Joseph F. Smith had a classical understanding of time, and that is important

In 1918 Joseph F. Smith had a revelation on the Savior's visit to the spirit world and the redemption of the dead. Leading up to this revelation he had many questions weighing on his mind brought on by recent family deaths and his own reckoning with mortality.

While explaining his thinking leading up to the revelation Joseph F. Smith said,

25 I marveled, for I understood that the Savior spent about three years in his ministry among the Jews.... 27 But his ministry among those who were dead was limited to the brief time intervening between the crucifixion and his resurrection; 28 And I wondered at the words of Peter—wherein he said that the Son of God preached unto the spirits in prison... and how it was possible for him to preach to those spirits and perform the necessary labor among them in so short a time. (D&C 138:25-28)

Part of what made Joseph F. Smith ask his questions in the first place was the fact that he could not see anyway for the Savior to have sufficient time to preach to so many people who had already died. Without realizing it Joseph F. Smith had certain implicit metaphysical assumptions that determined what kinds of questions he would ask and what kinds of answers he would look for. Joseph F. Smith operated with a certain subconscious understanding of time that created a paradox that necessitated an answer.

If Joseph F. Smith had lived much later in our day and had asked the same question, "How could the Savior do more in three days than he had done in three years on Earth?" he would have different options available to answer this question regarding time. But for him, this question presented an unresolvable paradox. If members of the Church did not have the benefit of Joseph F. Smith's revelation and asked the same question today, a number of people would probably invoke the principles of relativity and relative time.

Possible answers could have included things like, "The flow of time is different in the spirit world.", or "Time is only something relevant to mortality, so the Savior was not bound by time constraints in the spirit world." Any of these answers would have lessened the urgency of resolving the three day time constraint on the Savior, and could have possibly lead Joseph F. Smith to consider his questions differently, or even a different set of questions.

Because of the proliferation of Einstein's theories of relativity we have a very different fundamental understanding of time than people previously had. Generally we do not even realize the immense difference in how we collectively understand time compared to even 100 years ago. The idea that time can flow at different rates, or that time is relative to the observer, has so permeated our society that major Hollywood movies can use the idea as a crucial plot point and we do not even consider how strange a concept it is for time to flow differently or fail to grasp the relative nature of time. Even the concept of time travel is a relatively modern concept that we do not realize entirely depends on certain crucial ontological concepts of time that have only entered our collective consciousness in the past 100 years.

For Joseph F. Smith his subconscious concept of time worked very differently from ours. He was not acculturated to a relative or even a dimensional understanding of time. For him time was the same for everyone, everywhere including the spirit world, and, even though it was subconscious and unintentional, how he understood time was central to the paradox that he faced. If he had a different subconscious concept of time then his approach to the question of how did the Savior accomplish in three days what he did not manage to do in three years would have turned out differently. Perhaps he would not have pondered the question in the same way, or he would have gone looking in different directions for different answers to resolve the issues that weighed on his mind.

My point is, when Joseph F. Smith was faced with certain questions, the ones that were the most paradoxical for him and presented the greatest challenge, were the ones that were only present because of how he subconsciously viewed time. The implicit cultural assumptions he unintentionally held placed boundaries on the kinds of questions he would ask, and the kinds of answers he sought. His ontology (his fundamental understanding of the nature of existence) informed the structure of the questions and paradoxes he faced.

In this case the unstated, and unintentional, prepositions of Joseph F. Smith lead him to a question that could be answered by revelation. In fact, his assumptions about the nature of time made his questioning possible. If he had a different understanding of time then he may not have been forced to reckon with his uncertainty in the same way. So his subconscious assumptions on the nature of time were beneficial and greatly simplified the issue he was considering. But it does not always turn out that way.

