Pure Knowledge Enlarges the Soul: Impure Knowledge Contracts It

[Kevin Christensen]

I've long found it a useful exercise to consider the inverse of oft quoted scriptures.  Sometimes we hear them so often, we stop hearing them.  So I consider the inverse and ponder the implications.  It helps me see anew. For instance, this passage from Letter from Liberty Jail is justly well known in LDS circles.

Quote

No power or influence can or ought to be maintained by virtue of the priesthood, only by persuasion, by long-suffering, by gentleness and meekness, and by love unfeigned;

42 By kindness, and pure knowledge, which shall greatly enlarge the soul without hypocrisy, and without guile—

43 Reproving betimes with sharpness, when moved upon by the Holy Ghost; and then showing forth afterwards an increase of love toward him whom thou hast reproved, lest he esteem thee to be his enemy;

44 That he may know that thy faithfulness is stronger than the cords of death.

45 Let thy bowels also be full of charity towards all men, and to the household of faith, and let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God; and the doctrine of the priesthood shall distil upon thy soul as the dews from heaven.

The opposite of that is something like this:

Quote

Power or influence can be maintained by by coercion, impatience, brutality, pride, and feigned love.

By transactional interactions, and by using rhetoric effectively and saying whatever flatters enough people of the right sort to gain and keep a following, and by projecting our own guilt onto other people, we can paint them as embodying all corruption, and serve our own agenda and ambition at all times.

Reproving constantly and without concern for facts, when moved upon by pride and vanity and ambition, and then afterwards showing an increase of love towards the flag and your allies, that we may be united against whomever we decide is an enemy, whomever we designate as scapegoat, to blame for all our problems and distract attention from our shortcomings,

That people may know better than to criticize or cross you for fear of what will happen to them

Let thy bowels be full of charity to your allies, plot revenge upon your enemies, and let ambition and pride garnish thy thoughts unceasingly, and then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of adoring crowds and sycophants.

I'm fascinated by the insight of how "pure knowledge greatly enlarges the soul, without hypocrisy and guile" which means that impure knowledge contracts the soul, and signals the presence of both hypocrisy and guile.  The story of Enos is a story of a soul enlarging, demonstrated by his expanding circles of concern.  First he prays for self, then his family, and then his enemies.  Laman and Lemuel, even after the angel appears, demonstrate contracted souls, protesting their fear of Laban, and complaining about their loss of possessions and friends in Jerusalem, and reviling Nephi and insisting on their right to rule the younger brother.

Jesus stated that "by this shall men know, ye are my disciples, that ye have love, for one another."   What does that say about groups whose identity is based on excluding or scapegoating outsiders?  Does that demonstrate pure knowledge, and enlarged souls, or impure knowledge and contracted souls?

I very much appreciate what J. K. Rowling does with the Pensive in the Harry Potter books.   The pensive and sometimes, other means, lets Harry look inside the memories of other people, and the effect on Harry is definitely an enlargement of his soul, even those who have been his enemies, for whom he has a long list of legitimate grievances.  Despite those grievances, and despite moments when Harry also learns unwelcome things about those he most admires and idealizes, overall though all of this Harry's soul is ultimately enlarged by pure knowledge.  And even beyond the Pensive, the chapter where Harry's final enlargement of the soul takes place is called "Kings Cross."  I think about that when considering 2 Ne[hi 11:4, "All things which have been given of God from the beginning of the world are the typifying of him."

Indeed, my BYU talk on "In and Behind Hebrews" made the case that the at-one-ment was Jesus entering into complete empathy and awareness of all our our lives, gaining perfect knowledge of us, even all that is so utterly contrary to his nature and desire, so that he could understand, judge and heal us. It was the infinite expansion of his soul, through gaining pure knowledge.  Nothing else would or could do.

Quote

Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,

5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;

6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;

7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

The opposite of that?  The opposite of Christ-like love?

Quote

The opposite of Christ does not suffer long, and is unkind, envieth whoever has what it wants, vaunteth itself constantly, and is notably puffed up

Behaves unseemly, always seeking its own gain, is easily provoked, and thinks evil of anyone who opposes their ambitions and desires,

Rejoices in getting away with whatever it wants to do, and bitterly opposes any attempts to call it to account,

Will not put up with anything, believes only what it wants to hear, hopes only for personal gain and power, so that it will never have to endure anything difficult or unpleasant.

