Bowels of Mercy

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bowelsofmercy

johndurham peters

although perhaps too earthyforcarthyearthyfor squeamishreaders the idea oftheodtheofthe bowels ofmercym ercy is ffoundoundaund frequently in the scriptures reflecting ancient views abouthuman emotions and offering powerful insights about divinecompassion

I1willpraisethee for I1am fearfully and wonderfully made Ps 13914

the scriptures often come to us like messages in abottle blown fromdistant times and places theybring with them modes ofexpression thatcansometimes bemysterious forlatter dayreaders one ofthese manner-isms is thefrequent use ofconcrete bodilylanguageindescribing spiritual

conditions we read variously offlinty hearts and stiff necks bent knees

and girdedloins blind eyes and ears waxed dull andperhaps strangestofall bowels ofmercy inthe hebrew bible the greekseptuagint thegreeknewtestament thekingjames bible and theLDS scriptures bow-els play a central role as a term for deep human feeling specific moral

virtues and thelove ofgod suchbowel imageryis ubiquitous appearingnot onlyinobscure passages but also in manyofthemostimportant dis-

cussionscussions ofcharity gods grace and especially inthe bookofmormon ofthe atonement that the bowels ofall things should be singled out forspecial spiritualpurposes arousesperplexity ifnot aversion inmost ofusyet ifproperlyunderstood thenotionthatthevisceracanbe the vehicleofvirtue is poetically and morally powerful the metaphor of the bowelsreveals something about theworkings not only ofreligious language butalsoofmercy

modesofexpression

god has expressly chosentospeakwith human beings after theman-nerofourlanguage scriptural language consists ofbridgesbetween divine

command and human experience As expressions ofhis will to prophets

over the ages the scriptures are historically shaped texts designed to stir

human understanding and feelingdacd&c 124 5010 12 rather thantrans-parent packets ofinformation As such they are also a storehouse ofdiverse and sometimes antiquated imagery modes ofexpression that areinclusive ofbodily parts both active functions and passive sufferings

BBYUYU studies 38 no 4 1999 27


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celebrate the corporeality ofall mortal creatures togetherwiththe divine

embodimentoftheodtheofthecreatorhimselfratherthantreatthem as astumblingblock we should appreciate these modes ofexpression for the religiously

and aesthetically instructiveofferings thattheyarescriptural talk ofbowels descends from ancientpatterns ofthought

that place theemotions in particular internal organs 1 rage lust hunger

joy compassion andso on were onceconsidered not asabstract moodsor

psychological statesbut as passions associated with specific anatomicalparts forthe hebrews the leb orheart wasthe vitalcenterof human life

the place where we think as well as feel for the greeks the phrenesperenes hada similar role but whether we should associate them with the lungs

diaphragm orheart is stilldebated other organs couldbeassignedemo-tional rolessuch asjoyto the liver duetoits large size ordiscomfortto the

kidneys in such feelings thetrue character ofa person was thought tobe

localized consider jerferjeremiahemiah 2012 0 lord ofhosts that triest therigh-teous and seestthe reins andthe heart the pointthatthelords gazecanpierce humans to the center oftheir being is clear enough but we rarely

note thatthe reinshere are the kidneys reins beinganobsoleteterm com-

parerenal french rein

to have a pure heart is a habitual turn ofphrase today but to speakofpure kidneys sounds quite odd yetthere is ofcourse no compellinganatomical reasonwhytheheartshouldbethemainenglish termfor ouremotionalcenteranymorethan anyother inner organ the heartis vitaltoour existence can be felt under certain excited conditions and sits at the

core ofourbody butit isnot in strictfactanintellectual oremotional cen-

terororiginator we are usedtothinkingoftheodtheofthe heart asthe seatoftheodtheofthesoul

nottheliveror bowels andyet the physical heartis ultimately only ameta-phor aswell

nevertheless moderneverydaylanguage still oftenreproduces ancienthabits ofthought the case oftheheartshowsthatorgantalknot onlypre-vailedprior to modern medicine but is still very much a partofmodern

english speechwaysspeechways we speakofbreathtakingbreath taking music heartbreakingheart breakingsto-ries gut wrenching suffering stomach knotting tension fire in the belly

ora burninginthebosom I1 might spillmyguts to getsomethingoffinsoffinyoffmy

chest or asthe eraoffofosephjosephoffoseph smithwould have it unbosom myfeelingsAplucky athlete wesay hasheart asacourageous soldierhas guts an irasiras-

ciblepersonhas spleen and a coward is a lily livered person 2

similarly guts can also designate the essentialparts ofsomething the

guts ofa car as well as the entrails proper the bowels mark a personI1

s

humanity asin moby dicks references to menthathave no bowels to feelfear or nobowels for alaugh 1 I3 in tom sawyer tom picks afightwith aboy with a citified air about him that ate into toms vitals 0141147144 with this


