A FORGIVING HEART PART 2

 

At times Joseph suffered as much opposition in the Church as outside.

In early 1844 a group of apostates in Nauvoo, Illinois, declared the Prophet Joseph Smith to be a fallen prophet and tried to start a rival church. Some even held secret meetings, during which they plotted to kill him (Glen L. Leonard, Nauvoo: A Place of Peace, a People of Promise [2002], 357-62).

 

One of these people was W.W. Phelps, an author and a poet, who wrote 26 hymns in the original hymnal. He was Joseph’s close associate who left the church for a time with Oliver Cowdery. He became fiercely anti and wrote an incriminating affidavit which landed Joseph and Sidney Rigdon in jail and wreaked deadly havoc on the Church community.

 

W.W. Phelps eventually became wrecked with guilt and had a miraculous change of heart. He desired to repent and wrote a letter to Joseph, asking for forgiveness of all the saints, in the name of Jesus Christ. Note the forgiveness was requested in Jesus’ name, who is the very embodiment of said attribute. Even though he yearned for forgiveness, he didn’t expect the reply he received to his letter.

 

Joseph responded: “Dear Brother Phelps, it is true that we have suffered much because of your behaviour. The cup of gall was filled to the overflowing when you turned against us, however, we are yet alive and I shall be happy once again to give you the right hand of fellowship.  Come on dear Brother since the war is past, for friends at first are friends again at last. Yours as ever, Joseph Smith Jr.”  

 

Joseph re-instated W.W. Phelps into the Church fellowship by the unanimous vote of all the saints in Nauvoo whom he influenced in the matter of forgiveness. Later W.W. Phelps said he struggled to understand Joseph’s capacity for forgiveness and love.

 

The hymn “Praise to the Man” was written by WW Phelps to express love and gratitude for Joseph upon his death, and it was sung at his funeral. What a great tribute to the man who exemplified the Saviour through his forgiving heart.

Some of us have brought with us spiritual attributes we developed in pre-existence. They can never, however, match the Saviour’s level of perfection. Forgiveness is one of those attributes.

For instance, I often hear that we should forgive our enemies and those who hurt us like the Saviour did whilst on the cross. I ask, how many of us are capable of such forgiveness in the midst of such excruciating agony? This kind of forgiveness is on a higher level that we cannot reach on our own.

Forgiveness is central to Christ’s character but not to our own. Not especially in this weakened condition of mortality. Comparing us to Christ is like comparing apples to oranges.

I had a conversation with a dear sister once who told me it took her 12 years of intense therapy to forgive someone. I reflected on my own experience of much needed ability to forgive whilst in excruciating pain due to divorce some years ago, which took only months to gain through fervent and persistent appealing to Christ’s power of the Atonement. I was granted what I asked for and to this day I cannot hold a grudge of any proportion.

By virtue of our discipleship and by being faithful in keeping our covenants, we have ‘increased access to the power of Jesus Christ’ and need not suffer unduly. We can still become free when forgiveness is beyond us. (see President Russell M Nelson, “Overcome the World and Find Rest”, Liahona 2022, p 96)

A true leader who leads masses of imperfect and flawed people would have to have this attribute under his belt for those who claim they represent Him, need to in some way, be like Him. Nobody needed the gift of forgiveness more than Joseph. I am certain that the Saviour knew this and endowed him with this gift, either in this life or before. He must have known from His own experience that Joseph would not survive otherwise.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Joseph the Man by Joseph Brickey)

A SURE PATH

 

 

Mormon tells us that the people who survived the devastation of the American continent at the time of Christ’s visit are those who were more righteous and who ‘received the prophets’ (3 Nephi 10:12).

I reflected upon all the people who have rejected Joseph Smith and still reject him today. I am astounded when I read Section 121 of Doctrine and Covenants to see how serious a sin it is to reject the prophets of God. Consider the consequences of such a rejection that the Saviour promised would come upon the people who rejected Joseph and charged him with falsehoods (vs 11,16,19,20,21,22,24):

·        Their prospects shall melt away as the frost melts away before the burning rays of the sun;

·        They who shall oppose the Lord’s anointed shall be cursed;

·        They shall be severed from the temple ordinances;

·        Their food supplies would perish;

·        They themselves shall be despised by those that flattered them;

·        They and generations of their posterity shall not have the right to the priesthood;

·        It would be better for them if a millstone was hanged about their necks and they drowned in the depths of the sea….yikes!

