The Da Vinci Code
Dear Family and Friends,
Welcome to this week's "Thoughtlet."
These words are my personal diary and a weekly review of ideas,
beliefs, thoughts, or words that will hopefully be of some
benefit to you: my children, my family, and my friends.
I would like to start with a quote from a book I first read
many years ago:
<![CDATA[ `Part 2 Chapter 1
... The rescuing party were speedily able to convince the
two castaways that their appearance was no delusion. One of
them seized the little girl, and hoisted her upon his
shoulder, while two others supported her gaunt companion,
and assisted him towards the wagons.
"My name is John Ferrier," the wanderer explained; "me and
that little one are all that's left o' twenty-one people. The
rest is all dead o' thirst and hunger away down in the south."
"Is she your child?" asked someone.
"I guess she is now," the other cried, defiantly; "she's mine
'cause I saved her. No man will take her from me. She's Lucy
Ferrier from this day on. Who are you, though?" he continued,
glancing with curiosity at his stalwart, sunburned rescuers;
"there seems to be a powerful lot of ye."
"Nigh upon ten thousand," said one of the young men; "we are
the persecuted children of God -- the chosen of the Angel
Merona."
"I never heard tell on him," said the wanderer. "He appears
to have chosen a fair crowd of ye."
"Do not jest at that which is sacred," said the other sternly.
"We are of those who believe in those sacred writings, drawn
in Egyptian letters on plates of beaten gold, which were
handed unto the holy Joseph Smith at Palmyra. We have come
from Nauvoo, in the State of Illinois, where we had founded
our temple. We have come to seek a refuge from the violent
man and from the godless, even though it be the heart of the
desert."
The name of Nauvoo evidently recalled recollections to John
Ferrier. "I see," he said, "you are the Mormons."
"We are the Mormons," answered his companions with one voice.
"And where are you going?"
"We do not know. The hand of God is leading us under the
person of our Prophet. You must come before him. He shall
say what is to be done with you."
They had reached the base of the hill by this time, and
were surrounded by crowds of the pilgrims -- pale-faced
meek-looking women, strong laughing children, and anxious
earnest-eyed men. Many were the cries of astonishment and
of commiseration which arose from them when they perceived
the youth of one of the strangers and the destitution of
the other. Their escort did not halt, however, but pushed
on, followed by a great crowd of Mormons, until they reached
a wagon, which was conspicuous for its great size and for
the gaudiness and smartness of its appearance. Six horses
were yoked to it, whereas the others were furnished with
two, or, at most, four a-piece. Beside the driver there
sat a man who could not have been more than thirty years
of age, but whose massive head and resolute expression
marked him as a leader. He was reading a brown-backed
volume, but as the crowd approached he laid it aside, and
listened attentively to an account of the episode. Then he
turned to the two castaways.
"If we take you with us," he said, in solemn words, "it can
only be as believers in our own creed. We shall have no
wolves in our fold. Better far that your bones should
bleach in this wilderness than that you should prove to be
that little speck of decay which in time corrupts the whole
fruit. Will you come with us on these terms?"
"Guess I'll come with you on any terms," said Ferrier, with
such emphasis that the grave Elders could not restrain a
smile. The leader alone retained his stern, impressive
expression.
"Take him, Brother Stangerson," he said, "give him food
and drink, and the child likewise. Let it be your task also
to teach him our holy creed. We have delayed long enough.
Forward! On, on to Zion!"
"On, on to Zion!" cried the crowd of Mormons, and the words
rippled down the long caravan, passing from mouth to mouth
until they died away in a dull murmur in the far distance.
With a cracking of whips and a creaking of wheels the great
wagons got into motion, and soon the whole caravan was
winding along once more. The Elder to whose care the two
waifs had been committed, led them to his wagon, where a
meal was already awaiting them.
"You shall remain here," he said. "In a few days you will
have recovered from your fatigues. In the meantime, remember
that now and for ever you are of our religion. Brigham Young
has said it, and he has spoken with the voice of Joseph
Smith, which is the voice of God." ...
Chapter 3
... "Brother Ferrier," he said, taking a seat, and eyeing
the farmer keenly from under his light-coloured eyelashes,
"the true believers have been good friends to you. We picked
you up when you were starving in the desert, we shared our
food with you, led you safe to the Chosen Valley, gave you a
goodly share of land, and allowed you to wax rich under our
protection. Is not this so?"
"It is so," answered John Ferrier.
"In return for all this we asked but one condition: that was,
that you should embrace the true faith, and conform in every
way to its usages. This you promised to do, and this, if
common report says truly, you have neglected."
"And how have I neglected it?" asked Ferrier, throwing out
his hands in expostulation. "Have I not given to the common
fund? Have I not attended at the Temple? Have I not ----?"
"Where are your wives?" asked Young, looking round him.
"Call them in, that I may greet them."
"It is true that I have not married," Ferrier answered.
"But women were few, and there were many who had better
claims than I. I was not a lonely man: I had my daughter
to attend to my wants."
"It is of that daughter that I would speak to you," said
the leader of the Mormons. "She has grown to be the flower
of Utah, and has found favour in the eyes of many who are
high in the land."
John Ferrier groaned internally.
"There are stories of her which I would fain disbelieve --
stories that she is sealed to some Gentile. This must be
the gossip of idle tongues. What is the thirteenth rule in
the code of the sainted Joseph Smith? `Let every maiden of
the true faith marry one of the elect; for if she wed a
Gentile, she commits a grievous sin.' This being so, it
is impossible that you, who profess the holy creed, should
suffer your daughter to violate it."
John Ferrier made no answer, but he played nervously with
his riding-whip.
