"For The Strength Of The Hills" Was Written About The Vaudois Mountains In Switzerland--Who Knew? / Lloyd

Yesterday's post, Our early pioneers put their lives on the line because of their religious witness, referenced a verse from the Hymn "For the Strength of the Hills." The following is a great comment from Uchenna & Jen Paul. Didn't want you to miss it--Lloyd

It's interesting - at home we were discussing the hymn, For the Strength of the Hills, last Sunday and researched a little about it.

Though it first appeared in our LDS Hymnal in 1950, we learned that it was written by Felicia Hemans, who died in 1835 in Europe, so she probably hadn't heard of the church. The original poem was called "Hymn of the Vaudois Mountaineers in times of persecution," and the hills refer to the Vaudois Mountains in Switzerland (see "Our Latter-Day Hymns:The Stories and the Messages" by Karen Lynn Davidson).

The origins of the Vaudois Mountaineers, also called the Waldenses, is debated; some claim they were conservatives of the early Christian church and were driven into the wilderness because they wouldn't bow to the Roman power taking over the church and introducing doctrines they felt were contrary to the truth.

Modern scholars say they started in France in the 1100's and were denounced as heretics. During the Reformation they joined with the new protestant faith.

The bottom line is to see paralells between the persecution they endured and the ones that Mormon pioneers had to endure hundreds of years later, which makes it resonate with us. Modern day pioneers may also have to endure persecution, though in different forms.

--Uchenna & Jen

Our Early Pioneers Put Their Lives On The Line Because Of Their Religious Witness / Lloyd

In Church Sunday we were singing a hymn about pioneers (Hymn #35, For the Strength of the Hills) and I wasn't paying too much attention until the second verse:

At the hands of foul oppressors, 

We've borne and suffered long,

Thou hast been our help in weakness, 

And thy pow'r hath made us strong.

Amid ruthless foes outnumbered, 

In weariness we trod.

At that moment I realized that "pioneers" within the Mormon experience were more than trailblazers who led the way to colonizing the Intermountain West. 

After accepting the testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith about the reality of God the Father and Jesus Christ and joining the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, our "pioneers" were then hunted down and sometimes killed and often deprived of peace, freedom, and material belongings by angry and ruthless enemies. Our people were driven from the United States and eventually found some safety in the Intermountain West.

Without an appreciation for the reality of Satan, this persecution seems totally unmotivated and irrational. Even persecutors were without insight into their bizarre behavior.

But when people violate the fundamental moral and ethical principles defined within the Ten Commandments they find themselves in Satan's power, and he jerks them through episodes of intense unrest, contention, and anger, even murderous rage--also defeat, hopelessness, and despair.

Violators of the Ten Commandments, especially the law regarding sexual conduct, commonly demonstrate an over-the-top enmity towards religious and ethical people who speak up against morally inappropriate behavior. Consider the outcome for John the Baptist when he criticized Herod's unlawful marriage to Herodias (Mark 6: 16-29).

Our pioneers were all potential martyrs like any ancient and modern prophet who has been called upon by God to witness that disaster follows the evil practices of a society unraveling morally. In this same sense faithful members of the Church today share this fate with the early Mormon pioneers, whose courage, faith, and sacrifices we acknowledge and celebrate each 24th of July.

Pres. Boyd K. Packer states our circumstance clearly:

Sometimes we are asked why we do not recognize this conduct as a diverse and acceptable lifestyle. This we cannot do. We did not make the laws; they were made in heaven “before the foundation of the world” (D&C 132:5; D&C 124:41; see also Alma 22:13). We are servants only.

Just as with the prophets in ancient times, we have been “consecrated priests and teachers of this people, … [responsible to] magnify our office unto the Lord, taking upon us the responsibility, answering the sins of the people upon our own heads if we did not teach them the word of God with all diligence” (Jacob 1:18–19).

We understand why some feel we reject them. That is not true. We do not reject you, only immoral behavior. We cannot reject you, for you are the sons and daughters of God. We will not reject you, because we love you (see Heb. 12:6–9; Rom. 3:19; Hel. 15:3;D&C 95:1.

You may even feel that we do not love you. That also is not true. Parents know, and one day you will know, that there are times when parents and we who lead the Church must extend tough love when failing to teach and to warn and to discipline is to destroy.

We did not make the rules; they were revealed as commandments. We did not cause nor can we prevent the consequences if you disobey the moral laws (see D&C 101:78). In spite of criticism or opposition, we must teach and we must warn.

(See Your body really is the instrument of your mind and the foundation of your character)

True Christianity--It's Risky / Lloyd

saints on the spot

I received the following question from a really good friend:

Do you think the Lord is testing his Saints to see if they will stand up and be counted? Because we are being counted! When the vote comes down and if “Yes” wins and the Marriage Amendment is added to our constitution there will many people that will hate our church more than ever before. If No wins on the vote then we will still be hated for being a major proponent of this proposition.

