Elder Neal A. Maxwell on Christmas

For some neat perspective on Christmas, here are some great quotes from the Neal A. Maxwell Quote Book:

He before whom a few gifts were laid in that lowly manger has spread so many gifts before us, thereby providing an unending Christmas. In fact, from Him for whom there was no room at the inn there comes to the faithful so many blessings “that there shall not be room enough to receive [them]”! (Malachi 3:10) (The Christmas Scene, p5, as quoted on p45)

God’s gifts, unlike seasonal gifts, are eternal and unperishable, constituting a continuing Christmas which is never over! These infinite gifts are made possible by the “infinite atonement.” (The Christmas Scene, p4, as quoted on p44)

The larger Christmas story is clearly not over. It is not solely about some other time, some other place, and some other people. It is still unfolding, and we are in it!” (The Christmas Scene, p11, as quoted on 45)

Yes, we still wish Christmas were more deeply felt and lasted longer, but the visibly increased goodwill nevertheless reminds us, if only briefly, of what could be everlastingly. For a few days, the first and second commandments are more pondered and observed. (The Christmas Scene, p2, as quoted on p44)

I love that perspective that God's gifts continue like an unending Christmas and that the goodwill and kindness we see in the season shows us a brief picture of heaven.

I recommend reading these to your family at the end of Christmas day.

A lesson from the worshipping beasts and elders around the throne in Revelation 4

Revelation 4 is kind of an odd chapter because it doesn’t seem to have anything happen in it except the worship of God by twenty four elders and four beasts.

So I started to ask myself what I could learn from it. 

Then I realized that since all that worship was the most notable thing in the chapter, that was probably where the lesson is. 

8 And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.

9 And when those beasts give glory and honour and thanks to him that sat on the throne, who liveth for ever and ever,

10 The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying,

11 Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created. (Revelation 4:8-11)

What does this tell us about what heaven is like?  It tells us that the inhabitants closest to God are absolutely enthralled with Heavenly Father’s holiness. Their gratitude and worship is insuppressible, and each time someone starts into praising the Lord, the others can’t help but go into fresh paroxysms of worship themselves.

I have thought these endless rounds of worship excessive, but this time when I was reading it the thought came to me that perhaps it is me who is out of step and that I need to learn much greater humility and gratitude than I now have or have ever had before.

And there’s another factor to consider: if we were to come into a court of a mortal ruler and it was full of people praising the mortal king endlessly, we would think the place was full of yes-men and flatterers. We would have doubts as to whether he fully deserved all that praise.

But the elders in this chapter here say to God “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power.”  Heavenly Father really deserves all that praise and credit anyone gives Him here and forever because He lives up to it.  (When you think about it, just the way He can get His work done with imperfect people such as us, all while allowing us all our agency, is a miracle.)

If we are ever to achieve that heavenly worship and gratitude, I think we’re going to have to become much better at noticing and remembering what the Lord does for us. 

It is so much easier to glorify God when the things He has done for us are recent and when our memories stay fresh.  Now, I suppose the inhabitants of heaven have improved memories, having a perfect knowledge of their blessed and happy state, but we mortals need memory aids, so I suppose that the personal journal is an important tool for achieving this heavenly state of worship and gratitude.

Let’s see, wasn’t it Elder Eyring who counseled us several years ago to try to write daily in a journal what the Lord has done for us today?

Mention of the Highest Celestial Degree in Deuteronomy (and other places)

Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens is the Lord’s thy God,

the earth also, with all that therein is.

(Deuteronomy 10:14)

I ran across this verse today in my scripture reading.  I saw that phrase “heaven of heavens” and I realized it was essentially a mention of the highest degree of the celestial kingdom.  In Deuteronomy!

Compare it with a term we are more familiar with—“holy of holies”—which refers to the most holy place in the temple.  It is the most holy of all the holy places.  So the heaven of heavens is the most heavenly place of all the heavens—the celestial kingdom at its highest degree.

Clearly we don’t give Moses enough credit. Yes, the Israelites may have rejected the higher law, but Moses didn’t, and with the Melchizedek priesthood, which holds the keys of the mysteries, he was not prevented from gaining greater knowledge of the eternities.

Is this the only place “heaven of heavens” occurs in the scriptures?  No.  It is mentioned in four other places in the Old Testament.

But will God indeed dwell on the earth? behold, the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less this house that I have builded? (1 Kings 8:27)

This is Solomon speaking during the dedication of the temple that he built. 

But who is able to build him an house, seeing the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain him? who am I then, that I should build him an house, save only to burn sacrifice before him? (2 Chronicles 2:6)

This is Chronicles’ version of many of the events that occurred in Kings, but we get something extra here where Solomon speaks as he is deciding to build the temple.  It sounds like Solomon felt very overwhelmed by the task of making something fine enough to be a worthy house of God.

But will God in very deed dwell with men on the earth? behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less this house which I have built! (2 Chronicles 6:18)

This is part of Chronicles’ version of the dedicatory prayer for Solomon’s temple.

(I have to point out that this idea that heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain God is a hyperbole and not literal.  We know this because of Joseph Smith’s first vision in which he saw Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ were two separate and distinct corporeal beings.  Also, the idea that heaven can’t contain God is logically paradoxical.  If we consider heaven as the environment around God and then compare it to a bag around a cat, it would be like saying no bag is big enough to hold the cat.  But then the bag has to expand.  But the cat is too big.  So the bag must expand.  Leave it to Solomon the wise to come up with religious paradoxes, huh?  Again the whole purpose of this hyperbole was to express his sense of overwhelm about building a temple fit for God.)

Sorry for the digression there..

The last mention of heaven of heavens is in Nehemiah.

Thou, even thou, art Lord alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and thou preservest them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee. (Nehemiah 9:6)

The time period is after the Jews have returned to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem.  This is part of a prayer given by Levites when the Jews gathered to fast and confess their sins. 

After this, I thought I’d look to see if there was anywhere that used the term “highest heaven,” and it is only used in the section heading of D&C 131, where celestial marriage is revealed as essential to obtaining the highest degree of the celestial kingdom.    In 2 Corinthians 12, Paul tells of being caught up into the “third heaven” to see and hear unspeakable things.

It is nice to know these things are touched on in the Bible, albeit very lightly. 

Temple Veil & Garment Symbolism

19 Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus,  
20 By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; (Hebrews 10:19-20)

Here Paul speaks of how Christ made it possible for us to enter into heaven, which is symbolized by entering into the holiest (holy of holies) through the veil of the temple.  Paul also shows that the veil becomes symbolic of the flesh of Christ that was torn for us.