Quite often we are faced with paradoxes or questions we cannot find an answer for. Frequently the paradox only exists because of the subconscious, unintentional choices we have made in understanding the world. Many times I see people of faith asking some form of the question, "How does XYZ work if ABC?" or, "How can XYZ be true when ABC is true?" For them these are paradoxical questions for which there is no solution. But quite often the paradox only exists because of unstated assumptions they have made without even realizing it. Many such questions, such as the relationship between science and religion, are entirely dependent on subconscious assumptions we have made regarding the nature of science, scripture, authority, and revelation (not to mention epistemology, language, metaphysics, and God himself).

Sometimes the answer to someone's question simply requires the right information with an acceptable explanation. But other times the paradox lies entirely in unstated assumptions the person has made. These are the most difficult to address, because recognizing our own unstated assumptions about reality, and identifying them as the source of our confusion, is perhaps one of the most difficult human tasks in existence. It is easier to change someone's behavior than it is to make them realize that the intractable paradoxes that seemingly have no resolution are the result of unintentional assumptions they have made about the nature of reality itself. And the most difficult of these already difficult conflicts are the ones that are most closely bound to someone's identity.

In summary, I have used the example of Joseph F. Smith and the questions he faced about the spirit world to point out certain assumptions he had about the nature of time that may be very different from our assumptions today. Using this, I introduced the idea that the assumptions we unintentionally and subconsciously make can, in part, determine the types of questions we ask, and what we might consider to be an intractable paradox. Some questions can be answered through discovering new information, but other more paradoxical questions can only be resolved by considering what underlying assumptions we have unintentionally made about reality. Addressing these more paradoxical questions is a difficult endeavor that takes patience, experience, and practice. But by first recognizing that these unstated assumptions exist we can be more aware of assumptions that make some questions seemingly unanswerable, and ultimately give us a path towards resolving these paradoxes. Sometimes finding the answer to a question requires realizing that we are asking the wrong question.

Guest Post: Depression and the Spirit

[Note from the blog author, Quantumleap42: This is a guest post from a long time friend. They don't like to talk about their depression, especially not in public places, but after some prompting from me they agreed to tell about their experiences. They wish to remain anonymous so I will refer to them as Sidney, but if anyone has any comments or questions for Sidney please leave them in the comments or email them to me and I will pass them along to Sidney. Sidney's experiences and insights have taught me a lot about how to understand depression. Feel free to share this with anyone who might need it, or just with anyone because you never know what they are going through. This originally came from three different texts or letters Sidney wrote over several years. I provided some editorial revisions that Sidney agreed to, to combine the three texts and for clarity.]

I normally don’t read or comment on blogs and I hope that you will not mind posting this, but I thought I could offer some insight into this topic. It is just something that has been on my mind a lot lately. 

When I was a teenager I began experiencing severe depression, but I always thought it was normal. It never occurred to me that not everyone found it difficult to do basic things like get up in the morning. I remember laying in bed feeling like I hurt all over while also feeling like I had done something terribly wrong and I would never be a good person. I felt I was fated to end up somewhere in the Telestial kingdom, and would never be able to do anything righteous with my life. I felt like a perpetual sinner. The few times I talked to friends about it they would say they occasionally felt the same way. It never occurred to me that they only felt that way rarely, not 5-6 days a week for months on end. I still have the page in my journal where I wrote about the pain I felt and how I wish I could make it stop. No one ever saw that page.

Later when I went to college, and then on a mission, I was still dealing with my depression, but I didn't know that was what it was. I just thought I was tired, or I just had to be more spiritual, or I had an impure thought and therefore I had lost the companionship of the Holy Spirit. If I just tried harder then I wouldn't feel bad. I remember an Elder from my mission got sent home because he had bipolar disorder and was unable to function. I looked at him and thought I wasn't that bad so I couldn't have bipolar disorder or depression because the only people I had ever known who had depression were on 15+ medications and on suicide watch, or so it seemed. I thought I didn't have a problem because it wasn't that bad.

