one of the purposes of the church recognizes the long-standing practices of the church. I don't think you're going to see anything change, but we're always trying to be sensitive to the needs of others and to be better at delivering relief."

"What we're trying to do is fulfill what the Savior has taught us," he said. "We've been trying to do it forever, and we'll continue to do it."

"It's so tender when you see the needs out there and so gratifying to play a part when we reach out to those whose suffering most of us don't even understand," he said.

Pr Monson (hard to do a two-paragraph bio of Tommy w/o mentioning widows) in Oct 2009 GC:

"It's so tender when you see the needs out there and so gratifying to play a part when we reach out to those whose suffering most of us don't even understand," he said.

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705325941/Violence-forces-closure-of-LDS-Nigeria-temple.html

An almost identical article appeared in the SL Trib but, well, this is Sunday School.

(but imagine for a moment, that this was not far away in Africa, but where you life --- would it feel like your family was under attack?)

Violence and crime in Aba, Nigeria, this summer caused The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to closed its Aba Nigeria Temple indefinitely and evacuate temple workers in mid-June.

"The safety of our temple visitors and workers is always our first concern," LDS Church spokesman Scott Trotter said. "Incidents of violence in recent months in the area where the temple is situated are not necessarily related to the temple but could put church members at risk. As a precautionary measure, temple workers have been moved to other areas, and the temple has been closed while the situation is being addressed."

The closing and evacuation followed in the wake of mid-June gunfire in the area around the temple. Also, the city of Aba and its Nigerian state of Abia have seen a marked increase in reported kidnappings this year.

In an e-mail to the Standard-Examiner reported in the Ogden newspaper's Wednesday edition, a Nigeria temple worker reported the mid-June incident in which four gunmen were seen carrying AK-47s, with shooting reported in the area around the temple, located on the outskirts of Aba, a city of about 900,000 on the Aba River in southern Nigeria

Bullets from the shooting struck the guardhouse on the temple grounds. The complex also includes an LDS stake center and administrative office. The temple has been closed since mid-June, with foreign temple workers reassigned to other areas.

The Aba Nigeria Temple — the only one in the country and one of only two in the church's Africa West Area — was dedicated Aug. 7, 2005, by President Gordon B. Hinckley.

Two years ago, the LDS Church was the target of an earlier round of violence in northern Nigeria when four missionaries were kidnapped near Port Harcourt. The kidnappers released the four Nigerian missionaries after local church leaders arranged to pay $810 total to compensate the kidnappers for the cost of housing and feeding the missionaries during their capture.

Scores of foreign oil company employees were kidnapped for ransom in early 2007. The spate of kidnappings has since moved from north Nigeria to south Nigeria.

While interest by Nigerians in the LDS Church dates back to the 1950s, the church first began proselytizing in Nigeria in 1978. Membership approached 10,000 in 1987. Ten years after that, as the church was approaching 100,000 members on the continent, Nigeria's LDS membership was 30,300.

The church's latest statistics for Nigeria include 88,374 members, five missions, the one temple and some 260 congregations throughout the country.

LDS NEWSROOM: water-reaches-end-of-the-row-in-congolese-villages (18 Miles for water)

What challenges would such parents have in teaching their children?

Joseph W. Sitati is the first African General Authority. He is from Kenya and thus, it seems to me, more apt to know about things like we are discussing than, say, me. From his GC talk last October:

I have seen the good fruit of the gospel blossom in my home continent of Africa. After just 30 years, there are 300,000 Saints. In the doctrines and principles of the restored gospel, many are finding a sure anchor for their faith. Families uprooted from their rural communities in search of a better future in the towns and cities have found a new way to hold on to the strong family traditions which have come progressively under attack in this era of globalization. The Spirit of the Lord is moving powerfully among the people.

A new celestial culture is developing in homes, nurtured by the ready hearkening to the counsel of the living prophet to have daily prayer and scripture study and to meet once a week as a family in home evening. As a result, many are able to break free from the shackles of traditions that restrict the exercise of their agency.

As an illustration from personal experience, three of our children were recently married in the temple without the encumbrance of dowry, a traditional practice that drives many young men and women to live together without any legal commitment to each other. The opportunity for a temple marriage in the three temples now established in Accra, Ghana; Aba, Nigeria; and Johannesburg, South Africa, is helping to instill a fresh hope in the sanctity of marriage.

If we want to convert families, then those families must be intact to start with. Ergo, if Satan is attacking the so-called strongest families, he must also be attacking those that might join those ranks.

The Fourth Fold

"Caring for the poor and needy has always been a basic tenet of the Church," said LDS Church spokesman Scott Trotter. "The language reference is simply a description of the purposes of the church to be included in the next edition of the Church Handbook."

The three-fold mission of the LDS Church was first taught at the April 1981 General Conference by then-President Spencer W. Kimball, who said it was the inspired product of the church's First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve.

As stated, the aspects are:

* "To proclaim the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ to every nation, kindred, tongue and people.

* "To perfect the Saints by preparing them to receive the ordinances of the gospel and by instruction and discipline to gain exaltation.

* "To redeem the dead by performing vicarious ordinances of the gospel for those who have lived on the earth."

Caring for the poor and the needy has long been preached in the LDS Church. In the same April 1981 General Conference, President Kimball said, "We all have opportunities to render service to others. That is our calling and our privilege. In serving the needs of others, we are mindful of the words of the Savior: 'Verily I say unto you, inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.'"

Elder Ballard, Oct 2003

If we do not make good choices, the media can devastate our families and pull our children away from the narrow gospel path. In the virtual reality and the perceived reality of large and small screens, family-destructive viewpoints and behavior are regularly portrayed as pleasurable, as stylish, as exciting, and as normal. Often media’s most devastating attacks on family are not direct or frontal or openly immoral. Intelligent evil is too cunning for that, knowing that most people still profess belief in family and in traditional values. Rather the attacks are subtle and amoral—issues of right and wrong don’t even come up. Immorality and sexual innuendo are everywhere, causing some to believe that because everyone is doing it, it must be all right. This pernicious evil is not out in the street somewhere; it is coming right into our homes, right into the heart of our families. ..... The new morality preached from the media’s pulpit is nothing more than the old immorality. It attacks religion. It undermines the family. It turns virtue into vice and vice into virtue. It assaults the senses and batters the soul with messages and images that are neither virtuous, nor lovely, nor of good report, nor praiseworthy.

Let me say again that the family is the main target of evil’s attack and must therefore be the main point of our protection and defense. As I said once before, when you stop and think about it from a diabolically tactical point of view, fighting the family makes sense to Satan. When he wants to disrupt the work of the Lord, he doesn’t poison the world’s peanut butter supply, thus bringing the Church’s missionary system to its collective knees. He doesn’t send a plague of laryngitis to afflict the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. He doesn’t legislate against green Jell-O and casseroles. When evil wants to strike out and disrupt the essence of God’s work, it attacks the family. It does so by attempting to disregard the law of chastity, to confuse gender, to desensitize violence, to make crude and blasphemous language the norm, and to make immoral and deviant behavior seem like the rule rather than the exception.

We have the good fortune to fret about such things. Our brothers and sisters in other parts of the world have much more dire concerns and immediate and physical attacks upon their families that must be dealt with first. And what can we do to help?

The Family: A Proclamation to the World

The First Presidency and Council of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

We, the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, solemnly proclaim that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator's plan for the eternal destiny of His children.

All human beings—male and female—are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents, and, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny. Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose.

In the premortal realm, spirit sons and daughters knew and worshiped God as their Eternal Father and accepted His plan by which His children could obtain a physical body and gain earthly experience to progress toward perfection and ultimately realize his or her divine destiny as an heir of eternal life. The divine plan of happiness enables family relationships to be perpetuated beyond the grave. Sacred ordinances and covenants available in holy temples make it possible for individuals to return to the presence of God and for families to be united eternally.

The first commandment that God gave to Adam and Eve pertained to their potential for parenthood as husband and wife. We declare that God's commandment for His children to multiply and replenish the earth remains in force. We further declare that God has commanded that the sacred powers of procreation are to be employed only between man and woman, lawfully wedded as husband and wife.

We declare the means by which mortal life is created to be divinely appointed. We affirm the sanctity of life and of its importance in God's eternal plan. (the sanctity of life clearly refers to all living, wouldn't you agree?)

Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children. "Children are an heritage of the Lord" (Psalms 127:3). Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, to teach them to love and serve one another, to observe the commandments of God and to be law-abiding citizens wherever they live. Husbands and wives—mothers and fathers—will be held accountable before God for the discharge of these obligations.

The family is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities. By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children. In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners. Disability, death, or other circumstances may necessitate individual adaptation. Extended families should lend support when needed. (as per Maslow, mustn't physical security precede all the above?)

We warn that individuals who violate covenants of chastity, who abuse spouse or offspring, or who fail to fulfill family responsibilities will one day stand accountable before God. Further, we warn that the disintegration of the family will bring upon individuals, communities, and nations the calamities foretold by ancient and modern prophets. (is this a self-feeding cycle?)

We call upon responsible citizens and officers of government everywhere to promote those measures designed to maintain and strengthen the family as the fundamental unit of society.

Isaiah 54:13

And all thy children shall be taught of the Lord; and great shall be the peace of thy children.

D&C 68:25 *********************

And again, inasmuch as parents have children in Zion, or in any of her stakes which are organized, that teach them not to understand the doctrine of repentance, faith in Christ the Son of the living God, and of baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of the hands, when eight years old, the sin be upon the heads of the parents.

1 Nephi 1:1

I, Nephi, having been born of goodly parents, therefore I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father; and having seen many afflictions in the course of my days, nevertheless, having been highly favored of the Lord in all my days; yea, having had a great knowledge of the goodness and the mysteries of God, therefore I make a record of my proceedings in my days.

D&C 93:40 *********************

But I have commanded you to bring up your children in light and truth.

Mosiah 4:14–15

And ye will not suffer your children that they go hungry, or naked; neither will ye suffer that they transgress the laws of God, and fight and quarrel one with another, and serve the devil, who is the master of sin, or who is the evil spirit which hath been spoken of by our fathers, he being an enemy to all righteousness.

But ye will teach them to walk in the ways of truth and soberness; ye will teach them to love one another, and to serve one another.

No poor in Zion (for next week, so closing and as part of testimony) / fast offerings

this svithe in thutopia
last week's svithe

2009-12-13T18:26:00.000-08:00

Svithe: "nourished by the good word of God"

.

Moroni on the Church:

What exactly is the good word of God? Is it the scriptures? The simple doctrines? The testimonies of fellow members?

I heard today of someone who is less pleased with the "social" aspects of our ward and wants more "doctrine" and I was left wondering what that meant.

What does it mean to be nourished by the good word of God?

We are all numbered among the people of the church of Christ --- we have taken his name. When we speak as moved upon by the Holy Ghost is scripture, the will of the Lord, the mind of the Lord, the word of the Lord, the voice of the Lord.

So therefore are the "social aspects of Church" part of this nourishment by the good word of God? Or are they a distraction?

Learning that the social aspects of the Church matter and are important as per the way we are programmed as human beings was a surprising lesson to me when I discovered it. But I believe they are.

And while, yes, scriptures etc are important, I think the reason Moroni says the Saints did meet together oft, to fast and to pray, and to speak one with another concerning the welfare of their souls is because in order for religion to work, it requires more than merely me and God. We must learn from our fellow travelers. And sure they can get things "wrong" (according to my more correct knowledge?), but we too are mortal and fallible and apparently there is worth in a bunch of mortal and fallible fools meeting together to fast and to pray, and to speak one with another concerning the welfare of our souls.

So welcome to the social gospel.

Hey. I don't like people either.

