Filling the World with
Goodness and Truth
By Elder M. Russell Ballard
Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
ENSIGN Magazine, July 1996
Our ability to develop and use our
artistic gifts to edify and inspire others depends on our faithful
adherence to the Lord’s teachings.
God’s stated purpose for His children is to bring to
pass their immortality and eternal life (see Moses 1:39). His children’s
obedience to gospel principles makes it possible for them to work out
their individual salvation through the grace and atonement of Jesus
Christ, which atonement was part of our Heavenly Father’s plan from the
beginning.
I would like to focus these thoughts for the artistic
who are part of the kingdom of God, or perhaps it would be better to say
that I would like to express these thoughts to all members who have
begun to recognize the artistic and beautifying instincts that each of
us has developed to one degree or another. God’s purpose for the artist
in the gospel plan—if indeed it differs in the slightest degree from His
purpose for plumbers, electricians, salesmen, teachers, and others—would
only be concerning the language that artists or the artistically
inclined use.
Spiritually successful artists have the unique
opportunity to present their feelings, opinions, ideas, and perspectives
of eternity in visual and sound symbols that are universally understood.
Great art touches the soul in unique and uncommon ways. Divinely
inspired art speaks in the language of eternity, teaching things to the
heart that the eyes and ears can never understand. Aristotle said, “The
aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but
their inward significance.”
The word artist is not included in holy scripture, but
the presence and importance of artists are unmistakable. The scriptures
include myriad references to “all manner of workmanship” described as
“exceedingly fine” and “curious.” That the creative process is rooted
and revered in heaven is evident in the Lord’s use of the word
workmanship to define not only the artistic accomplishments of his
children but the results of his own creation:
“And, behold, thou art my son; wherefore look, and I
will show thee the workmanship of mine hands; but not all, for my
works are without end, and also my words, for they never cease” (Moses
1:4; emphasis added).
God’s purpose for the artist is to inspire, to give us
visions of ourselves that we might not otherwise see, to make us better
than we would have been. The world is better for the arts and righteous
artists in it. In the quest to achieve greatness in artistic
pursuits—whether in painting, dance, music, drama, film, sculpture, or
the written word—we should always seek first to achieve God’s purposes.
“All great art is the expression of man’s delight in God’s work, not his
own,” said John Ruskin, the great nineteenth-century English art critic.
The Source of Artistic Inspiration
The Light of Christ, wrote Elder Bruce R. McConkie of
the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, “is the means by which the Lord
invites and entices all men to improve their lot and to come unto him
and receive his gospel. It is the agency through which the Lord strives
with men, through which he encourages them to forsake the world and come
unto Christ, through which good desires and feelings are planted in the
hearts of decent people. It is the medium of intelligence that guides
inventors, scientists, artists, composers, poets, authors, statesmen,
philosophers, generals, leaders, and influential men in general, when
they set their hands to do that which is for the benefit and blessing of
their fellowmen” (A New Witness for the Articles of Faith, Salt Lake
City: Deseret Book Co., 1985, p. 259; emphasis added)
In fact, many great artists have humbly acknowledged
the source of their inspiration and the power behind their creation. No
one can feast his or her eyes on the art of Michelangelo and not see the
hand of God. Michelangelo himself knew it, as he expressed in this
statement: “The true work of art is but a shadow of the divine
perfection.”
Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Bernard Rands put it
this way: “The creative act must never become a form of selfish
indulgence. There is more to creating than merely establishing the work
of the individual. Really, the commitment to be a composer—or an artist
or poet—is no less than a commitment to seek that which is divine.”
Modern Media Opportunities
In contrast, as we look at the media today from any
vantage point, I think we would have to say that Lucifer’s influence is
far more prevalent than the Lord’s. We are in a war. This war is the
same war that raged in the premortal world. Lucifer and his followers
are committed to an evil direction.
Our Heavenly Father and His Beloved Son, Jesus Christ,
have given a plan for all of Heavenly Father’s children, and we have the
responsibility as leaders and members of the Church to take this
glorious plan to all of Heavenly Father’s children throughout the world.
It is my judgment that much success will come as we become more expert
and more able to harness the wonderful technology that our Heavenly
Father has given man to proclaim His message. Whereas Shakespeare in his
time was limited generally to the Globe Theatre, we have a global
theater that literally opens doors worldwide as our opportunities widen
with modern satellites, computers, and fiber optics.
Yet there is a downside to the modern media because of
the great volume of it pouring into our lives. Bruce Christensen, former
president of the Public Broadcasting Service in the United States and
now dean of the College of Fine Arts and Communications at Brigham Young
University, says that future historians may one day be inclined to
describe our day with this variation on the famous poem “The Rime of the
Ancient Mariner”:
Media, media everywhere,
And all the eyes did blink.
Media, media all around,
And nary the time to think.
We are in an era when the information superhighway
will have the capacity to cut a wide path into our homes. Fiber-optic
computer technology can link homes to an incredible assortment of
messages and influences. This highway will be a conduit of information
that will have the power to change our culture and thus our very lives.
As we consider the importance of nourishing our
intellects with the promising potential of superhighway resources, we
must be ever cautious about our choices of programs and the impact of
media upon our lives. Those who understand our Heavenly Father’s eternal
plan for the joy and happiness of His children will be better prepared
to not only make good choices but also provide good choices as the
information superhighway rolls across the world. The computer,
television, satellite, microchip, and even the telephone all can bless
and enhance our lives, or can make them miserable.
