What Charity Is

Ether 12 is a marvelous chapter about faith, hope, and charity.  I never really thought of it like that before, but I feel like Moroni gives us a glimpse into some of his personal struggles and worries and how these principles have helped him gain understanding.  My last posts talked about faith and hope being an anchor to our souls, so although there are many more gems in this chapter about faith and hope, today I am going to focus on charity.

In Ether 12:22, Moroni begins telling us about a worry that he has.  He says that he knows that these writings will, in the future, come to the Lamanites through the Gentiles, but he is afraid the Gentiles will mock because of the weakness in the writing.  He prays about this concern and is answered.  Moroni outlines for us the things he has learned by taking this worry to the Lord which are definitely worth reading, but the one I want to focus on is Ether 12:36 when he says:

"...I prayed unto the Lord that he would give unto the Gentiles grace, that they might have charity."

Moroni goes onto to say that he was told it was not his concern if the Gentiles have charity because he has been faithful to that which he was asked to do.

I read a quote by President Monson this week that helped me as Moroni was helped in this chapter.  It brings the principle of charity into my life as an answer to how I can more fully live how Heavenly Father would want me to live without worrying so much about the actions of others.  President Monson said:

"Charity is having patience with someone who has let us down.  It is resisting the impulse to become offended easily.  It is accepting weaknesses and shortcomings.  It is accepting people as they truly are.  It is looking beyond physical appearances to attributes that will not dim through time.  It is resisting the impulse to categorize others."

All of this has made charity a little more real to me, and as it becomes less abstract it is easier to put into my daily life.  The only trick left is to remember.  Remember this lesson and put it into action.  That is always the great challenge, isn't it?  Well, I may not do so perfectly, but I will strive to live this lesson.

Anchors

Chapters 9-11 in Ether are mostly about wickedness and war.  The Jaradites did have some kings that were righteous, but there are a lot of plots and overthrowing of kings in this period of Jaradite history.  Ether 12 is a nice change with its lessons of hope and faith.  Ether 12:4 is very interesting and perhaps answers the question I posed in my last blog post--How can Moroni sound so hopeful?

"Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God."

I have often heard this scripture quoted, but what hit me most this time was the representation of hope and faith as an anchor for our souls.  An anchor's purpose is to keep a boat from drifting with the current as our faith and hope can keep us from drifting along with the popular ideas that ride society's tides.  These ideas ebb and flow, change quickly, and often crash against the standards God has set for us.

I know some in the world today relegate religion and Jesus Christ to a place alongside fantasy and fairy tales.  Yet, they still look for a way to anchor themselves because we all need to feel tethered as the world swirls around us.  They look to the world.  I see them finding things that can be considered good, but when taken as their anchors are just insufficient to provide real stability.  When the buffeting storms of adversity come those people feel terrified and lost.  It can be quite sad to see.

I have been thinking about this anchor analogy and realized that hope and faith truly do keep us anchored.  If we put in the work to keep them in good condition, these anchors will make us "sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works."

So that is how we "do good continually" and loose Satan's hold on us as Moroni purposed in Ether 8:26.  We beef up our anchors.  We slowly but surely strive each day for obedience to God's commandments and use the Atonement as we go, showing that we do hope for a better world and strengthening our faith bit by bit.  We add good solid metal to our anchors, glorifying God as we see His hand in our lives and in the lives of those around us.