But it's good for us.

this svithe in thutopia
last week's svithe

2009-12-06T23:24:00.000-08:00

Svithe on memory

.

Someone --- I think it was Spencer W Kimball --- said remember is the most important word in the dictionary. Personally, I think any statement like that is inherently silly, but the concept of remembering is certainly important. Helaman certainly thought so.

I had this idea when I was younger that sometimes old acquaintances will bring up and ask me if I still believe this (answer: I don't know) that we're born knowing everything and life is but a process of remembering what we have forgotten. I don't know how true this is generally, but with pure spiritual concepts, I still accept it as true. We know we are loved, for instance, and at times, we remember.

Let's keep remembering.

this svithe in thutopia
last week's svithe

2009-11-29T22:03:00.000-08:00

Svithe: (psalm⁹⁸)

.

O sing unto the Lord
a new song; for he hath
done marvellous things:
his right hand, and his
holy arm, hath gotten
him the victory.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2009-11-24T11:49:00.000-08:00

Svithing borrowed words (Pallas Athena)

.

My brother, Pallas Athena, wrote an interesting post this week. He doesn't post often, but when he does he's always provocative and worth reading.

This post wended its way from a fire-based metaphor he doesn't like to a completely unrelated fire-based metaphor he does like. It has a number of points I want to reply to and they're all religiousy and it'll end up being rather long for his comments section and I don't want to be accused of trying to take things over on his properties.

That said, I am going to quote large tracts of his post, so if your reply is more to him than me, you might go to the original to comment.

q1:

Lotta things to say here. The first is the issue of visiting other faiths (which the Sistas also recently posted on) which I for one am certainly in favor of even if I never actually do it. I think it's good to introduce our kids to other's worship. And for several reasons: they'll be more open to others, others will be more open to them, all the good things that may proceed from both those.

As a missionary, incidentally, nothing seemed to build good will like nonflamboyantly visiting other churches. Good stuff.

Another point: I enjoy Catholic radio. Even if I may not align perfectly with their doctrine, I find worth there.

But now to the real point: the dullness of Mormon meetings. Which leads us to our second quote.

q2:

So to go back to the lame analogy and expand it to this example; the other church is like a dry tumbleweed. When lit it creates a large fierce flame which has no substance. The mormon church is like a nice hardwood log. Once it is lit, it is not going out, it will put out lots of heat, and will burn a long, long time, but will never give you the excited, enthusiastic flame of a dry tumbleweed.
This analogy has its charm. Probably offensive to tumbleweeds, but there you go. And it's apt in many ways.

But let's get to the main thrust of this analogy.

q3:

I have had many discussions with my wife since this experience and I have not been able to figure out, how could excitement be brought back into the church? The church is not growing near as well as claimed. Even though we frequently sing "All is Well, All is Well", I think there is a strong argument to the contrary. I cringe everytime I read 2 Nephi 28, is that not what I hear from the pulpit of the church? The church does not need to compromise any of its core beliefs or underpinnings to do this, but it needs excited members, enthusiastic members. I can not get it out of my head...if the members of my church had the excitement and enthusiasm the members of the other church had, oh, imagine...
This is a really great thought experiment for us to engage in. Not just what would happen, but how can we get there?

This discussion of mine's been a little anemic because I'm holding the baby and I can't think and type at the same time without two hands. So let's just look at my post here as an advertisement for my brothers. You should read his anyway because I skipped the paragraph about Emma. And she sound hot.

Go forth.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2009-11-15T22:20:00.000-08:00

Svithe: In dialogue with Richard G. Scott

.

Richard G. Scott is an apostle of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. His words are taken from his recent talk To Acquire Spiritual Guidance.

Theric: So sometimes I'm not sure what my goal is with all this svithery stuff. It's a little presumptuous to put myself up as some sort of spiritual guide. But if I'm doing it only for myself, why do it at all? Besides, some of these things are born more of desperation than anything else.

Elder Scott:I share an experience that taught me a way to gain spiritual guidance.

Theric: Great.

Elder Scott: One Sunday I attended the priesthood meeting of a Spanish branch in Mexico City. I vividly recall how a humble Mexican priesthood leader struggled to communicate the truths of the gospel in his lesson material. I noted the intense desire he had to share those principles he strongly valued with his quorum members. He recognized that they were of great worth to the brethren present. In his manner, there was an evidence of a pure love of the Savior and love of those he taught.

Theric: I assume it turned out well?

Elder Scott: His sincerity, purity of intent, and love permitted a spiritual strength to envelop the room. I was deeply touched. Then I began to receive personal impressions as an extension of the principles taught by that humble instructor. They were personal and related to my assignments in the area. They came in answer to my prolonged, prayerful efforts to learn.

Theric: Right. Ultimately, we all find out own way to commune with God.

Elder Scott: As each impression came, I carefully wrote it down. In the process, I was given precious truths that I greatly needed in order to be a more effective servant of the Lord. The details of the communication are sacred and, like a patriarchal blessing, were for my individual benefit. I was given specific directions, instructions, and conditioned promises that have beneficially altered the course of my life.

Theric: I can believe it. Really, the schmuck talking matters a lot less. Listening to, say, me, should be no more than a catalyst. That's a chemistry term. I'm not sure if you know it, being a nuclear physicist? But anyway, what I was originally talking about is that I worry that my motivations might not be purely, ah, pure. But you probably have a story for that as well?

Elder Scott: Subsequently, I visited the Sunday School class in our ward, where a very well-educated teacher presented his lesson. That experience was in striking contrast to the one enjoyed in the priesthood meeting. It seemed to me that the instructor had purposely chosen obscure references and unusual examples to illustrate the principles of the lesson. I had the distinct impression that this instructor was using the teaching opportunity to impress the class with his vast store of knowledge. At any rate, he certainly did not seem as intent on communicating principles as had the humble priesthood leader.

Theric: Oo. Yeah.

Elder Scott: In that environment, strong impressions began to flow to me again.

Theric: Really!

Elder Scott: I wrote them down. The message included specific counsel on how to become more effective as an instrument in the hands of the Lord. I received such an outpouring of impressions that were so personal that I felt it was not appropriate to record them in the midst of a Sunday School class. I sought a more private location, where I continued to write the feelings that flooded into my mind and heart as faithfully as possible. After each powerful impression was recorded, I pondered the feelings I had received to determine if I had accurately expressed them in writing. As a result, I made a few minor changes to what had been written. Then I studied their meaning and application in my own life.

Theric: Wow.

Elder Scott: Subsequently I prayed, reviewing with the Lord what I thought I had been taught by the Spirit. When a feeling of peace came, I thanked Him for the guidance given. I was then impressed to ask, “Was there yet more to be given?” I received further impressions, and the process of writing down the impressions, pondering, and praying for confirmation was repeated. Again I was prompted to ask, “Is there more I should know?” And there was. When that last, most sacred experience was concluded, I had received some of the most precious, specific, personal direction one could hope to obtain in this life. Had I not responded to the first impressions and recorded them, I would not have received the last, most precious guidance.

Theric: I don't even know how to reply to that.

Elder Scott: What I have described is not an isolated experience. It embodies several true principles regarding communication from the Lord to His children here on earth. I believe that you can leave the most precious, personal direction of the Spirit unheard because you do not respond to, record, and apply the first promptings that come to you.

Theric: I---could certainly do better at that. May I pull out the I-have-small-children excuse here? Or is this just a matter of me not asking sincerely enough?

Elder Scott: Impressions of the Spirit can come in response to urgent prayer or unsolicited when needed. Sometimes the Lord reveals truth to you when you are not actively seeking it.... However, the Lord will not force you to learn. You must exercise your agency to authorize the Spirit to teach you. As you make this a practice in your life, you will be more perceptive to the feelings that come with spiritual guidance. Then, when that guidance comes, sometimes when you least expect it, you will recognize it more easily.

Theric: Well, thank you, Elder Scott for stopping by. You're welcome in Thutopia anytime. Just stop staring at me. Please. Any closing thought?

Elder Scott: I testify that you can personally learn to master the principles of being guided by the Spirit.

ThericL Elder Richard G. Scott, ladies and gentlemen!

this svithe in thutopia
last week's svithe

2009-11-08T15:23:00.000-08:00

S is for Svithe

.

S is for Sunday, the day that I write
V is for Vacuous, a curse that I fight
I is for Intellect, a party to please
T is for Telling, of faith in degrees
H is for Humble, to welcome the Dove
E is for Everything, proof of God's love.

this svithe in thutopia
last week's svithe

2009-11-01T18:16:00.000-08:00

The Metaphors of Dr. Caligari (a halloweeny svithe)

.

This is part of my irregular series of posts wherein I take a post I want to write and jam it into a svithe-shaped box.

.

Part of our regular Halloween decor is placing on old tv in our big front window and playing a Halloweeny movie. The first year we did It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, then Nosferatu, the White Zombie and then, this year, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari:

At one point in the evening I was left home alone. As we don't get that many trickortreaters and as the weather was pleasant, I started the movie over then went outside and watched it though the window.

I bought Dr. Caligari some years ago for a buck somewhere, but never did get around to watching it (a common theme in my movie-related posts, I know). So this was my first time, interrupted now and then by trickortreaters and by my responsibility to the pizza I was cooking and then, just as the climax was hitting, by the return of my family.

One of the elements I was most looking forward to in the film was the German-Impressionist set design, the buildings offplumb and the walls lurching in ausettling ways. And all the triangular doors and trapezoidal staircases were cool, but they didn't affect me in the right way. Decades of Dr Seuss have trained me to view the skippywhompic as whimsical rather than threatening. And I think that's a shame. (Not whimsy, but exclusive whimsy is the shame.)

I think the arrival of sound may have limited film's potential in some key ways. The dreamscapes of films like Caligari or Nosferatu or Vampyre don't transfer well to a world where a line of dialogue may be expected to explain away the absurd shape of a jail cell or the stripes of black in the villain's white hair.

In a world of sound, things may not be merely unsettling.

In a world of sound, we expect an explanation. And that which is explained is weakened, because the rational mind is allowed to pretend the celluloid world too is safe and rational. Lame.

Anyway. Time to svithify. Here are some potential metaphors we can apply to the above. Please help me choose the most fit.

Quizzes by Quibblo.com

Yeah. And a righteous Halloween to you to....

this svithe in thutopia
last week's svithe

2009-10-25T15:22:00.000-07:00

Svithe: The Me-First Fallacy (and its amazingly simple solution)

.

Never make a principle out of your experience; let God be as original with other people as he is with you. ---Oswald Chambers

I've been thinking a lot about this issue lately, in part because of my Elna Baker posts and in part because of friends of mine and in part as I reevaluate my own thinking, and rediscovering the above quotation has gelled it together for me.

When I speak to people who are mildly or severely disenfranchised with faith, they often blame that disenfranchisement on the affliction called Other Believer's Expectations for True Believers.

Often, as humans, we make the mistake of believing that we are in fact the center of the universe, that we are in fact the archetypal human, that we are in fact perfectly average and merely typical. All of these assumptions are varieties of the same sin, an accidental, almost negative version of pride.

About ten years ago I was plotting a book written for teenaged Mormons about sex. Because I had figured out what I had needed to know when I was a teenager and I was going to take my wisdom and lay it out for the next batch of teenagers.

I'm glad I never got more than a few paragraphs written down, because the hubris of the concept appalls me now.

The whole point of this life is to figure some things out for ourselves (within doctrinal guidelines if possible, but those things are rather vague if we're being honest). If there was a single correct answer applicable to every question, we'd have nothing to figure out.

And when we do figure out an answer it feels so good that of course, being good people, we want to share. And that's when we make our mistake: assuming that the answer God has shared with ME is also therefore the same answer he would share with YOU.

