Zatch's First Letter from the MTC (dated 28 June 12):
Hi all,
Sorry I didn't email sooner. We had language-software computer time Friday but they didn't explicitly tell us to email family, and in spite of my whining about the stupid rules I'm pretty good at being obedient. Hopefully you got my hand-written letter by now. I sent it last week I think. And at least you aren't as bad as my roommate Elder Cozzen's family. His dad called so many times they made him write home Monday and send an early email Wednesday.
Thanks for sending me KB's MTC letter, Dad. I won't ever read it/them on email while I'm here since time is monitored so how's abouts DearEldering it to me? From what I remember, though, I think my experience is the same as his so far, including the cup-flipping and the "Hey, look! Missionaries!" Just replace "Malay" with "Spanish" and "Church of Scarecrows of the Last Days" with "The Holy Ghost descended in the form of a prostitute" (Mateo 3:16). I guess that's the idea. This whole place is all just one big exercise in homogeneity. All the RMs I've talked to have said "The MTC is what you make of it." By that I assume they all mean "It sucks, but humans are surprisingly adaptable and optimistic." And lest you think I'm just being a downer, my comp Elder Herzog, who is quite level-headed, well-adjusted, and just generally a better person, of his own accord the other day remarked "This place is like The Village."
And speaking of homogeneity, I've encountered Breanna Jones (who, being female, short, and dark-haired was easy to spot), and Kaeden Jacobs and Russell Melland (from my Tucson ward), who, being white males with dirty-blons-ish hair, were not easy to spot . Kaeden happens to have class immediately above my classroom and Russell and I happened to just walk past each other one day. I've since seen Kaeden a few times, and I saw Bre quite a few times before she left (probably a lot more than she saw me. She ate a lot of wraps and sat, on average, 4 rows to my north. That's not weird, right?).
I like my MTC group pretty well. The district gets along well (for the most part) and several other leaders and missionaries have remarked to us just how good we have it. My teacher Bro. Lucero has a McCann-like sense of humor, which if I had to describe I would say is mostly passive, "let the jokes make themselves" kind of thing. Elder Feller in my district reminds me a lot of my Tucson roommate Bert Grabinger, but with a thing for Justin Bieber.
I hate myself just a little bit for telling these next two stories, but KJ will enjoy them so whatever. It was mission president weekend over the past few days (no, I didn't meet K's new pres), which means there were rumors of an Apostle giving the Sunday evening fireside (false) and the Tuesday evening devotional (true). I'm pretty sure if Jesus was standing in line for the devotional with all the men and women wearing his nametag he wouldn't have gotten in because: a) no suitcoat, and b) no mercy. It worked out for Herzog and I, though. By the time we got in they opened up seating on the floor, so we sat about 12 rows back from the Quorum of the Twelve (sans Packer and Hales) and the presidents of the Seventy. Plus I got an aisle seat (=extra foot-room).
Later that evening, Herzog and I were asked to escort a new missionary to dinner since he was a day early. When we dropped him off at the front desk later, we saw scriptures belonging to "Elder R.G. Scott" in the lost-and-found.
Dad, quit worrying about me. I'm just guessing here but that seems like something you'd do. You can start worrying about me when I stop making cult jokes (then you'll know they got to me).
Mom, congrats on your job. As I recall, this makes two years in a row that you got a job the day I left home. Your welcome, I guess.
KJ, happy late birthday again. Buy your own cigarettes now.
Everybody, if you write me I'll write you back. Promise. But you have to go first since I have no addresses.
Love, Z
P.S. Add breanna.jones to the forward list. Also Sarah Robishaw, though to find her email address you'll have to log in to my dudeman4 account. And if you really want to send me something, good bread would be acceptable. Plus spinach, if you can think of a good way to preserve it. Ideally not cans.
6.18.2012
Farewell
Below I have posted a recording of the farewell address I gave today prior to my MTC departure Wednesday. Video recordings are not allowed in LDS chapels, so I included some pictures from the post-meeting luncheon (plus a couple of visual aids) for visual stimulation (and for the benefit of those who were unable to attend). Further below is a reprint of the talk as written (though not exactly as presented).
As a missionary, one of my jobs will be to share my convictions; that is, I will try to pass along ideas which I find to be of fundamental importance. Before I proceed, let me give you a few seconds to consider the convictions you cling to most strongly.
I suspect many of you hold convictions of things like the Atonement, the Book of Mormon, or eternal families. If you are my buddy Trevor, you said "Thou shalt not kill."
This question poses an interesting challenge to me as the sort of person who likes to complicate things. I graduated with bachelors degrees in math and physics, and I've started graduate physics classes. In my studies I've been trained to understand that the things we are sure about are frequently wrong. Some simple examples are: the earth is flat; the earth is the center of the universe. Some physicists thought we'd have everything figured out by the turn of the 20th century, and then BOOM! Relativity, which says that if you're running really really fast and I'm standing still then we will age at different rates; and quantum mechanics, which says that, on or below the atomic level, we can never make a measurement with 100% certainty.
