BYU Campus Education Week: Studying death helps us live better
E-mail story
It's easy. Send a link to the story you were just reading to a friend. Just fill out the form on this page and we'll send it along.
Your name and e-mail address are transmitted to the recipient. Otherwise, it is considered private information; see Privacy policy.
PROVO, UTAH
As he took the stage to begin his remarks at BYU's Campus Education Week, Brent L. Top, department chairman and professor of Church history and doctrine, said he realized his topic might seem unusual for the setting.
"Death is both fascinating and somewhat frightening," he said. "It can be frightening in that there is a normal degree of apprehension about it."
This apprehension, though, should not be an excuse for members of the Church to avoid studying and preparing for death and the spirit world.
"Ignoring it doesn't eliminate it," Brother Top emphasized. "In fact, death is a vital gateway to immortality — an important milestone along the road of our eternal progress. For this reason, we should learn as much as we can about this subject."
To accomplish this, Brother Top presented a vast amount of restored knowledge concerning death, the spirit world and characteristics of spirit beings. He repeatedly quoted figures in early Church history as well as testimonies of modern prophets and apostles.
Brother Top began by reaffirming that the physical body is merely a shell for the immortal spirit. This understanding, he noted, helps people comprehend what they feel when they see the body of a departed loved one.
"There is a distinct feeling that that is not him or her," he said. "The body of our loved one is not the real person that we loved. The real person is gone. You can feel it, you can see it."
Concerning what happens when one is released from the mortal body, Brother Top cited Brigham Young and Orson Pratt to describe the spirit's tremendous capabilities. Not only will spirits be able to move at "lightning speed" and communicate with "the language of angels," they will also have enhanced abilities to absorb and comprehend knowledge.
"There is one capacity of spirit learning that really appeals to me," Brother Top said. "Not only will we be able to learn faster and better but we will actually be able to remember it."
Next came a description of the spirit world itself. Though the two worlds will appear similar and natural to those who have passed, Brother Top called the appearance of the spirit world "Natural Plus."
"I guess we could compare that 'natural plus' with the quality of regular television broadcasts in years past with the best high-definition broadcasts of today," he said.
As a result, the spirit world is often described as a "paradise" or place of rest. Even so, Brother Top said, it will also house the hurried efforts of the faithful who are called immediately after death to preach the gospel.
"'Hurry' is the operative word," he said. "Urgency would describe the work on the other side of the veil."
One aspect of the spirit world that will not be interrupted by work is the joyful reunion of families and loved ones. Brother Top recalled the death of his older brother as a 4-day-old baby and envisioned the happy family reunited after nearly 60 years of separation.
"Reunion with loved ones is one of the most significant and most joyful conditions of the spirit world," he said.
In Brother Top's view, an understanding of both death and the afterlife is necessary to make righteous decisions throughout mortality.
"Our knowledge of what it will be like then and there helps us to know what we should be like here and now," he said. "The gospel insights about dying teach us a great deal about living. In a spiritual way, focusing only on today diminishes our tomorrows. In contrast, if we prepare for death each day of our lives, we will not only obtain eternal life — better worlds and greater light — but also our here and now will be abundantly enhanced."
This concept of "living day-by-day," Brother Top said, should cause us to re-examine, repent and rejoice.
"I rejoice in my understanding of the purpose of this estate and the meaning of death," he said. "I rejoice to know that death is not the end of life and love and relationships. I rejoice to know that my loved ones who I am separated from for a season are not far from me."
