What is Religious About Literature?

     Religion. It addresses questions of existence: Where did we come from? Why are we here? It is concerned with human morality: What is good? What is evil? What lies in the between, in the morally gray? Is there even such a thing? Religion seeks to “explain, to justify, to reconcile, to interpret, to [give] comfort.”[1] And all these things, are they not the same things that literature attempts to do? Therefore, the answer to the question of what is religious about literature is a fairly simple one in my own personal view. What makes literature religious is its ability to transcend us; to elevate the human mind (such as religion does) to higher places where questions of existence, of morality, of the universe, of the overall human experience, are explored.

     Homer, Virgil, Dante, Chaucer, Shakespeare, Milton, Voltaire, Austen, Hugo, Dickens, the Bronte sisters, Twain, Orwell, Wild, Faulkner, Hemingway, Steinbeck—all are authors of great literature. They are explorers of human emotions (passion, love, fear, hate), of mans’ freedom of will, of sin, of righteousness, of deliverance, of identity, of reason, of insanity—of the human experience. What can be more transcending, more religious than the exploration of these things, the things that make up life? This is what is religious about literature—the examination of life and the transcendent and elevated place our minds can reach through the truths discovered in this examination.

     If literature can be religious, it would make sense to suppose that religion can not only help us see how literature is religious, but encourage the idea that literature—good literature—is religious. Mormonism, in my own opinion, does in fact do this. As a Mormon myself, I think I can say that Mormonism not only aids us in seeing that religious dimension to literature, but actually encourages us to be enlightened, influenced for good, and elevated to higher places by wholesome literature.

     Our scriptures state, “Seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom; seek learning, even by study and also by faith.”[2] Wherever we can find truth and wisdom, God encourages us to seek after it. Our leaders of the church have also made it clear to us that “In the kingdom of God, the search for truth is appreciated, encouraged, and in no way repressed or feared,” and that “Church members are strongly counseled by the Lord himself to seek knowledge.”[3] With these encouragements then, I believe that Mormonism does indeed allow us to see a religious aspect to literature, and for that I’m grateful because literature is truly wonderful, inspiring, elevating, and religious through its ability to transcend and lift us to higher places by exploring life, the human experience, and all that goes with it. It imparts wisdom and truths to our minds, and for that it’s great and worthwhile of our time.    

 Notes:

1. “Religion and Literature.” Christian Classics Ethereal Library at Calvin College. <http://www.ccel.org/s/schaff/encyc/encyc09/htm/iv.vii.cxxxix.htm>.   
2.. Doctrine and Covenants 88:118
3. Elder Marcos A. Aidukaitus. “If Ye Lack Wisdom.” April 2014 General Conference.  

 

 

Humanizing the Book of Mormon

     For those of us who love the feel of fine words and exquisite language on our tongues and inspiring, thought provoking stories in our heads, literature is of great value. Literature is the cozy, plush armchair we snuggle into for comfort, solitude, and a quest for higher places. We search for it, we devour it, we create it. And at times, we are even taken by surprise by it, taken aback by its unforeseen and unexpected appearance in places we thought we knew.

     For those of us who love perusing through the words of Nephi and the account of Alma, and wondrous, though provoking stories in our heads, the Book of Mormon is of great worth and precious to the heart. It is sacred scripture, the word of God. Yet, just as literature, it is also the cozy armchair we snuggle into for comfort, solitude, and a quest for higher places. And we are surprised and awed by its content as well.

     I love both literature and the Book of Mormon, and as I have come in contact with both, I have realized that the Book of Mormon, though scripture, is great literature. Think about it. Everyone familiar with good literature knows that in order for a story to work, to come to life, to connect with one and offer to us something great and valuable, there needs to be certain things present. One of those things is imagery. Detail and description is what draws us into the story, what make it real for us. And if it is real, then we connect with a story, a person, on a much deeper level.
     
     The Book of Mormon is filled with imagery and description and details that suck me in as if I was there, experiencing and witnessing the same thing our ancestors did. I am there alongside Nephi, bound by his brothers on the ship through the frightening storm as he describes it in the following words, “there arose a great storm, yea, a great and terrible tempest, and we were driven back upon the waters for the space of three days…And on the fourth day, which we had been driven back, the tempest began to be exceedingly sore. And it came to pass that we were about to be swallowed up in the depths of the sea.” (1 Nephi 18: 13-15)            
     
     I can feel and picture the devastated state of Nephi’s parents due his brothers’ abuse because he describes it: “Because of their grief and much sorrow, and the iniquity of my brethren, they were brought near even to be carried out of this time to meet their God; yea, their grey hairs were about to be brought down to lie low in the dust; yea, even they were near to be cast with sorrow into a watery grave” (1 Nephi 18: 18).            

