The Law of the Land

At the passing of Edward Kennedy, part of the praise he is garnering includes the “dozens of laws that bear [his] name or imprint.” I found it curious that writing so many laws was something to be praised. Of course, I know that law is an essential part of a functioning society. Law, as idea, is good. However, that does not mean that all laws are necessarily good, or that more laws are necessarily good. Just as a man can drown in water, heaping more and more laws on a society can smother it. To use another example, the mother and father who make the most rules for their children aren’t necessarily the best parents.

Latter-day Saints have a unique attitude toward the laws of the land. One of the thirteen Articles of Faith, or basic tenets of our belief is this: “We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law” (A of F 1:12). This makes obeying the laws of the nations in which we live a spiritual matter. The Lord has also stated though modern prophets that “he that keepeth the laws of God hath no need to break the laws of the land” (D&C 58:21). Does that mean that exceeding the speed limit is a sin? That has to be answered by each individual’s conscience. If it does, I’ll have to put that on the list of the things I need to repent of.

Yet, the Book of Mormon tells the history of many societies in which the laws of the land became corrupt. When that happened, those societies were poised to fall. Thanks again to modern prophets, we know how to discern between good law and corrupt law. The Lord has revealed through his mouthpiece that “that law of the land which is constitutional, supporting that principle of freedom in maintaining rights and privileges, belongs to all mankind, and is justifiable before me. Therefore, I, the Lord, justify you, and your brethren of my church, in befriending that law which is the constitutional law of the land; and as pertaining to law of man, whatsoever is more or less than this, cometh of evil” (D&C 98:5-7).

When the legislature creates laws that are outside its constitutional parameters, it is an evil, or corrupt law. That doesn’t give us permission to disobey that law, but it does give us a mandate to ensure that those who enact such laws are not reelected, and that those we elect will work to repeal such laws.

Some might argue that such laws are necessary. The members of our society cannot be trusted to treat each other justly, or make choices that are in their own best interest. To that I would argue that unconstitutional law is evil, as God has said, and is not meant for society’s betterment, but its control. However, I want to follow this reasoning to its conclusion to make a point.

Let’s suppose that men cannot be trusted to treat each other justly. Is creating more laws the answer? I don’t believe it is. Man will only behave with injustice toward his neighbor if he is immoral. He doesn’t obey the highest moral law, Christ’s Golden Rule, “all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets” (Matt. 7:12). Creating more laws in an attempt to make someone moral is like taking a painkiller for a broken bone. The pain might be relieved for a while, but the break remains untreated.

Morality comes from within, not without. It cannot be legislated, regardless of what politicians might think. Making it illegal to hate will not make someone love his neighbor. That love comes through understanding of God’s plan and our place in it. As Boyd K. Packer, President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, has said, “True doctrine, understood, changes attitudes and behavior. The study of the doctrines of the gospel will improve behavior quicker than a study of behavior will improve behavior.”

If that sounds naïve, let me give you an example of when it has worked. John Taylor, third President of the Church, recounted the following experience:

“Some years ago, in Nauvoo, a gentleman in my hearing, a member of the Legislature, asked Joseph Smith how it was that he was enabled to govern so many people, and to preserve such perfect order; remarking at the same time that it was impossible for them to do it anywhere else. Mr. Smith remarked that it was very easy to do that. ‘How?’ responded the gentleman; ‘to us it is very difficult.’ Mr. Smith replied, ‘I teach them correct principles, and they govern themselves’” (quoted in Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith).

Government can’t be depended upon to make society better, because it simply cannot do it. The only society that can function for any length of time is a moral one and that morality comes from within, not without. No number of laws can change that.

Baseball’s Steroid Era

I must admit that I am a diehard baseball fan. It has been my favorite sport since I was a little kid playing Tee-ball. But before any of you non-baseball fans click away in disinterest, I think that what is happening in baseball today has larger cultural implications. I would like to take this space to discuss those implications.

Over the past century, some of the greatest cultural icons have come from the diamond. Babe Ruth has an almost godlike position in popular culture, with his herculean abilities and the historic moment when he “called his shot.” Lou Gehrig was such a hero, which is final speech on Yankee field solidified even more strongly, that the disease he was diagnosed with was named after him. Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier wasn’t just a monumental baseball moment, but a monumental American one.

Baseball has a special place in America. Even though the numbers say that the NFL and the NBA have more fans, baseball has an almost sacred status in the hearts and minds of its fans. An NBA player is caught using steroids and he’s suspended for ten games, about twelve percent of the season, and no one bats an eye. Even though players are caught using steroids in the NFL, it gets almost no publicity and incites no public outcry. Baseball, though, is different. That is possibly because baseball has so many sacred numbers that we have seen dropping like flies: Roger Maris’s single season home run record of 61, Hank Aaron’s career home run mark of 755. We hate to see those records fall to people who are “juiced.”

Yet, some people are saying that these people should be inducted into the Hall of Fame. What good is a Hall of Fame if it doesn’t house the player with the most hits ever, or the most home runs? they ask. But I have a question for them: What does that say about us if we honor cheaters?