I find myself taking the same skeptical approach in religion. You'll recall that the-Earth-is-the-center-of-the-universe was once seen as an important religious belief. You might also recall radio evangelist Harold Camping, who last year predicted the end of the world -- twice. As a Church we've also had our share of folk beliefs that have been, or one day will be found to be incorrect. I had an institute teacher (who was subbing in my Church History class) say the following: "It is, I think, offensive to the Spirit to try to base testimony on things that may never have happened." We find this sentiment echoed in the scriptures. In Matt 7:21 we read: "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven." James has a similar remark in chapter 2, verse 19: "Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble."
I interpret these statements in the following way: it is not so much what you believe that is important; it's what you do with it. As a result, I take the same approach in religion as I do in science. There my convictions are not so much "facts" as they are guiding principles ("facts" in quotes because, as I've shown, sometimes we get our facts messed up). Let me explain how this works in science first of all, and then I'll try to formulate the construction I've produced for myself in religion.
In science, we start by postulating that some unique, universal "truth" exists. In physics this basically means that if gravity points down on Earth, it will also point down on Mars, etc. In order to find this truth, we perform experiments and make observations to get rid of all the ideas that don't work and whatever is left must be the answer. This is what scientists call "falsifiability."
For myself, I've postulated the following: If God exists, He desires our happiness. There are those in the world who would disagree. However, I stand by my statement because I see virtually no purpose for our existence in a universe created by an apathetic or an adversarial god. That, I would say, is conviction number 1.
For conviction number 2, I would claim that in order to experience happiness, we must experience sorrow and adversity. In fact, I would claim that greater happiness comes through overcoming greater sorrow and greater adversity. It is through overcoming adversity that we learn, grow, or otherwise progress as individuals. Therefore, to experience eternal happiness, as I believe God would have us do, we must progress eternally. This particular guiding principle informs my interpretation of the nature of sin and commandments. The things which we are commanded to do tend to strengthen us as individuals as we overcome the challenges of our fallen state. Those things which are considered sins are the things which distract us from our progression, or which prevent us from facing our problems head-on
Thirdly, I am convinced that our progression as individuals in strongly dependent on the progression of others. By this I refer both to charitable feelings toward mankind and to eternal families. Charity is easy enough to take as a guiding principle. While interpretations may vary, virtually every person in the world feels some sort of obligation to help those around him or her. This tendency towards "nice-ness" could be an evolutionary or social adaption to assist in the formation and regulation of societies, but even then it is useful to our progression because societies have developed to allow each of us to focus our efforts on ourselves when needed, with the understanding that we will be able to support others when they need support.
But as I said, I think there is more to it than just this, however. I said that I'm convinced that our progression depends on the progression of others, and I think there may be a more literal interpretation, as well. Picture in your head a family tree, with the primary branch representing God the father. Joseph Smith taught that as individuals progress and attain glory, that glory is spread upwards through the tree via the sealing power.
For some reason I felt this idea resonate within me as I first heard it. It just gives structure to so many of the teachings we have. Eternal families fit right in. God's promise to Abraham that he would have seed as the sands of the sea makes more sense. The emphasis on sexual sins becomes clear when it is understood that they undermine the nature of this structure. I'm glad we've abandoned polygamy, but one can even see how that practice might have a place in this structure.
I had this appreciation for the sealing power reaffirmed to me just yesterday, in fact, as I performed proxy sealings with my parents in the Salt Lake temple. I've found myself annoyed at a handful of things in the endowment ceremony, but I felt a spirit of peace, love, and calm during that time in the sealing room. In fact, one of my earliest and strongest encounters with what I believe may have been the Spirit of the Lord took place in a sealing room in the Draper temple during their open house a few years ago. This was well after the traditional time for men to leave on missions and during a particularly hostile phase of my life regarding the Church. I went to the open house, hoping to determine whether it was right for me to pursue a life in the Church, and, without going in to detail, I left feeling that perhaps the answer was yes.
Let me close by restating that I feel it is our place to be happy, but in order to do so we must seek to progress by overcoming obstacles, and that as we do so, we should seek to aid others in their progression. I present them to you with a testimony that I have found these convictions valuable in my life as foundational guiding principles. With this I close in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
As a missionary, one of my jobs will be to share my convictions; that is, I will try to pass along ideas which I find to be of fundamental importance. Before I proceed, let me give you a few seconds to consider the convictions you cling to most strongly.
I suspect many of you hold convictions of things like the Atonement, the Book of Mormon, or eternal families. If you are my buddy Trevor, you said "Thou shalt not kill."