     I stand amongst the crowd getting ready to listen to King Benjamin as I picture the scene being unfolded and described: “And it came to pass that when they came up to the temple, they pitched their tents round about…every man having his tent with the door thereof towards the temple, that thereby they might remain in their tents and hear the words which king Benjamin should speak unto them” (Mosiah 2: 5-7).

     There are so many more instances such as this and the Book of Mormon is a magnificent old world you can get sucked into if you let yourself be enveloped by the imagery and description in it.  Read in this manner, as literature, through imagery and description, I have gained more empathy towards those people of old. They’re sufferings, their joys, have become mine and I have a better understanding of their world. And because I do, I have a greater craving to read this book, to read the word of God, to be sucked into its teachings, into its action, into its peace and gain something of value and worth, just like any great literature should impart on us.

That is My Thing

For this exercise I chose to imitate Becca Wilhite’s “Writing and Life.” I was immediately drawn to the format and structure of it. I’m not sure if it’s supposed to be a poem, it might be, but I just really liked the format. I like the short phrases and the idea of conveying your thoughts like that because it’s very straightforward and right to the point and truth. Obviously mine will be about a completely different topic with a few alterations and of course, my own voice.

School is not my thing.

It is an unspoken expectation—a part of life I dislike and cry and lose sleep over.

But the Quest for Wisdom, that’s my thing.

Searching and discovering and asking and answering

and reading and writing and praying and listening and sharing and

learning

and understanding

and judging and discerning

and “ah-ha!”-ing

and doubting

and even admitting I was wrong (sometimes)

and seeking truth

and finding virtue and beauty in everyone and everything around me.

 And putting thoughts onto paper.

Lots of thoughts.

Sometimes questioning if it even matters.

Is it just all nonsense?

Just some silly woman’s advice?

Just some unimportant realizations and truths?

But then again, questioning is my thing.

 And so even that becomes a good thing,

not a hinder to my Quest.

All that list,

all of it,

that is my thing.

And I love every piece of it.

My own Quest for Wisdom.

That is my thing.  

 

*I am so sorry it took me forever. I just couldn't get it on here correctly for some reason*

In a Strange Toungue

     Thursday morning I woke up to my alarm at eight o’clock. It was difficult to get up, especially since I have no classes on Thursdays and also due to having slept late at night for “not a very good reason.” But, I knew it was worth it to slowly coax my “tired” limbs into arising from the deliciously comfortable bed. It was worth it because there was a child at Provo Peaks Elementary that needed my help. As part of a mentoring program here at BYU, I am “assigned,” for lack of a better word, a child to aid in their specific needs. And so that morning I dragged my resentful body out of bed and into the shower, knowing it would all be worth it. As I pulled my brown turtle neck over my head and slowly put one leg in and then the next into my casual black pants, I couldn’t help feel a little nervous to meet this little boy whom I would be spending some time with this semester. Would he like me? Would I be able to help him? Will we become friends? All of these questions ran through my mind as I finished brushing my very non-cooperative hair. Finally giving up on it, I put the brush down and looked in the mirror.

“Well Amy,” I whispered, “wish yourself good luck. I’m sure everything will turn out fine.”

     A few moments later, I arrived at the classroom and finally met him. Shazer, a seven year old second grader who has recently moved from Mexico with his family needs help with the universal language—English. It is not that he does not know the language, but more that he is a very shy boy afraid to speak it out loud. He is intelligent, as he proved to me while doing math exercises, but when I softly asked him a question, he simply swiftly glanced at me with his dark almond shaped eyes, looked down at his desk, and gave the tiniest nod. At first, as I continued to sit next to him and observing him, I thought, He is just really shy.

    But then, he spoke his familiar tongue and I realized, Ah-ha! Not only he shy, but he is afraid to speak this unfamiliar language. And so I couldn’t help smiling and asking him in a quiet tone,

“Do you speak Spanish, Shazer?”

     Shyly, he nodded. Then hurriedly and excitedly I exclaimed, “I speak Spanish too!” His eyes gleamed and brightened in the same familiar manner that so many others have done so when finding another “compratiota” “y otro de la raza.” I smiled even wider and raised my hand in a high five, and as our hands slapped together, Shazer gave the tiniest smile.

