Friday, February 12, 2010

I thought that this was an interesting article. I hope that you like it.

You might want to see the original and the pictures in the Meridian Magazine today.

The False Apron and the Tree of Death and Rebirth
By Jeffrey M. Bradshaw
We read in Moses 4:13 that after Adam and Eve had eaten of the forbidden fruit, “the eyes of them both were opened.”In other Old Testament instances, this phrase connotes a sudden vision of hidden things.1 By this change they realize that they “had been naked.”2 The Book of Mormon prophet Jacob equates a “perfect knowledge” of “nakedness” with “guilt” and “uncleanness” while associating the perfect knowledge of the “righteous” with “enjoyment” and “being clothed with purity, yea, even with the robe of righteousness.”3
Partaking of the fruit of the tree allowed Adam and Eve to begin to experience and distinguish good from evil—the “opposition in all things” described in 2 Nephi 2:11. In demonstration of her new capacity for discernment, Eve immediately “sees through Satan’s disguise of clever hypocrisy, identifies him, and exposes him for what he is.”4
Unlike the richly-described, finely-nuanced account of the temptation dialogue, the tightly-coupled chain of verbs that follow it (“took,” “eat,” “gave,” “eat”) “indicate rapid, single-minded action”—nothing more is said, seen, or felt until the moment we are told that the eyes of Adam and Eve are opened.5 Then, at once, the hurried action restarts (“sewed,” “made”)—all the frantic movements proclaiming loudly, by their silent execution, the anguished undertone of shame and fear—“the physical act… as an expression of an inner state of an alarm.”6 The desired effect of this economical yet artful mode of narrative construction is to help the perceptive reader understand that the Lord God, Adam and Eve’s benevolent provider, who has been absent from their minds throughout the previous episode, has now reentered their thoughts with painful effect.
The False Apron
The derivation of the Hebrew term for apron (˙agorah), sometimes translated as “girdle,” confirms that this was an article of clothing intended to “enclose and cover the area of [the] lap or loins.”7 The fig tree has unusually large and strong leaves and its fruit is known for its abundance of seeds. Thus an apron of green fig leaves is an appropriate symbol for Adam and Eve’s ability to procreate, to “be fruitful and multiply”8 after the Fall.

Ostensibly, the aprons functioned to hide Adam and Eve’s nakedness—but is there more to the story than this? Ancient readers would have recognized the function of aprons in ritual context as a sign of power and authority. For example, a sacred tree was symbolically represented on an apron worn by the eighth-century Christian king Charlemagne, as in the figure above.9 Kings in the Middle East were often described as various sorts of trees.10 In both Egypt and Mesoamerica,11 foliated aprons were also used as a sign of authority.
In Moses 4:27, God Himself will be the one to clothe Adam and Eve, whereas in Moses 4:13 we were told that Adam and Eve “made themselves aprons.” Like their tasting of the forbidden fruit,12 the endeavor of Nimrod to build a tower to “reach unto heaven,”13 Sarah’s essay to realize the blessing of posterity through her handmaiden Hagar,14 and Rebekah’s disguising of Jacob to assure that he would receive the birthright blessing,15 this action exemplifies the “recurring theme… of the attempt and failure of human effort in obtaining a blessing that only God can give.”16
It is perfectly in character for Satan to have planted the suggestion of making their own aprons in the mind of Adam and Eve, since he often appropriates false signs of power and priesthoods for himself in order to deceive.17 Thus, we are not surprised to find the Zohar associating Adam and Eve’s fig leaves with a knowledge of “sorcery and magic,” false forms of “protection” and counterfeits of the true priesthood.18 Moreover, it is consistent with the plan of the Adversary to encourage sinners to flee from the presence of God rather than to reconcile and return to Him.19
In this instance, the contrast between the false clothing made from leaves and the true clothing made from the skins of animals seems paralleled in the story of Cain and Abel, where the former makes an unacceptable offering from the fruits of the ground while the latter follows the God-given pattern of animal sacrifice.20 Citing another scriptural passage, Brown discusses the lambskin aprons of the warring Lamanites in the Book of Mormon, bringing to mind the Lord’s warning about “false prophets which come to you in sheep’s clothing.”21
Note that Satan made three attempts to mislead Adam and Eve by false appearances. First, he made claims that confused the identities of Tree of Knowledge and the Tree of Life. Second, he appeared as a serpent, deceptively employing a symbol of Christ. Finally, in the episode of the fig-leaf aprons, he suggested a course of action to Adam and Eve that substituted a self-made emblem of power and priesthood for the true article obtainable only when authorized by God.
The Tree of Death and Rebirth
When Adam and Eve heard the voice of the Lord, the English text says that they “went to hide themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden.”22 However the Hebrew for “tree,” etz, can be read as singular or plural in this verse—an important subtlety glossed over in nearly every Bible translation. As a rare exception, AndrĂ© Chouraqui’s French edition holds to a careful rendering of the key phrase describing Adam and Eve’s place of concealment: “in the center of [i.e., within] the tree of the garden.”23 As Kastler observes, “they are not merely touching the [Tree of Knowledge] but they have for all intents and purposes merged with it… The tree has become their refuge—or perhaps their prison.”24 They have experienced a kind of death.25

