"Orson Hyde, the Holy Land, and Brigham Young University" | David Whitchurch | 2016

God's love for all his children is evident in this history of the BYU Jerusalem Center and LDS presence in the Holy Land.
speeches.byu.edu/orson-hyde-h...
"My first exposure to Jerusalem was in 1984, long before most of you were born. Sister Whitchurch and I had spent our summers saving enough money so that we could participate on a three week “Lands of the Scriptures” workshop offered through LDS Seminaries and Institutes. Our travels took us to Italy, Egypt, and many places throughout the Holy Land. From the minute the plane touched down on the tarmac at the International Airport near Tel Aviv, I felt like I had come home to see a long lost ancestor whom I had never met. The emotions were intense and unanticipated. I, somehow, felt connected to a land I had only imagined in my mind, the home of my biblical ancestors and the land where our Savior was born, lived, died, and was resurrected...
While I love and have a passion for the Jerusalem Center and its program, I know it is not for everyone. Many have no inclination or desire to participate or even visit the Holy Land. After this presentation you may not believe me. The take away from this is that from the beginnings of the Restoration the Church has had a presence in the Holy Land. But we should recognize the church’s influence is not limited to the Middle East. The story of the Middle East could easily be superimposed to regions throughout the world: Asia, Africa, Europe, North, South, and Central America, etc. The names will be different but our Heavenly Father loves his children. 'His work and glory is to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man' (Moses 1:39).
President Howard W. Hunter in a talk given at the Marriot Center a few months prior to the dedication of the Orson Hyde Memorial Garden said, 'All are alike unto God' (2 Ne. 26:33). God loves his children and we 'need to discover the supreme truth that indeed our Father is no respecter of persons. … At the present time we are engaged in a project of beautifying the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem by a garden, in memory of Orson Hyde, an early apostle of the Church, and the dedicatory prayer he offered on that site. It is not because we favor one people over another. Jerusalem is sacred to the Jews, but it is also sacred to the Arabs. Both the Jews and the Arabs are children of our Father. They are both children of promise, and as a church we do not sides. … The purpose of the gospel of Jesus Christ is to bring about love, unity, and brotherhood of the highest order.'" - David Whitchurch
David M. Whitchurch was an associate professor of ancient scripture when this devotional address was given on 4 Oct. 2016.
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