At the time of Joseph Smith, there was an incredible amount of excitement among the saints, especially regarding the concept of the priesthood being power beyond the grave. For many, this was a new concept to have the power of God being all encompassing, instead of the power of many with obvious limitations. The struggle to grasp this concept was explained by Joseph Smith in section 128 verse 8, and further explained in several other scripture.
In section 128 verse 8, Joseph is writing to the saints concerning baptism for the dead, and explaining specifically that “whatsoever you record on earth shall be recorded in heaven”. Joseph Smith also makes the intertextual reference to Matthew 16, when peter is given the sealing authority, that even as he was able to bind on earth and in heaven, so do our records have nearly the same effect. The most difficult concept to grasp is that of how the priesthood can operate beyond the grave and out of this world, a concept that I am still trying to understand fully. Joseph Smith references Matthew 16, and the sealing power given to Peter when he said, “whatsoever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatsoever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” This intertextual reference must have been familiar in the ears of the early saints as they were familiar with the Bible, and what the Savior had conferred upon Peter, but it is further expanded to that the binding is also interpreted as a record being taken. Even from the first official meeting of the church, a record had been kept of those who were baptized into the church, and here Joseph is making the strong connection between the priesthood and the record that is being made.
In Doctrine and Covenants 121:36, this concept of divine power is further explained when it is stated that the “rights of the priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven”. This further helps to explain that when the priesthood is exercised righteously, it is as if a conduit is open from heaven, and there is literal power coming down to perform the ordinance, something that the early saints would have known about, but also that would have been a harder concept to understand. The saints were still very young in their spiritual progression, and although many would have known a great deal about the church, entirely grasping the reference to the powers of heaven must have been daunting to newly baptized members. It is understandable here to see how critical of a role Joseph Smith had, to lead the saints and to teach them about the priesthood, as he had previously had many more experiences and was comparatively much more mature spiritually speaking.
As also taught in Alma 13:7, the priesthood is more eternal than probably most of us understand. It is stated that “this high priesthood, … without beginning of days or end of years, being prepared from eternity to all eternity.” From this example, we can see that the priesthood was operable long before the earth was made, and that it would have transcended the creation of the world and been placed upon the earth, still with the actual priesthood power coming from heaven. With this knowledge, it would only make sense that with the power going from heaven to earth, that record of the use of sacred authority could go from earth to heaven.
The Lord again teaches this same principle incredibly plain terms in Doctrine and Covenants 132:13 when He says, “And everything that is in the world… that are not by me or by my word, saith the Lord, shall be thrown down, and shall not remain after men are dead, neither in nor after the resurrection, saith the Lord your God.” This makes it all the clearer that the authority of God is authority that stretches farther than this world. Elder M. Russell Ballard relates the experience of sealing his son in his book Our Search for happiness. He states clearly that he was only performing the ordinances because he had been ordained to do so. He says, “I certainly wouldn’t claim the authority to perform marriages that would bind people to each other through the eternities without authorization from the God of eternities.” (Page 66) This teaching is clear that in order for ordinances to be enforce after this world, the authority must come from God, who’s authority is the only authority that will be in effect outside of this world.
Overall, section 128 greatly strengthens our understanding of priesthood authority and we can see the development of its understanding for the early saints. Even though it took teaching from the prophet, many of the saints were able to grow in their understanding because of both ancient and modern scripture.
It's interesting what this section teaches us about the priesthood. If, before this life, the priesthood was in effect, wouldn't it make sense that men and women were both using it? With the Ordain Women movement happening recently I've been thinking a lot about the significance of men holding the priesthood vs. women and it doesn't seem like there is a divine reason other than order. It seems like in the eternities no specific gender is "ordained" with the priesthood, but rather we are all equal partners with power from God. (It's not like we ordain men who have passed away) Because the priesthood is eternal, and men and women are equal ("God" refers to a man and woman joined together) it seems like ordaining men is more of a clerical and cultural tradition than divine in nature. I wonder if, with this movement going on, we will receive new revelation on the subject.
ReplyDeleteMy thoughts are really scattered on this topic, but I know the priesthood is so important and I'm grateful that we have it restored in our church today regardless.
I think you are right, Emily, in that we don't know the reasons. I have even heard Elder Oaks (I think it was) acknowledge that we don't know the reason for men being ordained and women not. A couple of points, though. First, we DO ordain deceased men to the priesthood in the temple. Second, the new and everlasting covenant of marriage is an order of the priesthood (see D&C 131), and it is only entered into jointly by men and women. I have never been "ordained" to the priesthood, but I consider myself to be part of the priesthood and to have priesthood power in my own life by virtue of my temple covenants.
