No Coincidences

Author: Brayden Quackenbush

  • Rameumptom

    Rameumptom

    It’s amazing to read the Book of Mormon and compare those people to our day.  One story from the Book of Mormon that recently stood out to me was the story of the Zoramites and the rameumptom.

    The Zoramites were a people who corrupted religion in many ways.  They built a large tower.  This tower was called a rameumptom and it was used for prayer.  People would go to the top of the tower and loudly proclaim a rehearsed prayer.  In the prayer they would thank God that He chose them.  They would thank God that He had enlightened them and saved them while He would damn all the others to hell for their false beliefs.  They would say their prayer, leave the tower, and go about their week without another thought towards God.  They would use their week to serve no one but themselves. 

    A Zoramite man prays on the Rameumptom in the land of Antionum.

    Let’s compare the many false beliefs of the Zoramites to our society today.

    First, praying on the rameumptom.  What good deed is done today without proclaiming it to the world?  We’re all guilty of it.  Social media is our modern day rameumptom.  It is where we proudly shout our greatest deeds for the world to see.  Prayer and good deeds should be done in private.  Let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth.

    Second, the Zoramites had a temple that only the rich were able to go to.  Churches today have become much more about prestige and power than about humility and kindness.

    Third, rehearsed prayer.  The Zoramites used a rehearsed, scripted prayer to talk to God.  There are many problems with this.  It takes any effort from the procedure.  The prayer has no thought or feeling to it, it’s like reading in class.  There’s no genuine questions, no genuine requests, no genuine gratitude. It is a script.  We see this in many churches today.

    Fourth, prayer without action.  This is a byproduct of rehearsed prayer.  What does prayer without effort lead to?  Life without effort.  The Zoramites loudly spoke their prayers from their tower, stepped down, and that was the extent of their worship.  They wouldn’t speak to God again until the next week when they would give their five minute rehearsed prayer and move on with their life.  This is the worship of our society today.  With all God has given us we can’t even give Him a day of worship in return.  Most don’t go to church at all.  Many who do go, go on Sunday, listen for an hour, and the rest of the week don’t do a selfless act.  Christ was our example.  He taught us to pray always, serve others, and love others.  If we aren’t doing that, we aren’t of Him, no matter how loud our prayer.

    Fifth, the Zoramites thanked God that they were chosen by Him.  They thanked Him for enlightening them and turning them away from the foolish traditions of their fathers and neighbors.  They were selected by God and would be saved.  All others were fools who would burn in hell.  Sound familiar?  Many churches today believe you will only be saved if you follow their beliefs or belong to their church.  What kind of selective God is this?  It spits in the face of a loving, caring Heavenly Father who is no respecter of persons. This is a blasphemous and poisonous teaching that goes back to the pride and selective nature of churches.  God loves all His children and will provide a way for all of them to attain as much glory as they desire.  The doctrine of Jesus Christ taught by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints teaches that there are many mansions in heaven and God’s wonderful plan has provided a way for a vast majority, almost all of His children to go to Heaven.  All that repent,  follow His commandments, and believe in His Son will find a place worthy of their righteous hearts.  This is truth.

    I have a close friend of a different Christian faith.  We have many good religious conversations.  One day the topic of heaven came up.  He told me that surely I didn’t believe he would go to heaven as he wasn’t a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, my church.  This made me so sad.  I told him with complete sincerity and 100% certainty that I knew he was going to heaven.  Whether he joined the Church (my church) or not, I knew he was a good person.  I knew he loved Jesus Christ.  I knew he tried every day to seek Christ and to do good.  I knew he sought God with all his heart.  I knew he was kind and liked to help people.  I know, without a doubt in my mind, that there is a place in heaven for him.  I know this because I know God.  I know he loves all of us.  I told this to my friend, and I’ll never forget the look on his face.  A little shock, a little awe.  I know that he believes I am going to hell, he has told me so.  He believes I have been fooled and I will have to pay for my ignorance.

    I know that God loves him, and I know that God loves me.  I know that Jesus Christ is the perfect judge.  We will be judged perfectly.  Even those who are fooled will be given mercy and love from God.  That’s the God I know.  I feel sad for those who don’t know that same God.

    False teachings have corrupted and destroyed religion.  False teachings have turned many away from the truth and light that religion should provide.

    I have an invitation to anyone who read this and thought “I do hate how churches say everyone who doesn’t do this or that is going to hell,” or “I’ve never understood rehearsed prayers,” or “I can’t stand the hypocritical church goers who are the meanest people during the week.”  My invitation is to come and see.  Come and learn of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Come and learn what Christ intended for us.  Come and learn true principles and ordinances of Christ’s gospel.  Come serve with us, come worship with us, come pray with us, come be with us.  The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is not perfect, not yet.  Not until Christ returns.  We can still be hypocrites but we’re trying.  Christ’s Gospel is perfect and we’re working toward it.  Come and see.

  • Books in 2020

    Books in 2020

    This is a list of every book I read in 2020 and the order I ranked them in from favorite to least favorite.  I get something out of every book I read.  I learned long ago that if I allow myself to not finish one book, I won’t finish any.  For those reasons, when I start a book, I’m committed to finishing it.  I don’t care how dry or boring it may be.

    It was extremely difficult to rank these books.  For one, how do you rank nonfiction verse fiction?  Take a fictional John Grisham crime novel like The Last Juror and compare it to a nonfiction biography of the Prophet Joseph Smith for example.  How do you compare the two?  To avoid overthinking it I simply went through my list of books read and from what I remembered, put each on the list.  Every book’s placement on the list is from my initial remembering of how much I *enjoyed reading it.

                    *enjoyed for me is going to be vastly different from most people.  Precious Truths Restored, which was a top five favorite book of the year for me, is there because I learned so much from it and have referred to it constantly throughout the year since I finished it.  I doubt the average person would even get through it.  I loved it.

    I included a one sentence thought about each book.  This proved difficult because I could say so much about every book.  To get around the one sentence rule, I used many commas and run-on sentences. My list, my rules.

    I enjoyed all these books because they each taught me something. That’s the great thing about books.  Here’s my list:

    1. The First 2000 Years by Cleon Skousen
      • When I told a church-going friend I finished this book he looked at me incredulously, I guess my taste in books is unique.
    2. *A Case for the Book of Mormon by Tad R. Callister
      • This book will forever be my reference for a scholarly defense of the Book of Mormon.
    3. *The Mourning Dove by Larry Barkdull
      • I made Beth read this, super short, super memorable, loved this book.
    4. Tools of Titans by Tim Ferriss
      • I gained so much from this book, almost every one of the nearly 800 pages was marked, made me a Tim Ferriss fan for life. 
    5. The Joseph Smith Translation Precious Truths Restored by W. Jeffrey Marsh
      • Helped me tremendously in understanding the dangers of the different translations of the Bible, appreciating the Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible, and understanding how we have the various Bibles we have today.
    6. Bridging the Divide: The Continuing Conversation Between a Mormon and an Evangelical by Gregory C. V. Johnson and Robert L. Millet
      • Inspirational book of two people from different faiths finding joy in a discussion spanning many years that brings them both closer to God, reminded me of a relationship I have with a friend I enjoy discussing scripture with.
    7. *Best Loved Stories of the LDS People Vol 3 compiled by Jay A. Parry, Linda Ririe Gundry, Jack M. Lyon
      • The reason this ranked so high among so many other church history-esc books is I felt like I enjoyed a majority of the short stories, I gave it to my sister to read and she also enjoyed it.
    8. The Third Thousand Years by W. Cleon Skousen
      • This was the sequel to my favorite book of the year, it’s lower on the list because I feel like we generally know more about the third thousand years, so I felt like I got less out of it personally, still great though.
    9. *Among the Shoshones by Elijah Nicholas Wilson
      • Given to my sister-in-law to read, amazingly simple read that repeatedly had me saying out loud, “What the heck?”
    10. The Forerunners by Mark E. Petersen
      • This did a great job of explaining Joseph Smith’s role in the restoration and went into some detail about the pattern of forerunners being sent by God to start a great work on earth, John the Baptist and Joseph Smith being the most famous examples. 
    11. Return from Tomorrow by George G. Ritchie with Elizabeth Sherrill
      • One of the first ever Near-Death Experience books written, NDE books have a special place in my heart as it was an NDE book that helped me come back to church.
    12. The Red Record by David McCutchen
      • This was fascinating, it took legends of an ancient civilization you’ve never heard of, used oral records to go back thousands of years depicting their first legends of crossing an icy bridge to come to what would be the northern part of North America.
    13. And the Moon Shall Turn to Blood by Anthony E. Larson
      • This series of books blew my mind and led me to discussing it with people that didn’t have any interest discussing the topic, this fact instantly gets it higher on the list.
    14. And the Earth Shall Reel to and Fro by Anthony E. Larson
      • Part two to the above book, grouped the trilogy together on my list, these books use catastrophism as a basis of belief about what happened in the history of the world and what will happen in the future.
    15. And There Shall be a New Heaven and a New Earth by Anthony E. Larson
      • Part three of the trilogy, I enjoyed the first one the most and was slightly less interested as I got to the third book, but they were kind of like one book in three parts.
    16. All I need to Know I learned in Kindergarten by Robert Fulghum
      • A collection of short stories that were all extremely entertaining, quick and easy read.
    17. The Glory of the Sun by Sterling W. Sill
      • I love short anecdotes or stories which is why this is just below All I need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten because that’s one of the best books I’ve read that does that, this one did a good job as well on more spiritual and deep topics. 
    18. At Peace in the Light by Dannion Brinkley with Paul Perry
      • Another near-death experience book, I really want to read Dannion Brinkley’s first book Saved by the Light now.
    19. 2012 The War for Souls by Whitley Strieber
      • Awesomely creative book, so good I read it twice, no really, it wasn’t until the end that I realized I’d read 90% of the book years ago and never finished.
    20. How Money Works by Steve Siebold and Tom Mathews
      • A gift to me, I think this book advanced my knowledge of how money works ten fold, this should be required reading in high school.
    21. The Last Juror by John Grisham
      • Some authors have mastered how to get their readers to keep flipping pages no matter what, John Grisham is one of those writers.
    22. The Life Beyond by Joseph Fielding McConkie and Robert L. Millet
      • This book uses modern revelation to answer questions about what happens when we die, I’m amazed the world doesn’t flock to a book that answers the most important question in this life.
    23. Behold the Fig Tree by Roger K. Young
      • Any book that prepares me for what to expect leading up to the Millennium jumps up the list, see #13-15 for other examples.
    24. The Shack by William P. Young
      • Book turned popular motion picture, I may have liked the movie even more.
    25. Mama’s Boarding House by John D. Fitzgerald
      • A fictional account of an early settled western town, gun slinging stories have always fascinated me.
    26. Silent Courage by George P. Lee
      • A really good book was tainted when I learned what became of George P. Lee, was interesting reading about the life in a culture completely unique from my own.
