Modern Signs

1,452 words

© Anthony E. Larson, 2003

Modern Signs

Joseph’s most profound and enlightening sermon on the signs of the last days, given on the temple grounds at Nauvoo in April, 1843, demonstrates his views of the origin and nature of those signs, as well as our ability to recognize them for what they are.

“There will be wars and rumors of wars, signs in the heavens above and on the earth beneath, the sun turned into darkness and the moon to blood, earthquakes in divers places, the seas heaving beyond their bounds; … ” (History of the Church, 5:337.)

Of particular interest is his addition of a truly remarkable sign to the customary list – one to which Latter-day Saints should give special heed.  “… then will appear one grand sign of the coming of the Son of Man in heaven.” (Ibid.) This is clearly a reiteration of the Savior’s statement in Matthew 24 wherein he said, “And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven …” 

Until this last dispensation of the gospel, no other prophet or passage of scripture had added the superlative “grand sign.” Typically, all the signs are given equal weight or value; none is designated as special or more notable.  Indeed, the only other mention is found in modern revelation wherein a slightly altered version of the term is used. Speaking of the last days, the Lord declared to Joseph in December 1842, “And immediately there shall appear a great sign in heaven, and all people shall see it together.”  (Doctrine & Covenants 88:93.) 

Indeed, Joseph may have intended that this sermon, given a mere four months after the revelation recorded in Doctrine & Covenants, reaffirm and amplify on that revelation since Section 88 is remarkable for its catalog of latter-day signs.

On that occasion, Joseph continued his sermon by explaining what that marvelous sign might be. “What will the world do?  They will say it is a planet, a comet, &c.  But the Son of Man will come as the sign of the coming of the Son of Man, which will be as the light of the morning cometh out of the east.”  (Ibid.)

It is a stunning statement, when carefully considered. The greatest or grandest of signs will be a comet or planet. Assumably, this comet or planet will be doing something well out of the ordinary to attract special attention.

Note that the Prophet is not saying the world’s assessment is incorrect, as some have supposed. Rather, he is merely noting that the worldly or scientific terminology for this eye-catching sign would be “a planet, a comet, &c.”

In light of what modern science has discovered in recent years about rogue comets and asteroids, this observation by Joseph Smith is striking. Mention of this great or grand sign is unique to this dispensation and is therefore worthy of special attention by Mormons – especially in light of what occurred in the heavens a decade ago.

In July 1994, fragments of comet Shoemaker-Levy repeatedly slammed into the planet Jupiter, as forecast by astronomers. At least one of those impact sites left a pockmark on Jupiter’s face that was larger than the Earth. Estimates were that the first fragment alone struck with the force of 200,000 mega­tons of explosive power! Nineteen more followed, leaving visible impact scars around Jupiter’s southern hemisphere.

This was an unprece­dented, historic, celestial event. Nothing even remotely as spectacular has occurred in our solar system since Galileo invented the tele­scope.

From Joseph Smith’s time forward, scientists had utterly dismissed the possibility that comets or asteroids might menace the Earth. Even the prominent astronomer Carl Sagan denied the likelihood of cometary impact. As far as science was concerned, such nonsense was “impossible.”

Due to comet Shoemaker/Levy, the scientific community did a con­ceptual about-face that was as dramatic as it was sweeping. They had been treated to a celestial visual aid of cosmic pro­portions; the “impossible” had occurred before their very eyes. There was no denying catastrophic impacts any longer.

As a result, today the idea of an impact dramatically altering Earth’s ecosystem is well accepted. Cosmic collisions do occur, scientists acknowledge, as in the instance of the dinosaurs’ extinction. Moreover, if it can happen to Jupiter, it can happen to the Earth.

Almost overnight, scientists began speaking of the threat posed by Earth-crossing asteroids and comets. NASA pro­posed a program and sought funding to find and track any ob­ject that might collide with the Earth. 

A cosmic collision could result in a range of conse­quences, much like those signs listed by Joseph, from something no greater than any local disaster – as in an earthquake, flood or famine – to a worldwide event with long-term implications. The models proposed by re­searchers differ only in scale.

Even a mod­erate size impactor could ultimately lead to the death of at least one-fourth of the world’s population. A near collision by a planet passing nearby us could be as devastating or worse, depending upon the proximity of the intruder.

