Our family epic

In our blog of May 15, 2009, I reported on getting reacquainted, in the Raleigh Temple, with Richard Rust, who I knew a little at BYU. He is a retired UNC English professor, and is also considered one of the experts on the literary aspects of the Book of Mormon. While at the cabin this week, I have been rereading his book on this topic (FEASTING ON THE WORD: THE LITERARY TESTIMONY OF THE BOOK OF MORMON, Deseret Book, 1997). In a chapter where Brother Rust describes the Book of Mormon as epic literature (long heroic poem or narrative that covers extended time and grand scope like The Odyssey , The Iliad, Paradise Lost, Beowulf, etc.,–among other things these epics usually involving larger-than-life characters) with particular reference to the identity of Lehi’s descendants, he makes a statement that caused me to ponder our family: “To truly understand their identity, a people must know who they are, where they came from, and what their destiny is.” (Rust, p. 47)

Although not written at this point as epic poetry, I thought about how much our Church doctrines and practices help us with our identity. It positions us as spirit children of God, our Heavenly Father, coming to earth under his great Plan of Redemption worked out by greatest of heroic figures, Jesus Christ, and with the story spanning life before and after our existence on this earth. There is the ancient gospel, which tells and provides the way to access the Plan, first given to Adam, reintroduced through various prophets, by Christ himself when he lived, and then restored in our day through the prophet Joseph Smith. The latter is itself filled with heroic deeds, Josephs’ faith and martyrdom, the pioneer trek and building the kingdom in the West, missionary experiences and miracles, etc.

Positioned within this context is the identity of our own family. Who are we, where did we come from, and what is our destiny? We research our ancestry, compile our family history, and do temple work with the expectation of meeting and accounting to these persons in the next life. We love conversion stories of our ancestors and to hear of their faith and sacrifices. We gather together to maintain our association and relationships. Our Lewis Family Creed tries to establish some future family goals. Are we producing our own family heroic characters? What more should we do as a family to provide the basis for our own family epic?