A Real Boy!

Man is “what,” and woman is “why.” Man creates things and a woman gives them life. Geppetto created a puppet, but a Woman gave it life. She came twice to bring life, first to give it opportunity to learn by experience. Geppetto sends it out to suffer in the world alone, but the Woman gives light, the light of Christ, a conscience to guide it through the world. She comes again at the end to give it life -- or resurrection. She judges the puppet to be worthy of life because it has repented and sacrificed itself for the Father, Geppetto. It learned to love. It then becomes a real boy through Her magic touch. 

Women are uniquely qualified to give life to the lifeless. All that man creates is lifeless, things that serve a purpose, things people want, but it takes a woman to give it life, to make it work, to bring love, to give it purpose. Men create children. Women give life to them. Independence is masculine, inter-dependence is feminine. Women nurture life by bringing children from dependence to independence -- and then back to inter-dependence, or love. She is there at the beginning, and in the end. The child grows up and becomes a real man through her nurture and admonition. She is the One who brings it to maturity, to guide the dependent to become independent. Then, She is there to take His things and give them life. 

Man is the letter, but Woman gives it spirit. “for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.” (2 Corinthians 3:6) The spirit gives life to things. Things come easily, but life is not cheap. Men get little scratches and cuts as they fashion their puppets and other gods of wood and stone. Women bring life through their own blood, sweat, and tears. 

Women can be corrupted in a male world by immature men who want her life, her touch. Men know that she can give life, and they feel like they can suck the life out of her. These men assume their desire for touch is all a woman has to offer. They are puppets playing on Pleasure Island. They use a woman and call it love. There is no life in the relationship. She is as a man, dealing with things, doing things, she doesn’t give life. She has so much more to offer than sex and making food. If he only uses her body and mind, he will lose the very gift she has to give him, what he really wants -- life -- to become a real boy! 

The world loves marionettes bound by strings and hates life, so all that is Feminine is rejected. The giving of life is demeaning. We can prevent that. Nurturing life is disparaged. Women are not taught to be women, they are supposed to be men. They are to enjoy pleasure without giving life. The flesh is the thing. The letter is the thing. The puppet is the thing. They are to compete in men's games, live the actor’s life on Pleasure Island and become jackasses like the men. They can use their body to get the things of the world. There is no love, no life, no nurturing, no conscience, no light, no growth -- nothing is real. All is vanity. 

Life, love, light, and truth are completely foreign on Pleasure Island so there are no women. A real woman does not belong here. She is utterly suppressed and cannot come out. She can only sit inside and look out through the windows of her eyes from her distant star and see the world and the corruption thereof. There she sits, watching, hoping, praying for the time when she can be herself, and do her work, and give life to a world of lifeless dummies. 

The puppets must decide they want more. If they want life and love, they will escape Pleasure Island and brave the deep -- and the monsters. They will give up their tendencies to be jackasses, be ashamed, let go, and seek out those who are lost to bring them home to safety. They will be heroes, giving their lives for others. They will make sacrifices by giving up all they want, or all the things and pleasures of the world, to have that which comes from a distant star -- love. "bridle all your passions, that ye may be filled with love;" (Alma 38:12).

A man must prove himself a true hero. She will bring love when he is ready, when he is worthy, when he is prepared to receive it. He must grow up emotionally, cut the strings, and choose to sacrifice. Only then will a real Woman come to bring life, and true love.  She was there in the beginning to give him life, and if he proves worthy, She will be there in the end to make him a real boy!

How to GHOST a War

In the 1960’s my big brother had a large poster on the wall in his bedroom with a picture of a machine gun filled with cobwebs. The words read: “WHAT IF THEY GAVE A WAR... AND NOBODY CAME?” I finally think I know how that would work.

In December 1914 Europe was embroiled in WWI, dug into trenches in Flanders. Over a million young men had been killed. It was cold. The enemy was less than a hundred yards away in trenches with guns aimed at them. They watched their friends die. Then, on Christmas eve, in the dark, one side started singing a Christmas carol. The other side followed with another. Next they all sang together. They came out of the trenches and spent Christmas day together, being friends. Some agreed to meet after the war. British soldiers wrote letters home about their German friends. They played soccer between the trenches. They shared their cigarettes, wine and food. They held joint funeral services for their dead. The next day, when the leaders came back and told them to start shooting, they sent messages that they were firing over their heads on purpose. If it were up to the men in the miles and miles of trenches, that would have been the end of WWI, and may have prevented WWII from ever getting started. For one day, “they” became one of “us!” 

People don’t like to go to war. Starting a war requires a lot of propaganda to divide people and pit one group against another. We learn in school about the Nazi propaganda machine, but never hear about the British lords who had to put out tons of indoctrination to get their people to fight. Leaders in the United States were also frustrated that Americans didn’t want to get involved, so they started a propaganda campaign of their own to stir-up some anti-Nazi sentiment. My grandmother grew up speaking German, and my mom was a young school girl in San Francisco at the time. In spite of her father being in the Navy, she was called a “Kraut” and other horrible things. She became one of “them.” Americans of Japanese descent were put in prison camps as part of the propaganda machine. They were not “us.”

Good versus Evil

The biblical concept of God is the story of a single family. God is the parent (Father) of the whole human species. All of us are related. We are siblings, from the same family, no matter where we were born on the earth, no matter what language we speak, and no matter what we look like. We are all just people, children of God, who loves each one as much as the other. The whole of Christianity rests on the suffering and death of God, who gave Himself to bring all His children together to be with Him in Heaven. The word "atonement" is "to bring together as one." This defines good. If you don’t believe it, it’s still a great story that helps us to see each other as “one of us.” 

