FoTR - Section Analysis Paper

.docx

School

Brigham Young University *

*We aren’t endorsed by this school

Course

225

Subject

Religion

Date

Dec 6, 2023

Type

docx

Pages

Uploaded by GeneralCrowPerson949

Karlie Winn Brother Griffiths REL C 225 – 022 November 15, 2023 Section Analysis of Doctrine and Covenants 121 Doctrine and Covenants 121 was received during one of the great trials that Joseph Smith had to face. The Saints had been gathering to Jackson County Missouri as Joseph Smith had identified it as the site of Zion, causing tension with the old settlers that already did not have fond feelings towards the Saints. On December 1, 1838, in reaction to the influx of Saints, “General Samuel D. Lucus, a leader in the Missouri Militia, imprisoned several prominent Latter-day Saints, including Joseph Smith, Hyrum Smith, Sidney Rigdon, (and) Parley P. Pratt...and other indicted Latter-day Saints joined Joseph and his cohorts at a preliminary hearing in Richmond, Missouri” to be incarcerated for false crimes put against them (Bray). Enough probable cause was found to send Joseph Smith and a number of church leaders to Liberty Jail to await another hearing in the late spring of the next year. Liberty Jail was a miserable experience for Joseph Smith and those with him. With walls two feet thick, low ceilings, open windows, and no heating at night, they faced many physical trials that pushed them to try and escape twice with no success. The lack of sunlight caused their eyes to strain and while they were allowed a small fire in the basement, they refrained from making one because the smoke had little area to escape causing them to be smoked out. In addition to the harsh living conditions, the food quality was so awful that they “could not eat it until (they) were driven to it by hunger” (Bray).

While they struggled with these many physical trials that were causing sickness to spread between them, they also had to deal with the separation from their loved ones and fellow Saints. “Relief came from visits of friends and family” as they suffered through this (“Liberty Jail”). Emma and Mary Fielding Smith, the wives of Joseph and Hyrum Smith, were able to visit them on occasion and it was here that Hyrum was able to first meet his son. They were able to update them about the state of the Saints as well as letters that were sent. As the Saints were further persecuted, the number of visitors declined. They then relied on the letters to give them information but many of them contained the rough “conditions many Saints were in as they left Missouri for Illinois during the harsh winter months” (“Liberty Jail”). Joseph Smith pleaded to the Lord asking why they were facing these trails and asking where He was, it was here that he received the revelation found in Doctrine and Covenants 121. This revelation is a message of peace and hope to the Saints and those in Liberty Jail as God confirms that He is always with them and will bring them peace. He tells them that He will always be there through their trials and throughout their life. We can relate this to what Paul wrote in chapter 8 of Romans when he stated that “neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor their present, nor things to come…(n)or height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39). This scripture shows us that there is nothing that can separate us from God’s love and guidance. He is always there and will be the hand to guide us through our trials. While we are in this life “God is not unable to see us or communicate with us, but we may be unwilling to listen or submit to His will and His time” (Eyring). This means that He will always be there even when we turn our back to Him. It is hard to see His hand or to feel His love at times, especially when we are going through trials because we could be stuck on the question

of why He would allow us to go through them. It is in these moments that we need to take time to recognize that “God is close to us and aware of us and never hides from His faithful children” (Eyring). When we do this, we can feel an easing of our burdens. Trials may last longer than we would like, and we could feel like it is unfair at times, but this section gives us hope that they will end one day. Isaiah adds to this hope when he quotes the Lord in saying “for a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee”, meaning that our trials are for a small moment and if we endure them with faith, we will be blessed (Isaiah 54:7). These two scriptures come together to give us faith that there is always an end to the persecutions and heart ache and trials. God is greater than it all and will bless us if we turn to Him and allow Him to bless us. His greatest blessing to us was our Savior, Jesus Christ, because He is the one that bring that peace and hope. He is the one that has promised that “personal peace can be achieved despite the anger, contention, and division that blight and corrupt the world” and the Saints (Cook). Because of Him, the Saints of the time were able to find peace as they were being pushed from state to state and Joseph Smith and his fellow church leaders were able to find peace and the froze each night as they slept on the concrete floors of their jail cell. Jesus Christ is the ultimate source of peace and section 121 of the Doctrine and Covenants was given to them to remind them of this. I know that this revelation was given not just for the Saints of the time but also for us today because it has given me so much peace in my life. Like everyone else, I have had many different trials in my life that have been hard and difficult and for a good portion of my life I turned my back to God. I remember at one point feeling very low in life and felt like there was no one that understood the trials I was facing and felt like there was no hope. It was then that one

Your preview ends here

Eager to read complete document? Join bartleby learn and gain access to the full version

Access to all documents
Unlimited textbook solutions
24/7 expert homework help