In Hugh Nibley's prophetic essay on "Victoriosa Loquacitas: The Rise of Rhetoric and the Decline of Everything Else," he points out that rhetoric has the power to create an unreal world, that it breaks down the wall between seeming and being, and strives to cultivate appearances, rather that seek for truth, for pure knowledge.  One inevitable cost of the enlargement of the soul through pure knowledge is the realization that some of the things a person wants would come at a cost to someone or something else, and that some of the things a person thinks are wrong.  That is why in 3 Nephi Jesus asks for the sacrifice of a broken heart and a contrite spirit.  In an introduction to that essay published only in Of All Things, Nibley wrote that "The only counteragent which has had any effect in dealing with [rhetoric] is the gospel, which will continue to be effective as long as there are people who read the scriptures for themselves." (2nd ed., 191,)

FWIW,

Kevin Christensen

Canonsburg, PA

Edited September 27, 2024 by Kevin Christensen
typo

[mfbukowski]

20 hours ago, Kevin Christensen said:

Indeed, my BYU talk on "In and Behind Hebrews" made the case that the at-one-ment was Jesus entering into complete empathy and awareness of all our our lives, gaining perfect knowledge of us, even all that is so utterly contrary to his nature and desire, so that he could understand, judge and heal us. It was the infinite expansion of his soul, through gaining pure knowledge.  Nothing else would or could do.

Wonderful, and thank you.

I could not agree more. For me this is the entire purpose of the At-one-ment.

And how could anyone be any more "at one" with someone than to experience all their pains and trials and victories and KNOW what it is like to be them?

How could anyone judge anyone else without essentially BEING that person, perhaps while pulling a trigger? 

I see that also as how Christ's empathy is also the main mechanism of forgiveness.  If one could literally "be in someone else's shoes" you would be in another world, feeling their drives, understanding motives, the psychological and emotional affects of BEING that person with all the experiences they have experienced, making them who they are.

And you would see them with pure love and sympathy, perhaps also judging as the perfect Father would judge his little toddler, who cannot possibly have the insight and understanding you have.

For me, this is the essence of the atonement.

Yes "Christ died for our sins", but seeing it only that way doesn't even scratch the surface.

PS: Where can we see/hear the whole talk?

 

Edited December 19, 2023 by mfbukowski

[Kevin Christensen]

Thanks for the comments.  Mark also asked, 

Quote

PS: Where can we see/hear the whole talk?

FWIW,

Kevin Christensen

Canonsburg, PA

[manol]

On 12/18/2023 at 12:14 PM, Kevin Christensen said:

... the at-one-ment was Jesus entering into complete empathy and awareness of all our our lives, gaining perfect knowledge of us, even all that is so utterly contrary to his nature and desire, so that he could understand, judge and heal us. It was the infinite expansion of his soul, through gaining pure knowledge.  Nothing else would or could do.

 

11 hours ago, mfbukowski said:

For me this is the entire purpose of the At-one-ment.

And how could anyone be any more "at one" with someone than to experience all their pains and trials and victories and KNOW what it is like to be them?

How could anyone judge anyone else without essentially BEING that person, perhaps while pulling a trigger? 

I see that also as how Christ's empathy is also the main mechanism of forgiveness.  If one could literally "be in someone else's shoes" you would be in another world, feeling their drives, understanding motives, the psychological and emotional affects of BEING that person with all the experiences they have experienced, making them who they are.

And you would see them with pure love and sympathy, perhaps also judging as the perfect Father would judge his little toddler, who cannot possibly have the insight and understanding you have.

For me, this is the essence of the atonement.

 

Yes!!

And perhaps the at-one-ment encompasses even more than empathy (and love and sympathy). Perhaps there is a higher, presently-unseen level where at-one-ment, or Oneness, is actually our Identity.

From the 88^th Section of the D&C:

“He [Christ] that ascended up on high, as also he descended below all things, in that he comprended all things, that he might be in all and through all things, the light of truth; which truth shineth... This is the light of Christ...