Hugh Nibley in his article “Worthy of Another Look: Classics from the Past: The EarlyChristian Prayer Circle”  talks about the cosmic veil that is appropriately adorned with marks and emblems, and in his article “Sacred Vestments” he talks about these same marks present on sacred garments of very early Christians.  There is a certain symbolism to consider through these corresponding marks. 

It makes the sacred garments a sort of temple veil, which the initiate carries about with him as a second skin, so that in essence one lives perpetually at the temple veil, standing in a holy place anywhere one is, ready to speak (pray) to the Lord with full confidence of being heard and answered.     

And too, since the veil symbolizes Christ’s flesh (or skin), we put on Christ and we try to make our lives match His, while He covers us with His atonement.

One is also reminded with this second skin that passing through it will happen at death.

Living so near the veil can remind us how close we are to crossing over into the next world, which should help us appreciate the importance of never procrastinating our repentance.

Comparing the First Two Visions of Lehi

5 Wherefore it came to pass that my father, Lehi, as he went forth prayed unto the Lord, yea, even with all his heart, in behalf of his people.

 6 And it came to pass as he prayed unto the Lord, there came a pillar of fire and dwelt upon a rock before him; and he saw and heard much; and because of the things which he saw and heard he did quake and tremble exceedingly.

 7 And it came to pass that he returned to his own house at Jerusalem; and he cast himself upon his bed, being overcome with the Spirit and the things which he had seen.

 8 And being thus overcome with the Spirit, he was carried away in a vision, even that he saw the heavens open, and he thought he saw God sitting upon his throne, surrounded with numberless concourses of angels in the attitude of singing and praising their God.

 9 And it came to pass that he saw One descending out of the midst of heaven, and he beheld that his luster was above that of the sun at noon-day.

 10 And he also saw twelve others following him, and their brightness did exceed that of the stars in the firmament.

 11 And they came down and went forth upon the face of the earth; and the first came and stood before my father, and gave unto him a book, and bade him that he should read.

 12 And it came to pass that as he read, he was filled with the Spirit of the Lord.

 13 And he read, saying: Wo, wo, unto Jerusalem, for I have seen thine abominations! Yea, and many things did my father read concerning Jerusalem—that it should be destroyed, and the inhabitants thereof; many should perish by the sword, and many should be carried away captive into Babylon.

 14 And it came to pass that when my father had read and seen many great and marvelous things, he did exclaim many things unto the Lord; such as: Great and marvelous are thy works, O Lord God Almighty! Thy throne is high in the heavens, and thy power, and goodness, and mercy are over all the inhabitants of the earth; and, because thou art merciful, thou wilt not suffer those who come unto thee that they shall perish!

 15 And after this manner was the language of my father in the praising of his God; for his soul did rejoice, and his whole heart was filled, because of the things which he had seen, yea, which the Lord had shown unto him.  (1 Nephi 1:5-15)

I was reading about the first two visions of Lehi in 1 Nephi 1, and it struck me that there is something odd about the first one in comparison with the second one.

First, we are told about the pillar of fire that dwelt on the rock before him (v6), but we are given no sense of any kind of message.  We are told Lehi saw much and heard much, but nothing is actually communicated to us.  If there had been, Nephi would probably have given at least a synopsis of it, as he does with the second vision in verses 8-13.

The second thing that strikes me as I read about these two visions is that there were two.  It seems like Lehi can’t get away from them.  (Sorry if that sounds irreverent..)  Why two?  And then why is one a pillar of fire and undefined things and then the other is a vision of heaven, God, numberless concourses of angels, one descending out of heaven, twelve very bright others following, and a book full of prophesies to read?  They are very different in character.

And another thing—Lehi’s reaction is different between the two.  During the first vision, Lehi quakes and trembles exceedingly (v6).  It scares Lehi to death and we don’t even know why.  The second one makes Lehi rejoice exceedingly, even as he is reading in the heavenly book that Jerusalem and all the inhabitants thereof will be destroyed.

So is there an explanation for this?  I think there is, and it may be an uncomfortable one.  I suspect that the first “vision” was a natural phenomenon.  (I hope you will hear me out on this..)  Jerusalem is a very geologically active site, known to have earthquakes. (See this Seismic Hazard Map of the Middle East) There is such a thing as Earthquake Lights, “unusual luminous aerial phenomenon that reportedly appears in the sky at or near areas of tectonic stress, seismic activity, or volcanic eruptions.”  (Wikipedia, “earthquake light”)  Lehi may have seen something called a fire column.  Fire columns and other luminous displays were seen around the occurrance of an earthquake in Italy in April 2009 and have been observed elsewhere. 

“Fire columns were observed during or around the time of the main shock in Bagno, Bazzano and Pile. Their colours ranged from orange to red, and in one case, the vertical column was associated with electrical discharges. Giuseppina Giuliani, from Vallesindola of Bagno, during the main shock, saw several high flames coming out of the ground near Bazzano. They were orange and came higher than Gran Sasso and completely blocked its view. A similar light was seen crossing the Aterno valley, from an opposite side, at the time of the November 1461 earthquake” (Galli as paraphrased by Fidani).

Other luminous phenomena observed incident to earthquakes may include flashes, electrical discharges, thin strips of light, fire balls, fire beams, luminous funnels, flames, small flames, sparks, luminous vapors, luminous clouds, diffused lights, and streamers.  How these effects are produced is not well-understood yet.  (There tend to be government conspiracy theories and UFO labels associated with this kind of thing on the internet...)

So, I hypothesize that as Lehi was praying for his people, some sort of geologically-triggered light effect began, but that it acted in an erratic way, which Lehi may have perceived as threatening and caused him to quake and tremble.  It would seem doubly alarming as it seemed connected to his act of prayer.  Its strange behavior would suggest spiritual terrors and meanings to him, even as he tried to understand it.  It might seem to him as if a messenger from God had come yet refused to talk and acted crazy and dangerous.

Would God want Lehi to be left with this kind of impression of diety?  I don’t think so.  God would want Lehi to see and know the difference in experience between some natural though awe-inspiring light display and a real vision from God.  Hence the second vision, a real apocalyptic vision with God on his throne, the divine counsel, angelic beings coming down and acting in an orderly way, and giving him a book, delivering an extended prophetic message he could understand about the future of his people whom he had been praying about.  The second vision is a very different kind from the first, much as the sun is different from a single lit light bulb.  The second vision seems to have been a great relief to Lehi, as he exclaims, “..and because thou art merciful, thou wilt not suffer those who come unto thee that they shall perish.”  I suspect Lehi really thought he was going to die because of the first vision he had.  He thought he was condemned.