     For the remainder of the time until recess, I sat there, looking at Shazer—his creamy, light brown skin, his straight black hair, and his beautiful dark eyes—thinking how it must be for him surrounded by this strange new language. Even now, I am not sure how I can help him gain the confidence to speak out loud. How can I help him accomplish this when I see how his face lights up when I or his friends talk to him in the language he was first taught—in the language that is apparent he loves so much?

Personal Essay Practice

Inner Struggle:

     Tainted and flawed. How can I ever move on? How can I ever forgive myself? Chest pressed and throat clogged. They say that time heals all wounds, but how can it fix this, when it is constantly in my mind? Resurfacing and resurfacing. What I did, replaying over and over and over. I can’t move on. Perhaps He has forgiven me, but I know I will not be able to forgive myself. How can I when it’s always there, engraved in my mind?

    They say that time heals all wounds. I never really believed that, until it did. The pain is still there. It will always be there. But now I can breathe. There is no longer a weight on my chest or that constant lump in my throat. Time heals all wounds, but it was not only time that I needed so I could forgive myself. The pain has been soothed, my mind calmed and reassured, my heart peaceful and filled with gratitude. If I can trust that God can forgive this horrible thing that I did, then how could I not forgive myself and move on? Of course, it was not as easy as that. I fought. Constantly, I fought myself:

I have to move on—you don’t deserve to move on—I’m okay, He wants me to be okay so I should forgive and move on—how can you pretend it never happened?—It’s not that, I just need to be better and I can’t if I don’t forgive myself…    

They say time heals all wounds. I believe it’s true, but I would add that Time and God heal all wounds.

Scripture, Personal and Powerful:

     “I cannot do it. I cannot do this anymore. I’m tired. And it’s hard, it’s just so hard.”

How many times have I thought these words to myself? Too many times to count. When struggling in classes, when trying to overcome bad habits, when going through pain and suffering. Always the same words: “I cannot do this anymore.” And sometimes I let myself wallow in this misery, thinking that maybe I should just give up. Why try if it’s always going to be this way? Why try? .... Because if I endure it well, God will exalt me on high… “thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment; And then, if though endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high; though shalt triumph over all thy foes.”

After remembering that, it’s not so easy to give up or to say that I don’t care. “Peace be unto thy soul.” That is exactly what I feel each time, and after that things are not one hundred present solved, but they are better.

It's All About Connecting

     As I watched the videos introducing each individual’s personal essay/blog, I noticed the things that made for a more effective video. I think that the one’s that capture the most interest are the ones that seem the most sincere and filled with raw emotion. Also, the ones that gave the shortest explanation didn’t give enough detail to hold my attention, so a good introductory video were the ones that gave enough detail about their essay, but who didn't go into the specifics.

     As for the essays that I read, they were “Nine Days Difference,” “A Temporal Death,” “Hooked,” “God Blessed the Broken Road,” and “La Ultima Pieza del Rompecabezas.” I chose to read these based on my interest and intrigue from the videos. They were all interesting and engaging, but I especially liked “La Ultima Pieza del Rompecabeza” and “Nine Days Difference” because they both included three things that I personally think are important in writing an effective personal essay that the audience can connect to. Those three things are detail, genuine, raw emotion, and relatable content. I love the use of language in “La Ultima Pieza del Rompecabeza” and how she describes little things like the weather or her dripping, wet hair. She uses just the right words to convey the emotions she felt during her experience, and there were things that she included, like her relationship with her mother, that I can relate to. The essay 's“Nine Days of Difference” raw and honest emotion is what speaks to the audience and what makes her relating her experience effective.

      These three things: raw emotion, detail, and relatable content, is what I want to focus on having in my personal essay, along with other things, so that the reader can have a real connection with the story. I also really think that relating a personal essay in the form of a blog is good because it makes it all the more personal for both the writer and the reader.  

Mormonism in Science Fiction

     As a Latter-day Saint, it is easy to recognize the many (many) Mormon themes and elements in Seventh Son, but only because we were told to keep an eye out for it. So I have to wonder, if I hadn’t been purposefully looking for Mormon themes, could I have picked up on them on my own or would this story be just like any other science fiction/fantasy story, no relation to Mormonism whatsoever? Furthermore, does including so many LDS themes (because in my opinion this book is loaded with them) a good thing or a bad thing? Could Orson Scott Card have written this book without including any LDS elements and still relate the message of the story effectively? If he could, then why would he include so many Mormon themes? Maybe the question isn’t why, but why not? After all, he is LDS himself, and as Martha Bartter re-states Colling’s observation, “Card is so steeped in LDS traditions that he cannot avoid the viewpoint and assumptions of a lifetime” (158). How can any LDS not include Mormon elements in their works when it is our way of living? Therefore, including these LDS viewpoints and elements in this story, is not a bad thing (even though there is just a little too much in my opinion) as long as it helps serve the main purpose of the story.