The other side is the story of death and destruction. The devil does just the opposite, trying to divide us into factions to fight against one another. The name "Satan" is "accuser." The devil points the finger at others, accusing them to separate them from God -- and each other. There are many such forces in the world to divide us, and put us into groups that make us suspicious of all “outside” groups. 

• Rich or poor
• Right wing, or Left wing
• Capitalist or Socialist
• Believer or Atheist
• Black or White
• Criminal or Law-abiding
• Male or Female
• American or Chinese
• Jew or Muslim
• All the “sects” of Christianity
• Vaccinated or Unvaccinated
• Communist or Freedom-fighter

This mentality of “us versus them" can define good and evil. 

• Good brings humans together.
• Evil separates people.

That’s how you tell the difference!

People want to feel good. Everyone wants to be good. Even people who are “bad” want to believe they are basically good, and lovable -- loved by others, and loved by God. People want to belong. The worst possible prison torture of humans is isolation. That is how C. S. Lewis describes hell in The Great Divorce. Hell is constantly growing because the people in hell are continually separating themselves from one another.

The Propaganda Machine

The reason to avoid media is divisiveness. To be sensational, the media must separate others and cause fighting. I had a friend who was on a “reality TV” program who told me that behind the scenes they are working hard to induce a fight, to embarrass, or hurt one another -- otherwise it’s not interesting. The rare case of fighting is then seen as “normal.” It’s not normal! Normal is love. Normal is coming together. Normal is helping each other. That’s what we do -- normally. The Christmas parties on Flanders field were a normal human event. The fighting had to be instigated through commands and propaganda from leaders. Both the British and German warlords had to put out a general order: “no fraternizing with the “enemy.”’ Think about that!

Does evil exist? YES! But not in what we think. It’s not the homeless drunk in the street or the guy with a mansion and a Ferrari. It’s not the Democrats or the Republicans. It’s not the drug dealers. It’s not the “Far Right” wacko anti-vaxers, or the communists. Evil is whatever separates humans. It’s those who say “the ____ community.” It’s those who use any terms of “us” and “them.” If you ever hear talk about how one group of people are bad, hateful, hurtful, or just evil -- that talk is evil. It is the definition of evil. Evil is pointing the finger at others and creating a division of “us” versus “them.” It’s putting people into groups, and separating them. Evil simply divides us. It is literally the work of Satan to point out the bad in others. 

In 1994 Rwanda had a civil war that left around a million people dead in about 3 months by the hand of their own friends and neighbors. It’s called a “genocide” because one “ethnic group” was trying to completely wipe out another “ethnic group.” However, in reality they had been the same for generations. They shared the land. They intermarried. They were more like social groups, or tribes, than ethnic. This “genocide” really started sixty years earlier in the 1930’s when Belgium had made Rwanda a colony and kept their power by dividing the people into separate groups, issuing identification cards with their “tribe” and treating each tribe differently. It’s the way those who desire power take control -- by separating the people. 

We are at the beginning of such a war, perhaps WWIII. The weapons aren’t out yet, but the propaganda is, dividing us into “communities” along political, social, racial, vaccinated, mask-wearing, or religious lines. If we listen to the propaganda about the evil of vaccines we are already in the war. On the other hand if we believe the propaganda that those who are not vaccinated are spreading disease we are also creating evil. We’re fighting the wrong war! The real war is division versus unity. No matter which side of the propaganda you are on, the Germans or the British, it is still evil because it divides and separates people, pitting one group against another. Being “right,” knowing “the truth,” having an inside scoop, or in any way seeing yourself as better than others is the problem. We may have a while to wake up because it takes years of inculcation to incite physical violence. But the war has already started when people take sides. 

You might say that I’m pointing the finger at the leaders who run the propaganda machine. However, I can surely say that they are trying as well, they just have a different agenda. It’s hard to be a leader. We need leaders. Society must function with people who take charge and get things done, and there’s always a vacuum of leadership in the world. Those who step forward to lead seek power, they want to lead, which is why the U.S. Constitution was made with “checks and balances” of power. We won’t always have that. I think Jesus told us to obey our leaders, to do what they say but not what they do, so we can live in peace. 

How to GHOST a war!

Change is necessary. Two leaders who are excellent examples of how to change things are Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela. Both of these brought irreconcilable factions together peacefully, through love. We can protest peacefully without taking sides, uniting instead of separating. As the people love one another, our leaders must come into line because all their power comes from those they lead. If nobody follows, you can’t be a leader. The power is in the people!

Just like the rulers of the world, none of us knows what we’re doing. We’re all “winging it” here. We do a lot of guessing. We want to do good, but often get it wrong. I have always thought that the problem with being a parent is that as soon as I figured out how to do it right, the children were gone off on their own. As a doctor, I have (a few) people in the world who think I’m “Miracle Max,” and others who think I’m the devil incarnate. So, we’re all different, and we’re all doing the best we can! Consider that others are also doing the best they can. 

Winning is unity. Be together. Love everyone you meet as a brother or sister. Don’t give in to the hate-mongers. Don’t be part of the divisiveness. Don’t ever let yourself say “us” and “them.” There is no “gay community.” There are people who happen to be gay, and they are extremely diverse. There is no “black community.” There are people who have ancestors from Africa, but may even be mostly English. My father-in-law’s parents are both Mexican, but he was born in Texas, so he does not identify with the “Mexican-American community.” He is just American. There are no socialists, communists, capitalists, deists, or any form of “--ists.” (We could use some “pacifists”) We are all people with different ideas that change over time. If we take the time to get to know individuals we will see them as people, even if they espouse a different philosophy, or look different from us. We actually like each other when we get to know one another. Just as German and British “enemies” came together on the battlefield to become friends for one amazing Christmas day in 1914.

