--- title: Improvement Era description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930. authors: - Brimhall, George H. collections: - periodicals tags: - magazine - improvement-era periodical: Improvement Era volume: 25 number: 3 published: 1922-01 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: 'George H. Brimhall, "Sources of Joy and Factors of Happiness: Lessons XIII–XV," *Improvement Era* 25, no. 3 (January 1922): 252–258.' source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera2503unse transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers. identifier: improvementera2503unse start_page: 252 end_page: 258 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1922-01) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera2503unse publication_year: 1922 note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1922, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # Sources of Joy and Factors of Happiness: Lessons XIII–XV Sources of Joy and Factors of Happiness A Study for the Advanced Senior Class, M. I. A., 1921-22 By Dr. George H. Brimhall If it be true that there is more enjoyment in pursuit than in pos- session, then science offers the greatest field for enjoyment, for there the search for truth is lim- ited only by the capacity of the searcher, and at the outset it should be understood that theol- ogy, the science of God, is to be included in the great ever-increas- ing group of sciences. What Science Is. — Science is de- fined as classified knowledge, ord- ered knowledge of natural phe- nomena. It is the discovery of na- ture's laws or the finding out of the uniform way in which nature acts. When Newton discovered the law of gravity he simply found out nature's way of handling fallen bodies. The finding out that indi- viduals and groups in spite of themselves are moved and con- trolled by their interests or bias is the discovery of a natural social law. History of Science. — Astronomy is said to be the oldest science; and eugenics, including euthenics, is said to be the youngest science. The first concerns itself with knowledge relating to heavenly bodies, the second consists of in- vestigation concerning improve- ment of the human race and the extension of longevity. The follow- ing is a question from Applied Eu- genics, by Popenoe and Johnson, "The problem of eugenics is to make such legal, social, and eco- nomic adjustments that (1) a larger proportion of superior persons will have children than at present, (2) that the average number of off- spring of each superior person will be greater than at present, (3) that the most inferior persons will have no children, (4) that other inferior persons will have fewer children than now." In giving names to the animals before the Fall, Adam must have made some observations sufficient- ly close, and some comparisons sufficiently careful, to make it possible for him to give other than names to individuals, and just to the extent that he classified the creatures he was a scientist. (Genesis 2:19-20.) Abraham studied the stars, not simply as separate objects but as groups, and groups of groups or systems, and made such advance- ment with his investigation that his knowledge of astronomy was used by the Lord to explain to him (Abraham) the great social science of the spirit world. Abra- ham's scientific findings formed the point of contact in the lesson where God was the teacher. Science and Invention. — Science discovers the power, invention SOURCES OF JOY AND FACTORS OF HAPPINESS 253 makes the harness for it; science gave us the law of combustion, in- vention gave us gun-powder and the gun. Inventions are devices for applying the laws of nature. Hertz discovered the wireless waves, Marconi invented the wire- less telegraph machine ; the former is a pure scientist, the latter an inventor. The two of them gave science and its application, or ap- plied science. Edison invented the phonograph, a machine for using the knowl- edge brought to light by Helm- holtz. Scientific Procedure. — All scien- tific procedure has the element of faith in it. The scientist believes something, expects some- thing, but he guards against permitting his belief to interfere with honest investigation; he ob- serves, he experiments, and accepts the results whether they are in keeping with his expectations or not. He refuses to draw a con- clusion or declare the discovery of a general truth until his sources of information are exhausted and he has found a uniformity of condi- tion or action that leaves no doubt as to the truth of his generaliza- tion. Newton's law of falling bodies will remain unchallenged as a truth unless someone discov- ers a condition in which the law is not operative. Should that be done, gravity as a universal law will lose its title and will be known as a rule with exceptions. If it has been found by observa- tion that individuals and com- munities without exception have gone towards degeneration and its consequent unhappiness, whenever they have departed from faith in and obedience to God, and that they have always increased in hap- piness through belief in and through service to God, then the conclusion arrived at and stated in Ecclesiastes 12:13 is a truth scien- tifically demonstrated. The fact that this truth may have been given to man by revelation, which in the history of the race has gen- erally been in advance, does not prevent it from holding its rank and being entitled to be labeled