Why in the world would he do that?

The reason that answer felt so good was because it was, of all possible answers, the best one for me. And I am not you.

We can also make this fallacy in regards to ourselves. Learning at age 15 that X is a huge error, then assuming that X will be an error of equal magnitude at age 45, does not necessarily hold true. Sometimes, sure. But the subtle details of life are everchanging and God knows what we need.

So the solution?

Be open to God's will for you now.
Expect God's will to differ for others.
Don't presume to judge the quality of God's various answers.

Or, at least, that's the answer I seem to have today.

What thinkest thou?

this svithe on thuopia
last week's svithe

2009-10-18T15:22:00.000-07:00

Svithe: Stand on Your Head

.

The Berkeley Ward has its own legend: J. Ed Johnson, who stood on his head.

He stood on his head at funerals, in testimony meetings and, most famously, at a Berkeley City Council meeting where his antics won the ward the permission to build a modest parking lot next to the building.

He did a lot more than just stand on his head of course, but just being a stellar Saint might not be enough to ensure legendary status. You might also need to stand on your head.

This is our stake's 75th anniversary and we've had a variety of theses and thatses to celebrate, Today, at our our Priesthood/ReliefSociety/YoungMen/YoungWomen meeting following a Stake Sacrament Meeting one of J. Ed's granddaughters showed slides of him standing on his head in cemeteries and national parks and spoke of his diligence.

So when we speak of creating a spiritual legacy for your dependents, yes provide for the widows (another Johnson trademark) but also come up with some grand, photographable quirk. Because that's the stuff of legends people. Then people will remember you.

(And if your example was in the right things, then they will also remember He whom you served.)

this svithe on thutopia
last week's svithe

2009-10-11T16:37:00.000-07:00

#svithe #ldsconf

.

If you're not following Thwitter, you're missing out, folks. Not because I tweet such interesting things, but the conversational nature of Twitter is a marvelous way to build relationships and knowledge. Dandy stuff.

Anyway, bit of background for those of you who merely observe the Mormonness of this blog with a bemused eye, but last week was the Church's semiannual General Conference (my blog notes, response to my twitter notes). For that moim we get together worldwide and leadership speaks from Salt Lake City. It's covered by a goodly number of tv and radio stations and is streamed online). Anyway, it's kind of a big deal. That's my main point.

Watching Conference and taking my notes and then being on Twitter at the same time was an unusual experience. On the one hand, all these things distracted me for the other things. On the other hand however, it was a great way to find other Saints also watching #ldsconf. (Well over 10000 tweets over the weekend.)

I had been mulling a post over the so-called Twitter Stake experience, but I got busy and didn't type anything up.

So I'm going to take my cues from Tyler and make this week's svithe a response to his blogpost on #ldsconf. (Or, more accurately, a reply he made to a comment left for him.) Specifically, he was discussing how Saints can bear (t)witness during the #ldsconf offseason:

Adding a hashtag is the easier way to draw attention to a regular occurrence on Twitter and we have a few options here. One is #ldsconf although that seems necessarily limited to references back to Conference (as if that were a bad thing.

Another is #svithe which I am leery of promoting. Although I'm always happy when someone finds svithing a useful concept, promoting the concept to others seems self-promotional somehow.

The third is #twitness which has hardly been strongly used by anyone to this point --- it could certainly be repurposed. The problem I see is that bearing witness is a phrase less used by Mormons than bearing testimony (though #twestimony is kinda lame).

Anyway, I'm not promoting any particular concept, nor am I convinced the Twitter Stake had enough mass to make something like this a solid phenomenon. But I do think that Mormons (or any serious religious denomination, for that matter) should think about their presence online. And that's best done by the plebes, not the hierarchy. So it's worth discussing and experimenting with and figuring out.

That's all. Dicuss. Here or on Twitter. Remember, I'm @thmazing.

this #svithe on thutopia
last week's #svithe[tacular]
thwitter

2009-10-04T14:41:00.000-07:00

Svithetacular 179.5

.

SATURDAY MORNING

President Monson

Elder Richard Scott

Didn't catch who this lady is---40m later, via Twitter: Sister Matsumori

Thanks to Twitter, we know this is Elder William Clayton

for our sake

Twitter says.....Russell T. Osguthorpe?

Elder Bednar (twitter is awesome --- wish I'd thought of it earlier to fill my temple and speaker gaps)

President Dieter F Uctdorf

SATURDAY AFTERNOON

Elder DHOakes

Elder RBHales

Elder Zeballos

Brother Callister

Elder Anderson

President Packer

SATURDAY EVENING

SUNDAY MORNING

President Eyring

Elder Perry

Bishop Burton

Sister Dibbs Second Counselor of the YW and allegedly Pr Monson's daughter

Elder RM Nelson

President Thomas S Monson (speak of the, ah, prophet?)

SUNDAY AFTERNOON

Elder Holland

Elder Quentin Cook

Lebrand N.Neilson?

name

Ringwood

Elder Sitati

Elder Christofferson

President Thomas S. Monson

PREVIOUSLY:

Thutopia svithe: last svithe
Weekly Svithe: last svithe

2009-09-27T21:34:00.000-07:00

Storm Svithe

.

I subbed in a Primary class today and part of the lesson was the story of Kim, a young girl who, without being asked, cleaned leaves and branches blown into her church through a broken window by a ferocious storm.

What, I wonder, what have I done without being asked lately?

as a thmusing
last week

2009-09-20T21:07:00.001-07:00

No svithe today on account of debilitating illness and intense pain.

.

Sorry.

2009-09-13T20:27:00.000-07:00

From today's baptism (svithe)

.

At baptismal services in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we traditionally offer brief talks on the ordinances of baptism and the laying on of hands for the Gift of the Holy Ghost.

At a baptism today, I was asked to speak on the latter ordinance.

The typical conceit is that the speaker is speaking solely to the person receiving the ordinance, although --- let's face it --- there are other people in the room. But that explains the occasional 'you.'

These are more notes than the actual talk as I gave it.

.

Once upon a time in the middle of nowhere, a prophet named Moses was trying to lead a nation to a better land. He had all sorts of problems in the pursuance of this task. One day a couple guys were in the camp prophesying and one of Moses’s friends, alarmed, came to tell him about it. Moses replied:

Enviest thou for my sake? would God that all the Lord’s people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit upon them!

The apostle John taught that prophecy is the testimony of Jesus.

Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets, holding the testimony of Jesus in their hearts.

Clearly, by entering the waters of baptism and thus witnessing your willingness to follow Jesus Christ, you have a testimony of Jesus. Which, of course, was brought to you by the Holy Ghost.

So the salient question, it seems to me, is how does the Gift of the Holy Ghost differ from the gifts he has already brought you?

Yesterday I was speaking with a pregnant woman in our ward (there are plenty to choose from) and she told me that, according to her baby book, this week her baby’s nerves connected to her baby’s brain and now, for the first time, the baby has a sense of touch. What, she wondered, was her baby’s perception like before that moment? What do babies experience in that warm, close space before they can feel?

Joseph Fielding Smith, as an apostle, 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.”

He also said that “Through the Holy Ghost the truth is woven into the very fibre and sinews of the body so that it cannot be forgotten.”

With the Gift of the Holy Ghost, he moves from a visiting truth-teller to our constant companion. And then, as we let him in, the truth becomes such a part of us—so woven into us—that the time before he came is like the time before our nerves had bonded to our brain.

In other words, if you’ll forgive a rather poor word choice, the Holy Ghost and truth can become—boring. Boring only in the sense that he no longer has to wow! us with the revelation that the Book of Mormon is true! or Jesus is our Savior! or God loves us! Because you know—you know—these things are true. And so the Holy Ghost is like touch. When you stop to think about it, very normal, “boring” things are utterly wonderful. Your head upon a pillow, the sun upon your face, your wife’s hair between your fingers. And testimony is the same.

Even when your faith is so bound to you, so bound to your being that you cannot separate your faith from your identity, when you stop to notice it, how wonderful. So take the time as the years pass to recognize your faith as the miracle it is. And give thanks for this gift you have received—that you are about to receive—the gift of the Holy Ghost.

One caveat. Although the Holy Ghost’s presence in our lives can and should be defining, we should still remember to nurture our faith. Harold B. Lee—prophet back in the Seventies—said that testimonies are fragile as a moonbeam and need to be recaptured every day.

We have a choice every moment whether to allow the Spirit to dwell with us or to drive him away.

This is an exciting time. You and the Spirit are about to get better acquainted. You’ll learn more about how he communicates with you. And there is nothing boring about this. There is nothing boring about being close to God. It is the most exciting thing in life. And if something so exciting can be an everyday part of life?

How wonderful.

Growing close to God is a lifelong process. And now you’ll have the Holy Ghost as your partner. As you pray, expect to receive. Because you will receive.

You have the Gift of the Holy Ghost.

this svithe on thutopia
last week's svithe

2009-09-06T20:33:00.000-07:00

I can see! (a svithish metaphor)

.

Yesterday I picked up my new glasses and, unlike last time, this time actually had a good optometrist who gave me a new prescription and so, for the first time in ten years, I had that glorious experience of slipping something on my face and having the world become new and beautiful again. I was giddy.

Today we bless Little Lord Steed who is too young to really see much at all yet.

But the appearance of a beautiful new human being in this world is a time for reflection and improved vision looking forward, to the eternities.

Family is forever.

Look and see.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2009-08-30T03:09:00.000-07:00

I share with Snoopy my opinion on intellectual and spiritual humility (a svithe)

.

INTELLECTUAL

The example one of my fellow teachers uses is dinosaurs. Not long ago, we all "knew" dinosaurs were giant plodding cold-blooded behemoths whose tails dragged on the ground. And today? They're birds. The second I meet someone utterly convinced of anything, is the moment my skepticism in their claims triples.

SPIRITUAL

Joseph Smith

We can't form communities without these humilities.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2009-08-23T17:08:00.000-07:00

Svithe: my testimony of human fallibility

.

Yesterday as part of a planned and structured activity I went to the temple with about twenty other men. Our children had a children's activity on the temple grounds and the women had a temple activity identical to the men's (initiatories, if you were wondering). When the men showed up, the temple was expecting us and yet understaffed and we spent our allotted time waiting. we sat around and talked, and then left to get our kids. We did not do what we had expected to do at all. We had an enjoyable time, but others' errors prevented us from performing the spiritual service expected.

I've heard many stories in my day of people who get horribly offended by mistakes and errors and foolishness of other people, and all such offense to determine their own spiritual fate.

At the risk of offending, let me say this: That's stupid.

Anyone who expects that any human will treat any other human always and without exception as if carrying a cushion is a lunatic. Use your own mother as an example. I'll bet she's made you mad before. How much more likely then someone whom you know and love less well?

The temple teaches that all truth may be circumscribed into one great whole and here's something that's true: Human beings are fallible. And that truth, as will all others, belongs to Mormonism. So the challenge for me is how to incorporate this truth into my understanding of life and love and faith and progress.

And while that's an interesting question with many a possible answer, here's one: I'm fallible too and God loves me. So how much more should I love my fellow fallibles?

Which is a good takeaway for me, today, now, the moments before the school year rears its, ah, head, and I'm back to work,

Go forth in love.

this svithe on thutopia
last week's svithe

2009-08-16T09:36:00.000-07:00

The Ditching-Church Svithe

.

I'm at home in my pajamas. Lady and Little Lord Steed are asleep in the other room. The Big O and the Large S are to Church with my parents. I'm supposed to be conducting a meeting today but that's not going to happen.

When I was younger I was much more rigid about visible letter-of-the-law stuff like Going to Church. Now, here, in the twilight of my life, my conception of What's Important has changed.

