Matthew Scott Holland, the son of Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Patricia Terry, was born in 1966 and raised in the Utah Valley where both Utah Valley University and Brigham Young University are located. He graduated from Provo High School in Provo, Utah, and earned the rank of Eagle Scout from the Boy Scouts of America in 1980. He graduated from Brigham Young University with honors in 1991, and was valedictorian for the political science department. Also in 1991, he was awarded the Raoul Wallenberg Scholarship for a year of graduate study at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He also holds a master’s degree and Ph.D. in political science from Duke University.
He currently serves as the sixth President of Utah Valley University, a position that he has held since June 2009. His father, Jeffrey R. Holland, served as the ninth President of Brigham Young University. Political science has always been his strong suit, and before coming to Utah Valley University to serve as President, he was an associate professor of political science at Brigham Young University where he taught courses in political philosophy and American political thought. Recently, in honor of the Sesquicentennial of Abraham Lincoln’s Second Inaugural address (4 March 1865), he presented a public discourse.
Lincoln’s second inaugural address, 150 years old today, is as pertinent as ever. It reminds us that we must resist the poisonous temptation to see those with whom we disagree as bitter enemies even as we vigorously defend the moral truths that ought to guide our public life.
One hundred and fifty years ago, on Saturday, 4 March 1865, President Abraham Lincoln stood on the eastern portico of the U.S. Capitol and delivered his Second Inaugural address. His speech which consisted of 703 words has been referred to as a “theologically intense speech” and has been widely acknowledged as one of the most remarkable documents in American history. Holland notes that even Fredrick Douglass, who was not a particular supporter of Lincoln, referred to the speech as a “sacred effort.” It is recorded that the London Spectator said of it,
We cannot read it without a renewed conviction that it is the noblest political document known to history, and should have for the nation and the statesmen he left behind him something of a sacred and almost prophetic character.
Journalist Noah Brooks, who was present at the time of the speech stated that the audience received the speech in “profound silence.” Albeit, he further notes, some passages were acknowledged with cheers and applause, and moist eyes and tearful faces were noticed among the crowd.
Holland pointed out in his remarks that “Lincoln himself acknowledged it was filled with ‘lots of wisdom’ and predicted it would ‘wear as well as—perhaps even better than—anything I have produced.’ It is noted that Brooks further commented:
But chiefly memorable in the mind of those who saw that second inauguration must still remain the tall, pathetic, melancholy figure of the man who, then inducted into office in the midst of the glad acclaim of thousands of people, and illumined by the deceptive brilliance of a March sunburst, was already standing in the shadow of death.
Brooks was referring to Lincoln’s assassination which occurred on the evening of Friday, 14 April 1865, just six short weeks after he had delivered a timely speech which was then considered to be, and has since proven to have been, prophetic in nature.
When Lincoln stepped forward to speak on that momentous morning, the gray overcast skies were suddenly illuminated by a brilliant ray of sunshine. Chief Justice Chase, as well as many other spectators, saw it as “an auspicious omen of the dispersion of the clouds of war and the restoration of the clear sunlight of prosperous peace.” Although there were several reasons for such an interpretation including the sense that the Civil War was finally drawing to an end, as Lincoln spoke, he did not appear to be overly optimistic about the future. He concluded his speech that day with these words:
With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up the nation’s wounds; to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan–to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace, among ourselves, and with all nations.
Holland further notes in his discourse:
Twenty-seven years before this singular moment, in one of his very first speeches as a young, aspiring politician, Lincoln had argued that the greatest threat to the survival of the American republic would never be foreign invasion. Rather, it would come from internal challenges connected to “the deep rooted principle of hate, and the powerful motive of revenge” that so often lurk in our human nature. If ever there was a moment in our history when the acids of hatred and revenge were at a rolling boil, it was 150 years ago today. Never before, or since, has the country come anywhere close to the massive destruction of life, limb, and brotherly love caused by the Civil War. Yet there Lincoln stood, speaking more like a prophet or priest than a political-military leader on a wartime footing, giving voice to a nation that would suppress the very natural response of hatred and revenge in favor of a profound and active love for “all.” Such words in such a situation were without precedent in history.