"Upon this one point your whole faith shall be tested -- so
it has been decided in the Sacred Council of Four. The girl
is young, and we would not have her wed grey hairs, neither
would we deprive her of all choice. We Elders have many
heifers, but our children must also be provided. Stangerson
has a son, and Drebber has a son, and either of them would
gladly welcome your daughter to their house. Let her choose
between them. They are young and rich, and of the true
faith. What say you to that?"
Ferrier remained silent for some little time with his brows
knitted.
"You will give us time," he said at last. "My daughter is
very young -- she is scarce of an age to marry."
"She shall have a month to choose," said Young, rising from
his seat. "At the end of that time she shall give her answer."
He was passing through the door, when he turned, with flushed
face and flashing eyes. "It were better for you, John
Ferrier," he thundered, "that you and she were now lying
blanched skeletons upon the Sierra Blanco, than that you
should put your weak wills against the orders of the Holy
Four!"
With a threatening gesture of his hand, he turned from the
door, and Ferrier heard his heavy step scrunching along
the shingly path. ...
Chapter 4
ON the morning which followed his interview with the Mormon
Prophet, John Ferrier went in to Salt Lake City, and having
found his acquaintance, who was bound for the Nevada
Mountains, he entrusted him with his message to Jefferson
Hope. In it he told the young man of the imminent danger
which threatened them, and how necessary it was that he
should return. Having done thus he felt easier in his mind,
and returned home with a lighter heart.
As he approached his farm, he was surprised to see a horse
hitched to each of the posts of the gate. Still more surprised
was he on entering to find two young men in possession of his
sitting-room. One, with a long pale face, was leaning back in
the rocking-chair, with his feet cocked up upon the stove.
The other, a bull-necked youth with coarse bloated features,
was standing in front of the window with his hands in his
pocket, whistling a popular hymn. Both of them nodded to
Ferrier as he entered, and the one in the rocking-chair
commenced the conversation.
"Maybe you don't know us," he said. "This here is the son of
Elder Drebber, and I'm Joseph Stangerson, who travelled with
you in the desert when the Lord stretched out His hand and
gathered you into the true fold."
"As He will all the nations in His own good time," said the
other in a nasal voice; "He grindeth slowly but exceeding
small."
John Ferrier bowed coldly. He had guessed who his visitors
were.
"We have come," continued Stangerson, "at the advice of our
fathers to solicit the hand of your daughter for whichever
of us may seem good to you and to her. As I have but four
wives and Brother Drebber here has seven, it appears to me
that my claim is the stronger one."
"Nay, nay, Brother Stangerson," cried the other; "the
question is not how many wives we have, but how many we can
keep. My father has now given over his mills to me, and I
am the richer man."
"But my prospects are better," said the other, warmly. "When
the Lord removes my father, I shall have his tanning yard
and his leather factory. Then I am your elder, and am higher
in the Church."
"It will be for the maiden to decide," rejoined young
Drebber, smirking at his own reflection in the glass. "We
will leave it all to her decision."
During this dialogue, John Ferrier had stood fuming in the
doorway, hardly able to keep his riding-whip from the backs
of his two visitors.
"Look here," he said at last, striding up to them, "when my
daughter summons you, you can come, but until then I don't
want to see your faces again."
The two young Mormons stared at him in amazement. In their
eyes this competition between them for the maiden's hand
was the highest of honours both to her and her father.
"There are two ways out of the room," cried Ferrier; "there
is the door, and there is the window. Which do you care to
use?"
His brown face looked so savage, and his gaunt hands so
threatening, that his visitors sprang to their feet and beat
a hurried retreat. The old farmer followed them to the door.
"Let me know when you have settled which it is to be," he
said, sardonically.
"You shall smart for this!" Stangerson cried, white with
rage. "You have defied the Prophet and the Council of Four.
You shall rue it to the end of your days."
"The hand of the Lord shall be heavy upon you," cried young
Drebber; "He will arise and smite you!" ...
... Once on the high road they made rapid progress. Only
once did they meet anyone, and then they managed to slip
into a field, and so avoid recognition. Before reaching the
town the hunter branched away into a rugged and narrow
footpath which led to the mountains. Two dark jagged peaks
loomed above them through the darkness, and the defile which
led between them was the Eagle Canon in which the horses
were awaiting them. With unerring instinct Jefferson Hope
picked his way among the great boulders and along the bed of
a dried-up watercourse, until he came to the retired corner,
screened with rocks, where the faithful animals had been
picketed. The girl was placed upon the mule, and old Ferrier
upon one of the horses, with his money-bag, while Jefferson
Hope led the other along the precipitous and dangerous path.
It was a bewildering route for anyone who was not accustomed
to face Nature in her wildest moods. On the one side a great
crag towered up a thousand feet or more, black, stern, and
menacing, with long basaltic columns upon its rugged surface
like the ribs of some petrified monster. On the other hand a
wild chaos of boulders and debris made all advance impossible.
Between the two ran the irregular track, so narrow in places
that they had to travel in Indian file, and so rough that only
practised riders could have traversed it at all. Yet in spite
of all dangers and difficulties, the hearts of the fugitives
were light within them, for every step increased the distance
between them and the terrible despotism from which they were
flying.
They soon had a proof, however, that they were still within
the jurisdiction of the Saints. They had reached the very
wildest and most desolate portion of the pass when the girl
gave a startled cry, and pointed upwards. On a rock which
overlooked the track, showing out dark and plain against the
sky, there stood a solitary sentinel. He saw them as soon
as they perceived him, and his military challenge of "Who
goes there?" rang through the silent ravine.
"Travellers for Nevada," said Jefferson Hope, with his hand
upon the rifle which hung by his saddle.
They could see the lonely watcher fingering his gun, and
peering down at them as if dissatisfied at their reply.