This is to be expected, I suppose. Life is a process of sorting, after all. But what are the criteria by which we make these alterations? Because clearly we do not all reach the same decisions, even when we come from the same tradition.

So, question: What criteria do/should we use as we alter our views of What Matters Most?

I'm curious. And I'm sure you've thought about it. So do dish.

visit this svithe (and any discussion it may have engendered) at thutopia
last week's svithe

2009-08-09T00:43:00.000-07:00

SvitheCon! (the whole world's invited)

.

Speaking of Cons, I was just reading on LDSPublisher about the recent LDS Booksellers Convention. Disregarding my depression that less than 20% of the companies involved have anything to do with books and that fewer and fewer publishers even bother to attend each year (o say nothing of the companies that are going under), I want to talk about a disturbing trend that's well summed up on one product: Mormon-themed wrapping paper.

What bothers me about this? Well, it's not the attempt to enforce a Mormon culture. I'm fine with Mormonism having it's own culture. I'm all for it.

What bothers me is that items like this are emblematic of an utter unwillingness to engage the world in any way. We are not separated from the world, we should not be afraid of the world. We should be venturing forth into the world with healthful regularity.

As I wrote for AMV, it's my opinion that this is a time in Church history wherein we are called to be very much in the world --- engaging it and working with it and bringing it close. Building walls between ourselves and the world around us is, in fact, a sin if you want me to be blunt about it. If we are called to engage the world (and we are), then failing to do so is such immoral naughtiness.

Here's my feeling:

Mormon culture is good as long as it is inclusive. But when we start wrapping ourselves up in it in order to hide the rest of our planet's population from view, then we are falling short of our calling.

Mormons are called to engage. To be friends with our neighbors. To be involved in our communities. To love as He loved.

So let's open up and listen. Let's be part of this daily convention we call the world, and try to listen as well as preach. No more la-la-la-I-can't-hear-you.

Go forth.

this svithe on thmusings

last week's svithe

2009-08-02T15:16:00.000-07:00

svithe: Work_Service_Priesthood_Love (an experiment)

.

I teach Elders Quorum once every four months, and today was my turn. And I decided to do something different. This is a choice I often make. Sometimes it works.

You know how sometimes in class, the teacher will hand out a few little slips of paper and then, at the appropriate moment, call for them to be read? That was the template. The difference was that, this time, I made somewhere around 150 slips of paper (yes, for a half-hour lesson).

Here's a pdf of the slips: http://thmazing.com/templates/theric/pdfs/Work_Service_Priesthood_Love.pdf. (I may not leave this up forever, so if you decided it's useful for you, download it now.)

Most of the slips are taken from Teachings of Presidents of the Church, although there were other things as well including Robert Frost, Lao Tzu, Mother Teresa, Kurt Vonneget, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Charles Schulz, etc etc etc (oh: and the scriptures).

The idea was to create a wide variety of voices to pick and choose from; anyone could read any slip at any time as it seemed appropriate to them. And it worked out all right, but it was a little difficult, I think, for anyone to feel fully sure of that the heck was going on at any given moment.

(I was talking metalesson with Miguel Sanchez and he had a clever idea I'll have to try sometime, viz. take the randomization to a pure lever. Give each slip of paper a number and bring a couple ten-sided dice and completely through my lesson into the maw of chaos. This is awesome. I will also be thinking about how I will bring this into the classroom. I'm really regretting not buying a scoop of dice at Comic Con now....)

a previous EQ lesson
previous svithe

this svithe on thmusings

And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God.

2009-07-19T00:22:00.000-07:00

The Wentworth Svithe

.

If John Wentworth had never asked Joseph Smith about Mormonism, would Joseph Smith ever have written the Articles of Faith?

And if he had never written the Articles of Faith, how would our self-perception differ today?

The AofF as originally written:

Discuss

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2009-07-13T07:00:00.000-07:00

The Two Lenses of Priesthood and Charity

.

At Church yesterday Sunday School was on Priesthood and and Rs/Ph was on Charity. Juxtaposing these two made me realize that here we have two all-important doctrines. Nothing matters without the proper priesthood and without charity, you are nothing.

In many ways, these two facts seem contradictory.

As my favorite sociologist said in elders quorum in response to Peter ("And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins."), the emphasis on charity shows that life is not a game of Operation with strict rules and if you touch the sides then BZZZZZT! you're out. That's not the way God rolls.

I agree with this. It's charity that matters. Charity burns away sins in the sense that when we have charity we are less likely to commit them, but in our continued imperfection, as Peter said, charity can also cover them up.

(Charity, it's worth mentioning, is the pure love of Christ). I suspect that as we develop it ourselves, we are able to tap more directly into the Atonement. But this is just a speculative aside.)

So back to priesthood, which seems more exclusive as we Mormon generally speak of it. But is that perspective correct? Yes. And no.

God loves all his children and wants them to have it all. And priesthood is God's power. And wouldn't he use his power to these ends?

And so while the god of Mormon belief is a bit strict on his ordinances, it's not BZZZT! you're out. This is why we're so big on proxy ordinances. It's about love and expansion of that love and giving the gifts of God to all. (Or, more accurately, offering the gifts of God to all. We're not big on making anyone do anything.)

Sigh.

Okay, I need to get on with my day. Please clarify my thoughts for me in the comments.

Danke.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's more sensible svithe

2009-07-05T10:01:00.000-07:00

Special Guest Svither David O. McKay on the confluence of testimony and duty

.

One day in my youth I was hunting cattle. While climbing a steep hill, I stopped to let my horse rest, and there, once again, an intense desire came over me to receive a manifestation of the truth of the restored gospel. I dismounted, threw my reins over my horse’s head, and there under a serviceberry bush I prayed that God would declare to me the truth of his revelation to Joseph Smith. I am sure that I prayed fervently and sincerely and with as much faith as a young boy could muster.

At the conclusion of the prayer, I arose from my knees, threw the reins over my faithful pony’s head, and got into the saddle. As I started along the trail again, I remember saying to myself, ‘No spiritual manifestation has come to me. If I am true to myself, I must say I am just the same “old boy” that I was before I prayed.’

The Lord did not see fit to give me an answer on that occasion, but in 1899, after I had been appointed president of the Scottish Conference, the spiritual manifestation for which I had prayed as a boy in my teens came as a natural sequence to the performance of duty.

this svithe in thutopia
last week's svithe

2009-06-29T00:02:00.000-07:00

I had never as yet made the attempt to svithe vocally

.

I'm reading a fascinating article right now that I may well svithe again, if it weighs as heavily on my mind next week as it has been this weekend. But it's so late now, I'm just stealing one quote, which originated here.

We are so verbal, especially in the Protestant tradition, that it's hard for us not to imagine prayer either as monologue, in which I tell God things and God listens, or as a conversation in which I tell God things and God answers back. But from what I understand out of the ancient monastic materials I work on, prayer is really an entire relationship, and the verbal part is only one element. A lot of what we learn when we pray is to be quiet. We need to stop thinking that a relationship is constituted only by language. The closer we get to other people, and the better our friendships are, the more silence these relationships contain. The people we talk to all the time are probably the people we don't know.terribly well and whom we don't trust. The issue is not so much "Does God talk back and if so how?" but whether we can learn just to be in God's presence.
She has a pretty good point. Prayer is more than address-thank-pray-close, or can be. How do we arrive at prayers that move beyond the limitations of our human vocabularies?

Discuss.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2009-06-21T03:13:00.000-07:00

Svithing fathers, starting with myawesomeself

.

It's Fathers Day in America and this is America and I am a father so let's talk about me, shall we?

This week has been good for my ego. It seems like everyone want to compliment me? To excerpt from these compliments, here are some phrases suitable for placement under my name on a business card:

If I seem a little full of myself lately, now you know why.

All these statements were speaking to my skill as a writer.

I believe that the raw capacity for working with words is part of my uncreated intelligence. But if I were to thus claim sole credit for my successes, removing God from my gratitude, would not be tenable. That would be like a poor kid in Potosí who's capable of becoming the world's finest surgeon failin to thank the philanthropist who saw him into a city with a decent high school and from there to Harvard. The kid would have been lucky to get a job choking on led dust, but instead he gets a consultant credit on House.

Me, I could not be who I am without the opportunity great God has given me to come to this earth and partake of human life and mortal opportunity. I'm only as good as the ultimate Father has provided me the chance to become. So what can I do in return? As King Benjamin said:

So paying God back is out of the question. All I can do is follow his simple requests. And be the best I can be.

Isn't that what every father wants for his children?

Thank you, Dad.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2009-06-14T04:43:00.000-07:00

Svithe: my sacrament meeting pinch hit

.

The broad brush stroke of a topic is, "Growing My Testimony through Action". The usual notions of how we increase our testimony, i.e. prayer, meditation, and scripture reading are of course actions. What I'm angling at is something that revolves more around things like sharing the gospel with others, service in the community, temple attendance, speaking in Sacrament Meeting on short notice, putting into practice charity, that sort of thing.

.

I didn't say yes at first. I tried to come up with something but nothing. Total stupor of thought. Until, as I mention in the talk, I was writing my weekly email to the elders quorum. Then it all came together and I wrote back and said yes.

Of course, it was made more complicated by http://www.motleyvision.org/2009/elder-callister-on-art/ in which I said that Mormon sacrament meeting talks should mean that we, as a people, take an interest in preserving the world's Great Oral Tradition. So, you know, no stress or anything.

I went through old svithe and found http://svithes.blogspot.com/2006/11/caught-in-svithe.html, http://svithes.blogspot.com/2007/05/who-wants-easy-svithe-main-difference.html and http://svithes.blogspot.com/2008/11/svithing-pure-religion.html, as well as http://theeccentricsage.blogspot.com/2008/03/post-100.html from my brother, all of which were used to throw this together.

Then, in rewrite, I used http://athenaminor.blogspot.com/2008/10/do-mormons-know-too-much.html from another brother to make sure I'd stayed on task.

This is not my final draft (although it is late enough in the process that I've removed the jackass), but it's roughly what I'll be saying tomorrow.

.

A new book will be hitting the shelves next month. If God Were Real by John Avant. The book looks to be a reaction to the books from the New Atheists that’ve been burning up the charts --- books like The God Delusion and God Is Not Great. Its cover is reminiscent of those books and the title isn’t exactly clear. If God Were Real? It took a bit of interneting to decide which side of the argument the author will come down on come his July 7 release date.

Anyway, Avant’s point is that most Christians don’t live as if they actually think God’s real. From some promotional stuff:

The author . . . agrees with atheists that many Christians are not living up to their claims and asserts that there is not much Christ left in Christianity. . . . Each chapter examines how a particular part of life might be different if God were real to us. The evidence shows that most Christians live as “practical atheists.”

Self-assessment query: Am I charitable like unto Christ? Do I turn the other cheek like unto Christ? Do I weep with my friends like unto Christ?

This struck me as I was writing an email to the elders quorum about today’s Joseph Smith lesson on redeeming the dead. And I asked myself: Do I live my life as if I really believe in redeeming the dead?

Looking at my day-to-day redemption activities for evidence, I have to wonder if I do in fact believe this doctrine. Shouldn’t my faith be borne out by my daily actions? By their fruits you shall know them etc etc and my fruits aren’t exactly nourishing to the dead. I’m not exactly on a first-name basis with Brother Whatsisname who checks recommends at the temple door.

This failure on my part raises a new question: Is that failure evidence of a weak testimony or is it simply a failure to act upon my testimony?

I like Peter. Simon Peter? The rock on which Jesus would build his church? You remember Peter. The schmuck who betrayed his god three times in one night? He was supposed to be this great spiritual leader and he started that career with complete and utter failure. Way to go, nimrod.

