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Show ' ' The Daily Herald " 195 Saturday, October 28, Cultural events can deepen sense of faith Only a few of our experiences really move us to see broad implications. We had one such experience recently with the Utah Valley Symphony Orchestra, directed by Clyn Barms, with Grant Johan-nese- n as piano soloist. Simply as experience it was remarkable. The orchestra played three deservedly popular numbers Shostakovich's Festival Over-turSmetana's Moldau. and all with Liszt's Les Preludes tine control, power and sensitivity. Then Johannesen joined the Concerorchestra for Saint-Saen- s' to No. 5. The Egyptian. Though the orchestra numbers alone would have made the e. Marden J. Clark Value Speak evening remarkable, the Concerto was musical magic. Someone commented to us afterward that it was as if the piano were playing itself, with Johannesen lovingly caressing the music out of it. As an encore, he played (without the orchestra) his own arrangement of that most Mormon of hymns. Come, Come, Ye Saints. A very subtle interlude between verses blended the hymn with just enough of a popular tune from our younger years: Without a Song. The hymn sustained many of the Mormon pioneers on that nearly endless trek across the plains and mountains to Utah. The interlude tune made a moving commentary on the hymn: "Without a song, the day would never end. Without a song, the road would never bend Exhilarating as the evening was, much of the magic for me came in later musings. Even during the music, I couldn't help reflecting how fortunate we are to have such talent among us. Friends and neighbors are in that orchestra. Clyn Barms came to us already a celebrated musician. Grant Johannesen has deep roots in Utah and returns often to the state, bringing with him a worldwide reputation. Our valley can boast of hundreds of celebrated musicians and artists. Such reflections continued and broadened. Something about us (I believe it's built into our very humanness) makes us respond to. even crave, the kind of beauty and depth of experience that the concert took us into. W hich may be one reason talented people develop their talents. Even more broadly. I have often felt that a symphony orchestra or a gre t chorus (or sometimes both together) embody the very essence of human communal achievement. A great orchestra or chorus is made up of great individual artists. But each artist has to subordinate his ow n talent to the needs and talents of the group. The conductor pulls it all together and is responsible for the total interpretation and the group performance. But without all those other members, he is nothing. A soloist like Johannesen can make wonderful music alone. But when he plays a concerto he is dependent on both conductor and orchestra. And both are dependent on a composer, a Saint-Saen- s who has worked primarily in isolation. And maybe all are dependent on the kind of appreciative audience we were part of. This kind of interdependence gave us the experience we had that evening. From here, my meditations spread out too far for exploration ) now. Just three more comments: Such experiences can be costly in time, energy and even money: but they can broaden and deepen and enrich cur lives. 2) We can foster such experiences by the restoration of Academy Square as a communal library and arts center. 3) Such experiences deepen my faith in the cieativily of my fellow humans and. through them, in the creativity of our God. He must be pleased to see such achievement in his children. No wonder so many of our images of heaven include heavenly music. Marden J Chirk is a retired I professor of English at HYU. their doctrine of no salvation By MARK EDDINGTON The Daiiy Herald Although persecution of the Jews reached its zenith with the Holocaust, the roots of can be traced back to the earliest days of Christendom, said University of Utah history professor Ronald Smelser Oct. 19 at Utah Valley State College's Jewish Symposium. m Smelser. whose specialty is modern European history, spoke at the symposium at the im itation of the Jewish community in Salt Lake City and the school's Center for Jewish Studies. An expert on N'ai imperialism. Smelser said the key to understanding the Holocaust is the realization that Adolf Hitler's genocidal aims and doctrine of racial purity had their origins in the days of the early Christian church. In researching the Holocaust. Smelser said he has always been interested in answering the question of how Hitler was able to twist and pervert an entire nation into milaccepting the slaughter of lion people a total which includes 6 million Jews. He said the answer is found in the stereotypes of Jews that have been handed down by Christians for more than .000 years. Smelser said early Christians felt that Jews posed a challenge to 1 out- side the church. "So early on. in part to stake out an identity of Christianity