·        The Lord has reserved a swift judgment for them all….double yikes!

Why such a harsh punishment for those who reject the prophets? Here is a story that might help us see the importance of their leadership: “On one occasion, Karl G. Maeser was leading a party of young missionaries across the Alps. As they reached the summit, he looked back and saw a row of sticks thrust in the snow to mark the one safe path across the otherwise treacherous glacier.

“Halting the company of missionaries, he gestured toward the sticks and said, ‘Brethren, there stands the priesthood [of God]. They are just common sticks like the rest of us,…but the position they hold, makes them what they are to us. If we step aside from the path they mark, we are lost’ (in Alma P. Burton, Karl G. Maeser, Mormon Educator [Deseret Book Co., 1953] p 22).

Why are we lost if we don’t follow the prophets? Because ‘the voice of warning is for all people by the mouths of all Christ’s disciples whom He has chosen in these last days’ and ‘they who will not hear the voice of the Lord through His servants or give heed to the word’s of the prophets and apostles, shall be cut off from among the people’ (D&C 1:4,14). They will be cut off because they will resist the truth and lose their way to salvation.

The path is sure, the path is secure….”whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same” (v 38).

 

Your words through Your prophets

Like a lamp unto my feet

Bid me to follow Thee.

I dare to follow the path through

 the highest mountains,

I dare to sail dangerous seas,

Ever trusting what you speak to me

Will lead me back to Thee.

 

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Prophet and Seer by Simon Dewey) 

A HOLY PLACE

 

 

What would your answer be if someone asked you what you would do to prepare, if you knew the Saviour was coming tomorrow? I know what it should be: NOTHING! What could you possibly do in one day to make up for years of not doing it?

Consider what Elder Dallin H. Oaks said we should be doing in preparation for the Saviour’s return: “Are we following the Lord’s command, ‘Stand ye in holy places, and be not moved, until the day of the Lord come; for behold, it cometh quickly’? (D&C 87:8).

“What are those ‘holy places’? Surely they include the temple and its covenants faithfully kept. Surely they include a home where children are treasured and parents are respected. Surely the holy places include our posts of duty assigned by priesthood authority, including missions and callings faithfully fulfilled in branches, wards, and stakes” (in Conference Report, April 2004, 7-8 or Ensign May 2004, 9-10)

How many of the things he has mentioned could we cram into one day? Could keeping the temple covenants for one day obliterate years of neglect? Could loving and respecting our children and parents for one day wipe away all the impatience, intolerance, anger, abuse, disobedience or animosity that we might have been inflicting on each other for a prolonged time? How about fulfilling a mission in one day or faithfully fulfilling a calling?

In the abovementioned talk, Elder Oaks says that “we need to make both temporal and spiritual preparations for the events prophesied at the time of the Second Coming”. He also said that the preparation most likely to be neglected is the spiritual one. The Book of Mormon teaches us the importance of this.

Sixteen years after the signs of the Saviour’s birth, the Nephites faced a huge threat of extinction by the Gadianton robbers. The governor of this band, Giddianhi, made a lofty demand of the governor of the land, Lachoneous, that the Nephites surrender all their lands. Lachoneous refused and made elaborate preparations for defense arming his people to the teeth (3 Nephi 3:13,14).

 By all accounts they should all have felt incredibly secure. But lucky for them Lachoneous was a God-fearing man and he warned his people that no matter how much physical protection they had, if they did not repent and turn to God, they will in no way be delivered out of the hands of Gadiantons (v 15). So powerful was this man that great fear came upon the people and they did all in their might to do exactly as he said (v 25).

Two other things most worthy of mention are these: 1. They appointed as the chief captain of their army someone who had the spirit of revelation and was a ‘great prophet among them’ and; 2. They gathered themselves together in ‘one land, and one body’ (v 19, 25). In other words, they were united and they had a prophet at their head. Does it remind you of the Church? Because it should.