But Peter gets his act together, pun intended, in The Acts of the Apostles, which is the New Testament’s very next book. In Acts, Peter and the other apostles are no longer just sitting around enjoying faith. Now, instead of listening, they are speaking. Instead of following, they are leading. They are doing what their Savior taught them to do. Following his commandment to go forth into all the world bearing testimony of Him. In Acts, they are doing the gospel, acting the gospel. And Peter never denies god again. He’s done with “practical atheism.” He is a saint, an active saint.

Another active Saint of the time, James, spoke on this issue when he called pure religion visiting the fatherless and widows. I like to assume he wasn’t just writing epistles on it, but that he was actually visiting the fatherless and widows. Surely they didn’t call him James the Just for nothing.

Here, in America, 2009, it’s pretty easy to find the time, safety and gasoline to visit the fatherless and widows. Now consider for a moment Mormon’s situation. Here’s a guy who lived in a time of constant danger. Murdering and marauding were everyday activities. People were killed in gruesome ways—sometimes eaten—and widows were dying of starvation as they fled their homes. But when we read the doctrines that Mormon taught, what do we see? We see a Christian. We see a man who, even when everyone around him had fallen into irreparable evil, preached faith hope and charity. Who delighted in the innocence of children. He wastes no space chatting up his own good deeds, but a man who can focus on faith hope and charity when the world is crashing down around him in a cacophony of depravity, I think we can safely assume that he helped out where he could. He even agreed to lead his people when he knew full well they were on the brink of utter destruction. Even in a moment of—can I call it hopelessness?—he did what he could.

I was here at the church Friday night and on the stairs next to the bishop’s office was the muddy handprint of a small child. Splap! right there on the carpet. Couple of them, actually. I couldn’t find any proper carpet-cleaning spray in the bombshelter so I just rubbed it away with a wet paper towel --- in our Sunday morning sunlight the handprint may be visible again, but I tried to get rid of it.

Now I was here because it was our week to clean the church so of course I’m going to try to do something about an errant handprint. But I’m often here alone, at least once every other week, and I hope that I would try to do something about mud on the carpet, even if it wasn’t my week.

Faith is power we hear with some regularity, and that power is both developed and manifested through actions. But faith is intensely personal and no matter how much I say Hey! Pray!, that won’t develop your faith. It’s the same with actions. They are intensely personal and it’s a slothful and not wise servant who needs to be told to act. So we can wipe up handprints without being told. We can grab a crumpled bulletin from off the floor. Every week I see people picking up chairs in the cultural hall without anyone telling them to do it.

There are people in our ward much better than me about redeeming the dead and visiting the widows and fatherless. And it’s not because someone’s constantly pressuring them about Duty or Responsibility either.

As I read in a recent Church PR release:

Latter-day Saints take [James’s] interpretation of pure religion very seriously. Being a person of faith is something you do within the context of a world full of suffering, not just what you say or believe. . . . Learning Christ’s teachings and reading about the way He conducted Himself motivates individuals to look for ways to engage with others the way He did. And serving those in need functions as a refining process — humbling the server, bringing her or him closer to Christ and His example.

This is what Peter learned. As he served others his faith strengthened until nothing could sway him and he became the rock Jesus said he was.

Jesus, were he here today, would have kind things to say about each of us as well. And through action we can grow in faith, in power, and become the people he wishes us to be.

I know that as I spend more time in the temple, my faith in that work will grow, and I will spend more time in the temple, thus growing my faith even more.

And as I strive to live a life based on the teachings and example of Jesus Christ, my faith and testimony in him will likewise grow, changing me into a person who follows the teachings and example of Jesus Christ.

In his holy name, amen.

.

Pretty short, yes. But I'm told there will be five other short talks and I don't want to be greedy with the time. So this is all for this week, folks. Move along.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2009-06-07T13:57:00.000-07:00

Svithe: Short and Sweet

.

Love one another.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2009-05-31T00:31:00.000-07:00

Funny to Serious: five increasingly svithey thoughts

.

1. I have had a problem of late, starting short stories that are lol funny and then, the deeper in we go, seeing them get more and more serious till they feel like Russian novels, only sadder.

2. Humor as a career choice seems to be something that people develop a shame for. And I don't know why. Theseadays we see it most clearly in actors such as Jim Carrey. What's wrong with the funny?

3. I was looking for a Joseph Smith quotation this morning and I discovered that although he accused himself of youthful levity, later in life folks remarked on how levity-free he was.

4. Goats.

5. Humor is an essential part of life. Even Jesus knew this. (You can't tell me the friends-of-Mammon crack ain't funny.) But I suppose there's a time and a place for everything.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2009-05-24T13:55:00.000-07:00

Svithe: The Parable of the Bay Bridge

.

And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.
Romans 11:5-6

For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Ephesians 2:8

Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.
James 2:17

For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.
2 Nephi 25:23

Today in sacrament meeting we had a trio of excellent talks based around that final scripture, and the reconciliation of grace and works. All three were excellent, but I have to say the description of grace as being omnipresent in Creation and the basic truth of our relationship with God is most likely to be most helpful to me.

To sum it up (since I have been told this will not appear online and thus I cannot link to it) is that God always offers grace and we either choose to accept it or reject Him. sorry I can't be more eloquent. I should have taken notes.

Anyway, today's svithe is also about grace and, I think, offers some help in reconciling what sometimes seem to be opposing viewpoints in scripture. I'm going back to the idea of grace being what saves us from our sins etc etc and does for us what we cannot do for ourselves etc etc.

Like most folk, upon first hearing of the Parable of the Bicycle I was quite taken with it. But over time I've grown dissatisfied. Given enough time, the little girl could indeed have bought the bike. A better one even.

So I've come up with this as a stopgap parable:

this svithe in thutopia
last week's svithe

2009-05-17T00:09:00.000-07:00

The rumormongering svithe

.

So I know, I know: my stated purpose in svithing is to spread Truth and Beauty, but the news that President Obama has tapped Utah's Governor Huntsman (Mormon) to be the new ambassador to China is just too good to not tell whoppers about --- especially since, as far as I know, no one else has started any baseless speculation yet.

And I don't mean that Obama thinks without Huntman Utah will elect a democratic governor because ha!ha!ha! that's crazy. No one would believe that.

Preach My Gospel

Don't lie, kids. It's not the right thing to do.

(ps: if, postambassadorship, Huntsman gets called as a General Authority, I'm totally running this post again.)

this unserious svithe at thutopia
last week's more serious svithe

2009-05-10T09:17:00.000-07:00

Sickly Svithing on Mother's Day

.

So I'm home sick on Mother's Day. Lady Steed left me with the baby so she could better enjoy sacrament meeting. Right now we are watching music videos. I know, I know. But we both love this one. We'll probably have watched it a dozen times by the time I finish this svithe.

Anyway, I don't usually do terribly matricentric posts on Mother's Day, but this year the time has come.

Last month as part of her daily poetry project, Darlene posted part of "The Lanyard" by Billy Collins. It struck me so deeply I made it part of my Mother's Day present to my own mother and I bought the book for Lady Steed.

Anyway, in respect for the same copyright laws Darlene aimed to repsect, I'm going to copy only the same portion she did. A link to the entire poem is at her blogpost linked to above.

I thank God for Mothers.

The Lanyard
Billy Collins

She gave me life and milk from her breasts,
and I gave her a lanyard.
She nursed me in many a sickroom,
lifted teaspoons of medicine to my lips,
set cold face-cloths on my forehead,
and then led me out into the airy light
and taught me to walk and swim,
and I, in turn, presented her with a lanyard.
Here are thousands of meals, she said,
and here is clothing and a good education.
And here is your lanyard, I replied,
which I made with a little help from a counselor.

Here is a breathing body and a beating heart,
strong legs, bones and teeth,
and two clear eyes to read the world, she whispered,
and here, I said, is the lanyard I made at camp.

this svithe in thutopia
last week's svithe

2009-05-04T08:13:00.000-07:00

Svithe: Saving spiders

.

This morning as I was drying off after my shower, I noticed a spider hanging a few feet off my towel. I tried to shake him off, but his web held, so I grabbed the web and dropped him in the sink.

As I continued drying, I noticed that the slope of the sink was such that he could not get out. Even using old toothpaste spit for traction he fell short of the top.

So after I hung my towel back up I chased him with a piece of toilet paper until his web caught on it, then I shook him off behind the toilet.

I don't kill spiders anymore. I don't even transfer them outside unless Lady Steed insists. The connotation of a spider in our home is that there are also many smaller unseen critters roaming about. Spiders are predators. If there was nothing to eat, he would not be here. By removing the spider, I'm letting the ittybitty population go unchecked. And since I don't know what those ittybitties are, I choose to assume that I would rather the spiders eat them than let them overrun us.

Where's the svithe in this?

I believe that spiders are one of the things that we, somewhere deep in our genetic code, instinctively fear and hate. But why should we?

When I reexamined my relationship with spiders, I realized that the spiders' goals coincide with my own. If my house was ittybitty-free, the spiders wouldn't come inside. So if they're here, it means they are doing me a favor.

Thank you, spiders.

(cf)

this svithe on thutopia
last week's svithe

2009-04-25T22:01:00.000-07:00

Swine svithe

.

In regards to last night's post on Thutopia (and keep in mind I'm writing this, like, five minutes after finishing that one), I want to tell you all I love you and since (as a young healthy male myself) I may not be long for this world, I thought I should write a sunscreen post.

First: That guy's totally right --- living in Northern California will make you soft. Look at me. I'm dead.

Second: Don't spend so much time worrying about one natural disaster that you fail to notice the one that actually will end up killing you.

Third: Smile. You could be where I am.

Fourth: To be more specific, enjoy the marvelousness of this great gift we call mortal life. For all the harping about this being a Fallen World, it's pretty damn great. Pretty voices on the radio, pretty clouds in the sky, pretty lettuce in the taco, pretty mote in your eye. It's a pretty great world. Be grateful.

Fifth: Pray. You may be next.

this svithe on thutopia
last week's svithe

2009-04-19T15:55:00.000-07:00

Temptation and Sin: The Parable of the SweeTarts
(a svithe)

.

Last Monday I took in our car and while waiting, I walked down to Grocery Outlet and did some shopping. One delightful thing I discovered was little bags filled with a mix of Chewy Mini SweeTarts, Chewy Sprees and Shock Tarts. Brilliant!

When I was in high school, I used to buy rolls of SweeTarts, Sprees and Shock Tarts and mix them up in an old yogurt container I hid under my clean socks and underwear. When Chewy Sprees came out, I added them to the mix. Then, whenever I needed a sugar fix, I opened my drawer and surreptitiously removed a piece of candy.

Delicious.

Fastforward, oh, fifteen years, to last January and our shotgun trip to Tehachapi. I was driving and I was getting sleepy so, using a trick taught by a friend during a much-too-early-in-the-morning university class, I bought a box of Red Hots and snacked on them to keep me awake.

Now in April that box is still in the door of the car, although it was down to maybe four Red Hots left. So I filled the box with the mix of Chewy Mini SweeTarts, Chewy Sprees and Shock Tarts I had just purchased, thinking they would also last four months and serve to keep me awake during long drives.

No.

I have already almost finished them. I cannot stop eating them. I eat them nonstop as I drive. My tongue is raw.

They are too delicious.

And they are right at my fingertips.

Oh.....they are so good......

this svithe at thutopia
last week's svithe

2009-04-12T00:51:00.000-07:00

Easte Svithe 2009

.

Segullah keeps stealing my ideas. But in honor of the season, I will not get irate.

Instead:

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2009-04-05T15:23:00.000-07:00

Svithetacular ¹⁷⁹

.