"By whose permission?" he asked.
"The Holy Four," answered Ferrier. His Mormon experiences
had taught him that that was the highest authority to which
he could refer.
"Nine from seven," cried the sentinel.
"Seven from five," returned Jefferson Hope promptly,
remembering the countersign which he had heard in the garden.
"Pass, and the Lord go with you," said the voice from above.
Beyond his post the path broadened out, and the horses were
able to break into a trot. Looking back, they could see the
solitary watcher leaning upon his gun, and knew that they
had passed the outlying post of the chosen people, and that
freedom lay before them. ...
Chapter 5
... For five days he toiled footsore and weary through the
defiles which he had already traversed on horseback. At night
he flung himself down among the rocks, and snatched a few
hours of sleep; but before daybreak he was always well on his
way. On the sixth day, he reached the Eagle Canon, from which
they had commenced their ill-fated flight. Thence he could
look down upon the home of the saints. Worn and exhausted, he
leaned upon his rifle and shook his gaunt hand fiercely at the
silent widespread city beneath him. As he looked at it, he
observed that there were flags in some of the principal
streets, and other signs of festivity. He was still speculating
as to what this might mean when he heard the clatter of horse's
hoofs, and saw a mounted man riding towards him. As he
approached, he recognized him as a Mormon named Cowper, to
whom he had rendered services at different times. He
therefore accosted him when he got up to him, with the
object of finding out what Lucy Ferrier's fate had been.
"I am Jefferson Hope," he said. "You remember me."
The Mormon looked at him with undisguised astonishment --
indeed, it was difficult to recognize in this tattered,
unkempt wanderer, with ghastly white face and fierce, wild
eyes, the spruce young hunter of former days. Having,
however, at last, satisfied himself as to his identity,
the man's surprise changed to consternation.
"You are mad to come here," he cried. "It is as much as
my own life is worth to be seen talking with you. There
is a warrant against you from the Holy Four for assisting
the Ferriers away."
"I don't fear them, or their warrant," Hope said, earnestly.
"You must know something of this matter, Cowper. I conjure
you by everything you hold dear to answer a few questions.
We have always been friends. For God's sake, don't refuse
to answer me."
"What is it?" the Mormon asked uneasily. "Be quick. The
very rocks have ears and the trees eyes."
"What has become of Lucy Ferrier?"
"She was married yesterday to young Drebber. Hold up, man,
hold up, you have no life left in you."
"Don't mind me," said Hope faintly. He was white to the
very lips, and had sunk down on the stone against which he
had been leaning. "Married, you say?"
"Married yesterday -- that's what those flags are for on
the Endowment House. There was some words between young
Drebber and young Stangerson as to which was to have her.
They'd both been in the party that followed them, and
Stangerson had shot her father, which seemed to give him
the best claim; but when they argued it out in council,
Drebber's party was the stronger, so the Prophet gave her
over to him. No one won't have her very long though, for I
saw death in her face yesterday. She is more like a ghost
than a woman. Are you off, then?"
"Yes, I am off," said Jefferson Hope, who had risen from
his seat. His face might have been chiselled out of marble,
so hard and set was its expression, while its eyes glowed
with a baleful light.
"Where are you going?"
"Never mind," he answered; and, slinging his weapon over
his shoulder, strode off down the gorge and so away into
the heart of the mountains to the haunts of the wild
beasts. Amongst them all there was none so fierce and so
dangerous as himself.
The prediction of the Mormon was only too well fulfilled.
Whether it was the terrible death of her father or the
effects of the hateful marriage into which she had been
forced, poor Lucy never held up her head again, but pined
away and died within a month. Her Scottish husband, who had
married her principally for the sake of John Ferrier's
property, did not affect any great grief at his bereavement;
but his other wives mourned over her, and sat up with her
the night before the burial, as is the Mormon custom. They
were grouped round the bier in the early hours of the
morning, when, to their inexpressible fear and astonishment,
the door was flung open, and a savage-looking, weather-beaten
man in tattered garments strode into the room. Without a
glance or a word to the cowering women, he walked up to the
white silent figure which had once contained the pure soul
of Lucy Ferrier. Stooping over her, he pressed his lips
reverently to her cold forehead, and then, snatching up her
hand, he took the wedding-ring from her finger. "She shall
not be buried in that," he cried with a fierce snarl, and
before an alarm could be raised sprang down the stairs and
was gone. So strange and so brief was the episode, that the
watchers might have found it hard to believe it themselves
or persuade other people of it, had it not been for the
undeniable fact that the circlet of gold which marked her
as having been a bride had disappeared. ...']]>
These quotes are from the first book in a very famous series
written in 1877 about a detective named Sherlock Holmes. The
author is Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and this is considered some
of the best literature of the nineteenth century. And in
case some of you happen to believe these words written about
the First Presidency ("The Holy Four") are true, they are not.
This was a novel about murder and discovering who did the
deed. The novel was spiced up with misrepresentations and
false innuendo about a volatile social topic of the time,
namely polygamy. Remember, the Republican Party was formed
in 1856 and 1860 on the duel social platform of ridding the
world of the twin evils of slavery and polygamy. Did Brigham
Young have a strong will? Yes! Was it applied as was
described in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's first book? No. Did
writing this way sell books? Absolutely! The reference I
pulled the above quotes from, and where each of you can read
the story yourselves is:
http://www.literature.org/authors/doyle-arthur-conan/study-in-scarlet/part-02/index.html
So why did I start off a Thoughtlets on `The Da Vinci Code'
with a quote from anti-mormon literature? Be aware there is
a lot more anti-mormon literature out there on the web, and
some of it provides a very sophisticated and almost a
believable debunking of my faith. I hope none of you ever
waste any time pursuing these Satanic inspired lies and
half-truths! Rather, I hope each of you will look at the
fruits of the restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and
see all of the good that flows from these restored truths.
