Inconceivable!

I love flash mobs. From the moment I first saw one online, I was smitten.

Of course, some of this fondness stems from my great love for music, but that's not the only reason for my affection. Mostly, it's the idea that in a random place, at a random time, a crowd of random people can suddenly show itself to be not random at all, but a carefully planned and structured assembly where strangers express and spread joy with their musical gifts – without expecting anything in return but that joy that comes from sharing it.

It kind of restores my faith in the goodness of the world at a time when we are seeing so much news about the badness of the world.

Everyone knows what a flash mob is, but I thought it would be interesting to get a educated definition.

Flash mob: a group of people summoned to a designated location at a specified time to perform an unusual act for a brief time before quickly dispersing. Also called an inexplicable mob.

That got me thinking: By that definition, the events following the birth of Christ are something of a flash mob.

And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes,

and laid him in a manger;  because there was no room for them in the inn. 

People were summoned – first, shepherds:

And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.

And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.  And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. 

For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

Then, Wise Men:

Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judæa in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him . . . 

And they came.

The Shepherds came: And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. (Luke 2:7 - 17)

The Wise Men came: And, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.

Gifts were shared.

And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshiped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh. (Matthew 2:1 - 11)

And there was music.

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

There will always be music at God's great events, because that is one of the ways He communicates His joy.

Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into singing, O mountains: for the LORD hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted. (Isaiah 49:13) 

So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. (Isaiah 55:11 – 12) 

Break forth into joy, sing together, ye waste places of Jerusalem; for the Lord hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed Jerusalem. (Mosiah 15:30)

And it is one of the ways we can show our love and gratitude to Him.

I will sing unto the LORD, because he hath dealt bountifully with me. (Psalms 13:6)

For 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. (D&C 25:12)

If thou art merry, praise the Lord with singing, with music, with dancing, and with a prayer of praise and thanksgiving. (D&C 136:28)

Yea, Lord, thy watchmen shall lift up their voice; with the voice together shall they sing; for they shall see eye to eye, when the Lord shall bring again Zion. (Isaiah 52:8)

These occurrences – the  birth of a baby whose coming had been prophesied for centuries and who would change the fate of all mankind; the appearance and voices of angels; a new, uncharted star –  were certainly inconceivable  – unexplainable by the logic of the world. The works of God are often inexplicable to mankind.

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:8 - 9)

And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory. (1 Timothy 3:16)

Behold, great and marvelous are the works of the Lord. How unsearchable are the depths of the mysteries of him; and it is impossible that man should find out all his ways. (Jacob 4:8)

. . . There are many mysteries which are kept, that no one knoweth them save God himself . . . (Alma 40:3)

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While I am enthralled by flash mobs of all kinds, my favorites are about Christmas, and the birth of our divine Savior and Redeemer. I'm sharing one I love – for all the reasons I've already given, and because in this one there is a moment here that gets me every time:

(You can watch the whole thing (it's really not a bad use of five-and-a-half minutes) or you can watch the last song, which begins at 3:03. The moment that steals my heart starts at 4:26.)

I am moved by the awe that boy sees in the representation of the baby Jesus. He is so struck by the holiness of the symbol that he drops to his knees – and others, perhaps older and 'wiser', follow.

The cynic might say that this was planned and rehearsed; that this young man was just doing what he had been told to do many times. And that might be true.

But I choose to believe otherwise. I choose to believe that in that moment those people felt the power of holiness, sacredness – and reverence.

Reverence is something we may not think about much, once we grow from wiggly children into self-disciplined adults. But maybe we should.

Reverence is a deep respect for sacred things; a feeling of awe and wonder. Paul Woodruff, a professor of humanities at the University of Texas at Austin, expressed these feelings on the subject of reverence:

Reverence begins in a deep understanding of human limitations; from this grows the capacity to be in awe of whatever we believe lies outside our control—God, truth, justice, nature, even death. The capacity for awe, as it grows, brings with it the capacity for respecting fellow human beings, flaws and all.¹

The scriptures give us a bit more insight into the actions of reverence:

And thus we saw the glory of the celestial, which excels in all things—where God, even the Father, reigns upon his throne forever and ever; Before whose throne all things bow in humble reverence, and give him glory forever and ever. (D&C 76:92 - 93)

And it came to pass that he stretched forth his hand and spake unto the people, saying:
Behold, I am Jesus Christ, whom the prophets testified shall come into the world. And behold, I am the light and the life of the world; and I have drunk out of that bitter cup which the Father hath given me, and have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world, in the which I have suffered the will of the Father in all things from the beginning. 

And it came to pass that when Jesus had spoken these words the whole multitude fell to the earth; And when they had all gone forth and had witnessed for themselves, they did cry out with one accord, saying: Hosanna!  Blessed be the name of the Most High God! And they did fall down at the feet of Jesus, and did worship him (3 Nephi 11:16 - 17).

For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God. (Romans 14:11) 

Reverence is a sense of awe that can send us to our knees and leave us stunned. It comes when we truly consider that Jesus Christ was born, that He lived a perfect life, that His willingness to bear the inconceivable burdens of the Atonement can free us from guilt and sin, and that by laying down His life for us, He conquered death. This is the message of truth that can send us to our knees.

A beautiful hymn expresses some of that feeling for me:

I stand all amazed at the love Jesus offers me,

Confused at the grace that so fully he proffers me.

I tremble to know that for me he was crucified,

That for me, a sinner, he suffered, he bled and died.

Oh, it is wonderful that he should care for me

Enough to die for me!

Oh, it is wonderful, wonderful to me!

I marvel that he would descend from his throne divine

To rescue a soul so rebellious and proud as mine,

That he should extend his great love unto such as I,

Sufficient to own, to redeem, and to justify.

I think of his hands pierced and bleeding to pay the debt!

Such mercy, such love and devotion can I forget?

No, no, I will praise and adore at the mercy seat,

Until at the glorified throne I kneel at his feet.

Oh, it is wonderful, wonderful to me!²

To stand all amazed, and then to fall to your knees – that sounds like good exercise for the soul. I think I'll try to make a daily habit of it. ☺


Merry Christmas!

¹Paul Woodruff, Reverence: Renewing a Forgotten Virtue (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001), 3.

²I Stand All Amazed, Text and music by Charles H. Gabriel, 1856-1932