“On Both Sides of the Veil”

 

    I was sitting in stake conference this weekend and it was a special occasion, because we like many others stakes around the world, were receiving a new stake presidency. Something odd stuck out to me in the talks that I had never really thought much about, the Veil.

    One of the new catch phrases that have been disseminating down is “The work of Salvation on both sides of the Veil” Which I understand what they are talking about, but I think the wording is actually false. What is being conveyed in the phrase is that work of salvation that is done for the departed, or those on the other side of the veil. My concern is that the doctrine of the Veil is actually not well understood.

    We are taught that the veil was put in place to block our remembrance of our premarital existence. The rational being that if we remembered our pre mortal life the test that mortality provides would fail to provide the TEST necessary, because we would already know the answers. Faith would not be needed. In this vain of logic this Veil is as important as agency to this phase of eternal progression. The doctrine that is unclear is when that Veil is removed.

    There really is not much by way of accepted scriptures on this topic, nor is there much in “spoken” scripture. From what I can find the removal of the veil cannot take place until after someone has both accepted the gospel and satisfactorily completed the “test”, or they have been resurrected and await judgment. The process is not an immediate event, but a slow process just as the resurrection is a process. There are clearly example of people who have, finished the test early, or be permitted to have some clarity given, although only momentarily, in the scriptures such as Moses, the Brother of Jared and Joseph Smith Jr.

    Symbolically in the Temple we pass through the veil once we have received all the knowledge, and covenants necessary to do so. This is done at the conclusion of the Endowment, but prior to sealing ordinances. That all being so then who are we helping on the other side of the Veil. It would stand to reason they don’t need our help, because they have already made it as far as us.

    Perhaps I have been looking at this the wrong way. Am I doing work to help those in Spirit prison or Spirit Paradise?  From what I have read and found those in Spirit prison are clearly not on the other side of the veil. If they were it would invalidate the Test. The Test covers all points between birth and resurrection which in its entirety is also known as the second Estate. Is it possible that those in Spirit Paradise, who are those sent to preach to those in Spirit Prison, may actually be or in process of having the veil removed from them. So am I actually doing this work to help them? That does not feel right nor does it make sense to me. Is this new catch phrase doctrinally in error?

The Doctrine of Receiving the Record

 

    There is a doctrine of the gospel that I can’t say I have heard much spoken about and I have often wondered what it really was talking about or how it worked, that I call the Doctrine of Receiving the Record.

    In 3 Nephi 11 of the Book of Mormon we have the account of Christ coming to the American continent where he specifically teaches the Doctrine of Christ. When most people teach about this doctrine they focus on the latter portion relating to Faith, repentance, baptism etc. They seem to skip completely over the first part which tells repeatedly about the importance of the record of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.

32 And this is my doctrine, and it is the doctrine which the Father hath given unto me; and I bear record of the Father, and the Father beareth record of me, and the Holy Ghost beareth record of the Father and me; and I bear record that the Father commandeth all men, everywhere, to repent and believe in me.

35 Verily, verily, I say unto you, that this is my doctrine, and I bear record of it from the Father; and whoso believeth in me believeth in the Father also; and unto him will the Father bear record of me, for he will visit him with fire and with the Holy Ghost.

36 And thus will the Father bear record of me, and the Holy Ghost will bear record unto him of the Father and me; for the Father, and I, and the Holy Ghost are one.

    So what are we to understand from this? They are all bearing record but why. I can only surmise that it is because we need to receive it not just as a group, but individually.

    One part has been clear to me that Receiving the testimony of the Holy Ghost is related to the receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost. After Baptism of water we have hands placed upon our heads and are then Confirmed a member of the church and directed or commanded to “Receive the Holy Ghost”, specifically NOT the Gift of the Holy Ghost. This, to me, appear to be the first step in this process, but what comes next? How do we progress in this Doctrine of Christ to receive the record of the Son and then the Father?

    Recently I was in a stake priesthood meeting and by no surprise one of the speakers talked about the Oath and Covenant of the priesthood as found in Doctrine and Covenants section 84, in ways that are quite normal throughout the church, but honestly are contrary to the intent of the Oath and Covenant as I understand it. There were some things that jumped out to me as they never have before. The Spirit was finally giving me some answers to long sought after questions.

35 And also all they who receive this priesthood receive me, saith the Lord;

36 For he that receiveth my servants receiveth me;

37 And he that receiveth me receiveth my Father;

38 And he that receiveth my Father receiveth my Father’s kingdom; therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto him.

