Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Carpe Diem


Children grow up so fast! Start scripture study early in the lives of your children to give them as much opportunity as possible to be under your tutelage. There will be days you miss, but the earlier you start the more days you will have the opportunity to teach them. You may think they are not learning or do not understand, but their minds and hearts will feel the Spirit that accompanies the holy scriptures.

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"This is our one and only chance at mortal life — here and now. The longer we live, the greater is our realization that it is brief. Opportunities come, and then they are gone. I believe that among the greatest lessons we are to learn in this short sojourn upon the earth are lessons that help us distinguish between what is important and what is not. I plead with you not to let those most important things pass you by as you plan for that illusive and non-existent future when you will have time to do all that you want to do. Instead, find joy in the journey — now" (Thomas S. Monson, November 2008 Ensign, 85).

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Carpe Diem!

(Image credit)

Scripture of the Day: Ephesians 4:11-14

5 comments:

  1. I agree. I just bought the Hermie Scripture CD's of songs that help kids learn scripture. We are doing the behavior CD now and my almost 7 year old has done a GREAT job! Hermie is a character from the Max Lucado childrens series.

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  2. I LOVE the quote from President Monson about finding joy in the journey--LOVE IT!!

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  3. I always liked that quote too--especially since I had my blog name before he gave that talk. :-) And I totally agree. Time passes much too quickly and the opportunity to do all those things we say we will do someday passes with it. Best to just do it. now.

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  4. I love your post and your ideas about scripture study. But I do laugh a personal little laugh whenever I see the ancient Greek "Carpe Diem" (translated into English as Sieze the Day) used to promote a spiritual or moral cause like hard work, scripture study, or a hundred other worthy endeavors from athletics, to education, to home improvement to and self improvement.

    The Greeks used the term to promote the idea that you should get everything you could today for "tomorrow we die and there is no more", in essence promoting the philosophy of immediate gratification in this life because philosophically they believed that when a man died that was end of his existence. The idea of Carpe Diem was the clarion Greek, and later Roman, call to overconsumption of alcohol, immorality in all its forms, laziness, entitlement, and has even been attributed to the social beliefs that led to the largesse, lavish government spending, and moral decay that finally colappsed the Roman Empire under the financial weight of a society addicted to appeasing their needs and wants by that taxation of others. Carpe Diem, in my thinking, is a greek term for Covetousness. Funny how it has been mis-used in our modern society. The movie Dead Poet's Society made it cool and in vouge. I don't know how much that has to do with the Biblican injunction that in the last days we will call evil good and good evil, but I do wonder about it whenever I hear it used to invoke what it really never was.

    I didn't mean to rain on your parade. Just thought you might like a little background on Carpe Diem. Whenever the main character in Dead Poet's society quotes that line it always makes me a little uncomfortable. I'm always left wondering if the screen writers and the actors and directors were oblivious to what they were promoting to these young student charges or if they actually hoped to promote that kind of thinking and even that lifestyle among the impressionable young students at the private boys school in the movie.

    Oh well. I'm thinking way too much, wouldn't you agree?

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  5. David,
    I guess that made the phrase all the more appropriate for Dead Poet's Society, huh? There was more foreshadowing there than intended. Thanks for the background on the phrase--your insights are always welcome. Rebecca

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Comments are much appreciated!