Welcome!

Welcome to my blog! This for now on will be the place to find my weekly thoughts on different Gospel topics. Remember that these thoughts are my own, and it's okay (even encouraged at times) to have differing opinions and experiences. Heavenly Father works through all of us in distinct ways, and it's our job to develop those modalities. So, with that said, here is my first post, originally posted on Facebook on June 8th, 2009:

Brightness of Hope--A Conceptualization


So yesterday in Priesthood Meeting we read this scripture near the end:

"Wherefore, ye must press forward with a a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life." --2 Nephi 31:20

One thing that began to weigh down upon my analytical, wannabe-scientific mind was how "brightness" was a measure of hope--if we strive to have a perfect brightness, that means that there must be varying levels of said luminosity.

So, I first looked in the Bible Dictionary...turns out that hope isn't listed there. So, the hard way was to go through scriptures listed in the Topical Guide. I came across wonderful passages like "Hope deferred maketh the heart sick" (Prov. 13:12) and "the righteous have hope in his death" (Prov. 14:32). Moving down the line, I came across the writings of Paul:

"But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation."--1 Thes 5:8

I noticed how this was different than Paul's famous address to the Galatians, which uses the breastplate to symbolize righteousness, and the helmet to symbolize global "salvation". But then I realized that faith and charity (the love we can assume that Paul speaks of) are essential to righteousness, and that hope for salvation seems more apropos as well. So is hope, then, a mental manifestation of faith and charity?

My roommate and I surmised that perhaps hope can be regarded as "positive faith". However, this seemed redundant as faith is inherently positive in its scope. But so is hope! Argh!

So, after trying to reason myself I decided to turn to the modern-day prophets. As I was already thinking deeply on the subject, I was elated to find a talk given by Neal A. Maxwell--arguably the deepest-thinking apostle of my time. Entitled "Brightness of Hope" (Nov. 1994 Ensign) it is a gem in itself that I recommend everyone read. Elder Maxwell explicitly differentiates faith and hope, which thing was at the root of my inquietude. You see, faith is in true principles--the basic building blocks of our actions. For example, I have faith that good grades will produce better opportunities down the road, and so then act according to that faith. In a religious sense, one has faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, and therefore strives to be better through daily repentance.

Now, hope extends further those feelers of faith. Its scope is broader, and applies to more daily activities. Using the above example, faith in Jesus Christ leads to hope for forgiveness, and hope for blessings that come as a result of our striving.

But what about the whole "brightness" issue? Elder Maxwell said the following:
" [Hope] is composed, not giddy, eager without being naive, and pleasantly steady without being smug. Hope is realistic anticipation taking the form of determination—a determination not merely to survive but to 'endure … well' to the end (D&C 121:8).

"While weak hope leaves us at the mercy of our moods and events, 'brightness of hope' produces illuminated individuals. Their luminosity is seen, and things are also seen by it! Such hope permits us to 'press forward' even when dark clouds oppress (see 2 Ne. 31:16, 20; Heb. 6:19; Ether 12:4; Col. 1:23). Sometimes in the deepest darkness there is no external light—only an inner light to guide and to reassure."

So people with a bright hope are "bright" individuals. What causes that glow? It must needs be that they have the Spirit with them in abundance at that time of "luminance." So, to sum up, here is what I came up with:

HOPE (Measured in Brightness)
FAITH (In Basic Principles)
BRIGHTNESS= luminosity= glow= level of the Spirit
BRIGHTNESS OF HOPE= the level to which the Spirit enlightens one's understanding of the principles in which they already have faith.

This is my interpretation, but it has given me peace. I love the way the Gospel can work through each of us in way that is individually impactful. Have a great week!