I  bet the thing that makes us think the pillar of fire of the first vison is divine is the language of Joseph Smith’s first vision account about a “pillar of light exactly over my head.”  We are so used to the image of the Father and Son appearing in Joseph's pillar of light that we simply assume that Lehi’s “pillar of fire” had a person in it.   Yet if there was a person in it, Lehi would have mentioned it and Nephi would mention it in the record.  He certainly told us about all the people in the second vision, so he would have mentioned people in the first vision too, if they were present.

Now, reading the story this way can shake us up a little bit.  We may prefer to think of it as two divine visions instead of just one that was prefaced by a natural phenomenon.  However you choose to think of the first vision, much more can be learned from the second one than from the first.  The second is the more precious of the two and is absolutely divine.

When I consider what I learn from this, I learn that man is apt to mistake manifestations (especially glowing things) for the divine.  Even if no intelligence is gained, man will construct a message to fill the blank.  Yet God cares for His children and will send a way to correct their mistaken notions and answer their prayers.  Note that it is the second vision that answers Lehi’s original prayer on behalf of his people.

Comparing these two visions of Lehi’s also reminds me how important the principle of edification is.  Spiritual manifestations must edify for them to be from God.   Again, gaining this perspective about Lehi’s view of a pillar of fire helps me to appreciate his apocalyptic vision that much more and see it as a demonstration of the great mercy of God. 

Notes

C. Fidani, “The earthquake lights (EQL) of the 6 April 2009 Aquila earthquake,

in Central Italy,”  p5, full article available for download at http://www.nat-hazards-earth-syst-sci.net/10/967/2010/nhess-10-967-2010.html) 

Also see About.com’s article on Earthquake lights,    http://geology.about.com/od/earthquakes/a/EQlights.htm

The place where angels live

6 The angels do not reside on a planet like this earth;

7 But they reside in the presence of God, on a globe like a sea of glass and fire, where all things for their glory are manifest, past, present, and future, and are continually before the Lord.  (D&C 130: 6-7)

It sounds like this is a place where the very atmosphere is full of good memories, pleasant doings of goodness, and happy anticipations of future delights of righteousness.  With all things manifest, it is a place of both revelation and memory, a place of faith pointed at the future and gratitude for the past, as well as drinking in the bliss of the present.

 8 The place where God resides is a great Urim and Thummim.

 9 This earth, in its sanctified and immortal state, will be made like unto crystal and will be a Urim and Thummim to the inhabitants who dwell thereon, whereby all things pertaining to an inferior kingdom, or all kingdoms of a lower order, will be manifest to those who dwell on it; and this earth will be Christ’s. (D&C 130:8-9)

I suppose we can learn from this that the lessons of lower kingdoms will be perfectly obvious to those who live on this earth in that day.  The very ground will testify.  To use a very weak comparison, I suppose it is something like a senior in high school looking at the schoolwork of those in the 6^th and saying, “How easy that work is!”

10 Then the white stone mentioned in Revelation 2:17, will become a Urim and Thummim to each individual who receives one, whereby things pertaining to a higher order of kingdoms will be made known;

 11 And a white stone is given to each of those who come into the celestial kingdom, whereon is a new name written, which no man knoweth save he that receiveth it. The new name is the key word. (D&C 130:10-11)

I really like the prospect of having this white stone spoken of, but as I was reading, I wondered just how this can help us today. 

I think that first, it can give us a hope of good things to come.  Anticipation of good things can buoy us up.  I also realized that the white stone is really all about personal revelation, so this scripture shows us that personal revelation is still an important part of life on a sanctified earth.  New names suggest receiving new identities, so it seems that the principle being taught her is personal revelation is part of what changes us into new people, and our exaltation will continue to be perfected.  Honing the ability to receive and act on personal revelation will be important to prepare for the next life.

What crystal chandeliers in the temple remind me of

We are reminded every so often that various elements in the temple are symbolic and thus are meant to teach us things.  The promenance of crystal chandeliers in all of our temples has always caused me to wonder what principles could be represented thereby.   So here’s my list of different ideas.  See what you think and feel free to add to the list in the comments.

The chandelier reminds me of the Holy Ghost that broods over everything and shares light with us.

Gila Valley temple baptistery

 The way the light is shaped like a bowl makes me think of it as if heaven is about to pour out a blessing of light on the person being baptized and the person for whom the baptism is being vicariously done. 

Some chandeliers in the temple remind me of the scripture in the D&C 130 about how the earth in its sanctified state will become like crystal. 

Salt Lake City temple in the garden room

This earth, in its sanctified and immortal state, will be made like unto crystal and will be a Urim and Thummim to the inhabitants who dwell thereon, whereby all things pertaining to an inferior kingdom, or all kingdoms of a lower order, will be manifest to those who dwell on it; and this earth will be Christ’s. (D&C 130:9)

Provo temple celestial room

 I like to look at the crystals in the chandelier and imagine that each one represents a sanctified earth and the whole chandelier is like all the sanctified earths in the galaxy brought back to the place were God dwells.

Each crystal also makes me think of an angel, and the whole chandelier puts me in mind of a crowd of angels coming to the earth with Christ at His Second Coming and standing about the throne of God singing praises.

Atlanta, Georgia temple celestial room

 It can also remind me of the city of Enoch that will come down from heaven to join Zion on the earth.

 

When there are three different levels to the chandelier, it reminds me that the celestial kingdom has three degrees in it and I am striving for the highest degree.

Idaho Falls temple celestial room

 

The chandelier as it hangs in the air reminds me of the First Vision of Joseph Smith when Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ appeared and stood above him in the air in a pillar of light.  (Of course, the glory of a crystal chandelier must be dim compared to the glory of diety, but nevertheless its beauty still reminds me.)

Oquirrh Mountain temple celestial room chandelier

 

I really love how the St. Louis temple’s celestial room chandelier harmonizes with the architectural dome to teach about ascension to heaven. 

St. Louis, Missouri temple celestial room

 

The shape of the chandelier draws the eye upward into the domed ceiling, symbolizing our hope of ascending into heaven to meet Christ at His coming.  

Notice the way the below chandelier in the Oquirrh Mountain temple sealing room starts small on the bottom and gets larger toward the top. 

Oquirrh Mountain temple sealing room

This reminds me of the promise of eternal increase, and posterity that we are given when we are sealed for time and eternity. We will increase as we are exalted.

Do you have anything to share that you are reminded of when you study the temple’s chandeliers? 

Images Sources

Image: Gila Valley temple baptistery, http://www.ldschurchnews.com/articles/59257/Governor-attends-The-Gila-Valley-Arizona-Temple-open-house.html

Image: Salt Lake temple garden room,

http://thetrumpetstone.blogspot.com/2011/02/salt-lake-temple-symbolic-progression.html

Image: Provo temple celestial room chandler, http://www.lightplanet.com/mormons/temples/celestial_room.html

Image:  Atlanta Georgia temple celestial room.  http://www.dwstratton.com/tag/chandelier/

(angels, second coming, zion to come down)

Image: Idaho Falls temple celestial room chandelier, http://thetrumpetstone.blogspot.com/2011/03/lds-temple-murals-pt-4-idaho-falls-and.html

Image: Oquirrh Mountaint temple celestial room chandelier, http://thetrumpetstone.blogspot.com/2011/07/lds-temple-symbols-stars-oquirrh.html

Image: St. Louis Missouri temple celestial room, http://www.lightplanet.com/mormons/temples/celestial_room.html

 Image: Oquirrh Mountain temple, sealing room, http://www.mormontemples.com/770/inside-the-mormon-temple

Lessons from the parable of Lazarus and the rich man

The parable of Lazarus and the rich man is one that can be really uncomfortable, and it is easy to want to forget it as quickly as possible or else ignore it completely, but there are important things to learn from it.

19 ¶There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day:

 20 And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores,

 21 And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. (Luke 16:19-21)

Lazarus is in such abject poverty that he is acting like a dog, waiting for leftovers.  That image of dogs licking his sores is really disturbing and makes it clear just how wrong it is for humans to be in that kind of condition.  He is considered a second-class person.  This is like the story of the Good Samaritan, but unfortunately it doesn’t end happily while in mortality. 

 22 And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried;

 23 And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.

 24 And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. (Luke 16:22-24)

The positions of Lazarus and the rich man have been precisely reversed.  The want the rich man ignored in Lazarus, he begins to suffer.  Unlike Lazarus, who merely desired to feed from the leftovers—Lazarus’s sense of his own worthiness had been beat down under the ground you see—in contrast, the rich man kicks up a serious rumpus and takes his complaint as high as he can.  “Have mercy!  Can’t you see I am tormented!?” he cries to Abraham, who is often considered father of the faithful.  (By the way, it is interesting that the rich man recognizes Abraham, even from afar off, though having never met him in mortality.  What does this teach us about what we will know after death?)

It is also curious that when the rich man finds himself in hell, he discovers he is thirsty.  He has no body, yet he is thirsty.  This suggests to me that his thirst is actually spiritual rather than physical.  I think that his thirst may represent the desire to do good that he squelched all his life.   In the eternities he finds the thirst still there, but with no way of satisfying it; all his wealth has been left behind in mortality.  This reminds me of Isaiah’s words that everyone who fought against Zion would be as those who dreamt they drank and then awake thirsty.

Another thing I noticed recently in this parable is even after death, the rich man still thinks of Lazarus as a second-class person and only meant to be a servant.  We can tell because the rich man only talks to Father Abraham to ask for things, not Lazarus, implying he assumes Lazarus is only there on Abraham’s sufferance, rather than as an equal in Abraham’s estimation.  Also, the rich man wants Lazarus to be sent to serve and comfort him.

This gives us an important warning—that riches have a tendency to cause people to forget the inherent equality of each soul’s worth, and that mistake continues beyond death. 

 25 But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. (Luke 16:25)

The positions of Lazarus and the rich man have been reversed because there is a huge amount of inequitable treatment that happened on earth that has to be made right.  Heaven is fair after all, and unfairness on earth, if never remedied on earth, must be remedied in heaven.

 26 And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence. (Luke 16:26)

In mortality there was no obstacle standing in the way of the rich man helping Lazarus.  There was no gulf between them, but the rich man made one by completely ignoring Lazarus’s existence.  Might it be too much to say that by doing so, rich man made the very gulf that in the afterlife prevented any comfort coming to him?

 27 Then he [the rich man] said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him [Lazarus] to my father’s house:

 28 For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. (Luke 16:27-28)

We see that when the rich man begins to suffer, his sympathy and feeling for others begins to grow and he begins to wish to save others from suffering what he is currently in.  For him that’s a start, even though his anxiety for others only extends at this point to his five brothers who still live in as rich abundance as he did.  (This shows that concern for our siblings is the beginning of charity.)

But at the same time, the rich man still doesn’t understand what he’s doing wrong; he still wants to send Lazarus hither and yon, if not to serve him, then to serve his rich brothers, not realizing how fully things have changed. 

 29 Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.

 30 And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.

 31 And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead. (Luke 16: 9-31)

Abraham shares the principle that unless people already listen to the witnesses they have in this life in the form of the writings of prophets and the words of living oracles of God about helping the poor, no heavenly messenger can do any good in sharing what conditions are like on the other side and what needs to be done to prepare.  If the rich man still didn’t recognize Lazarus’s equality of worth in heaven, no way would his brothers on earth heed any message from Lazarus, if their perception of Lazarus was anything like the rich man’s.

I think this is a warning for me too; if I don’t pay attention to this account or the other scriptures about building Zion and helping others, no angelic visitation that warns will move me either.  I'm not rich, but come on, how rich do we have to be before we feel obligated to help?

Now, we might not have starving sore-ridden people laying at our driveways, but we will know people in need when we see them.

One of my friends told me she learned that one of her classmates didn’t have enough money to buy the book for the class because she barely even had money to buy food.  This friend of mine was shocked, and rather than ignore it, decided to take action.  Although my friend couldn’t spare much money herself, she decided she wanted to anonymously send some money to her classmate.  She asked the major’s administrator for her classmate’s address, and when the administrator found out what for, she made an exception to the privacy rules, on condition that the teacher also be notified.  My friend’s teacher was surprised to learn about such want among one of his students and gave a textbook to the classmate.  My friend heard later that a scholarship was spontaneously bestowed upon her classmate not long afterward, and she gave it as her opinion that the teacher had been behind that.

I’ve tried to help when I have seen needs, but I still feel I have done less than I should have.

Here are some thoughts from other Christian writers about the meaning of this parable:

"This parable targets the violence of apathy and neglect which is widening the chasm between rich and poor. The trouble is that even such abstractions [of “rich” and “poor”] become easy to live with.  We need some first hand experience of encountering the real people whom we will then not be able to dismiss as relative statistics. And if that cannot be first hand, we need to help people engage in active imagination of what it really means to be poor, to be a refugee, to be caught on the wrong side of the chasms…" ("First Thoughts on Year C Gospel Passages in the Lectionary," Pentecost 18, William Loader, Murdoch University, Uniting Church in Australia. [http://wwwstaff.murdoch.edu.au/~loader/LkPentecost18.htm])

One way we engage in active imagination of what it really means to be poor and hungry is when we fast.  Our experience with hunger can guide our giving.

