(July 17, 2014)
I had a
number of disconnected thoughts as I read through this chapter, but by the time
that I came to the end of it I realized that a good portion of what I was
thinking ultimately led back to submission and Priesthood authority.
First,
I was struck by the fact that Nephi stated that he was shown how to build the
ship “from time to time.” I think that
there is something important to be discovered there. After all, in periods of uncertainty or times
when we feel we are being pulled beyond our limits, we can and often do go in
one of two counterproductive ways. We
will either leave the Lord and rely on our own devices, or we will become too
dependent on the Lord and abandon our own initiative. Here Nephi shows us the proper way to go about
things – he continually works, but remains open to directions from the Lord
from time to time (as the Lord may choose to give those directions).
Second,
after Nephi had built this great ship I imagine that he could have been proud
about things. He could have, therefore,
been upset that the command to go down into the ship came to Lehi rather than
to him. After all, I have seen this in
similar situations where a quorum or auxiliary leader puts significant time and
effort into a project, only to have the Bishop change something, and to find
the quorum or auxiliary leader become offended because the final word came to
another despite their efforts along the way. Nephi, though, wasn’t like that. He understood the manner by which God speaks
to man and recognized that structure.
Third,
we see an example of the opposite from Laman and Lemuel. They would not that their younger brother
should be a ruler over them. When they
were confronted by someone pointing out their weaknesses, they became stubborn
in their behavior – looking to the hierarchal nature of the patriarchal order
as a shield to protect them in their iniquity rather than a demand to humble themselves.
Laman’s understanding of the order was
only a façade, as seen by the fact that he refused his father’s entreaties to
release Nephi.
So many
of the problems that we face in the world and in the Church can be summed up by
Laman’s words. People want gay marriage
and are upset that the Church is actively pushing for recognition of the
traditional definition of marriage? Isn’t
that nothing more than those proponents of gay marriage saying “we would not
that the Brethren should be a ruler over us.” Those feminist movements that seek the
advancement of women by destroying or supplanting the Priesthood? They are, in effect, saying, “we would not
that our brothers should be rulers over us.” Of course, in their hearts they understand
that everyone ultimately has a ruler over them – President Monson has to
account for his life to his Priesthood Leader and is responsive to the
instructions of his Master. Furthermore,
it seems to follow like night and day that when someone refuses a leader over
them that they don’t like (because that leader is telling them something that
they don’t want to hear) it is only a matter of time before that same person is
abandoning the entire hierarchical structure of the Church. First they turn against the Nephis in their
lives, and before long they have abandoned the Lehis as well.
Finally,
I was struck as I read with some similarities with my own life in what was
happening to Nephi. Like Nephi, I feel I
have been placed in bondage right now, because of errors that I have been
accused of that were not legitimate (in Nephi’s case, that he was seeking
control or domination over his brothers). Like Nephi, I am feeling the pains of the
cords which have me bound and I see the suffering of my children, now and in the
future, that have come as a result of
what is happening. The key for me right
now, though, is to be like Nephi in that I do not murmur against the Lord in
this time of difficulty, but rather that I continue to praise Him. I don’t know what His plan is, but I can only
trust that He has the best interests of me and my family in mind and He will
make all things right in the end.
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