as being something different from Judaism, they demonized the Jews and labeled them an accursed people." said Smelser. He added that the idea of the Jew as one who was both malevolent and spiiitually blind became rooted in the mass consciousness of Christians in the fourth century. Smelser quoted early Christian leader Saint Jerome's opinion of synagogues to illustrate the point. "If you call it a brothel ... or Satan's fortress, you are still saying less than it deserves." Smelser quoted Saint Jerome as saying. Smelser said persecution of the Jews worsened during the 12th century, when Christian crusaders flocked to the Holy Land to liberate it from the "infidel." which they defined as those of the Jew ish and Islamic faith. He said Jews were also branded by many Christian leaders over the centuries as well poisoners and ritualistic murderers who were to blame for the black plague and the kidnapping of children. He said Jews were further charged with eating unleavened bread mingled with the blood of Christian children during the Passover feast. They were also and labeled as "Christ-killers- " accused of desecrating Christian churches. "Add this all up and you have the Jew as a devil figure, the devil incarnate, and as the other." he said. Smelser said other stereotypes of the Jews as "evil money Early Christians felt that Jews posed a challenge to their doctrine of no salva- tion outside the church. lenders." corrupt property managers and traveling peddlers were reinforced by the fact that the Jewish people in many countries were barred from owning property or belonging to trade guilds. They were steered into occupations like the small-scal- e lending of money, which was frowned upon by the Christian community. When the Nazis came to power in Germany in the 1930s, Smelser said Hitler and party leaders attitudes Christian exploited toward the Jews to soften any potential public opposition to their sienocidal aims. A second ideological pillar thai led to the Holocaust, he added, w as the Nazi doctrine of the superiority of the Aryan race. "Jews were not defined as an inferior race they were defined Smelser said. as an as not being defined were "They fully human and as the ultimate pathogen to race." He said that once Nazis made that analogy between humans and biology, it was easy for them to cross the line from biology into pathology. Nazis soon labeled Jews as a cancer to humanity that had to be excised. Smelser said that cleansing the w orld gene pool of Jews. not w orld conquest, w as the reason for World War II. He stated there w as no other way to explain why Hitler diverted precious resources from the war effort to the Nazi death anti-race- camps. "The reason is that Auschwit-Birkenawas the real battle front as far as Hitler w as concerned. All the rest was just a holding action." he said. SmeKer explained that World War U presented the Fuehrer w ith an unparalleled opportunity to kill more Jews. Without the war. he said. Hitler's extermination efforts would have been confined to Germany 250.000 Jews: w ith it. he was able murder many more. He u Professor explores increase of LDS women missionaries By SHEILA SANCHEZ The Daily Herald More women than ever before are choosing to serve proselyting missions for the Mormon Church despite the faith's strong emphasis on marriage, a Brigham Young University professor has found. Today, there are approximately e missionaries serv49.000 ing The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-da- y Saints in more than 100 countries around the world. An estimated 20 percent, or nearly 10.000 missionaries, are women. full-tim- Mormon Church spokesman Don LeFevre said about 75 percent of the missionary force are young men while the remainder are young women and older retired couples. "Young women are planning to go on missions and are not going because they are not married." said Jessie L. Embry. assistant director of the Charles Redd Center for Western Studies at BYU. "Rather than snickering at 'old maid lady missionaries." some young men hope to marry a returned sister missionary who can share similar memories." Still. Mormon Church leaders don't encourage women to go on missions as they encourage men because "they see marriage as women's main goal in life and believe missions should not delay a woman's search for an eternal companion." Embry said. The BYU instructor has written a paper tilled "Sister Missionaries" which has been submitted for publication in the Journal of Mormon History. The BYU Women's Research Center awarded Embry a research urant to conduct oral histories of 60 sister missionaries who served from 1930 to 1970. Her research also included several letters from LDS church leaders on ideas and policies relating to sister missionaries. Embry said from interviews she conducted of former mission presidents who served during the 1970s, she discovered that the LDS missionary committee limited the