scientific, because it has stood the test of experimental proof. Special Contributions. — All pure science gives the joy of dis- covery, all applied science adds to man's happiness through in- crease of power. Astronomy has made navigation safe and kept the spirit of man from becoming proud. The contemplation of worlds so much greater than our earth forces the conclusion that there are intelligences greater than man. To the student of astronomy the stars seem friends, and the student is never less alone than when he is alone under the canopy of heaven. Geography has made travel something of joyous expectation; once long journeys were filled with fear, the stepping-off place is no longer dreaded, our modern meth- ods of transportation, communica- tion, and illumination, are gifts of physics. Chemistry has given us mastery over giant forces of na- ture. The absence of the chemist would cut down the products of our sugar factories, and without 254 IMPROVEMENT ERA the assayer the fires of our smelt- ers would be exceedingly small, and many of the furnaces grow cold. Biology introduces us to life processes, tells us what our bodies are and how to make the most of them as instruments of enjoyment. Psychology introduces us to our- selves and shows us how the in- dividual and the group mind may most effectively increase and en- joy the stream of consciousness. It provides for self knowing self, self helping self, self enjoying self. Sociology points out the best way to be good neighbors as individ- uals and as groups. Theology re- veals the secret of a premortal ex- istence, shows the relationship of God to man and the duty of man to God in this mortal estate. It is a field of investigation where laws are discovered the obedience to which will bring to man divine help and make it pos- sible for man to live a somewhat superhuman life of resistence and achievement. Columbus was more than mortal when wrought upon by the spirit of God, he was mortal plus divine inspiration. The contributions of medical sci- ence are almost countless. Its two greatest contributions, perhaps, are anti-toxin and dietetics. The Importance of Scientific Study. — It has come to pass that the practical person, no matter how skilful, must stand by and let the one whose practice has behind it a knowledge of why he does things pass on. In all our big industries the man with technical training, which means one with scientific knowledge and acquired skill, gets the preference of employment, and moreover, it has been proved that scientific training increases the in- itiative, so that the untrained who furnish themselves employment cannot long compete with the trained mind and the skilful hand. It is advocated that high school students should take some course in science every year. Questions and Problems. 1. What does the joy of discovery mean to you? 2. Compare the joy of accidental dis- covery of truth with the joy of finding it through research. 3. "When does knowledge become scientific? 4. In what four ways is eugenics ex- pected to add to the happiness of human life? 5. Distinguish between the scientist and the inventor. 6. "What scientific discovery in the field of medicine has done most for man's mastery of the microbe? 7. Why should vivisection not be leg- islated against? 8. Wherein is the budget system of ex- penditures scientific? 9. How does a knowledge of chemistry add to the dignity of cooking and to the happiness of the cook? 10. Show that faith accompanies scien- tific investigation. 11. In what respect was the sacred grove a laboratory of scriptural research for Joseph Smith, the boy? 12. What truth was rediscovered by the spiritual experiment in the grove? 13. Has the statement, "Do the work, and ye shall know of the doctrine," stood the test, in a sufficient number of cases to be labeled truth? SOURCES OF JOY AND FACTORS OF HAPPINESS 255 Lesson XIV. — Sincerity Sincerity in this lesson shall mean self-integrity. As there is a difference between an untruth and a lie, an error and a sin, so there is a wide difference between insin- cerity and deception. Sincerity consists in saying and doing what one thinks ought to be said and done under varied circumstances. One could not call a general insin- cere who camouflages his reserves, because he is entirely sincere in his deception; nor could a doctor be charged with insincerity who bridges a patient over a crisis by exaggerating the chances of recov- ery. The sincerity of a word or act depends upon the purpose for which one is spoken and the oth- er performed. Careless words and indifferent conduct are neither sin- cere nor insincere, they are simply non-sincere; they proceed from a sort of mental vacuity, that is, idle or empty mindedness; they are ob- jectively dangerous and subject- ively degenerating. Sincerity makes society possible. No sincerity, no confidence; eith- er self-confidence or social confi- dence. Sincerity is the germ of character; it is self -honesty. One would scarcely question the sincerity of the Father of the Faith- ful for leading the king of Gerar to believe that his wife Sarah was his sister; for the purpose behind the deception was two-fold, the protection of his life, and obeying the Lord in the method of doing it. Sincerity does not preclude the friendly joke nor the family jest. With sincerity industry marches triumphantly to the music of her own making; and commerce, with unimpaired credit, carries over crises