Recommendations: 

1. Stop watching the news, including internet that exposes the “truth” that is divisive. 
2. Don’t point fingers or accuse others (especially our leaders). 
3. Avoid social media (except to stay in contact with all your people!)
4. Don’t take in any “they are bad” messages. 
5. Love everyone you meet, even if you don’t agree. Find some agreement that you share. 
6. If you have bad feelings about someone, keep it to yourself, and find something good about that person. 
7. Read: HUMANKIND by Rutger Bregman and follow the seven rules at the end of the book. ☺ 

Since everything we try to do to stop it by exposure will fail, the only option we have is to refuse to participate. We will win the war if we don’t allow ourselves to give in to the propaganda that divides us. The power-hungry elite are using the most cleaver tactics to pit us against each other. Families are being divided, as are hospitals, churches and businesses. We can only win by everyone opting out of these arbitrary designations, and act as Edwin Markham intoned in his beautiful verse. 

                He drew a circle that shut me out-
                Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout.

                But love and I had the wit to win:
                We drew a circle and took him In!”

“They” are “us.” If someone is vaccinated give her a “thumbs-up,” and if not, give him a hug. If someone is wearing a mask, thank them for being obedient to leaders. If someone isn’t wearing a mask, thank them for asserting their independence. I ask others if they would feel more comfortable if I wore a mask, and I put it on, if they want. Get to know individuals, instead of “communities.” Humbly obey, and do what you must to get by, being kind to others. People will see what good you do and be inspired to do the same. Like sprinkling salt on your food, the tiny bits of the flavor of love will spread throughout the world, and nobody will want to go to war. The only way to win this war is by not showing up. We refuse to participate when we love one another. 

Divine Women

 God the Father is a man. Man of Holiness is His name. The Son is also a man, as is the Holy Ghost. We deal with the male God because we are lost and fallen. We are not worthy to deal with the woman in our state of probation. We cannot handle the power of a woman; we only get a glimpse in the creation of children. Goddesses are part of eternity, but not part of the telestial world. Goddesses are found in the highest heaven, after the resurrection. It is only after we are judged to be worthy that we can come to know the Goddess. As the world moves towards Zion, the terrestrial world, there is more revealed of the divine woman.

 It’s all about power

 Power is the name of the game. Power has always been the purpose of life. Why live? For power, and glory (which is power), and honor (which is power), and growth ( which is power), and love (which is power), and reproduction (which is power). Any reason for life comes down to power. The reason we give our heart and soul to God is to glorify Him and give Him power. God created us to increase His power as He gives us power. Satan tried to take the power from God, and us, and was cast out.

 In the beginning, woman is taken from the side of man in an earthly sense, when coming into “the lone and dreary world.” In being banished the woman serves the man, and he serves her. In the Garden, she led the way to being cast out of heaven, being banished to earth. During probation a man is the head, to bring them together again. He has the power. This has always seemed natural and normal because the man has more muscles, which has always been the prerequisite for domination in the world. It seems natural, but “the natural man is an enemy to God.” So, all too often, men have abused this power. 

it is the nature and disposition of almost all men, as soon as they get a little authority, as they suppose, they will immediately begin to exercise unrighteous dominion.

            (Doctrine and Covenants 121:39)

 In the world, power has always come from muscles, until now. Things are changing. Muscles are no longer needed to have power over another. A gun makes the weakest little old lady stronger than the strongest man in the world. She can protect herself against muscles. Now, power in the world comes from machines. Most of the work is done by machines, and very little is done by muscles. Women can use machines the same as a man. So, a woman in the world is at parity with men. There seems to be no difference. The world has changed.

 More women graduate from college than men. More women get advanced degrees than men. Not that men have stepped down, but that women have stepped up. So, women begin to ask why it’s a man’s world. Why do men run the businesses and nations? Why not a woman? Women are a smart as men, and can push buttons just as well, and type just as fast. There is no longer any reason behind the dominant male. Men can take care of children as well as a woman while his wife goes out and slays the dragons. She can sit at a desk in front of a computer all day as much as her husband. She can give speeches, she can think, calculate, and innovate. Why don’t women have more power? 

Fleeting Power of the World

 In the world all power is temporary. Money and all forms of political power are fleeting. Yesterday I spoke with a woman who had houses and lands and servants and lots of money, but lost it all when she became ill. It’s all gone, and she is in pain. People are elected to office and have power for a short time. Even those who make themselves “presidente for life” will die, and all their power will evaporate. Someone who wants power will find a way to take away what others have and enslave them. The underlying cause of all wars is plunder. Kings were always kings because they could raise an army and pillage other cities, and protect their own people from being plundered. Kings are just in the “protection racket”...until someone bigger comes along to “protect” people. Macbeth, with the support of his wife (and the witches) became king, but found out that there was no real power in having a kingdom, as he had no heir. 

Upon my head they placed a fruitless crown,

And put a barren scepter in my gripe,

                        (Macbeth act 3, scene 1)

 We see political power. We see money, houses, lands and jewels. We are caught up in the ways of the world. Jesus explained that all the power in the world is worthless in the end. 

Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:            (Matthew 6:19)

 The power of support

 We don’t see how “the hand that rocks the cradle rules the world.” We don’t see the power of woman. We don’t see her influence on her world. We don’t see how she guides her husband. The strong man is told what to do by his wife, and he goes out and does it. He is her servant. We don’t see her rule her world because he is out in front, in the limelight, in charge, and in public. She is his reason, giving him purpose and direction. The man that is not unified with his wife will not be able to handle power; and unless he is a sociopath, will not even seek it. “Behind every great man is a great woman.” There is a need for the supportive role. She gives him children, a family, a purpose. 

