"Oh that my words were now written! oh that they were printed in a book! That they were graven with an iron pen and lead in the rock forever! For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God."
-Job 19:23-26
Few questions troubled early Christian theologians and Church Fathers as much as the problem of a literal Resurrection. For these students of the Greco-Roman intellectual tradition, a cursory reading of the Resurrection narratives in the New Testament was not enough--the Greek abhorrence of matter led men like Lactantius, an early Latin Church Father to declare that "whosoever desires the highest good, let him desire to live without a body, for all matter is evil." (cited in Hugh Nibley, Temple and Cosmos, "TheTerrible Questions," Deseret Book Company, 1992.)
How then, did the Resurrected Christ declare to His incredulous apostles, "a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have?" (Luke 24:39, emphasis added). Similarly, Job, in the passage cited above, seems to take the resurrection as a literal, physical occurrence. Turning the literal truths of the Gospel into something figurative, allegorical, or "spiritual" (though I question the use of the term "spiritual" in opposition to the term " literal" provides a convenient method for tempering uncomfortable or inconvenient doctrines, but does not bring us any closer to a perfect understanding of the truth. Somehow, in spite of the bold testimony of Peter, of Paul, of the disciples on the road to Emmaus, and of "above five hundred brethren at once" (1 Corinthians 15:6), the doctrine of the literal Resurrection of Christ, purportedly celebrated this month throughout the Christian world, has become clouded, muddied, and confused.
Thankfully, we need not rely on the accounts in the New Testament alone for evidence of the Resurrection. The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ not only stands as a second nation's witness for the Resurrection of Christ, but also teaches unequivocally the doctrine of a literal resurrection for all:
Now, this restoration shall come to all, both old and young, both bond and free, both male and female, both the wicked and the righteous; and even there shall not so much as a hair of their heads be lost; but every thing shall be restored to its perfect frame, as it is now, or in the body...
How then, did the Resurrected Christ declare to His incredulous apostles, "a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have?" (Luke 24:39, emphasis added). Similarly, Job, in the passage cited above, seems to take the resurrection as a literal, physical occurrence. Turning the literal truths of the Gospel into something figurative, allegorical, or "spiritual" (though I question the use of the term "spiritual" in opposition to the term " literal" provides a convenient method for tempering uncomfortable or inconvenient doctrines, but does not bring us any closer to a perfect understanding of the truth. Somehow, in spite of the bold testimony of Peter, of Paul, of the disciples on the road to Emmaus, and of "above five hundred brethren at once" (1 Corinthians 15:6), the doctrine of the literal Resurrection of Christ, purportedly celebrated this month throughout the Christian world, has become clouded, muddied, and confused.
Thankfully, we need not rely on the accounts in the New Testament alone for evidence of the Resurrection. The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ not only stands as a second nation's witness for the Resurrection of Christ, but also teaches unequivocally the doctrine of a literal resurrection for all:
The spirit and the body shall be reunited again in its perfect form; both limb and joint shall be restored to its proper frame, even as we now are at this time; and we shall be brought to stand before God, knowing even as we know now, and have a bright recollection of all our guilt.
Now, this restoration shall come to all, both old and young, both bond and free, both male and female, both the wicked and the righteous; and even there shall not so much as a hair of their heads be lost; but every thing shall be restored to its perfect frame, as it is now, or in the body...
Can there be any doubt as to the meaning of this text? Amulek, the Christian missionary speaking here, leaves no room for misinterpretation of his words--the Resurrection will be both literal and universal. Even more irrefutable, however, is the testimony of hundreds of men, women, and children in ancient America who saw the resurrected Christ as recorded in the 11th Chapter of 3rd Nephi, the climax of the historical narrative contained in the Book of Mormon. Moreover, we have modern testimony of His resurrection; "After the many testimonies which have been given of Him," declared Joseph Smith and his associate Sidney Rigdon in 1832, "this is the testimony last of all, which we give of him: That He lives! For we saw Him, even on the right Hand of God..." (Doctrine and Covenants 76:22-23)
Mary Magdalene, the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, Peter and the other Apostles, Paul, 500 ancient Christians, the 2000 Nephites at the temple in Bountiful, the modern-day prophet Joseph Smith--with all of these witnesses, how can there be any doubt that Jesus Christ was literally resurrected, and lives today? Yet even among devout Christians, there is much debate--as evidenced by divergent opinions voiced by a variety of theologians on an ABC New special from 2005 investigating the Resurrection of Christ. Some say it was indeed a literal physical resurrection, some say it was literal, but somehow in a different dimension, some say it was only a spiritual resurrection, some that it was simply a dream or vision shared by grief-stricken disciples.
Why so much doubt in the face of so much testimony? I believe that there is an epistemological principle at play here--this sort of knowledge cannot be simply transmitted from one mortal mind to another through the medium of human language. (Indeed, we might question whether any knowledge can actually be transmitted this way, but that is another post for another day.) In the First Epistle of John, the Apostle indicates that the saints "need not that any man teach [them]," because of the anointing they have received--the ministration of the Holy Ghost. (1 John 2:27) Similarly, Peter's profound testimony of the Resurrection of Christ on the Day of Pentecost comes only after he and the other Apostles receive an outpouring of the Holy Ghost (see Acts 2). Many theologians, both ancient and modern, have posited that the Resurrection is simply a mystery--something which cannot be understood by the mortal mind. They are correct insofar as a mystery is something which cannot be known unless it is revealed by God. I was not on the road to Emmaus, in the upper room with the Apostles, nor at the temple in Bountiful among the Nephites. Yet I know that Jesus Christ left the tomb a perfected, physical, resurrected Being that first Easter morning. Knowledge communicated through the Holy Ghost provides for me--and, I believe, provided for those ancient saints, an assurance that lives on when memories of physical evidence fade, or are clouded by doubt and the influence of rationalist and materialist philosophies. As the Savior told Thomas, who desired physical evidence to support his belief, "Because thou has seen me, thou hast believed; blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed." (John 20:29).
As we leave behind yet another Easter season, may we strive to remember throughout the year the true source of knowledge and testimony--and seek to know that of which our physical senses may not always be able to testify. And may we remember that this knowledge, this hope, this newness of life for each of us, comes Because of Him.