The fact that it took twelve years to put one million
color TVs in American homes, five years to sell one million CD players,
but just under eleven months to sell one million eighteen-inch-wide
direct-broadcast satellite dishes, each of which can receive 175
channels, gives some perspective to the rapid growth in opportunities
created by technology.
Imagine 180 satellites, each with twenty-four
transponders, circling the earth 22,300 miles above the equator. Each
transponder can send multiple signals to millions of receiving dishes on
the ground, giving individuals in the home a myriad of choices. With so
many choices for viewers and listeners, the artistic works of the
Latter-day Saint not only need to be uplifting, they must be excellent,
to set them apart from the worldly and the mediocre. People deserve
alternatives of quality, the kind that Latter-day Saints are capable of
providing through the influence of the Holy Spirit.
A Special Challenge
A challenge was made by President Spencer W. Kimball
in 1974 in his masterful discourse to the Church entitled “When the
World Will Be Converted.” Some interesting points in that address
include the following:
“I believe that the Lord is
anxious to put into our hands inventions of which we laymen have
hardly a glimpse. …
“King Benjamin, that humble but mighty servant of the
Lord, called together all the people in the land of Zarahemla, and the
multitude was so great that King Benjamin ‘… caused a tower to be
erected, that thereby his people might hear the words which he should
speak unto them’ (Mosiah 2:7).
“Our Father in Heaven has now provided us mighty
towers—radio and television towers, with possibilities beyond
comprehension—to help fulfill the words of the Lord that ‘the sound
must go forth from this place unto all the world’ ” (Ensign,
Oct. 1974, p. 10).
I think that to a small degree President Kimball’s
vision is starting to be realized. Today, a number of Latter-day Saint
artists from all fields, from writers and musicians to painters and
performers, are beginning to help fill the world with goodness and
truth. Latter-day Saints are a special people. Our standards are
different; our principles are sure. Yet we are not alone. For contrary
to popular notions about movies, an industry magazine recently reported
that of the top ten all-time domestic movie hits, not one was R-rated.
Many people still respond to values-oriented messages!
Acting President Boyd K. Packer of the Quorum of the
Twelve reminded us nearly twenty years ago that “the reason we have not
yet produced a greater heritage in art and literature and music and
drama is not … because we have not had talented people. … Some have
reached great heights in their chosen fields. But few have captured the
spirit of the gospel of Jesus Christ and the restoration of it in music,
in art, in literature. They have not, therefore, even though they were
gifted, made a lasting contribution to the onrolling of the Church and
kingdom of God in the dispensation of the fulness of times. … They have
missed being what they might have become. I am reminded of the
statement:
“ ‘There are many who struggle and climb and finally
reach the top of the ladder, only to find that it is leaning against
the wrong wall’ ” (“The Arts and the Spirit of the Lord,”
1976 Devotional Speeches of the Year, Provo, Utah: Brigham Young
University, pp. 266–67).
The Eternal Perspective
God’s purpose for the artist and the artist deep
within each of us in the gospel plan is ultimately the same as for all
his children: to bring to pass their immortality and eternal life. Each
of us must use our tools, gifts, and opportunities to triumph in the
contest of mortality. Whether we declare the gospel in quiet, individual
ways or proclaim that Christ is the Savior with the power of universal
symbols, we must strive to understand our role in His purposes. And
because all things are spiritual, only the process of prayer and
inspiration can yield sufficient guidance to make a difference in
whatever method or opportunity is available to us.
Hundreds of years ago, a prophet of God taught the
same principle from the visionary perspective of eternal truth that he
had:
“For behold, the Spirit of
Christ is given to every man, that he may know good from evil;
wherefore, I show unto you the way to judge; for every thing which
inviteth to do good, and to persuade to believe in Christ, is sent
forth by the power and gift of Christ; wherefore ye may know with a
perfect knowledge it is of God.
“But whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do evil, and
believe not in Christ, and deny him, and serve not God, then ye may
know with a perfect knowledge it is of the devil; for after this
manner doth the devil work, for he persuadeth no man to do good, no,
not one; neither do his angels; neither do they who subject themselves
unto him. …
“Wherefore, I beseech of you, brethren, that ye should
search diligently in the light of Christ that ye may know good from
evil; and if ye will lay hold upon every good thing, and condemn it
not, ye certainly will be a child of Christ” (Moro. 7:16–17, 19).
If we are determined to live by Heavenly Father’s
plan, we will use our God-given moral agency to make decisions for our
lives based on revealed truth, not on the opinions of others or on the
current thinking of the world. We will use the inspiring opportunities
around us to increase our talents. We will use all that God has given us
to help bring to pass His purposes. We will lift, inspire, and change
hearts to help make people better than they might have been.
The words of Charles Dickens in A Tale of Two Cities
are as relevant now as they were in his time: “It was the best of times,
it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of
foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of
incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness,
it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.”
We call upon all members, those in the arts and those
seeking to appreciate the message of good art, to expand their vision of
what can be done. If we are going to fill the world with goodness and
truth, then we must be worthy to receive inspiration so we can bless the
lives of our Heavenly Father’s children.
Never in the history of the world have truth and
technology been so available and so prepared to help “bring to pass the
immortality and eternal life of man” (Moses 1:39). But our power and
ability to be successful will be in direct proportion to our faithful
adherence to the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ as we seek to convey
those teachings to others in ways that are edifying and inspiring to
them.