The extent of the damage would be determined by the size, composition, incoming ve­locity, angle and location – ocean or land, populated or un­populated – of the impactor. For example, if the Tunguska me­teorite of 1902, which exploded in the upper atmosphere without every hitting the ground, were to fall on Moscow today, the death toll would be about 9 million dead!

Especially significant is the fact that the “grand sign,” – making an impact in the case of a comet, a very close pass or near miss in the case of a planet – would cause all the signs listed by Joseph Smith in his discourse. That is, the “grand sign” would be the direct cause of the other signs listed by the Prophet, as well as by the scriptures.

Everyone on the planet would be in peril.

The location of a strike would ultimately determine the nature of the after­math; a close planetary pass would cause uniform but devastating destruction worldwide. If the impact were an ocean strike, it would generate a tsunami ranging in size from a few feet up to hundreds of feet in height, with the potential of destroying up to 100 million people worldwide. A close pass would raise prodigious ocean tides drawn up by the gravitational pull of the offending planet, with very nearly the same effect as an ocean impact. This would be “the seas heaving beyond their bounds” Joseph described.

If it were a landfall, the shock wave would cause global geological stress that would certainly gen­erate massive “earthquakes in divers places,” as would a close pass by gravitational “tugging” at the landmasses.

The ejecta from the impact or from colossal volcanic eruptions in the event of a planetary near miss would take the form of gas, dust and stones, which would be blown high into the atmosphere. The debris would fall back to earth in showers of hot stones, like so many artillery shells. Widespread rains of these hot stones would almost immedi­ately create hemisphere-wide fires and destruction.

The dust would be transported around the Earth by high-altitude winds, casting the world into near-total gloom – “the sun turned into darkness” – followed by freez­ing cold, leading to the suppression of photosynthesis for months, even years.

The gas released would eventually cause intense acid rain and destruction of the ozone layer, signs suggested elsewhere in scripture. Agriculture would collapse, resulting in famines, as suggested in prophecy, and the breakdown of global economic, social and political structures would result in “wars and rumors of wars,” among other things.

Latter-day Saints’ opinion on the subject of potential impacts, past and present, differs little from that of the gen­eral public. They see it as very unlikely. Yet, that probably should not be so, given the scriptural certainty of the last days and Joseph Smith’s enlightened statement regarding the last great sign being a comet or planet. He clearly held a view of his­tory and prophecy that included disasters emanating from the heavens, which would have devastating effects here on Earth.

When we consider the magnitude and import of seeing a comet impact Jupiter in our own time as we approach the second coming, one wonders if this astronomical visual aid might not have been God’s way of making a point, just as he gave a celestial sign to the Nephites prior to the Savior’s first coming. Have we been forewarned, just as were our Nephite cousins? Could it have been meant to awaken us from our apathetic complacency about the times we live in and the planet we live on? Should not Latter-day Saints – the “children of the light” – be the first to recognize the true import of this “sign?”

Remember, Joseph Smith placed great store in the validity of latter-day signs, especially those that can be described as planets or comets.

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Learning from the Scriptures

1,257 words

© Anthony E. Larson, 2002

 Learning from the Scriptures

“Search the scriptures,” said the Savior. So, most Latter-day Saints do just that. We search for spiritual truths and counsel that might strengthen our testimonies and help us live better, more righteous lives.

But while those spiritual truths are vital, there is much more to the scriptures that we often overlook – things that we were meant to learn as well as the spiritual truths, things that, when internalized, can immensely enhance and correct our worldview.

Take the story of Joshua’s long day, for example.

“Then spake Joshua to the Lord in the day when the Lord delivered up the Amorites before the children of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel, Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon; and thou, Moon, in the valley of Ajalon.

“And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed …  So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and hasted not to go down about a whole day.” (Joshua 10:12, 13.)

Joshua’s story is a powerful example of the influence a prophet can wield when acting in the name of God, an astounding example of the use of priesthood power. This is the primary message of the story.

However, there is another side to the story – one generally overlooked. It is a secondary message, as in a parable, that holds a vital truth of its own and can prove most useful in shaping our view of science in general and astronomy in particular. Most importantly, it should teach us something about our Creator and the way he does things.

Since most readers overlook the historical accuracy of such extravagant scriptural accounts, they fail to grasp its more practical implications. In order to see this facet of the Joshua account clearly, we must focus on the implied physical nature of the event: the stopping and starting of Earth’s rotation. Of course, such an implication is unthinkable to most of us. According to all we have been taught, all that we have experienced, the Earth’s rotation cannot be stopped. The eminent astronomer, Carl Sagan, for example, declared it an impossibility.