When I came home from my mission and returned to college I continued with my same problems. I felt that my mission had been a waste, my family was distant and friends never wanted to talk. I received some priesthood blessings that came at a very specific time when I was feeling my worst and the Lord told me that He was pleased with the work I had done on my mission and had accepted my offering. (Quantum was there for that blessing, though he was not the one who gave it.) It was just the thing I needed to hear.

About that time some basic training I received in a psychology class kicked in. What I thought were feelings of inadequacy and the withdrawal of God's Holy Spirit were actually a disconnect between my body and my spirit. I began to keep track of what I was feeling and when and after a few months I noticed a pattern. Like clockwork there were times when I would experience severe depression that had nothing to do with what I was doing. Even if I was reading my scriptures, saying my prayers, doing well in school and maintaining a good social life I would still hit rock bottom. These darkest days would be followed by a few days of intense euphoria where I felt superhuman. As if there were nothing that could stop me.

Eventually I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, which means sometimes I am severely depressed and other times I have more energy than I know what to do with. With bipolar disorder there are two phases, a depressive phase, and a manic phase. I have experienced all parts of the spectrum.  Many people are familiar with depression and the depressive phase of bipolar disorder but few people talk about the manic phase, usually because in the manic phase the person is feeling very happy, energetic, and in many cases relatively normal, if just a little on the hyper side. Many people do not recognize that the manic phase is just as problematic as the depressive phase. They think, "Oh, they're back to their 'normal', 'happy' selves. There's nothing to worry about." To put it in terms that we can understand it is in almost all ways the exact opposite of depression. Just as someone has little or no energy when depressed, in the manic phase we have an overabundance of energy. In the manic phase, it is not just feeling like you have more energy, you do have more energy. In one of my more energetic manic phases I once managed to do 100 pull-ups (5 sets of 20, with a 30 second pause between sets).

Through my experiences I have learned about depression, emotions, and how they are different from feeling the Holy Spirit. I have learned that even in the deepest parts of depression I can still feel the Holy Spirit. It is a distinct feeling that can be felt through the cloud and pain of depression. The Spirit can be something that is difficult to feel at times, but it is something that can always be felt. One of the pernicious side effects of depression is that many times the feelings of depression are indistinguishable from the feelings of sin or the loss of the Spirit. Someone with depression can very easy assume, mistakenly, that they are somehow more sinful than others and that they cannot access the healing power of the atonement or have access to the feelings of the Spirit.

In those times I try to take stock and carefully consider my life. I remind myself that the Spirit does not withdraw for petty and inconsequential things. Even if I am committing some of the sins of omission I have learned that the Spirit still strives with me and more often than not my feelings result from depression and not a loss of the Spirit.

We all have to deal with feelings that come from our own bodies and from our own spirits and telling those apart is hard enough. So sometimes it can be even harder tell what are promptings from the Holy Spirit and what comes from ourselves. The hardest part is learning to tell the difference between the Spirit telling me that I have done something wrong and that I need to repent, and experiencing a feeling of biological depression. Over time I have learned to recognize the sweet, peaceful feeling of the Spirit that permeates everything he does. It is a very distinct and personal feeling that, when learned, can be recognized very readily, just as the flavor of mint can easily be distinguished from the flavor of oranges. But at first it may be very hard to learn to discern the feelings of the Spirit from our own feelings. 

When I learned to recognize the feeling of the Holy Spirit it became a very personal thing, and I could recognize it as being distinct from all other feelings, much in the same way that we might recognize a brother or sister or good friend as distinct from all other people. If we are not familiar with the Spirit then the feelings he brings may be covered over by our own feelings, including the feelings of depression, much in the same way that we may pass a stranger in the street and not give them a second thought. Even in the depths of depression I can still feel the promptings and peace of the Holy Spirit, though it has taken me years to learn to tell the difference between my own feelings and the feelings he brings. 