This question poses an interesting challenge to me as the sort of person who likes to complicate things. I graduated with bachelors degrees in math and physics, and I've started graduate physics classes. In my studies I've been trained to understand that the things we are sure about are frequently wrong. Some simple examples are: the earth is flat; the earth is the center of the universe. Some physicists thought we'd have everything figured out by the turn of the 20th century, and then BOOM! Relativity, which says that if you're running really really fast and I'm standing still then we will age at different rates; and quantum mechanics, which says that, on or below the atomic level, we can never make a measurement with 100% certainty.
I find myself taking the same skeptical approach in religion. You'll recall that the-Earth-is-the-center-of-the-universe was once seen as an important religious belief. You might also recall radio evangelist Harold Camping, who last year predicted the end of the world -- twice. As a Church we've also had our share of folk beliefs that have been, or one day will be found to be incorrect. I had an institute teacher (who was subbing in my Church History class) say the following: "It is, I think, offensive to the Spirit to try to base testimony on things that may never have happened." We find this sentiment echoed in the scriptures. In Matt 7:21 we read: "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven." James has a similar remark in chapter 2, verse 19: "Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble."
I interpret these statements in the following way: it is not so much what you believe that is important; it's what you do with it. As a result, I take the same approach in religion as I do in science. There my convictions are not so much "facts" as they are guiding principles ("facts" in quotes because, as I've shown, sometimes we get our facts messed up). Let me explain how this works in science first of all, and then I'll try to formulate the construction I've produced for myself in religion.
In science, we start by postulating that some unique, universal "truth" exists. In physics this basically means that if gravity points down on Earth, it will also point down on Mars, etc. In order to find this truth, we perform experiments and make observations to get rid of all the ideas that don't work and whatever is left must be the answer. This is what scientists call "falsifiability."
For myself, I've postulated the following: If God exists, He desires our happiness. There are those in the world who would disagree. However, I stand by my statement because I see virtually no purpose for our existence in a universe created by an apathetic or an adversarial god. That, I would say, is conviction number 1.
For conviction number 2, I would claim that in order to experience happiness, we must experience sorrow and adversity. In fact, I would claim that greater happiness comes through overcoming greater sorrow and greater adversity. It is through overcoming adversity that we learn, grow, or otherwise progress as individuals. Therefore, to experience eternal happiness, as I believe God would have us do, we must progress eternally. This particular guiding principle informs my interpretation of the nature of sin and commandments. The things which we are commanded to do tend to strengthen us as individuals as we overcome the challenges of our fallen state. Those things which are considered sins are the things which distract us from our progression, or which prevent us from facing our problems head-on
Thirdly, I am convinced that our progression as individuals in strongly dependent on the progression of others. By this I refer both to charitable feelings toward mankind and to eternal families. Charity is easy enough to take as a guiding principle. While interpretations may vary, virtually every person in the world feels some sort of obligation to help those around him or her. This tendency towards "nice-ness" could be an evolutionary or social adaption to assist in the formation and regulation of societies, but even then it is useful to our progression because societies have developed to allow each of us to focus our efforts on ourselves when needed, with the understanding that we will be able to support others when they need support.
But as I said, I think there is more to it than just this, however. I said that I'm convinced that our progression depends on the progression of others, and I think there may be a more literal interpretation, as well. Picture in your head a family tree, with the primary branch representing God the father. Joseph Smith taught that as individuals progress and attain glory, that glory is spread upwards through the tree via the sealing power.
For some reason I felt this idea resonate within me as I first heard it. It just gives structure to so many of the teachings we have. Eternal families fit right in. God's promise to Abraham that he would have seed as the sands of the sea makes more sense. The emphasis on sexual sins becomes clear when it is understood that they undermine the nature of this structure. I'm glad we've abandoned polygamy, but one can even see how that practice might have a place in this structure.
I had this appreciation for the sealing power reaffirmed to me just yesterday, in fact, as I performed proxy sealings with my parents in the Salt Lake temple. I've found myself annoyed at a handful of things in the endowment ceremony, but I felt a spirit of peace, love, and calm during that time in the sealing room. In fact, one of my earliest and strongest encounters with what I believe may have been the Spirit of the Lord took place in a sealing room in the Draper temple during their open house a few years ago. This was well after the traditional time for men to leave on missions and during a particularly hostile phase of my life regarding the Church. I went to the open house, hoping to determine whether it was right for me to pursue a life in the Church, and, without going in to detail, I left feeling that perhaps the answer was yes.
Let me close by restating that I feel it is our place to be happy, but in order to do so we must seek to progress by overcoming obstacles, and that as we do so, we should seek to aid others in their progression. I present them to you with a testimony that I have found these convictions valuable in my life as foundational guiding principles. With this I close in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
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