This is not a cut and dry situation. We will never know the names of all the players who ever used steroids. During the steroid era, which I hope is over, it is probable that even the lowest players on the roster were using, just so they could stay in the league. But the only way we can get cheating to stop is by showing that we will not tolerate it. If someone is caught cheating, yet we honor them for the records they set while cheating, what message are we sending young players? We are obviously not saying that cheaters never prosper. In my opinion, this steroid era, and how we handle it, is indicative of the moral health of our society.

Gordon B. Hinckley, former President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, wrote this in his book Standing For Something: “Without honesty, our lives disintegrate into ugliness, chaos, and a lack of any kind of security and confidence. Imagine a society in which it would be unwise or unsafe to trust anyone--from elected officials to financial advisers to insurance adjusters to your child’s babysitter or kindergarten teacher. Imagine having surgery performed by someone who had cheated in medical school or found a way to short-circuit the requirements of medical residency. Imagine the terror of a society that condones or at least turns a collective blind eye to dishonesty. The prospects are horrifying!” (p. 16)

Some may argue that the honesty of a baseball player means little. I would argue that baseball players have such an iconic position in our society that dishonesty in them won’t end between the foul lines. Those who grow up idolizing cheaters will emulate cheaters. We have already seen scandals in which students are cheating on college exams. Many even have the audacity to say that what they did wasn’t wrong. A culture of cheating doesn’t just fall upon you overnight. It creeps up on you a little at a time. One person finds that he can get away with it, so he tells his friends, who spread it to others, like the disease it is. Pretty soon, you’re living in the world President Hinckley described and wondering how you got there.

Our culture needs to send a message not only to cheating baseball players, but to the young people who look up to them. That is the only way to ensure that young people will not idolize cheaters, but those deserving of emulation.

The Purpose for the Fall of Adam

Many religions consider the fall of Adam a disaster. They blame him for eating the fruit of Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, and expelling himself and his wife, Eve, from the Garden of Eden. With this reasoning, if it hadn't been for Adam and Eve's disobedience, all mankind would now be living in peace and prosperity in the Garden. There would be no pain, no disease, and no need to work for sustenance. The food would just be there for the taking. Life would be an easy, idyllic experience.

It's a nice fantasy, and that's all it could have ever been. God did not create man to put him in a natural, open-air cocktail lounge.

First, we learn from the Book of Mormon that Adam and Eve could not have had children in the Garden of Eden. The prophet Lehi taught, "And now, behold, if Adam had not transgressed he would not have fallen, but he would have remained in the garden of Eden. And all things which were created must have remained in the same state in which they were after they were created; and they must have remained forever, and had no end. 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" (2 Nephi 2:22-23).

Second, God never intended this life to be Heaven. That is to come after, if we live worthy of it. This life is a testing ground. We are here to prove that we can walk by faith. That we will obey despite obstacles, setbacks and doubts. Those purposes would have been frustrated if we were all living in the Garden of Eden in luxury and bliss, and life would be meaningless.

Now, let's consider what it would say about God if He being expelled from the Garden was an avoidable disaster. It would mean that God condemned billions of His own children to live in a harsh, painful, miserable world when they could have been living in the lap of luxury because of the foolish actions of one man and one woman who lived thousands of years ago. That sounds pretty harsh. That's not the God that I want to worship. The God that I worship has plans that cannot be frustrated by the mistakes of men or the designs of Satan. The God that I worship does not punish the innocent because of the actions of the guilty. The God that I worship has a plan for his children, and Lehi makes that plan clear in his discourse: "Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy" (2 Nephi 2:25).

The Work of Faith

The "faith vs. works" argument gets brought up a lot when your talking about religion. Somehow, someone got the idea that Mormons believe that you can work your way to heaven on your own, as if the Atonement of Jesus Christ meant nothing. This is false. We can only be saved by the grace of our Lord. But our Lord has given us commandments to govern our behavior, and if we truley accept Him as our Lord and Savior, we will be obedient to his will.

The Apostle James described it this way, "For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also" (James 2:26). The spirit and the body are inseperable. The one without the other is lifeless. Even so, our faith and works are dead if they are not joined together. A Book of Mormon prophet named Alma explained the connection between faith and works this way:

As he was teaching a group of people, he compared the word of God to a seed, so let's talk about planting a seed for a second. When you plant a seed, you have to dig a hole for it in a good spot of soil, where it will get enough sunlight. Next, you plant the seed in the hole and bury it. You have to give it water and make sure that no weeds choke off the seend and kill it. All of this is work, and if you don't do it, the seed won't grow. "Now, this is not because the seed was not good, neither is it because the fruit thereof would not be desirable; but it is because your ground is barren, and ye will not nourish the tree, therefore ye cannot have the fruit thereof" (BoM, Alma 32:39).

Continuing with the analogy, all of that work that goes into nurturing the word of God is faith. The work of faith. That work is praying, reading scripture, fasting, attending church services. All of these things nuture the word of God in our hearts and they are all "works." If we don't do them, the word will die in us, and it won't be the word's fault. It will be ours. So, we must excersise faith in order to partake of the fruit of the tree, which Alma describes as, "most precious, which is sweet above all that is sweet, and which is white above all that is white, yea, and pure above all that is pure; and ye shall feast upon this fruit even until ye are filled, that ye hunger not, neither shall ye thirst" (BoM, Alma 32:42).

That sounds like some fruit I would like to have.