Today, many women want to go out and fight battles and lead the world -- they want man-power, or political power. Some women want to be Margaret Thatcher, instead of Eleanor Roosevelt, to take the limelight, instead of being “the wind beneath his wings.” They don’t want to have the power of a woman. They don’t want to create, teach, nurture, and direct. They want the honors of men. They do not see the supportive role as powerful, but that is a great error. The concept of the servant being the master was given by the Lord: 

he that is greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is chief, as he that doth serve.

            (Luke 22:26)

 He that is ordained of God and sent forth, the same is appointed to be the greatest,                           notwithstanding he is the least and the servant of all.            (Doctrine and Covenants 50:26)

 The supportive role in a relationship holds the real power. It is the power of God, and is forever. The eternal aspect of this power is feminine. 

 We cannot assume heaven is the same as earth. One of the things that is different is the power structure. In heaven there is more honor for love and support, and thus more power in the divine female. The feminine role is the supportive power, she wields the power of God by making it all have value. She gives God purpose. She is the servant, who is the greatest. She is the reason for all, for without her there is no power, glory, honor, or purpose. The woman is the creation, while the man is the unification. There is no conflict, no war, no vying for power over the other. Power comes through both. There is no worry about political power because it doesn’t exist. There is no political power in heaven because every individual is one with God.

 Hell is a constant battle for power because there is no unity. In the world we are in hell, in a sense, but we can make it into heaven. In heaven there is no domination, the unification of love brings all together into one body. There is no envy or strife because there is no power over another. Each intelligence is exactly what they want to be. Each has everything. There is no protecting so there is no “protection racket.” There is no competition between men and women, only cooperation. Unification is both, or none. 

neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord.

            (1 Corinthians 11:11)

 It is not logical for us to assume that the rules of the penal colony are going to be the same as those with freedom -- and power. Being on probation is going to be totally different from heaven. Being in bondage is different than having liberty. God even thinks differently than we do.

 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

            (Isaiah 55:8-9)

 The Joy of family

 Because we are cast out, we are not dealing with our Mother in heaven. I imagine the divine Mother had a much greater role in the lives of all God’s children before we came to earth, and I imagine she will have a greater role after we leave this life, if we are worthy.

 Eve is “the mother of all living.” She was given that name before she was able to have children. There is purpose in that name. The purpose of women is mother, to be the mother of all living. 

And Adam called his wife’s name Eve, because she was the mother of all living; for thus have I, the Lord God, called the first of all women, which are many.

            (Moses 4:26)

 We don’t just grow individually, we reproduce. Part of our purpose in life is to create children. The “measure of our creation” is to have progeny, which brings joy. Lehi said: 

And they would have had no children; wherefore they would have remained in a state of innocence, having no joy, for they knew no misery; doing no good, for they knew no sin. But behold, all things have been done in the wisdom of him who knoweth all things. Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy.

            (2 Nephi 2:23-25)

 Without a man and a woman there will be no descendants, and without children they cannot have joy. Our purpose for existence is to have joy. Joy is not found in our own accomplishments, but in our progeny. Gods create things, and goddesses create children, or life. Both have joy in their creations. However, they are one God. 

Women Must Receive the Priesthood

 Men are ordained to the administrative priesthood, but that is not the priesthood -- it is only a small part. In the fallen world, a man who is ordained may officiate in the ordinances of salvation, and represent the masculine God on the earth, to preach the gospel and administer in the ordinances thereof. There is no requirement of purity or holiness when officiating in ordinances. The power is not in the priesthood holder, but in God. For example, one man who was a temple worker and served in a bishopric was also a child molester, and had destroyed many lives. When it was found out what he was doing he was excommunicated, but what about all the ordinances he performed, are they null and void? No. The man lost his priesthood authority, which is temporarily given to fallen man, but that which he did while he had authority remains in force. Priesthood authority can be given to act in certain ordinances, cementing a relationship between man and God, but the power or worthiness of the officiator is not a factor. He is just a representative, substitute, or stand-in for God.

 Real priesthood power, on the other hand, requires worthiness, faithfulness, and charity. It comes through the Patriarchal Priesthood, which includes a man and a woman. In a spiritual, or eternal sense, a man and woman are called to the priesthood when they are worthy. In the world there is separation, but in eternity there is none. Priesthood power requires being called and chosen. People are called because of their desires, and chosen because of their works of righteousness. This is not specific to a man or a woman. Power in the priesthood is given to all who make themselves worthy. Those who receive the higher priesthood, man or woman, receive the spiritual blessings promised while in the flesh, which include: 

To have the privilege of receiving the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, to have the heavens opened unto them, to commune with the general assembly and church of the Firstborn, and to enjoy the communion and presence of God the Father, and Jesus the mediator of the new covenant.

            (Doctrine and Covenants 107:19)

 Then, in the eternal world, the promised blessings of power and authority are given to those who have received the priesthood. Neither the man nor the woman has the higher priesthood, rather they come together as one, and collectively hold the fullness of the priesthood. A man does not have power alone; he must have a priestess. Only in being one do they have power to create. He only fulfills his priesthood in the new and everlasting covenant of marriage. Likewise, she receives the priesthood only by her covenant with Him, becoming a priestess. There is no priestess without a priest. In the eternal world they must be one. 