number of sister missionaries to iO percent of the missionary force at that lime. But a recent study of Mormon missionaries published in Contemporary Mormonisin: Social Science Perspectives showed that in 1990, their numbers had doubled to 20 percent of the missionary force. Embry believes the number of women serving missions has continued to increase because of the women's movement and greater options open to them. "Women no longer feel that marriage at an early age is their own choice. At the same time, LDS members have more positive attitudes about women missionaries." Women in the church, however, continue to struggle between serving missions and marriage. In 1971. President Thomas S. Mon-soa counselor in the Mormon n. Church's governing First Presidency, and on the church's missionary committee told the Ensign magazine that missionary work for women was "optional" and that "we do not wish to create a program that would prevent them from finding ... a proper companion in marriage, because that is their foremost responsibility if such is able to happen." In 1994. Mormon apostle Boyd K. Packer, acting president of the Quorum of the Twelve, defended three-memb- er First Presidency , st , : Smelser said Hitler also wefkf induce a state of "normlessness", in German society, which led tfc the steadv erosion of law s and morali-- ' J-t- ty. "The ultimate Nazi nomile.sv, societv is the concentration camp. a place where normlessness-reacheits lowest point." he said.,, SmeKer is the past president oh the International German Studies Association and is a of the Days of Remembrance, an' annual day of mourning to com-- , memorate the Jewish victims 'of' the Holocaust. He is the author of five books on Nazi imperialism' and the Holocaust and wrote the introductory essay for the Holo-- ' caust Museum in Washington.' DC. Woman with Utah ties finalist for position as Episcopal bishop the church's decision to ask Mormon young men to serve missions without giving the same encouragement to women. He asked. "Is that discrimination?" He went on to tell a hypothetical situation where a woman in one of the church's missionary training centers received a call from a boyfriend who wanted to marry her. Packer said, "we allow her to go home and be married." Embry discovered women missionaries have been part of the Mormon tradition for many years. She found that women have chosen to participate in missionary work since the beginning of the church's creation, beginning with Lucy Mack Smith, the mother of Joseph Smith Jr.. the church's first president and prophet. But in the 1830s. women's missionary responsibilities were limited to work with their husbands. Embry said women in the church were not of ficially set apart as missionaries until 1865. She said few served because there was no clear role for them. For example, between 1830 and 1864. only one woman served a mission for the Mormon Church. The number rose to four between 1879 and 1889. By the last decade of the 19th century the average was 13 women a year. Embry said things changed for Mormon women before the turn of the century when some male missionary leaders started asking the church's ." said it was Hitler's consuming,, ambition to exterminate the Je.v that led to Germany's invasion of, Russia. "' He added that Hitler furthered his goal by fostering a climate of fierce competition among his many of whom tried to with their leader bv. favor curry as many Jews in the most, killing efficient manner as possible, fie; said Hitler purposely built his-regime to be an instrument in the extermination of the Jewish"peu- undesir--ablepie. iivpsies and other SALT LAKE CITY (AP) The Rev. Caroly n Tanner Irish, daughter of the late Utah philanthropist O.C. Tanner, is a finalist for bishop-eleof the Utah Diocese, Episcopal church officials say. If chosen. Irish would be the state's first female bishop. Currently, she is a staff associate for spiritual development at the National Cathedral in Washington. One of five candidates selected by the Committee for the Nomination of a Bishop Coadjutor. Irish is the only woman finalist Others include the Rev. David E. Bailey, rector of St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Phoenix. Ariz.; the Rev. George M. Foxworth. rector of All Saints Memorial Episcopal Church in Sacramento. Calif.: the Very Rev. H. Scott Kirby. dean of Christ Church Cathedral. Eau Claire, Wis., and the Venerable Hartshorn Murphy, archdeacon for congregational development. Diocese of Los Angeles. One of the five will be chosen Dec. 2 to serv e as coadjutor, in line to succeed the Rev. George E. Bates, who has announced his plans to retire as bishop due to poor health, probably the middle of next year. The bishop is elected by members, but both the House of Bishops, w hich includes all the church's bishops, and the ct for women missionaries. As a result, in an April 1898 General Confer- ence of the Mormon