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bowels ofmercyofmercy 29

phrase marktwain deliciouslydeliriously paints toms irritation with a term remi-niscent ofthe taunt to eatyour heartout in english then the innards

especiallythebowels arethe feltsiteofsome ofourmostintensepassions

the ancienttermsthatthe kingjamesstranslators renderedinto eng-lish as bowels had a long history in hebrew and greek in the hebrewbible threewords rechem derebqereb andmehmelahmetah aretranslated as bowels inthekingjamesversion KJV the mostimportantofthese thepluraltermmemmeimmcmmelm has a wide semantic range in biblical hebrew and can signify theinnards generally not only the intestines the reproductive organs and

thevitalcenter ofemotionallife 5 referringto songof solomon54 bibli-calscholarmarvin popesummarizes this usage thehebrewmemmeimmelm desig-nates primarilythe inward parts ofthe body the intestines bowels gutsand isusedoftheodtheofthesourceofprocreativeprocreativeof powers maleandfemale oftheodtheofthe seatofthe emotions pity compassion distress and here oferotic emotion 7161166

thehebrew derebqereb canrepresentthe inwardparts 7 while rechembechem moreoften translated as compassion is closely related to the word rachamhacham

womb and thusconnotes a deep lovegrounded insome natural humanrelationship especiallythat ofparentand child 8

in classicalgreek oneterm splangchna aplural termthat is cognateto spleen couldmean both the intestines and the edible innerparts ofasacrificed animal such as the heart lungs liver and kidneys as well asthe location ofgeneral character traits in human beings although notspecifically the seat ofmercy 9 in septuagint and newtestament greek

splangchna tookon a more hebraic color to include tender feelings andmercy 10 in the epistles ofpaul for instance splangchna is used to de-

scribe not onlythe vitalorgans but alsotheentirehumanpersonality the

bodyand spirit together paul described his deep love for the far

awayphilippians forgod is my record howgreatly I1 long afteryou allin thebowels ofjesus christ philip 18 similarly in philemon paul wroteon behalf ofa beloved slave onesimus whom paul called mine ownbowels philemphalemPhilem 112 meaning someone tied up in his inmost affec-

tions or as we might say a bosom buddy inlatin viscera could meanbest friend just as in somewhat old fashioned modern greek tzieri

moumeans both my dear and myliver

inboth shakespeare and the KJV whose sixteenth and early seventeenthsteenth century usages were already shaped bythe hebraisms ofearlier

english bible translations bowelswas afamiliar termfor theemotions and

theinnerparts up througheighteenth centuryenglish bowel could refertoanyinternal organ even the brain only relativelyrecentlyhas it ac-quiredthe restricted sense of the intestines an oxford english dictionarydefinition for bowels captures much ofthe KJV sense ofthatword con-sidered as the seat ofthe tender and sympathetic emotions hence pity


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compassion feeling heartheart511yllxii511 A humorous example ofthe failureto rec-

ognize the archaic sense ofbowels is seen in how a 1639 text was classified

the london sermon called bowels opened or A discoveryoftheneerebeere

anddeerelove union and communion betwixtchrist andthe churchwas placed inthe yale medical library apparently some hastycataloguerthought its topic wasthe reliefofconstipation12constipation12

english has been enriched in many ways by its borrowings from

hebrewandgreek amongother languages ratherthan merelymirroringthe original language translation also enriches thetarget language 13 we

often speakofwhat is lost in translation forgetting that much can be

gained as well forgood and ill AKJV passage illustrates howtranslation

can enrich butwhosochoso hath this world s good and seeth hisbrotherhave

need and shuttethshutteth up his bowels ofcompassion from him how dwellethdwelleththe love ofgod in him ijohn 317 the greeksimplyreads ifhe closehis bowels away fromhim the king james translation adds ofcompas-

sion to bowels the noun compassion appears nowhere in newtesta-ment greek though we think ofcompassion as the heart guts ofnew

testament teachings 14

nineteen ofthe twenty occurrences ofthe word compassion in theKJVnewtestament derive from verbs and thirteen ofthese come from

splangchnizomai averbform based onsplangchna whichmeanstohave

compassion or more literally something like tobe boweled greekin-nardsbecome english love andsympathy an inheritancethat shapes LDS

scriptural language as well indeed the KJV supplies the basic idiom for

much ofLDS writ 15 including its usage ofbowels how one word couldmeanthe offal ofa sacrificed animal thetender emotions discussed inthe

bible and the compassion enjoined in LDS scripture is apuzzle to whichweshallreturnbelow

the powerofgutsyimagery

scriptural bowellanguage then descends from deep rooted traditions

ofconceiving internal organs andnot onlythe intestines asthedistinc-tive locations of human feeling understanding thishistoryremovessome

ofthestrangeness ofsuchlanguage yetit is an error I1believe to tamethemetaphor too quickly as dothe revisedstandard versionand othermod-

ern bible translations that usually replace this jarring language with soft

euphemisms 16 muchrather there is something significantly uncannyand

vaguely unsettling in the scriptural juxtaposition ofthe lowest and thehighest things guts andcompassion bowels andmercy the bowelsareatonce both gruesome and tender both aesthetic and theological lessons are

tobe learned here


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someofthemost movingscriptural teachings about love and solidar-

ityare couched inimagerythat isfranklygrotesque at thewaters ofmor-mon alma tells thenew converts thatthey shouldlookforward with one

eye havingonefaith and onebaptism having their heartsknittogetherinunity mosiah 1821 imaginingalmaaima swordsconcretely givesus acyclopsofmany people with interwoven cardiac tissues but the literal meanings

at which we rarelypause point to a much deeper sense 17 small means

bring about greatmeanings similarly ammon exults thatgods bowelsofmercy areover allthe earth alma 2637 surelythe pointisnot ablas-

phemous revision ofthe rainfalling onthejustand the unjust alike butthe

universality ofgods love forhis children As a child I1 wassimilarly struckby the apparent grisliness ofthe sacrament prayers where we pray to re-

member the body and theblood ofchrist rather thanjusthis love orworksingeneral perhaps weneed the vividdetailto anchor thelarger sig-

nificancenificance more powerfully

twistinganold saying thebestway to apersons spiritmaybe via thestomach sensinganother theologicallesson here sometimes wemayneed

tobehitin the guts eventhe resurrected jesus groanedwithin himselfhisbowelswerefilledwithcompassion forthe multitude atbountifulwhen

he was struckby the painful contrast between the holy innocence ofthe

nephite children and thewickedness ofthepeopleofthe houseofisrael

3ne 1714the perception of the sublime sometimes rests on sublimation the

loveliestmoments inmusic often stem fromdissonance just asthe sweetest

perfumes often have civet as their basic ingredient A musky scent atthe

foundation ofthings maybe a condition ofthe worlds glory andbeauty

there is no excellent beauty said francis bacon that hath not somestrangeness intheproportion 18

the bowels are strangelyan inner reflection ofour outer selves in asense they are a second skin thegastrointestinaltract is an outsidethat is

inside a hole that runs all the way through our midst we earthlingsearthlings are

doubles to ourselves our skin and bowels are one continuous surfacebothin factoriginate inthesame embryonic germlayer our bodiesare theoriginal mobius strip two sides onesurface Asthe other ofour skin

thebowels arethepoorrelation wewouldlike tokeep in the closetthus curiously enough thepoweroftheodtheofthebowels as ametaphorin con-

temporary english lies quite possibly in the disgust they evoke whether

they are understood as guts generally or intestines specifically disgust is

intimately bound to gusto disgust is a condition ofaesthetic perception

indeed it is also a kindofaesthetic perception

fewaspectsofourolourofourembodimentare lessattractivethanthe lowergastro-intestinal bowels there is something repulsive about their product and


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function their sounds scents andmotions being beyond polite boundseven thebodyleaves them ofallvitalorgans theleast protected from in-

jury surgeons who might be expected to be immune to themetaphorical

connotations ofbody parts have commented to me about the messy andslithery quality ofthe bowels the bowels business is to cast off andtheyget cast offsymbolicallyas well

more than anyotherorgan however thebowels mostallyus to thesoil

we have one might say a long compost pit within ourbowels add to theearthand remindus dailythatwe inhabit tabernacles ofclay job 419 jesus

himselfmadehimselfmadethe elimination process the subjectofhisochisofhisteachings inarguing

that it is not what goes into the body but what comes out ofit that defiles

matt 1518 mark715 excrementinitselfdoesnot desecrate butthe words

and thoughts that emanate from the heart jesus was not afraid ofdealing

franklybut discretely with human embodiment in its fullness his doctrinecrossed over traditional laws ofcleanliness and hygiene when the good

samaritan s bowels are moved for example he is lookingatwhatthe priest

andlevite perhaps with ritual horror might have taken to be a corpse

luke 1033 19 to have compassion is to care forthings taintedwith disease

anddeath as all mortals

insome ways are As

humans aterm related tohumus groundorearth we areearthlingsearth lings acquaintedwith soil

thebowelsaresubjects about which we areoftenembarrassed to talkand yet the scriptures put the bowels unavoidably in our face our resis-tance to reflection about bowels is itselfinstructive the bowels sitat thecenter ofthe humanbodyand yet nothing is so furtive as the act ofdoing

our business but it is an experience common to man one towhich we

can all relate and onewe all had to master at anearlyage the bowels may

repulse us but few distresses are as acute as when theymalfunction bow-els are the part ofembodied life which we rarely articulate but which is

most intimately our own when they are discussed they are usually thestuff ofbawdy humor snickering puerility or scatological writing not

scriptural truth the bowels may be the most personal and hidden ofallorgans the sheer reliefofthe bowels being moved the release ofinnercontainment may serve as a secret metaphorofwhat it is to go beyond

ourselves toletourinsides go tostopholdingback perhapsin someways

compassion asthegreeksuggests has asimilarmotion 20

culturally mormonscormons tend to be queasy about explicitness in bodilydepiction evenifourtheologyteachesthe necessity ofhumaneand divine

embodiment anythingtoo concrete onthe fullnessofthe godheadbod-ily col 29 often makes us perhaps rightly nervous navels let alone

genitals arealready perplexing enough thoughourtheology allowsforthe

possibility oftheir eternal continuation 21 the issue is more one ofrepre-sentationsentationandtastethan doctrine much ofmodern thoughtandliterature