“Then shall ye know that ye have seen me, that I am, and that I AM THE TRUE LIGHT THAT IS IN YOU, and that YOU ARE IN ME...”  (emphasis manol's)

 

[mfbukowski]

15 hours ago, manol said:

And perhaps the at-one-ment encompasses even more than empathy (and love and sympathy). Perhaps there is a higher, presently-unseen level where at-one-ment, or Oneness, is actually our Identity.

Yes, I believe that is possible, that we all may become,/the,/like the /Godhead.

Sumptin' lak 'at!

 

Edited December 20, 2023 by mfbukowski

[longview]

On 12/19/2023 at 11:47 AM, Kevin Christensen said:

Thanks for the comments.  Mark also asked, 

FWIW,

Kevin Christensen

Canonsburg, PA

This is the second time for me seeing the depiction of the "book with the seven seals". The first time I wondered if it would make more sense for the book to have seven sections, each with its own seal?

[mfbukowski]

On 12/19/2023 at 10:47 AM, Kevin Christensen said:

Thanks for the comments.  Mark also asked, 

FWIW,

Kevin Christensen

Canonsburg, PA

WOW

THANKS!

[manol]

10 hours ago, mfbukowski said:

Yes, I believe that is possible, that we all may become,/the,/like the /Godhead.

I get the impression from D&C 88 that our Oneness with Christ is actually a present reality, rather than a future reality; what is still in the future is our comprehension that this has been our reality all along.  Here is a bit longer version of what I quoted above:

“He [Christ] that ascended up on high, as also he descended below all things, in that he comprended all things, that he might be in all and through all things, the light of truth; which truth shineth... This is the light of Christ.

“And the light which shineth, which giveth you light, is through him who enlighteneth your eyes, which is the same light that quickeneth your understandings; which light proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space— the light which is in all things...

“… all things are before him, and all things are round about him; and he is above all things, and in all things, and is through all things, and is round about all things; and all things are by him, and of him, even God, forever and ever.

“The light shineth in darkness, and the darkness comprehendeth it not; nevertheless, the day shall come when you shall comprehend even God, being quickened in him and by him.

“Then shall ye know that ye have seen me, that I am, and that I AM THE TRUE LIGHT THAT IS IN YOU, and that YOU ARE IN ME..."

Note that the "light of Christ" is herein equated with Christ's presence.  Moroni teaches that the "Spirit of Christ is given to every man", and I think this is FAR more literal than what the Sunday School manual teaches. 

One more quote:  "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."  - Jesus Christ

@Kevin Christensen, I'd be interested in your thoughts on this, if you feel like sharing them. 

 

Edited December 21, 2023 by manol

[mfbukowski]

5 hours ago, manol said:

I get the impression from D&C 88 that our Oneness with Christ is actually a present reality, rather than a future reality; what is still in the future is our comprehension that this has been our reality all along.  Here is a bit longer version of what I quoted above:

“He [Christ] that ascended up on high, as also he descended below all things, in that he comprended all things, that he might be in all and through all things, the light of truth; which truth shineth... This is the light of Christ.

“And the light which shineth, which giveth you light, is through him who enlighteneth your eyes, which is the same light that quickeneth your understandings; which light proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space— the light which is in all things...

“… all things are before him, and all things are round about him; and he is above all things, and in all things, and is through all things, and is round about all things; and all things are by him, and of him, even God, forever and ever.

“The light shineth in darkness, and the darkness comprehendeth it not; nevertheless, the day shall come when you shall comprehend even God, being quickened in him and by him.

“Then shall ye know that ye have seen me, that I am, and that I AM THE TRUE LIGHT THAT IS IN YOU, and that YOU ARE IN ME..."

Note that the "light of Christ" is herein equated with Christ's presence.  Moroni teaches that the "Spirit of Christ is given to every man", and I think this is FAR more literal than what the Sunday School manual teaches. 

One more quote:  "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."  - Jesus Christ...

 

5 hours ago, manol said:

 

But Ammon said unto him: I do not boast in my own strength, nor in my own wisdom; but behold, my joy is full, yea, my heart is brim with joy, and I will rejoice in my God. 12 Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things; yea, behold, many mighty miracles we have wrought in this land, for which we will praise his name forever. 13 Behold, how many thousands of our brethren has he loosed from the pains of hell; and they are brought to sing redeeming love, and this because of the power of his word which is in us, therefore have we not great reason to rejoice?

