In Zenos’s allegory of the olive tree,
the Lord of the vineyard notices the main tree is beginning to die, and he
first takes contingency measures to preserve the strain by taking tender
branches and grafting them elsewhere, but he also takes steps to try to save
the main root that is decaying.
Here we see a lovely analysis of how converts reinvigorate the church.
17 And
it came to pass that the Lord of the vineyard looked
and beheld the tree in the which the
wild olive branches had been grafted;
and it had sprung forth and begun to
bear fruit.
And he beheld that it was good;
and the fruit thereof was like unto the
natural fruit.
Behold, the branches of the wild tree
have taken hold of the moisture of the root thereof, that the root thereof hath
brought forth much strength;
and because of the much strength of the
root thereof
the wild branches have brought forth
tame fruit.
Now, if we had not grafted in these
branches,
the tree thereof would have perished.
And now, behold, I shall lay up much
fruit,
which the tree thereof hath brought
forth;
and the fruit thereof I shall lay up
against the season, unto mine own self.
(Jacob 5:17-18)
So here’s what the process
looks like in real life. New
converts with their burning enthusiasm for the gospel express their eagerness
to learn. They see how strong the
long-time members really are, and they see how much they really know, and they
ask questions. They frequently say
how they wish they could have grown up in the church knowing what long-time
members know. This is like the
branches of the wild tree taking hold of the moisture of the root. (Though the wild branches represent
Gentiles in old times converting to the gospel with the house of Israel, it can
also represent the process with converts today.)
Anyway, when the converts
take hold of the strength of the members, this awakes long-time members to see
anew their blessings, remember how privileged their position is, and awakens an
interest in helping and teaching the convert what the life of a Saint is. This is like the root bringing forth
its strength. In doing so, the
long-time members are reinvigorated, and all bring forth good fruit of good
works.
What this shows us is that
if we are feeling weak in the gospel, we need
someone to teach who will really appreciate what we have to share, who will
remind us by their enthusiasm and faith just what blessings we have.
In the early days of the
church, when there was a growing apostasy in Kirtland, Ohio, Joseph Smith
received revelation to send missionaries to England. Those missionaries brought new converts back to the States,
and the converts’ enthusiasm reinvigorated the church. It may have seemed like an odd thing to
do, but it was just what the church needed, and it was perfectly in line with
the principles in the allegory of Zenos.
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