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bowelsofmercyofmercy 33

hasengaged inwhatwemight see as archaeologyofhumus anexploration

ofthe extremities ofbodily bliss and degradation such exploration canbe

both bracingandharsh profane and profound As considerations ofwhatit

means to be mortals creatures with bowels modern thought merits theattention ofthosewho have a stomach for such exploration yet the mod-

ernist fascinationfor theproximity ofthe organs oferos and ofexcretion22excretion22

has little resonancein LDSLIDS culture despite thenovels stories and essaysof

levi S peterson forexample which areexquisitelysensitiveto the theologi-cal and earthymeaning ofour nether regions 23 peterson stands in the lin-

eage ofthe christian grotesque that stretches from the gospels and pauls

lettersthroughdostoyevskyandflanneryoconnorandcelebratescompas-

sionforthe maculate stuffofwhichstuffofwhichhumans are made compared to godsperfection he argues perhaps everyliving ounce ofthehuman body the

heart and brain aswell as the emunctories is nobetterthannight soil 24

peterson makes the comparison too stark however sincegods sonalso made his tabernacle ofsuch stuff human fleshisnotjusttheoppositeofgods glory but a powerful sign ofhis grace and even ofour kinshipwith him an embodied being the lord god omnipotent came downfromheavento dwellin atabernacle ofclay mosiah35 andwhy thatby bearingthe infirmities ofhisochisofhispeople hisbowelsmaybefilledwithmercyaccording to the flesh alma 712 in LDS theology the bowels are notopposedto god sperfection they are its veryvehicle 25

atonementand the bowelsofmercyofmercy

inLDS scripture the bowels arenot foregroundedgroundedfore theyarelefttodotheirwork crucial as always butbehind the scenes away from ordinary

view in seeing the expanse of the eternities enoch had a vision oftheentire human family and lookedupontheir wickedness and theirmiseryand wept and stretchedforth his arms and his heart swelledwide as eter-

nity and his bowels yearned and all eternityshook moses 741 enochsyearning isnot abstractor contemplative but deeplyvisceral the motionsofhisochisofhis innerorgans are intune asit were with theshaking ofeternity like-wise abinadi says tothecourtofkingnoah

and thus god breakethbreaketh the bands ofdeath having gained the victory over

death giving the sonpowerto make intercession for the children ofmenhavingascended into heaven having the bowels ofmercy being filled with

compassion towards the children ofmen standingbetwixt them andjusticehavingbrokenthe bands ofdeathofdeath taken uponhimselftheirhimself theiriniquityandtheir

transgressions having redeemed them and satisfied the demands ofjusticeofjustice

mosiah 15858 9

itwouldbehard tofindanywherein scripture amorecompactdescription

ofchrists workofintercession central to which is the acquiring ofthe


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bowelsofmercy forboth enoch andabinadi thevision ofgods eternalworkingsismysteriously connected with theinner organs greatandsmall

noble and ignoble divine andhuman are tiedtogether

why shouldsomething so earthly as bowelsbe usedtodescribe christsmercyand work there areseveral possiblereasons

the divineexperienceofhuman suffering several LDS commenta-tors have honed in onwhat elder neal A maxwell terms the stunning

book ofmormon insightthatjesussuffered inorderthathe might knowhow to succor his people 26 in a striking articulation ofthis aspectofthe

atonement lorin K hansen argues it is not jesus suffering per se thatredeems menandwomen suffering has an effect onhim and it isthat ef-

fect orchange that makes possiblehuman redemption the power ofre-demptiondemption comes through his expanded knowledge and sensitivity which

hethenexpressesthroughhisrole asmediator 27 incontrast totraditional

explanations ofchrists suffering as aransom tothedevil apaymenttoan

exacting god or an avenging ofgods wronged honor hansen developswhattheologians call the moral theory ofthe atonement that is christdied to awake a moral transformation ofour beings the atonement not

onlyreconciledhumanitytogodbut godto humanitytheatonement is inthis view less a settling ofcosmic accounts thanpart ofgods education so to speak an experience he needed to conceiveempathy with thehuman family an immersion inpainnot unlikewhatall

intheirsecondestatemust experience acondescension inotherwords 28

hansen citeshebrews58anddoctrine andcovenants 9311 14thatchristhadno fullness at firstbut learned throughsuffering elder maxwellsimi-

larlyexplains that theinfinite intensiveness ofchrists suffering wasnec-

essaryfor him tobecome a fullycomprehendingatoner 29alma 712 also makes this verypoint and he will take upon him

death thathe mayloosethe bands ofdeathwhichbindhispeople andhe

will take upon him their infirmities that his bowels may be filled with

mercy according tothe flesh thathemayknowaccordingtothefleshhow

to succor hispeople according to theirinfirmities almabackpedalsbackpedals abitinthe nextverse asififhavinghavingrealized hemight haveimplied gapsin divine

knowledge nowthe spiritknoweth allthings nevertheless thesonofgod sufferethsuffereth according tothe fleshthat he might takeupon himthe sins

ofhis people that he mightblot out their transgressions according tothe power ofhis deliverance alma 713 bowels cannot apparently be

filledwithmercy without amortalsojourn according to the flesh a

requisite that implies the novelty ofmortal life within gods experienceand fits morecomfortably in aprocess theologythantraditionalnotions

ofstatic omniscience


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obviously there is a huge difference between abstract theoreticalknowledge and knowledge developed and tested inthe crucible ofexperi-

