For I know when we touch this subject we talk of people who are very gifted. If you are willing to listen, I would like to express some concerns I have had over these matters and describe to you some disappointments I have heard expressed among the leaders of the Church.īecause I intend to be quite direct in my comments, I am a bit concerned. 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.” They have therefore missed doing what they might have done, and they have missed being what they might have become.
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. But few have captured the spirit of the gospel of Jesus Christ and the restoration of it in music, in art, in literature. Some have reached great heights in their chosen fields. For over the years we have had not only good ones but great ones. The reason we have not yet produced a greater heritage in art and literature and music and drama is not, I am very certain, because we have not had talented people. I have studied expressions of my Brethren and of those who have led us in times past, in order to determine how those questions should be answered. Since I have been interested in these matters, I have, over the years, listened very carefully when they have been discussed by the Brethren. I hope for sufficient inspiration to comment on how the Spirit of the Lord influences or is influenced by the art forms that I have mentioned. My credentials, if I have any (some of them should be obvious), relate to spiritual things. I am not adequate as an artist, nor as a sculptor, a poet, or a writer.īut then I do not intend to train you in any of those fields. However, should I be pressed to it, I could, without much difficulty, prove my point. I am not a composer, nor a conductor, and certainly I am not a vocalist. My credentials to speak do not come from being a musician, for I’m not. He is just out of his province.” It may comfort them to know that I know that. Now, I’m sure there are those who will say, “Why does he presume to talk about that? He is uninformed. It has many variations, but the theme is this: Why do we not have more inspired and inspiring music in the Church? Or why do we have so few great paintings or sculptures depicting the Restoration? Why is it when we need a new painting for a bureau of information, or perhaps for a temple, frequently nonmember painters receive the commission? The same questions have an application to poetry, to drama, to dance, to creative writing, to all the fine arts. I want to respond to a question that I face with some frequency. My gratitude to them will, I’m sure, be more obvious when I move into the message that I have chosen to speak upon tonight. I very anxiously lay claim to those blessings from these righteous young men and women who have sung so beautifully this sacred hymn of Zion. I am particularly appreciative of the music we’ve just heard, and quote from section 25 of the Doctrine and Covenants:įor my soul delighteth in the song of the heart yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, and it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads.