Saturday, December 24, 2011

Christmas Reflections, 2011


"Adoration of the Wise Men," Murillo, 17th ct.
It’s Christmas Eve in midtown Manhattan. My wife has just returned from picking up some sundries at a local clothing store, where she was mistreated by staff, and actually held by the shoulders and repositioned out of the way, by one fellow on a quest for bargains. “New York is a rough place on Christmas Eve,” she told me on her return, and so it is.

There has certainly been a manic feel in the air over the last week or so. Yesterday I passed a fellow while crossing 57th Street at 6th Avenue. In that strange modern custom whereby people advertise the most intimate details of their lives to total strangers as they yell into their mobile phones, I heard this gentleman shouting, “It’s crazy! Out of control! I just spent $600 on gifts . . .” before he walked out of range.

Again, so it is, crazy and out of control. It is a commonplace observation to note that Christmas has become overly commercialized. But distortions always have something that they are distorted from, so we might well look to see what is the pure impulse that is at the heart of this holiday that has become so identified with heavy expenditure. And here we find something to ponder. For although buying is not at the real heart of the holiday, giving is.

The late Gordon B. Hinckley, then the second counselor in the First Presidency of the LDS Church, had this to say about the meaning of Christmas:

Christmas means giving. The Father gave his Son, and the Son gave his life. Without giving there is no true Christmas, and without sacrifice there is no true worship. There is more to Christmas than neckties, earrings, toys, and all the tinseled stuff of which we make so much. (“‘What Shall I Do Then with Jesus Which Is Called Christ?’,” December 1983 Ensign, emphasis in original)

The traditional interpretation that Latter-day Saints make is that Jesus was actually born on the ancient equivalent of April 6, 1 bc, and that Jesus was crucified on the same date in 33 ad. So it is that the day of Jesus’ birth marks his Father’s gift to us, and the day of his death marks the gift to all humanity of the Atonement of Christ—and it is the same day.

The world knows little of this. For the world at large, the whole gift-giving-at-Christmas meme begins with the arrival of the Wise Men, the Magi, who came to adore the infant Jesus, and bestowed upon him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. This moment has been immortalized in uncounted works of art through the centuries, such as the 17th century work by Murillo shown above.

So what does that all mean for us? What is it that we are to learn from all this collection of gift-giving, giving that is conducted even on a cosmic scale? Perhaps we can learn something from Murillo’s painting, above.

There is Jesus in a manger, attended by his mother Mary and Joseph. There are no supernatural elements in the painting, no nimbus of glory here that says This child is the Savior of the world. (Well, maybe there’s the tiniest hint of a nimbus about baby Jesus’ head. But I’m guessing that no one is really noticing this.)

To someone completely ignorant about Christianity, this looks like quite the curious visit: some extraordinarily well-dressed, well-to-do individuals, heavily guarded (see the pointy spears) and laden with some very serious bling (note the jewel-encrusted gold box at the foot of the manger), who have visited a very ordinary-looking family in the humblest of circumstances. (The place surrounding the manger has collapsed timbers and disordered stonework.)

Now, we who know the account in the New Testament know why these powerful individuals were visiting this family of seeming nobodies. The Wise Men possessed special knowledge that this was Someone Special. And that is what prompted everything: the long and arduous journey, the expensive gifts, the danger.

But let’s consider this. Latter-day Saints, too, possess special knowledge. We know that the people we pass by each day are not nobodies; each one of them is a literal Child of God, with a divine birthright that includes the potential of veritable exaltation to godhood. That’s everybody, including the people who live beneath bridges, or huddle in the cold in doorways and alleys just off the street.

So here’s my thought, my suggestion for acting out the spirit of giving in a Magi-like way: Bring some gift to the homeless tonight or tomorrow. Pizza works very nicely, take-out sandwiches, food of just about any kind, really. Orange juice or simply pure bottled water. In many cases, baby food. Yes, you may well be working outside of your comfort zone to do this. (On the other hand, I’m sure the whole journey-across-the-desert-sands thing was a bit uncomfortable for the original Magi, too.)

Twenty centuries ago, God gave us His Son as the ultimate Christmas present. That baby was honored by some of the greatest people of that generation, even though he was in a smelly stable, born to a poor family. (In a way, for that night at least, Jesus Himself was homeless.) It would be a particularly appropriate way of commemorating that birth to go bring gifts to those whom the world least honors, for each of them is also a Child of God.

As President Hinckley continued:

Christmas means giving—and “the gift without the giver is bare.” Giving of self; giving of substance; giving of heart and mind and strength in assisting those in need and in spreading the cause of His eternal truth—these are of the very essence of the true spirit of Christmas.

Merry Christmas.

Copyright 2011 Mark E. Koltko-Rivera. All Rights Reserved.

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[The image is a reproduction of the painting “Adoration of the Wise Men,” by BartolomĂ© Esteban Murillo (1617-1682). The image is in the public domain, and was obtained through Wikipedia.]