Thus, the proper “holding” of the priesthood is not a gender role, but a human one. A complete human is man and woman. A complete god is man and woman. The question of whether women should “hold” the priesthood is not relevant to God because women already have the same power in the priesthood. Those who believe women should be ordained do not understand the nature of the priesthood, they are too narrowly focused on the present mortal and temporal state. Our object on earth is not to learn how to do things of the world, temporary, or temporal things, but rather how things are done in heaven. We start in the “lone and dreary world” as separate individuals, but move towards becoming one, as God. The question of running the church, being bishops, stake presidents, apostles and prophets, refers to a political, temporary organization. This is not the power of the priesthood, but rather the administration of ordinances that can allow others to receive priesthood power. Power in the priesthood is the ability to act as God -- to create and save Their creations, which requires being complete, as the Lord commanded:

 Therefore I would that ye should be perfect even as I, or your Father who is in heaven is perfect.

           ( 3 Nephi 12:48)

 He is talking to men and women. Perfection is wholeness. The priesthood is not complete unless there is a man and woman, which make together a perfect human. Eternal marriage is now. Power in the priesthood is found in unity. Being priests and priestesses can start in our present state, if it is sought diligently. First, each must individually receive the priesthood. 

For whoso is faithful unto the obtaining these two priesthoods of which I have spoken, and the magnifying their calling, are sanctified by the Spirit unto the renewing of their bodies. They become the sons of Moses and of Aaron and the seed of Abraham, and the church and kingdom, and the elect of God. And also all they who receive this priesthood receive me, saith the Lord; For he that receiveth my servants receiveth me; And he that receiveth me receiveth my Father; And he that receiveth my Father receiveth my Father’s kingdom; therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto him. And this is according to the oath and covenant which belongeth to the priesthood. Therefore, all those who receive the priesthood, receive this oath and covenant of my Father, which he cannot break, neither can it be moved.

            (Doctrine and Covenants 84:33-40 )

All who receive the priesthood become “the seed of Abraham,” does not refer to only men, but all individuals, all the sons and daughters of God. Women need to seek the priesthood the same as men so they are prepared to be sealed for all eternity. “Obtaining these two priesthoods” does not refer to being ordained, but rather “receiving,” or “taking in.” There are those who desire the priesthood as Abraham: 

And, finding there was greater happiness and peace and rest for me, I sought for the blessings of the fathers, and the right whereunto I should be ordained to administer the same; having been myself a follower of righteousness, desiring also to be one who possessed great knowledge, and to be a greater follower of righteousness, and to possess a greater knowledge, and to be a father of many nations, a prince of peace, and desiring to receive instructions, and to keep the commandments of God, I became a rightful heir, a High Priest, holding the right belonging to the fathers.

        (Abraham 1:2)

Abraham sought to be ordained to administer the blessings, or covenants of the priesthood, but priesthood power was given to him as a follower of righteousness, keeping the commandments of God, and teaching others to do so. Based on his righteousness, he became a rightful heir. This is not just for Abraham, whose name represents all the followers of righteousness, but his wife as well is part of this. 

Look unto Abraham, your father, and unto Sarah, she that bare you; for I called him alone, and blessed him.

            (2 Nephi 8:2)

 “Him alone” refers to “Abraham and Sarah.” In the scriptures, or the Tongue of Angels, “Abraham” means “Abraham and Sarah,” “sons” means “sons and daughters,” and “men” means “men and women,” the part referring to the whole because the man is the head. God does not have the same way of seeing His children as we do. We think of separate, single, individuals, but He sees a whole, complete, perfect being -- man and woman. The words of the prophets are not written to help us get along in the world, but rather to bring us out of the world and into eternity. 

All the changes in the temple endowment take our focus off the world, and are more directed to eternity. Before, there was more about our journey in the world. The old temple endowment is to show us how to manage our lives in the world. We are in a fallen world. There is a division of men and women. Men do exercise unrighteous dominion. We live in obscurity. We tolerate hatred, suffering, selfishness, and all kinds of injustice. We must be humble and submit to those who rule, though they be wicked. However, there is a light of the gospel that dispels this darkness. 

Now, however, the world has become much less of the focus. We are now directed to being one, the concentration is centered in the eternal world. This moves us toward Zion, the pure in heart. There is hope for peace and love. As we move toward Zion, we seek unity instead of division, love instead of selfishness, and hope instead of despair. This is found in becoming perfect, complete, and whole -- a man and a woman, a god and a goddess, a king and a queen, a priest and a priestess. The whole being exponentially greater than the sum of its parts. The woman knows her power of creation and salvation, as the man knows his. They are not two, but one. After all, there is only one God. 

It is time for women to take their place as queens and priestesses. They must receive the priesthood the same as men. They must seek for the blessings of the priesthood through their diligence and faithfulness, like Sarah. If we are to become Zion, it will not be because a man who is ordained and set apart for an office, though he be a prophet, seer, and revelator, is going to make it happen. Zion will come when each individual man and woman receives the priesthood, obtains the greater knowledge, has communion with the church of the Firstborn, and partnership with God, making us one. Women cannot just leave this to men. Unity is found on every level in Zion: a man and woman united as a whole person, families united with their children, cities united in their economy, and the world united in praises unto God. This is the result of women receiving priesthood power, and becoming divine.

Spiritual Fatherhood

There is one aspect of fatherhood found in the scriptures that I call “spiritual fatherhood.” This concept is essential because it is how we are connected to God. I will enlarge the definition of “father” to mean any man I follow, who helps me to grow up by engendering new life.

