Honor thy Father and Mother

[Misshalfway]

So....we were talking about this the other day in church and I was interested to learn that this commandment...."Honor thy father and Mother that thy days might be long upon the land" is the first commandment with a promise directly associated with it. I didn't realize that before.

The discussion also opened up the idea that maybe this commandment might have something to do with the proclamation on the family and that maybe the promise meant not necessarily long life to the individual but long life to the entire human family. Whereas maybe disobedience would bring destruction....maybe like the Nephites. Lives cut short.

What do you think about the validity of that idea?

[BenRaines]

Penalty in those days under Mosaic Law was stoning if you didn't obey. That is why the promise of "Your days being long in the land". Didn't obey you died.

Ben Raines

[Misshalfway]

That sounds about right. I guess I am just wondering if there is more to it than that. Most of the Law of Moses had symbolism or meanings that we still find in our gospel today.

[Seminarysnoozer]

One of the things that has become more obvious to me is that many people in this world do not look at God as our Father in Heaven, in the literal sense. I think there is a deeper meaning to understanding the importance of family and that is that we are all part of a spiritual family, literal daughters and sons of our Heavenly Father. Growing up LDS that seems so obvious to me but now I realize a lot of people don't have that basic understanding of Gods nature, His purposes, His organization and where His glory comes from. Knowing that we are literal children of our Heavenly Father has more significance when you live honorably in a family unit here. It makes you realize how twisted Christ's teachings became when people thought it was a good thing that priests went celibate all their lives. There is almost no better microcosm of God's love and our place in His kingdom than seen in a loving family. How better to understand the nature of God then by honoring your parents? It would be nice if everyone saw our Heavenly Father as an actual father and not some indescribable force floating through the heavens.

[rameumptom]

The Mosaic Law was a covenant with the House of Israel, not with the individuals, per se. The commandments and blessings were given to the community. Stoning of children was given as a method to ensure the community stayed pure, not as a method to relieve stressed out parents.

[NeuroTypical]

Intersting topic.

I've thought a lot about the commandment to honor thy parents, because it's an unconditional commandment. You got parents, you better honor them. It doesn't matter if they were bad parents. If they beat you, or threw beer bottles at you and put cigarettes out on your skin, or ignored your cries for help as you were abused by a stepfather or brother, you still must honor them.

Knowing that such parents do indeed exist, it's crucial for someone to know exactly what honor means and doesn't mean. From this aspect, I believe a lot of the 'burden' of honoring such people involves forgiving them. You don't need to put up with their crap to honor them, but you do need to learn to view them as fellow children of Christ, inheritors of a divine birthright, someone who you should be concerned about and want to help. (All of this also means you must understand what forgiving and helping means and what they don't mean - much of humanity is confused on this.)

So to bring this back to the point of the thread, children who have forgiven such parents speak of horrible weights dropping from their shoulders. Clean, pure, Christlike forgiveness relieves stress and lightens burdens. Stress and grudges and burdens are bad for you - they make life harder to live, and they may affect your health and actually shorten your life. They are gates to other things like addiction and depression and suicide, all things that shorten life.

I dunno - this was just off the top of my head. No idea if it's really relevant or not.

LM

[Just_A_Guy]

Perhaps this?

Jacob 3:5-7

5 Behold, the Lamanites your brethren, whom ye hate because of their filthiness and the cursing which hath come upon their skins, are more righteous than you; for they have not forgotten the commandment of the Lord, which was given unto our father—that they should have save it were one wife, and concubines they should have none, and there should not be whoredoms committed among them.

6 And now, this commandment they observe to keep; wherefore, because of this observance, in keeping this commandment, the Lord God will not destroy them, but will be merciful unto them; and one day they shall become a blessed people.

7 Behold, their husbands love their wives, and their wives love their husbands; and their husbands and their wives love their children; and their unbelief and their hatred towards you is because of the iniquity of their fathers; wherefore, how much better are you than they, in the sight of your great Creator?

Love at home --> strong families --> strong and enduring societies.

[Misshalfway]

Loudmouth,

I guess the scripture does say honor "thy" father and mother so i guess it wouldn't mean honoring the office or role of fatherhood and motherhood. Or perhaps it is simply honoring someone because they gave you life.

I guess I am wondering with all this talk of gay marriage (not that I want to open that quagmire of debate), I am wondering if honoring father and mother has more implications for us because of the proclamation on the family.

[rameumptom]

The Proclamation on the Family is definitely tied to this. We are commanded to honor father and mother, because they represent God to us. A small child does not know nor understand the concept of God. But they do see their parents playing, feeding, and chatting with it. They learn to rely upon the parents, even as we should rely upon the Lord.

Our relationship with God can be greatly enhanced or diminished by what our parents do. I've known individuals who have huge trust issues with God, because they've had great trust issues with their parents.

We are to honor our parents, regardless of what they do or are. However, our parents will be held responsible for their failures as parents, especially if they fail due to their own sins and rebellions.

[Seminarysnoozer]

I think this commandment also shows you the importance we have to our Heavenly Father. The way to honor your parents is to make them proud of you. Like when Heavenly Father at Jesus' baptism said, this is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased. I think it underlines the purpose of God, that His glory is dependent on our success. If we failed to move forward in our development this world would cease to exist, "our days would be short." There would be no reason to create us and create this world if it didn't please Him. That same type of glory or happiness is had when our children do well and do the right things, as happened when my children were baptized, some of the happiest days of my life. If we continue to remain as family units in the next life our achievement becomes their achievements and can continue forever. This commandment is overlooked by many religions, in my opinion, one of the lessons being God gains something from our achievements and we are to learn that and know that by honoring our parents. Obeying this commandment teaches us that principle.