In some cases the problems of depression are enhanced because the person who is depressed does not only have to deal with their own feelings, but also with feelings brought on by evil or malicious spirits. Not all episodes of depression are caused by the influence of evil spirits, and not all people who experience depression will ever have to deal with the influence of evil spirits, but it is something that I have had to deal with and it is something that requires the power of the priesthood to overcome. When it comes to depression there is perhaps something wrong in the connection between body and spirit, and that misconnection will occasionally induce those who cannot have bodies to try to exploit that opportunity to gain some influence over the body. For those spirits who cannot have their own body, a body that is broken and not working properly is preferable to none at all, even if they have little or no control over it. 

In these cases it requires someone who is very much in tune with things of the Spirit to exercise their priesthood power and to remove the influence of these evil spirits. These spirits can both cause and exacerbate the problems of depression. Like I said, not all people who have depression are being influenced by evil spirits, but some are and it takes the gift of discernment to recognize the presence of these spirits. A bishop has specifically been called to exercise the spirit of discernment so they should usually be the one to recognize and help out in this matter, but I have found that my bishops were not always aware of this or even willing to attempt to help in this way. In these cases I have had to rely on inspired priesthood holders who were sufficiently in tune with the Spirit to recognize the problem and to help out. (If at this point you have in your mind some scene from the movie The Exorcist then you are understanding this all wrong. I am not talking about anything like that at all. The workings of the priesthood and of the Spirit are never creepy. They only provide peace, if not then something is wrong.) 

So the things that I have learned by experiencing depression are that I can still feel the Spirit, even if it is very difficult and it seems that I am “past feeling”. There can be something biologically wrong with my body that interferes with my feeling the Spirit, but even in the most extreme situations the Spirit can still speak to my spirit without a physical intermediary, such as my body, and the Spirit can always be felt and heard. Every once in a while it is not sin, nor a biological problem that creates or worsens my depression, but the influence of those who can never have bodies. In these cases prayer, a reliance on the Spirit, God and His priesthood can dispel these evil influences. 

When I am in my manic phase how I connect to the Spirit is remarkably similar to when I am in my depressive phase. Most people would see me in my manic phase and think it a good thing I am out of my depression, but the manic phase is just as dangerous. It warps my thoughts and makes me think things that aren't true. Just as depression gives me feelings of inadequacy and makes me feel like I have sinned, even when I haven't, my manic phase makes me feel superhuman, like I can do anything, and also makes me feel like I can do no sin.

So how does this affect how I connect to the Spirit? It is like turning up the volume on the radio. If there is static then turning up the volume will just make the static louder. If there is music then the music will be louder. If there is music and static then both will be louder, but in many cases when the static is minimal with the volume turned down, when the volume is turned up the static can override the music. It is the same with the Spirit. If I am feeling the Spirit when I enter one of my manic phases then the Spirit is amplified greatly. Some of my most spiritual and revelatory experiences have come when I was on my manic phase, but just as depression can override the feelings of the Spirit, the feelings of my manic phase can just as easily override the feelings of the Spirit. Going back to my radio analogy it is not just an increase in volume, but the frequency or the tuner also tends to drift in my manic phase so it is just as easy to lose the feelings and promptings of the Spirit when I am in my manic phase as it is in my depressive phase. The problem is I am on a high so it makes it hard to recognize that I have lost the sweet, peaceful, calming feelings of the Spirit.

Alma may have wished to be an angel to cry repentance to the whole earth, but when I am in my manic phase, I feel like I am an angel and I am going to do all of God's work myself. I feel so righteous I think I am good enough to be the prophet (someday). Those moments don't last long and I have learned that if I feel what I think are promptings of the Spirit while I am in my manic phase then I try to verify the same feelings and thoughts when I am not in a manic phase. I found that this deliberate approach to sorting my own feelings from the feelings of the Spirit has kept me from falling into error and mistaking my own feelings for promptings of the Spirit. I have frequently received assurances through the Spirit that God is aware of my limitations and takes extra care to lead me carefully to distinguish what He wants from the sometimes random noise that I can produce in abundance.

