Thy Liberty in Law

As our Sunday School teacher started the lesson this morning, he stated that this time of year, the 4th of July, is probably his most disliked time of the year. What?? I was shocked. This man preaches patriotism and history the way most of us breath. He has written textbooks that make me want to go back to school and study history and become a history teacher. How could he not like this time of year?

He then went on to explain why and as he explained, he echoed a sentiment that I had just had (again) during our closing song in Sacrment meeting. He does not like this time of year because we as a people only pay lip service to it. If we are lucky, we will sing a couple of patriotic songs the Sunday before the 4th, close our hymnals and be done with it until next year. We have our parades, picnics and fireworks, but they have all evolved into a reason to party and are no longer a celebration of God's deliverance of our country from oppression in preparation for the restoration of the gospel here on earth.

Just a couple of day ago, I had told this man's mother-in-law, my visiting teacher, that one thing I miss around this time of year is my daddy bearing his testimony about not only the truthfullness of the gospel, but imploring us to remember and reverence that God that gave us our freedoms. He would also ask us to remember, again with reverence and dignity, those that spilled their blood to gain us these freedoms and allow a 14 year old boy to pray in a grove of trees and receive an answer.

Not only was this boy able to recieve an answer, but because of those many marters, he was able to speak of his experience without being be-headed. He was able to publish the Book of Mormon and later the Doctrine and Covenants because he had freedom of the press. He could organize Christ's true church on the earth once again because he had the freedom of assembly.

The song we sang today was "America the Beautiful" by Katherine Lee Bates, and I don't know if it is because it is an election year, or because my two boys are getting ready to be deployed, or what, but the words to this song struck a chord in my heart, more deeply than ever before today.

O beautiful for pilgrim feet, who's stern impassioned stress, A thoroughfare for freedom beat, across the wilderness

Pilgrims-Those who were first to do something, they came before making the way. This could be those that first settled in Jamestown, or those that declared our freedom from England, those that settled in the west

Stern means: hard,severe,pressure or strain

Impassioned means: filled with passion,fervant

Stress ,in this case means to subject to stress, pressure, or strain

Thoroughfare -means. A main road or public highway. A place of passage from one location to another

Beat = To make progress against

So we have those that in hardship and severe conditions, gave up what they had to fervantly give their posterity, us, something better.

America, America God mend thine every flaw.

I am guessing that we all know that a flaw is something that is wrong or not where the maker intended it to be. As I watch the parade of people wanting to represent us in our government, it seems that they believe that they as humans can take what God created and improve on it or make it better. But how can that be when allowing God back into our country is the only way our flaws can be mended?

Thy Liberty in law

Where does our freedom and liberty come from? Only from obedience to the law. And I believe that it is obedience to God's laws not man's.

O beautiful for heroes proved in liberating strife, Who more than self their country loved and mercy more than life

Strife-bitter sometimes violent conflict or dissension.
The wars that were fought, that are still being fought, for our freedoms are no walk in the park. Men died, are dying. Men fought with no coats or shoes in the dead of bitter cold winter, their footsteps easily traceable by the blood left in the snow. Men fight in the heat of deserts where full combat gear brings their body tempurature up by 20-30 degrees and the weapons used can melt your undergarments onto your skin. Mothers watched their sons march into the fray and are left behind to carry on with life. Children grow up and have birthdays that daddies are not there for. Wives leave their husbands to try to comb hair and tie ribbons. Why? Because the love of the freedoms that God has given us, the knowledge that we can have mercy-judgement given in love- is more important than one individual. And they all, those that go and those that stay, are heroes.

America, America may God thy gold refine

Now the refining process is long and ardous and filled with heat and fire to bake out all the impurities and the more refined the gold, the more it is worth. In fact, the more pure the gold, the more maliable it is. If we are the gold that God is refining, the more pure we are, the more able we will be to bend to God's will and not our own vain selfishness.