This doesn't mean I don't think you should read Arthur
Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes books. I love them, and do
enjoy reading them again and again. But I don't take the
author's extrapolations to heart. I look at these as
the writings as the comic books of the Nineteenth Century.
I don't think Superman flys, nor that Peter Parker has
webs coming out of his wrist that allow him to be Spiderman.
However, I do think it is important to discuss and talk
about historical facts, including polygamy and why blacks
were not given the priesthood until 1978, both topics that
came up in conversation with some of you this week, and
neither of which I intend to write an epistle about here
this week.
I was going to call this week's Thoughtlet Cancun, since
I made my first trip to Cancun Monday morning and returned
Wednesday afternoon. However, Audrey had bought the book
`The Da Vinci Code' and gave it to Andrea to read, I had
read another of Dan Brown's books on a trip to China, and
so I decided to use a three hour flight down Monday and
back to Houston Wednesday evening as a window to get into
this book. I finished it on Wednesday evening, shortly
after returning to the house. I found the book fascinating,
I did not see much of Cancun, and I expect there will be
other trips to Cancun and the ruins in the vicinity, so I
will save the title of Cancun for a later Thoughtlet.
`The Da Vinci Code' has strong parallels to `A Study in
Scarlet.' However, instead of attacking the `Mormons' it
is an attack on the Catholic beliefs. I thoroughly
enjoyed the book, just as I enjoy Sherlock Holmes books.
One of the reasons I enjoyed the book was that the
historical `facts' the book is based on reflect things
I have found in my own studies. I think it is possible
that Jesus was married, and it seems reasonable that
the first miracle, turning water to wine, was at his own
wedding ceremony (John 2:1-11). Dan Brown is subtle in
his introduction of this concept, which is on page 245:
<![CDATA[ `... "As I said earlier, the marriage of Jesus and Mary
Magdalene is part of the historical record." He began
pawing through his book collection. "Moreover, Jesus as
a married man makes infinitely more sense than our
standard biblical view of Jesus as a bachelor."
"Why?" Sophie asked.
"Because Jesus was a Jew," Langdon said, taking over
while Teabing searched for his book, "and the social
decorum during that time virtually forbid a Jewish man
to be unmarried. According to Jewish custom, celibacy
was condemned, and the obligation for a Jewish father
was to find a suitable wife for his son. If Jesus were
not married, at least one of the Bible's gospels would
have mentioned it and offered some explanation for His
unnatural state of bachelorhood."']]>
Dan Brown's comments fit my understanding of history,
including his comments about King Arthur's mythical,
Grail-rich Isle of Avalon (page 286), his description
of becoming a `thirty-second-degree Mason' (page 205),
his description of the role of the Knights Templar
(page 159), his list of Grand Masters of Prieure de
Sion (pages 326-327, which I have no idea if this is
true), his tieing in Walt Disney (a Mason, page 389,
which was new to me, although I remembered that Walt
Disney's wife was a member of the church, I think
from Idaho) and relating the Disney legacy of
Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, and The Little
Mermaid where `each of the female heroines deal with
the incarceration of the sacred feminine' (pages
261-262). In `The Da Vinci Code,' these Disney stories
are painted as statements of the importance of Mary
Magdalene, the first person to see the Savior after
His resurrection. This makes sense to me. But maybe
I liked The Da Vinci Code because it was full of four
line stanzas that could have come out of Prime Words:
<![CDATA[ `Many have made a trade of delusions
And false miracles, deceiving the stupid multitude
Blinding ignorance does mislead us
O! Wretched mortals, open your eyes!'
Quotes from Leonardo da Vinci, page 231
`An ancient word of wisdom frees this scroll
And helps us keep her scatter'd family whole
A headstone praised by Templars is the key
And Atbash will reveal the truth to thee'
page 302
`In London lies a knight a Pope interred
His labor's fruit a Holy wrath incurred
You seek the orb that out be on his tomb
It speaks of Rosy flesh and seeded womb.'
page 336
`The Holy Grail 'neath ancient Roslin waits
The Blade and chalice guarding o'er Her gates
Adorned in master's loving art, She lies
She rests at last beneath the starry skies'
page 447]]>
Of course, there were those passages which are closer to
the style of Arthur Conen Doyle's first book, talking
about the sex ritual, Hieros Gamos, and how `since the
days of Isis, sex rites had been considered man's only
bridge from earth to heaven' (page 308) The description
was historical, in the sense that it was a description
of the acts of Baal worshiper's, as described in the
Old Testament, and from other books I've read. However,
in most ways it was simply verbal pornography, and like
the visual counterpart is best avoided (0441.html). As
I read this part of The Da Vinci Code I understood the
origin of some of the anti-Mormon material shown to me
when I was on my mission in England. In these documents
they talked about sex ceremonies around the altars of
the temple. As I read, the thought that came to mind
is that these writers were assuming the restored church's
secret temple ceremonies (these writers said the temple
ceremonies are secret and would not consider these
ceremonies were protected because they are sacred) were
the same as deviant behavior they were acquainted with
in their own secret societies. Of course, the only
sexual related ceremony in the temple is a temple
`covenant and promise to observe the law of strict
virtue and chastity' (Encyclopedia of Mormonism, page
455). I do not believe the kind of kinky stuff I read
about in England or as were described in `The Da Vinci
Code' could have happened in LDS temples without someone
telling the world. These activities are not natural
nor are they right.
Then there is the passage on page 249, which says:
<![CDATA[ `Mary Magalene carried the royal bloodline of Jesus
Christ? "But how could Christ have a bloodline
unless . . . ?" She paused and looked at Langdon.
