Powerful True Story from World War II

There are many people in life who struggle with their circumstances, pondering repeatedly how hard their life seems to be in so many ways. I have a good friend, Jim Ritchie, who passes along his wisdom on a regular basis. I am fortunate to be in his e-mail distribution list. Here's a recent e-mail he sent out that I felt was inspirational, especially for folks like me who make up what later became known as the "baby boom generation" who missed the events of World War II - events that would change the lives not only of my parents, but also the lives of everyone on planet Earth. We sometimes forget it was young men who fought to preserve freedom, as this story clearly depicts. May we never forget the true heroes who died and never came home. I hope you enjoy:

True story.....

Each year I am hired to go to Washington, DC, with the eighth grade class from Clinton, WI, where I grew up, to videotape their trip. I greatly enjoy visiting our nation’s capital, and each year I take some special memories back with me. This fall's trip was especially memorable.  

Iwo Jima Memorial,
Arlington Cemetery, Washington D.C.

On the last night of our trip, we stopped at the Iwo Jima memorial. This memorial is the largest bronze statue in the world and depicts one of the most famous photographs in history -- that of the six brave soldiers raising the American flag at the top of a rocky hill on the island of Iwo Jima, Japan, during WW II.  

Over one hundred students and chaperones piled off the buses and headed towards the memorial. I noticed a solitary figure at the base of the statue, and as I got closer he asked, "Where are you guys from?"

I told him we were from Wisconsin. "Hey, I'm a cheese head, too! Come gather around, cheese heads, and I will tell you a story."

It was James Bradley who just happened to be in Washington, DC, to speak at the memorial the following day. He was there that night to say goodnight to his Dad, who had passed away. He was just about to leave when he saw the buses pull up. I videotaped him as he spoke to us, and received his permission to share what he said from my videotape. It is one thing to tour the incredible monuments filled with history in Washington, DC, but it is quite another to get the kind of insight we received that night.

When all had gathered around, he reverently began to speak. Here are his words that night:

"My name is James Bradley and I'm from Antigo, Wisconsin. My Dad is on that statue, and I wrote a book called Flags of Our Fathers. It is the story of the six boys you see behind me.  

Iwo Jima Memorial

"Six boys raised the flag. The first guy putting the pole in the ground is Harlon Block. Harlon was an all-state football player. He enlisted in the Marine Corps with all the senior members of his football team. They were off to play another type of game. A game called 'War.' But it didn't turn out to be a game. Harlon, at the age of 21, died with his intestines in his hands. I don't say that to gross you out, I say that because there are people who stand in front of this statue and talk about the glory of war. You guys need to know that most of the boys in Iwo Jima were 17, 18, and 19 years old - and it was so hard that the ones who did make it home never even would talk to their families about it.

(He pointed to the statue) "You see this next guy? That's Rene Gagnon from New Hampshire. If you took Rene's helmet off at the moment this photo was taken and looked in the webbing of that helmet, you would find a photograph, a photograph of his girlfriend. Rene put that in there for protection because he was scared. He was 18 years old. It was just boys who won the battle of Iwo Jima. Boys. Not old men.  

"The next guy here, the third guy in this tableau, was Sergeant Mike Strank. Mike is my hero. He was the hero of all these guys. They called him the 'old man' because he was so old. He was already 24. When Mike would motivate his boys in training camp, he didn't say, 'Let's go kill some Japanese' or 'Let's die for our country.' He knew he was talking to little boys. Instead he would say, 'You do what I say, and I'll get you home to your mothers.'

"The last guy on this side of the statue is Ira Hayes, a Pima Indian from Arizona. Ira Hayes was one of them who lived to walk off Iwo Jima. He went into the White House with my Dad. President Truman told him, 'You're a hero.' He told reporters, 'How can I feel like a hero when 250 of my buddies hit the island with me and only 27 of us walked off alive?'

"So you take your class at school, 250 of you spending a year together having fun, doing everything together. Then all 250 of you hit the beach, but only 27 of your classmates walk off alive. That was Ira Hayes. He had images of horror in his mind. Ira Hayes carried the pain home with him and eventually died dead drunk, face down, drowned in a very shallow puddle at the age of 32 (ten years after this picture was taken).  

