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I had a small moment of what I will call insight this morning. I was considering a comment that God accomplishes his plan for us in our mortal existence through good and evil — that he uses the evil in the world to accomplish his work. Initially I resisted the idea that any evil could help forward the purposes of God, but then I realized the necessity of opposition in all things – and that the opposite of a great truth is another great truth (reference to a J Bonner Ritchie talk). I’m not saying God was pleased with the Holocaust, but now that it exists in our history we can become stronger in some way because of it. In the line of thought that all truth is of God I think we can recognize that we grow from both blessings and trials. I think it would be difficult to say which one is more valuable to us in the end. I would be more likely to say God allows our trials than directs them to us, but he also sends rain to the just and unjust.
That’s where the thought hit me that God is in both the sun and the rain. All the living growing plants need both (not absolutely but as a rule), while we may enjoy one more than the other it is for our benefit to receive both. Some uneducated observers might see the sun and the rain at war with each other, but together they aid the process of life.
This is where everything ties together for me. Honestly, I don’t ‘get’ the absolutist type faith; the paradoxical faith makes so much more sense to me. If I try to say “the sun is of God but the rain is from the devil” then I will tend to appreciate the sunny days, abhor the rain, and preach sunshine while I demean and promote fear of rain. Then comes the “flip” that I all too often observe in exMormons — they in some way come to understand the benefits of rain. Oh! they cry, I’ve had it all wrong! It’s the rain that really promotes life, the sun will cause things to wither and die.
I am saddened by the failure to throw off the polarized lenses and the inability to see the full range of color that the ‘paradoxical’ view can allow.
I also think in our process of staying it is important to see both sun and rain within the church. For me Elder Holland’s Oct. ’09 talk on the Book of Mormon had a sizable downpour in it, but I must recognize that God is in both the sun and the rain. The rain may not be as fun, but as I learn to constructively route the overflow it can ultimately be for my good.
Of course everyone sees through their own particular lense of experience. What is rain for me may be sunshine to a different set of circumstances. That to me is another reason that we must learn to see God in both, to embrace the paradox. It is not an easy transition, but I think it can be important.
Orson wrote:Of course everyone sees through their own particular lens of experience. What is rain for me may be sunshine to a different set of circumstances.
I think we reference the scripture, “God sends rain to the just and the unjust” to refer to trials and adversity. I believe this to be a very good application of the scripture, but I am also reminded that rain to a primarily agrarian society would be a very sought after blessing. Livelihoods rise and fall with the crop yields. Drought meant starvation.
Orson wrote:I would be more likely to say God allows our trials than directs them to us, but he also sends rain to the just and unjust.
I owe M&G for the following insight: “I find that it isn’t so much the trail that is tailored to the individual as the tutelage.” IOW, perhaps God’s hand is not in all things – but rather God’s hand is upon us as we face all things.
Although I see the paradox here, I still have trouble seeing the benefits from the Holocaust. I usually think it’s best to avoid all analogies that have to do with Nazism, Hitler, and the Holocaust. For some reason, this always gets people into trouble who use such examples. Not to detract too much from your message, but that was my first thought. I also wonder this — as you all know, I personally have been deeply affected by the “Use at will” attitude of a few important priesthood leaders over the years. Also, how these people have expected huge sacrifices on my part, but have not felt to treat my requests for help (adoption, guidance on how to serve a mission coming from a non-member background) with much sensitivity.
I have never, ever given them the feedback about how their actions affected me — therefore, the rain I experienced has only weakened my relationship with the Church, and the rainmakers (the priesthood leaders) have likely not grown, as they have had no feedback. The two or three I’m thinking of may well think they handled the situation admirably.
I do think it’s much easier to appreciate the thunderstorms and earthquakes after one has endured them and emerged victorious. While in the throes of suffering and uncertainty, it can be hard to see the good in the calamities without simply convincing yourself thoughs things are good — almost like a fantasy.
This thought reminded me of how people talk about volcanic eruptions and the “devastation” and “destruction” they wreak. Yet if you go to a place where a volcano erupted a couple of years later, you see life going on, new trees sprouting from the lava, animals coming back. And the soil is richer. I don’t think we can say volcanos are bad and wildlife is good. They are both natural. Can nature be said to destroy nature or is it just how all nature works together – the normal cycle of the earth? It seems off to me to place value on either. We may be moral beings, making choices and living our lives, but personifying nature doesn’t seem realistic or accurate. I have reached great peace about many things by realizing that, although there is “right” and “wrong”, most things simply “are” – that we need to try to change whatever we can in order to make ourselves and the world around us better, but most things we change successfully in the short-term will rise again at a later date for others to strive to change in their own short-term. As I’ve said in other threads, I LOVE the answer God gave Moses when he asked what he should tell the Hebrew people when they asked who sent him. “I AM” is a powerful, deep, incredibly liberating description of God, and I have come to look at my own life in much the same way. I am tryng to be the best “I am” I can be, but I also recognize that
I am who I am– and fulfilling the measure of MY creation might be different than it is for someone else. SD, I know it quickly becomes confusing but I’m not really trying to say there are ‘benefits’ from the Holocaust. The “make lemonaid” analogy doesn’t fit either. Maybe we can think of it as defining the lower limits of what human kind is capable of. Knowing those extremes can be useful as we plan our future direction, and as we personally reflect on the types of attitudes, thoughts and actions that may grow toward that type of behavior. We can learn lessons from mistakes, that is how we make the best use of them. My other thought [edit: like Ray said as I was typing] is that God IS what is. God is the source of all truth, He exists in the reality – whatever that is. We do ourselves no favor living in denial (mental illness and a few other exceptions excluded) but should learn to accept (not always approve of) things and live with inner peace. Our purpose is to search and learn and improve, even when we can’t influence others to improve, we can lead by example and my thought is in our highest potential we can give others the freedom to grow or stagnate at their own pace – of course while we hope to minimize the detrimental effects of their choices on others. That’s not saying we don’t try to influence them to achieve more, we simply don’t judge our achievment by their choices. All pure motivations are out of love.
Roy, you helped me realize that living in an arid land I interpret the scripture “…sends rain on the just…” as a blessing!
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