Langdon smiled softly. "Unless they had a child."
Sophie stood transfixed.
"Behold," Teabing proclaimed, "the greatest cover-up
in human history. Not only was Jesus Christ married,
but He was a father. My dear, Mary Magdalene was the
Holy Vessel. She was the chalice that bore the royal
bloodline of Jesus Christ. She was the womb that
bore the lineage, and the vine from which the sacred
fruit sprang forth!"
Sophie felt the hairs stand up on her arms. "But
how could a secret that big be kept quiet all of
these years?"
"Heavens!" Teabing said. "It has been anything but
quiet! The royal bloodline of Jesus Christ is the
source of the most enduring legend of all time - the
Holy Grail. Magdalene's story has been shouted from
the rooftops for centuries in all kinds of metaphors
and languages. Her story is everywhere once you open
your eyes."]]>
As I read these words, I remembered hearing once, I
think it was in an Institute Class at the University
of Utah, or maybe it was one of the `doctrines'
taught while I was on my mission, that Joseph Smith
was a descendent of the Savior. I laughed it off then
as an attempt to create a history to give extra
importance to an already important man. As I reread
the concept in a novel, I thought the idea important
enough that I did some searches in all of the documents
on my computer under `Gospel Links.' The only related
quote I found was by Hyrum L. Andrus, in The Divine
Patriarchal Order, 1972:
<![CDATA[ `As the man chosen and raised up to be the head of that
dispensation of the fullness of times, when the divine
patriarchal order will be built up and sanctified in
preparation for the millennial reign of Jesus Christ,
Joseph Smith was a natural heir in the flesh to the
major powers - patriarchal and political - of the
eternal family order.']]>
Also, in the hymn "The Seer, Joseph, The Seer," it
states that Joseph Smith was of noble seed.
Related to this, within the last couple of years I
read, or maybe heard, that the legitimacy of the
French Kings came from descendants of Mary, the Mother
of Jesus, who moved to the South of France after the
crucifixion of her Son. A friend from Whales, Huw
James, also told me she moved to Whales, and that the
oldest Christian Church in Europe was built by her
descendants. Since all of the European Royalty is
related, these seemed to be interesting thoughts,
especially since the Lambsons, my Dad's Mom's family
are descendants of the Scottish and Saxon Kings, and
also from the second wife, Hildegrade, of Charlamaigne.
As my mind wandered through these thoughts I realized
that if Joseph Smith was of this bloodline, then
descendants from his brother Hyrum, including Heather,
Audrey, Rachel, and Matt, are also of this bloodline.
Interesting thought. However, even if it is true, it
doesn't change much, at lest in terms of our individual
struggle to choose good over evil. But `The Da Vinci
Code' did open interesting doors in my mind. Doors
to thoughts I do not have answers to, and which topics
are interesting to speculate on, but which have little
to do with living a good Christian life.
In terms of the events of the week, my week was dominated
by the trip to Cancun. I got up early on Monday and was
at Intercontinental by 7:30 AM. I was in Cancun by 11:30 AM
checked into the hotel, and at the conference center by 1:30.
I didn't find Luis Vietrel, GDC's agent until about 3:00
and he was afraid I did not make it. I had gone through the
booths and spent over an hour looking at all of the poster
papers downstairs. Very good work being done. I was
especially impressed with some integrated work on gas
seeps being done by Brazilians using piston cores and
satellite images. It has some great application in the
U.S. portion of the Gulf of Mexico. Luis and I were busy
talking to folks until about 7:00, when we went back to
the hotel and he had a beer and I had an orange juice.
Scott and Maria Bowman were there (../9647.html, ../9801.html,
../9843.html, ../9909.html, ../0103.html, ../0134.html, and
../0149.html). They have moved up by the temple. Andrea
and I need to take them out to dinner some time when we go
to the temple. We promised to do the same with Ken and Judy
Yano. Oh well! It was really good to catch up with the
Bowmans. Their little girl is taller than they are. Scott
talked about his tree house in Colorado, and how he is
applying to build a concrete house. Then Luis told me about
his trip to Kenya and the tree house he stayed at. It is
the only Tree House where a Princess went to sleep and came
down a Queen. It was where Queen Elizabeth was staying
when her father died. I found these conversations very
interesting because of my Barker Reservoir project.
On Tuesday morning at 5:00 I called Sara in Benin on my
cell phone. The phone rang and rang. I tried again at
5:30 and at 6:00 and at 6:30 and at 7:00. Someone answered
at 7:00 and suggested I call back at 3:00 Benin time, which
was 8:00 Cancun time. I went over to the convention center
at 7:30 AM and had a very nice hour conversation with Peter
Carrigher of BP. He is in senior management, and he was
quite interested in the work we have been doing with the
GDC Tiles(TM). After talking to Peter, I called Sara again
at about 8:30. This time I got to talk to her. It was one
of the better conversations we have had since she has been
gone. Sara, I think you were glad I called back. You
surprised me with your questions about when I went on my
mission, and then telling me that it was 1978, or six years
after I got home, that President Kimball changed the policy
on blacks holding the priesthood. I have written about
this in past Thoughtlets (including ../0114.html,
../0229.html, and ../0319.html). I have not talked about
how hard this topic was for me when I first learned about
it when I was in Corvallis (../9715.html), or when I taught
brother Folkes in Ipswich or Brother Swari in London, both
of whom joined the church even though they understood they
could not hold the priesthood. The scriptures are explicit
that throughout history the priesthood has always been
limited to a few people. Through much of the Old Testament
the priesthood was only held by members of the tribe of Levi
or the Levites. I will be glad to go through the scriptural
logic with any of you that are interested. The bottom line
is I am glad the policy changed.
The same is true for polygamy, i.e. again I'm glad the
policy changed. Again I will be glad to go through the
scriptural logic with any of you that are interested. I do
think it is important, since the topic came up, to point
out how strongly The Book of Mormon, in Jacob 2:27-31,
condemns polygamy:
<![CDATA[ `Wherefore, my brethren, hear me, and harken to the word
of the Lord: For there shall not any man among you have
save it be one wife; and concubines he shall have none;
For I, the Lord God, delight in the chastity of women.
And whoredoms are an abomination before me; thus saith
the Lord of Hosts. Wherefore, this people shall keep
my commandments, saith the Lord of Hosts, or cursed be
the land for their sakes.
For if I will, saith the Lord of Hosts, raise up a seed
unto me, I will command my people; otherwise they shall
harken unto these things.
For behold, I, the Lord, have seen the sorrow, and
heard the mourning of the daughters of my people in the
land of Jerusalem, yea, and in all the lands of my
people, because of the wickedness and abominations of
their husbands.']]>
But like in the Garden of Eden when He told Adam not to
eat of the fruit and told Adam to choose for himself,
the Lord states that he will command his people to enter
into polygamy to `raise up a seed unto him.' Since all
of us are descendants of polygamists, i.e. `seed raised
up unto him,' one would think we could put this practice
into perspective. I recall when I went through the
Missionary Training Center in Salt Lake, we were asked
which of us were descendants of polygamists. Almost all
of the missionaries raised their hands. And this was in
1970, almost 100 years after the policy had changed.
I also had a nice conversation with Ray Levy at Energy
Geosciences Institute (EGI) in Salt Lake. They are doing
some work in Libya which could be complimentary to a
Geokinetics intuitive. There were several e-mails about
this later during the week. EGI's strategic advantage is
Amoco's Graphics Correlation technology, which is a way of
doing paleontological or geologic time correlation.
Most of Luis and my discussions were with Pemex. Luis is
very good, and there are many big opportunities he is
chasing. One of the most interesting discussions to me
was with Mark at BEG (the Bureau of Economic Geology) in
Austin, where I worked for a couple of years. They are
doing regional work in Southern Mexico where they have 8
3-D surveys, 3,000 wells of which over 1,000 have digital
well logs. It sounds like an ideal base for our
geophysical rock properties work.
At noon I ended up giving the concluding talk in a five
course luncheon sponsored by IES and dGB. Mine was the
only interactive talk, and it went very well. There were
about 45 people in attendance. In the afternoon I was
cornered by Oscar Garcia Pena. He officed in the first
Landmark building at the head of Buffalo Bayou at Highway
6, and reminded me that I spent hours talking to him and
helping him with his business when he was just getting
started. I really didn't remember. He said I was always
very busy, but I would take time to listen to his
challenges and would give him advice and help. He also
told me I gave him a copy of The Book of Mormon. This I
can relate to. I was touched by the sincerity of his
thanks for helping him. Maybe I'm not as bad a person as
I sometimes paint myself to be in my mind. All in all it
was a very busy day.
Luis and I left the conference and went right to the
Mexican Geological Society Annual Meeting. Everything
was in Spanish. I need to learn the language if I'm going
to work in Mexico. After the meeting there was a reception
with good food and a Mexican band. It was a nice evening.
However, I was glad to break away and get back to my room
and to my reading of `The Da Vinci Code.'
Wednesday morning Luis and I had breakfast with Bjorn
Wygrula. I felt like this was one of the most productive
meetings of the convention. Bjorn will be in the office
a week from Friday, on the 5th of November to follow-up
on the meeting. After this meeting meeting, Luis and
I went down to my room and sat on the verandah and talked
strategy for an hour. I taught him about the Knowledge
Backbone (SM), and business process modeling. He is a
quick study, and is very excited about how we can leverage
this experience in Mexico. The view was beautiful. The
color of the pools and the sea against the white sand.
Too bad there was no time to even visit the beach. Oh
well! We ended up having to break off our discussions
for me to check out, and catch a cab to the airport. As
we drove along the coast of Cancun, little did I know I
would be seeing this same drive on a television show on
Saturday evening.
At the airport I was approached by the editor of World
Oil. His first name is Perry. I asked him if he decided
to become a newspaper man because of Perry White. He said
`Actually, yes.' Emboldened, I then said, and you are
going to tell me your name was picked out because of Perry
Como. He said, `You won't believe this, but my Mother told
me I was named Perry because I was conceived while they
were listening to a Perry Como album. We had an
interesting conversation about database, and some of the
work World Oil is doing. It will be interesting to see
if anything comes from this discussion. I got back to
Houston about 2:30, through customs, and to my car by
about 3:30. There was not time to go to the office, and
since Andrea had Seminary Training Thursday night and had
gone to the Temple Tuesday morning, I went to the temple
on my way home for my October visit. I do enjoy the
temple. After I got home and unpacked, I finished reading
`The Da Vinci Code.' Exciting book, and a very quick read.
Thursday and Friday were very busy days at the office.
There were meetings, expenses from both SEG and Cancun to
do, e-mails and voice mails to respond to, and just a
lot going on. I was wiped out when I got home each evening.
Friday I did leave the office about 4:30 so I could get
home in time to go to Merril Littlewood's daughter's
reception. I also stopped and got roses for Andrea and
wood for hanging the Navajo rugs up. Then I stopped and
got some chicken strips and a small frosty at Wendy's. It
is sad, but since I hurt my ankle I have gained back half
of the 30 pounds I lost counting swallows. Oh well! I got
home just in time to leave for the wedding reception.
Merril's house is way south of I-59 off of Highway 6. It
is a beautiful house. It was nice to meet his children.
