In April of 2012, I was invited to the Open House of the new LDS Temple in Kansas City. An Open House is the opportunity for the general public to tour a Temple before it is dedicated and consecrated for the use of the members. The descendants of Joseph Smith were invited to a private tour of the Temple, and I was asked to be there. It is situated on a piece of property that is significant to the history of the LDS church. To get an idea of what happened here, please read this post from my friend, Middle-aged Mormon Man: http://middleagedmormonman.com/home/2013/08/and-if-thou-shouldst-be-cast-into-pit.html He does a great job of spelling it out, and although the information is rough- he does a great job of keeping the focus where it needs to be. This brings me to the story, and point of this post.
To begin with, let me clarify, I am a descendant of the Smith family but not a direct descendant of Joseph or Emma Smith. It was a series of events, that I may blog about someday, that led me to work with the family, and to discover my relation to the family. I have made it part of my life's work, and I love promoting the good will, and the truth about their story. Today, in Kansas City, I was wearing a badge that said "Smith Family" with my name on it, and as they always do- they welcome and embrace me. These are some of the best people on earth.
As we were leaving the Open House, we stopped next to two clean cut, very well dressed young men who were directing people to the freeway entrance. This is not unusual- thousands of people attend Temple Open Houses, and the church will commonly assign people to direct the local traffic. That is who I thought they were, LDS Church volunteers - so naturally when they handed me a copy of the LDS Church News, I took it. I thought the open mouth, audible gasp from his companion at my Smith Family badge was a little odd...but ok. I began reading it- the first page was a great review of the Temple and the open house. Once I opened it up I was met with disturbing headlines about Joseph Smith and Satan worship, polygamy accusations, and very, very misleading and distorted accounts of what REALLY goes on in LDS Temple worship.
I was floored. Really? I became furious...ARE YOU SERIOUS? Did that really just happen? I wanted Joel to pull our car over, and I was fully intended to march up to those cowards and inform them of the indisputable, historical FACTS of what had gone on there, and that it was enough. To Stop. Leave us in peace.
I was reminded that the theme of this Temple was an Olive Branch. The Mission President had explained that this Temple signified an Olive Branch to the communities surrounding the Temple. So after over 10,000 of our people had been forcibly burned out of their homes, at the hands of a ruthless mob, enforcing an extermination order that the Governor of Missouri executed- and then left to die on the banks of the Missouri river during the worst cold snap the state had ever historically experienced- WE are the ones offering the Olive Branch.......Yes. We are.
I learned a great lesson that day about my focus. I had spent a wonderful day with amazing people. Was I going to let two cloaked protestors distract me from what I had just experienced? That one negative experience, when I focused on it, completely eclipsed everything else I had experienced that day. If I was truly a disciple of Jesus Christ, would I focus on the darkness, or turn my face toward the light of peace, and forgiveness? Sometimes when life is not fair our reaction is to make THAT the main priority in our lives. It drives how we think and what we do. We need to shift our focus to the goodness in the world, and the things we have control over. Bad things will continue to happen. We will always have our critics and people ready and willing to tear us down. However, when we are planted on the firm foundation of Jesus Christ- we can see it for what it is- distraction- and choose the better part. We can follow his example and even be the one to offer the Olive Branch of forgiveness and victory. Who Jesus Christ is remains imprinted upon each of his Temples dotted all over the world. We can use them as examples of how to live our lives, and how to be happy. I Love the Temple...and am so grateful for the sacred, cleansing sacrifices made upon that soil, so that there would be room for a magnificent house of the Lord to serve the community and bring peace to everyone who sees it.
To begin with, let me clarify, I am a descendant of the Smith family but not a direct descendant of Joseph or Emma Smith. It was a series of events, that I may blog about someday, that led me to work with the family, and to discover my relation to the family. I have made it part of my life's work, and I love promoting the good will, and the truth about their story. Today, in Kansas City, I was wearing a badge that said "Smith Family" with my name on it, and as they always do- they welcome and embrace me. These are some of the best people on earth.
As we were leaving the Open House, we stopped next to two clean cut, very well dressed young men who were directing people to the freeway entrance. This is not unusual- thousands of people attend Temple Open Houses, and the church will commonly assign people to direct the local traffic. That is who I thought they were, LDS Church volunteers - so naturally when they handed me a copy of the LDS Church News, I took it. I thought the open mouth, audible gasp from his companion at my Smith Family badge was a little odd...but ok. I began reading it- the first page was a great review of the Temple and the open house. Once I opened it up I was met with disturbing headlines about Joseph Smith and Satan worship, polygamy accusations, and very, very misleading and distorted accounts of what REALLY goes on in LDS Temple worship.
I was floored. Really? I became furious...ARE YOU SERIOUS? Did that really just happen? I wanted Joel to pull our car over, and I was fully intended to march up to those cowards and inform them of the indisputable, historical FACTS of what had gone on there, and that it was enough. To Stop. Leave us in peace.
I was reminded that the theme of this Temple was an Olive Branch. The Mission President had explained that this Temple signified an Olive Branch to the communities surrounding the Temple. So after over 10,000 of our people had been forcibly burned out of their homes, at the hands of a ruthless mob, enforcing an extermination order that the Governor of Missouri executed- and then left to die on the banks of the Missouri river during the worst cold snap the state had ever historically experienced- WE are the ones offering the Olive Branch.......Yes. We are.
I learned a great lesson that day about my focus. I had spent a wonderful day with amazing people. Was I going to let two cloaked protestors distract me from what I had just experienced? That one negative experience, when I focused on it, completely eclipsed everything else I had experienced that day. If I was truly a disciple of Jesus Christ, would I focus on the darkness, or turn my face toward the light of peace, and forgiveness? Sometimes when life is not fair our reaction is to make THAT the main priority in our lives. It drives how we think and what we do. We need to shift our focus to the goodness in the world, and the things we have control over. Bad things will continue to happen. We will always have our critics and people ready and willing to tear us down. However, when we are planted on the firm foundation of Jesus Christ- we can see it for what it is- distraction- and choose the better part. We can follow his example and even be the one to offer the Olive Branch of forgiveness and victory. Who Jesus Christ is remains imprinted upon each of his Temples dotted all over the world. We can use them as examples of how to live our lives, and how to be happy. I Love the Temple...and am so grateful for the sacred, cleansing sacrifices made upon that soil, so that there would be room for a magnificent house of the Lord to serve the community and bring peace to everyone who sees it.
Me, with a few Smith family members at the Open House. Re-uniting with Bob Smith (Omaha Bob) was a true highlight of the day!
Good writing, thank you for sharing this story it was a tour I will not forget. It was very surreal to stand in such a peaceful place with a clear understanding of it's violent past, hopefully the peace will continue to heal that history.
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