39 And this is according to the oath and covenant which belongeth to the priesthood.

40 Therefore, all those who receive the priesthood, receive this oath and covenant of my Father, which he cannot break, neither can it be moved.

47 And every one that hearkeneth to the voice of the Spirit cometh unto God, even the Father.

48 And the Father teacheth him of the covenant which he has renewed and confirmed upon you, which is confirmed upon you for your sakes, and not for your sakes only, but for the sake of the whole world.

    I would like to first articulate that the oath and covenant of the priesthood has nothing to do with Ordination in the Priesthood and everything to do with receiving the ordinances of the priesthood  which are available to all worthy members.

    If I understand what this is saying then, as we listen to (and follow) the record of the Holy Ghost, we will be brought to Christ and receive his record, by way of his servants, (note it does not distinguish ordained servants, for example ordinances for women in the temple are not done by ordained men ) through receiving the ordinances of the priesthood. Once we partake of the ordinances of the priesthood and live the associated covenants we will be taught by the Father the covenants and receive his record and when we live them as he has taught them to us we receive the Father’s kingdom.

    I would like to point out one other things as it relates here

20 Therefore, in the ordinances thereof, the power of godliness is manifest.

21 And without the ordinances thereof, and the authority of the priesthood, the power of godliness is not manifest unto men in the flesh;

22 For without this no man can see the face of God, even the Father, and live.

    In the past I have always been taught that the power of godliness is all of God’s power, but as I read it presently it stands out to me that this is talking about the Power to make one like God which is really what the Doctrine of Christ is all about. Helping us reach our greatest Potential and making it our Reality.

What is the Power of the priesthood?

 

    Over the last couple of years the “Power of the Priesthood” has been emphasized over and over again. We have been implored to study it and build up our Power in the priesthood. We have been directed to do this in meetings throughout the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. To include General conference, Sacrament, Priesthood, Stake Priesthood, Sunday School meetings. It is a trend that if you haven’t noticed is considered really important, and you must not be paying any attention at all.

    The Priesthood is important and holds a very important place and is spoken of in the scriptures, specifically in the Doctrine and Covenants, but really mostly ignored through all other works of scripture. The Book of Mormon hardly even uses the term, Priesthood. In fact only Alma the Younger uses the term Priesthood at all in the Book of Mormon.

    For a man who has been given the responsibility over the Church his father established and the responsibility over the National religion as inherited from King Mosiah, who ran the equivalent of the States Religion, with the transition to governance by Judges verses the past Theocratic Monarch. Then as Alma the younger stepped away from his role of Chief Judge he repeatedly struggled to convey his authority to the people, now having separated the Church from state it is no wonder we have his words regarding the role of Priesthood Authority, but never does he mention Priesthood Power!

    Most places in the Book of Mormon where you would expect to find the term Power of the Priesthood it talks instead of the Power of the Holy Ghost which is oddly not something we talk much of in the Lexicon of the Church. Although I feel most of the time when we say Power of the Priesthood we are really talking about the Power of the Holy Ghost. If the book that holds the “fullness of the gospel” is so silent on Priesthood how important can the Power of the Priesthood be.

    If you look for the exact term “Priesthood power” you will find zero (0) references. Only a quick search of the exact phrase “Power of the Priesthood” will you find any references to this doctrinal topic in all conical scripture. You might be surprised to find there are only two (2) results for this term that is so important.

    They are found in D&C 128:8 and D&C 132:45 and in both cases they are talking about the exact same thing. This makes it really easy to identify what the Power of the Priesthood is. I encourage all to read these verses and there surrounding verses to uncover the mystery to Power of the Priesthood’s importance.

    All I can weed out of these verses is that Priesthood Power is the administration process by which ordinances, specifically sealings, are recorded on Earth and in Heaven to have eternal import. Wait! What?

    The Power of the Priesthood is simply and most accurately: The administrative function of recording simultaneously the accomplishment of sealings on Earth and in Heaven. Which is truly a remarkable thing, but why are we spending so much time talking about it, and why are we attaching so much to it that is simply not there according to the scriptures.

    I admit my search criteria might be considered overly restrictive. If you were to search for instead “Power of” you will get many more results. But here is a synopsis of those that pertain to the question at hand.

Doctrine and Covenants 113:8 – Denotes that The power of the Priesthood is to bring again Zion, and redemption if Israel by putting on Priesthood Authority. This is talking about what Priesthood Authority has the power to accomplish, not “Power of the Priesthood.”

