Why I Love Ambiguity and You Don't Need To

I’ve been thinking a fair bit recently about the large variance in how individuals respond to going to Church and the various topics that are discussed. I struggled for quite some time with enjoying my Church-going experience (and to be honest still do on occasion). Yet, I continue to go because Church was never a social or primarily fun activity for me. At first, I went out of habit, developed by my family regularly attending Church for as long as I remember. However, I gradually began to go as an outward manifestation of my love for and commitment to follow Jesus Christ. Church was a place where I hoped to commune with the divine, a piece of grabbing on to the holy and keeping it with me throughout the Sabbath.

However, this was sometimes frustrating, when I would go and felt that the lessons or discussions were superficial or went in a direction that I disagreed with. I suppose that is the downfall of strongly holding the minority opinion. I would come away from Church frustrated and irritated, wondering how people could think the things that they do or not even consider anything beyond the surface. As I faced this continued struggle, I had a moment of inspiration, partially inspired by a fantastic piece of Eugene England’s titled, “Why the Church is as True as the Gospel”.

I realized that everyone has unique talents and perspectives and that together we can come closer to the truth. As much as I would like people to see things a little more broadly or openly, perhaps that’s not what they need from the Church. It’s also not what they bring. Yet, to find the truth, the full picture, we need to bring ideas into conflict, to feel out the contradictions and the oddities. We need to use what each of us was given for the good of everyone else.

Perhaps a fitting explanation of my belief that truth and beauty lies in conflict is in a short poem I wrote a year ago to define beauty (it’s intended to be beat poetry, complete with bongos accompanying).

A QUEST FOR TRUTH

The moonlight breaking through the clouds

The sun peaking through the gray mist

One man running through many crowds

Ambiguous as a clenched fist

A sign waiting up in the sky

A bright spot amidst the darkness

One man ready to jump and fly

Conflict asserts her agelessness

The joy of first discovery

The pain of not fully knowing

One man deep in recovery

The Search is forever flowing

A quest for truth

A search for life

Conflict brings us

Beauty in strife

If I can help provide a differing perspective than most have and provoke some thought causing individuals to think about why they believe what and how they do, then I have helped build the Kingdom. If others can bring me to question and deepen my own convictions and understanding, then they have built the Kingdom.

The thing is, all of us are needed. I need to remember that not everyone loves to question and dive into theological speculation to enrich their spirituality. To reference an overused, but effective analogy, as the body of Christ, we can’t all fill the same function- if the eyes tried to do what the hands did or the feet wanted to be your mouth, everything would fall apart. We all have a role to fill and together we make a whole. Not everyone rejoices in ambiguity. And that’s the way it needs to be. For all of us. 

This I Believe

I Believe in God.

I believe that God is love.

I believe that belief is valuable.

I believe that Jesus Christ is my Savior and my Friend.

I believe that scripture (the Bible, Book of Mormon, etc.) is the word of God as understood by prophets, historians and others that recorded their revelations.

I believe that all can receive revelation from God.

I believe prophets receive divine guidance for the world, however filtered it may be by their own experience.

I believe that God communicates with me through the Spirit.

I believe that God constantly strives to help humanity better understand His word and truth.

I believe that Truth should be sought for and Embraced.

I believe that people are inherently good.

I believe that the worth of every soul is great.

I believe that I have a Mother in Heaven, without whom God is incomplete and not god.

I believe that men and women are equal and deserve equal rights.

I believe that we are all children of Heavenly Parents.

I believe that we all have freedom to choose.

I believe that we will be judged by what we have done with what we were given.

I believe that I have the divine potential to become like God.

I believe in the power of music.

I believe that all things testify of Christ.

I believe that literature, film and other mediums of art teach truth in profound ways.

I believe that life does not end with death, nor did it begin with birth.

I believe that life is to bring me joy.

I believe that joy is made sweeter by experiencing suffering and pain.

I believe in the power of laughter.

I believe that all things will fail, except for Charity- pure, divine Christ-like love.

I believe that embracing Truth will lead to joy.

I believe that Truth can be found in many places, but that Truth will always bring me closer to God.

I believe that belief is power.

To paraphrase the words of Mark in his ninth chapter, twenty-fourth verse, And straightway I cried out and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.

And This I believe. 

My Scripture: Sources of Truth

What is Scripture for you? Once I was asked this in a Bible as Literature class by the professor. My gut reaction was to spout off the LDS canon of scripture, The Bible, The Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants and Pearl of Great Price, yet something caused me to reflect and consider what I truly consider scripture and what makes something scriptural. Scripture for me is a source of truth. I am reminded of Nephi’s words in 2 Nephi 25:26 describing why they wrote and compiled records, “And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach 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.”

Those purposes detail what makes things scriptural. That may seem limiting to some, but I find it to be rather inclusive and liberating. Alma 30:40-44 and Moses 6:63 expand the idea of what testifies of Christ and the reality of God by saying that “all things denote there is a God”. Hence, scripture for me has expanded to include works of literature, art, film, etc. I generally have rankings or categories for scripture that designate the weight given to them. The Canon is top, with words of prophets next, viewed as a commentary on or extension of the Canon, sometimes with disastrous implications, that I discount as scripture. Other religious texts, such as The Quran, form another category. The Bloggernacle and articles written for various Mormon or other religious studies’ journals provide perspectives and insight that I may not otherwise receive. However, the largest and for me most expansive and powerful supplement to scripture is great works of literature and film.

Some works that resonate strongly with me include the Harry Potter series, The Man Who Was Thursday, Trinity, A Tale of Two Cities, Ender’s Game, Alfred Lord Tennyson’s “Ulysses”, “Ode: Intimations of Immortality”, “O, Captain, My Captain”, “Invictus”, Star Wars Saga, The Dark Knight Trilogy, The Lion King, The Fountain, Les Miserables, etc.

These works have gained their personal scriptural status by the spiritual experiences that I have had interacting with them. The witness that I have felt from the Spirit helps me to better understand Truth. Perhaps this occurs because I have a deep abiding love for literature and film. Perhaps because the exploration of doctrinal truths in a different context causes new revelation to be had. Again, this is not to say that I value such works as greater than canonized scripture, but simply supplement the canon with works that I have interacted with and felt a deep, moving connection to the divine. I feel that as long as I am grounded in Canon, it is possible and beneficial to seek truth anywhere it can be found.

Ultimately, scripture is that which brings us closer to God, that teaches of truth. The truth may be expressed in a variety of ways, perhaps literature and film are not your thing, but you feel the majesty of God in nature or in a busy city. Maybe it’s art that touches you or photography or language. I seek for truth and embrace it, wherever it may be.