Plain and Simple Logical Stories

In Jeffrey R. Holland's speech at BYU titled "Of Souls, Symbols, and Sacraments" he plainly describes why sexual purity is critical to obey until we are married.
In trying to describe the seriousness of the sin, he uses many examples that the audience can understand. They are simple stories, which has been encouraged throughout the history of "Mormonism." He first uses this example:
 

"Most people, . . . as a rule do not run up to friends, put a loaded revolver

to their heads, and cavalierly pull the trigger. Furthermore,

when there is a click of the hammer rather than an explosion

of lead, and a possible tragedy seems to have been averted,

no one in such a circumstance would be so stupid as to sigh,

'Oh, good. I didn’t go all the way.'"

 

This quote is understandable and enables the reader to make the connections. Just because someone didn't go all the way through with the act doesn't mean they didn't "do" it. Why would someone go so far as to plan to commit the act, and then, by some circumstance, not go through with it and claim they didn't even do it?

 

The plainness of Holland's story is so that the audience doesn't spend time trying to figure out what he is trying to say. They know what he is saying; they are given the opportunity to ponder on their own lives and where they stand in the face of sin.

 

Holland uses another relatable story for Latter-Day Saints about how one should treat purity:

 

"Now, once again, I know of no one who would, for example,

rush into the middle of a sacramental service, grab the linen

from the tables, throw the bread the full length of the room,

tip the water trays onto the floor, and laughingly retreat from

the building to await an opportunity to do the same thing at

another worship service the next Sunday. ."

 

Through this, the audience can clearly draw a picture in their mind of someone completing this act. It isn't logical to do this! How can the reader know? Because Holland uses plain and simple examples to make the reader understand the seriousness and truthfulness of what he is saying. He follows the pattern to keep it simple and relatable so that the audience can be taught by the Spirit, but is still able to use logic and rhetorical devices to teach them.

He Was a Teenage Lawn Mower

I had a branch president in one of my areas that gave some of the most impressive, engaging talks I had ever heard. I attended a Stake Priesthood meeting where he was asked to speak, and it was my first chance to actually hear him give a talk. He spoke confidently, and never lost the attention of anyone in the room, especially the young men at the meeting to whom he was addressing.

He started with a story about a time he was mowing his lawn as a teenager, and he came upon a few small turtles. He reasoned that there must've been a mother nearby, but couldn't see it. Afraid to accidentally mow over the turtle in the tall grass, he checked every spot of grass before he mowed over it. That is, until he got to one little patch of untrimmed lawn. He thought to check the grass before mowing, but decided against it. To his horror, the grass was indeed hiding a turtle. He then explained how we should never let our guard down when it comes to the gospel.

This impressed upon me just how powerful a personal, well-told story could help teach a gospel principle. Church leaders have used them for years to help teach tough, and perhaps complex topics, with no better example than our own prophet, Thomas S. Monson.

The reason for this seems clear: the conflict-resolution set up that we find in stories perfectly matches up with the problem-gospel answer that has existed as long as holy writ itself, while also providing memorable images to accompany abstract concepts. "Never let your guard down" seems like an obvious, oft-heard message in the church, but with this story, it becomes a lesson I'll not soon forget.

Learning From Stories

Car rides to school my senior year of high school usually consisted of my sisters, sophomores at the time, hurriedly putting on makeup, music playing in the background, while I drove. This routine changed to one of listening to one of the greatest story tellers I have ever heard after a trip to Portland, Oregon one day. 

My Mom and brother came with me  on this trip to and hear quite a few speakers at Best of EFY. One of these speakers was Hank Smith. I enjoyed his address a lot, but didn't

think much of it later on.

When we arrived home, my Mom did some research and found that he had released a series of his talks on CDs. They are all live recordings of an address he has given in front of an audience. My sisters and I started to listen to those CDs on our way to school. Even though I couldn't physically see Hank Smith speaking to me, his use of stories brought principles to life for both my sisters and I. His stories didn't leave us wishing for additional details, he always included a very in depth description of people, his surroundings, and his emotions at that time. By being so descriptive I felt myself immersed in these stories and connected to the people he was speaking about. He made a strong relation between the stories he was telling and the principles he was trying to teach.

I learned so much from Hank Smith that year, all because he really knew how to tell a story.