ence to take a homely example thepicture ontheboxand a completedjigsaw puzzle are all but identical images but the completed puzzle isalmost infinitely richer to those who assembled it they know its detailstextures colors andpatternswithbothaffection andfrustration while the

coverpicture isnot invested withtheir care oracquaintance to anonpar-ticipant communicating the difference between the two images would be

nearly impossible in this way the spirit might in advance knowpre-cisely whatthe picture ofmortal life looks like but still have to learn the

labor ofmatchingpieces bycolor and shape

embodiment holds all kinds ofsecrets unknowable to the spectatorA spirit who has never lived in embodied mortality may know all things

except what it is like not to know all things in mortality a spirit can be-

comeacquaintedwiththenight privation andignorance itcan encounterlack absence desire and negativity in their fullness or rather theirpar-tialitytiality itcan learn about waiting surprise theuncertaintyofallactioneverything in short that derives fromlivingin time the bowels stand as

part for thiswholeconnectingcoimectmgwithwithmortality muchofthebowel language in LDS scrip-

ture occurs in passages concerned with what i1 nephi 1126 calls the con-descension ofgod the descent of the divine into the human or the

inspiration ofthe human with divine characteristics 3300 the bowels are auniquesign ofdivine condescension intomortal claydayclaociaoaay in 1841 ludwigfeuer-bach wrote that the hidden secret ofchristianity is that humans projecttheir mortal desiresonto theheavensthus creatingthe gods incontrast the

essenceofchristianity isthatgod comes downtobecome acquaintedwithmortalmatter 31 themetaphor ofthebowels offers adeepvision ofconde-scensionscension by which I1 donotmeanhaughtiness butthe descentofthe divine

intothe human so thatthe human mayascendinto thedivine

perhapsthe locus classicusclass icusofsuch anotion in LDS literature is joseph

smith ssecond letter fromlibertyjail thy mind 0man ifthouifthouwiltleada soul unto salvation must stretch as high as the utmost heavens and

search into and contemplate the darkest abyss and the broad expanse of

eternity thoumustcommunewithgodgod3232 it is inthe sameletterthatweread let thy bowels also be full ofcharity towards all men and to thehousehold offaithfaitlfalthgaithfaial dacd&c 12145 compare 886 this is amanifesto for akindofknowledgeofknowledge art and lifethatis not afraid oftheodtheoftheheightsor thedepths

akind ofinquiry that is asbroad asgods mercy and as deep as thelowestreaches ofmortality taking condescension in this way has rich implica-

tions forour relation with god each other andour vision ofourplaceinthe cosmos


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thebowels then arethesignofourhumanityandofgods succorforit they arecentraltothe languageoftheodtheoftheatonementsincetheymarkgod scondescension but the metaphor ofthe bowels as doctrine andcove-

nants 12145 suggests implies ahorizontal dimensionofmercybetween fel-

lowmortals whenjoseph inegypt first sawhis long lostyounger brotherbenjamin he madehaste for hisbowels didyearn upon hisbrother and

hesoughtwheretoweep andhe enteredintohischamber andwepttheregen 4330 when king solomon took a sword to divide the disputed

babybefore thequarrelingmothers the real mother s bowels yearned

uponher son and she said 0 mylord give the otherwoman the living

child and innowise slay it ikgsggs

326 inboth cases the hebrew wordtranslated asbowels israchamim meaningsomethinglike tender mercies

or maternalnurture aword alsorendered inthe plural as mercies com

passions orpity and inthesingular as matrix orwombinthe KJV 33 both

benjamin soontobe framedas a thiefinthievinthiefinjoseph s testofofwhetherwhetheror nothiselevenbrothers have learnedto care for each other in his absence and the

disputed baby arein mortal danger onthebrink ofdeath acts ofsubstitu-

tion in each case deflect the sword ofjustice judah steps forward to take

benjamin spunishment just asthetruemotherletsherrivaltakeher placeas mother thus the bowels in the king james idiom often signify a res-torationto ofapriorrelationship arescuing from exile even awillingness to

trade places with another inperil

A matteroflife and death why the bowels should be the mark ofmercy is perhaps illuminatedbythe ancient practice ofanimal sacrifice a

point alludedto above walter burkert ascholarofancientgreekreligionoffersanarresting interpretation ofthe origins ofgreektragedy heargues

thatthe participants inthe sacrifice feelguiltandhorroratthe slaughter ofaliving animal for their ownnourishment Adramaofexpiation develops

this is the birth oftragedy that shifts the blame for the animals death

fromthe killerstothe animalitself the splangchnaare thefirstpartsofthevictimtobeeaten

the slightly uncanny vitals the internal organswhich come to light onlynow andmay seem tocontain the life whichsometimes cause disgust and

sometimes are regarded asrather a delicacy must be disposed offirst ofall

no wonder that susplangchneuein to share the flesh orinternal organs ofavictimat asacrifice isthe firmest foundation offellowship theshudder ofhorrorat the animal smurder diesawayin a feelingofphysicalofphysicalwellbeingwell being 34

the splangchna ofthe eaters maybe moved with contradictory feeling astheybecome literallyfilledwith the splangchnaofthe animal withhorrorand awe the sufferings of thevictimgo directlyfrom its bowels tothose of