DISCLAIMER: SVITHETACULAR'S ARE NOT A SUITABLE REPACEMENT FOR WATCHING/READING CONFERENCE ON YOUR OWN. SVITHETACULARS SHOULD BE VIEWED AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO COMPARE NOTES AND SUCHLIKE RATHER THAN SOME SORT OF LO-CAL SUBSTITUTE FOR THOUGHTFUL CONSUMPTION. JUST SAYING. I MEAN---YOU DON'T EVEN HAVE A WAY OF KNOWING WHAT WAS ACTUALLY SAID, WHAT I MERELY THOUGHT I HEARD, AND WHAT ARE ORIGINAL THOUGHTS OF MY OWN.

***SATURDAY MORNING***

With my brother in town, we rigged his laptop up in the livin room to watch conference. Then we had no sound. So we used Lady Steed's instead. Which means I'm typing on mine. Which means certain letters may not appear (or may overappear). Readability may be affected.

Elder Robert Hales

Sister Unknown

Elder Somebody

Elder AF Packard

Elder D Todd Christofferson

President Henry B Eyring

***SATURDAY AFTERNOON***

Pr Uchtdorf takes over for Pr Monson on conducting duties

Sustainings

Accidental speaker announcement

Auditory stuff

Quesadillas

Statistics * 2818 stakes * 348 mission * 622 districts * wards/branches 28109 * mem 13508509 converts 265593 * missionaries 52494 * new temples 4 * temples 128 * Daniel Ludlow died last year

Elder MR Ballard

text

Elder QL Cook

Elder Missedit

Elder Hasanaccent

Elder RG Scott

Elder RM Nelson

***PRIESTHOOD***

***SUNDAY MORNING***

President DF Uchtdorf

Elder Neil L Anderson

shape

Elder Steven (Stephen?) E Snow

those

Sister Barbara Thompson

His

have

Elder JR Holland

President Monson

***SUNDAY AFTERNOON***

Elder Dallin H Oaks

Elder Bednar

Elder Stevenson

Elder Jose? Something?

Elder SomethingbutIwasstillworkingonthelastone

Elder L Tom Perry

was

President Thomas S Monson

PREVIOUSLY:

On Thutopia:

last svithe

last svithetacular

On The Weekly Svithe:

last svithe

last svithetacular

General Conference Svithetaculars at Thutopia
176.0 176.5 177.0 177.5 178.0 178.5 179.0

-----

General Conference Svithetaculars at The Weekly Svithe
176.0 176.5 177.0 177.5 178.0 178.5 179.0

2009-03-29T10:01:00.000-07:00

Unprocessed EQ lesson (-cum-svithe)

.

When I teach in Church, I often have a sloppy outline I work from. This is that. You're welcome to glean from it what you may (pun intended).

.

Let's bust out our scriptures.

Someone find and prepare to read the last half of Isaiah 58:3 and someone else find and prepare to read the last, oh, third of D&C 59:13.

Let's keep these scriptures in mind as we move on.

Berkeley Ward's feeding of the sailors in a time of rationing.

The expenditures of the Welfare Program---where does it all come from?

Last year our stake was $190,000 in the hole, FO-wise. Anyone want to guess which direction welfare payments are headed this year? I don't have data, but anyone want to guess? Will the stake give our more or less cash and food this year than last?

None of us have given as dearly as the widow who gave up her last mite. Nor, indeed, are we asked to. Nor, I suspect, was she.

If we were flooded with hungry, lonely sailors, would we be prepared to love and serve them?

What sacrifices are we willing to make?

If fast offerings don't hurt a little, are they still a sacrifice?

We're going to try something a little different today. (I'm not sure this should surprise you. I seem to have a defect in my personality manifested by the need to do things differently.)

I'm handing out a fact sheet now. On the right side is some interesting factual schtuff you're welcome to look at. But on the left side are the Welfare Program's Basic Principles.

The first one, you will notice, explicitly states the scriptural basis for this injunction. Someone look that up for us.

Let's read the principle, then the scripture.

Whaddaya think?

Okay. Now, here's what I want to do. We're going to break into group of two to four people and each will take one of these principles and I want you to find scriptures that illuminate your principle and enlighten our understanding thereof. Try to find two or three. Some will be easier than others. I'll give you a few minutes, then I'll ask each group to read their principle and share what scriptures they found and any minirevelations they had while seeking (and thus finding) within Holy Writ. And don't forget our opening verses and the connection with joy.

If I need more:

HBG:

The natural disposition of man, as I have often remarked, is to be selfish, sordid, and grasping; to think of self, and self alone, and figure for personal advancement. But all the teachings of the Gospel are the exact opposite of this. We find that the requirements that are made of us to pay tithes and fast-day donations … and to contribute of our means to send the Gospel to the nations of the earth—these requirements chase out of the heart of man every selfish and sordid disposition. Instead of being selfish, the faithful Latter-day Saint is filled with the love of the Gospel, filled with a desire to contribute of time and means for the onward advancement of the kingdom of God. The Gospel, if we are faithful to the requirements that are made of us of a financial nature, takes the selfish, sordid man, and makes of him a generous, noble, free-hearted individual. … The Gospel fills us with a desire to leave the things of the world, if need be, to go to the uttermost ends of the earth, without one dollar of reward, for the benefit and salvation of our fellow men.

Let me warn the Latter-day Saints to buy automobiles and to buy the ordinary necessities of life when they have the money to buy them, and not to mortgage their future. … I want to say to you that those who discount their future, who run into debt for the ordinary necessities of life and for the luxuries of life, are laying burdens upon themselves that will come back with compound interest to cause them great trouble and humiliation.

I believe that people are blessed in proportion to their liberality. I am not saying that they always make more dollars, perhaps, than the other man. But so far as an increase in the faith and in the testimony and the knowledge of the divinity of the work in which we are engaged, men that are honest with the Lord in the payment of their tithing grow as men never grow that are not honest. There is no question in my mind. Moreover, I am just foolish enough to believe that the Lord magnifies those who do pay their tithing and that they are more prosperous, on the average, than the men who do not. I believe that to those who are liberal [with their donations] the Lord gives ideas, and they grow in capacity and ability more rapidly than those that are stingy. I have that faith, and I have had it from the time I was a boy.

We must be honest with the Lord. The great trouble is that there are many people who, as they grow and increase in the things of this world, set their hearts upon them and lose the Spirit of the Lord. Therefore, that which is counted by the world as success is failure; because if a man starts out for a prize and he fails to secure it after laboring nearly a lifetime for that prize, certainly his life has been a failure. I know many individuals who, when they made small sums of money, were absolutely honest with the Lord, and paid one-tenth of it. But when they made large sums of money they paid all the way from one percent, instead of ten, up to two or three percent. What is the matter? Why, the appetite for money grows upon a man, increases and strengthens unless he is careful, just as much as the appetite for whiskey. It gets possession of him, and he loves the money instead of loving it only for the good that he can do with it. He does not estimate properly the value of things.

I heard a story of a brother (I have forgotten his name now) who attended a meeting in the early days. President Brigham Young made an appeal for donations to send to the Missouri River to help the Saints gather to Zion. He wanted everybody who could afford it, to give an ox or a cow or any other donation. One good brother jumped up and said, “I will give a cow.” Another brother got up and said, “I will give a cow.” The first brother had two cows and a large family; the other brother had a half-dozen cows and a small family. And, so the spirit [of the devil] came over the first man, [saying,] “Now, look here, you cannot get along with your large family; you cannot possibly get along with one cow. Now, that other man has got a small family and six cows; he could just as well give two or three and still get along all right.” As he started home, he walked four or five blocks, all the time getting weaker and weaker. Finally he thought, “I guess I won’t,” and then he realized the difference in the spirit that was tempting him and the one that had prompted his promise to the President of the Church that he would give a cow. Here was a spirit telling him to fail to fulfill his obligation, to fail to be honest, to fail to live up to his promise. He stopped short and turned around and said, “Mr. Devil, shut up or just as sure as I live, I will walk up to Brother Brigham’s office and give him the other cow.” He was not tempted any more.

here should be in the heart of every man and woman, the cry, “I am going to live. There is nothing given to me but time in which to live, and I am going to endeavor each day of my life to do some labor which will be acceptable in the sight of my Heavenly Father, and if it is possible, do a little better today than I did yesterday.”

MRB:

Second, we need to appraise our own lives. How well are we listening to the Spirit? Are we living according to the eternal truths and doctrines of the restored Church of Jesus Christ? Can we effectively appraise the needs of others by the prompting of the Spirit? It impressed me that Muhammad Yunus must have been prompted by the Spirit when he organized a very unusual bank in Bangladesh, which some have said was the beginning of microfinance. When Yunus, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 for his efforts to help the poor, was asked what his initial strategy would be, he responded:

“I didn’t really have one at the time. I simply began trying to help with my own funds, then went to the banks and asked them to get involved. They refused for several stated reasons, and thus my strategy began to evolve into: ‘Whatever the bankers did, I simply did the opposite.’ The bankers would only lend to the rich. I would only lend to the poor. The bankers would only make large loans. I would only make very small loans. The bankers would only lend to men. I would only lend to women. The bankers would only lend if there was collateral. I would only lend without collateral. The bankers required extensive paperwork. I only made loans that even an illiterate could understand. The bankers required their clients to come to the bank. I took my bank to the village.”5

It should be noted that the banks expected a high rate of loan defaults. Yunus expected and experienced almost none. I understand that Mr. Yunus’s bank has provided more than $4 billion in loans and is entirely self-sustaining. Surely the Spirit of the Lord guided this noble effort.

Ben Franklin: “We stand at the crossroads, each minute, each hour, each day, making choices. We choose the thoughts we allow ourselves to think, the passions we allow ourselves to feel, and the actions we allow ourselves to perform. Each choice is made in the context of whatever value system we’ve selected to govern our lives. In selecting that value system, we are, in a very real way, making the most important choice we will ever make.

Those who believe there is one God who made all things and who governs the world by his Providence will make many choices different from those who do not. Those who hold in reverence that being who gave them life and worship Him through adoration, prayer, and thanksgiving will make many choices different from those who do not. Those who believe that mankind are all of a family and that the most acceptable service of God is doing good to man will make many choices different from those who do not. Those who believe in a future state in which all that is wrong here will be made right will make many choices different from those who do not. Those who subscribe to the morals of Jesus will make many choices different from those who do not.”

Here's the choice facing us, to quote Zechariah---

Zech 8:18 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; The fast of the fourth month . . . shall be to the [Berkeley Ward] joy and gladness, and cheerful feasts; therefore love the truth and peace.

The fast of the fourth month will be upon us when next we meet. What choice will we, on that day, make? And assure you, brethren, that it is, "in a very real way, . . . the most important choice we will ever make."

testimony amen

.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2009-03-22T06:44:00.000-07:00

This Life Is Good (there's a svithe in here somewhere)

.

It hit me the other day as I was walking home from work that these are my good old days. Sure there are imperfections, but my life is about as good as it can be.

A few things triggered this realization:

And that doesn't even get to the good times I spend with the Big O and Large S, throwing balls around every afternoon and having them run to the door happy to see me when I come home.

Seriously. When will life be better than now?

I may not be able to afford to always live in this neighborhood. My job may not always turn out okay. My kids may not always be 90% hugs.

But right now life is good and I'm making deposits in the memory bank. In general, I'm optimistic that next week will be as good and that the years get better, but no matter what happens, life is good now.

this svithe on thmusings

last week's svithe

2009-03-15T20:17:00.000-07:00

The Mad Svither: PR Officer for The Better World

.

Or not. Whatever. The title of this post is just in reference to intristin shtuff at church today.

What I want to talk about today is past svithery. Specifically of the thericonian variety. I don't intend to talk about your old svithes today, even if they are among my personal favorites.