DeleteFinally, I have faith in the Lord and in the channels of revelation that if any changes ever need to be made, they will. But it will come through those channels and not through popular agitation.
I too think the early saints were familiar enough with the bible to have noticed the language. It also shows us a bit of how sacred priesthood ordinations are. The words chosen in this revelation, and the sealing power given to Peter came straight from the Lord himself.
ReplyDeleteThe amazing thing is that he can continue to teach us using those same words. I love the quote by Elder Ballard as well. Why would you claim such authority that can promise those kind of blessings. If you were wrong, you would be doing any couples you married a great disservice. The Fact is, God knows what he is doing, and his plan will provide us with the most happiness.
I like the phrase “And everything that is in the world… that are not by me or by my word, saith the Lord, shall be thrown down, and shall not remain after men are dead, neither in nor after the resurrection, saith the Lord your God.” It really brings an eternal perspective to the importance of the activities that we value in this life. I've said "no more professional sports?" in the past as a joke in regards to this doctrine, but it really should make us think more about where our priorities lie. If we spend most of our lives doing things and giving our time to activities that do not matter after this life, have we spent our lives well? I think that is a question we should ponder often. The same principle applies to stages in our individual lives. If we spend most of our time during college doing things that won't be beneficial in the long run, have we wasted our time?
ReplyDeleteTrue that. I was just thinking today about how we get to the end of the day and it seems so difficult for my fiancee and me to squeeze in a little bit of time for reading the scriptures together and praying with her apartment. It seems like it's just one more thing in the way of going to bed. But then I thought that if we have to squeeze those things in, perhaps our priorities are a little out of wack. Granted, it is the end of the semester, but maybe we should squeeze some things out of our lives so that daily personal and family scripture study and prayer take top priority, and everything else fits in nicely around it. Perhaps we shouldn't be trying to "squeeze in" anything at all, because I don't think the Spirit will try to "squeeze in" if our schedule is too full to have time to listen to and follow Him. All those things that we fill our time with will be thrown down, but the gospel and our families and charity never faileth.
DeleteA question came into my head when I read the following sentence from your blog post: "The saints were still very young in their spiritual progression, and although many would have known a great deal about the church, entirely grasping the reference to the powers of heaven must have been daunting to newly baptized members" For some reason this caused me to think about new converts and investigators from recent years in the church. To those who have served missions- what are investigator's attitude toward the priesthood? Is this a difficult concept for them?
ReplyDeleteI served in Argentina, and I think that even many Catholics, at least in South America, don't really grasp the concept of priesthood, even though the Catholic Church is the only church that could even make a claim to priesthood authority. Some didn't even know what it was at all. To many it is simply being in the position of a priest or other clergyman–-one is said to be "in the priesthood." I think very few people have an understanding of priesthood the way we do, as an authority and power to perform ordinances and other works in the name of God, being received by one already possessing that authority through a holy ordinance. And I think very few people see priesthood authority as a necessary element of the gospel of salvation. It is sometimes hard for them to see the need for priesthood authority at all.
DeleteEmily, I think that is an interesting insight. Especially now that women are allowed to pray at conference, I can see why many Saints are wondering if we will receive new revelation pertaining to women and the priesthood. Personally, I have a hard time seeing women holding the priesthood, but you do make an interesting point!
ReplyDeleteAlso, after reading D&C 132:13, where it says, “And everything that is in the world… that are not by me or by my word, saith the Lord, shall be thrown down, and shall not remain after men are dead, neither in nor after the resurrection, saith the Lord your God”, I really started thinking of how I prioritize my life. I realized that I sometimes focus way too much on things that are worldly and materialistic. This was a much needed reminder that I need to focus more on my spiritual growth rather than my materialistic priorities.
This post reminded me of something Elder Holland in his talk "I know that Joseph Smith, who acknowledged that he wasn’t perfect,15 was nevertheless the chosen instrument in God’s hand to restore the everlasting gospel to the earth. I also know that in doing so—particularly through translating the Book of Mormon—he has taught me more of God’s love, of Christ’s divinity, and of priesthood power than any other prophet of whom I have ever read, known, or heard in a lifetime of seeking." This reminded me what a beautiful, important thing Joseph Smith restored to us. It also made me think about the role that each one of us has the the Great Plan of Salvation and how we can help eachother on the road to exaltation.
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