"If our hearts are closed to hearing the cry for justice, mercy and bread, the words of the resurrected One will not be convincing, but convicting." ("No Way Out," Mark Harris, The Christian Century, 2001. Religion Online. [http://www.religion-online.org/showarticle.asp?title=2129])

 “The greatest deception is that people start to believe they are owed a privileged status.  They actually think they are exceptional and believe that they have become more valuable because they have more valuables.”  ("The Man Who Wore Purple and Linen," Jerry Goebel, One Family Outreach. [http://onefamilyoutreach.com/bible/Luke/lk_16_19-31.html])

“Some chasms cannot be crossed. Some things harden…. Even Abraham cuts no ice with a God determined to be just.”  ("Send Lazarus," J. Mary Luti, The Christian Century, 1998. [http://www.religion-online.org/showarticle.asp?title=624])

"We would do well, I believe, to explore those things which our culture highly esteems, and then to consider whether or not these things are well pleasing in the sight of God." ("The Rich Man and Lazarus," Hampton Keathley IV, a study from the Biblical Studies Foundation. [http://bible.org/seriespage/rich-man-and-lazarus])

What inner obstacles do you struggle with when you are confronted with people in desperate need?  How have you overcome them?

The heavens, they are many

Image: http://thingstolookathigh.com/outer-space-stars/

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. (Moses 1:37)

That word “heavens” is baffling.  We know only one sky and one space, so it is hard to say in what manner there can be many.  Because if there are many heavens, then that means there is a discrete and discernable boundary between one and another.  Meteorology has advanced to the point that it can detect pressure gradients in the atmosphere and cold and warm fronts and temperature differences, but that makes sky into amorphous flowing blobs; it doesn’t result in a countable sky.  And it only has to do with earth.    So there must be other astronomical bodies that must have their own heavens with their own characteristics.  And probably space has its own “weather” and gradients and concentrations of particles.

And God can quantify all of this!  He is the ultimate scientist. 

Principles from Joseph Smith’s description of the celestial kingdom in D&C 137

In D&C 137 Joseph Smith has a vision of the celestial kingdom in the Kirtland temple. He sees his parents and his brother Alvin and is given the doctrine of salvation for the dead. Something that struck me as interesting recently was the features of the kingdom that he noticed before he observed his family there.

2 I saw the transcendent beauty of the gate through which the heirs of that kingdom will enter, which was like unto circling flames of fire;
3 Also the blazing throne of God, whereon was seated the Father and the Son.
4 I saw the beautiful streets of that kingdom, which had the appearance of being paved with gold. (D&C 137:2-4)

I wondered why Joseph Smith chose to focus his description of the physical parts of the celestial kingdom on the gates, the throne of God, and the streets. Was there anything this could teach us?

After some thought, it seemed like they could be of symbolic importance. The gates are the entrance. Our entrance is baptism and receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost. The throne of God teaches of our goal, which is to be reunited with Him and sit with Him on His throne as exalted beings. The streets are the way and give us a new perspective of the commandments. Do we consider the commandments as valuable as gold and as the way to the throne of God? Also, Christ is the way.

Another thing I noticed was the difference in the light level between the gates and the throne of God. The gates are like circling flames, but the throne is “blazing.” The throne seems much brighter than the gates. I think this teaches how we are to progress in light even after baptism.

Another thing I notice is that the gate is circling flames, but the throne… well, you SIT IN brightness and heat. This seems to show us that we don’t just want to be surrounded by glory, we want to BE glorious.

Have you ever seen heaven?

I happened to run across Spencer W. Kimball’s book Faith Precedes the Miracle and as I scanned though it looking for something that could help me, I ran across an incident he recorded. He was sitting for his portrait to be painted and the artist unexpectedly asked him, “Have you ever seen heaven?”

Spencer W. Kimball told the artist of when he officiated at a marriage in the temple and how he felt the Spirit of the Lord there and how he felt that was a vision of heaven. He then told the artist of visiting at a home in which the children were obedient and respectful and helpful and the parents were kind and loving and there was order and how he thought that was a vision of heaven as well. He told several other experiences, pointing to each one as a place where he had seen heaven.

As I was reading the first of Spencer W. Kimball’s heaven experiences, I at first thought that it was a total cop-out. I knew the artist wanted to know whether President Kimball had seen a vision of the celestial kingdom like Joseph Smith saw as recorded in D&C 76, and I thought President Kimball was trying to avoid the issue that he hadn’t really seen. However, I kept reading, and when I got to the story of the family that seemed like heaven, I started to remember some things. I thought of the hymn lyrics “Home can be a heaven on earth when we are filled with love”. I thought of how my own mother had tried so hard to keep peace in my family while I grew up. I thought of how my parents would sometimes point out little moments when we were so happy to be together that it seemed like heaven. That’s when I realized something startling.

I realized that we tend to think in terms of what can be taken to heaven and what will be eternal and what heaven will be like, when really, it is should be the other way around. Family isn’t something of the earth that we take to heaven with us, but it is something heavenly that we can have on the earth. The commandments aren’t something of the earth that get us to heaven, the commandments are celestial and we can have them on the earth! Principles we will live by in heaven have already been given to us to live on the earth. We make a heaven here so that we’ll be worthy of it there, along with celestial glory.

When I realized this, I suddenly saw that I had seen heaven over and over and over without recognizing it. I saw heaven when I got to welcome a woman into the celestial room of the temple after she got her endowments for the first time. I saw heaven at family reunions. I saw heaven when I was sealed to my husband for time and eternity. I saw heaven when I saw people donating their surplus to Deseret Industries. I saw heaven when I saw people serving each other at ward activities. I saw heaven in countless family home evenings and countless family prayers and sessions of scripture study, when the Spirit was there. I saw heaven in obedience, sacrifice, service, missionary work, temple work, and so on. I saw heaven in growing families, in continued courtship after marriage, in my husband’s love, in friendship, in forgiveness, in choirs singing triumphant, ringing praises. In every good holy thing I was seeing a piece of heaven.

Now we see that we must not only avoid procrastinating our repentance, but we must also not put off preparing for heaven. We have to put heaven’s principles to work here, we need to practice obedience here, we need to acquire integrity and generosity here, and make a heaven that the very angels can visit here.