What I'm doing here is discussing some posts I've written that I still remember well. And whether or not that's a good thing. It's all part of my nearly-a-thousand-posts nostalgia fest of late.

Itinerant Svither (The Weekly Svithe - Thmusings) is probably my overall favorite--though I may feel such just because Tolkers said nice things about it. And because it makes me look culturally literate.

The Circumcised of Heart -or- A Svithe on Semen (The Weekly Svithe - Thmusings) on the other hand, is the svithe I thought would be my final downfall. Isn't it funny how impossible people are to predict?

Success & Jealousy (The Weekly Svithe - Thmusings) I am glad I wrote early. I have linked to it many times because it provides a lesson I need frequent reminding of.

The Parable of the Drunk Driver (The Weekly Svithe - Thmusings) was what I imagined most of my svithes would be like when I started doing this. In fact, such posts have been quite rare. I don't know what my point is.

A Deceptive Svithe (The Weekly Svithe - Thmusings) is proof that I will never be the best celebrator of Mothers Day.

Stone Soup Svithe (The Weekly Svithe - Thmusings) is an example of how we can learn from others. I think this nonmiraculous explanation of the feeding of the five thousand is one of the most beautiful and Christian things I've ever heard.

Ecclesiastical Svithery (The Weekly Svithe - Thmusings). I'm only mentioning this one so I don't forget to write my book someday.

That Kind of Movie (The Weekly Svithe - Thmusings) is one of the svithes in which I reflect on the intersect between art and faith etc. (And if I were an academic I would now be using the word liminal in a sentence instead of writing a parenthetical.) These questions matter to me and help explain why I spend to much time at A Motley Vision. Because the exploration is only beginning.

Axe & Svithe (The Weekly Svithe - Thmusings) --- sometimes the subtleties need to stay behind.

Shvythe (The Weekly Svithe - Thmusings) --- because sometimes I am.

The Infinite Svithe (The Weekly Svithe - Thmusings), because it's fun to express religion mathematically and I really don't do it often enough.

Priestcraft in Svithery (The Weekly Svithe - Thmusings) comes last because I probably just broke that rule in a most egregious way.

I'd better keep up this svithing till I actually learn something, don't you think? And maybe, maybe, someday I will.

this svithe on the weekly svithe
this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2009-03-08T17:30:00.000-07:00

videoSvithery

.

Last week I safely and easily shared a Churchmade video. This week, at Church, I compared angels to germs. So I'm thinking that letting someone else do the svithin' for me would be wise.

So I swung by lds.org to see what was on their front page and I found a link to the Mormon Messages YouTube channel.

Well that was easy.

The only question is, what to share?

Obvious answer: the one with aliens:

I was hoping for something more on how angels are like germs, and this totally paid off! Mothers are like aliens! I knew it!

Hmmm. Time for me to get more serious.....

Next week: a look at svithes past. We'll see where that takes us.

In the meantime, see this svithe on thmusings or revisit last week's svithe one more time.

2009-03-01T00:14:00.000-08:00

Svithe: Create

.

I first saw this on Segullah and since then have noticed it several other places. It was apparently given at a women's meeting as it skews female about halfway through, but I still like it and I'm going to treat it universally as it's playing on one of my favorite themes. So in case you've missed it, President Uchtdorf:

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2009-02-22T14:26:00.000-08:00

Priestcraft in Svithery

.

Stake conference this week and we heard from the Sunday School general president.

He reminded teachers (and aren't we all teachers?) that we should be focused on learning, not teaching. In other words, it's not about how cleverly we teach, but about hos well learning occurs.

Teaching in a way that glorifies the teacher rather than serves the learner is a form of priestcraft.

I'm taking this as personal instruction, for church, for here, for m'job, for life.

this week's svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2009-02-15T01:30:00.000-08:00

Svithe #145: In defense of misery, and in which remember that men may not always have joy

.

Happy birthday, Lincoln. Although would you have been happy? Our greatest president was also one of our gloomiest as we may notice when we read some of his verse. The point I want to make regards the worth of depressed people.

Redoubt's excellent post, her svithe manifesto on depression, deserves your attention. I want to steal from her a bit today and talk about the verses she quotes.

"Adam fell that men might be, and men are that they might have joy." 2 Nephi 2:25

We Mormons love this verse. We quote it all the time. But we often overapply it. As Redoubt points out, this verse precedes it:

"For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things." 2 Nephi 2:11

Redoubt: "You can't just say that we're here to have joy. That's only half the equation. I hate when people refuse to acknowledge the other half. Unhappiness is real, it breathes in our cities, it permeates our lives, and ignoring it doesn't make it go away, you can't pretend it's not there just because you don't want it."

She's right. men are not that they might always have joy --- in fact, such a thing is impossible. Without the misery, we could not recognize the joy. This is sound Mormon doctrine.

Redoubt: "Having joy may perhaps be the end goal of it all, but that's not going to happen, it's simply not going to, in this life."

"Because that Adam fell, we are; and by his fall came death; and we are made partakers of misery and woe." Moses 6:48

Welcome to mortality, folks. And keep praying. And stay away from the knives.

You are loved.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2009-02-08T16:09:00.000-08:00

Winston Churchill and the Book of Mormon (a svithe)

.

(by way of our sunday school teacher)

WC: " . . . democracy is the worst form of government except all [the others]."

SV: " . . . the explanation we have been given for the coming forth of the Book of Mormon is the worst possible explanation. Except for all the others."

It's kind of true, isn't it?

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2009-02-01T19:15:00.000-08:00

RRR: (the rrr svithes)

.

Many's the time I start a svithe and do not finish it. Reasons for not finishing are legion. Among them: forgetting what I was going to say, having the passion dissipate before I sit down, being desperate for an idea and abandoning a weak first attempt, (and so on and so on).

So here's a collection of the unfinished. On the off chance that there is still something of worth to be found. And to clean out my ehouse as part of Thmusing's reduce-reuse-recycle project.

svithe

https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=4800938683262569469&postID=3201712364604469794

1/15/09 11:13 PM

Svithe: No more gore

11/16/08 3:43 PM

Svithe: Renewal of Faith

9/27/08 7:48 PM

A brief j/s svithe

Joseph Smith Nutcracker

8/14/08 6:50 AM

christmas svithe? draft

12/16/07 6:57 PM

Svithe me this, Batman

9/23/07 10:14 PM

If this was all dissatisfying, I am sorry. Not all svithey creativity is excellent, what can I say. But still we try, still we try.

view this svithe on thmusings or revisit last week's svithe (newly corrected)

2009-01-25T05:34:00.000-08:00

A svithe for all seasons

.

Spring: Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven....

Summer: Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven....

Autumn: Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven....

Winter: Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven....

this svithe on thmusings - last week's svithe

2009-01-18T13:41:00.000-08:00

Svithing simplicity

.

Surprisingly, I didn't do this when I recently had a svithe that referenced Thoreau; it was actually about quite another thing entirely. It's no secret that I don't have much respect for Thoreau, but his call for simplicity is still as compelling as it ever was.

The speakers in sacrament meeting this week were given the topic of simplicity, framed by a quotation from this popular old Shaker dance number:

Humility, of course, is a hard thing for me (see also: my theme song), so a call such as this can be nothing if not good for my soul.

May we all turn and face the Lord our God.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2009-01-11T17:38:00.000-08:00

A svithe for the lonely

.

(from psalm thirty-one)

Turn your ear to me, come quickly to my rescue; be my rock of refuge, a strong fortress to save me.

I will be glad and rejoice in your love, for you saw my affliction and knew the anguish of my soul.

Be merciful to me, O LORD, for I am in distress; my eyes grow weak with sorrow, my soul and my body with grief.

I am forgotten . . . as though I were dead; I have become like broken pottery.

But I trust in you, O LORD; I say, "You are my God."

Let your face shine on your servant; save me in your unfailing love.

How great is your goodness . . . .

Praise be to the LORD, for he showed his wonderful love to me when I was in a besieged city.

In my alarm I said, "I am cut off from your sight!" Yet you heard my cry for mercy when I called to you for help.

Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the LORD.

this svithe on thmusings - last week's svithe

2009-01-04T19:54:00.000-08:00

Two brief svithey thoughts

.

1.

Angels

2.

In memoriam, JBW

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2008-12-28T00:57:00.000-08:00

Wealthfree svithery

.

The Bible (et al) has a lot to say about the transience of wealth --- thieves, moths, rust --- riches becoming slippery that they can't be held --- that sort of thing.

Now, I don't want to be misinterpreted and have people thinking I'm judging others, but current events demonstrate just how slippery wealth can be. Viz:

To say nothing of the schmucks with ridiculous mortgages. Or the poor folks who've had jobs evaporate.

Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven.

This other stuff has a definite shelf life.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2008-12-21T23:02:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas Svithery

.

It's a shame that the name of Scrooge has become synonymous not with rebirth or the Christmas spirit or with a broad love for all, but with stinginess and greed and heartlessness. Isn't the whole point of the story that he left those things behind? That he became a new man?

He became as good a friend, as good a master, and as good a man as the good old City knew, or any other good old city, town, or borough in the good old world. Some people laughed to see the alteration in him, but he let them laugh, and little heeded them; for he was wise enough to know that nothing ever happened on this globe, for good, at which some people did not have their fill of laughter in the outset; and, knowing that such as these would be blind anyway, he thought it quite as well that they should wrinkle up their eyes in grins as have the malady in less attractive forms. His own heart laughed: and that was quite enough for him.So for Christmas this year, I say let's look through our memories for names that have been unfairly Scrooged and say, like the man whose -mas this is, "I will be merciful . . . and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more."

I think He would like that as a birthday present.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2008-12-14T00:42:00.000-08:00

Svithing my way out of a funk

.

I am in a funk. Not a deep, inescapable funk --- more like a sandy hill that, when a silent moment passes, you find yourself at the bottom of again.

This weekend I watched American Me. A student brought it for me to watch, saying I had to because it's just so great. I expected some "fun" violence^* but all I really saw there were some brutally simple shankings.

I'm not going to argue that American Me is not a good movie. It was. But it is depressing me to no end. And it looks like the Mexican Mafia wasn't too pleased with it either, which suggests to me that they saw it more in the way I did. (Allegedly, La eMe killed two of the film's consultants. But I haven't found a decent source for that, just a lot of repetition.)

There's nothing glorious or beautiful about this film. And there's nothing here that feels like exaggeration or lies. The horror of this film lies is how damn real it feels.

American Me spends most of its time in Fulsom Prison with the leader on the Inside of the Mexican Mafia. On the assumption that if you haven't seen the film you aren't going to, let me talk about the final sequence:

A family sadly watches the next generation getting sucked in to gang life, but as they watch the kid getting tattooed on the hand by his friends, they look at their own hands and see the identical tattoo.

A brother, on instructions from gang leadership, kills his beloved younger brother.

The films protagonist gets stabbed more times than Julius Caesar, by his 'friends.'

The newly tatted boy does some inhalants in the front seat of the car, then leans out the window and starts shooting into the random pedestrians on the street.

More and more.

It just gets uglier the more I remember it.

The main character gets out of prison and the first time he's with a woman he flips her over and anally rapes her because that's the only way he knows.

What kind of humanity is this?

I don't agree with people who say our world is as wicked as it ever was or ever will be. Look around --- the world is filled with charity and kindness. We're not sleeping on our swords.

But there are segments of our population that are sleeping on their swords, their shivs. There is evil in the world and it sucks in younger brothers and makes them stab someone in the throat while their watching Woody Woodpecker.

Lady Steed and I are reading through the closing chapters of the Book of Mormon. The glorious visit of Christ is past and basically all that's left is the examples of humanity descending into American Me-like depravity. These chapters don't just give us the horror of our capacity for evil, however; they also share with us the Lord's desire to bless us when we return to him. All is never lost with Jesus.