When the most perilous times come, we will not want to be found in the world, but the most important holy place, in the Church, following the counsel of the Prophet…..only we can’t wait until the calamities strike. We need to ensure our place in the Church now and be in tune with the voice of the Prophet, now. Because after all, the calamities have already started……

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Second Coming by Brent Borup)

THE LIVING WORD

"While I was on a trip to Brazil with two colleagues from Brigham Young University-Idaho, we had the opportunity to spend several days in the Amazon Jungle on the Rio Negro. The river is enormous beyond imagination, and the vegetation in the jungle is thick. One could easily lose his way if he were to venture into it without a guide. Our guide, Moreno, was a native of Italy. He knew the jungle and the river well. Now in his late 30's, he had realized his childhood dream of living in the Amazon Jungle.

Our small group boarded a canoe docked at our floating hotel and departed for the starting point of our hike. We were fascinated by what we saw and impressed by Moreno's deep knowledge and his ability to lead us through the thick and imposing jungle. As we walked he would explain the various plants, animals, insects, and vegetation that surrounded us. He taught us about plants and insects that could be harmful if we were not careful. He also pointed out various plants that Amazon Indians had used for medicinal or other useful purposes. Deeper into the jungle we went. We truly had no idea where we were going. We merely followed Moreno and trusted that he would get us safely back to our canoe and eventually our hotel.

At one point, Moreno stopped the group, and we all gathered around him. "This jungle is hot and humid", he said. "We are at least a mile from the river, and a person cannot live here without water. You would die quickly. There is water right here, right now, where we are. Can any of you see it?" We could not. All we saw were trees, vines and shrubs. The mosquitoes seemed to be everywhere. None of us had any idea where there might be water nearby. With a smile on his face, Moreno said, "Let me show you." He grabbed his machete and walked to a vine, lightly covered with green velvet moss. After two quick swings, he was holding a piece of the vine in his hand. We still didn't understand. "Water is right here", he said, "right in my hand". Just then he lifted the vine vertically and clear, cool water came dripping out! We were all amazed. As we looked around, we could now see similar vines everywhere. Some were large, others small but once we were taught by one who knew, we saw that in this jungle there was an abundance of water. We each took turns drinking from the vine. As we hiked back to our canoe we continued to see that water was everywhere now we knew where to look.

I have since thought about this experience in relationship to the true vine, living water, and following one who knows. In John 15:1, Jesus teaches us that He is the true vine and His Father is the husbandman. In 1 Nephi 15:15, we read Nephi's prophetic teachings to his unbelieving brethren regarding the remnant of Lehi's seed: "Yea, at that day, will they not receive the strength and nourishment from the true vine?"  In John 4:14, the Saviour teaches a woman of Samaria that He is the one who gives living water: "But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life". As we read about what Nephi saw in vision in 1 Nephi 11:25, we also learn of the 'fountain of living waters.....which waters are a representation of the love of God'.

Just as Moreno guided our group through the jungles of the Amazon, modern-day prophets can lead us through the jungles of life. If we trust them, they will point us to the true vine and living water."
(Bruce C. Kusch, "Living Water in the Rain Forest", Ensign Feb 2006)

"Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets"
Amos 3:7

When Amos was called to preach repentance to the House of Israel around 750 B.C., the Israelites were so far gone in iniquity that they were no longer considered a 'peculiar people'. In fact the Northern Kingdom of Israel and Judah were included in the list of evil nations upon which Amos pronounced curses and calamities which which the Lord would punish them. Israel, who was once favoured was condemned all the more because of the privileges they had enjoyed by virtue of being a covenant people. They had been given the law of God and, therefore, more was expected of them. Instead of living up to that expectation, they squandered their right to be the favoured people by going in the opposite direction. So gross were their sins of idolatry and oppression of the poor that the Lord rejected the whole nation's present and future sacrifices and offerings. So addicted were the Israelites to idolatry that they carried everywhere they went miniature replicas of heathen gods Moloch and Chiun that the Israelite women had adopted (Amos 5:26). And so evil had the women of Samaria become (Amos 4:1-3) that they 'urged their husbands to bring them food bought with money squeezed from the poor' (Old Testament Student Manual, 1 Kings-Malachi, p. 92).  The oppression of the poor was rife amongst the whole nation which showed no mercy or justice to the point where the people 'longed to see the poor in such a state of misery that they threw dust on their heads (a sign of mourning)' (Old Testament Student Manual, p. 91).

We can learn several lessons from the ministry of Amos:

• The Lord always gives us a lot of opportunities and ample time to repent. In the course of Amos' ministry, Israelites were afflicted with famine, drought, earthquake, floods, heat waves, dust and sand storms, wildfire, excessive rain, mildew and crop blight, insect infestations (grasshoppers, palmerworm etc.), siege, battle losses, and even captivity of various cities or areas for periods of time. When recounting these afflictions, Amos repeatedly points out: 'yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the Lord'. Then he issues a most chilling edict: 'prepare to meet thy God, O Israel' (Amos 4:6-12).

• The Lord never does anything regarding his children without telling them so first through his prophets. In Amos' words: "Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets" (Amos 3:7). What is a prophet and what are the secrets he reveals? In a broad sense, a prophet is someone who bears special witness of Jesus Christ, meaning we all could be prophets. Anciently, there were periods where several prophets were called at the same time. It is supposed that Amos was a contemporary of Isaiah and Hosea and that they administered to the House of Israel concurrently. The Office of a Prophet, however, is held by one man at a time who is also the President of the Church. In that capacity, he is also a seer and a revelator. In simplistic terms, a prophet is a teacher of known truth; a seer is a perceiver of hidden truth and a revelator is a bearer of new truth. Many of the 'secrets' Amos talks about deal with the future,, often the latter days - our days. God would have no secrets between us. He wants us to know most and eventually all of what He knows. For this purpose He calls prophets to impart knowledge to us. Once God reveals his mind to humanity, there are no secrets, only revelations.

• God is fair and extremely patient and long-suffering but He is also just. His repeated many warnings during Amos ministry did nothing to bring the people to repentance. In all fairness then, they were warned. All God's judgments that Amos pronounced upon Israel and their enemies were fulfilled within 30 years of his ministry. In 721 B.C. Assyria swept out of the north, captured the Northern Kingdom of Israel and took the ten tribes into captivity.  Amos' prophecies for our day are also being fulfilled.  With war and pestilence and famine, with poverty and desolation in the world today, it behooves us to pay attention to the prophets, seers and revelators  to lead us to 'through the jungles of life to the vine and living water' that ancient Israel so blatantly rejected. 

Because Israel rejected the word of God, Amos predicted a famine of His word, which served as a dual prophecy: "The hardness of their hearts reached such a state that from 400 B.C. until the ministry of John the Baptist, which began in 30 A.D., as far as we know there were no prophets in Israel. But Amos' prophecy was also fulfilled at a later time. After Christ re-established His Church on earth, it too eventually fell into apostasy. Again revelation ceased, and there was a great famine of the word of God, this famine lasting for well over a thousand years." (Old Testament Student Manual, 1 Kings-Malachi, p. 94). That's a long time to go without a prophet who is the embodiment of 'the living word' which flows through revelation from God to His children. This period of time embedded in people the belief that revelation was dead and that the scriptures are the only directive we have to rely on. God, however, in his mercy and never-ending kindness does not wish for the destruction of his children. His plan is secure and all his purposes will be fulfilled.   

"After centuries of spiritual darkness....we solemnly announce to all the world that the spiritual famine is ended. the spiritual drought is spent, the word of the Lord in its purity and totalness is available to all men. One needs not wander from sea to sea nor from north to the east, seeking the true gospel as Amos predicted, for the everlasting truth is available" (Spencer W. Kimball, Conference Report, April 1964, pp 93-93).

"A young lad..... Joseph Smith, of incomparable faith, broke the spell, shattered the 'heavens of iron' and re-established communication. Heaven kissed the earth, light dissipated the darkness, and God again spoke to man, revealing anew 'his secret unto his servants the prophets' (Amos 3:7). A new prophet was in the land and through him God set up his kingdom, never to be destroyed nor left to another people - a kingdom that will stand forever. The foreverness of this kingdom and the revelations which it brought into existence are absolute realities. Never again will the sun go down; never again will all men prove totally unworthy of communication with their Maker. Never again will God be hidden from his children on the earth. Revelation is here to remain." (Spencer W. Kimball, "Revelation: The Word of the Lord to His Prophets", Ensign, May 1977, p. 76)

"For, lo, he that formeth the mountains, that createth the wind, and declareth unto man what is his thought, that maketh the morning darkness, and treadeth upon high places of the earth, The Lord, The God of hosts, is his name." (Amos 4:13)