    27. Millionaire Mind by Thomas J. Stanley
      • My only complaint about this book was the repetitiveness of points, though I still got a lot from it.
    28. They Knew the Prophet compiled by Hyrum L Andrus and Helen Mae Andrus
      • First-hand accounts about the prophet Joseph Smith from those who knew him.
    29. From Every Nation by Derin Head Rodriguez
      • Awesome book about the first foreign general authorities, amazing to see the distinct similarities a bunch of men from all over the world had that led to their growth in faith and devotion to Jesus Christ.
    30. How to Read the Constitution and Why by Kim Wehle
      • Should be required reading in any school, important for American students to understand the constitution better, especially now.
    31. Unlimited Access by Gary Aldrich
      • This book was interesting, an honest look from an FBI agent on the security of the white house while he was in charge of security at the white house.
    32. When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi
      • A really neat look at life from someone who was experiencing his own mortality.
    33. Paul’s Life and Letters by Sidney B. Sperry
      • Made me understand the sacrifice of the Apostle Paul in a deeper way.
    34. The Boy who Became a Prophet by Mabel Harmer
      • Ranked on the lower end because I don’t remember a ton from it, though any book on Joseph Smith has proved rewarding.
    35. In the Company of Prophets by D. Arthur Haycock
      • An interesting view on modern-day prophets from the perspective of someone who knew them as well as anyone.
    36. Making Sense of Suffering by Peter Kreeft
      • Like #47 The Problem of Pain, except more at my reading level.
    37. It was on Fire when I sat on it by Robert Fulghum
      • Didn’t like nearly as much as #16, but still enjoyed a lot.
    38. *Translating the Anthon Transcript by Stan and Polly Johnson
      • Lowered due to the chance the information in the book wasn’t fully accurate/true, I very much enjoyed learning about this though, and gave to a friend to read.
    39. Zion Seeking the City of Enoch by Larry Barkdull
      • Larry Barkdull also wrote one of my favorite books of the year (#3), this was an awesome, fictional account of someone trying to join Enoch in the beginning stages of starting his perfected society. 
    40. Frontiers of Being by Duncan B. Blewett
      • Extremely deep and dense, some parts difficult to get through, used some of what I read in this book when officiating my sister’s wedding, fun fact, looked it up online and there’s a “new” copy for sale for $1,008.00.
    41. Valley of Sorrow by Alexander B. Morrison
      • Great book, taught me a lot, not a topic I know much about or am passionate about but definitely learned a lot and opened my mind to some different views on mental health.
    42. Glimpses Beyond Death’s Door by Brent Top
      • I think I struggled with feeling like I was reading an analysis of a bunch of other books that I actually wanted to read, this was surprising given my love for the topic, see #7 and #18.
    43. A witness and a Warning: Modern Day Prophet Testifies of the Book of Mormon by Ezra Taft Benson.
      • Since I already know the Book of Mormon is true this found me nodding my head in agreement throughout.
    44. *LeGrand Richards: Beloved Apostle by Lucile Christenson Tate
      • Gave to my brother to read, it’s inspiring to read about the life of someone with such spectacular faith. 
    45. The Temple: Where Heaven Meets Earth by Truman G. Madsen
      • Classic book teaching the importance of the temple.
    46. Standing for Something by Gordon B. Hinckley
      • Classic GBH.
    47. The Problem of Pain by C.S. Lewis
      • Was really excited for this book, quickly realized I wasn’t intellectually ready to read a philosophical book by C.S. Lewis.
    48. Driven from Within by Michael Jordan
      • Interesting look at Michael Jordan looking simultaneously at his basketball career and how it fueled his creative side which created a billion dollar shoe industry.
    49. Does the Bible Contradict Itself? by W. Arndt
      • A defense of the Bible, didn’t love reading cover to cover which the author kind of said not to do, but will possibly be a book I refer back to often in my life.
    50. Statements on Communism and the Constitution of the United States by David O. McKay
      • Don’t remember a ton about this, I know it was short, I mostly remember thinking, “they used to be extremely afraid of communism.”
    51. Hidden Treasures from the Scriptures: The Battle is not yours it is the Lord’ by Alisha Geary
      • Had an interesting theme about how to get through adversity, short book.
    52. Are Your Standards Fences or Guardrails? By John Bytheway
      • While it’s sort of silly I even read this as I was approaching 30, and I ranked it low, I actually got a lot out of it, especially useful as I was becoming a parent and thinking about the standards I’d like Ivy to have.
    53. Messages of the First Presidency Vol. 6 compiled by James R. Clark
      • I enjoyed it but it was dry, and the average person is not going to get through this book.
    54. Emma’s Glory and Sacrifice by Gracia N. Jones
      • Great book but kind of felt like the attempt to tie it to Emma was a stretch throughout simply due to how few records we have left behind in her own words.
    55. Islam by John A. Williams
      • Just really difficult to read without more of a foundation in the faith, felt like I constantly didn’t know enough to keep up with what was being discussed.
    56. So Much of Life Ahead by Dean Hughes
      • This was an OK book, but it was part 6 in a series and I just decided to read it.
    57. The Plain Truth about Christmas by Herbert W. Armstrong
      • Can’t believe I read this, best thing about it was how short it was, entertaining though I guess.