I pray that this powerful depiction of evil will serve to return me to that Jesus who stands with open arms to receive me. I pray that each of us will recognize his willingness to accept us and gather us in. It's not too late.

It's not too late.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2008-12-07T21:35:00.000-08:00

Svithe equals.....

.

Someone asked me recently how I, as a Christian, can accept extrabiblical scripture. I have many answers to this question, but here's one in Nephi's words:

And we talk of Christ,

As a Christian, I like that attitude and I want to know more.

Here's a fascinating stat: the Book of Mormon (according to the formula above) mentions Christ more frequently than even the New Testament. Hard to believe, isn't it? I mean---the whole New Testament is about Jesus Christ.

But then, so is the Book of Mormon. That's its whole job, to convince us that Jesus is the Christ, the Eternal God.

(Incidentally, I have to believe that were this only the Gospels v. the Book of Mormon, the Gospels would win. But I don't have numbers for that.)

Anyway, that's why the Book of Mormon --- and I why I think any Christian would do well to check it out, even if it seems unbelievable. I, a Mormon, enjoy the occasional Lutheran prayer book or Presbyterian hymnal. I grant you I've never read one cover to cover (usually because I've mostly perused them while visiting their services; I love visiting other religions' services), but I do find beauty and worth in them.

Jesus would never tell us to shun others who strive to follow him --- Didn't he say that "he that is not against us is for us"? --- even if their path is called Baptist or Catholic or something other than what we call our own. And I think the Book of Mormon offers most of his sweet truths to us.

read the book of mormon online
get a free copy of your own
(note: both links have the bible as well)

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2008-11-30T16:30:00.000-08:00

Svithing Pure Religion

.

The first paragraph in a recent press release from the Church:

For members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and many others, the biblical apostle James’ definition of pure religion is more than a platitude. It is an extremely practical way to approach personal, family and community challenges. James’ understanding of this principle is expressed in this way: “Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.”Thanksgiving is a good time to think about Pure Religion. Me, I spend a lot of time utterly failing in this camp. I'm not the world's best sharer. Within my family, sure, but outside? I have a lot of growing to do. Don't expect me to sell all my crap and give the proceeds to the poor anytime soon. I've had too many bad experiences with beggars to trust them anymore and if I gave a buck to every kid who asked, I'ld soon be in the hole. And debt isn't precisely what deity has in mind for me, I don't imagine.

In other words, the best 'charity' is committed by the charitable. Christlike acts by the Christlike.

Many Latter-day Saints feel this desire to reach out to the downtrodden — James’ widows and fatherless — and find that the two elements of his pure religion exist in a symbiotic relationship. Learning Christ’s teachings and reading about the way He conducted Himself motivates individuals to look for ways to engage with others the way He did. And serving those in need functions as a refining process — humbling the server, bringing her or him closer to Christ and His example.It's cyclical. Act more charitable to be more charitable. Not hypocrisy, practice. Thy present becomes thy future. My present'll become my future.

Something like that.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2008-11-23T13:00:00.000-08:00

Svithanksgiving

.

Of all the things I am grateful more, one is topmost on my mind: Lady Steed.

The most immediate impetus for this decision is Mr Fob's beautiful post on the occasion of his anniversary. The second, in good Puritan fashion, is guilt.

Two Friday's ago it was our 100th Lunaversary and I had been making plans. (And what better event to make plans for? Lady Steed would never see it coming --- it would be a grand romantic gesture. Just arrange a babysitter and --- )

Yeah. Then I completely forgot. In my favor, that was one of the busiest weekends of our life, but how can one forget the number 100 which, in our base-10 counting system, is among the most significant numbers we have? I screamed in agony as I sat reading, suddenly realizing that I had forgotten. I ranted and raved, cursing myself.

Why?

Because Lady Steed deserves a good 100th Lunaversary. She deserves a lot of things I'm less than perfect at delivering.

So for my svithe this week, although I've failed my wife, neither she nor God have failed me and I thank them.

And again,

My love, it's a wonderful journey.

this week's svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2008-11-16T16:38:00.000-08:00

Svithing a Grudging Agreement with Thoreau

.

I don't like Thoreau. I think he's a moron and a hypocrite.

That said, I still like the call for simplicity is a good one.

So does Elder Perry. Last Conference, he gave a bit of Thoreauvian sprachin; some of it was in that charming but sort of silly forced metaphor we see a lot in Conference and the Ensign, but I still think the call for simplicity is, if anything, more timely for ever. And so I will try and swallow my irritation with Thoreau and quote this one line from Elder Perry's talk: "Just before Thoreau died, he was asked if he had made peace with God. He replied, 'I was not aware we had ever quarreled.'"

(Yeah, whatever, Thoreau. Anyway,) that sounds like a good goal for any of us. And simplicity is a dandy path.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2008-11-09T20:16:00.000-08:00

High-fantasy svithe

.

Something peculiar happened during my nap this afternoon: I dreamed in high fantasy. I've never done this before, best I can recall A sorceress, the priestess of a pagan cult, served as the most frightening villain. The heroes had infiltrated a city glowing like embers at midnights to ... who knows what. But it was a risky business they were up to. Once in the city, its glowiness dissipated and it looked quite normal. One of the heroes was peeved because his contractor culture could have easily built this city for them at half the price.

I have no idea what the point of this dream was, or even if it had one while I was dreaming it. Is the average dream only given plot and structure as we remember it? Discuss.

But for all its pointlessness, it had some marvelous images and set pieces. Like a really crappy movie with awesome effects.

But nothing in this dream, best I can recall, was borrowed from real art or real life. It was all new, cut from whole cloth. And I did it without even trying. Which magic all people do all the time.

The creative potential of the Children of God is staggering.

Let's not waste our gifts.

The city is burning, the sorceress is stalking, the time is far spent.

And tomorrow we die.

Carpe diem is a religious principle.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2008-11-02T08:03:00.000-08:00

another late svithe

.

(this time because our internet was on the blink)

I know that [God] loveth his children; nevertheless, I do not know the meaning of all things.

Nephi

last week's svithe

2008-10-26T08:03:00.000-07:00

A feminist svithe (requesting your comments)

.

Turning on the computer yesterday merely to write my svithe seemed to be missing the point of svithing entirely, so I help off till today to write this one up.

Part of the reason the computer never went on is related to why it was barely on on Saturday.

We drove to Santa Rosa on a separate but equal path with Fobbie and Foxy and their children to rendezvous with Queen Zippergut and her daughter, visiting from England. Some of the items of discussion during that visit led to talking between me and Lady Steed and we didn't get to sleep till four the next morning. This was wonderful and not to be regretted at all.

One thing that we ended up talking about was this post by Bored in Vernal which I had been meaning to talk with Lady Steed about for a while. In brief, she agreed that your average day at church is very male-centric what with a mostly male hierarchy and so forth. I mean---the Book of Mormon in 99.9% female free. How can church meetings not lean heavily on the male paint-of-view?

This is something I've been thinking about at school a lot lately, as, let's face it, your average English-class curricula is heavily male and heavily white.

The Mormon doctrine of sexual equality seems pretty clear to me, but in practice? I don't know.

I would like to hear -- especially from the ladies -- you all's take on these topics: the maleness of church, Mormon sexual equality, et cetera.

Your thoughts?

Note: This svithe posted a week late.

last week's svithe

2008-10-19T05:57:00.000-07:00

Svithing the difference between direct and indirect objects

.

Here's something.

I don't know about you, but I associate Hymn #19, "We Thank Thee, O God, for a Prophet," with the prophet. What with it having become traditional to "spontaneously" stand and sing it when one walks in the room. We stand and sing "We thank thee, O God, for a prophet / To guide us in these latter days."

But since I associate singing this song at prophets, lines like this confuse me:

These aren't the sort of things one sings to a human being.

The fact is, the vast majority of this song is only barely connected to prophets. It's a song of praise to God. Thanks, God, for that prophet and all the other cool stuff you give us. That sort of thing. It's not a song to the prophet or praising the prophet. It's thanks for the prophet.

And all the other cool stuff we've been given.

Like the gospel.

And it's life-giving light.

We thank thee, o God, for a prophet.

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithe

2008-10-12T05:54:00.000-07:00

The Big O's part in today's Primary program (a svithe)

this svithe on thmusings
last week's svithetacular

The Weekly Svithe

Compelled to be humble (a svithe)

Embodied svithe

Heart, might, mind and soul (a midweek makeup svithe)

Svithey toves outgrabe

the Happy-Heavenly-Mother's-Day svithe

A special svithe for Berkeley Warders

Svithe: Thou shalt not write by way of commandment, but by wisdom

Moses und Aron (a svithe posted to late to attract much response)

Svithetacular!

A note on next week's svithetacular

Sexy Svithe

At home with three sick kids (a svithe)

Abraham and Isaac (postview svithe)

Abraham and Isaac Preview (svithe)

Svithing the Quadrennial

Happy Valentine's Day, Abraham! Have some virtue! (a svithe)

Super Bowl Svithe (a metaphor)

Enoch's eyes (a svithe)

Hypocritical svithe

Svithe: four levels of interpretation

Svithe: (the grandeur of god)

Svithing Moses 1

Svithe: A review of the new Ensign

Svithe: Notes for today's Sunday School lesson, "The Family is Ordained of God"(ergo, this is a little sloppy)

Svithe: "nourished by the good word of God"

Svithe on memory

Svithe: (psalm98)

Svithing borrowed words (Pallas Athena)

Svithe: In dialogue with Richard G. Scott

S is for Svithe

The Metaphors of Dr. Caligari (a halloweeny svithe)

Svithe: The Me-First Fallacy (and its amazingly simple solution)

Svithe: Stand on Your Head

#svithe #ldsconf

Svithetacular 179.5

Storm Svithe

No svithe today on account of debilitating illness and intense pain.

From today's baptism (svithe)

I can see! (a svithish metaphor)

I share with Snoopy my opinion on intellectual and spiritual humility (a svithe)

Svithe: my testimony of human fallibility

The Ditching-Church Svithe

SvitheCon! (the whole world's invited)

svithe: Work_Service_Priesthood_Love (an experiment)

The Wentworth Svithe

The Two Lenses of Priesthood and Charity

Special Guest Svither David O. McKay on the confluence of testimony and duty

I had never as yet made the attempt to svithe vocally

Svithing fathers, starting with myawesomeself

Svithe: my sacrament meeting pinch hit

Svithe: Short and Sweet

Funny to Serious: five increasingly svithey thoughts

Svithe: The Parable of the Bay Bridge

The rumormongering svithe

Sickly Svithing on Mother's Day

Svithe: Saving spiders

Swine svithe

Temptation and Sin: The Parable of the SweeTarts (a svithe)

Easte Svithe 2009

Svithetacular 179

Unprocessed EQ lesson (-cum-svithe)

The Mad Svither: PR Officer for The Better World

videoSvithery

Svithe: Create

Priestcraft in Svithery

Svithe #145: In defense of misery, and in which remember that men may not always have joy

Winston Churchill and the Book of Mormon (a svithe)

RRR: (the rrr svithes)

svithe

Svithe: No more gore

Svithe: Renewal of Faith

A brief j/s svithe

christmas svithe? draft

Svithe me this, Batman

A svithe for all seasons

Svithing simplicity

A svithe for the lonely

Two brief svithey thoughts

Wealthfree svithery

Compelled to be humble
(a svithe)

Svithe: Notes for today's Sunday School lesson, "The Family is Ordained of God"

(ergo, this is a little sloppy)

Svithe: (psalm⁹⁸)

Temptation and Sin: The Parable of the SweeTarts
(a svithe)

Svithetacular ¹⁷⁹