Till all success be nobelness and ev'ry gain divine

Nobelness- as in priestly? Kingly? or even Godly perhaps? And every gain be one that is granted us by our Lord and Savior. Because all that we have came from above. The United States should never have won the Revelutionary War. The English were the best of the best trained military in the world and we defeated them. Why? Because the Lord needed a place of refuge for his chosen people as well as a place to restore his gospel. Still to this day, every thing, every once of wisdom and knowledge and progression that we gain is given to us by the Divine Father. Are we using it to build up His kingdom here on earth or for our own will and pleasure?

O beautiful for patriot dream, that sees beyond the years

A patriot is one who feels support for their country

Thine alabaster cities gleam, undimmed by human tears

Alabaster is a mineral that is pretty maliable and soft. It also comes in brown or white. A city made of alabaster could be described as one that bends to the will of the Lord, or also one that is white and pure. (as a side note, alabaster is mentioned in the bible in the story of the woman that came and poured the expensive perfumed ointment on Jesus' head)

The original 4th verse ended differently than we now sing it:

O beautiful for patriot dream

That sees beyond the years

Thine alabaster cities gleam

Undimmed by human tears!

America! America! God shed his grace on thee

Till nobler men keep once again

Thy whiter jubilee!

A jubilee is a time of rejoicing and happiness. T

Here is one explanation of jubilee that I found helpful (and amazing in that I read this post Friday and needed it today)

Like the Jubilee, where the words spoken are recorded in Leviticus (and are just like what Benjamin says). The Jubilee, for those that don't know, is the celebration of seven periods of seven years (with some debate over whether it was actually celebrated in the 49th or 50th year).

So, wanna know what's interesting about that?The people of Central America kept two calendars. One calendar was based off of 20-day months. The other was our 365 day calendar. Every 52 years the two calendars would coincide. As you can imagine, this was not only the cause of some concern, as the world might end or a god would wreak havoc on them (part of the reason Cortez wasn't killed - he arrived in the end of that 52-year cycle and since they were expecting an otherworldly type visitor, he fit the bill and didn't get cut down on sight), but it was also a time of great celebration. When the night passed and they hadn't all died (the gods had seen fit to give them another 52 years), they partied like it was 1999 (or 99 or 999 as the case may be).

The celebration was even more grand based on the fact that most people would only expect to see the culmination of the 52-year cycle once in their lives. (And as a side note, if you've heard of the Maya prediction that the world will end in 2012, guess what happens then? Yep, another end to a 52-year cycle.)

Here is another explination of jubilee, this one by L. Tom Perry.

So, what I would like for us all to do, is to listen to the words of the songs we sing. Understand them and delve into their deeper meaning and then take them to heart. And maybe, just maybe someday we will not relegate these songs to one Sunday a year to be lip synched through and kill time until we can get out of the chaple. I hope that someday, these patriotic songs will fill our hearts with love, reverence and gratitude for the sacrifices that have allowed us to be free. And then, may we do all in our power to remain such so that their offering will not be in vain.

America the Beautiful

Lyrics by Katherine Lee Bates; music composed by Samuel A. Ward

O beautiful for spacious skies,

For amber waves of grain,

For purple mountain majesties

Above the fruited plain!

America! America!God shed His grace on thee,

And crown thy good with brotherhood

From sea to shining sea!

O beautiful for pilgrim feet

Whose stern impassion'd stress

A thoroughfare for freedom beat

Across the wilderness.

America! America!God mend thine ev'ry flaw,

Confirm thy soul in self-control,

Thy liberty in law.

O beautiful for heroes prov'dIn liberating strife,

Who more than self their country loved,

And mercy more than life.

America! America!May God thy gold refine

Till all success be nobleness,

And ev'ry gain divine.

O beautiful for patriot dream

That sees beyond the years

Thine alabaster cities gleam

Undimmed by human tears.

America! America!God shed His grace on thee,

And crown thy good with brotherhood

From sea to shining sea.

*oh, I did want to mention one of my biggest pet peeves regarding patriot songs. Why is it that when we sing the national anthem in public, we only sing one verse, the question verse? What is the point if we don't answer the question? Really, people, sing the 3 that are in the hymnal, we could be singing all 10 original verses.

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Indeed.