I haven’t seen heaven like Joseph Smith saw it, but I expect someday I will, if I continue to sanctify myself. You will too, if you do the same. At the tail end of D&C 76, there is this:

“But great and marvelous are the works of the Lord, and the mysteries of his kingdom which he showed unto us, which surpass all understanding in glory, and in might, and in dominion; Which he commanded us we should not write while we were yet in the Spirit, and are not lawful for man to utter; Neither is man capable to make them known, for they are only to be seen and understood by the power of the Holy Spirit, which God bestows on those who love him, and purify themselves before him; To whom he grants this privilege of seeing and knowing for themselves; That through the power and manifestation of the spirit, while in the flesh, they may be able to bear his presence in the world of glory” (D&C 76:114-118, emphasis added).

This is a promise of seeing and knowing about heaven both through the Spirit, and with our very eyes. The spiritual part must come first, though, so that we will know what it is we see with our eyes, and recognize it for what it is.

Will you tell me about a time when you recognized a bit of heaven in your life?

Isaiah on Praising the Lord in the Celestial Kingdom

10 Sing unto the LORD a new song,
and his praise from the end of the earth,
ye that go down to the sea, and all that is therein;
the isles, and the inhabitants thereof.
11 Let the wilderness and the cities thereof lift up their voice,
the villages that Kedardoth inhabit:
let the inhabitants of the rock sing,
let them shout from the tops of the mountains.
12 Let them give glory unto the LORD,
and declare his praise in the islands.
(Isaiah 42:10-12)

I always wondered why the prophets in the scriptures were always so quick to praise the Lord. Then I started thinking about why any person deserves praise. It is because the praised person did something great, and from gratitude for that great work.

This caused me to think, “Well, if Isaiah tells me to sing praises to the Lord, what has the Lord done for me?” And I started thinking through my life and examining how the Lord helped me. My journals were a huge help for me to remember, and there were many incidents I could see in which the hand of the Lord was a big part. Taken all together as a mass, it is simply overwhelming.

Consider that in the celestial kingdom we will have a perfect remembrance of all that the Lord has done for us, and see it clearly. It will overpower us. It will awe us how kind He was to us, how carefully He led us through our trials, how watchful He was over us in danger, how ready He was to enlighten us when we asked for knowledge, how merciful He was when we repented of our sins, how He put people in our lives to bless us, in short, how He did all things for our good. It will absolutely overwhelm us with gratitude and wonder and we will be so happy about it that we will want to sing all the time and tell everyone who will listen what the Lord did for us.

But we won’t be content with just doing that.

And it shall come to pass,
that from one new moon to another,
and from one sabbath to another,
shall all flesh come to worship before me,
saith the LORD.
(Isaiah 66:23)

Everyone will want to come and thank Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ for everything he did and all of us will get a turn to do it. Crowds, thousands, millions and more will come, week after week, month after month, each in their turn, to worship and personally express their gratitude to the Lord.

Christ’s Parable of the Wedding Feast Reveals the 3 Degrees of Glory

This parable turned out to be more challenging than I thought it would be, but it was also incredibly rewarding to study it. I will share with you some important insights that came to me as I worked on it.

The whole thing

1 And Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables, and said,
2 The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son,
3 And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding: and they would not come.
4 Again, he sent forth other servants, saying, Tell them which are bidden, Behold, I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready: come unto the marriage.
5 But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise:
6 And the remnant took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them.
7 But when the king heard thereof, he was wroth: and he sent forth his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.
8 Then saith he to his servants, The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy.
9 Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage.
10 So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests.
11 And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment:
12 And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless.
13 Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
14 For many are called, but few are chosen [wherefore all do not have on the wedding garment]. (Matthew 22:1-14, JST bracketed, compare to Luke 14:15-24)

Okay, from the beginning..

2 The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son,
3 And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding: and they would not come.

If a king were going to have a wedding for his son, it would make sense that he would make sure that everyone knew about it beforehand. The invitations would have been sent out long before the actual event. This makes it seem very surprising that the people who were invited would not come. Why did they not come?

Perhaps the invites were sent out so far ahead that people began to think that the wedding feast wasn’t really going to happen, so they started filling up their life with other stuff instead. Maybe the delay made them think that the king wasn’t really serious about these invitations. Or maybe they weren’t excited about it, so they strategically positioned things they were more interested in over the top of the invited time so that they could say they had something else to do.

I can imagine this being the case. When there is a major delay between news of an event and the event itself, I have a hard time motivating myself to prepare for it. Just recently one of my friends sent me an invitation to her son’s wedding, and I set it aside, assuming that there was lots of time, and I didn’t even stick it on the calendar. The next time I thought about it was two weeks later, and then when I went to look at the date of the wedding, I realized the date had just passed. Whoops. (cringe)

This causes me to think about where I want to be. Am I merely content with the day-to-day business or am I thinking about, yearning for, preparing for the wedding feast, distant though it may seem?

What is the wedding feast?

Perhaps the wedding feast could refer to the church in the former days. This parable was given during the week before his crucifixion. The Jews would reject Jesus, and they were destroyed by the Romans around 70 A.D. However, this interpretation is problematic.

The first problem we encounter with this interpretation is this—the mind recoils at the idea of these Roman armies corresponding to the armies of the king, if we interpret the king to be Heavenly Father. Angel armies we can accept. Roman armies, not so much. But let us pass over this for the moment and see if we can find any other helpful similarities.

The conversion of gentiles to the gospel seems to correspond at least loosely with the parable details about people brought in from the highways to the feast. And certainly correct doctrine could be considered a joyful feast, yes? However, the problem with this is that the great apostasy does not correspond with the parable’s detail about the king tossing out the man without the wedding garment. Rather, if the events of the apostasy were translated into the parable, it would seem that the man without the wedding garment threw out all the other guests and the king! So it seems that this parable doesn’t perfectly correspond to the events in the former day church. We must look for another interpretation.

It appears that the wedding feast has to come at the end of the world, at the final judgment. One overlooked detail that seems to suggest this is the parable’s ending with all the properly clothed guests at the feast with no word about what comes afterward. It is as if the feast will continue forever and the guests no longer need to worry about every-day concerns. All the king has will be given to those who come. Another detail that indicates this is that the wedding feast is given on the occasion of the marriage of the king’s son. This could be the presentation of the purified church to God, since Christ has referred to Himself elsewhere as the bridegroom. This can only occur at the end of the world and the final judgment. Further, we haven’t yet seen the destruction of all the wicked who reject and persecute the saints and the prophets. That has yet to be fulfilled.