Lincoln realized that it was Not His War
By his extensive reading of scripture and long reflection, Lincoln came to conclude that God was both in control of human affairs and ultimately indecipherable by mere mortals. It is perhaps this view of God’s active role in the affairs of unknowing men that best explains why Lincoln was so resolute and scrupulous to avoid prematurely predicting an end to the Civil War conflict given the facts of 4 March 1865. Lincoln realized that he could not be an arbitrator of a war that was not his to arbitrate. Holland further comments:
If the war was, in fact, a punishment to “both North and South” from God for two and half centuries of either practicing or abetting slavery—something the mere human Lincoln could only surmise but not emphatically declare—then it just might be the case that more divine justice was to be exacted and the war would continue.
He further exhorts that although we should love one another, and treat one another with dignity and respect, as Lincoln also believed, we should exercise caution to avoid misreading or misinterpreting what Lincoln was alluding to in his Second Inaugural address, whereby we may inadvertently reduce his timely speech to nothing more than a “crude postmodernism simply spruced up in religious garb.”
Holland continued by saying,
In the very same breath that Lincoln calls forth a supreme spirit of charity for all, he presses the North to act “with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right,” striving “to finish the work we are in.” The work, of course, is the work of war—a war that began as an effort to save the Union, but which by Gettysburg had been transformed into an effort to give a “new birth” of liberty to “all men.
By Lincoln’s reckoning, it may have been impossible to know God’s “own purposes” in full, but there was a discernibly right answer in the conflict over slavery. Thus, just as the practice of love was clearly the obligation of those who would follow the God of the Bible, so too was a vigilant defense of the notion that all individuals are, by nature, equals, entitled to rule over themselves and not be ruled by others but by their consent.
Lessons Learned from Lincoln’s Words
It is a certainty that the very fibers that bind the fabric which holds our great nation together are being ripped apart by the malevolent ideologies, cultural discord, and religious indifference that continue to plague our nation like a growing cancer.
However, a careful reading of Lincoln’s immortal words reveals that he was not asking for a complete surrender of a commitment to moral truths, but rather he was emphasizing that moral truths do exist, and if we are to survive as a nation, we must make a concerted effort to understand those moral truths which are the foundation upon which the pillars of our nation rests, and let those moral truths be a beacon to us in our daily living. We must not only stand firm on these truths, but if necessary, we must be prepared to preserve them through the giving of our own lives.
Lincoln’s words also remind us that if we yield to the temptation to merely view those with whom we have disagreements as our mortal enemies, we do so at the risk of putting our nation in jeopardy.
At the close of his First Inaugural address he had declared, “We must not be enemies, but friends.” His sentiments align with the words of the Savior who taught us:
But I say unto you, love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; that ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust (Matthew 5:44-45).
Holland concludes his discourse:
If Lincoln was right, then one of the chief tasks for today’s citizens and civic leaders is to see that, while our passionate disagreements over public principles may sometimes strain, they must not be allowed to “break the bonds of our affection.”
The word “education” is defined at Dictionary.com as “the act or process of imparting or acquiring general knowledge, developing the powers of reasoning and judgment, and generally of preparing oneself or others intellectually for mature life.” In short, education is an enlightening experience, or as Sydney J. Harris, an American journalist for the Chicago Daily News and later the Chicago Sun-Times, astutely stated, “The whole purpose of education is to turn mirrors into windows.” However, as someone has intelligently reasoned, “An educational system isn’t worth a great deal if it teaches young people how to make a living, but doesn’t teach them how to make a life.”
Why Mormons Place a High Value on Education
It is the desire of every faithful member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to become more like their Father in Heaven. One way in which this is achieved is through the education of the mind, which enables a person to develop the skills and talents that will not only prove to be of great worth and help him to appreciate mortal life, but will be of value in the life hereafter as well. Modern-day revelation as recorded in Doctrine and Covenants 130:18 teaches, “Whatever principle of intelligence we attain unto in this life, it will rise with us in the resurrection.”
