Gethsemane

Latter-day Saints, of course, don’t believe that angels have wings, notwithstanding Carl Heinrich Bloch’s painting shown above.  Nevertheless, chapter 22 of the gospel of Luke tells us that, in fact, an angel was present with the Savior in Gethsemane:

And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed, saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done. And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him.  And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground. (Luke 22:41-44)

Just now, contemplating the Bloch painting, the thought suddenly hit me with powerful emotional force: What an unspeakable privilege and responsibility it would have been to be the divine messenger who was sent to accompany and comfort the Son of God in the Garden of Gethsemane, in that pivotal moment of his mission and of human history altogether.  Who might it have been?  (I’m aware of the speculation that it might have been Adam.  And maybe so.)

As we approach Holy Week and Easter — or, as Claudia Bushman justifiably prefers to call it, Resurrection Day — I hope to share with you some poetry and music and movies of the season.  I launch my effort with Melanie Hoffman’s simple but transcendently lovely Gethsemane | The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square & a Children’s Choir.

Jesus climbed the hill to the garden still.
His steps were heavy and slow.
Love and a prayer took Him there
To the place only He could go.
Gethsemane. Jesus loves me,
So He went willingly to Gethsemane.

He felt all that was sad, wicked, or bad,
All the pain we would ever know.
While His friends were asleep, He fought to keep
His promise made long ago.
Gethsemane. Jesus loves me,
So He went willingly to Gethsemane.

The hardest thing that ever was done,
The greatest pain that ever was known,
The biggest battle that ever was won—
This was done by Jesus!
The fight was won by Jesus!

Gethsemane. Jesus loves me,
So He gave His gift to me in Gethsemane.

Gethsemane. Jesus loves me,
So He gives His gift to me from Gethsemane.

A few of you might even be interested in this nearly 24-minute video out of Johannesburg, South Africa:  “Vocal Coach Reacts to stunning piece “Gethsemane” – Mormon Tabernacle Choir + Children’s Choir”

By the way, having just listened yet again to a Latter-day Saint children’s choir, accompanied by the premiere Latter-day Saint adult choir and a wholly Latter-day Saint orchestra, performing Gethsemane, a piece of music created by a Latter-day Saint, in the Latter-day Saint Conference Center in Salt Lake City, it occurs to me once again how genuinely bizarre it is for anyone to deny that Latter-day Saints are Christians.

Because next Sunday’s sacrament meeting will be a special one-hour Palm Sunday service or Easter program for us, and because the Sunday after that will be both Easter and General Conference, and because the Sunday after that will be our stake conference, today was our fast and testimony Sunday.  (Members of the Church will understand what that entails.)

I was particularly struck by a comment in one of the testimonies that were given.  A member of our ward mentioned his grandfather, who, he said, was a very kind man but one of few words.  (As it happens, I met and spoke with his grandfather, who sometimes visited from Alberta, on several occasions, and I remember him fondly and well.)

One day, the ward member in question recalled — and I seem to remember that he said this happened while they were climbing a flight of stairs — his grandfather paused, turned to him, and said something along the lines of “I try to read a little bit in the Book of Mormon every day.  I’ve discovered that, when I do that, my day goes better.  And I like that.”  It was a simple comment, seemingly out of the blue, and his grandfather didn’t elaborate further.

I think there’s truth in what his grandfather told him, and the comment lingers with me, as well.  (It obviously impressed at least one other person, too, because it was mentioned in our elders quorum meeting afterward.)

Little reminders can help us a great deal, and daily scripture reading — even if it doesn’t always rise to the level of serious scripture study — is one of the reminders that we have available to us.

I like the fact that our neighbor’s grandfather seized an occasion for a simple Gospel or spiritual lesson for his grandson, and that the grandson, now a father of three children himself, remembers that lesson still today.  Such things needn’t be long, or prolix, or even (in a sense) profound.  Teaching moments abound, and we never know which of them, if properly used, might have multi-generational impact.

As Holy Week and the Easter holiday itself approach, it’s not a bad time to invite others to attend church with you (or to invite them to listen to General Conference, which will be held over Easter weekend, and especially, perhaps, to invite them to listen to the Sunday morning session or even to watch it with you).  This article in the Deseret News is timely: “Opinion: Don’t overthink it. Invite people to church, whatever your faith may be Christ didn’t wait for perfect conditions to invite others — and neither should we”

It’s also not a bad time, for that matter — and the Sabbath day is definitely not a bad day! — to watch the Becoming Brigham series and to share it with others.  All of the currently available installments are available at becomingbrigham.com.  A new episode will appear tomorrow (Monday).

Posted from Midway, Utah