The image of the guilty parties, Adam and Eve, figuratively being shut up in a tree can be best understood when compared with Egyptian motifs, such as the one evoked by the figure of Ramesses II acting in the role of Osiris, as shown above.26 Nibley also mentions “Book of the Dead vignettes showing the Lady incorporated—all but her upper part, and in many cases all but her arms only—in the fruit-bearing tree [suggesting] that the woman in the tree must actually have been eaten by it; she is the first victim, so to speak, and now invites her male companion to share her condition.”27
Happily, the condition of “death” suggested by the symbolism of captivity in the tree is only temporary. In ancient year-rites in Egypt, the eventual splitting of the tree “both terminates life and liberates it,” allowing the captive initiate to be reborn.28 The splitting of the tree also is also said by Hugh Nibley to represent, “among other things, the ‘splitting of ‘good’ and ‘evil,’” or the law of opposites.”29

Such images of death and resurrection recall al-Tha’labi’s version of the story of the martyrdom of Isaiah: “When their prophet Isaiah finished his speech, they came after him to kill him and he fled from them. A tree met him and split itself open for him and he entered it. The Devil came upon him and seized a fringe of his garment and showed it to them, so they took saws in its middle and sawed it until they cut it and cut him while he was in the midst.”30 Isaiah’s death in the split tree was immediately followed by his rebirth and ascension to heaven.31 Similar stories about Isaiah are found in Christian sources. See, for example, the illustrations from the Roda Bible shown above.

Intriguingly, this same motif appears in the New World. For instance, Garth Norman notes that the “‘broken tree trunk’ symbol” is connected with the explanation of the origin of some tribes, including the Mixtecas.32 This idea can be seen in a “Tamoanchan pictograph or hieroglyph depicting a man emerging from a split tree trunk in symbolic birth.” The “tree of the Mixtec codices is a Tree of Life or World Tree extending above and below this earth, but principally a ‘tree of the heavens’ in Omeyocan guarded by the creator couple where it gives birth to humanity. It can be stated simply that in ancient Mexico the broken tree represents a birth, death, or migratory transition for man.”33

All these stories might be taken as suggesting that Adam and Eve’s passage through mortal life provided an opportunity for eventual rebirth and return to God’s presence by means of the same tree that originally brought them death. In a speculative mood, we might see such a theme as being represented in the portion of the funerary papyrus of Nakht shown in above,34 where the guide Anubis, the “guardian of the gateway,”35 is shown “leading the deceased into the presence of Osiris where he will assist in the ceremony of the weighing of the heart”36 in afterlife judgment. Here, they approach a tree that stands before the “false door,” representing the entrance to the “Other World.”37 To reach that door, they must pass by a tree, a symbol that is frequently associated, like the door itself, with the “horizon,” the meeting place between heaven and earth.

Sunday, February 7, 2010

Alex Boye


Last night Dad and I went to Snow college to see a concert aimed at raising money for the people of Haiti. It was a great concert you would have all enjoyed it especially Brian. Alex Boye was the main star he is a singer from England, joined the church several years ago and is a member of the Tabernacle Choir. You might have seen him. I thought you might like to hear some of his singing. Here is a link to one of his songs. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TR1jojP

I hope that you all enjoy.

Love,

Mom

Reiser latest letter



no one has been posting lately so I thought that you might enjoy reading the latest letter from the Reiser's. It is a good letter gives you some food for thought.

February 7, 2010

Dear Ones,

Another week - another letter…Are you ready?

We had a nice visit from a Japanese delegation representing AAR - Association for Aid and Relief. We partner with them through the National Rehabilitation Center; AAR builds the wheelchairs. Very pleasant visit; very Japanese people. Another Japanese association this week: We attended a band concert at the Vientiane International School. Brother Koichi Takei and his son Ken are members of our branch, and Ken plays the oboe in the school’s advanced beginner’s band. We loved the concert - Christmas music because the band teacher had an accident just before the concert was scheduled in December, so it was postponed until this week. School bands always are amazing because you see raw talent - potential waiting to happen - and the kids are so excited and into it, if only for the concert. The Takei family returns to Tokyo on February 24, and we’re going to miss them. Brother Takei is one of our heroes - a Saint personified.

Another trip to Thailand for dental work - this has been an unexpected part of our mission, for sure. It’s not entirely awful - since the work needed to be done, it’s nice to get it done here where it’s cheaper at least. Have we mentioned that most of the dentists are women? I would guess 98%. More positives are that we usually stop in Nongkhai for supplies for the Branch that are shipped from Bangkok, we get to see the young elders, and we make a Tesco run and usually get a KFC ice cream cone or sundae! Sanity and soul food!

The rest of the week can be capsulized in one word: HANDOVERS. We had 6 well and toilet handovers…and that’s a lot of sticky rice! These wells and toilets have been done for a long time - most since September 2009 - but for one reason or another, the handovers haven’t been done. We did 2 a day for 3 days. It’s always overwhelming to see the schools, see the villages, and interact with the students and teachers. Our blessings, folks, cannot be numbered. I quote a sentence received this week from a letter from dear MTC friends who served in India: “I don't think I will ever understand in this life how I was given the blessing of being born in America.” That’s how we feel daily, but especially when we are with the people of this developing country and see first hand how they live, what the schools are like (even at best), and eat what they eat (and we recognize they feed us the good stuff). We’ve been here 20 months. This week we saw the first little girl with a doll in a village. We drove by and, regretfully, I didn’t get a picture (President Khamphee drives with focus, and anyway, if we had stopped she likely would have run away), but the image will be forever etched in my mind. She was a ragged, dirty, beautiful little Hmong girl, probably 3 or 4 years old. Her “baby” was on her back in a typical Hmong baby carrier, and she was standing in the yard in front of her woven bamboo house. One doll in 20 months! Our hope is that we can communicate how blessed we all have been and are still - even in the tough times - and what a debt and obligation we have to share what we have with Heavenly Father’s children everywhere…wherever we are. In his CES talk on January 10, 2010, Elder Neal A. Anderson enlarged on three main points:

Number 1: You are on a journey through mortality. Our foreordained opportunities and responsibilities help shape what we are to do in mortality. In ways not fully understood, “our actions in the spirit world influence us in mortality.”

Number 2: You are to be a spiritual captain in the Lord’s cause, with a specific mission to accomplish. You and I have a spiritual destiny, and it does not allow us to ride passively in the back of the plane traveling through mortality. You were chosen and foreordained to have the gospel in your life and to be a leader in the cause of the restored gospel.

Number 3: Your sacred duty is to return safely and bring many with you. Much of your spiritual destiny will be etched in the lives of those you help spiritually.

We recommend the entire, excellent talk or broadcast to you. It can be found on lds.org.

We send our love to all of you. You are in our thoughts and hearts and prayers - always,

Dad and Mom, Grandma and Grandpa, Elder and Sister Riser, Scott and Jolene