The Impassioned Pleas of Jeffrey R. Holland

In a speech given during this month's General Conference, LDS apostle Elder Jeffrey R. Holland spoke passionately about poverty and the need for members to give to the poor and needy, through fast offerings and other means. Titled "Are We Not All Beggars?", the speech featured Elder Holland's usual confident inflection and timely pauses that it make it almost impossible for audiences to not pay attention. But one moment in particular stood out to me. 

Shortly before concluding his talk, Elder Holland took the time to openly admit that although he had strong feelings about the need to give to the poor and needy, the blessings he's had in his life have allowed him to never have to be one of them. He went so far as to say the words:

"I have never been poor, nor do I even know how the poor feel."

How powerful and refreshing it is to hear an apostle of the Lord openly admit that he doesn't have all the answers, and that he can't possibly pretend to know what these people are going through. 

By itself this sentence means very little--many in our class could probably say the same thing. But combined with his powerful plea to take our abundance and give to those that lack, you know that it comes from a place of compassion in spite of what he doesn't know or understand. He's appealing directly to our pathos.

In his famous address at BYU titled "Remember Lot's Wife," Elder Holland similarly admitted that he too was guilty of "looking back" and not looking forward, sharing that he had asked his own wife at one point if they should just give up.

In admitting his weaknesses, Elder Holland allows each of us to recognize and forgive our own, empowering us to move forward and not look back.

The Three Nephites; Still Here Today!

Section: 3 Nephi 26 – 4 Nephi

3 Nephi 26:1-2 – (sermon) Jesus speaks to the Nephites, teaching and giving new scripture

3 Nephi 27:2-9 – (dialogue) Christ speaks with the Apostles about the name of the church

3 Nephi 27:13-27 – (sermon) Christ speaks to the multitude, teaching the gospel and giving commandments to write down what they see and hear

3 Nephi 28:1-12 – (dialogue) Christ speaks to the Apostles and grants them what they desire

Jesus speaks with "the Three Nephites" (Photo from: mormonthink.com)

Section Analyzed: 3 Nephi 28:1-12

"1 And it came to pass when Jesus had said these words, he spake unto his disciples, one by one, saying unto them: What is it that ye desire of me, after that I am gone to the Father?
2 And they all spake, save it were three, saying: We desire that after we have lived unto the age of man, that our ministry, wherein thou hast called us, may have an end, that we may speedily come unto thee in thy kingdom.
3 And he said unto them: Blessed are ye because ye desired this thing of me; therefore, after that ye are seventy and two years old ye shall come unto me in my kingdom; and with me ye shall find rest.
4 And when he had spoken unto them, he turned himself unto the three, and said unto them: What will ye that I should do unto you, when I am gone unto the Father?
5 And they sorrowed in their hearts, for they durst not speak unto him the thing which they desired.
6 And he said unto them: Behold, I know your thoughts, and ye have desired the thing which John, my beloved, who was with me in my ministry, before that I was lifted up by the Jews, desired of me.
7 Therefore, more blessed are ye, for ye shall never taste of death; but ye shall live to behold all the doings of the Father unto the children of men, even until all things shall be fulfilled according to the will of the Father, when I shall come in my glory with the powers of heaven.
8 And ye shall never endure the pains of death; but when I shall come in my glory ye shall be changed in the twinkling of an eye from mortality to immortality; and then shall ye be blessed in the kingdom of my Father.
9 And again, ye shall not have pain while ye shall dwell in the flesh, neither sorrow save it be for the sins of the world; and all this will I do because of the thing which ye have desired of me, for ye have desired that ye might bring the souls of men unto me, while the world shall stand.
10 And for this cause ye shall have fulness of joy; and ye shall sit down in the kingdom of my Father; yea, your joy shall be full, even as the Father hath given me fulness of joy; and ye shall be even as I am, and I am even as the Father; and the Father and I are one;
11 And the Holy Ghost beareth record of the Father and me; and the Father giveth the Holy Ghost unto the children of men, because of me.”

This section can be considered DIALOGUE between the new Apostles and Jesus Christ. When the three Apostles desired to live forever in verse 6, Christ speaks of John and how this is the same thing that John the Beloved had asked of him. This is an example of allusion; Christ referring to John, an apostle in the Old World could be considered an allusion to the New Testament. It is interesting to note that the Nephites, of course, did not have the Bible and therefore Christ briefly explains that John was with him in his early ministry.

There is also a rhetorical appeal of pathos throughout this passage. For example, in verse 5, you sympathize with the Apostles as they are afraid to ask Jesus what they wish for. The word choice, “sorrow in their hearts” is especially poignant in depicting the deep fear and humility the Apostles had in their desire to ask Christ for what they truly wanted.

Imagery is also employed by Christ in this section, particularly in verse 10. Here Christ depicts what the reward will be for the Apostles desiring to preach the gospel until the end of mortality on earth. He describes FULNESS of joy and of SITTING down in the kingdom with the Father. Fulness gives the impression of happiness unmeasured; a full cup with no more room for more. The imagery of sitting with the Father may represent to the reader eternal rest from the cares and stresses that are experienced in mortal life.