    This story is about struggles and perseverance and as a Mormon, Card would know about this seeing as his own family and pioneer ancestors went through it, so it would make sense for him to weave these Mormon elements throughout the story. Besides, it is not as if he’s trying to convince or convert anyone to the Mormon faith by including these elements in his stories. Yet, it is interesting to point out Colling’s implication that perhaps “science fiction is the best (perhaps the only) vehicle to carry the fundamentals of Mormonism to the Gentiles; or perhaps…science fiction readers are those best fitted to appreciate the LDS beliefs that underlie Card’s work” (Bartter 159). If this is the case then, Card’s achievement is noteworthy.

Bartter, Martha. "In the Image of God: Theme, Characterization, and Landscape in the Fiction of Orson Scott. Contributions to the Study of Science Fiction and Fantasy, Number 42 by Michael Collings." Utopian Studies 6.2 (1995): 158-59. JSTOR. Web. 20 January 2015.
 

Finding Myself

     I have found out, throughout the course of my very short life, that sometimes we can forget ourselves. We forget ourselves when we abandon the dreams, the desires of our hearts, the fantasies and aspirations we used to hold so dear as children. I don’t think it’s something that is done on purpose, it’s just that in the routine of life, sometimes dreams get lost, and with them, a part of ourselves gets lost as well. But getting lost is not the worst thing that could happen, because you can always find yourself again, and the manner in which you do is different for each one. Mine, came through a story.

     “Y colorin colorado, este cuento aun no se ha acabado.” I read this beautiful, short novel in Spanish written by Odin Dupeyron when I was younger and had in a sense, lost myself. In English, it translates to: “And this story has not yet ended.” One day, my mom handed me this book and told me to read it, that I needed it. She was right. The story helped me to, in a way, find myself again. It helped me remember the girl I wanted to and aspired to be. “Forgive me if I have left you alone. Forgive me if I have forgotten you…but you will no longer be alone, my little girl, because I will be with you. We have many dreams ahead to fulfill my dear, and this time, I promise, I really promise that I will fulfill them for you.” These words, meant as a promise from the present older girl to the younger self, are what really inspired me to find myself again and retake my abandoned dreams.

Other spiritual-literary experiences:
- Reading my past journal entries; all the heartaches and pains and to realize that I’ve grown so much since then
- Reading letters that I wrote to myself starting from the 8^th grade up until before leaving for college with really inspiring messages to myself that were just what I needed to hear
- Reading the letters my mom wrote to me when I was younger, telling me not to abandon my talent and passion for writing and other really inspiring words I needed to hear that meant a lot coming from her
- Writing a mission statement for my life in a student development class here at BYU (my goals, purpose in life) and re-reading that every once in a while (really helps to maintain perspective and remember what life is really about)
- When I read the beloved Anne of Green Gables. I love that book and as a young girl, I loved to just sit there and mull over the words that I found in that book and it’s a good inspiring book to have when you’re young            

           

The Things of My Soul

     "And upon these I write the things of my soul." I read the words beautifully engraved upon the small blue journal as I stood in the bookstore, carefully holding it in both my hands. I knew right then that this was the journal I would take back home and do just as the words read: write the things of my soul.
     I began my first diary at the age of nine and ever since then I have kept one. It was three years ago that I found the perfect journal that put into words my exact feelings on journal writing. It is upon my journals and only there, that I, without holding back, pour out the things of my heart. My fears, my dreams and hopes, my anxieties, my accomplishments, my failures, the things I'm ashamed of, the people I love, the people I've hurt and those who've hurt me, crushes and boys, new life and death as well, my joys, my pains, all these things I write. But above all else, I write the things of God: my love for Him and my Savior, my testimony of the gospel and how much I delight in the scriptures.
    And when I go back and read my words, they are a comfort, for every now and then, I find messages of encouragement, words of forgiveness and strength that I purposefully wrote to myself so that when I went back to read my past I could keep my faith and do better in the present.
    My journals, the words of my heart and soul, are precious and of great worth to me. They are the legacy that I wish to inherit to my children and grandchildren in hopes that they may find within their pages comfort, wisdom, and the love of God.