the celebrants mighttheparticipants inthesacrificerecognizethe tender-

nessoftheirown vitals astheyconsume those ofthevictim Ispityfor the


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sacrificial victim a metaphor for solidaritywith our fellows to hurt withthem where theyhurt burkert in any case offers one way to connecttheinnards andthe quality ofmercy aconsuming empathy forthevictim

scriptural bowels often appearwhere so meones life hangs in thebal-ance the vitals ofa sufferer are at stake and the observer s or the con-

queror s bowels stir in identification in the greek newtestament textbowels respond to a crowdperishing from hunger matt 936 a debtorabout tobe sold into slaverywith his wife and children matt 1827 twoblind men pleading for sight matt 2034 a widow grieving for her sonluke 713 awayfarerwounded andleftfordead luke 1033 and asonre-

turning as iffrom the dead luke 1520 in the same way a dog shows its

belly to its enemyto admit defeat nowopenlyexposed themostvulnera-ble spot invites thevictor to relent ourbowels so open to injuryinbattleand so easilyupsetbywhat goes in them are ourmosttender spot to begformercy isto askthevictorquite literallynot tohateorhit our guts

sharing thepainofothers to havemercy fromlatin misericordiaa heartofpityofpity istofeelinone sown bowels the plightoftheodtheofthe other tosharesorrowsin a heartnotone s own to havebowels foranother is torecognizea shared

humanity a

common subjection to suffering and death

bowelsarethe siteofofsubstitutionalsubstitutional suffering inmoderngreek oneoftheodtheofthetenderest thingsyou can sayis splachnosplachno mou meaning mydear one its impli-

cation isthatyour soul is mysoul that you are myinnerparts

inthe bowels welearnto feelforothers nothing is sodifficulttoshareaspain ournerveendingsterminateinour uniquepain centers althoughpeople can share words and comfort with each other the sorrow is each

person s alone to feel the pain ofothers is physically impossible but

morallyimperative how canhumans breakoutofthe shellofprivate sor-row amulekamules flatly declared thatnomortals can shed their ownblood topayforanother s sins alma 3411 explaining that onlyan infinite substi-tutionbyaninfinitebeing couldreachacrossthe gapsbetween individuals

therefore there canbe nothingshort ofan infinite atonement whichwillsufficefor the sinsoftheworld alma3412 theproblemofmortallifefor amulekamules isthat allarehardened and thusdestinedto perish alma 349

hardening suggests manythings to harden inpride insin inwill

but all ofthese suggest the hardening ofthe self hardening might beprecisely the quality of individuality that makes every person solelyresponsible forhis orher own sins andimmune tothesufferings of others

ifwepersist in ourhardness according to amulekamules ourpain is destined tobe absolutelyincommunicable ifnot thenwehave theopportunitytoen-counter abeing christ who canbridgethe gap between the zero and the

one christ died then in part to save us from ourselves one purpose oftheatonement isto soften us to makeusableto feelviscerallyeach other s


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sorrows with the bowels ofmercy the sharing ofviscera the walls be-tween people seem to melt

the epitomeofother bearingpain is pregnancyand childbirth bow-els inthe KJV idiom as wehaveseen arenot onlydelicacies consumedata sacrifice butthe reproductive organs the bowelssuggestboth thetakingand the giving oflife having bowels moved withcompassion suggests

pregnancy aninward partbeing filled and moved foranothersothersan life inlabor the motherrisks her life forthe sake ofthe child s putting her own

bowels in jeopardy here again bowels suggest a surface both inside

andoutside selfand other the bowelsofchrist mightbe poeticallyun-derstoodderstood as awomb the meansbywhich wegain second birth his suffer-ings in the garden and on the cross are like labor pains see john 1621

scriptural bowel imagery then encompasses male and female just as the

bowelsofchrist arefilled for all 3ne 177 tohis sonsand daughters hehas earned theright to say splachnamou

LDS theologians often note the impossibility ofcomprehending whatjesus christ went through in theatonement 35 while thisprotestationcould beread asindicating alackofauniquelyLDS accountoftheatoning

process I1 believe

it evinces a deeper respect for theimpenetrability ofchrist s suffering nohuman sorrow pain sickness orinfirmity isstrangeto christ36Christ 36 he has gone through them all bunions backaches birth

pains believers inhimneednever feelthattheysuffer alone but sincethe

greatesthuman sorrowmaybe theloneliness ofsufferingand theisolation

we feel in ourworst moments christ s lone sorrows had to be incompre-hensiblehensibleto usbefore ourscouldbecomecomprehensible tohim hehad tolearnthe walled inquality ofpainfirsthandto succorus ininour ownsuffer-

ingloneliness ourinabilityto fathomhis sorrow ispartofits savingprop-erty ifwe could easilypeer into his pain wewould be in theposition of

bridging the infinite gapbetween thepain feltby the selfandbythe other

something amulekamules suggests finite beings cannot do gospel accounts ofjesus disciples sleeping during his lonelyagonyin gethsemane mark 14