Choosing Fathers

In many religions throughout history, terms for “father," such as "Padre," and "Pope,” are used to recognize those who assist in spiritual growth, or bring one to God.  They teach spiritual lessons: to see what cannot be seen with the eyes, to hear what cannot be heard with the ears, to feel what cannot be touched, and to understand the mysteries of eternal life. They teach faith, hope, and charity, helping to grow to spiritual maturity. But these are not fathers in the physical sense, they are chosen by their acolytes.  

Everyone has both a mother and a father of the flesh to thank for their mortal life on Earth, but the physical father of our bodies is not the same as our spiritual fathers. Spiritual fatherhood is more of the child choosing whom they will follow, as Jesus insinuated, when the Pharisees said, “Abraham is our father.  Jesus saith unto them, If ye were Abraham’s children, ye would do the works of Abraham.”  (John 8:39) He went on to say, “Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do.” (John 8:44) They had a physical heritage from Abraham, but he was not their spiritual father. They had chosen wickedness so Jesus said Satan was their father.

There is also a choice to follow the father of my body -- or not. In fact, within the choice to follow Jesus Christ, one must at least be willing to leave earthly fathers. For example, when the Lamanites were converted to the Lord, their king said, “I thank my God, my beloved people, that our great God has in goodness sent these our brethren, the Nephites, unto us to preach unto us, and to convince us of the traditions of our wicked fathers.” (Alma 24:7) They chose not to follow their fathers when they chose Christ, even changing their name from “Lamanites, Lemuelites, and Ishmaelites” to Anti-Nephi Lehis. They wanted to be known as children of Lehi (a righteous father) who were not Nephites, rejecting their fathers Laman, Lemuel, and Ishmael. 

It is the children, then, in the process of growing up, who choose their spiritual fathers by choosing whom they will follow. So, those fathers who engender mortal bodies are in a tenuous position. If they teach  wicked traditions, they will be rejected. It is always a choice as to who will be a spiritual father, thus it is essential for all who would be fathers to live an exemplary life. 

Multiple Fathers

One can choose any man, living or dead, to be a spiritual father.  As a young man in college, I chose Benjamin Franklin.  After reading his autobiography, which is his instruction to his own son, I decided I would do as he did to become mature, trying to improve myself every day. Ben Franklin didn’t choose to be my father, and I wasn’t born into his family, but I certainly owe him a debt of gratitude for nurturing my growth. I adopted him. Likewise, I have chosen Abraham to be my father. Abraham wanted greater knowledge, and desired the priesthood. I want what he had, to inherit his fortune, which is treasures in heaven. Mormon is my father. He had charity for all, and I desire his inheritance. Isaiah is my father. He knew the heart of God, and I want his heritage. I also have many literal ancestors whom I have chosen, including the father of my body, who heeded the call of Zion, and sacrificed all for it. I choose their legacy. They are both physical and spiritual fathers, by choice. 

The Apostle Paul beseeched the Corinthians to choose him to be their father by following him:

For though ye have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet have ye not many fathers: for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel. Wherefore I beseech you, be ye followers of me. (1 Corinthians 4:15-16)

A father is not just an instructor, but one I follow. The father does not choose his children, rather the children choose their father. I chose Paul to be my father by following him to Jesus Christ, which means I choose the Lord, Jesus Christ, the Son of God.  

The Father of our Salvation

Everyone ever born on the Earth has chosen Jesus Christ to be their Father. The gospel isn’t new to any spirit because the requirement for coming to earth to receive a body was a promise of obedience and sacrifice, much like the covenant of baptism. Those who would not agree to follow Christ were cast out, and are never born on the earth. Those who did, were promised a body -- forever. It is the promise of resurrection given to every person who is ever born on the earth. 

He lives. The tomb was empty because He is alive. They went to “seek the living among the dead,” (Luke 24:5) but He wasn’t there. And, because He was resurrected, we shall all likewise live again, our souls are saved from death forever. In the resurrection, He is the Father of our souls, EVERY SOUL, no matter what. This is no longer a choice because the choice was made before we were ever born.

However, now I can choose Christ to be my spiritual Father, so I can become His son in the spirit. I do this by following Him. King Benjamin explains this after his people made a covenant to follow Christ: 

And now, because of the covenant which ye have made ye shall be called the children of Christ, his sons, and his daughters; for behold, this day he hath spiritually begotten you; for ye say that your hearts are changed through faith on his name; therefore, ye are born of him and have become his sons and his daughters. (Mosiah 5:7)

Being “born again” means being born into His family taking upon myself His name, as He is the Father of the family, akin to me having the name “Saunders” because I was born into the family of Frank Christofferson Saunders, my dad. 

After explaining that Christ is both the Father and the Son, Abinadi further explains how one can choose to become a child of God.  

Behold I say unto you, that whosoever has heard the words of the prophets, yea... all those who have hearkened unto their words, and believed that the Lord would redeem his people, and have looked forward to that day for a remission of their sins, I say unto you, that these are his seed, or they are the heirs of the kingdom of God.  For these are they whose sins he has borne; these are they for whom he has died, to redeem them from their transgressions. And now, are they not his seed? (Mosiah 15:11-12)  

Those who believe in Christ and are saved by Him are His “seed,” or children, and He is their spiritual Father, who brings them to God, the Eternal Father.

God, the Eternal Father

While all, even Satan and all his followers, are spirit children of God the Father, those born in mortality are children of Adam and Eve, who were created from the dust of the Earth. Our flesh is of the earth so our natural being is an enemy to God. Only by choosing to follow Christ can a soul become a child of God. He is the “Only-Begotten of the Father in the flesh,” the ONLY One! There is no other option for becoming children of God except through Him. No matter what we do, we are outside the family of God unless we take upon ourselves the name of Christ. Jesus tells us how this relationship works, He said:

And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven. Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ. (Matthew 23:9-10)

Christ is my master, or the One I obey in all things, He is the Lord, and His Father, God the Eternal Father, is my Father. The choice to follow Christ gives me only one Father, even God, the Father. Paul says to go “boldly unto the throne if grace.” When I pray, I speak with my Father in Heaven, and nobody else, always in the name of Jesus Christ.