that would otherwise crush it. Social sincerity does not bar the cordial greeting of even an enemy, if behind that cordiality there is even the wish to make the enemy a friend; nor does it forbid the wel- coming of a neighbor's visit under inconvenient circumstances. It makes room for the smile on the face when the feelings are bruised and the heart is bleeding, for then sincerity is walking arm in arm with sacrifice. Nor does it stand in the way of emphasizing virtues in funeral sermons. Religious Sincerity. Better wor- ship an idol with sincerity than the true and living God without it. In the first place, the heart, goes out to something; in the second place, it goes not out at all; the one is misplaced honesty, the other is spiritual mockery. Sin- cerity of service in any form is a source of joy, and the higher the service, the greater the joy. Insincerity forbids the entrance of faith into the mind. It makes repentance impossible. The the- ological fate of the insincere per- sons is exclusive comradeship with creatures of their kind; each one there to stay until, through the pressure of this part of perdition, there comes a sincere desire for change; and with that desire, the climb begins. Spiritual sincerity is indispen- sable to salvation, but it is by no means sufficient. In his declara- 256 IMPROVEMENT ERA tion of loyalty to his Master, Peter was fervently sincere, but the Christ knew that no man can stand unreinforced against the psychic power of the Evil One. Left to himself, man is naturally good, that is, his tendencies are upward, and these upward tendencies may give him power to rise in the midst of negative material environments. At all events it would seem that he could hold his own; but when a great opposing psychic force is pitted against the man, his battle must be a losing one unless another psychic force, superior to the one pulling the man downward, is help- ing him up. So the Messiah knew what Peter must do when left to himself (Mark 14:27-37). All the sincerity of all mankind can never bring peace in the presence of the spiritual force of the Evil One without a super-human force sup- plementing that human sincerity. The worship of God in spirit (i. e., in sincerity) and in truth (i. e., with true ideas concerning God), carries with it the conscious- ness that God is, the assurance that he is interested in us, and the knowledge that our conduct is in keeping with the mind and will of God; this is salvation, here, now, and forever. It is perfect faith the sincerity of man supplemented with the inspiration of the Al- mighty. Problems and Questions 1. A non-"Mormon" won the affections of a "Mormon" girl, and she consented to become his wife. Her parents were very much grieved over this prospective, unequal yoking. The groom, having no religious conviction, proffered to become a member of the Church out of con- sideration for the feelings of the family. Should his proposition be accepted? 2. "Wherein is sincerity the background of courage? Illustrate. 3. How does making light of sacred things affect the mind? 4. Show the lack of sincerity in the swearing habit. 5. Wherein is secret prayer a great test of sincerity? 6. How does it affect the growth of sincerity ? 7. What sincerity is there behind the smile, "when everything goes dead wrong"? 8. Apply the following to sincere citi- zenship in the matter of enforcing law: "The sin of silence, when we should speak, makes cowards of us all." 9. In what way does sincerity produce the joy of self-respect? 10. How does sincerity produce a sense of safety, one of the highest states of happiness in society? 11. Show that all the joys of religion are dependent upon sincerity. 12. Distinguish between insincerity and non-sincerity. 13. Show that sincerity is the founda- tion of self respect and group confidence. Lesson XV. — Suspended Judgment Preliminary Statements : The habit of withholding a decision, until a reasonable amount of evidence is in, is one of the best of a good set of habits, whether it is possessed by the individual or the group. The habit of acting and afterwards thinking is, to say the least, a very dangerous one, and that which is dangerous has in its wake more sorrow than joy. The suspended judgment is a close run- ningmate to sincerity in the pro- duction of safety, and safety is not only a factor of happiness, but is a real condition of enjoyment. Next to the joy of being, is that of doing, and next to that of doing SOURCES OF JOY AND FACTORS OF HAPPINESS 257 is the joy of having, and accom- panying each of these states of joy is the sense of safety. Unsafe ex- istence, unsafe conduct, unsafe pos- session, are accompanied by the element of fear to the exclusion of enjoyment. To suspend judgment means to set the emotions where they be- long, at the rear, and not in front of thought. It is a process of school- ing one's feelings: "Shool thy feelings, there is power In the cool, collected mind; Passion shatters reason's tower, Makes the clearest vision blind." A Contribution to the Individ- ual.