88

For this weeks reading assignment, we were asked to read pages 293-310 of the Joseph Smith Papers. The Joseph Smith Papers is a series of books that have copies of the original manuscripts of the revelations the revelations that Jospeh Smith received as well as journals and letters that he wrote. The first book in the series contains Revelation books 1 and 2, which contain many of the revelations that are now included in the Doctrine and Covenants. These specific pages correspond with section 88 in the Doctrine and Covenants. We were asked to write about what we learned while reading through and examining this material. Due to the length of the reading, I'm simply going to focus on what stuck out to me most, which is basically the first page and a half.

First- a little background on the section. The Doctrine and Covenants section header states that this section is titled "The Olive Leaf" revelation. Joseph states that it was "The Lord's message of peace to us." I certainly agree with this statement. Upon reading it, I felt and immediate sense of peace and hope despite the horrible semester I've been having. I was reminded, just in the first page and a half, that my God, my Heavenly Father, loves me.

There are two main ideas that the first page and a half focus on. The first is that the Saints who are faithful and obey his commandments will be given the Comforter. The section then explains that in this context, the Comforter refers to the promise that the Lord gives us of eternal life and celestial glory. What stuck out to me most right now was the use of the word Comforter. He doesn't just say that he sends a promise, He says that He will send us something to comfort us. The section then focuses on the light of Christ and how it governs everything. This portion is absolutely beautiful. It mentions the light of the moon and the sun and the stars and the power that created all of them as well as the earth. The revelation then goes on to say that this light is from Christ and that it is from the same source as the light that enlightens people and helps them to understand. This is the light that governs everything. My favorite sentence, the last sentence reads "The light which is in all things, which giveth life to all things, which is the law by which all things are governed, even the power of God who sitteth upon his throne, who is in the bosom of eternity, who is in the midst of everything."