All the fathers of the world help me to grow up, and when I do, they become my peers, just like my grown children are my peers. Even Jesus Christ becomes a peer as Paul says: “And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ.” (Romans 8:17) Jesus Himself defined this relationship when He told Mary upon meeting her after His resurrection, to “go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father;” (John 20:17) putting Himself, a perfect being, in a peer relationship with mere mortals. Ultimately, we all become siblings in eternity, and our Father is God - by choice!

So, eternally, there are only two fathers to choose from: God, the Father, and Satan, which is why Lucifer chose to be Satan, to make himself equal to the Father, being the only other father in eternity. 

God has given us the gift of agency, or the ability to choose between Him and Satan. He wants everyone to choose Him and be happy, not to choose Satan and be miserable. When Enoch saw God crying over the wickedness in the world he wondered -- 

How is it that thou canst weep, seeing thou art holy, and from all eternity to all eternity? And were it possible that man could number the particles of the earth, yea, millions of earths like this, it would not be a beginning to the number of thy creations... and naught but peace, justice, and truth is the habitation of thy throne; and mercy shall go before thy face and have no end; how is it thou canst weep?

The Lord said unto Enoch: Behold these thy brethren; they are the workmanship of mine own hands, and I gave unto them their knowledge in the day I created them; and in the Garden of Eden, gave I unto man his agency... And unto thy brethren have I said, and also given commandment, that they should love one another, and that they should choose me, their Father; but behold, they are without affection, and they hate their own blood... Satan shall be their father, and misery shall be their doom; and the whole heavens shall weep over them, even all the workmanship of mine hands; wherefore should not the heavens weep, seeing these shall suffer? (Moses 7:29-37)

Enoch is amazed at how God can weep over a bunch of fools who refuse Him, because He is the Man who has everything -- literally! "Why cry over them when you have so much!?" Then, in the most tender moment in all scripture, God, the greatest of all, explains His love for each of His creations (they are not His children, because they have not chosen Him). “I created them. I love them so I don’t want them to suffer. I have given them knowledge and agency. I have prepared a way for them to be my children, and be saved, but they choose evil, and choose to suffer, choosing Satan to be their father instead of Me!” The heavens weep over every single soul that does not choose God to be their Father. 

Love is the Choice

In these verses God also told Enoch how to choose Him when He said: “[I have] also given commandment that they should love one another, and that they should choose me, their Father...” Anyone can choose to become a child of God by loving others. Jesus explains further, saying, 

Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven:  (Matthew 5:44-45)

Love is the answer. Choosing to love makes one a child of God. Loving everyone is the key. I can know that I am a child of God if I love my enemies, doing good to those who hurt me, and blessing those who hate me. Did not Jesus do this when He said of those who crucified Him, “Father forgive them...?” As Karen Lynn Davidson tells us in the greatest verse ever written, 

No creature is so lowly,
No sinner so depraved,
But feels thy presence holy
And thru thy love is saved.
Tho craven friends betray thee,
They feel thy love’s embrace;
The very foes who slay thee
Have access to thy grace.

(O Savior Thou Who Wearest a Crown)

On this Father’s Day I would commend everyone to seek Father in Heaven, to worship the one God, and choose to come “boldly unto the throne of grace” by following Jesus Christ. He shows us how to choose God to be our Eternal Father, saying, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”  (John 14:6)

The Physics of Being

I wanna live

I wanna give

I've been a miner for a heart of gold

It's these expressions

I never give

That keep me searchin’ for a heart of gold

And I'm gettin’ old

     (Neil Young, 1972)

 

Neil Young wants to find life in a heart of gold.

I also feel like I’ve been searching for a heart of gold.

I want someone to see me.

I want someone to know me.

I want someone to love me.

Where is that heart of gold?

I’ve been a miner for a heart of gold -- and I’m getting old.

 

Quantum physics tells us that observation creates things in the physical world.

I must be created by being seen by another consciousness.

When I am seen, I become connected with another.

Being connected to others happens with observation.

People become real when I see them as they are.

"A heart of gold" can see others as they are. 

I need someone with "a heart of gold" to see me.

 

CREATION

I don’t exist until I am known by another.

I don’t exist unless I am observed.

I’m not real until I’m known.

The consciousness of another brings me into existence.

I’m Schroedinger’s cat -- both dead and alive -- both but neither.

I am in a state of “superposition” neither dead nor alive until somebody sees me, hears me, experiences me.

In the superposition, there is no existence in the physical world.

 

Observation is to see others as they really are, and not as reflections of myself.

Observation is to open the box to see the particle and fix it in a position, making it real, bringing it into my physical world of time and space.

Bringing others into my time and space, becoming one with them, creates entanglement.

Entanglement with another changes me.

 

I become me in another when I am observed by them.

As I am observed by others, I come into existence in different ways, depending on the view of the other.

Each is a unique entanglement.

Each brings out a different part of me.

Each enlarges me.

Growth requires entanglement of consciousness -- to see and be seen.

When I see another, the entanglement increases me.

I gain new understanding, new experience, and new life.

 

Infinite creations are possible, as each observes others.

Every individual could observe every other individual.

Since people are complex, multiple connections can be made between any two people.

The connections are endless.

Creation of new creatures is endless.