34 4040 and the withdrawaloftheodtheofthepresenceofgod thefatherduringchrist s

suffering onthe cross mark1534 are poeticallynecessaryto underscore

his loneliness believers are invited to consider ifthere is anyhurt like his

and torecognizethat theycando nothingtolifthispain christ spillshisgutsso tospeak on ourbehalf a god in solitarysorrow andwe are inwardly

movedinresponse

bysuffering infinitely christ brought about the bowels ofmercy inmany respects consider the climactic verse ofamulekamulekssmuleks great discourse

this being the intent of this last sacrifice to bring about the bowels ofmercy which overpowerethoverpower ethjustice andbringethbringeth about means unto men

and women that they may have faith unto repentance alma 3415


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lowellbennion andeugeneenglandhave rightlyfocused attentiononthe

marvelously suggestive notion ofproviding means for faith unto repen-

tancetance13737137 but perhaps the even more important phrase in this passage is11

the bowels ofmercy whose bowels these are is wonderfully unclearthese bowels ofmercyare brought about onmany levels forgod thefather surveying the sinful human family for god the son pleading forthem and for penitent people who recognizing the mercy they have

received are able to breakthrough the selfenclosure ofpain and succor

others we are thus all assophocles hadantigone sayofherdeadbrotherhomosplangchnoi oftheodtheofthesamebowels there isno shameinpayingrespectto those ofthe same bowels 3138113838 perhaps these atoning bowels ofmercy

belong to the universe itselfin that they stave off the sword ofjustice As

we see that gods son has bowels full ofa sorrow that exceeds anythinghumans couldeverknow thebowelsofmercyofmercy arebroughtaboutinus thehardness ofeach individuals innercoreis pierced and opentocompassionAsan infinitesufferer christlefthimselfvulnerable asareceiverofmercyofmercyourmercy pity or misericordia so that we might receive his mercy andgods mercyin turn

conclusion

the bowels in short arethe inwardparts oftheatonement theplaceatwhichthe inside and theoutside the boundaries between selfand other

become blurry the bowels arethe site ofatransaction between selves thesite ofa great substitution the pains ofthe other become ones own weenter zion the community ofgenuineofgenuinelove where as alma says ourheartsmight be knit together this is both the social and religious meaning of

bowelsofmercyofmercy inthe metaphor wediscovernot onlysomethingthat isvaguely grotesque orsuggestivelypoetic but also a deep unity that isbothaesthetic and theological godspowerto encompass with loveall thingstheheights and thedepths corruption and incorruption

johndurham peters isassociateprofessorof communication studies attheuni-versityofiowa theauthorwould like to thankeric G andersen mary J depew E B

holtsmark J kenneth kuntz benpeters marshapaulsenpeters johnW welch andthree anonymousreviewers forhelp encouragement and neededcriticism none how-ever is at all responsible forany errors ofargument orphilology

i1 onindoeuropeanindo european organsymbolism seerichard broxtonbrotononiansanians the originsofofeuropeaneuropean thought about the body the mind the soul the world time andfatecambridge cambridge university press 1954 for the ancient hebrews see H W

wolff anthropologieAnthrop ologie des alten testaments munich kaiser 1973 andmark S smith

theheart and innards inisraeliteemotional expressions notes from anthropologyandpsychobiology journalofbiblicalofBiblicalliterature 117 1998 427 36


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40 BYUstudies

2 even here organ talk isisburied at a deeper level pluck originally meant the

heartandlungs and courageous derives from thelatin cor heart see oniansanians ori-gins ofofeuropeaneuropeanthought 69 much ofenglishofenglishorganlanguage such as spleen derivesfrom galen s

notionofthe

four humors3 herman melville moby dick 1851 reprint newyork norton 19671551967 155 4164 marktwain the Aadventuresdventures oftom sawyer 1875 reprint newyork collier

192071920 75 victor P hamilton meahme ah ininR lairdharris gleason L archerjr andbruce K

waltke eds theological wordbook of the old testament 2 volsVOIS chicago moody1980 1518i 518 oniansanians origins ofeuropeanofeuropeanthought 485 86

6 marvin H pope song ofsongsofsongs Anew translation withintroduction andcom-

mentary anchor bible ed david noel freedman garden city N Y doubleday1977977519519

7 leonard J coppes qerebdereb ininharrisand others theologicalwordbook 28132 8138 leonard J coppes rachamhachamRa cham inin harris and others theological wordbook

28412 841 43

9 paulstengel splangchna jahrbuchJahrbuch des kaiserlichenkaiser lichen deutschen archdologischenarchaologischen

institutesinstituts 9 1894 115 walterburkert greektragedyand sacrificialritual greekroman and byzantine studies 7 no 2 1966966 108108 henry george liddell and robertscott A greek englishlexicon 1843 reprint oxford clarendon 1968 svsv splangchnon walter bauer A greek english lexicon of the new testament and other earlychristian literature trans andadapted by william F arndt and F wilbur gingrich

chicago university ofchicago press 1979 sws w splangchmzomaisplangchnizomai andsplangchnonhjalmarfrisk Griechisch es etymologischesworterbuchw5rterbuchWorterbuch heidelberg carlwinter 1968769 gerhard kittel and gerhard friedrich theological dictionary of the new testa-ment lo1010 vols grandrapids mich eerdmans 1985 75487548 6060

lo1010 kittel theological dictionary 75507 550 5411 oxford englishdictionary 2dad ed s v bowels inthis connection itisisinter-

estingthatmartinluther thebiblicaltranslatorapparentlypreferredbyjosephsmithininmost cases favors hetzherzheriherf with lowercase h or heart as the translation forboth

meimmeimmelm and splangchna for example provbrov 121012 10 philip 18i 8 see bebliabibliagetGergermanicalgermamcagermanicaGermamanicamca 1545

stuttgart omnitypie gesellschaftGesell schaft 1967 facsimile edition12 pope song ofsongsofsongs plateVI