Alma 26:11

"11 But Ammon said unto him: I do not boast in my own strength, nor in my own wisdom; but behold, my joy is full, yea, my heart is brim with joy, and I will rejoice in my God. 12 Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things; yea, behold, many mighty miracles we have wrought in this land, for which we will praise his name forever. 13 Behold, how many thousands of our brethren has he loosed from the pains of hell; and they are brought to sing redeeming love, and this because of the power of his word which is in us, therefore have we not great reason to rejoice?

Paul to the

Philippians, 4:

12 I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. 13 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

 

Edited December 21, 2023 by mfbukowski

[Kevin Christensen]

13 hours ago, manol said:

I get the impression from D&C 88 that our Oneness with Christ is actually a present reality, rather than a future reality; what is still in the future is our comprehension that this has been our reality all along.  Here is a bit longer version of what I quoted above:

“He [Christ] that ascended up on high, as also he descended below all things, in that he comprended all things, that he might be in all and through all things, the light of truth; which truth shineth... This is the light of Christ.

“And the light which shineth, which giveth you light, is through him who enlighteneth your eyes, which is the same light that quickeneth your understandings; which light proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space— the light which is in all things...

“… all things are before him, and all things are round about him; and he is above all things, and in all things, and is through all things, and is round about all things; and all things are by him, and of him, even God, forever and ever.

“The light shineth in darkness, and the darkness comprehendeth it not; nevertheless, the day shall come when you shall comprehend even God, being quickened in him and by him.

“Then shall ye know that ye have seen me, that I am, and that I AM THE TRUE LIGHT THAT IS IN YOU, and that YOU ARE IN ME..."

Note that the "light of Christ" is herein equated with Christ's presence.  Moroni teaches that the "Spirit of Christ is given to every man", and I think this is FAR more literal than what the Sunday School manual teaches. 

One more quote:  "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."  - Jesus Christ

@Kevin Christensen, I'd be interested in your thoughts on this, if you feel like sharing them. 

 

Yes.  The light passages in D&C 88 are profound and deserve close attention and pondering.  And yes, "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me," I take very literally, as a consequence of the at-one-ment.  My talk cites both passages in connection with my view of the at-one-ment, and in comparison with NDE accounts of the life review, where experiencers report Jesus showing them how their actions influenced and affected other people.

Good thoughts.  Thank you.

FWIW,

Kevin Christensen

Canonsburg, PA

 

[manol]

2 hours ago, Kevin Christensen said:

Yes.  The light passages in D&C 88 are profound and deserve close attention and pondering.  And yes, "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me," I take very literally, as a consequence of the at-one-ment.  My talk cites both passages in connection with my view of the at-one-ment, and in comparison with NDE accounts of the life review, where experiencers report Jesus showing them how their actions influenced and affected other people.

Good thoughts.

Thank you, Kevin.

And thanks for mentioning that those passages are in your talk, I probably would not have watched it past the Old Testament parts otherwise. I think your insight is correct – I think WE are the book mentioned in Revelation chapter 5. NDEers sometimes describe experiencing from another person's perspective as if they literally are that other person, and I think this is a glimpse into what “reading the book” may be.

We tend to look at the at-one-ment through the lens of how we individually are affected, and I THANK YOU for turning the telescope around and looking at all of this through the lense of how the at-one-ment affects Christ. I found that shift in perspective to be soul-enlargening.

I was not aware of that verse in Hebrews (chapter 13 verse 3): “Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them; and them which suffer adversity, as being yourselves also in the body” (my emphasis). Imo this reprises “love your neighbor AS yourself” (my emphasis again).   Similarly, from the Tao te Ching:  "Love the whole world as if it were your self".

I'm going to step well outside of the LDS paradigm now, so I don't expect you or anyone else to take this next paragraph seriously:

Perhaps it makes sense for us to see others as actually being ourselves because such is literally the case. By way of example perhaps I am you, on a different “timeline” (for lack of a better model). Perhaps there is really only one of us, experiencing this stage of existence along a hundred billion different “timelines”, for the sake of gaining knowledge and experience (and more, but I don't want to sidetrack too much). Currently we experience time linearly and events sequentially but there is a higher (and therefore more correct) perspective from which all things past present and future are continually manifest. Who and/or what we actually ARE, in that higher and more correct perspective, arguably becomes an interesting question.