"The next guy, going around the statue, is Franklin Sousley from Hilltop, Kentucky, a fun-lovin' hillbilly boy. His best friend, who is now 90, told me, 'Yeah, you know, we took two cows up on the porch of the Hilltop General Store. Then we strung wire across the stairs so the cows couldn't get down. Then we fed them Epsom salts. Those cows crapped all night.' Yes, he was a fun-lovin' hillbilly boy. Franklin died on Iwo Jima at the age of 19. When the telegram came to tell his mother that he was dead, it went to the Hilltop General Store. A barefoot boy ran that telegram up to his mother's farm. The neighbors could hear her scream all night and into the morning. Those neighbors lived a quarter of a mile away.

'The next guy, as we continue to go around the statue, is my Dad, John Bradley, from Antigo, Wisconsin, where I was raised. My Dad lived until 1994, but he would never give interviews.

"When Walter Cronkite's producers or the New York Times would call, we were trained as little kids to say 'No, I'm sorry, sir, my Dad's not here. He is in Canada fishing. No, there is no phone there, sir. No, we don't know when he is coming back.' My Dad never fished or even went to Canada. Usually, he was sitting there right at the table eating his Campbell 's soup. But we had to tell the press that he was out fishing. He didn't want to talk to the press.  

"You see, like Ira Hayes, my Dad didn't see himself as a hero. Everyone thinks these guys are heroes, 'cause they are in a photo and on a monument. My Dad knew better. He was a medic. John Bradley from Wisconsin was a combat caregiver. On Iwo Jima he probably held over 200 boys as they died. And when boys died on Iwo Jima, they writhed and screamed, without any medication or help with the pain.  

"When I was a little boy, my third-grade teacher told me that my Dad was a hero. When I went home and told my Dad that, he looked at me and said, 'I want you always to remember that the heroes of Iwo Jima are the guys who did not come back. Did NOT come back.'  

"So that's the story about six nice young boys. Three died on Iwo Jima, and three came back as national heroes. Overall, 7,000 boys died on Iwo Jima in the worst battle in the history of the Marine Corps. My voice is giving out, so I will end here. Thank you for your time."

Suddenly, the monument wasn't just a big old piece of metal with a flag sticking out of the top. It came to life before our eyes with the heartfelt words of a son who did, indeed, have a father who was a hero. Maybe not a hero for the reasons most people would believe, but a hero nonetheless.  

One thing I learned while on tour with my eighth-grade students in DC that is not mentioned here is that if you look at the statue very closely and count the number of hands raising the flag, there are 13. When the man who made the statue was asked why there were 13, he simply said the 13th hand was the hand of God.  

The Gathering of Israel and the "Immigration Crisis"

This morning in the pervasive quietude that prevails in Pine Valley, I have been pondering the latest chapter in our American border "crisis." The irrepressible Ann Coulter wrote last week about the "30th anniversary" of that crisis. The political class in Washington seems to be vying for the affection of the immigrants, and some even assert that somehow Barack Obama has "manufactured" and "masterminded" this dramatic infusion of children whose parents have aided and abetted their flight to America, knowing if they could successfully navigate the border there would be ultimate amnesty and citizenship at the end of their journey. Most of what you are reading about the immigration crisis is pure political propaganda, little more.

We can debate the morality, the legality and the political merits until we are exhausted, but I have been pondering what the gospel perspective on all this might be, absent the political calculations.

Many years ago, beginning in 1982, I started a compilation from the scriptures on the topic of Zion, because I was curious to know how the revealed word described it. At the end of that compilation I offered a summary, little realizing how it would play out in future events. Here's what I said then:

"Ephraim's descendants will figure prominently in the leadership of the House of Israel in the development of Zion, but it would be a gross error to assume that Zion is the private domain of Ephraim. The scriptures speak plainly of all the tribes coming to their inheritances in their various lands. We are witnessing the emergence of all these long-lost cousins in Israel in our day, as adversity, lawlessness, and political upheavals continue to drive them to our borders of freedom. They come because of wars, famines, diseases, natural disasters, and the love of freedom, but whatever the reasons they are coming to claim their promised blessings at the hands of Ephraim. Let us never be so surfeited by the things of this world that we cannot embrace them, when they come with little more than the clothes on their backs."

In the gospel context, the gathering of Israel is accelerating. Some will fail to recognize this for what it is, but the descendants of Lehi, the blood of Manasseh coursing in their veins, are coming to claim their long-promised blessings at the hands of Ephraim, the older birthright brother of Manasseh.

On the political front we can argue, as many conservative elements in our society do today, that securing the borders and enforcing our immigration laws is essential to our survival. We currently have a POTUS, however, who has willfully chosen NOT to enforce the immigration laws that are already on the books and routinely blames Congress for its failure to give him enough money. Last week, Texas Governor Rick Perry (R) declared he would protect his own border. The voices from the states against the federal government become more strident with every passing day. Arizona Governor Jan Brewer's (R) bitter indictments of Barack Obama are well-known on this issue.