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Freemasons and the LDS Temple Ceremonies

For over 150 years, there has been contention about whether the LDS temple ceremonies were essentially stolen from the initiation rituals of Freemasonry. As it happens, I am a Freemason; of course, long-time readers of this blog are well-aware that I am a Latter-day Saint, as well. Being intimately familiar both with the LDS temple ceremonies and the Masonic initiation rituals, I have some thoughts on this matter. I shall be presenting those thoughts as a streaming video on the Worldwide Exemplification of Freemasonry website (http://www.weofm.org/) this Saturday, August 20, at 8 p.m. Eastern. Thereafter, the hourlong presentation will be available through the Video tab on the WEOFM website, at least through the end of 2015.

I have wanted to address the controversy on this issue in a productive way for many years. I am very grateful to the Worldwide Exemplification of Freemasonry, and its current master, Brother Albert McClelland, for giving me this opportunity to present my thoughts. My presentation is respectful to both traditions; this is not an expose of either. This is not a “talking head” show, either; I have included hundreds of photos and illustrations.

I am looking into publishing an expanded version of this presentation through an on-demand publisher. Watch this space for more details. In the meantime, enjoy the video presentation.

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Early Christian Books on Metal Plates Discovered—Some Sealed, Like the Book of Mormon


A post this morning on The Lookout, a Yahoo! news blog, reported that a team of British archaeologists was investigating a collection of seventy small books, or codices, made out of lead plates, possibly dating back to the first century of the Christian era, discovered in Jordan. (One such codex is pictured above.) The story was originally reported in the online edition of the Daily Mail (United Kingdom). Some of the codices were completely sealed (as pictured below), a fact which led the archaeologists to recall “the book ... sealed with seven seals” mentioned in the biblical Book of Revelation (New Testament, Revelation, chapters 5 and 6).



Mindful of a string of recent frauds involving supposed archaeological artifacts, some specialists are urging caution and careful authentication before claims are made on the basis of these codices. All that is as it should be. For the sake of discussion, let us assume that the codices are ultimately found to be authentic.

For Latter-day Saints (LDS), there are all sorts of interesting things to talk about here. First of all, there is the matter of sacred writings on metal plates, in relation to the Book of Mormon. Then there is the matter of some of the codices being sealed, also in relation to the Book of Mormon. Finally, there is the matter of LDS prophecies concerning the coming forth of “other books” than the Bible and Book of Mormon.

Books on Metal Plates

It has often been noted that the validity of the LDS faith stands or falls on the validity of the Book of Mormon, a uniquely LDS scripture. Joseph Smith wrote that an angel had been sent by God to tell Smith about an ancient book written on golden plates, and that he, Smith, later obtained the book, and translated it as the Book of Mormon that we have today. (A brief LDS description of the Book of Mormon and its production may be found here.)

The mainstream Christian world has long condemned the Book of Mormon as anathema: there are no valid prophets, let alone valid written prophecy, after the New Testament, they say. Many have then gone on to criticize the Book of Mormon on its formal characteristics, including its seemingly exotic format: a book, supposedly written on metal plates, bound by rings of metal, with some of the plates actually sealed because Joseph Smith was not permitted to read them. Who had ever heard of such a thing?

Well, pretty much no one, in 1830, when Joseph Smith first published the Book of Mormon. However, as noted in a 2007 article by William J. Hamblin, in the years since the publication of the Book of Mormon, a number of archaeological finds have been made involving sacred writing on metal plates in the area of the Mediterranean.

Up until the 1950s, one could criticize all of that research on the grounds that no such metal books had emerged from the context of ancient Judaism, which supposedly formed the matrix from which the Book of Mormon emerged. The 1952 discovery of the Copper Scroll among the Dead Sea Scrolls put that criticism to rest; the Copper Scroll is written, of course, on metal. (See the Hamblin article’s link above for other examples of ancient Jewish writing on metal plates.)

Yet, the criticism could still be made that there were no examples of Christian literature on metal plates. If found to be authentic, the lead plates described in today’s news articles changes that situation altogether: it is clear that someone in at least one ancient Christian community created Christian books written on metal plates, and quite a few books at that.

Sealed Plates

Another ground of criticism of the Book of Mormon is the matter of the supposedly sealed part of the plates. Joseph Smith stated that about one-third of the plates of the Book of Mormon were sealed, and that he had been instructed to leave those plates sealed, and not to attempt to read them or translate them. He also stated that he had been required to deliver the plates back to the angel after Smith had translated the unsealed section of plates; presumably this was, in part, to ensure the security of the sealed portion of the Book of Mormon.

The critics’ judgment is that this is awfully convenient. They say that Smith invented an excuse so that he would not have to produce the plates of the Book of Mormon for the public. The idea that some of the plates were sealed, they say, is merely a contrivance stolen from the story of the book sealed with seven seals, mentioned in the biblical Book of Revelation (as noted above).

If found to be authentic, the lead plates described in today’s news articles changes that situation altogether, as well: it is clear that someone deliberately sealed some of the codices, as illustrated above. This was therefore not necessarily some practice invented by Joseph Smith, or stolen from the Book of Revelation, but rather represents a continuation of a heretofore little-known practice concerning, perhaps, especially sacred literature.