The wedding feast could also be considered to be taking the sacrament. We have to be prepared for that, yes? But while this possibility is intriguing in its surface similarities of eating, the events surrounding weekly administration of the sacrament don’t correspond in the essential details about the groups of people invited then destroyed for their rejection, so this can’t be what was intended by the parable.

So the wedding feast comes at or after the final judgment. Grasping this detail helps us understand the reactions that follow announcement of the feast. Plainly this necessitates preparation and no wonder people put off the invitation.

4 Again, he sent forth other servants, saying, Tell them which are bidden, Behold, I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready: come unto the marriage.
5 But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise:
6 And the remnant took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them.
7 But when the king heard thereof, he was wroth: and he sent forth his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.

We can’t underline enough the folly of refusing an invitation from the king. It smells of rebellion. The king wants people to come to a CELEBRATION, for heaven’s sake! Yet knowing as we do the world’s reaction to any invitation to repent and prepare for the final judgment, the invitation seems to suggest waiting the length of a lifetime, and God seems so far away and so far removed from life that the urgency is lost on them.

Now, what of those servants who are so diligent in delivering the message?

The invitation goes out through the servants. There are multiples rounds of invitation. These servants undoubtedly represent the prophets. They can also represent missionaries sharing the gospel, church leaders extending callings/invitations to get ready to go to the temple, and all the calls to repentance that we hear throughout our lives.

8 Then saith he to his servants, The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy.
9 Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage.
10 So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests.

What are the highways? Who are the people on the highways? What is significant about being on the highways that leads these people to accept the invitation?

If they were on the highways, they were travelers, going from one place to another. Perhaps this indicates they were leaving a place they didn’t want to be, going somewhere they wanted to go. When an exciting alternative was offered them, they took it. They were willing to divert their journey (or interrupt it) in favor of going to the king’s wedding. Perhaps they were searching. Maybe they felt they didn’t have anything to lose by coming to the wedding feast. (So Perhaps the people who didn’t listen to the invitation were too content with where they were and what they were doing.) Here are some scriptures that seem to throw light on the significance of highways in this parable:

The highway of the upright is to depart from evil: he that keepeth his way preserveth his soul. (Proverbs 16:17)

And an highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be called The way of holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it; but it shall be for those: the wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err therein. (Isaiah 35:8)

Who are the good and bad on the highways, and why do both end up at the wedding feast? I suspect that one way we could interpret this is that there were people who had backgrounds of goodness and people who had backgrounds of badness. Both types came, and that was important. They both respond to the call, and they come, as opposed to those who don’t listen to the servants. Elsewhere, Christ elaborates on this point in His parable of the fishing net.

47 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind:
48 Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away. (Matt. 13:47-48)

This leads to the next question. What do we make of the man who was not clothed in a wedding garment?

What’s wrong with not wearing a wedding garment to the wedding feast?

It’s hard for us to understand why someone would be thrown out for wearing the wrong thing. We have to remember that wearing the wedding garment would be how the guests would show respect for the king. Remember, wearing our Sunday best to church and to the temple shows our reverence to God. If we remember that the wedding feast is part of the final judgment, we understand better the necessity of being prepared. Further, that it was a WEDDING FEAST suggests that the occasion itself calls for the very best.

The next difficulty we face is this—it seems unfair that the man is thrown out of the wedding feast for not having a wedding garment; after all, the servants grabbed people from the highways. It seems paradoxical to gather these people from highways and then require a wedding garment be worn. People don’t carry formal wear when on the road. The king was rich; he should have provided wedding garments for his guests, right?

In terms of the gospel, yes, Heavenly Father has provided every one of us with the wedding garment of righteousness when we repent and come unto Christ. All of us have sinned (except Christ), so none of us are righteous of ourselves. The Atonement washes our sins from us, making us pure, and the grace of Christ covers us, works in us, giving us power and inclination to do righteous things that we couldn’t do on our own.

So, the king did provide wedding garments for his guests so that they wouldn’t be embarrassed to come.

So now we ask again, why didn’t the man wear the wedding garment? Maybe we should first probe further about what the wedding garment is.

And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. (Revelation 19:8, emphasis added)

This is the “dress code” for heaven.

I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels. (Isaiah 61:10, emphasis added)

9 Let thy priests be clothed with righteousness; and let thy saints shout for joy. . . .
16 I will also clothe her priests with salvation: and her saints shall shout aloud for joy. (Psalms 132:9,16, emphasis added)

12 And again, verily, verily, I say unto you, and it hath gone forth in a firm decree, by the will of the Father, that mine apostles, the Twelve which were with me in my ministry at Jerusalem, shall stand at my right hand at the day of my coming in a pillar of fire, being clothed with robes of righteousness, with crowns upon their heads, in glory even as I am, to judge the whole house of Israel, even as many as have loved me and kept my commandments, and none else.
13 For a trump shall sound both long and loud, even as upon Mount Sinai, and all the earth shall quake, and they shall come forth—yea, even the dead which died in me, to receive a crown of righteousness, and to be clothed upon, even as I am, to be with me, that we may be one. (D&C 29:12-13, emphasis added)

Wherefore, we shall have a perfect knowledge of all our guilt, and our uncleanness, and our nakedness; and the righteous shall have a perfect knowledge of their enjoyment, and their righteousness, being clothed with purity, yea, even with the robe of righteousness. (2 Nephi 9:14, emphasis added)

Language about being clothed can also refer to the glorious resurrection:

2 For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven:
3 If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked. (2 Cor. 5:2-3, emphasis added)

There are other righteous qualities suggested:

4 Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy.
5 He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels. (Revelation 3:4-5, emphasis added)

But behold, from among the righteous, he organized his forces and appointed messengers, clothed with power and authority, and commissioned them to go forth and carry the light of the gospel to them that were in darkness, even to fall the spirits of men; and thus was the gospel preached to the dead. (D&C 138:30, emphasis added)

Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. (1 Peter 5:5, emphasis added)

And above all things, clothe yourselves with the bond of charity, as with a mantle, which is the bond of perfectness and peace. (D&C 88:125, emphasis added)

As a side question: could going to the temple correspond to going to the wedding feast? Both going to the temple and participating in the wedding feast seem to call for special clothing. Again, while this possibility is intriguing, the events surrounding a trip to the temple don’t correspond in the essential details to the parable’s groups of people invited and then destroyed for their rejection, so this can’t be what was intended by the parable. It seems then that faithful temple attendance in the general sense must be viewed as part of the process of putting on the wedding garment. (Of course, this doesn’t prevent us from pretending as we go to the temple and worship there that we are going to the wedding feast. It may help us remember that we are practicing for the real thing.)