What I feel when I am depressed mimics the feeling of losing the Spirit, which is the feeling of having sinned. We must never mistake depression for sin. It is a feeling that is all too common among those who have depression. They feel they are not good enough, that they are a disappointment to God and others, and that they can never be righteous. That is not the Spirit. That is depression. The Spirit always brings hope, even when it chastises us for sin, it gives us hope and peace.

So those are my thoughts. I hope you do not mind me sharing them on your blog, but I have been thinking about these things recently and felt like sharing them. 

I ask that you not use my real name. For this subject I have to be careful since there is still a strong stigma against having these issues. Tell someone you have cancer and they will organize the whole Relief Society to bake dinners till the end of time. But tell someone you have bipolar disorder and they go tell the bishop that they are not comfortable with you being their children’s Sunday School teacher.

Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. I know my comments were rather lengthy but I guess it was just something I really felt like sharing.

[For anyone who wants to comment, you can post anonymously in the comments if you do not feel comfortable using your name or email account. Keep in mind that nothing I say should be taken as medical advice. I'm a astrophysicist not a psychiatrist. ;-) I encourage anyone who is experiencing depression/bipolar disorder to seek help from competent medical professionals.]

To Be Pure Before God

[This was a talk I gave in Sacrament Meeting on Sunday, April 19, 2015.]

On Friday I had the opportunity to attend the temple. While I was there I reflected on the preparation we need to go through before we can attend the temple. Unlike our church buildings temples are holy places where only those who are prepared can enter in. For those who were baptized as children they must wait until they are adults before attending the temple. For recent converts they must wait at least a year before entering the temple. This is done so that there may be a space between baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit; and entering into the temple.

The purpose of this preparatory space is to give us adequate time to feel and experience the gift of God’s Spirit which was given to us after baptism, so that when we enter the temple we are sufficiently pure in spirit that we can understand and enjoy the words of eternal life.

In ancient Israel before anyone could enter into the tabernacle in the early days or temple after it was built, they had abide by a stringent list of requirements before they could be declared ritually pure. In the book of Leviticus we can read about the rules governing all types of impurities. In there the people of God are commanded to separate themselves from all things that are impure. This includes different types of food, dead bodies, diseased bodies, and bodily fluids usually associated with sin, death and illness.

If anyone, especially the priests, were to come into contact with these things then they were ritually impure and they were not allowed into the temple, which is to say, they were not allowed into the presence of the Lord. They were unclean, impure and unfit to enter into the presence of God.

So here we see that the people of God were separated from the presence of the Lord due to their impurities, that is, because they had been made impure by things associated with death they could not abide the presence of the Lord. Because they had broken the commandment they were forever separated from the presence of the God of Life. As the prophet Alma taught,

“For our words will condemn us, yea, all our works will condemn us; we shall not be found spotless; and our thoughts will also condemn us; and in this awful state we shall not dare to look up to our God; and we would fain be glad if we could command the rocks and the mountains to fall upon us to hide us from his presence.” (Alma 12:14)

“But behold, an awful death cometh upon the wicked; for they die as to things pertaining to things of righteousness; for they are unclean, and no unclean thing can inherit the kingdom of God; but they are cast out.” (Alma 40:26)

The great sin of this world is Death. Because all men must die we are consigned to this awful state. We not only die with respect to our bodies but also with respect to things pertaining to things of righteousness. The righteous and just must also suffer this death. President Joseph F. Smith saw in vision an assembly of saints who waited for the advent of their Savior. He said,

“I saw the hosts of the dead, both small and great. And there were gathered together in one place an innumerable company of the spirits of the just.... For the dead had looked upon the long absence of their spirits from their bodies as a bondage.” (D&C 138:11-12,50)

They knew that they could not escape from that prison called death, nor could they cleanse themselves from sin. And that is the awful state that we all find ourselves in.

