Where two or three are gathered together in my name as touching one thing, behold, there will I be in the midst of them. (D&C 100 [RE])
I believe that those words, spoken by Jesus in both ancient and modern times, are quite relevant to the current effort to come to a mutual agreement on the Guide and Standard to be put in the scriptures. If the idea in those words applies to two or three people, I believe it can apply to many more than that (as long as the other conditions are met). Similarly, it can also apply if it touches more than one thing. Even an entire list of things. The tricky part is being gathered together in the Lord’s name. Since we want the Lord to be in our midst, how do we gather in His name?
I believe gathering in His name is to take on all of His attributes as we deal with one another. It is to be kind. It is to condescend. It is to have charity. It makes me think of the prayer circles done in LDS temples and the instructions that go with them. There can be no hard feelings. There can only be love and acceptance. And unity instead of opposition. The Father and the Son are one. That’s what the Son does and wants to do with us. He unites broken things and makes them one. He “at-ones” all those who want to be one. There are no sides. No majorities or minorities. Everything is done in common and all partake of the heavenly gift. There is no contention due to the love of God which dwells in each person’s heart. Because of that, there can be mighty miracles.
The Government of God’s People
Beginning at the Lord’s attempt to establish Zion through Moses until the quasi-Zion society of the Nephites after the Lord’s appearance to them, one can see a chiasmus in the types of government the Lord’s people accepted. The chiasmus looks like this:
A Oneness and equality
B Judges
C Kings
C’ Kings
B’ Judges
A Oneness and equality
Through Moses, the Lord was offering everyone the chance to be a prophet and know the Lord. Everyone would be equal and, due to the Lord’s direct involvement and the love of God that would have dwelled in everyone, there would be no need for an earthly system of government. There would only be unity. But that offer was rejected.
The centuries-long system of government the Israelites settled on involved the need for “judges”. The people were free from kings, but it was a time marked by lots and lots of warfare. Their enemies constantly came upon them. They were often faithless and suffered for it. They would repent and plead for God’s help and God would often deliver them through the intervention of certain individuals. It was very cyclical and predictable.
Eventually the people were sufficiently hardened that they demanded a king. And that’s what the Lord gave them. Israel suffered greatly because of it. We all know the dangers posed by kings. They can lead the people into much wickedness. After Lehi’s family left Jerusalem and arrived at the promised land, a system of kings was established and that defined Nephite government for centuries.
Eventually it was recognized that kings posed a great threat to the people and Mosiah II instituted a system of “judges” that would be established by the voice of the people. They were supposed to decide things through voting. It wasn’t quite like the period of judges found in the Bible, but it’s notable that both systems are known specifically by the term “judges”. Just like the experience of the Israelites long before, it was a time marked by lots and lots of warfare. In fact, warm contentions, destructive dissensions, and war and death on a massive scale all came about almost immediately after the reign of the judges began. Deciding things by the voice of the people with winners and losers introduced new ways in which the people could dispute one with another. The Nephites were constantly harassed by their enemies. The Nephites were often faithless and suffered for it. They would repent and plead for God’s help and God would often deliver them through the intervention of certain individuals. Now we read those accounts and we speak of the “pride cycle” and we can see how predictable the outcomes were.
Eventually, after the system of judges and voting ended in absolute failure and deep divisions, and after the people were greatly humbled by extreme destruction, Jesus came and taught His law. His commandments established something new. Or rather, they established something previously offered but rejected by the Israelites who came out of Egypt. This time, all would be equal. There would be no more factions. No more voting. Just love and everything in common. At least for a time, all knew the Lord and were blessed by Him. That is absolutely necessary for Zion.
Reach for Something Higher
How do we obtain the Lord’s highest system of “government” that He offers? How do we receive the oneness and equality of Zion? Will it simply come if we preach at each other enough? Will it come if losers humbly accept the will of the winners? Will truth finally prove victorious because of the ballot box? Did those things work for the Nephites?
Maybe we can obtain what the Lord offers by petitioning Him. And maybe we petition Him by doing what He says. Maybe it involves laying down our disputations and contentions. Maybe it requires being merciful and making peace. Maybe it involves condescending and agreeing with our adversaries quickly while we are in the way with them, even to the point of letting them persecute us, not even resisting the evil that is done to us. Maybe we need to go the extra mile with those who compel us and not turn away anyone who asks anything of us. Maybe we need to serve the least among us. Maybe we need to be one.
I invite everyone who entered into the covenant to participate in the effort to produce a mutually agreeable Guide and Standard. It should almost certainly end up being a document that literally everyone involved can agree on. For everyone who entered into the covenant, there are at least four things we can all agree on, and probably many more besides that. The effort will certainly require us all to lay down our ideas of what ought to be in the document. But it won’t require anyone to do or say anything against their beliefs. Nobody will be subject to any “king” because everything included will have the support of everyone. Instead of mourning tyranny, all will be able to rejoice at the opportunity to suffer and sacrifice for Christ’s sake. Even if the document is very short, it will represent our unity and it will show the Lord that we want to be His and that we truly want to be one. It will be our petition to God to obtain His system of “government”. Additionally, if it is indeed a sacrifice, it may be one way to covenant by sacrifice.
The Lord said, “Even a single soul who stirs up the hearts of others to anger can destroy the peace of all my people.” The solution given is for each of us to “equally walk truly in [the Lord’s] path”, doing what we profess we do. So let us be equal. It seems to me that that can be accomplished by condescending to the level of the least among us. How powerful an act would that be that would surely witness that we do what the Lord asks us to do!
We have a unique opportunity right now to gather together in the Lord’s name (by taking upon ourselves His attributes) as touching one or more things. The Lord has promised that, if we do that, He will be in our midst. And when He is in our midst, despite all our shortcomings, He will provide every needful thing by endowing us with the knowledge and wisdom we lack and yet require in order to do His work.
And do you covenant to seek to become of one heart with those who seek the Lord to establish His righteousness? (Answer and Covenant)
