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Some of the most interesting truths I’ve come across are paradoxical. They seem to contradict each other, but taken together, they are actually very true and powerful. I thought it might be interesting to list them. Here’s the obvious one ‘He who shall lose his life, shall find it”.
Please list any others from the scriptures or LDS theology in general… Or even personal paradoxical truths. I’m all ears….
Obedience vs. Agency Doubt Not vs. Seek
There are so many . . . which I like, frankly, since it allows us lots of wiggle room to find what works for us.
Works vs Grace The Godhead are “one” but never experienced or observed as such directly.
We must kill and consume in order to live, but we are given the commandment “Thou shalt not kill”
We must be perfect, but we are all flawed
“If any of you lack wisdom let him ask of god who shall give to all men…” vs “It is my providence to define the doctrine. It is your providence to repeat what I say or keep your mouth shut.” Tree of Life…Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, where Adam and Eve are commanded to obey and also commanded to multiply and replenish the earth and cannot obey both and must transgress the law. God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and so are his methods…but His church is ever changing
Cruel to be kind. Okay, it’s a cliche, but some of the time we have to be… indulging an alcoholic is often not good for them. (It seems that if you’re too kind or too cruel to children, you end up making them rotten adults too funnily enough) I’ve always found it strange how unusual our doctrine is, but how strait laced many of the members are.
I find the truth “stop wanting something and then you’ll get it” paradoxical. The “stop chasing the butterfly and it will land on you” version of this paradox is counter-intuitive. You would think that by putting forth effort and energy, you will get that thing you want. But when you stop pushing for it, the chances of getting it go way up.
I had a Bishop who wanted to reschedule/delay a convert baptism. As a missionary, I hated it when they did that. It left too much time for anti-Mormons to get in there, or for people to get negative influences into their testimony before their receipt of the Holy Ghost. After explaining his reasons, his response to my objection was simply “Elder SilentDawning, I’m going to let you decide this”.
His respect for my feelings “took the sword out of my hand”, or at least, opened my heart to greater consideration of his request. So, I did it. The person still got baptized….he got what he wanted by stopping his desire to want it above all other considerations, accepting he might not get it. That’s why he got it.
Meditation is very paradoxical. If you try hard for a still mind, you’re less likely to get it. My 15 yr old daughter came up with one last night: “If sex is such a dangerous thing…why did God make us this way?” … or said another way…”The natural (wo)man is an enemy to God, who made us as natural men and women” Perhaps the other paradox I was thinking when my little girl told me that was that I want my kids to be able to talk to me about everything…but now their curfew is 10pm on weekends.
😮 Here’s another paradox I often think about: Lucifer, the Son of Perdition, works to destroy God’s plan. By doing so, he helps the plan succeed by creating opposition in all things. If he really wanted to destroy God’s plan, you would think he’d just not play at all. That’s what would frustrate the plan the most. Is he just dumb that after all this time, he hasn’t figured that out, or is it just a paradox that we can’t understand?
Heber13 wrote:Lucifer, the Son of Perdition, works to destroy God’s plan. By doing so, he helps the plan succeed by creating opposition in all things. If he really wanted to destroy God’s plan, you would think he’d just not play at all. That’s what would frustrate the plan the most. Is he just dumb that after all this time, he hasn’t figured that out, or is it just a paradox that we can’t understand?
I remember arguing this exact problem one day when I got bored in early morning seminary as a teenager. The teacher really had no idea what to do with me, LOL. I said that Satan must not exist because if he did, and he really wanted to ruin the plan, he would do exactly one thing (logically) — nothing at all. Since he is portrayed as so super-smart, there was something very wrong as taught, considering the teachings about him, his motives and his methods.
Practice makes perfect, yet nobody is perfect. Since Jesus was perfect, He must have gotten a lot of practice, but he didn’t need practice because he was perfect. He commands us to be perfect, but gives us weakness so that we might be humble and come to him with a broken heart and contrite spirit, and things that are broken aren’t perfect, but that’s how he wants us… broken and perfect. I think Silent starts some very interesting threads.
This reminds me of the famous liars paradox (e.g., “This sentence is false”). Is that sentence true or false?
Language, and particularly, semantics, has everything to do with paradoxes in my opinion, and as soon as you attach the word “truth” on to just about anything a paradox will emerge because there is always a contridiction.
So, a paradoxical truth is maybe the ONLY truth.
Truth IS paradox.
Practice makes tired. 😆 Cnsl1 wrote:So, a paradoxical truth is maybe the ONLY truth.
Truth IS paradox.
Deep.😯 You guys are great. I like the simple paradoxes: The Church is false. And it is true. Joseph Smith was a scoundrel. And he was a prophet. Jesus was just a man like me. And he was the Son of God.
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