If death were the last and final state of man, and the end of our story then there would be no hope. But in His infinite wisdom, God has prepared a way for us to escape. Because we have yielded to temptation, the Lord has provided for us a savior that we may be brought forth by the power of the redemption and resurrection, and brought back into the presence of God.

In a vision, the prophet Isaiah found himself before the throne of God. Upon realizing where he was he proclaimed,

“Woe to me! I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.” (Isaiah 6:5)

Isaiah was overcome because he knew he was impure and covered with the blood and sins of his generation. But Isaiah continued his story,

“Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.” (Isaiah 6:6-7)

In that moment Isaiah was cleansed from his sins and he was made pure. The holiness and purity of God cleansed and purified Isaiah. He was given the Spirit of the Lord, as a gift, and it purified him and made it possible for him to enter into the presence of the Lord. Because of this Isaiah was able to say,

“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;” (Isaiah 61:1)

Herein is the essential thought. Before we can receive the good tidings of great joy we must first be washed and anointed and cleansed from the blood and sins of our generation. Only then can the Lord bind up our contrite spirits and broken hearts. Only then can those who are in bondage, either through physical or spiritual death, be set free. And herein lies our faith and our hope.

As President Smith saw in vision,

“And there were gathered together in one place an innumerable company of the spirits of the just, who had been faithful in the testimony of Jesus while they lived in mortality; And who had offered sacrifice in the similitude of the great sacrifice of the Son of God.… They were assembled awaiting the advent of the Son of God into the spirit world, to declare their redemption from the bands of death…. [when the] Son of God appeared, declaring liberty to the captives who had been faithful; And there he preached to them the everlasting gospel, the doctrine of the resurrection and the redemption of mankind from the fall, and from individual sins on conditions of repentance.” (D&C 138:12-19)

Although we may be unclean and impure, we can become clean through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. During Jesus’s life time he went about touching and healing people who were sick. He did not shy away from those with leprosy. A woman who had an issue of blood came and touched him and was healed. When he went into the room where Jairus’s daughter’s dead body lay, he took her by the hand. When Lazarus had been dead three days Jesus went to the tomb where he lay. In all these cases according to the Law of Moses, Jesus would have been ritually impure, and therefore ineligible to enter into the presence of God.

The only problem was that Jesus was God, and the one who gave the Law. According to the Law of Moses a man was made unclean by coming in contact with death, but if by that contact the dead return to life, is that man still impure? It was the ultimate Jewish legal paradox. In all these cases Jesus was not made impure by the illnesses and death, but rather His purity overcame their afflictions and they were healed. His power and holiness overcame the things of death that separated these people from the presence of God.

By showing us that he could overcome physical ills and death Jesus showed us that He can also overcome spiritual death. There was a man who was paralyzed and his friends brought him to Jesus to be healed.

“When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.” The Pharisees and the teachers of the law began thinking to themselves, “Who is this fellow who speaks blasphemy? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” Jesus knew what they were thinking and asked, “Why are you thinking these things in your hearts? Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” Immediately [the man] stood up in front of them, took what he had been lying on and went home praising God.” (Luke 5:20-25)

So as we prepare ourselves to enter into the temple, we must remember that we must first become clean. And we are “cleansed by blood, even the blood of [God’s] Only Begotten; that [we] might be sanctified from all sin, and enjoy the words of eternal life in this world, and eternal life in the world to come, even immortal glory” (Moses 6:59)

Each of us must first be baptized by water, and then receive the gift of God’s Holy Spirit. Then the blood of the Lamb of God, which was offered as a sacrifice for our sins, will cleanse us from the impurity of death, both physical and spiritual. “For by the water ye keep the commandment; by the Spirit ye are justified, and by the blood ye are sanctified”. (Moses 6:60)

May we all apply the atoning blood of Jesus Christ and prepare to enter into God’s presence. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.