You Are Here - I don't know jack

You Are Here map

If you have ever been to a historic site, a national park, or a shopping mall (do people still go to shopping malls?) you have probably seen a map with a marker showing your location at the site. The map usually shows in large letters: “You are here”. It’s to help orient you regarding your current position in relation to your surroundings.

I think in religion we often look at our surroundings and see a mental map in our head that says, “You are here”. There is an assumption that every step along the way to where we are was in the correct direction. If we are “here”, then we are exactly where we were supposed to be. But are we? Is it possible that steps in the wrong direction were made from time to time? Is it possible that at least some of those missteps were reinforced instead of corrected? I think so. In fact, I think it’s more likely than not that we’ve made mistakes in doctrine along the way. Entropy, drift, apostasy – whatever you want to call it is the default state of the universe.

I think we’ve had some of that drift in Mormonism. I think we’ve lost a bit of what I think Joseph Smith was trying to do. I think what he was trying to do and what the scriptures detail is more mind-expanding than we realize. I don’t blame anyone for the drift – it takes constant effort to maintain a course. But I do think it’s worth asking: Is “here” where we’re supposed to be?

Over the coming posts, I want to explore what Joseph actually taught. I want to understand what lit the fire in my ancestors’ souls–what made them leave everything to follow Joseph into the wilderness.

As an aside,

As I was pondering and preparing this post, I woke up this morning with this song repeating in my head. At first glance, it’s just a catchy tune from the 90s. Then, I searched the real story behind it - an elderly couple with dementia, trying to get back to a place they once knew, found dead hundreds of miles off course. The contrast is striking: a song that romanticizes not knowing “The Way”, based on a story where not knowing the way led to tragedy. That’s where we are right now. We think we’re on a highway paved in gold, heading toward eternal summer. We’re actually lost. And we don’t even know it."

The start of the video is a bit weird so I queued it up to a relevant spot

They made up their minds

And they started packing

They left before the sun came up that day

An exit to eternal summer slacking

But where were they going without ever knowing the way?

They drank up the wine

And they got to talking

They now had more important things to say

And when the car broke down

They started walking

Where were they going without ever knowing the way?

Anyone can see the road that they walk on is paved in gold

And it’s always summer

They’ll never get cold

They’ll never get hungry

They’ll never get old and gray

You can see their shadows wandering off somewhere

They won’t make it home

But they really don’t care

They wanted the highway

They’re happier there today, today

Their children woke up

And they couldn’t find ’em

They left before the sun came up that day

They just drove off and left it all behind ’em

But where were they going without ever knowing the way?

Anyone can see the road that they walk on is paved in gold

And it’s always summer

They’ll never get cold

They’ll never get hungry

They’ll never get old and gray

You can see their shadows wandering off somewhere

They won’t make it home

But they really don’t care

They wanted the highway

They’re happier there today, today

– Fastball lyrics to “The Way”, 1998

But what do I know? I don’t know, Jack.