The Reason I Haven't Posted in a Few Months

My angel Mother

This post is long overdue. Abraham Lincoln said, "All that I am, or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother." I definitely agree. Mom, you're the best! I love you.

Dallin

Until I moved to Snowflake, my name always seemed unique. I hardly ever met other Dallins. Usually people said my name wrong the first time they tried, saying daylinn most of the time. Then in Snowflake, where the Church has a much greater presence, I found I shared my name with many others. There was even a Dallin McCleve in my grade, which I though was crazy, since that's my mom's maiden name.
I've always known my namesake was Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, but I never could have imagined how close to the source of my name I could get to until coming to BYU. After I picked my major, I noticed one of the teachers in the department's name was Dallin D. Oaks. There's no way they couldn't be related. Sure enough, he's his son. Near the end of the second semester of my freshman year, I went to his office to see if I could get a research position with him. It was a little bizarre when he asked me my name. I replied, and though nothing further was said, I could only imagine what was going through his head. This kid, too? How many kids were named after my dad? I suddenly realized that we were both named for the same person. It was weird realizing that, I guess because it seems rare to meet or come close to meeting your namesake. Some may be named for a grandparent or parent, so that wouldn't be weird, but to me, I never thought it would really happen. Around the same time, Men's Chorus did a concert with the other BYU choirs at the Conference Center Theater built onto the side of the main auditorium. Among the audience were Elder Dallin H. Oaks and Elder Uchtdorf. The Men's Chorus pianist, Jared Oaks, is Elder Oaks grandson. After the performance, I saw Elder Oaks go up and congratulate his grandson, about five feet in front of me. I knew this was my chance. They were related--they could bond another time. This was important. "Elder Oaks," I said. He turned, somewhat surprised, said, "Hello," shook my hand, and then said to his grandson, "I'm parked in the parking garage down this hall. Let's go." They rushed off, and the rest of the BYU choirs followed in pursuit. But I was satisfied. Now, if one of us died, at least I could say I'd met my namesake.
Fast forwarding until after my mission, I got a job with another professor in the department, and the other day, Dr. Oaks, whose office is right next to the one I work in, came in and was talking with my boss and me. My boss had to leave, and as she did, she said, "Dallin, will you watch my office?" I suddenly realized yet another golden opportunity to learn about my name. Dr. Dallin Oaks and I then had an interesting conversation about Cyrus Dallin, our namesake's namesake, about the rise of the name of Dallin, etc. Both of us came to the realization we've never met a nonmember named Dallin. I wonder if I ever will. Thanks, Mom and Dad, for naming me Dallin, although Brigham would have been interesting, too.

Accountability

As I read in Ether recently, in the Book of Mormon, I noticed something I hadn't before. After Ether builds the barges that are "tight like unto a dish," he does something very responsible: "And it came to pass that the brother of Jared cried unto the Lord, saying: O Lord, I have performed the work which thou hast commanded me, and I have made the barges according as thou hast directed me" Ether 2:18. Now that is accountability. It made me wonder, do I account for the things I do that the Lord has commanded me to do? As I think about the scriptures, I realize that this is a principle many understand. Christ Himself, in His Intercessory prayer, reports back to the Father, "I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do" (John 17:4). It seems to indicate a reliance on the Father, that even though the assignment is accomplished, no time is wasted; it's right back to the Father for the next instructions. I realize that I should be "anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness" (see D&C 58:26-7), but since all good comes from God, whenever I do good, I should report that to the Lord, and then I'll be ready for more instructions, whenever they come.