John Locke, High Councilor when I was the Elder's Quorum
President in Maplewood 2nd Ward, and his wife were there.
It was good to see them again. He was always a big fan.
I remember he especially liked the play Swedish Roots,
which we put on when we were in Maplewood 2nd Ward.
Saturday we hung my Mom's expensive Navajo Indian rugs on
the walls upstairs. Matt mowed the lawns and trimmed the
edges, swept the acorns from the front walk, driveway, and
street in front of the house. I finished some edging and
cleaned up the garage some. Then I took Matt to the store
to get money for his first date: Homecoming 2004. Then by
the time I moved the Thoughtlets I wrote last weekend to
the web (0439.html, 0440.html, and 0441.html) it was time
to take Matt to pick up Erin, his date, and to take photos.
Cute photos, but I'm having a hard time with the camera
and it will be sometime later before I get the photos
on-line where everyone can review them. Matt looked suave
with his black silk shirt and white silk vest and bow tie,
which Mom made for him. Erin wore a pretty white dress.
It was a typically immodest homecoming dress and she had a
crucifix necklace. Oh well! Matt had a good time, and
based on the photo session he was the life of the party.
He did say he didn't want to go on a date with anyone
wearing such immodest clothing again.
After the photos Andrea and I went out to eat. We don't do
this very often and it was nice. We went to a new Chinese
Chain called Pai Wei at Highland Knolls and Mason Road. Then
we went to HEB diagonally across the street. As we were
leaving we ran across Steve and Sue Feil and ended up talking
to them for a half an hour. Another member of the ward came
and left as we were talking. We joked about the Saturday
night priesthood run to the grocery store, and how we were
both early this Saturday. I remember when I was single how
often I would meet priesthood brethren at the grocery store
at 11:00 PM on a Saturday night.
When we got home the TV was still on the National Geographic
Station, and there was a special about Interpool and their
multi-country fight against Mexican drug lords. I was
shocked as I learned about how Cancun was one of the centers
of drug activity in Mexico. As I read this I recalled the
US citizens killed outside of Cancun while I was down there.
Villahermosa, one of the other oil towns I will be doing a
lot of work in, was also mentioned as a center of drug
activity. Then in Sunday's Chronicle on page A27 there was
an article titled: `Drug war spreads fear along Mexican
border.' It points out that there has been 120 gang members
killed in northeastern Mexico since January. This is in
Nuevo Laredo, Reynosa, and Matamoros. All of this stuff I'm
doing in Mexico will likely result in me working in Reynosa
during the week, at least a couple of weeks per month. Maybe
there will be use for one of my writings (../9846.html)
sooner than intended. Oh well! Then again, maybe this kind
of thinking is a natural extension of reading mysteries like
`The Da Vinci Code.'
On Tuesday Melanie forwarded the following article, which I
found both interesting and relevant in an inverse manner to
what I have written above about anti-Mormon literature:
<![CDATA[ `An interesting article written by Ford Motor Company for
their employees.
It was written in February. From the 'Ford Interfaith' group
as a message about the Church. The Ford Interfaith group
promotes unity by sharing information from all faiths and
features these types of articles about all religions and
faiths from time to time.
QUICK FACTS & INTERESTING TIDBITS about The Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints:
Fleeing continued mob attacks, 158 years ago today the first
Mormon pioneers desperately started their Westward trek from
Illinois in the dead of winter.
Of the 70,000 who began this 1300-mile journey, 6,000 were
buried along the way, including many children. The following
are quick facts and interesting tidbits about this now
flourishing church.
OVERVIEW
* Name: "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints";
informal nicknames are "LDS" or "Mormon."
* Believes it's the Lord's restoration of original Christianity
as foretold to occur before Christ's Second Coming.
*Core focus is that Christ and His teachings bring happiness
in this life and exaltation in the next.
HISTORY
* In 1820 14-yr-old Joseph Smith told of a vision of God and
Christ foretelling a church restoration.
* Organized in New York in 1830, the church moved to near
Cleveland, then near Kansas City, then Illinois.
* Fleeing Illinois, Mormon pioneers founded Salt Lake City in
Utah and over 600 other Western communities.
SALT LAKE CITY
* Temple Square in Salt Lake has over 5 million annual
visitors, more than the Grand Canyon.
* The Mormon Tabernacle Choir is the world's most famous and
has the world's oldest radio program.
* The Salt Lake Temple is the most famous, but there are 128
other temples built or underway.
* Home of the world's largest genealogy database; visit it
online or through 3,700 free branch libraries.
ACTIVE CONGREGATIONS
* Sunday services entail a three-hour block of three meetings;
about 27,000 congregations exist worldwide.
* Highly vibrant programs exist for youth, children, singles,
men, and women; very strong family focus.
* Everyone has a calling; some surveys show LDS have the
highest U.S. attendance and service rates.
* Families receive personal fellowship visits at home from
other members on a monthly basis.
FINANCES
* Members tithe 10 percent, plus donate generously to the
needy the first Sunday of each month.
* Clergy and all other congregational positions are unpaid
(however, much of the janitorial is paid).
* The church has no debt; all buildings are paid for in cash
(average of two new congregations a day).
* The paid positions in Salt Lake are famously low-salaried;
funds are frugally used and tightly audited.
HEALTH CODE
* With a health code from 1833, LDS avoid alcohol, tobacco,
illegal drugs, coffee, and tea (herbal tea is ok).
* This 1833 code also teaches grains (especially wheat),
fresh fruits and vegetables, and sparing use of meat.
* A UCLA study showed that active LDS live longer than
white Americans, men by 11 years, women by eight.
* Utah is 50th in smoking, alcohol consumption, drunk driving,
heart disease, cancer, and sick days.