Children of the covenant have a particular mission to represent the gospel in word and deed to their family, friends, neighbors, associates. And that’s becoming more and more difficult in our society.

a lawless society

We are quickly becoming like the society described in Helaman 5:2-3.

For as their laws and their governments were established by the voice of the people, and they who chose evil were more numerous than they who chose good, therefore they were ripening for destruction, for the laws had become corrupted.

Yea, and this was not all; they were a stiffnecked people, insomuch that they could not be governed by the law nor justice, save it were to their destruction.

For the most part the people in Nephi’s day could not live within established law except to be judged in violation. We experience this today whenever we see a reasonable law relaxed because there are so many violators it’s argued to be impracticable to enforce.

In this environment we are called upon to teach God’s standard of behavior and point the penitent towards Christ’s atonement for relief.

Christ’s law of love: kindly but firmly

So this was Nephi’s course of action:

And it came to pass that Nephi had become weary because of their iniquity; and he yielded up the judgment-seat, and took it upon him to preach the word of God all the remainder of his days, and his brother Lehi also, all the remainder of his days . . . (Helaman 5:4)

But how is this to be done safely and effectively? Jesus gave his disciples guidance in the Sermon on the Mount that would keep them safe until he called them home as they continued to represent Christian law to a lawless society, one that “could not be governed by the law nor justice, save it were to their destruction.”

Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.

But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.

For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?

And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?

Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect." (Matt 5:43-48)

I understand this to mean perfect in love for our fellow men, concerned enough for their welfare that we are willing to put ourselves at risk by kindly but firmly representing God’s standard of behavior to them.

a contemporary example

The religion writer for the San Francisco Chronicle cited a member of the Church who represents this ideal: “Several Bay Area Mormons said they would support the right of gay and lesbian unions to have all the rights of married couples. But the word marriage was sacred, pivotal to their concept of families, who can be "eternally united" in the afterlife.

A key church document, "The Family: A Proclamation to the World,"  says that "marriage between man and a woman is essential to His eternal plan." They also believe that children are entitled to be raised by a father and a mother.

Those words speak for Michele Sundstrom, 47, of San Jose, who has been married for 18 years and has five children.

She and her husband gave $30,000 to the Yes on 8 campaign and put a sign on their home. But in response, two women parked an SUV in front of their home, with the words "Bigots live here" painted on the windshield.

Sundstrom believes such responses must come from deep places of pain - and that gays and lesbians are entitled to the same rights as heterosexuals, just not the word marriage. Any animosity toward gays or lesbians is wrong, she said. “’There must be such deep, deep, deep hurt; otherwise there couldn't be so much opposition,’ she said. ‘They've lived with this. I guess we're getting a taste of where they live.’ (“Mormons face flak for backing Prop. 8,” Matthai Kuruvila, 27 Oct 08.)

Yay for Utah - The Economist / Judy

Finally, some happy news. Look what I found in The Economist, of all places. Be sure to check out the consensual politics!

The Mormon Work Ethic

Oct 23rd 2008 | SALT LAKE CITY

From The Economist print edition

Why Utah’s economy is soaring above its neighbours NOBODY knows quite how the contagion that broke out in Wall Street will affect the rest of America, nor how deep or how long the likely recession will be. What is certain is that some places will suffer more than others. So far Utah, a state best-known for Mormonism and pretty rocks, is looking unusually healthy. “We’ve got a lot to be proud of,” says Jon Huntsman, the governor. “Certainly more than many of our neighbours.”

Indeed, Utah has more to be proud of than any other state in the West. In September its unemployment rate was just 3.5%—less than half of California’s and the second-lowest rate in the region after oil- and gas-rich Wyoming. Last month the Milken Institute declared Provo, a sprawling settlement south of Salt Lake City, America’s best-performing city for technology output and job and wage growth. Salt Lake City itself came third…

Another, hidden, source of strength is Utah’s strange demography. Mormons tend to start families young: the average Utah woman marries at just 22.

That means the “echo boom”—the peak of childbearing by baby boomers—took place not around 1990, as in the rest of America, but ten years earlier. One reason unemployment is rising across the West is that a wave of teenagers is crashing onto the job market. Utah, by contrast, has few teenagers and lots of productive people in their late twenties and early thirties. “The timing is pretty good for a recession,” says Pam Perlich of the University of Utah.

The “cultural thing”, as businessmen from out of state delicately refer to Mormonism, helps in other ways. Utah’s almost universal conservatism makes for stable, consensual politics. It took the state legislature just two days last month to plug a $272m hole in the budget. By contrast, California’s budget was 85 days late. Nevada’s politicians are preparing for a nasty fiscal fight next year.

Mormons do not come to work nursing hangovers, and they are inclined to stay put in the promised land rather than pursue better-paying jobs elsewhere. Matthew Donthnier, who is hiring for a new Procter & Gamble plant, has only one complaint about the local workforce: it can be a little difficult to persuade people to toil on Sundays. [Emphasis added]