The Coming Forth of “Other Books”

The Latter-day Saints have long been told that there are still sacred records to come forth, records that will be of worth to us in the latter days. In the Book of Mormon, the ancient prophet Nephi is shown a vision of what was, to him, the far future. As he described the vision, he say that after the publication of the Book of Mormon itself, in our day, “other books”—presumably ancient books long lost—would come forth to provide evidence of both the Bible and the Book of Mormon (Book of Mormon, 1 Nephi 13:39).

Even if found to be authentic, the recently discovered lead plates may not be the prophesied “other books.” However, their mere existence and discovery serve to remind all the Saints that the prophecies are still valid, even though yet to be fulfilled. If anything, this should inspire the Saints to study carefully the sacred records that we have now; only then will we be eligible to receive more.

Copyright 2011 Mark E. Koltko-Rivera. All Rights Reserved.

Readers are invited to become “followers” of this blog through the box in the upper-left-hand corner of this webpage, just under the title of the blog. Readers are also welcome to comment--civilly--below.

[The images of the codices were taken by David Elkington for Rex Features. The images can be found on the website of the Daily Mail, a newspaper in the United Kingdom.]

Monday, February 14, 2011

Immigrant Rights Advocate Tries to Suspend LDS Missionary Visas to Mexico

“The Lookout,” a Yahoo!News blog, reported today in a story by Liz Goodwin that “an immigrant rights advocate in Utah is trying to provoke the Mormon Church into taking a firmer stand against state-level immigration crackdowns by petitioning the Mexican government to suspend all Mormon missionary visas.” The report states that the advocate, Raul Lopez-Vargas, is circulating a petition, “which accuses the church of not caring about Mexican immigrants because they are mostly Catholic and won't convert to Mormonism.” Lopez-Vargas reportedly wants the Church to sign the Utah Compact, which states that immigration policy is the domain of federal, not state, authorities. Tony Yapias is quoted as saying that “he suspects the delay in visas for missionaries in Brazil ... may be related to the Mormon church’s silence on illegal immigration crackdowns in the United States.”


The people behind the petition do not understand the LDS Church’s position at all. They also are either ignorant of historical facts involving the Church, or misconstrue those facts.

To say that the LDS Chuch is "not caring about Mexican immigrants because they are mostly Catholic and won't convert to Mormonism" is utterly ludicrous. For one thing, Mexican Catholics convert to the LDS Church in great numbers—hence the great force of very busy LDS missionaries in Mexico. LDS missionaries have been baptizing great numbers of Mexican Catholics since at least as far back as the mid-1970s, when I began following such issues. There is nothing about either Mexican culture or a Catholic background that keeps people from converting to the LDS faith. (Although not a Mexican, I am a member of two ethnic groups that are historically Roman Catholic—the Polish and the Puerto Rican—and I converted from Catholicism to the LDS faith, in which I remain quite active; many US converts are former Catholics.)

For another thing, the LDS Church spends about US$ 80-100 million annually in sending aid to the needy, including many people who are not LDS and who live in countries where LDS missionaries are not even allowed to preach. This includes a great deal of disaster relief activities. The LDS Church cares a great deal about the welfare of people of whatever faith they might be; this is why the LDS Church expressed support for the principles of the Utah Compact mentioned in the article, although the Church has not signed that Compact.

What it comes down to is that the LDS Church is reticent to take a position here simply because immigration is largely a political and law enforcement issue. For many years, the LDS Church has stepped back from taking positions on almost any political issue that is not what it perceives to be also a moral issue.

This is another instance in which the LDS Church cannot get an even break from some of its critics. If the LDS Church takes a stance on an issue, then people say it's interfering in politics; if it maintains a neutral stance, as in this case, then people say it ought to be forced to take a stance, especially one that suits the critics.

Incidentally, as far as the delay of Brazilian visas for LDS missionaries is concerned, this goes way back. When I was an LDS missionary myself (Japan Okayama Mission), LDS missionaries headed to Brazil commonly had their visas delayed for months--and this was in 1978.

Advocates for immigrants and various immigration policies—and political policies generally—would do well to focus on reasoned debate, rather than attempt to get their way with power politics.

(Readers are encouraged to comment below, and to become “followers” of this blog above so as to be informed about future posts.)

Copyright 2011 Mark E. Koltko-Rivera. All Rights Reserved.

[The image of the Salt Lake City LDS Temple was taken by Diliff in September 2004 and retouched by Entheta in August 2008. The image was obtained from Wikimedia Commons, which is a freely licensed media file repository.]

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Sunday, January 16, 2011

LDS 14-year-old invents top iPhone app

You know the drill. Somebody LDS (or reputedly LDS) does something bad, and the world is told in banner headlines, "Mormon Does Something Bad." We rarely get credit when one of our people does something good.

Well, here's something bucking that trend.

ABC News reports that 14-year-old Robert Nay of Spanish Fork, Utah, invented Bubble Ball, a free iPhone app that is now the number one downloaded game, surpassing Angry Birds. His technical resources? A book out of the Spanish Fork Public Library. Young Robert plans to go to BYU, and given that and his hometown, it's a pretty sure bet that he is LDS.