The Love of a Black Hole

Black holes are really interesting. In my astronomy class, I learned about how they're really strong, keeping even light within its grasp--but only if you get too close. Now, I could make a spiritual application to this, and say that this means we should stay as far away from the edge as possible, and look for ways to be obedient, but I think there's something else there, too, that can be applied. A black hole is so strong, that it creates a bottomless pit out of the spacetime continuum. Essentially, it puts a whole in the fabric of space. Einstein's special theory of relativity describes this in great detail, but essentially, I see it as a scientific allegory of celestial love. True love. The love that God has for us, the love that parents have for their children, and even the love between spouses. Once a certain threshold has been passed, which is represented in black holes by the event horizon, the Holy Spirit of Promise seals, or calling and election are made sure, then love becomes infinite. Space and time are no longer barriers to it. Just imagine life without time. Just imagine life without space, or distance. Pretty tricky, right? Because that's infinite. "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends" John 15:13. That is the love Jesus Christ has. Maybe the analogy isn't perfect, but I am constantly amazed at how much the scientific community, within astronomy at least, accepts the idea of infinity. Science and religion really do meet, which can be a hard fact for some to escape.

Princes

In John 14:30, Jesus references the devil as the "prince of darkness." At this Christmas season, my mind was quickly turned to Isaiah 9:6, where Jesus is prophesied to be the "Prince of peace." What a contrast. Although the original words for "prince" may have been different, the Vulgate Latin word for both is "princeps", which, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, is the origin of our modern word, "prince." The older, Latin sense carried the meaning "instigator, founder, person who is pre-eminent in a particular sphere, leader, chief, ruler." I like that better. Prince has ameliorated in meaning such that today, it seems like a good thing, whereas in the past, in may have been more neutral. I think it's interesting to think of the devil as the " 'instigator' of darkness," and Jesus as the " 'Founder' of peace." He, our Savior, is pre-eminent in our salvation, the true source of peace in our lives; He provides the peace we cannot do without. He will lead us to eternal peace. Christ is our Prince--even our King. If the devil is ruler of the darkness, those who follow him are being led through the dark, ruled by gloom, and chief among shadowy deceit. The next time I read "prince" in the scriptures, I will mentally try retranslating it as "chief" or "ruler" or "one who is pre-eminent" in the particular context, and hopefully, as in this case, it will make more sense to me.

Sheepness

The Savior was the greatest Example of consideration any of us could ever have. One of my favorite hymns has this line: "The very foes that slay thee Have access to thy grace" (Hymns, no. 197). John's Gospel quotes Jesus as saying, "I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: And I lay down my life for my sheep" (John 10:14-15). Jesus had such a connection with people that He described Himself as the Shepherd of all of them. None was outside of His sphere of love. Some days I feel down, insignificant, and tired, but the things that help me feel better, I eventually realize, are those things the Savior was best at: service and charity. Service. Smiling in the face of adversity. That's following the Savior and being considerate. That's being protected, led, and guided by the Good Shepherd. That's optimism and faith. My philosophy is, if your socks are dirty because you forgot to do your laundry yet again, be grateful you have shoes, so no one can tell this is the third time you've worn this pair of socks since you've washed them.

Triptych Crucifixion

The Museum of Art here at BYU has some impressive pieces of religious art. I especially appreciated Bernard Sleigh's The Crucifixion: A Triptych. Originally commissioned for a prison in the UK in 1906, an employee saved it from destruction during a renovation and re-decorating of the prison. It then sat at her house for years until she passed away, someone inherited it, they sold it to a collector, and BYU bought it from the collector.
I love the symbolism. I'm grateful for the curator for pointing out some things. Those who are bowing to the Savior include a soldier, judge, king, and priest, emphasizing Christ's preeminence over armies, laws, governments, and the Church. The vine climbing the cross represents Christ's role as the True Vine. "INRI" is what the sign over His head says, standing for "Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum", or "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews." But perhaps the element I most enjoy about this painting is the simple fact that the cross bridges the earth with the heavens. Truly, that is the essence of the Atonement. Jesus Christ suffered for sins and sufferings, so that we may be able to be redeemed, saved, atoned for, being brought back into the presence of the Father by way of the Son. At this Thanksgiving season, I share my thanks for the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and for art that teaches true doctrine.