Tidbit Tuesday - True Worship

"We have hundreds of thousands of youth in this heaven-blessed Church, and they must be taught the restored truth. But they must know that this truth includes virtue as well as worship and that there can be no true worship without chastity."

Mark E. Peterson
Conference Report, April 1965

Heed and Counsel

An ancient prophet has given us prophetic insight as to why a people - his "family" - were completely destroyed.

Though I could be wrong - because I am not versed in history or humanities or psychology - I believe the rise and fall of a society may, in great part, depends on the treatment and regard given to women and children.

 And, at least for me, prophets trump university classes, professors, research stats and Phd's.

One of the atrocious scenes described by Mormon, is his observance of the Lamanites in their degenerate and depraved (remember that they were considered "the enemy"), taking Nephite families as prisoners and then slaying the "husbands and fathers of those women and children," and then feeding "the women upon the flesh of their husbands and the children upon the flesh of their fathers" (Moroni 9:8).

I don't even want to imagine . . .

Because I have thought nothing could be worse than that. 

But Mormon goes further, telling his son Moroni, "And notwithstanding this great abomination of the Lamanites, it doth not exceed that of our people . . . For behold, many of the daughters of the Lamanites have they taken prisoner; and after depriving them of that which was most dear and precious above all things, which is chastity and virtue - . . . they did murder them in the most cruel manner, torturing their bodies even unto death . . . and they do it for a token of bravery" (Moroni 9:9-10).

And boy, I've been thinking about the symbolism of how our society "slays" the husbands and fathers of so many women and children and how women and children find reason to feed upon their flesh.

And how daughters of Heavenly Father are taken (or give themselves) "prisoner" and are deprived of "that which is most dear and precious above all things, which is chastity and virtue."

And how bodies are "self-tortured" and minipulated, becoming symbols of art or lifestyle or rebellion.

Oh, how the God of Heaven and Earth must weep.

Gratefully, the prophet Mormon (unlike news stories that fail to give hope at the scene of the horrific and appalling), does provide the comfort and the guidance of how to stand above such a wicked generation.

"Be faithful in Christ," he says.

"And may not the things which I have written grieve thee, to weigh thee down to death; but may Christ lift thee up, . . . and the hope of His glory and of eternal life, rest in your mind forever.

"And may the grace of God the Father, whose throne is high in the heavens, and our Lord Jesus Christ, who sitteth on the right hand of His power, until all things shall become subject unto Him, be and abide with you forever" (Moroni 10:25-26).

The Happiness of Virtue and Chastity

Today, as I did my errands - with my two youngest children - we found ourselves in a Women's Clinic

As we waited to pick up some information, my children and I sat on a couch in a small waiting room facing a teenage couple.  They were comfortably intertwined with one another, which made me uncomfortable!

The girl was crying.

I immediately knew why.

My five year old daughter stared, trying to understand the tears of this young girl.

Several times she whispered in my ear, "Mommy, why is that girl crying?"

Each time I whispered back, "I'll tell you when we get out."

And sure enough, the moment we stepped out of the clinic my daughter wanted to know.

So we walked a few steps and I knelt beside her.  The Spirit (the WONDERFUL, INCREDIBLE Holy Ghost) gave me the words to say:

"Honey, that girl and that boy we saw in there are not married to each other and they just found out she is going to have a baby.  And the girl is sad."

I could see the look in her eyes.  Having babies in our family is a HUGE, HAPPY deal.  I could see her confusion.

"Heavenly Father wants us to have babies after we are married.  Mommy and Daddy were so happy when we had you and all your brothers because we had you after we were married in the temple.  Because that boy and girl did not keep the commandments, and they are not married and now they are going to have a baby, they are sad.  And Heavenly Father is sad, too."

My daughter nodded.  She understood.

The Spirit provided a beautiful lesson for the both of us on the happiness of virtue and chasity.