Learning and seeking truth has been the quest of my life. Although I have been an active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints throughout my life, I have enjoyed learning all I can about other faiths. I began attending Long Beach City College when our children were all in school. I studied Hebrew so that I could read the Old Testament in it's original language. I had an amazing Hebrew Teacher named Sippora Cronen. She is a native Israeli, and we went with her on a trip to Israel. How wonderful it was to be in the Holy Land! The sights and sounds seemed to take me back in time, and help me feel closer the the Lord, and understand better the background of the scriptures.
After graduating from Long Beach City, I attended California State College in Long Beach. I entered the Religious Studies program, and enjoyed it very much. I took classes in Old and New Testament, Islam, Buddhism, Catholic Spirituality, Dead Sea Scrolls etc. I also took a semester of Greek, but decided I enjoyed Hebrew more. My teachers were all excellent, and I learned a lot. I graduated and enjoyed school so much that I decided to go on for a Masters Degree. I applied for admission to Fuller Theological Seminary, but received a letter rejecting me because Of my membership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
I was sitting in the cafeteria at CSULB when a young man noticed that I had a bumper sticker on my notebook that was in Hebrew. We started talking, and I mentioned that I wanted to get a Masters Degree, but didn't know where to go because I had been rejected by Fuller. He told me about Southern California College in Costa Mesa. He said that it is affiliated with the Assembly of God, but that he had heard that they had accepted a few Mormons. I called that afternoon and explained my situation. I was invited to come and meet with Dr Murray Dempster, who was then head of the new Graduate Studies Program in Religion.
He was very kind. He explained a little about their beliefs and said that if I felt I could be comfortable studying there, the would welcome me. I thoroughly enjoyed all the classes I took there. I especially enjoyed Dr Nancy Heidebrecht's class on Biblical Archaeology. She organized a two month trip to Israel, Egypt and Greece. We dug for 6 weeks at Tel Dan Israel. It was an amazing experience. My eternal gratitude goes to my wonderful husband, who held down the fort with our five children while I went off to follow my dream. I have always been interested in ancient history and archaeology along with my love for the scriptures.
Perhaps in future blogs I will share some of my experiences there.
The youngest of our five children was 14 years old when my husband and I had a happy surprise
We had another baby. So instead of going on for a PHD, I returned to City College and just took a few classes just for the love of learning. When he was old enough to begin school I enrolled in a certificate program in archaeology at UCLA. Again, I loved each class and learned a lot.
I love truth wherever it can be found. And all I have learned has strengthened my testimony in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
Jesus said, "By their fruits ye shall know them" One of the fruits of the gospel is The Book of Mormon. I have read it many, many times. It is filled with the stories and testimonies of ancient prophets on the American continent that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior and Redeemer of the World. Truth shines from it's pages. It is a second witness along with the Holy Bible that Jesus died on the cross for our sins, and was resurrected. He appeared to his apostles and disciples in Jerusalem, and then also appeared to his "other sheep" on this continent. The gospel message is the same in the Book of Mormon as it is in the Bible. There is no way that Joseph Smith, a young unlearned farmer could have written it. I have a burning witness of the Spirit that the Book of Mormon is the word of God, that Joseph Smith was called to be the Lord's prophet to restore to the earth the fullness of his gospel as taught in the Bible.
Another of the fruits that have strengthened my witness of the truthfulness of my church is that love and service to each other and to all of God's children is central to all that we do.
Each year tons of food, clothing and other necessities are sent by the church to all parts of the world to help relieve suffering and bless lives. It is done quietly and without fanfare.
The moral standards taught by our church have helped us raise each of our children to become wonderful people.
I will soon post links to several of their blog sites.
It is my hope that this blog will be a blessing to all who read it. I have many things to share that I have learned by study and also by faith.
I welcome all who are interested to join in the adventure , and welcome any insights you would like to share.
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