The Book of Mormon

Years ago, as I walked to our community swimming pool, a boy who lived down the block started walking with me and struck up a conversation. I had never really talked to him before because he was a couple years older than me--but he seemed really nice and I just felt flattered that an older guy thought it worth his time to walk and talk with me. Somehow, in this 5-minute walk to the pool, religion came up and he found out I was a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or a Mormon. Then he started asking me questions about the Book of Mormon. Up to that point, in my 15 or 16-year old experience, people who knew or found out I was Mormon didn't really know much about my church--and they knew even less about the Book of Mormon. This boy, however, asked very interesting, relevant questions. The one I remember off the top of my head is: "Does the Book of Mormon have several chapters of Isaiah in it?" I was surprised and kind of excited that he knew that about the Book of Mormon and I asked him if he had read any of it. He hadn't; but he told me his dad was a preacher at a local church and had studied religion and theology and apparently Mormonism.

So I answered his question and told him that yes, the Book of Mormon did contain several chapters of Isaiah. The Book of Mormon, itself, is the historical and spiritual record of two groups of people. One of these groups was led out of Jerusalem around 600 B.C., the same time the prophet Jeremiah of the Old Testament was prophesying of the upcoming destruction of Jerusalem. A man named Lehi was warned by the Lord that Jerusalem would be destroyed--so he prophesied, as Jeremiah did, and encouraged the people to repent and turn their hearts to God--and then was instructed by the Lord to take his family into the wilderness, away from Jerusalem to a place that God had prepared for them. Lehi obeyed and his wife and sons and daughters and a few others who went with them were spared. Eventually, their journey took them to the Americas which the Lord covenanted would be a land of promise for them if they continued to turn their hearts to God and strove to obey and live by God's word and commandments and love.

Lehi's fourth son, Nephi, wanted to know about all of this prophesying that his father was doing. And so he turned to the source; he prayed to God and asked Him if the words of his father were true. He received confirmation from God and continued to listen and live according to the counsel of his father, a prophet, and he continued to pray earnestly to God for help and truth and strength. Even through the difficult parts of his life, he sees the Lord's hand in it and is given strength to overcome and to move forward. Two of Nephi's older brothers, Laman and Lemuel, were unhappy with the move from Jerusalem and never quite reconciled themselves to the idea of their father as a prophet or to a God that would take them away from their comfortable home and lead them on a journey rife with uncertainties and danger. Eventually, Lehi's family and posterity were so much in discord that they broke apart from each other and became two separate peoples: the Nephites and the Lamanites.

The first part of the Book of Mormon is Nephi's account of these experiences. Nephi is commanded by the Lord to keep a journal or a record of his people (1 Nephi 9:3) and he does this faithfully. The Lord instructs and enables him to obtain metal plates that are inscribed with a large part of the Old Testament: the books of Moses and words of other prophets. Because of this, Lehi and his family are blessed to have Old Testament scriptures with them, the word of God to past prophets, as they travel in the wilderness towards this unknown land of promise. At one point, Nephi writes of an important prophesy that his father, Lehi relates. Nephi says:

"Yea, even six hundred years from the time that my father left Jerusalem, a prophet would the Lord God raise up among the Jews—even a Messiah, or, in other words, a Savior of the world.

 And [Lehi] also spake concerning the prophets, how great a number had testified of these things, concerning this Messiah, of whom he had spoken, or this Redeemer of the world." 

(1 Nephi 10:4-5)

This testimony of a Savior, of Jesus Christ, becomes the focus of Nephi's record (and those who continue the record after Nephi's death). Nephi includes several chapters from the book of Isaiah and explains his reasons for doing so (2 Nephi 25). He then says:

"And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins." (2 Nephi 25:26) 

To me, that scripture is the Book of Mormon. It is a book that testifies of Christ, just as the Old Testament and New Testament do. And in the accounts of these people, you see the hand of God and the saving and healing and helping power of His Son, Jesus Christ, working in the lives of very real, imperfect individuals.

Did I really go into all of this detail just to answer the young man's question about words of Isaiah in the Book of Mormon. Pretty much, yes. I am not very good at giving simple, concise book summaries--you can ask my sister. She knew the entire plot summaries, character descriptions, and significant details of most books that I read while we were growing up without ever having to read them. (I remember getting emotional when I described the end of Where the Red Fern Grows to her. I still cry thinking about that book...) I just don't want to leave anything out that I think is interesting or important....and that means my sister could basically talk about books she never read as if she had read them.