Robert Maynard Hutchins, an educational philosopher, Dean of Yale Law School, and President and Chancellor of the University of Chicago is quoted as having said, “The object of education is to prepare the young to educate themselves throughout their lives.” He further stated, “My idea of education is to unsettle the minds of the young and inflame their intellects.” These intellectual ideas and others are incorporated in the philosophy which Latter-day Saints maintain about how and why members should pursue a life-long education.
Education will prepare you for greater service in the world and in the Church. It will help you better provide for yourself, your family, and those in need. It will also help you be a wise counselor and companion to your future spouse and an informed and effective teacher of your future children.
Education is an investment that brings great rewards and will open the doors of opportunity that may otherwise be closed to you. Plan now to obtain an education. Be willing to work diligently and make sacrifices if necessary. Share your educational goals with your family, friends, and leaders so they can support and encourage you.
As Latter-day Saints we believe in education, and we have a philosophy about how and why we should pursue it. Our religious faith teaches us that we should seek learning by the Spirit and that we have a stewardship to use our knowledge for the benefit of mankind.
Our quest for truth should be as broad as our life’s activities and as deep as our circumstances permit. A learned Latter-day Saint should seek to understand the important religious, physical, social, and political problems of the day. The more knowledge we have of heavenly laws and earthly things, the greater influence we can exert for good on those around us and the safer we will be from scurrilous and evil influences that may confuse and destroy us.
The Quest for Knowledge
Education is an ongoing process, therefore we are constantly learning throughout the different periods of our lives. Case in point, in the early morning of our lives, our school is our home, the students in the classroom are our siblings, and our teachers are our parents. In the afternoon of our lives, our school is a building outside the home, the students in the classroom become our friends and confidants, and our teachers are those who have themselves studied and prepared to impart knowledge to us that we will use as we continue on our journey through life. And in the evening of our lives, we continue learning in the school of life with the world being our classroom, and life itself being our teacher.
The start of each new day presents opportunities to learn new and interesting things. Mormons attest to the fact that the wise man gleans as much as he can from his life experiences, and with his new found knowledge and wisdom, he is able to chart and navigate his course in life. It should be noted, however, that education should include more than the things that are learned in the traditional classroom from textbooks. It should also include spiritual learning which can be obtained from the study of the scriptures, and for Latter-day Saints, that also includes the words of Latter-day prophets. Latter-day Saints are also encouraged to participate in seminary and institute classes and to continue throughout their lives to learn about Heavenly Father’s plan. It is through spiritual learning that a person, with the help of the Holy Spirit, is able to find answers to the quandaries and challenges of life.
Solomon, perhaps one of the wisest men who ever lived, wrote, “And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh” (Ecclesiastes 12:12). There are many students who have witnessed the truthfulness of that statement as they have pulled an all-niter studying their textbook, trying to memorize important material for a test or exam. In making his point, however, Solomon was not attempting to devalue or minimize the importance of education, but rather his counsel was, “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil” (Ecclesiastes 12:13, 14).
In the book of Proverbs, a son is exhorted to heed his father’s instruction, and the application of the knowledge learned is called wisdom. The word education may not appear in the English form in the Bible, but Scripture does say a lot about the process of education, and it begins with the parent and child. The command to parents is to nurture their children in the Lord (Ephesians 6:4), and the Greek word paideia, translated “nurture” in the KJV, carries with it the idea of training, education, instruction and discipline.
Solomon tells us that the basis of all true knowledge is the fear of the Lord (Proverbs 1:7). The word fear here does not carry the idea of terror or dread; rather, it is awe and reverence for the holiness and majesty of God and a reluctance to disappoint or disobey Him. Jesus said that when we know the truth, the truth will make us free (John 8:32). Freedom from fear comes from being educated in Truth.
In the Book of Romans, the Apostle Paul uses the word “know” or “knowing” eleven times. What is it that he exhorts that we should know? The Word of God. Thus, a knowledge of the Word of God is absolutely essential in our spiritual learning process. God’s Word is absolute truth, and the beauty of absolute truth is that it forever stands on its own merits as being truth regardless if one person believes it, if a thousand people believe it, or if no one believes it. Absolute truth does not need our sustaining vote to be declared as truth, nor can we void its validity by simply disbelieving it. Such “absolute truth” cannot be discovered in traditional education alone. When we acquire spiritual knowledge and apply it to our lives, we are then able to serve the Lord in spirit and truth (see Romans 6:11-13).
The Apostle Paul also admonishes us to, “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15). It is noted that the Greek word translated “study” means to give diligence, to exert oneself, or to make haste to apply oneself. Therefore, in our quest for knowledge, in order to adequately educate ourselves, we must include as part of the education process, the personal application of diligently studying the Word of God. At any cause, in all of our learning, we must avoid being, as Paul warns, “Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth” (2 Timothy 3:7).
The purpose of God’s creations and of His giving us life is to allow us to have the learning experience necessary to come back to live with Him in eternal life. That is only possible if we have our natures changed through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, true repentance, and making and keeping the covenants He offers all of His Father’s children through His Church. True learning must have a powerful spiritual component. That spiritual element, when it is effective, refines and uplifts the aims of our total education.
The thirst for education can be a blessing or a curse, depending on our motives. If we continue to seek learning to serve God and His children better, it is a blessing of great worth. If we seek learning to exalt ourselves alone, it leads to selfishness and pride.
The Lord and His Church have always encouraged education to increase our ability to serve Him and our Heavenly Father’s children. For each of us, whatever our talents, He has service for us to give. And to do it well always involves learning, not once or for a limited time, but continually.
Remember, you are interested in education, not just for mortal life but for eternal life. When you see that reality clearly, you will put spiritual learning first and yet not slight the secular learning. In fact, you will work harder at your secular learning than you would without that spiritual vision.
William Ralph Inge, an English author, Anglican priest, Professor of Divinity at Cambridge, and Dean of St Paul’s Cathedral, perhaps said it best when he stated, “The modern world belongs to the half-educated, a rather difficult class, because they do not realize how little they know.” Latter-day Saints are taught that although they may be a part of the world, they are not to be of the world. Therefore, they learn from an early age to learn, but not to follow, the philosophies of men, unless they are wise. “And as all have not faith, seek ye diligently and teach one another words of wisdom; yea, seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom; seek learning, even by study and also by faith” (Doctrine and Covenants 88:118). They realize the importance of education and dedicate their lives to continually learning for they also understand “the glory of God is intelligence, or, in other words, light and truth” (Doctrine and Covenants 93:36) and “Light and truth forsake that evil one” (Doctrine and Covenants 93:37).
Well-known comedian Jeff Foxworthy is the host of the Game Show Network’s game show “The American Bible Challenge” – a program where people of different Christian faiths compete in a test of their knowledge of the Bible. In a recent interview with the Christian Post, Foxworthy commented,
Well, most of our contestants are pretty knowledgeable and I have a lot of friends that can quote a lot more Scripture than me. But as a whole I think that previous generations were probably more knowledgeable than ours. We have way too many distractions these days.
To make the challenge of the game a little more interesting, instead of ordinary prizes, Foxworthy decided to give the winners a financial reward that they could use to better their communities. The third season of the show, which premiered on 22 May 2014, is a little different in that the viewers will have an opportunity to learn more about the contestants – where they are coming from, and why they are competing.
Three Mormon Moms Take On the Challenge
Among those who will be competing this season is a team of 3 moms. What is so special about these moms? Jill Davidson Mason, Deborah Dushku Gardner, and Heidi Glyn Barker are all members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (often called the “Mormon” Church by the media and others) – a faith which many people do not consider to be Christian. They will be playing for the charity which Gardner and Barker co-founded, One Heart Bulgaria.