    *Recommended or gave this book to someone to read.

    Additional reading:

    1. Plan of Salvation pamphlet (should be read by everyone once a year to be reminded of why we’re here).
    2. Book of Mormon
    3. Doctrine & Covenants (Through Section 99)
    4. Old Testament (Finished Ezekiel)
    5. Come Follow Me lesson each week
  • Lectures on Faith – Lecture 2: The Object of Faith

    Lectures on Faith – Lecture 2: The Object of Faith

    A main theme throughout the Lectures on Faith is God’s perfect attributes.  Logically, for us to be able to have any faith in God He must be perfect.  We must know that we can trust God and, in turn, His Son, Jesus Christ. 

    The major theme I took away from Lecture 2 specifically is how we have attained faith throughout history.  Lecture 2 presents the profound idea that our faith in God is always dependent, or comes initially, from the faith of another.  Consider this, if no one in your life ever mentioned any sort of higher being, any sort of God, any sort of creator, would you come up with the thought on your own?  You think about God because He is someone we have been taught about since Adam.

    Even if your parents aren’t the ones who teach you about God, you learn about God from someone.  I would venture to say that in the world today every single person on the face of it has heard of the concept of a supreme being.  Why is this?  Where does our innate belief/consideration of God come from?

    Lecture 2 points out that there was an unbroken chain of testimony that started from Adam and was handed down through Abraham.  If you read Genesis carefully and do the math you will see that ancient prophets handed the knowledge of God down for generations.  It continues today.

    Adam knew God in the Garden of Eden.  When he left the Garden Adam still knew God.  We know Adam’s sons knew God.  Abel provided sacrifices to God.  Cain spoke to God even after murdering his brother.  This shows us that God spoke to men even after the fall and continued to speak to them as they continued to fall into transgression.  There is something significant here that I’d never considered.  Abel first got his knowledge of God from his father, Adam, as did Cain.  After they were told about God by Adam, then they had to develop their own faith in God.  They had to learn, trust, and depend on Him, or not. 

    The important thing to remember from this: we all start our faith by leaning on the faith of another.  We possess dependent faith.  This leads to another profound truth: God possesses independent faith.  God’s faith is not reliant on any outside source.  As discussed in lecture one, God’s faith is perfect.

    I’ve been studying the lectures alongside a video series that I will link at the bottom.  There were many amazing thoughts and ideas presented in that video, related to this second Lecture on Faith.

    Faith is faith until it happens, then it is knowledge. Since God has perfect faith, He doesn’t need to wait for something to happen for Him to know it.  He knows it is going to happen.  His faith is perfect therefore His knowledge is perfect.  It’s simple when you think about it in these terms, but it’s so critical.  It’s why we can have perfect faith in Him, BECAUSE we know His faith is perfect.

    IMPORTANT:  God is not still progressing.  This is important for us to understand.  God is not still learning.  If He was, we couldn’t have perfect faith in Him.

    God is Perfect - Ottawa Church of Christ

    This leads to a question: isn’t life boring for God if He has mastered everything?

    In the video they gave an awesome analogy.  Imagine you’re an accountant.  You master every aspect of accounting there is.  You have a perfect knowledge and ability in accounting.  Would you get bored with accounting?  Probably.  So, what would you then do?  You would teach others how to also master accounting.  God is the master accountant.  He has attained all knowledge on life, faith, eternity, creation – so what does He do?  He teaches us.  What a thought!  We are being tutored by the God of the universe.  That’s what makes this life so important.  When we consider that we are learning and being personally groomed by God Himself, what power it adds to our existence here!

    This leads to another important thought.  What was Christ’s ultimate message while here?  I think it would be service.  Love through service.  Give through service.  Charity.  Without charity you are nothing (1 Corinthians 13:2, Moroni 7:44)  Why did Christ teach this ever-important principle?  Because His Father, our Father, God is the ultimate server.  He is doing everything He does to teach us.  We truly are “His work and His glory” (Moses 1:39).

    I want to conclude with two last realizations: 

    1. The scriptures help develop our faith by teaching us of God.  This is important.
    2. Faith comes by hearing the word of God through the testimony of the servants of God, that testimony is always attended by the spirit.