I have read a lot of books in my lifetime. And I read my favorite books over and over and over again (Tess of the D'Urbervilles, Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, are two favorites). There is no doubt that we bring our own experiences and background and beliefs into a text when we read it and that influences the way we read it and what we get out of it. However, I also believe that there is inherent, unchanging, universal truth in life and reflected in the writings and words of many individuals. I feel that truth every time I read the Book of Mormon. I truly believe that the words in the Book of Mormon our God's words to us, given through imperfect men that He called to be prophets. I truly believe that God speaks to us as individuals too. And I know, as well as anyone, that to really know something for ourselves, we have to go straight to the source. In this case, that means to know the Book of Mormon is true, you have to read it and talk to Heavenly Father about it, since God is the author of scripture.

Heavenly Father is real and He loves His children. We are His children. Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He lived a perfect life--but understands perfectly what we suffer and feel because He was subjected to all of the temptations, trouble, and pain that we are subjected to. He did not sin, but He took on Himself the punishment for our sins so that if we do our part, if we turn to Him and try to live as He taught us to live (lives full of love and dedicated service), we can be clean and whole again--our debt to justice being paid by the Redeemer. (Alma 7:10-12)

-Elin
Who is a big fan of mini KitKats at this moment.

A Review of Meet the Mormons - kind of...

So is there anyone else out there that looks on the Rotten Tomatoes website to look at critics' reviews before they go see a movie? I do. I'm not even sure why I do anymore because a lot of the time, I don't see eye to eye with them on whether a movie is worth seeing or not...or whether a movie is especially great or especially bad. But usually, there are at least one or two critics listed with reviews that I agree with. And that makes sense. We are all different. We all see things differently. We all go to movies, read books, listen to music for different reasons and bringing different life experiences and expectations to the table. It makes sense.

So when I decided to go see the movie Meet the Mormons a few days ago, I went to the Rotten Tomatoes website to see what the critics thought. And this is what they thought: 0% recommended it. I have to admit, I thought that was kind of funny. I have never gone to look at reviews for a movie and seen a 0% of the "tomatometer." Most of the critics thought the people's stories were optimistic but felt the film was merely PR stunt done by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the critics didn't like that it didn't address some of the "controversial" issues that the church doesn't agree with the media on. Things like same-sex marriage. Granted there were only 8 reviews by critics so not very many critics have seen or made any comment on the film.

What is strange to me about those 8 critics' issues with the film is the following:

1. The Church did make this movie basically to be a PR thing. And it really professes to be nothing else. The movie website says:

"Meet the Mormons examines the very diverse lives of six devout Mormons. Filmed on location and across the globe, Meet the Mormons takes viewers on a journey into the day-to-day realities of individuals living in the U.S., Costa Rica, Nepal and beyond. From their individual passions to their daily struggles, each story paints a picture as rich and unique as the next while challenging the stereotypes that surround the Mormon faith." 

The only thing the movie claims to be is the story of six diverse, devout Mormons. And it hopes to challenge stereotypes (like Mormons have lots of wives and Mormons aren't Christian) that surround the Church, not to delve into controversial beliefs.

2. The Church is not trying to hide its fundamental beliefs. Delving into Mormon doctrine wasn't the purpose of this film, according to the movie description above. However, anyone interested in knowing about the Church's beliefs about marriage, Jesus Christ, and the roles of men and women in the family and in the church can find it on the Church's websites: like this one and this one and this one. Also, in recent years, PBS and others have produced documentaries (the kind of documentaries that I assume the critics wanted this movie to be) about Mormons. One of them is called "The Mormons" and was produced by people who are not members of the Church. It talks about the history and beliefs of Mormonism and tries to show things from a non-Mormon, ex-Mormon, and devout Mormon perspective. So that kind of documentary already exists and can be viewed on the PBS website.

That being said, what did I think of the film? Well, I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. So the people portrayed in this film shared my religious beliefs. So am I biased? Absolutely. Did I like the film? I did. I thought the life stories shared in the film were vibrant and inspiring. Their stories made me want to be a better person because they were people that got up off of their chairs and did a lot of good--they accomplish things in their lives that I am too lazy or selfish or scared to do in my own life and I want to be better because of them. (I know people who aren't members of this Church who live similar lives and inspire me to be better. The people in this film happen to be members of my Church.) It was also filmed beautifully. I loved the gorgeous glimpses of Costa Rica and Nepal and even Atlanta, GA that I got as I watched. I didn't know that I wanted to visit Nepal until now.

Should you go see it? Sure! If you have no desire to know anything more about Mormons but you want to just see people doing good things and want to leave feeling a little happier yourself, then this is worth your time. (And all proceeds to the Red Cross.) If you are looking for a documentary that delves into the doctrine and history of the Church and addresses the beliefs and controversial issues from several different perspectives, then this film will probably frustrate you as it did the critics.
If you want to know more about Mormons, this is a positive look at the cream of the crop...I'm certainly not even close to as wonderful as the people in this film...but the best place to find out about Mormons is by checking out your local Mormon church. Attend a worship service there. Meet the Mormons in your community. You can find a church building in your area at this website.

Elin
- Who really wants to go to Nepal.....