{"quotes":[{"text":"I am not a saint, unless you think of a saint as a sinner who keeps on trying.","author":"Nelson Mandela","tags":["atonement","saints","sin","sinners"],"id":5540,"author_id":"Nelson+Mandela"},{"text":"Still the dream persists, suppressed but always there, that somehow by some miraculous effort of the heart what was done could be undone. What form would such atonement take that would turn back time and bring the dead to life? None. None possible, not in the real world. And yet in my imaginings I can clearly see this cleansed new creature steaming up out of myself like a proselyte rising drenched from the baptismal river amid glad cries.","author":"John Banville","tags":["atonement","dreams","forgiveness","forgiveness","ghosts","imagination","john-banville","past","regret","regrets","time"],"id":30190,"author_id":"John+Banville"},{"text":"I am one of his witnesses, and in a coming day I shall feel the nail marks in his hands and in his feet and shall wet his feet with my tears. But I shall not know any better than I know now that he is God’s Almighty Son, that he is our Savior and Redeemer, and that salvation comes in and through his atoning blood and in no other way.","author":"Bruce R. McConkie","tags":["almighty","almighty-son","atonement","god","jesus-christ","redeemer","salvation","savior","son","witness"],"id":45458,"author_id":"Bruce+R.+McConkie"},{"text":"The Atonement has not only helped me be cleansed, and be healed, but it has also helped me live.","author":"Jayda Skidmore","tags":["atonement","bible","book-of-mormon","cleansed","healed","healing","heartbreak","jesus-christ","lds","live","living","pain"],"id":63760,"author_id":"Jayda+Skidmore"},{"text":"The English word Atonement comes from the ancient Hebrew word kaphar, which means to cover. When Adam and Eve partook of the fruit and discovered their nakedness in the Garden of Eden, God sent Jesus to make coats of skins to cover them. Coats of skins don’t grow on trees. They had to be made from an animal, which meant an animal had to be killed. Perhaps that was the very first animal sacrifice. Because of that sacrifice, Adam and Eve were covered physically. In the same way, through Jesus’ sacrifice we are also covered emotionally and spiritually. When Adam and Eve left the garden, the only things they could take to remind them of Eden were the coats of skins. The one physical thing we take with us out of the temple to remind us of that heavenly place is a similar covering. The garment reminds us of our covenants, protects us, and even promotes modesty. However, it is also a powerful and personal symbol of the Atonement—a continuous reminder both night and day that because of Jesus’ sacrifice, we are covered. (I am indebted to Guinevere Woolstenhulme, a religion teacher at BYU, for insights about kaphar.)Jesus covers us (see Alma 7) when we feel worthless and inadequate. Christ referred to himself as “Alpha and Omega” (3 Nephi 9:18). Alpha and omega are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. Christ is surely the beginning and the end. Those who study statistics learn that the letter alpha is used to represent the level of significance in a research study. Jesus is also the one who gives value and significance to everything. Robert L. Millet writes, “In a world that offers flimsy and fleeting remedies for mortal despair, Jesus comes to us in our moments of need with a ‘more excellent hope’ (Ether 12:32)” (Grace Works, 62).Jesus covers us when we feel lost and discouraged. Christ referred to Himself as the “light” (3 Nephi 18:16). He doesn’t always clear the path, but He does illuminate it. Along with being the light, He also lightens our loads. “For my yoke is easy,” He said, “and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:30). He doesn’t always take burdens away from us, but He strengthens us for the task of carrying them and promises they will be for our good.Jesus covers us when we feel abused and hurt. Joseph Smith taught that because Christ met the demands of justice, all injustices will be made right for the faithful in the eternal scheme of things (see Teachings, 296). Marie K. Hafen has said, “The gospel of Jesus Christ was not given us to prevent our pain. The gospel was given us to heal our pain” (“Eve Heard All These Things,” 27).Jesus covers us when we feel defenseless and abandoned. Christ referred to Himself as our “advocate” (D\u0026C 29:5): one who believes in us and stands up to defend us. We read, “The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler” (Psalm 18:2). A buckler is a shield used to divert blows. Jesus doesn’t always protect us from unpleasant consequences of illness or the choices of others, since they are all part of what we are here on earth to experience. However, He does shield us from fear in those dark times and delivers us from having to face those difficulties alone. …We’ve already learned that the Hebrew word that is translated into English as Atonement means “to cover.” In Arabic or Aramaic, the verb meaning to atone is kafat, which means “to embrace.” Not only can we be covered, helped, and comforted by the Savior, but we can be “encircled about eternally in the arms of his love” (2 Nephi 1:15). We can be “clasped in the arms of Jesus” (Mormon 5:11). In our day the Savior has said, “Be faithful and diligent in keeping the commandments of God, and I will encircle thee in the arms of my love” (D\u0026C 6:20).(Brad Wilcox, The Continuous Atonement, pp. 47-49, 60).","author":"Brad Wilcox","tags":["atonement","atonement-of-christ","jesus","jesus-christ","lds","mormon","religion","religion-christianity","temple"],"id":73367,"author_id":"Brad+Wilcox"},{"text":"Superficial views of God and His holiness will produce superficial views of sin and atonement. God hates sin. It is His uncompromising foe. Sin is vile and detestable in the sight of God . . .The sinner and God are at opposite poles of the moral universe.","author":"Billy Graham","tags":["atonement","billy-graham","god","holiness","moral-universe","sin","sinner"],"id":86662,"author_id":"Billy+Graham"},{"text":"Let go and let God. Don’t dwell on your past mistakes. When you do that, your past keeps you from moving forward. The wonder of the Atonement is that you don’t have to be the same person you were yesterday, last year or even a minute ago. Through Christ, and through the power of repentance, you are continually being reborn.","author":"Toni Sorenson","tags":["atonement","change","christ","faith","hope","inspiration","life","reborn","repentance"],"id":90142,"author_id":"Toni+Sorenson"},{"text":"Now, the atonement of Christ is the most basic and fundamental doctrine of the gospel, and it is the least understood of all our revealed truths. Many of us have a superficial knowledge and rely upon the Lord and his goodness to see us through the trials and perils of life. But if we are to have faith like Enoch and Elijah we must believe what they believed, know what they knew, and live as they lived.","author":"Bruce R. McConkie","tags":["atonement","believe","doctrine","elijah","enoch","god","goodness","gospel","jesus-christ","knowledge","life","lord","trials","truth"],"id":91936,"author_id":"Bruce+R.+McConkie"},{"text":"Sometimes we carry unhappy feelings about past hurts too long. We spend too much energy dwelling on things that have passed and cannot be changed. We struggle to close the door and let go of the hurt. If, after time, we can forgive whatever may have caused the hurt, we will tap 'into a life-giving source of comfort' through the Atonement, and the 'sweet peace' of forgiveness will be ours ('My Journey to Forgiving,' Ensign, Feb. 1997. 43). Some injuries are so hurtful and deep that healing comes only with help from a higher power and hope for perfect justice and restitution in the next life. . . . You can tap into that higher power and receive precious comfort and sweet peace.","author":"James E. Faust","tags":["atonement","forgiveness"],"id":96044,"author_id":"James+E.+Faust"},{"text":"The powers of the Atonement do not lie dormant until one sins and then suddenly spring forth to satisfy the needs of the repentant person. Rather, like the forces of gravity, they are everywhere present, exerting their unseen but powerful influence.","author":"Tad R. Callister","tags":["atonement","christ","jesus-christ"],"id":96169,"author_id":"Tad+R.+Callister"}],"pagination":{"page":1,"page_size":10,"total":57,"pages":6,"next":"?page=2\u0026page_size=10"}}