Note: yes, that is intentional. While slightly off topic, one person I know thought for many years that part of the temple symbolism represented “One Great Hole,” and wondered when that concept would make sense to her. While I knew better than she what it meant, I wasn’t much further ahead (though in my arrogance, I thought I was). Additionally, isn’t this a metaphor of the human condition? Don’t all of us get stuck in similar kinds of ridiculous absurdities that damn our progress?
Intellectually, it is fairly easy to understand that to God, all truth, knowledge, wisdom, law, justice, mercy, sacrifice, power, authority and all the rest are undivided, inseparable, or in short, one. But, to taste that, even in the slightest degree, changes everything.
Yesterday much of the day was spent learning about “meetings,” “gatherings,” “conferences,” and the like as mentioned in scripture. While close inspection exposes that much that we do in our meetings is substantially wrong, this is not what was most important. Around all these meetings there were contexts, which joined seamlessly with other important principles: meetings, sacrament, testimony, covenants, rejoicing, praise, singing, learning, fellowship, strengthening, Spirit, Spirit, and more Spirit, love, sociality, worthiness, rebuke, confession, forgiveness…. With God, all this (and so much more) is One Great Hole.
Thanks to Dr. Gileadi, I better understand that Isaiah/God was/are mocking the leaders. In part, might this be for not comprehending the above concept? He had to teach them linearly, which is how we communicate and therefore learn in this temporal existence. Yeah or Nay (see here: Isaiah 28 Comparative)?
7 But they also have erred through wine, and through strong drink [NOTE: this is symbolic, don’t make the mistake of requiring this to be literal!] are out of the way; the priest and the prophet have erred through strong drink, they are swallowed up of wine, they are out of the way through strong drink; they err in vision, they stumble in judgment.
8 For all tables are full of vomit and filthiness, so that there is no place clean.
9 Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts.
10 For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little:
11 For with stammering lips and another tongue will he speak to this people.
12 To whom he said, This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear.
13 But the word of the Lord was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little; that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken captive.
14 Wherefore hear the word of the Lord, ye scornful men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem.
Get that?! Learning “line upon line, precept upon precept” is NOT GOOD ENOUGH!
Is this how Nephi learned?
…Behold, the wrath of God is upon the mother of harlots; and behold, thou seest all these things— And when the day cometh that the wrath of God is poured out upon the mother of harlots, which is the great and abominable church of all the earth, whose founder is the devil, then, at that day, the work of the Father shall commence, in preparing the way for the fulfilling of his covenants, which he hath made to his people who are of the house of Israel. (1 Nephi 14:16–17)
Or Enoch?
…I beheld the heavens open, and I was clothed upon with glory; And I saw the Lord; and he stood before my face, and he talked with me, even as a man talketh one with another, face to face; and he said unto me: Look, and I will show unto thee the world for the space of many generations. (Moses 7:3–4)
I always presumed they saw visions, movie-like. But, what if Enoch, being in the presence of God, clothed with His glory, and ?One With Him? was able to see at least in part as He sees the Hole Thing.
No wonder the scriptures tell us that we need to conduct our meetings by the Spirit. Meaning, we need to be directed by someone without our limitations.
…it always has been given to the elders of my church from the beginning, and ever shall be, to conduct all meetings as they are directed and guided by the Holy Spirit. (Doctrine and Covenants 46:2)
…their meetings were conducted by the church after the manner of the workings of the Spirit, and by the power of the Holy Ghost; for as the power of the Holy Ghost led them whether to preach, or to exhort, or to pray, or to supplicate, or to sing, even so it was done. (Moroni 6:9)
How pathetic are the ways of man: our programs, our tools, our conversations, our… well, everything. We think that we are supposed to learn to be leaders (and more) precept upon precept, like an infant? When are we going to grow up? Who will lead us to do this in God’s way, that we might receive all the blessings He has promised.
And, as an aside, why is it that of all the gifts of God, the one we seem to have perfected to an art form (in the Telestial sense of the word) is administration/government?
And God has placed in the Messianic Community first, emissaries; second, prophets; third, teachers; then those who work miracles; then those with gifts of healing; those with ability to help; those skilled in administration; and those who speak in various tongues. (1 Corinthians 12:28, Complete Jewish Bible)
Note: my understanding that this Greek word κυβερνήσεις — translated in various scripture as administration, government(s), governing(s), leaders, etc — is more accurately translated helmsman/pilot (…who steers the ship) not withstanding its common, modern (and ancient both?) usage tying it to government (see: Linguee.com usage examples, and modern translation).
Note: this scripture has the singular use of κυβερνήσεις in the New Testament, and is not used as best as I can tell in the Septuagint, so there is not a lot of other context to base translation. In translations of other ancient Greek documents, we see phrases like “pilot the ship of state” or “pilot the city.”
Come on, tell the truth. LDS own administration. Right? Has there ever been a “church” on the face of the earth with more people trained up in the skills of government/administration? Oh that we had similarly proficient prophets that prophesied, workers of miracles, healers, and teachers that taught the Hole Truth.