So, what are we to make of the natural side of Joshua’s account? If the Earth really did not stop turning, as Joshua reported, what do we make of it? Is this account’s accuracy flawed? Are the scientists right, or are the scriptures right?

Happily, for Latter-day Saints there is another, unimpeachable witness in the scriptures that answers these questions definitively. That witness is the Book of Mormon.

Speaking of the power of God, Mormon editorializes, “Thus we see that … if he say unto the earth – Thou shalt go back, that it lengthen out the day for many hours – it is done;

“And thus, according to his word the earth goeth back, and it appeareth unto man that the sun standeth still; yea, and behold, this is so; for surely it is the earth that moveth and not the sun.”  (Helaman 12:11-15.)

If there was any doubt about Joshua’s account, Mormon’s statement erases it. He makes it crystal clear; there is no equivocation, no hedging. He even goes so far as to clearly define the proper relationship between the movement of the sun and the earth.

Mormon is no geocentrist. He cannot be accused of ignorance in things astronomical.

Latter-day Saints cannot question the validity of such a statement, since Joseph Smith declared the Book of Mormon to be “the most correct book.”

So we have two scriptural witnesses that the earth can and has stopped turning. But there is a third, extra-scriptural witness.

The will of the Lord concerning extra-scriptural books is found in the Doctrine & Covenants.

“And as all have not faith, seek ye diligently and teach one another words of wisdom; yea, seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom; seek learning, even by study and also by faith.

“… Teach ye diligently and my grace shall attend you, that you may be instructed more perfectly in theory, in principle, in doctrine …

“Of things both in heaven and in the earth, and under the earth; things which have been, things which are, things which must shortly come to pass ….” (Doctrine & Covenants 88:118,78, 79.)

Thus, the Lord makes clear that studying theory that supports scriptural principle and doctrine is a worthy pursuit, so that we “may be instructed more perfectly.”

An excellent example of extra-scriptural text in support of Joshua’s observations is found in Plato’s Timaeus wherein Plato reveals that a Greek myth about the sun’s movement through the heavens is actually fact rather than fiction.

“There is a story … that once upon a time Phaeton, the son of Helios, having yoked the steeds in his father’s chariot, because he was not able to drive them in the path of his father, burnt up all that was upon the earth, and was himself destroyed by a thunderbolt. Now this has the form of a myth, but really signifies a declination of the bodies moving in the heavens around the earth, and a great conflagration of things upon the earth ….” (Plato’s Timaeus)

Plato, whose works surely qualify as among “the best books,” makes clear that the Phaeton myth is actually about a time when the sun went out of its normal course.

Now we have three witnesses: two from the scriptures, one from profane or secular history.

Here is where “the rubber meets the road,” as one adage puts it. Time to “fish or cut bait,” according to another. Do Latter-day Saints continue to believe mainstream scientists who assert that it would be impossible to halt the earth’s rotation and then restart it again, even though the scriptures plainly affirm that it has happened? Or, do we have enough faith to place our confidence in the scriptures by rejecting the view of mainstream science, even though it flies in the face of accepted scientific laws and assumptions?

So, now we have come full circle. When we read our scriptures, we are completely prepared to accept any spiritual truth offered. But, when the words of the prophets attempt to teach us concepts that belong in the realm of natural law or science, we find it difficult to accept. So, how much faith do we really have? How committed are we, in reality, to the words of the Prophets?

This is vital to a thoroughgoing study of the gospel. One cannot say that he or she believes or holds sacred the scriptures if a decision is made to accept only a part of what the scriptures offer while rejecting another part. We cannot embrace the spiritual message of Joshua’s story and be ambivalent about the rest.

More importantly, rejecting the fullness of the prophets’ message closes the door on untold learning and growing possibilities – both scientific and spiritual, because the two are really not in opposition once a few simple truths are established that are typically denied by modern science.

Seeing Joshua’s story as an accurate, eyewitness account, Mormon’s explanation as corroborating and supporting documentation and Plato’s explanation as substantiation from another culture, we stand poised to learn much about the true nature of God’s wondrous creation, the language of the Prophets, ancient history, prophecy and the symbolism of the scriptures.

“And truth is knowledge of things as they are, and as they were, and as they are to come.”  (Doctrine & Covenants 93:24.)  In this context, Joshua’s account is truly a key to the scriptures and a test of our faith.

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