Church. George Q. Cannon, a counselor in s church's standing committees must approve. The Episcopal Diocese of 100-plu- the First Presidency, announced that women would be called to serve missions for the church. Wm SN 1 1 Rev. Carolyn Tanner Irish ; - Utah has 6.000 members who. will meet the five candidates in regional meetings over the next few weeks. Although Irish lives in Washington, she has maintained a strong interest in her multimillion-dollu- r family's jewelry business. Since her Uther's death in October 99". Irish has served as chairwoman: of the board of the company." The Rev. Lee Shaw of St. Michael's Episcopal Church jn Brigham City, a member of the screening committee. Irish holds no advantage because she has strong Utah ties. "We're not necessarily looking for someone w ith Utah connections. None of the five are, clergy in Utah," Shaw said. "She does have connections here. But she has never been ' nine-memb- er clerv here." Halloween glorifies Satan, rationaliz es evi By JOHN CONLON What good is it for a man to gain the whole world. el forfeit his soul I Mark X:J6)? How did Halloween get its start? It goes ;i long way back into European pagan beliefs that sent anows of chill and fear into the hearts of men and women everywhere. To these people, in their imagination, the graves opened and released the spirits of the dead to wander the streets and highw ays always looking for a way to return to the house where thev formerly lived. From this belief the idea of haunted houses became commonplace. The people were frightened they jumped at shadows and were afraid to go out at night. It wasn't like today where they'd get mugged or raped by someone on but the ghosts the street corner of dead people they were afraid of them. So what did they do? They tried to bribe" the ghosts by offering them gifts of fruits and nuts. If their gifts were not good enough the villagers feared that the spirits would kill their cattle and destroy their property. This is how the began! practice of trick-or-treati- Canton j'iiV "SouP Food It's a custom bom out of pagan and fear of dead spir- superstition its. The second thing we need to know about Halloween is that it was a high night for partying called Samhain This was a celebration to mark the beginning of winter and darkness. Daylight grew noticeably shorter, and the nights longer. On this night the hoards of hell would roam the earth in a w ild celebration of darkness and death! "Oh" the people said. "Pity the poor mortal forced to travel on such a night!" The only thing these superstitious people knew to do in order to protect themselves was to masquerade as one of the demons and hopefully it would be believed that they were one of the ev il spirits. This is the origin of Halloween masks and costumes behind which people pretended to be devwitches, and other ils, imps demonic personages. These costumes were worn to blend in w ith the ev il spirits out of fear. Halloween is not only evil, but it glorifies evil and makes it appear respectful. That's the same w ith all evil. Satan makes it appear respectful, and then good Christians don't feel so guilty w hen they get into it. They can justify it and rationalize it's good. What does Halloween do? First. Halloween glorifies Satan. While you may have participated all in fun. he assured. Halloween is serious business for Salanists and witches. Second. Halloween treats occultism as harmless. When Christians participate in Halloween, it sends a message to children that witchcraft, demonism. satanism. and the occult is something fun. entertaining and harmless. Third, participation in Haldisobeys God by masquerading in the appearance of evil. Paul demands that Christians "Abstain from all appearance of evil" (1 Thessalonians 5:22). Who loween can deny that virtually all of the symbols of Halloween are evil? Witches, monsters, vampires, ghosts, ghouls, goblins, devils and demons all portray evil! On the other hand. Christians are called on to be followers (that is imitators of God" (Ephesians ) and "lights" to a world. How can we justify our i 1 masquerading as creatures of darkness in the light of these scriptures? If our houses and churches are dedicated to God and are t" glorify Christ, how do we justify decorating them w ith demonic and ' occult symbols? , Here is what some symbols represent: an ancient symbol of a damned soul. Black cats long associated with witchcraft and numerous superstitions and are a form of sac rifice to the evil spirits. Witchfs and witchcraft are the dominant theme of the holiday and an abomination to God (Exodus 22:18: 18:8-1Leviticus Deuteronomy 18:24-30Ghosts and goblins the disembodied forms of - dead spirits seeking revenge. Trick-or-tre- al nothing less than an extortion "You either give me a treat or ' I'll play a trick on you." Jack-o'-lantc- 4; ). Reverend John Conlon is pastor of the Xcw Ih'gmnings Fellowship Chun h of The Na:arene in Pmw. |