Edited December 21, 2023 by manol

[mfbukowski]

And the Humanist might see this as losing oneself in the service of mankind as his purpose of life, as Ghandi, and many many others have done, also others, in ecology, etc. trying to save mankind, as perhaps might be the duty of one who seeks to become an "Ideal Human" in their value system, which includes the myths of virgin birth, and the myth of a preacher 2000 years ago in Galilee who taught the Golden Rule.

Immanuel Kant also taught the essence of that rule derived supposedly by pure reason, ( Pure Knowledge?) in the 18th century.

And so we have 2 paradigms seeking the perfection of mankind,  one seen as "religious" and the other "secular".

Which wins?

🥺😉

Edited December 21, 2023 by mfbukowski

[manol]

3 minutes ago, mfbukowski said:

And the Humanist might see this as losing oneself in the service of mankind as his purpose of life, as Ghandi, and many many others have done, also others, in ecology, etc. trying to save mankind, as perhaps might be the duty of one who seeks to become an "Ideal Human" in their value system, which includes the myths of virgin birth, and the myth of a preacher 2000 years ago in Galilee who taught the Golden Rule.

Kant also taught the essence of that rule derived supposedly by pure reason, in the 18th century.

And so we have 2 paradigms seeking the perfection of mankind,  one seen as "religious" and the other "secular".

Which wins?

I think it's truth (in this case a really big truth) being established in the mouth of two witnesses. 

[mfbukowski]

2 hours ago, manol said:

I think it's truth (in this case a really big truth) being established in the mouth of two witnesses. 

Agree!

Here's more about Kant

https://iep.utm.edu/kantmeta/#:~:text=And the only motive that,should become a universal law.”

"This article focuses on his metaphysics and epistemology in one of his most important works, The Critique of Pure Reason.  A large part of Kant’s work addresses the question “What can we know?” The answer, if it can be stated simply, is that our knowledge is constrained to mathematics and the science of the natural, empirical world. It is impossible, Kant argues, to extend knowledge to the supersensible realm of speculative metaphysics. The reason that knowledge has these constraints, Kant argues, is that the mind plays an active role in constituting the features of experience and limiting the mind’s access only to the empirical real"

And William James shows us how religious experience IS EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE 

17 million people having similar experiences?

Sounds empirical to me.

Edited December 21, 2023 by mfbukowski

[mfbukowski]

2 hours ago, manol said:

Thank you, Kevin.

And thanks for mentioning that those passages are in your talk, I probably would not have watched it past the Old Testament parts otherwise. I think your insight is correct – I think WE are the book mentioned in Revelation chapter 5. NDEers sometimes describe experiencing from another person's perspective as if they literally are that other person, and I think this is a glimpse into what “reading the book” may be.

We tend to look at the at-one-ment through the lens of how we individually are affected, and I THANK YOU for turning the telescope around and looking at all of this through the lense of how the at-one-ment affects Christ. I found that shift in perspective to be soul-enlargening.

I was not aware of that verse in Hebrews (chapter 13 verse 3): “Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them; and them which suffer adversity, as being yourselves also in the body” (my emphasis). Imo this reprises “love your neighbor AS yourself” (my emphasis again).   Similarly, from the Tao te Ching:  "Love the whole world as if it were your self".

I'm going to step well outside of the LDS paradigm now, so I don't expect you or anyone else to take this next paragraph seriously:

Perhaps it makes sense for us to see others as actually being ourselves because such is literally the case. By way of example perhaps I am you, on a different “timeline” (for lack of a better model). Perhaps there is really only one of us, experiencing this stage of existence along a hundred billion different “timelines”, for the sake of gaining knowledge and experience (and more, but I don't want to sidetrack too much). Currently we experience time linearly and events sequentially but there is a higher (and therefore more correct) perspective from which all things past present and future are continually manifest. Who and/or what we actually ARE, in that higher and more correct perspective, arguably becomes an interesting question.

From my pov, FWIW , I see no conflict between this paradigm and the LDS standard paradigm.  THAT is my view- does paradigm X prevent me from getting a temple recommend?

No?

Then run with it, by the spirit!

We are to "read the best books" and they were not all written by Talmage!  We are encouraged to "receive our own testimonies" through personal revelation.

 

Edited December 21, 2023 by mfbukowski