    You aren’t told to have a testimony.  You’re not made to know Jesus is the Christ.  These are things you must come to a knowledge of through the spirit.  Think about it.  Christ, in His whole ministry, never told anyone He was the Son of God.  He always let them come to that conclusion on their own.  One example is Peter who He told, “blessed art thou for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 16:17).   Another example is Christ to the woman at the well (John 4).  Christ didn’t go telling people who He was.  It had to be revealed by the spirit.  This is why signs come by faith, and not the other way around (D&C 63:7-12).

    Our hearts must be open for us to receive the testimony of Jesus Christ.  2 Nephi 33:1 “When a man speaketh by the power of the Holy Ghost the power of the Holy Ghost carrieth it UNTO the hearts of the children of men.”  Not INTO but UNTO.  It’s then on the heart of the individual to accept or reject the testimony.  The system is in place.  The system has been in place for God’s children to develop faith in Him from the beginning.  Once the testimony is carried to the heart It’s then on the agency of the individual to receive or reject that testimony. 

    God has perfect faith.  We are here to develop our faith so that we can be like Him.  He is the great accountant, and we are his protégés.  It is His hope, His glory that we can become like Him.  As we develop our faith here it will benefit us for the rest of eternity.  I know I say it a lot, but, what a thought.

    Video 3 (Lecture on Faith 2):  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-o59d9ioGA&list=PLc5yYrpPFm2umksQf3jgULxoV4YIXTd2h&index=3

    Lecture on Faith 2: http://lecturesonfaith.com/2/

  • At Peace in the Light

    At Peace in the Light

    By Dannion Brinkley with Paul Perry

    Copyright 1995

    _________________________________

    I don’t recommend books to people often.  This book I recommended directly to a cousin.  This was a great book. I wonder if I say that about every book I read…

    At Peace in the Light is a true story of a man who has died twice.  Both times he was struck by lightning.  Both times he returned to his body.

    I guess not everyone would believe this to be a true story.  I love near death experiences. I am all in on belief in near death experiences. They often support what I believe to be true of the afterlife.

    I often joke that being struck by lighting would be the way to go.  I say that’s a clear indication that God needs you back pronto.  Dannion’s story made me rethink this slightly.  His return to his body was an excruciating experience.  His body was destroyed both times, inside and out, by the lightning strike.

    Two very interesting points from this book.

    • Dannion’s near death experience gave him special abilities.

    Dannion became famous as a psychic.  It seems whatever happened to him left him with some ability to speak or understand the souls of individuals around him.  It’s fascinating to read his description of his “powers” for lack of a better word.

    • Dannion’s near death experience led him into an interesting career change.

    After Dannion was struck by lightning he received clear instruction on what he was supposed to do.  His purpose was to setup a center to help people spiritually transition into death.  Dannion describes a major issue with our society being the fear of death.  It was his new purpose in life to help people transition into their next life.

    It’s partly for this reason that Dannion transitioned into hospice care.  To hear Dannion describe the rewarding experience of caring for the dying made me reconsider somewhat what is important in life.  Near death experience books often help me re-orient my priorities.

    We live this life to die. Ultimately, the most important moment of this life will be how we die.

    I have a new appreciation for the sanctity and importance of hospice care. The cousin I recommended this book to works in this field.

    I have had one experience with “assisting” someone (for lack of a better word) who was near death.  A friend’s mother-in law was nearing the end.  She had battled with cancer and it was time. This friend is not a member of my faith, but, in his words, “we don’t really know our priest.  We know you.”   So, he asked me to come give her a priesthood blessing.

    It was a unique, uplifting, powerful experience I will never forget.  This lady I didn’t know, had never met, was so frail.  You never know what a person is thinking in these last moments. It’s hard to understand the pain, fear, acceptance, peace; whatever emotions and feelings they are experiencing.  It was an honor to get to lay my hands on her head and let her know her Father wanted her home, and soon the pain would be gone.  Soon she would be happier than she could imagine.  Though she would miss her children here, and they would miss her, it was time for her to progress into the next part of her journey.

    This was one experience I had with a person moving on. It has impacted me ever since. It was something I’ll never forget. Imagine having thousands of these important experiences.

    For anyone that hasn’t read a near death experience book, At Peace in the Light may not be the best place to start. It kind of jumps into the topic.  I still recommend it. It may leave you asking for more.  

  • Horror of the Wizard of Oz

    Horror of the Wizard of Oz

    I’ve long held an unpopular opinion.  That opinion is that The Wizard of Oz is the scariest movie ever made.

    I had memories of the last time I watched it.  I was likely 12 or 13 years old.  I was terrified by this movie.  Inevitably I get gawks and then the usual question, “oh, the wicked witch and the flying monkeys… yeah I guess I can see it.”  Emphatic NO.  Those things paled in comparison to the fear that struck my heart at these three characters:

    Just finding that picture gives me the heebie jeebies.

    Those three characters terrify me.

    It is now in my typing this out I must scroll down so I can continue to concentrate.  Their stares haunt me.

    I recently watched this movie again.  I imagined my childhood fear would go away.  They can’t be that creepy, surely.  WRONG.  Instead I gained an adult perspective on what terrified me about these characters.

    Here is what I learned:  these three characters are living in various stages of purgatory.

    Hear me out.

    Exhibit A:  The Scarecrow. 

    We first meet the Scarecrow as he dangles from a post.  No back story on how long he had been there, no idea how he became a scarecrow. Nothing.  That is until I learned that the popular musical Wicked gives us this backstory.  Here’s where my fears are confirmed:  HE WAS ONCE A MAN.  HE WAS TURNED INTO A SCARECROW BY THE WICKED WITCH.  This man is now missing a brain.  With no recollection of who he was or how he became a scarecrow.  He is now a being who regularly loses his innards (that would be the straw always falling out of him).  The worst part is he has a sense of awareness that he’s missing something.  He thinks what he’s missing is his brain, when, in reality, he is sensing his eternal misery as a now straw figure.  I rest my case.

    Exhibit B:  The Tin Man

    We meet the Tin Man frozen in a sad state.  Frozen solid.  He can’t move his eyes, arms, legs, anything.  Stuck solid.  He is in a perpetual state of immobility.  Able to think, unable to speak, unable to move or do anything about it.  What could be more terrifying?  Imagine how sore this would cause him to be.  This must be excruciating physically, to say nothing of the mental torture.  Stuck in one position.  To be accurate I went back and watched this clip from the movie (won’t be sleeping tonight).  The Tin Man, as soon as he is able to speak says, “I’ve held that axe up for ages.”  HORRIBLE.  He goes on to say it was a year ago that he was frozen solid.  Stuck in that state for a full year.  Need I say more?

    Exhibit C:  The Lion

    This one is a little trickier.  It’s a little less obvious.  Let’s open up by asking a simple question:  what is one of the worst feelings in the world?  There are a few options.  Pain is obvious.  What of fear?  What of having no reason whatsoever to fear, but nevertheless fearing everything in sight?  We have a lion.  King of the jungle.  Predator of predators.  And yet, he’s terrified of all he comes in contact with.  What could be a worse form of torture than being given all the attributes of a fearless creature then being burdened with the gut-wrenching, debilitating feeling of constant fear?  Purgatory indeed.

    As a kid I thought it was their grotesque, simultaneously unreal looking, but then hauntingly realistic costumes that terrified me.  As an adult I am justified.  Yes, their appearance is terrifying.  Enough to give children and adults alike nightmares.  That is not the truly terrifying nature of this film though.  Losing who you are, frozen in place indefinitely, and the constant feeling of unsettled fear.  What could be worse than these three fates?

    At the end they are given fake tokens to remove their purgatory-like natures.  All this does is add insult to injury.  The Scarecrow leaves with a piece of paper, soon to realize it tells him nothing of who he is and surely does not mean he has his brain back.  The Tin Man, desiring a heart, not realizing it’s a true human form he needs, gets a cheap piece of glowing plastic.  The Lion receives a badge of honor, which will simply be a reminder of how cowardly he is as soon as he reenters the real world.  Their purgatory continues.  Stuck eternally in a state of non-being. I can imagine nothing more terrifying.