EDUCATION
* With four colleges, Utah's BYU with 30,000 students is the
largest single-campus private college.
* BYU Independent Study with 130,000 students is North America
(340 web courses, 530 via mail).
* Seminary, a daily class usually held around 6:00 A.M.,
serves 376,000 high school students.
* There are Institutes of Religion at 1,950 colleges worldwide
that serve 367,000 college students.
* The church operates schools in parts of the Pacific Ocean
and Mexico for 10,000 students.
* Utah is 50th in spending per pupil, but first in adults that
graduated from high school and attended college.
WOMEN
* In 1842 the "Relief Society" was organized; it's the largest
women's organization in the world.
* Wyoming was first to allow women to vote; Utah was second,
two months later, in 1870.
* Women preach from the pulpit and serve as organization
presidents, teachers, committee chairs, etc.
SHARING CHRIST'S GOOD NEWS
* 61,000 missionaries serve in 165 countries; 93 percent are
college-age; 22 percent are female.
* Unpaid and paying their own way, most work 65 hours a week
for two years, often in a new language.
MEMBERSHIP DISTRIBUTION
* LDS are 70 percent of Utah, 30 percent of Idaho; after
Catholics, LDS are the largest sect in 10 states.
* The church has 5.5 million members in the U.S., making it
the fourth largest individual U.S. denomination.
* Some memberships: New Zealand 95k, Japan 115k, UK 175k,
Philippines 500k, Brazil 900k, Mexico 925k.
* Worldwide 51 percent are female; about 55 percent are not
Caucasian; about 70 percent are converts.
MEMBERSHIP GROWTH
* For the last 15 years, every day an average of 800+ people
worldwide joined the LDS church.
* Half of the growth is in Latin America, but the rate of
growth is highest in Africa and the former Soviet bloc.
* Worldwide membership just passed 12 million, a tenfold
increase in 50 years.
* In 1984 a non-LDS professor estimated 265 million members
by 2080; so far growth has been faster.
* As this growth has been steady, he said it will be the
"first 'new' major world religion since Islam."
CHARITY/SERVICE
* Members in need obtain welfare from the LDS Church (thus
Utah government welfare spending is very low).
* LDS donate time at 220 welfare storehouses or canneries and
about 400 farms (a FL ranch is 312k acres).
* There are 210 employment centers placing over 175,000
people annually, and 64 family service centers.
* The church operates 46 thrift stores, in part to provide
employment for the disadvantaged.
* The 61,000 missionaries spend half a day each week doing
non-proselytizing community service.
HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE
* Over 200 million pounds of food, clothing, and medicine
were donated in the last 20 years in 147 countries.
* Almost all of this help is to non-LDS; LDS charities also
work with and donate to many non-LDS charities.
* Very rapid disaster relief has been given in 144 major
disasters since 1986.
* Almost 3,000 welfare "missionaries" work without pay in
55 countries (farm instructors, doctors, teachers...).
* LDS charities fund a wide variety of projects like drilling
water wells or funding small business startup loans.
* New in 2001, members in poor areas can get low-rate college
loans; 10,000 loans have been made to date.
MISC. INFO
* Utah is first in: charitable giving, scientists, household
computers, children with two parents, and birth rate.
* Noted LDS included five senators, the Osmonds, Gladys
Knight, Steve Young, and the inventor of TV.
* LDS played a key role in the 2002 Winter Olympics; the
chair is now the governor of Massachusetts.
* Hawaii's #1 tourist site is the LDS Polynesian Cultural
Center (Tonga and the Samoas are one-third LDS).
* LDS have sponsored Boy Scout troops since 1913; 23 percent
of all Scout troops are LDS.
* The BYU Women's Cross Country were national champions or
in second place each of the last seven years.
DETROIT AREA
* The Detroit metro area has 30 congregations; the Dearborn
chapel is on Rotunda by Ford's Building #5.
* Detroit has a temple, storehouse, cannery, employment and
family service office, and family history libraries.
* LDS include former Governor Romney, three former Lions
quarterbacks, and hundreds of Ford employees.']]>
Sunday I wrote another possible stanza for Prime Words
based on Brother Harlen's talk in Sacrament Meeting. He
is the 2nd Councilor in the Bishopric, and he was
substituting for a speaker who was at the hospital. He
was quoting Rufus the Cat in a children's movie:
<![CDATA[ `Faith is not something big
But something very quiet
Often not seen, but
Helping things turn out right.']]>
This `turning out right' is sort of like the ending in a
novel, like the novel I read this week: The Da Vinci Code."
Since the 38th week of 1996 I have written a weekly "Thoughtlet"
(little statements of big thoughts which mean a lot to me).
Until the 43rd week of 2004 I sent these out as an e-mail. They
were intended to be big thoughts which mean a lot to me.
Over time the process evolved into a personal diary. These notes
were shared with my family because I know how important the
written word can be. Concerned about how easy it is to drift and
forget our roots and our potential among all of distractions of
daily life, I thought this was a good way to reach those I love.
It no longer feels right to send out an e-mail and "force" my kids
and my family to be aware of my life and struggles.
Everyone has their own life to lead, and their own struggles to
work through. I will continue this effort, and will continue to
make my notes publicly accessible (unless I learn of
misuse by someone who finds out about them, and then will
aggressively
pursue a legal remedy to copyright infringement and I will put the Thoughtlets
behind a password).
The index to download any of these Thoughtlets is at
http://www.walden3d.com/thoughtlets,
or you can e-mail me with
questions or requests at
rnelson@walden3d.com
(note if you are not on my e-mail "whitelist" you must send 2 e-mails
within 24 hours of each other in order for your e-mail to not be trashed).
With all my love,
Dad
(H. Roice Nelson, Jr.)