A Close Embrace

The Prodigal Son from churchofjesuschrist.org

[This post is something I have shared before, but I discovered more on the topic that I want to share in the final quote at the end of the post. My personal testimony of the Book of Mormon doesn’t hang on academic evidence. Still, I smile to see that Joseph Smith’s translation of these concepts in the Book of Mormon align with Hebrew, Arabic, and Aramaic meanings for atonement.]

A few years ago, we were taught by a visiting leader in a stake conference that every major writer in the Book of Mormon used the imagery of a hug to teach the Atonement of Christ, with words such as clasped or encircled. He challenged us to search for these passages. As I have studied, I have found other words, including clothed to convey the effects of the Savior’s Atonement. Here are some examples:

  1. Nephi, in a time of grief, pleads with the Lord to “encircle [him] in the robe of righteousness.” (2 Nephi 4:33)
  2. Lehi tells his family just before his death that he is “encircled about eternally in the arms of [God’s] love.” (2 Nephi 1:15)
  3. Jacob teaches that the “righteous…are clothed with purity, even with the robe of righteousness.” (2 Nephi 9:14)
  4. Alma quotes Ammon, about those who repent, “They are encircled about with the matchless bounty of his love.” Ammon also says that the repentant are  “snatched from their awful, sinful, and polluted state.” (Alma 26:15, 17)
  5. Alma, quoting Amulek, “[God’s mercy] Encircles them in the arms of safety.” (Alma 34:16)
  6. Mormon writes that if the people had repented, they would have been “clasped in the arms of Jesus.” (Mormon 5:11)

I don’t think it trivializes the Atonement of Christ to liken it to an embrace, being snatched from ruin, clothed with righteousness, or being held during a difficult time. The more I think about it, the more I want to share it.

Rich meaning is found in study of the word atonement in the Semitic languages of Old Testament times. In Hebrew the basic word for atonement is kaphar, a verb that means “to cover over” or “to forgive.” Closely related is the Aramaic and Arabic word kafat meaning “a close embrace.”

Russell M Nelson, Daily Joy: A Devotional for Each Day of the Year, p. 178

Good Shepherd

This is one passage that I enjoyed in this lovely book,

The only sheep I kept at the ranch house were “the bums,” as orphan lambs were called in sheep parlance. They needed special care and I needed them. At the homestead they had been given their bottles of heated milk before we left the cabin, and then they followed the bunch, never very far ahead of me, however. I am sure they looked on me as just another old ewe. They were an engaging and endearing group, gamboling along the trail, playing and jumping, appreciative to a degree, the gentlest of all pets, for that is what they grew into…

As grown ewes, the former “bums” never seemed to forget the care they had received and were often leaders, cooperative and usually obedient.

Margaret Duncan Brown

Sheep are generally prone to fear and panic. Like us, they follow the wrong paths easily. No wonder the Lord is called the Good Shepherd, because he knows where to seek his sheep. No one can find rest without his special care, and those who rely upon him most come to know him best.

The Good Shepherd never gives up on us. Will we have eyes to see his efforts to help?

I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick…

Ezekiel 33:16

Old snowflakes in new places

I made these snowflakes many years ago and didn’t want to get rid of them when the season was over. They were a lot of work, so I packaged them carefully into a cabinet so I could use them another time. With the leaves gone in my backyard, I wanted a little something on my kitchen window to cheer up the view. I arranged as many as I could fit, and the effect is best at night when the dark winter night contrasts with the sparkly white designs.

I placed my best snowflakes in a floating frame on my living room wall. I can see this frame from many areas of our house, and it is surprising how I continue to feel a thrill when I see it. I am proud of these original creations, and I’m glad that I saved them!

This was a good day

This was a really good day. This photo, taken on a December’s early twilight, brings back many happy memories of a day spent together, working and celebrating family. It took some effort, but we captured a photo of everyone in their Sunday best. There is a chaos story behind most family pictures, but on this day, it was all good chaos.

Work in progress

I am getting pretty close to finishing this little project, which is based on a very famous painting. I know what it will look like when it’s finished, but it’s still a mystery to me how this is all going to come together. What a metaphor for my life.

I planning for a few months of ward conferences, so despite winter telling me to rest, I have a very full season ahead. My first counselor, on whom I depend so much, is carefully watching over her husband in his final days on earth. These years of serving in our stake callings have not shielded us from life’s challenges. My second counselor Susan passed away suddenly in 2022. Among the women in my presidency, which have changed over time, we have faced milestones along with the challenges. We’ve sent 5 missionaries into the world, had 3 children get married, and had 1 grandchild and one great-grandchild born. We have led during a pandemic and experienced two major surgeries with long recoveries. And now, my counselor’s husband is in hospice care.

There are some challenging days ahead, but if I have learned anything through my service, it is that my Heavenly Father will give me the strength to do what he has called me to do. He is doing the same for my presidency and for you.

Predictable surprise

The past few days I have been clearing away Christmas decorations: three trees, hundreds of ornaments, and even more lights. Textiles and decorations have been cleaned, whisked away, and stored. A room suddenly without a Christmas tree is a shock, isn’t it?

We are all in the midst of this cleaning and resetting process after Christmas. It’s both a chore and a relief. With the end of abundance, we are left with a blank space, so symbolic of the year ahead.

The early adult years for our children when they were able to come home for Christmas masked the reality of the change that was always happening. Inevitably, we move beyond one home base. Some traditions fall away each year as we learn to navigate new roles. But the decorations live in a predictable state of repetition.

When we are all together again for Christmas (maybe in 4 years), the same decorations will probably be on the shelves, walls, and the tree, but the time together will be even shorter. Our home will be a brief stopping place for most of our children who will be busy with family life and careers. How predictable, but surprising when it happens. We will be known by some iteration of Grandmother and Grandfather, and not so much by the titles of Mom and Dad.

As I set up and pack away Christmas, I handle reminders of our lifetime, and even those ornaments that I have passed on to our married children return to memory. So many of my Christmas decorations are inherited. I remember what it was like to visit the homes of my grandmothers when I handle their dishes and pretty things. For me, Christmas decorations are family history, and the ritual of seeing them each year helps me remember religious feeling, the innocence of childhood, and our family legacy.

I’ve taken time to pause and look back, and now I am ready for a new year. The Nativities have been replaced by hopeful whites and shiny silver (once I remove the tarnish). Happy New Year! 😃