I understand all the political arguments quite well, so thanks in advance for not reminding me about all that. However, these circumstances are foretold in scripture and should not alarm us when we put it in the larger picture frame of latter-day prophecy. The events leading to the eventual establishment of Zion are well-documented in scripture.

I find it ironic that it is the more conservative elements of society who are beating the drum for tougher border security and are taking such a vehement stand against illegal immigration. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, along with the Catholic Church and many other religious organizations (and what could be more conservative than these?) has maintained a humanitarian position for many years. Without discrimination about how they got here the churches have taken the position they will succor the weak, lift up the weary arms of the immigrants, and do all they can to provide the care and nurturing the immigrants need.

Political calculations in the give and take of the debate are on constantly shifting sands. People forget under George W. Bush statements and policies were put forward promoting an open border policy. This empty rhetoric didn't start with Barack Obama, as much as I am inclined to blame him for everything wrong with America today. On both sides of the political divide the lust for ever more voters picking them is what has driven the response to immigration. Make no mistake, the dirty little secret is neither side wants to turn away potential voters in such large blocks, notwithstanding the downside of perhaps a few terrorists leaking through the border with the legitimate "Dreamers" seeking a better life in America.

Seeking to set an example before the whole nation for thoughtful consideration of the immigrant crisis back in 2010, a group of citizens, churches and government leaders put forward what came to be called "The Utah Compact" to give some guidance to the debate:

THE UTAH COMPACT
A DECLARATION OF FIVE PRINCIPLES TO GUIDE UTAH’S IMMIGRATION DISCUSSION

FEDERAL SOLUTIONS  Immigration is a federal policy issue between the U.S. government and other countries — not Utah and other countries. We urge Utah’s congressional delegation, and others, to lead efforts to strengthen federal laws and protect our national borders. We urge state leaders to adopt reasonable policies addressing immigrants in Utah.

LAW ENFORCEMENT  We respect the rule of law and support law enforcement’s professional judgment and discretion. Local law enforcement resources should focus on criminal activities, not civil violations of federal code.

FAMILIES  Strong families are the foundation of successful communities. We oppose policies that unnecessarily separate families. We champion policies that support families and improve the health, education and well-being of all Utah children.

ECONOMY  Utah is best served by a free-market philosophy that maximizes individual freedom and opportunity. We acknowledge the economic role immigrants play as workers and taxpayers. Utah’s immigration policies must reaffirm our global reputation as a welcoming and business-friendly state.

A FREE SOCIETY  Immigrants are integrated into communities across Utah. We must adopt a humane approach to this reality, reflecting our unique culture, history and spirit of inclusion. The way we treat immigrants will say more about us as a free society and less about our immigrant neighbors. Utah should always be a place that welcomes people of goodwill. (Emphasis is mine).

That's as good a summary as I can think of to help us think through what we are saying in our political debates. We are being told there will be no comprehensive immigration reform legislation this year. The politicians simply don't want to handle the hot potato. But keeping in mind the principles cited here will help us think through the reasons so many are flocking to our borders.

Joseph Smith

On Christmas Day in Kirtland, Ohio, in 1832, a "revelation and prophecy on war" was given through Joseph Smith. These wintry words describe the times in which we live: "And thus, with the sword and by bloodshed the inhabitants of the earth shall mourn; and with famine, and plague, and earthquake, and the thunder of heaven, and the fierce and vivid lightning also, shall the inhabitants of the earth be made to feel the wrath, and indignation, and chastening hand of an Almighty God, until the consumption decreed hath made a full end of all nations. (D&C 87:6, emphasis mine).

The prophetic Book of Mormon offers additional insights:

And thus commandeth the Father that I should say unto you: At that day when the Gentiles shall sin against my gospel, and shall reject the fulness of my gospel, and shall be lifted up in the pride of their hearts above all nations, and above all the people of the whole earth, and shall be filled with all manner of lyings, and of deceits, and of mischiefs, and all manner of hypocrisy, and murders, and priestcrafts, and whoredoms, and of secret abominations; and if they shall do all those things, and shall reject the fulness of my gospel, behold, saith the Father, I will bring the fulness of my gospel from among them. [Read that verse again, could there be a more apt description of elements of American society today?]
And then will I remember my covenant which I have made unto my people, O house of Israel, and I will bring my gospel unto them.
And I will show unto thee, O house of Israel, that the Gentiles shall not have power over you; but I will remember my covenant unto you, O house of Israel, and ye shall come unto the knowledge of the fulness of my gospel.
But if the Gentiles will repent and return unto me, saith the Father, behold they shall be numbered among my people, O house of Israel.
And I will not suffer my people, who are of the house of Israel, to go through among them, and tread them down, saith the Father.
But if they will not turn unto me, and hearken unto my voice, I will suffer them, yea, I will suffer my people, O house of Israel, that they shall go through among them, and shall tread them down, and they shall be as salt that hath lost its savor, which is thenceforth good for nothing but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of my people, O house of Israel.
Verily, verily, I say unto you, thus hath the Father commanded me — that I should give unto this people this land for their inheritance. (3 Nephi 16:10-16, emphasis mine).

Please note that always and forever, if Israel covenants to repent and obey, the doors of forgiveness are perpetually and eternally open to all who will walk through them.

The events swirling today in Russia and Ukraine, Israel and Gaza, Iraq, Iran, North Korea, Syria and Afghanistan, added to those in South and Central America only serve to remind us of the upheaval and lawlessness spoken of in the prophecy on war. It seems there will never be peace on earth, for so it has been decreed. Nation against nation, brother against brother, family against family. Only the gospel of Jesus Christ offers true brotherhood and unity. Our political institutions no longer seem capable of offering true asylum from the chaos. Indeed, the government solutions seem worse than the problems government creates. There's now a $3.7 billion solution being proposed to house the immigrants. Um, good luck with that. Until Christ comes again to rule and reign, there will be no peace on earth.

We are blessed in our ward to have a new member, President Ronald A. Rasband, the senior president of the Presidency of the First Quorum of the Seventy. He just returned from visiting congregations of the saints in Russia and Turkey. He reports there are three thriving branches of the Church in Turkey, a nation of 74 million, 98% of whom are Muslim. There are only twelve full-time missionaries serving in Turkey. Those three branches represent the hope of that region of the world. They are a melting pot of every faction of Islam from all the surrounding countries. There are no government-sponsored reparations against those who have fled to Turkey for asylum and converted to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Those who have become Christians are left alone in peace to practice their religion as they choose. They have embraced truth and light and chosen unity and peace. It is a model for the other nations in that region of the world to follow.

Only in the gospel of Jesus Christ is there sufficient light to extinguish the gathering darkness around us. All other government solutions will fail.

Peace on Earth

I heard an earnest and sincere appeal in a sacrament meeting invocation for "peace on earth" yesterday.  This time of year we hear it more often than any other because we are reminded of "glad tidings of great joy" and "peace on earth, goodwill to men."

Joseph Smith

It seems I can never pass a Christmas Day, however, without being reminded and thinking deeply on the content of what I call "The Christmas Day Revelation" of December 25, 1832.  (See Section 87, The Doctrine and Covenants).  Ironically, on the day we celebrate the birth of the Prince of Peace (even though it was really April 6th), it is designated as a "revelation and prophecy on war," given through the Prophet Joseph Smith.

It is only eight short verses, but they are packed with implications stretching down through the hallways of time since that day into our lives today.

Benjamin Franklin

The establishment of a federal government in the United States of America intentionally bypassed the question of slavery.  Many, including Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams were seeking abolition of slavery when they met with others to write the Constitution.  Of the four, Franklin was the most adamant about it.  (It's well known that Washington and Jefferson as "Southerners" were slave owners, but neither liked or advocated the practice).  Franklin and the others later relented "in order to form a more perfect union."  To get agreement on "most" provisions they set aside the slavery question for a later day.  They knew they had to get agreement, and soon, to a basic framework that would work to replace the wholly inadequate "Articles of Confederation."  Washington fretted about it from the moment the Revolutionary War ended.  So the abolition of slavery, the major sticking point, was delayed and deferred.

By the fall and winter of 1832, political discourse in the United States was dominated by something known as the "Nullification Crisis."  There remained tensions among the various states who had framed the Constitution.  The Southern tier of states felt threatened by the North.  The locus of the controversy was South Carolina.  There was a protective tariff enacted by Congress in 1828, known angrily in the South as the "Tariff of Abominations."  Like their former masters in England had done, this tariff with enough votes in the Northern states to pass it, imposed heavy duties on foreign manufactured goods coming into America.  That obviously favored and protected the economy of the industrial North, but it worked against the agrarian South and its slave economy. 