So what does it mean that the man didn’t have the wedding garment on?

The man who rejected the wedding garment must have thought that he was fine how he was and he didn’t need to change for anyone. He seems to have been determined to corrupt the king’s wedding, determined to different from all others. He took his rebellion into the king’s very house, determined to defy the saying that “No unclean thing can enter into the kingdom of God”. The command to bind the man hand and foot and throw him into outer darkness suggests that this is a son of perdition. He’s taken his rebellion to the very limit, while pretending to be obedient. He is a hypocrite. The man can have nothing to say.

***

Okay, so we’ve gotten to this point. I have to point out here that I haven’t presented this in the same order that I realized it in. The real order was here, there, over there, back here again, and extremely disjointed. If I had done it in the same order, you would have thought me a very bad writer. If I’ve done my job right, you should be right along with me. Well, now I have to go back to sharing with you some other things that I found in the middle of this process that enabled me to come to the conclusions I’ve shared with you up to this point.

I really thought a lot about this parable. I would analyze parts and think that I got it and then I would think about other parts and get completely confused again. In the end, I asked myself what the main point of it seemed to be. The main point of this parable is to show the slow whittling down of the number of guests that actually make it to the wedding feast and to show the various reasons why they fail to make the cut. The words at the end of the parable underlined this—“Many are called, but few are chosen.” I thought about this for quite a long time. It haunted me with its simplicity; it seemed to ring like a gong through my head. I couldn’t figure out why that was, but I knew there was something there, something of great significance. Thinking so long and hard about this gradually led me to realize that this parable was actually setting forth the three degrees of glory, according to the various groups of people invited to the wedding feast.

Telestial - Some take the invitation seriously and feel threatened by it and the messengers. This indicates that they feel it is an encroachment upon their freedom to order their own lives as they want. They oppose the servants and murder them, and by doing so, implicitly oppose the king. (These people are destroyed by the king’s armies.)

Terrestrial - Some don’t take the invitation seriously and treat it as a joke. They are too busy “minding their own business” making a living on the farm or with their store. (It is not quite clear whether they are destroyed or not.) They are honorable, but deceived by the craftiness of men.

Celestial - The people gathered from the highways are those who actually listened to the king’s servants and came to the wedding feast. (a remnant?) They prepare themselves in spite of the shortness of the time they have to prepare. They put on the wedding garment.

Outer Darkness - Some accept the invitation to the wedding feast, yet come without a wedding garment. They seem to have made the conscious decision to NOT prepare themselves. These are detected and cast out. They weep and wail and gnash their teeth. (There is nothing they can do to change the outcome; they can’t turn back the clock and make different choices.)

This interpretation adds greater depth to our understanding of the gospel. It shows us how accepting the gospel is not enough; that’s like accepting the invitation. We also have to prepare ourselves with the wedding garment or we will be cast out at the last day.
Christ’s parable of the net seems to underline this idea. Even if we have been gathered in the gospel net, unless we are “good fishes”, we will be cast out.

47 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind:
48 Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away.
49 So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just,
50 And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. (Matt. 13:47-50, emphasis added)

I don’t think this refers to the first destruction of the people who wouldn’t even come to the wedding feast. I think reiterates the judgment that will occur among those who have come to the wedding feast, i.e. those who have joined the church. It is very easy to interpret the severing of the wicked from among the just as the destruction at the second coming of Christ, but what this points to is another judgment of removing the hypocrites from among the righteous.

Okay, back to the parable of the wedding feast..

I’ve told you I really spent a lot of time thinking about that haunting sentence—“Many are called, but few are chosen.” Something else I realized was that this very parable of the wedding garment had to be what Joseph Smith was pondering when he wrote those powerful words in D&C 121:34-36. “Behold, there are many called, but few are chosen. And why are they not chosen?...” The statement “Many are called, but few are chosen” must have haunted him even more than it haunted me. So I read the following with new understanding for the context:

34 Behold, there are many called, but few are chosen. And why are they not chosen?
35 Because their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world, and aspire to the honors of men, that they do not learn this one lesson—
36 That the rights of the priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, and that the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only upon the principles of righteousness.
37 That they may be conferred upon us, it is true; but when we undertake to cover our sins, or to gratify our pride, our vain ambition, or to exercise control or dominion or compulsion upon the souls of the children of men, in any degree of unrighteousness, behold, the heavens withdraw themselves; the Spirit of the Lord is grieved; and when it is withdrawn, Amen to the priesthood or the authority of that man.
38 Behold, ere he is aware, he is left unto himself, to kick against the pricks, to persecute the saints, and to fight against God.
39 We have learned by sad experience that it is the nature and disposition of almost all men, as soon as they get a little authority, as they suppose, they will immediately begin to exercise unrighteous dominion.
40 Hence many are called, but few are chosen. (Doctrine & Covenants 121:34-40)

The parable describes people that have been called to the king's wedding feast and make light of it, preferring to go to their farms and merchandise. Joseph Smith observed, "Their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world and aspire to the honors of men". It was exciting to realize that was exactly what Joseph Smith was thinking about. I probably wouldn't have realized it if I hadn't been studying that same parable in order to do a blog post on it.

Yet Joseph Smith’s words bring up another difficulty. When Joseph Smith comments on the people who kick against the pricks, persecute the saints, and fight against God, he seems to refer to those who refused to accept the wedding invitation and who were eventually destroyed. This also seems to be substantiated by the idea that they set their hearts on things of the world. However, then he connects these ideas with those who have had the priesthood conferred upon them and who cover their sins, gratify their pride, or exercise unrighteous dominion, which seems to begin to refer to those who have come to the wedding feast without a wedding garment. Which is he referring to?

I suspect that he has to be referring to those coming to the wedding feast without a wedding garment because afterward he discourses on how the priesthood should be exercised, listing qualities that would fit really well into a description of charity. This would certainly allow the priesthood to put on the wedding garment and prepare them for the wedding feast. Joseph Smith’s statements about the priesthood setting their hearts on the things of men seems to indicate that even those who have accepted the king’s invitation may in the end fail to come to the wedding feast when the time comes. I think this expands on the characteristics of those who do not put on the wedding garment.

So what have we learned from this parable?

• The wedding feast is the end of the world, the final judgment.
• The wedding garment is the righteousness of the saints, which encompasses all the virtues.
  
• The parable sets forth the three degrees of glory and warns of the penalty for refusing the invitation to come to the wedding feast and for not preparing one’s self.
• We’ve learned that Joseph Smith was pondering this parable when he discoursed on the proper use of the priesthood in D&C 121.