The Never Ending Loop

Rhetoric convinces a person to believe in a religion, and then religion uses rhetoric to make the follower choose to act a certain way and follow the commandments and guidelines set down by that religion. Thus, religion and rhetoric are linked in one cyclical loop that is never ending.

For example, my choice to come to Brigham Young University was influenced almost solely by the rhetoric of religion. I wanted to come here because of the atmosphere of this university. The atmosphere of BYU is due to the people that come to the university, both faculty and students. The people that come to BYU are the way they are because of the rhetoric and influence of their LDS faith. I am adding to that atmosphere because of the influence of my LDS religion on my behavior and standards.

The rhetoric of religion, and especially the LDS faith, has an enormous sphere of influence. What could make me leave my family, friends, and the only place I've really ever known to go to a college 1,439 miles away in a desert to live with people I've never met before? What could make pioneers leave their homes, their possessions, and their families to travel to a strange place where they did not know how they would survive? What would make Joseph Smith die for a religion mocked by countless others? Obviously, the answer to all these questions is the influence of the rhetoric of the LDS religion. It influences our beliefs, our values, our principles, our mental attitudes, our thoughts, our actions, our self-images, our lifestyles, and even our physical bodies. We believe in our religion so much that it has completely changed our lives; once we see the positive change it has made in our lives, we want to convince others of the truth and goodness of our religion, so we use rhetoric to influence them. If they are moved by our rhetoric and the rhetoric of the gospel, they become a member and then try to convince others. We as a church are always adding to the number of people changed by the rhetoric and influence of the gospel; that continuously growing group of people is always trying to use rhetoric to convince others of the gospel's truth. The cycle never ends.

Rhetoric as a tool in missionary work

Rhetoric plays a vital role in our gospel. Rhetoric is the art of using language persuasively. Where more do we use this tool then in our religion? The most important work in our religion today is that of missionary work. The Lord has commanded the people with his gospel to bring it to all other nations and tongues. To accomplish this task, we have to use rhetoric on a daily basis. Probably the greatest effect we see today is the use of rhetoric by missionaries. By using language persuasively, they can bring the spirit into a home and have it testify to that person that what they are saying is true. This can only work through the Spirit. The Lord is the best user of rhetoric. Missionaries and church members use rhetoric to present what we feel is best for the person to hear. However, Heavenly Father is the true teacher in this instance. He knows the person better than we could ever hope to. He knows what will convince this person, and in many instances puts words in the teachers mind to say. Therefore, I suggest that rhetoric is the greatest tool we can use in our church today, in that bringing people to the gospel is our unifying goal. There are many examples in the Book of Mormon where teachers use rhetoric. Abinadi was brought before the king Noah for preaching the gospel to the people. He testifies of the coming of Jesus the Christ, and urges the wicked king to repent or be destroyed. King Noah does not heed the counsel and kills Abinadi. The use of rhetoric, however, was not wasted on Alma, Noah’s priest. Alma, influenced by the preaching of the prophet, flees the kings court and eventually becomes the prophet himself. He is instrumental in hundreds of baptisms and conversions by using the teachings of Abinadi. In this example, we can see how important rhetoric is. However, rhetoric loses its power when not taught with the influence of the Spirit. The power of rhetoric comes from the ability of the user to listen to the promptings of the Spirit, to say or write what the listener or reader needs to hear. Also, the spirit will prompt the listener or reader of rhetoric to receive it in a way that is best for him. Rhetoric is very instrumental in the hands of missionaries and prophets. Therefore, I suggest that it is one of the most important things to learn how to use in this day and age of our church.