In addition to the economic problems, the South was becoming increasingly aware of a growing antislavery movement in the North.  In order to protect itself from these threats, South Carolina passed something called an "Ordinance of Nullification."

Recently in Virginia, using many of the logical arguments involving the misinterpretation of the Commerce Clause in the Constitution, a federal judge declared the "individual mandate" embedded in the health care legislation that passed last year to be unconstitutional.  Similar arguments are being made today in Arizona and Texas about border control.  Not unlike the current debate and the court actions aimed at blunting the Obamacare legislation today, this 1832 ordinance was based on states rights philosophy which claimed the following:

• Sovereignty resided in the states.
• The states had created the federal government.
• The states could decide if a law was constitutional.
• If it was not, the federal law could be declared null and void in that state.

So, on November 24, 1832, a special convention in South Carolina declared the Tariff of 1828 null and void. This explosive situation nearly caused a war in 1832. (You can read about it here: William W. Freehling, Prelude to Civil War: The Nullification Controversy in South Carolina, 1816-1836 [New York: Harper and Row, 1966]).

So it was out of this background of events from which sprang Joseph Smith's Prophecy on War.  It's a fair question how much Joseph Smith really knew about the details of the political controversy.  On the day the revelation was given (again, it was Christmas Day, 1832), we get this glimpse from the History of the Church:
 
"Appearances of troubles among the nations became more visible this season than they had previously been since the Church began her journey out of the wilderness. The ravages of the cholera were frightful in almost all the large cities on the globe. The plague broke out in India, while the United States, amid all her pomp and greatness, was threatened with immediate dissolution. The people of South Carolina, in convention assembled (in November), passed ordinances, declaring their state a free and independent nation; and appointed Thursday, the 31st day of January, 1833, as a day of humiliation and prayer, to implore almighty God to vouchsafe His blessings, and restore liberty and happiness within their borders. President Jackson issued his proclamation against this rebellion, called out a force sufficient to quell it, and implored the blessings of God to assist the nation to extricate itself from the horrors of the approaching and solemn crisis."  (HC 1:301).

Eleven years later, Joseph Smith was still interested in this subject. In Section 130 of The Doctrine and Covenants he wrote:  "I prophesy, in the name of the Lord God, that the commencement of the difficulties which will cause much bloodshed previous to the coming of the Son of Man will begin in South Carolina. It will probably arise through the slave question. This a voice declared to me, while I was praying earnestly on the subject, December 25th, 1832."  (D&C 130:12-13).
 
It's obvious the Prophet was aware of political events, and he knew slavery was emerging as an outgrowth of the nullification issue over the tariff.  So he did what he always did -- he studied it out in his own mind and "prayed earnestly" about it. 

There is a definition of "prophet" in the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, defining a prophet as, (a) a person who speaks by divine inspiration, and (b) a predictor.  Joseph Smith is cited as the example with this prophecy.

So here's what happened:  He made this prophecy 28 years, 3 months and 17 days before the event happened.

His first prediction was that war would occur between the states. Of course, this war did take place and is called The Civil War.  Between 1861 and 1865 a bitter war raged in the United States. It remains the bloodiest and most costly war in terms of lives in our American history.  (The best single-volume source is perhaps J. G. Randall and David Herbert Donald, The Civil War and Reconstruction [Lexington, Mass.: D.C. Health and Company, 1969]).

Joseph Smith prophesied that South Carolina would take the initiative. On April 12, 1861, the Confederate forces laid siege to Fort Sumter.  This fort, filled with garrisoned United States troops, was located in the harbor off Charleston, South Carolina.  South Carolina definitely forced the issue.

He further prophesied this war would bring death to many (click the link above).  The Prophet foretold and accurately described the nature of the antagonists in this conflict. He specifically stated the North would fight the South.  This part of the prophecy is especially interesting because West also opposed East in the 1830s.  It could have gone another way, but Joseph Smith declared it would be a war of North against South.

The precision is interesting because Joseph Smith said the Southern states would call upon Great Britain and other nations for aid.  Once war broke out the South did send commissioners to various European nations to seek diplomatic recognition and military aid.  The South sent representatives to Great Britain, France, Holland and Belgium. The 1832 prophecy of Joseph Smith was fulfilled precisely.