Consciousness is creating new entanglements forever as we observe, and know, others.

 

God is creating by observation.

God observes us.

God knows us.

 

DARKNESS

 

Some say they want to hide, so they seek darkness.

Some make a façade to show the world.

Some have a mask.

Some avoid others.

Some people are hopeless, and in despair.

Those who hide are a caricature to all around them.

In the darkness, people can think that nobody knows them.

 

Even those who want to hide, secretly want to be known.

They want to be understood.

They want to be seen, but they are afraid.

They desperately need to be seen behind the mask.

Everyone wants to be known.

Everyone wants to exist. 

 

MARRIAGE

 

Marriage is the expectation of a new creature, a birth.

The intimate attachment is another level of creation.

The couple is a new birth.

They know each other.

They see each other.

 

The children are the manifestation of the creation of a new creature.

“Adam knew his wife, Eve, and she bore a son.”

 

A couple is a new creature created by knowing one another.

They see each other.

They feel each other.

They observe the real partner.

They become one in knowing each other.

Each observes the other without judgment. 

True intimacy: “into-me-see”

 

Each is an infinite being.

Every person has multiple sides.

People change and grow, being ever variable.

As they grow, the couple sees one another in a new light, creating a new entanglement.

Marriage intimacy is forever young because it constantly renews the connection.

Intimacy is never boring.

 

NARCISSUS

 

See me!

Look at me!

I need to be known.

I need to be understood.

I need entanglement.

I need true connection.

I need to be.

I don’t exist to anyone.

I’m not there.

I’m a different tool to each person who knows me.

Nobody knows me.

Nobody knows who I am.

I’m not real.

I’m not myself.

I’m an actor, playing roles in other people’s lives.

 

I’m not looking at others.

I’m not seeing others.

I’m just like Narcissus, looking in mirrors at myself.

Everyone I see only reflects me to me.

I see only my own reflection in others.

I don’t know anyone as they are, only as I am.

I know nothing outside myself.

I try to be seen, but I don’t see.

I wonder if anyone really sees anyone.

I wonder if a heart of gold exists.

 

SAMENESS

False unity is sameness.

It seems like we think the same.

It appears like we act the same.

“We can finish each other’s... sandwiches.”

We seem to be well-matched because we are the same.

People gather together based on their similarities.

We are compatible because we think alike, we act alike, and we feel the same. 

This “sameness” is fake entanglement because it is narcissistic.

It’s not possible to be compatible based on sameness, because no two people are alike.

 

SEX

Selfishness in any form is a fake connection.

A sexual relationship seems like it could create an intimate relationship.

I need to touch, and be touched.

I need to feel, and be felt. 

It's all about me. 

Sex is a fake entanglement.

Sex without knowing is narcissistic.

A purely sexual relationship is just mutual masturbation. 

Any fetish is a fake entanglement. 

False entanglements exist in the mind of one because it doesn’t know the other.

It is not real observation of the other so there is no entanglement.

There is no connection in taking from another.

Others are just extensions of themselves.

 

CHARITY

 

I cannot observe another if I’m narcissistic.

Entanglement requires me to see the heart, especially the uniqueness of the other.

Real connection requires observation of the unique existence of the other.

New life is created by observation, and entanglement.

My needs will prevent the creation of another creature.

As long as I only see sameness, I am not connected.

I must see them as they are.

 

See Me

Feel Me

Touch Me

Heal Me

 

Listening to you, I get the music

Gazing at you, I get the heat

Following you, I climb the mountain

I get excitement at your feet

 

Right behind you, I see the millions

On you, I see the glory

From you, I get opinion

From you, I get the story

                        (Pete Townshend)

 

The only way out of narcissism is charity.

Those without charity only see themselves in another.

Without charity I cannot know anyone.

Without charity I cannot observe God as His is.

Without charity I have no real connections.

Without charity I have no entanglements.

Without charity I am nothing.

 

Charity is not to be seen, but to see.

The gift of charity is rare.

A “heart of gold” is charity.

As gold is rare, and precious, so is charity.

The greatest gift in the world is charity because it allows entanglement.

 

When I was a child,

I spake as a child,

I understood as a child,

I thought as a child:

but when I became a man, I put away childish things.

 

For now we see through a glass, darkly;

but then face to face:

now I know in part;

but then shall I know even as also I am known.

            (1 Corinthians 13:11-12)

 

Charity is growing up.

Charity is knowing others.

Charity is freedom.

Charity is observing others.

Charity is true love.

Charity is observation, becoming entangled with others.

Charity makes others real.

Charity sees without judgment.

Charity creates new creatures.

 

The primary “Other” that must be known is God.

The first commandment is to love God.

To know Him is to love Him.

He sees me as I am.

I am observed as I really am.

I shall see Him as He is.

I enlarge Him.

He enlarges me.

 

Charity allows me to see Him as He is.

When I see Him, I know Him.

When I observe Him, He becomes real to me.

Creation is in my consciousness is awareness.

When I become conscious of God, I create Him.

My conscious observance of God allows me to become entangled with Him.

When I see Him, I become a new creature in Christ.

We remain separate, but entangled.

My connection with God creates a new creature.

 

UNITY

 

Unity is observation -- it is knowing.

Unity is entanglement.

Unity is understanding the hearts of one another.

Unity is knowing their uniqueness.

Becoming one is understanding, or seeing.

People cannot understand what we have not experienced.

Unity is experiencing others as they are.

Unity knows others without judgment. 

Unity is continually creating more connections.

Connections are created by entanglements.

Entanglements come from observation.

Conscious observation, to see and be seen, is creation.

Creation of new creatures brings unity.