— Suspended judgment is a friend-winner and friend-keeper. Suspended judgment adds to warm- heartedness, and is an antidote for hot-headedness. The suspended judgment carries with it the con- sciousness of intellectual reserve. It is to the mind what the brake is to the automobile. The suspended judgment increases the inhibitive power of the nervous system; it tends to maintain pulse rhythm. It trains the will to wait for the verdict of wisdom, and wisdom is the very taproot of the tree of hap- piness. Suspended judgment de- mands close attention, the con- sciousness of ability to concentrate one's power is happiness at high tide. Suspended judgment forbids for- getfulness and forms the habit of reliable recollection; it makes for accuracy in expression. It demands that things be told as they are, re- gardless of what we should like them to be. It forbids listlessness and carelessness of description, it demands intellectual honesty and guards against the pernicious habit of fooling one's self. It constantly calls from every walk of life: "With all thy getting, get under- standing." Perhaps no other one thing is a safer criterion for the grading of one's general intelli- gence than is the habit of suspend- ing one's judgment. It gives to the whole intellect a poise which is more than an attitude of intel- lectual comfort, it is sheer enjoy- ment of self-stability, and of one so possesed it may be fittingly said, "He can not be stampeded." Its Contribution to the Family. — It is evident that mating is left too much to luck. There is too much truth in the saying that mar. riage is a lottery. Just recently, the warden of the state peni- tentiary gave emphasis to the fact that hasty marriage is one of the chief factors of divorce, and di- vorce one of the great sources of misery. The old saw, "Marry in haste and repent at leisure" is very dull, from the fact that there is no leisure in repentance. The aphorism, mod- ernized, would read, "Marry in haste, and divorce in the antipodes of heaven." The suspended judg- ment in the home ejects petulancy and invites patience; it forbids nagging and cultivates courtesy. In the household where suspended judgment prevails, a family quar- rel will be quelled in its incipiency by the appearance of Puck. Its Contribution to Society. — - The community that tolerates lynch law, thus substituting a mob for a court, simply advertises its behind-the-times-ness in civiliza- tion, and acknowledges a lack of the judicial element in the individ- 258 IMPROVEMENT ERA ual minds that make up the group, for the mob m,in<l is but an aggre- gation, not an organization, of in- dividual minds. The man who saved a victim of public passion from an illegal execution, by sug- gesting that they ride him on a rail before hanging him, thus di- verting their attention and secur- ing time for thought, was a real leader, and whoever creates condi- tions that bring about the habit of suspended judgment, in the multi- tude, will do much toward prevent- ing the recurrence of war. Its Contribution to Business. — Promptness in decision is indis- pensable to progress, but there is a wide difference between prompt and hasty decision. Drawing con- clusions from surface investigation gives the gold brick vender the right of way in business. There are always two sides to a question, and in business matters one side is the outside and the other side is the inside, and when the outside wins the outsider loses. Railroaling is said to be the big- gest business in the world, and its slogan is, "Whtenever in doubt, take the safe side." In most cases this means "wait for information." Too much of the average man's cocksureness in business is stilted up on desire, rather than being based upon thought. His want-to-do obscures both his ought-to-do and his can-do, and he thus forces him- self into failures that might be avoided by the habit of suspending his judgment until the sources of safe information are drawn upon. Young men would do well to coun- sel long and often with those of successful experience concerning business ventures and methods of executing ideas of enterprise. There is much need for business advisers whose first duty would be to pre- scribe an anti-toxin for the get-rich- quick contagion. Its Contribution to Religion. — It is our faith in the suspended judgment of Deity that makes heaven thinkable. We have im- plicit faith that our Father will award no prizes and permit the in- fliction of no punishment until the evidence is all in. It is the thought of such a judg- ment that gives to good its perman- ent value; and to evil, its discount- ing power. To make of God any- thing less than a perfectly de- liberate being would be to make of heaven a world of chance. Questions and Problems 1. What does suspended judgment stand for in this lesson? 2. How is the will affected by suspend- ing the judgment? Illustrate. 3. What is a cultivated temper and how is it related to suspended judgment? 4. Show how attention and memory are trained in suspending judgment. 5. In what way is the habit of suspend- ing one's judgment a health exercise? 6. Give a most worthwhile quotation from, "School thy feelings," and name the author. 7. How does the democratic form of government especially provide for group exercise in suspending the judgment? 8. Why is it unsafe to form a judg- ment from newspaper reports? 9. How does honest impulsiveness in business foster rascality? 10. Give an illustration of one fooling himself in business. 11. How does the golden rule demand suspended judgment? 12. Correlate Matt. 5:22 with sus- pended judgment. 13. Show the theological inconsistency of forming and expressing our judgments against the decisions of the Councils of the Church. 14. Point out the social danger of form- ing and expressing judgments against the findings of our courts of justice.