There are many people who debate that Mormons are Christian because they use other volumes of scripture in addition to the Holy Bible. One volume of scripture in particular is the Book of Mormon which they testify is Another Testament of Jesus Christ. Because of this, there are many people who believe that Latter-day Saints (as they are properly called) consider the Book of Mormon to be more important than the Bible, and for the most part, do not use the Bible in their personal study and teaching. However, the Bible is always mentioned first when referring to the “Standard Works” of The Church of Jesus Christ. Furthermore, Mormons believe:
The Holy Bible literally contains within its pages the converting, healing Spirit of Christ, which has turned men’s hearts for centuries, leading them to pray, to choose right paths, and to search to find their Savior.
The Holy Bible is well named. It is holy because it teaches truth, holy because it warms us with its spirit, holy because it teaches us to know God and understand His dealings with men, and holy because it testifies throughout its pages of the Lord Jesus Christ.
“It’s a little bit crazy. It’s kind of a mix between ‘The Price is Right’ and ‘Jeopardy,’ “Gardner told UPR. “There’s a lot of jumping around. You would think that a Bible trivia show would have some reverence to it, but it’s not. It was just an amazing experience.”
Gardner and Barker had previously served missions for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Bulgaria and were mission companions. After returning home from their missions, they wanted to continue to help the country that they had come to love, and so they co-founded One Heart Bulgaria, an organization that coordinates services to 28 orphanages in Bulgaria. Gardner shares some of her story in an “I’m a Mormon” video which was publish in May 2011, and on her Mormon.org profile.
This is part of an email I wrote to my brother who, as far as I know, has not read the scriptures in a pretty long time.
I have been taking a New Testament class, and today we read and talked about the book of James. As you probably know, this is the book that has the famous verses that Joseph Smith Jr. looked at which brought about the restoration of the gospel and the organization of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. When we talked about the book of James as a whole, my professor mentioned how many good little pieces of advice can be found there. And this is true; there are dozens and dozens.
However, after we talked about that, I thought about how all scripture can have just as many good bits of advice as the book of James has, even if it is not as obvious. We can all have experiences like Joseph Smith’s where we come across a piece of scripture, and it changes our lives. Of course, it probably will not be as dramatic as having Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ themselves come down to talk with us, as they did with Joseph Smith. Even in the war chapters of the Book of Mormon, or the really confusing verses of Isaiah, we can find ways to relate something to our lives and have it teach us something important. (more…)
BYU (Brigham Young University) is operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, often mistakenly called the “Mormon Church.” As part of their undergraduate coursework, BYU students take multiple semesters of spiritually uplifting, stimulating religion classes.
In this series (see below), students enrolled in scripture study classes have shared their thoughts, insights, and reflections on the Book of Mormon in the form of letters to someone they know. We invite you to take a look at their epiphanies and discoveries as they delve into the scriptures. (more…)
He currently serves as the sixth President of Utah Valley University, a position that he has held since June 2009. His father, Jeffrey R. Holland, served as the ninth President of Brigham Young University. Political science has always been his strong suit, and before coming to Utah Valley University to serve as President, he was an associate professor of political science at Brigham Young University where he taught courses in political philosophy and American political thought. Recently, in honor of the Sesquicentennial of Abraham Lincoln’s Second Inaugural address (4 March 1865), he presented a public discourse.
When Lincoln stepped forward to speak on that momentous morning, the gray overcast skies were suddenly illuminated by a brilliant ray of sunshine. Chief Justice Chase, as well as many other spectators, saw it as “an auspicious omen of the dispersion of the clouds of war and the restoration of the clear sunlight of prosperous peace.” Although there were several reasons for such an interpretation including the sense that the Civil War was finally drawing to an end, as Lincoln spoke, he did not appear to be overly optimistic about the future. He concluded his speech that day with these words:
By his extensive reading of scripture and long reflection, Lincoln came to conclude that God was both in control of human affairs and ultimately indecipherable by mere mortals. It is perhaps this view of God’s active role in the affairs of unknowing men that best explains why Lincoln was so resolute and scrupulous to avoid prematurely predicting an end to the Civil War conflict given the facts of 4 March 1865. Lincoln realized that he could not be an arbitrator of a war that was not his to arbitrate. Holland further comments:
