Atomic Holocaust Which Surely Shall Be...

I don't remember a lot of Jr. High...but one thing I do remember is sitting in a dark room in History class...watching videos of the atrocities of war. The two videos that are indelibly etched upon my brain were of the evils done in the Holocaust...and those of the aftermath of the bombing of Nagasaki and Hiroshima. The suffering of those people was almost more than my spirit could bare.

Of the aftermath of Nagasaki and Hiroshima...I remember the skeletons of incinerated bodies strewn all about. They seemed to me to be the lucky ones as they were dispatched to meet their God quickly. Of those that remained behind...that were exposed to the radiation...many died slow and painful deaths...or carried deformities and sickness for the remainder of their lives. Many maladies have been passed on through the generations.

I remember practically stumbling out of the classroom...full of grief...saddened and sickened at man's inhumanity to man.

(On a tangent note...I will say that I could never be a history teacher...perhaps especially in this country...as I believe our textbooks to be riddled with propaganda...and misinformation. If we were to write a textbook right now about what is going on in the US...could we possibly agree on what is going on? Why are we at war? Why is the economy struggling? etc... If you got a group of people in a room to discuss it...arguments would break out...and that is with current events! If we hold onto our man's history as if it is the gospel truth...we may one day find how we fell prey to deception. Read Ezra Taft Bensons view of secular history and see that I am not alone in my disdain. See heading "Inaccuracies of Secular History")

Recently...one of the greatest voices for constitutional government in the US...Chuck Baldwin...wrote an article where he recommended watching a TV program called "Jericho". My wife and I sat down and watched the first two episodes...and I can see so far why he recommended it. It is not my desire to be a spoiler...but I will say that it let's you look in on a small American town that one day is operating normally...and the next day is flopped on it's head with disaster. It will get you to think about areas where your own preparedness plan has holes...to ask yourself if you really believe in constitutional government...even when times get tough...and to ask yourself some tough moral questions.

A major topic that the show brings up is with regards to how to be prepared for nuclear bomb detonations and the subsequent fallout.

Could America Be a Target?

Is America the great liberator of the world? Or are we an imperialist force seeking to rule the world? There are certainly people that hold both points of view...in and out of the US. Regardless of your politics...it does not take much imagination to understand that we have lot's of enemies in this world...that hate us for our occupying their countries...and a variety of other reasons. Enemies that would love to have us disappear or bow to them.

When confronted with this reality...there are some people that would puff out their chests and say something like "America is the greatest country on the planet...no one can destroy us!!" Such sentiments are reminiscent of the Jews that believed that Jerusalem couldn't be destroyed (1Nephi 2:13)...or of the Ammonihahites who believed that the great city of Ammonihah was too strong to be destroyed...especially in just one day!(Alma 9:4) And yet obviously they were both wrong.

Some Latter-day Saint people might turn to scriptures in the Book of Mormon and share the many great promised blessings that have been given to the inhabitants of this land as if to say that we are above such destruction....but then smooth over...or skip the many references that clearly show that those blessings are contingent on righteousness! We must serve the God of the land or be swept off. I would ask..."Are we righteous?"..."Are we serving the God of the land?" How many more of the signs of being "Ripe in iniquity" will need to happen before the wicked punish the wicked (vs. 5)?

Do we have doctrinal reasons to suppose that super-bombs will detonate in the US?

When words are spoken in General Conference...that means something. The prophet presides over the meeting...and would correct any incorrect doctrine if it was spoken. It is like the spoken canon of the church.

Understanding this doctrine makes conference that much more meaningful...as we go to hear the actual word of the Lord to us...not flippant words spoken off the cuff.

This understanding makes the words spoken by Bruce R. McConkie in General conference in 1979 that much more sobering. In one short breath he spoke prophetically of a future... "atomic holocaust which surely shall be"... Here it is in it's context...

"We do not say that all of the Saints will be spared and saved from the coming day of desolation. But we do say there is no promise of safety and no promise of security except for those who love the Lord and who are seeking to do all that he commands.

It may be, for instance, that nothing except the power of faith and the authority of the priesthood can save individuals and congregations from the atomic holocausts that surely shall be."

While we know that the "atomic holocaust...surely shall be"...there is no indication as to where it will take place.

In a 1961 Improvement Era article authored by Elder Harold B. Lee, written in honor of J. Reuben Clark on his 90th birthday. Quoting from Elder Lee's article:

"We heard him reply in answer to a question as to why he had put his life's savings into his presently owned Grantsville ranch: ' This is all I have to leave my family when I die, and if they are not too lazy to work it, they won't starve. I have told them that when the first atomic bomb is dropped here in America, that they are to go out there on the ranch and stay until it is all over.' This last seemed not only to be wise counsel, but also a prophesy. . . ." (Harold B. Lee, "President J. Reuben Clark, Jr. An Appreciation on his Ninetieth Birthday" The Improvement Era, Sept. 1961 pp.632-633.)

So there you read the witness of one apostle Elder Harold B. Lee(who would eventually be President of the church)...quoting the witness of another apostle...J. Reuben Clark...and it being "witnessed" out a third time into a printed church publication!!

Then there are a scriptures that could be interpreted to be nuclear bombs going off. Some of them speaking of "Vapors of smoke"...like in 1 Nephi 22:18.

There is a book called "Superbombs, Saints, and Scriptures"..that explores scriptural passages that could be speaking of atomic events. You can get it for really cheap if you want to look into that more.

Getting Ready

Bruce R. McConkie said just after his comment about the atomic holocausts to...

"Take heed; prepare; watch and be ready. There is no security in any course except the course of obedience and conformity and righteousness."

We need to prepare! We must not fall into the lie that is perpetuated by the lazy that "All you have to do is have faith and be righteous" THE LORD HAS TOLD YOU TO BE PREPARED for the many things that will come...not just to have faith without works!! Part of being "righteous" is obeying the command to prepare...not just cherry picking at the one's we like to keep best. Your Dad told you to put a jacket on before you go out into the cold! Don't expect Him to keep you warm when you step outside in your short sleeves!!!

Here is a really large book that is available online that I printed off and put into a binder. You can also purchase it bound. Here is another book I want to read...that also covers chemical and biological preparedness. You want a hard copy of such books so that you will have them to get prepared for such events...and during so that you can speed read what to do!!

Here is a short version of some things you can do to prepare if disaster is imminent.

It is good to also understand some other major events that are likely like an EMP blast...and what could happen as a result.

After you do some reading...you will get the idea that there are all kinds of supplies that would be good to have (in addition to your normal prep supplies). One could really spend a lot of money getting completely prepared for nukes by building bomb shelters...buying a geiger counter...fallout suits...etc. Make sure that you do your research...and don't fall prey to spending your hard earned money on products that aren't necessary...and may prove ineffectual. There are myths out there regarding what works and doesn't...that have been perpetuated in movies and books. Here is some info on that topic...

One small step you might take is to purchase some potassium iodide pills for your family emergency packs that will provide some protection for your thyroids against radioactive iodine.

Now is the time to get your act together with this stuff. Fear is exacerbated by ignorance and being ill-equipped during a crisis. He that is prepared shall not fear.