Mohandas Gandhi



Nelson Mandela

Joseph Smith's prophecy on war was not limited to the American Civil War. It also included wars in other nations. In fact, the prophecy declared that "war will be poured out upon all nations." Subsequent events have proven he was accurate.  The distinctive reference to "slaves shall rise up against their masters" has been fulfilled again and again since then, the overthrow of dictators ever since being in the first rank of those prophecies.  Mohandas Gandhi in his struggle through civil disobedience for independence in India, or the Nelson Mandela saga in the abolition of apartheid in South Africa immediately come to mind as two examples.  Liberating Iraq from Saddam Hussein is another more recent example (with a big assist from America, of course).

Orson Pratt

Leaders of the Church were fully aware of Joseph Smith's prophecy concerning the Civil War as early as the 1830s. Orson Pratt recalled:  "When I was a boy, I traveled extensively in the United States and the Canadas, preaching this restored gospel.  I had a manuscript copy of the Revelation [on war], which I carried in my pocket, and I was in the habit of reading it to the people among whom I traveled and preached."  (JD, 18:224).

Section 87 also provides other doctrinal insights.  It discusses the Lamanites, or the American Indians. These people are referred to in this revelation as "the remnants."  The revelation tells us that the Indians would become angry and "vex the Gentiles with a sore vexation" (v. 5).  (See Bruce R. McConkie, The Mortal Messiah, 4:334-35; and The Millennial Messiah, 242, 248).

* * *

 
SECTION 87

Revelation and prophecy on war, given through Joseph Smith, December 25, 1832. History of the Church 1:301-2.

1 Verily, thus saith the Lord concerning the wars that will shortly come to pass, beginning at the rebellion of South Carolina, which will eventually terminate in the death and misery of many souls;
2 And the time will come that war will be poured out upon all nations, beginning at this place.
3 For behold, the Southern States shall be divided against the Northern States, and the Southern States will call on other nations, even the nation of Great Britain, as it is called, and they shall also call upon other nations, in order to defend themselves against other nations; and then war shall be poured out upon all nations.
4 And it shall come to pass, after many days, slaves shall rise up against their masters, who shall be marshaled and disciplined for war.
5 And it shall come to pass also that the remnants who are left of the land will marshal themselves, and shall become exceedingly angry, and shall vex the Gentiles with a sore vexation.
6 And thus, with the sword and by bloodshed the inhabitants of the earth shall mourn; and with famine, and plague, and earthquake, and the thunder of heaven, and the fierce and vivid lightning also, shall the inhabitants of the earth be made to feel the wrath, and indignation, and chastening hand of an Almighty God, until the consumption decreed hath made a full end of all nations;
7 That the cry of the saints, and of the blood of the saints, shall cease to come up into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth, from the earth, to be avenged of their enemies.
8 Wherefore, stand ye in holy places, and be not moved, until the day of the Lord come; for behold, it cometh quickly, saith the Lord. Amen.

* * *

The concluding verse is perhaps our key to understanding.  While we yearn for peace on earth, there will be no peace until He comes again.  The Middle East combatants will not suddenly sit down one day soon and devise a "two-state" solution for the border conflicts extant in Israel.  Afghanistan and Iran will not one day suddenly devise a truce with terrorist factions determined to overthrow freedom in every country on earth.  Tin pot dictators like Hugo Chavez and Fidel Castro will not suddenly reverse course, in fact they are showing renewed signs of strengthening their grip on their respective countries.  The former Soviet Union today shows greater belligerence than ever before with little sign of continuing its once-defined course toward greater individual freedom.  China, while peaceful today, has an unruly step-child in North Korea.  Wars and their persistent rumors will continue.  Threats mounted by "progressives" from within America's borders to eliminate Constitutionally-defined freedoms continue to foment.

The antidote in the revelation for all of this is "stand in holy places and be not moved."  Holy places can be defined in many ways:  the stakes of Zion, dedicated buildings like chapels, temples, etc., homes, and wherever a "holy person" resides.  There may be no peace on earth in 2010, but there can be peace in our hearts, knowing we are true to the covenants we have made, true to the God of heaven, and true to His leaders whom He has sent among us.

As a bishop, I once heard a young man declare to me in defiance, "No one has the right to judge my heart, and especially NOT YOU!!"  Many who are not at peace in their hearts find it difficult to submit to constituted priesthood leaders and to accept them as the Lord's servants.  They believe they know better than the humble "sent servants" God has put in the judgment seats in modern Israel.  To submit to their inspired callings is to find the peace we seek because it aligns with His mind and will.  Increasingly, we will only find the peace in this world we seek when we put ourselves in alignment with His servants.  I have written extensively about this in the past. 

We have been promised peace, not world peace, but only on this wise, as found in John 14:27:

Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth,
give I unto you.  Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.