Courtesy of news.byu.edu

Some nights you just cannot wait to go to bed. What is better than waking up to a nice frozen floor, leaving the warmth of your covers, to get ready to walk out into the frozen tundra of Provo’s winter wonderland? I’m sure that we all could think of things that we would rather be doing, yet the weather has never discouraged the Saints, past or present, from achieving the goals that they have set for themselves.

What a privilege we have to be here at BYU where faith is at the core of higher education. What an honor it is to be able to go forth from this institution and serve others in whatever communities and municipalities that we will inhabit after graduation.

Yet, each and every morning we must make the decision to put on that extra sweater or jacket and careen up the hill upon which BYU is placed in the bitter Utah cold. It is imperative for us to deepen our understanding of personal sacrifice so we can look to the past and truly understand how weather has affected the Saints.

When Joseph Smith received the revelation to build the Kirtland temple, it was in the beginning of the winter in 1832. The Saints at the time had just arrived in Kirtland, and were too poor to even afford small luxuries and comforts. Yet, they were able to not only build their own houses, but the Lord’s as well.

It was in the bitter winter of January 1838 that the Saints were forced to leave behind the beautiful temple which they had sacrificed to make in order to flee to Far West, Missouri.

Then, during the winter the Saints were forced to leave Far West in response to the extermination order that had been issued. The winter of that exodus claimed the lives of many Latter-day Saints.

Courtesy of ldsces.org

It was in the beginning of one of the worst winters in Nauvoo when the Saints were commanded to erect a temple to the Lord. This would not be the last time, however, that the Saints were to endure the cold as they were forced to leave Nauvoo and everything they had built in it. They were originally planning to leave in April of 1846, however because of continued persecution, they decided to leave early on February 4th, during the middle of the winter season. The trials that the Saints faced in the cold can be read in many of the Church’s publications, but the impact and inspiration that can be felt from those early Saints still stands today.

What, therefore, have we to complain of during our winter season? What burdens have we to bear other than our daily routines and homework schedules? I write this message not to condemn those who seek to complain of the cold, but to remind us all of the beauty in all of God’s creations. There is a time and a season for all things. What greater beauty can exist than to see the snow covered mountains that surround this university? What greater eloquence can be found in the sight of a fresh sheet of snow covering the ground as we find ourselves surrounded by purity? Let us all remember that although we face trials in our everyday lives, we must seek out the beauty and blessings that lie hidden, even under the snow, in all things.

- Ben Simmons, Psychology Major and Education in Zion Student Gallery Educator

Eliza, a renowned poet, converted to the Church in Ohio, and used her skills in writing and education to benefit the whole Church.  She was also responsible for bringing many saints into the Church, including her brother, Lorenzo Snow, who later became the fifth president of the Church.

When the Saints moved to Illinois, Eliza became a founding member of the Female Relief Society of Nauvoo, established in March of 1842.  Unanimously elected to be its secretary, Eliza took meticulous minutes of each meeting.  As Joseph Smith counseled the original Relief Society: “The minutes of your meetings will be precedents for you to act upon—your Constitution and law.”[i] As a result of Eliza’s exceptional dedication, the Church now has six detailed sermons Joseph Smith gave to the Relief Society in Nauvoo.

In the late 1860s, many years after the Saints left Nauvoo, Brigham Young sought to reconstitute the Relief Society for the women of the Church in Utah.  Though sporadic meetings had been held when the Saints first arrived to Utah, it had been 25 years since the Relief Society had met in an official capacity.  It was Eliza whom the Prophet called upon to take charge of the new Relief Society.  Thankfully, like any good mother in Zion, Eliza carefully preserved things, and still had all her notes from Nauvoo.

Using these minutes recorded during the early Nauvoo meetings, Eliza created a constitution to unite the sisters of the Church in name, purpose, and organization.  Traveling to several settlements with her counselors, she used her experience to train and inspire women all across the Church.  Soon the Relief Society penetrated practically every settlement of the Church.

Members of the Church, male and female, have Eliza R. Snow to thank for the foundations of the organization that Joseph F. Smith called “divinely made, divinely authorized, divinely instituted, divinely ordained of God to minister for the salvation of the souls of women and of men.”[ii]

Instead of depending entirely on our husbands for salvation and position, we have

to work them out ourselves. The responsibility and labor that devolve upon

women are becoming more important. … God has put the means into your hands

to become queens and priestesses in his kingdom, if you will only live for it.

—Eliza R. Snow, Relief Society General President, 1880

- Adam Watson, Communications Major and Education in Zion Gallery Educator

[ii] Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph F. Smith [1998], 184

When seen together, these two murals of the temple and the school encapsulate the purpose of learning for Church members. For Latter-day Saints, learning is a holy and eternal endeavor. The Prophet Joseph Smith claimed that “the first and fundamental principle of our holy religion is that we believe that we have a right to embrace all and every item of truth, without limitation.” An eternal education follows a spirit of learning which defines truth as one whole and seeks to harmonize faith and study.

From the early days of the Church, the Prophet Joseph Smith directed the building of both temples and schools. In Kirtland, the Saints labored to construct a temple while at the same time opened several schools, most notably the School of the Prophets. Again in Nauvoo, the Prophet directed the building of the Nauvoo Temple as well as establishing the University of the City of Nauvoo. The words of early Church leader Sidney Rigdon help explain, in part, the tenacity that the early Saints had in creating a community in which education thrived. He said, “Intelligence is the great object of our holy religion. To obtain all the knowledge which the circumstances man will admit of, is one of the princip[al] objects the [S]aints have in gathering together.” This is our educational inheritance.

In the final room of the exhibition hangs a panel with the following words from BYU’s fifth president, Franklin Harris: “There has grown out of the history of th[is] institution a certain fire that must be kept burning…the first task of the future is to preserve it…this spirit that come to us from the past.” Since opening in August of 2008, Education in Zion has shared stories of many past church members’ pursuits in learning the importance of and attaining an education for the whole soul. This story of education in the Church continues today. In the spirit of keeping the fire burning, we would like to hear your stories and tell some of ours as well.

The purpose of this blog is to create a forum in which thoughts on educational inheritance, faith and scholarship, and the eternal nature of learning may be reflected upon, shared, and discussed. The blog will be updated regularly with entries from those of us at Education in Zion, the BYU community, Church members worldwide, and any who share an interest in these topics.

We invite you to consider sharing the story of your own educational inheritance or your reflections on an eternal education. To contribute, please email your entry to educationinzion@byu.edu.

-Ann Lambson, Education in Zion Curator