Doctrine and Covenants 112:30 – Talks about Power of the Priesthood as it relates to Priesthood Keys over a dispensation, once again Authority not some ominous Power.

Doctrine and Covenants 131:5 – Talking about the means by which a person is sealed up unto eternal Life.

    Most of the other 40+ search results are talking about the Power of the Holy Ghost, or power of my Spirit. Not relating to Priesthood.

    If you really want to know about what leaders are calling the Power of the Priesthood, I strongly encourage you to study the Power of the Holy Ghost and just understand when people are using the wrong term that this is what they are really talking about most of the time.

 

 

Greater love hath no man?

 

John 15:13 - Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.

     This statement by the savior himself has puzzled and perplexed me off and on over the years. In my youth it seemed quite straight forward. Christ, the son of God, was declaring to what extent his love for us would take him, to the Mount of Olives and on to Golgotha.  He would Die for us. Which is true.

     We have been taught that the pure love of Christ, or Charity, is a trait that is worthy of our efforts to obtain for ourselves and not just obtain, but to emulate. Does that mean, we too must Die for the ones we love, our friends, in order to truly follow in his footsteps. To become like him.

     Just previous to this classification of what great love is, the Lord gives a commandment that harkens back to the two greatest commandments. He declares in John 15:12 - This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.

     I know that my death would not be seen as a sign of love from my wife and children, my brothers and sisters, my co-workers and colleagues. So how can that equate to the Greatest of Loves?

     Although the savior did die for us, he did not use that term. He used the term “lay down his life.” I think that that is really the key to understanding what he is teaching here, it is why he was so saddened when he returned from his father’s presence to find his “friends” fishing once more, having returned to their lives.

     When your children come to you and ask for help, do you tell them you need 5 more minutes, or do you think to yourself, “I love you”, and stop what you’re doing, laying down your life, and giving it to them for that small moment so they can show you a picture of something colorful and unrecognizable.

     When you here that someone miles away needs help with something that seams meaningless and a huge time suck and completely unworthy of your time when you already feel like you are overwhelmed with what’s already on your plate, and you go and help anyway, never mentioning the sacrifice you made to be in there presence. Is that not the Greatest Love?

     I think it is important that he said that life is “laid down” because when you return; it is still there. It still needs to be done, and lived. I also think it stands out that he is not asking you to do this just for a Stanger, a nameless face in the crowd, that just stands in need. The Son of Man specifies that this Love, greatest of all is done for a Friend. That is not to imply that we should not do service for strangers because then it doesn’t really count. No I don’t mean that at all, nor do I think that the greatest of all did either. Service to a Friend, that is the level of association we should develop and foster with those that we serve, those that we love.

     I know I have served many people that I knew nothing about, moving their stuff. “STUFF!”  I remember talking to a mother and daughter as they were leaving there pew in the chapel after a sacrament meeting and saying something to the effect of, “I think your daughter left her stuff”. The mother turned to her daughter and said something like, “Love, you don’t want to leave your treasures behind.”  The daughter quickly and eagerly complied. I am still trying to take positive action from that lesson. I  have worked in yards removing blackberries and cutting and hauling fire wood, helped build and remodel homes, never even knowing who they were that I served, not even their names. To be fair I have been ok with that, but maybe I should care more, I know the savior would.

     I have heard lots of definitions in my life as to what “Love” is and almost as many variations on what it means to be “a friend.” Christ’s definition here in the following two verses seams to stand in stark contrast to what I have heard before. John 15:14

14 Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.

    This definition terrifies me. It sounds like every Popular Mean girl trope ever presented in literature or Video format. Where every reader or viewer on the outside instantly sees as Toxic, and Abusive, and you just want to grab there poor little minions and say “Run away”! But this is the sacrificial lamb the linchpin of the Father’s plan of happiness, saying the equivalent of, “You will do it if you love me.” It is like he wants you to be his Servant.  He even points this out as Christ goes on to say in verse 15 

15 Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you. 

    The Master calls them friends because he shares with them the Why of his commandments. He is sharing with them his burdens, the demands on him and his time. He is sharing the most important things of his life with them. He is sharing with them the gospel that he received from his father, our Heavenly Father. It is that sharing of knowledge and burden that makes us more than servants in the Savior eyes, but his Friends. 

    As has been said before, “the miracle was not that the Savior Died, but that he lives again.” My I invite you all too Lay down your lives a little more often, and to make a friend out of those your serve. In the name of Jesus Christ Amen.