13 walterbenjamin the taskofthetranslator ininwalterbenjamin illumina-tions ed hannah arendt trans harryzohn newyork schocken 1968 69 82

14 theclosest equivalents are agape love eleos pity and charlschanscharischatis grace15 philip L barlow mormonscormons and the bible the place ofthe latter day saintsinin

americanreligion newyork oxford university press 199116 hamilton meahmelahmetah 1518i 51817 thenotionof dissonantimagery inin LDSscripture I1 oweto kris cassity who

discussed this idea inin aBYU book ofmormonofmormon classtaughtbyrebakeele spring

1976

18 ofbeauty inin francis bacon ed brian vickers oxford oxford universitypress 1996 425

19 foran analysisofthe aesthetic and religious importof abjection inin chris-tianityandofthese passages seejuliakristevaknstevakostevaKrisKnstevateva powers ofhorrorofhorror an essay onabjectiontrans leon S roudiez newyork columbiauniversitypress 1982 113 32

20 compare brigham youngs indictment ofgreed anticipating freudsfrauds linkofmiserliness and anal retention men came into our midst who shut up the bowels

oftheircompassion andheld theirmoneywithanironiron fist brigham young ininjour-

nalofdiscoursesofdiscourses 26 vols liverpool F D richards 1855 8617586 175 september 11 1853


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bowelsofmercyofmercymergy 41

21 see john A widtsoeWidt soe Arational theology as taught bythe churchofjesusofjesuschrist oflatterofdatterlatterlattey fayday saints 5thath ed 1915 reprint saltlakecity deseretbook 1965 69

22 freud for instance loved to quote augustine inter annasunnasurinasbrinas etfaeceset faecksfaeces naclnascinascimurnacimurnacimurweare bornbetween urineurineand feces seesigmundfreud civilizationcivili tion andits discon

tents trans james strachey new york W W norton 1961iggi 53 seealsowilliam but-leryeatssyeates poem crazycrazy jane talks with the bishop inin W B yeats the poems eddanielalbnghtalbright london J M dent andsons 1990 309 10

23 1 I1 am notbeingaltogether facetious when I1 saythat I1 adhere to a theology of

the emunctonesemunctories god created human beings with intestines bladders sweat glandsand nostrils and he does not despise his handiwork levi S peterson letter to theeditor dialogue Ajournalofmormonofmormon thought 20 winter 1987 8

24 levi S peterson in defense ofa mormon erotica dialogue A journal ofmormonthought 20 winter19871271987 127

25 nealnealaA maxwell notmy will butthine saltlakecity bookcraft 1988311988 3151 affirms that theatonement included theperfecting ofchristsmercy byhis expeelperienriencingnencmgcing pains and ordeals that perfectedhis capacityto succor his peopleand hisempathyfor them

26 neal A maxwell all these things shall give thee experience salt lake citybookcraft 1979979 35

27 lorinlonn K hansen the moral atonement as amormoninterpretation dial-ogue Ajournalofmormonofmormon thought 27 spring 1994 215 see also truman G madsen

smith joseph teachings of inindaniel H ludlow ed encyclopedia ofmormonismofMormonism

4vols newyork

macmillan 1992 313413 134128 seegeorge reynolds and janneM sjodahl commentary on the bookodmorofmorofmor-

mon 7vols saltlakecity deseret book 1955 61 31343 134lodiod see alsoalma 421542 1529 maxwell not mywill but thine 503030 LDS language even offers a new nonnonbiblicalnonbibhcalbiblical usage the bowels oftheearth

see doctrine and covenants 84101 moses7487 48 andJSTmark8128 12

31 ludwig feuerbach das wesen des ChristenchristentumschnstentumstUMS 2ndand ed vol 2 ofgesammelte

werke berlin akademieAkademie 1984

32 joseph smithjr history ofthe church qfjesusofjesus christ ofoflatterlatter day saints edB H roberts 2daded rev 7vols salt lakecity deseretbook 1971971 32953 295

33 coppes rachamhachamRa cham 28412 841 4334 burkert greektragedyand sacrificial ritual 108108 935 seehansen moral atonement 196 see for example johntaylor the

mediation andatonement saltlake city deseret book 1884 150 james E talmagejesusthe christ saltlakecity deseret book 1915195 613

36 maxwell notmy will butthine 5137 eugeneengland thattheymightnot suffer the gift ofatonement dial-

ogue A journalofmormonofmormon thoughti1 autumn 1966 148 5050 eugene england thelegacyoflowell L bennion Ssunstonestone 19 september 1996996 41 442

38 sophocles antigone line 511511

Bowels of Mercy

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