These rhetorical elements combine to give a brief but deep insight into the events and dialogue between Christ and the new Nephite Apostles.

Google "three nephite sightings"...you won't regret it. (image from: salamandersociety.com)

You Don't Know Me, Don't Pretend That You Know Me

Assigned Section:
Helaman 13 -> 3 Nephi 4

Sections of Spoken Word:
Helaman chapters 13, 14, 15 (sermon)
Helaman 16:16 (dialogue amongst themselves)
Helaman 16:18-21 (dialogue amongst themselves)
3 Nephi 1:13-14 (dialogue from the Lord to Nephi)
3 Nephi 3:20-21 (dialogue between Gidgiddoni and the people)
3 Nephi 4:29-32 (the people crying out)

Selected Section:
Helaman 13:24-29

I chose this section specifically, as I noticed Samuel using a certain rhetorical technique that I've seen used before but thought would be interesting to analyze.

Throughout this short section, Samuel uses various "quotes" that suggest what the people may or may not say in certain situations. For example: "When ye talk, ye say, 'If our days had been in the days of our fathers of old, we would not have slain the prophets.'" In essence, "if someone says this, you will say this." He uses these hypothetical phrases to--in my estimation--appeal to the pathos, logos, and ethos of his audience, the wicked Nephites.

Sharing these little hypotheticals appeals to their ethos by showing the people that he has a greater knowledge of them than they might think. By directly pointing out things they've said or could have said he proves that he knows his audience and is ready to address them. I can only imagine some of the Nephites thinking, "oh boy I heard Craig saying that just the other day..." or "oh no he must've heard me saying that just the other day."

More obviously, these hypotheticals appeal to their pathos as the words strike the people right in their hearts. "You will say that he is a false prophet, and that he is a sinner, and of the devil, because he testifieth that your deeds are evil." He's essentially telling them that even if they did hear the word of God that they would deny it on account of their hypocrisy and evil.

Lastly, I feel that this technique might appeal to the logos of the audience, by providing them with some vague "examples" of things that have been said by them, assuming they're accurate statements.

By this account, Samuel the Lamanite was an expert speaker, which seems appropriate considering he had to talk on top of a wall to a large population of wicked, prideful people.

"Oh good"

If I was asked to give one word describing Elder Holland it would easily be, blunt. No sugar frosting, no cherry on top, not the slightest been of gooey, cheesy, fluff that we so often want to hear in talks. He says it plain and simple. Because of that he is easily one of the most popular speakers in the Mormon world.

Marion G Romney said “I always know when I am speaking under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost because I always learn something from what I've said" This is something I believe Elder Holland would agree with. He starts out simply, asking the audience to be respectful, something not often said across the pulpit. By doing this he is setting a serious tone and establishing his Ethos for the whole rest of the meeting, not just his talk. He then continues to a topic that we all know to be a serious one, reinforcing the tone he previously set.

Elder Holland mainly uses Logos throughout this entire talk, speaking of doctrine, telling stories and research studies all about the seriousness of human intimacy. But he doesn't only use logos. At one specific point he really hit me hard, pulling out the Pathos in his argument. He is talking about the seriousness of purity and how it is the worst sin other than murder. He then compares sexual transgression to the taking of a life and how in control we all are when it comes to taking care of other people's lives. We don't walk up to someone and put a gun to their head and pull the trigger hoping the gun won't go off and think;
"Oh good, I didn't go all the way"
To me, this is the point where his Ethos is the strongest. This, I believe, would be one of those "inspired one liners" that Neal A. Maxwell was talking about.

Through his use of Ethos, Pathos, and Logos Elder Holland is one of the most straight forward and powerful speakers out there, and that is definitely an example of that.

The Perfect Balance

Elder Holland is one of the most popular speakers, for a variety of reasons. As a speaker he has the ability to completely tear down all the false pretenses we have and speak directly to our souls. The majority of the reason he is able to do this is because of his powerful words and the rhetoric he uses to address his audience.

Approaching the topic of his talk Elder Holland addresses his goal.

“I wish to speak,” he says, “to the best of my ability, on why we should be clean, on why moral discipline is such a significant matter in God's eyes. I know that may sound presumptuous, but a philosopher once said, tell me sufficiently why a thing should be done, and I will move heaven and earth to do it. Hoping you will feel the same way as he and fully recognizing my limitations, I wish to try to give at least a partial answer to ‘Why be morally clean?’”

Beginning this way, he combines both pathos and logos to appeal to the audience. The pathos comes as he quotes a philosopher and tells a story. The logos appears more as he explains and helps us understand the reasoning behind why we do (or do not) participate in certain activities.

He is, in a way, able to walk the line that so many others struggle to find. His talks are so perfectly balanced—and real—that people have to pause what they are doing to listen.

That is ultimately the reason why Elder Holland is such a powerful speaker. He approaches with enough love to make us want to listen, but then his argument is so incredibly forceful and accurate that we can’t stop listening.