"We seldom get into trouble when we speak softly. It is only when we raise our voices that the sparks fly and tiny molehills become great mountains of contention."
Jaredite Barges: Clearing the Air (with the Help of an Electric Piano)
by Jeff Lindsay
I
was sure the simple instructions were wrong as I assembled the frame
for the Casio electric piano I purchased for my wife for Mother's
Day.
When
it came time to add the pedal assembly, the instructions called for
removing two screws holding a metal bracket in place on each of the
side panels, and instead of the two screws, one big central screw
would be put in place that was supposed to hold a metal piece that
supposedly would connect to the beam holding the pedals.
But
it made no sense, because the metal piece would only just sit loosely
on top of the big metal screw and let the whole pedal beam wobble. It
seemed like the bracket was defective.
My
wife encouraged me to just plod ahead and stick with the
instructions.
It
was only at the last step, when the big metal screw was tightened,
that I could see how the system worked. It pulled a part of the metal
frame in tightly to compress the wobbly metal piece and hold it
firmly in place.
The
system was actually pretty clever. It was only after following the
instructions through to the very end that everything finally made
sense. The instructions were good, though they lacked (unnecessary)
explanation to allay my concerns along the way.
That
experience came around the same time I was reviewing some of the
typical critical complaints about the mysterious barges of the
Jaredites in the Book of Ether, chapters 2, 3, and 6. As with Noah's
ark, we really don't know many details and have to wonder how much of
the original record has actually been preserved and interpreted
correctly.
In
the Jaredite story, we have a record passed on from Jaredite culture
to the Nephites, and then on to us in telegraphic form. There are
opportunities for a lot of helpful details to be lost.
Along
the way, it's fair to question the assumptions we bring to the text.
Some LDS folks as well as critics have imported a number of
assumptions. The idea of the ships turning upside down in the water
is one that I don't think is justified.
These
ships were peaked at the ends and had a top and a bottom. They may
have been covered with waves from time to time, but nothing requires
them to go upside down, though there would be some encounters with
monster waves.
Another
possibly errant assumption is that modern glass windows are meant in
Ether 2:23 when the Lord explains that the barges can't have windows
for they would be dashed in pieces by the waves. A fair question is
what exactly would be dashed to pieces — the windows or the
barges themselves?
I
assume the windows are meant, but John
Tvedtnes explains why this could refer to the barges themselves being at risk if the
structure were weakened with multiple windows. In either case, glass
panes are not required here.
If
the windows themselves are meant, as I've always assumed, other
writers have noted that the warning about something being destroyed
could simply refer to a window with wooden shutters.
Whether
wooden shutters or openings with translucent materials (fabric,
parchment, or something else) were what the Jaredites understood,
they would be a weak structure that would not be wise for the ships.
Apparently small ports related to ventilation would be added that
could be "stopped" with some kind of seal, unlike the
action of shutters on a window. I'll discuss the important detail of
ventilation below.
Some
critics have also wondered how on earth the Jaredites would not
recognize the problems of lighting and ventilation until after the
barges were completed, as resulted in the brother of Jared's prayer
to the Lord in Ether 3 in which he presents the problem.
Wouldn't
experienced barge-builders have noticed that right away and raised
the objection early? Yes, that's a reasonable question.
I
don't know the answer to that, but it may be that there were several
components to the barges, and the final internal situation only
became clear as the parts were brought together in the final
assembly.
For
example, there may have been top sections which were added to the
main bottom section in the end, and only then did it become clear
that they had a problem. As with my electric piano assembly, a lot of
things might not have made sense until they acted in faith and saw,
several steps later, how things worked.
Maybe
they were expecting the final step to resolve the problems they might
have been worrying about all along. When the disappointment came, all
that was left was more faith and prayer, resulting in the real final
instructions that did, in fact, resolve the problems.
The
instructions may have come in stages, not all at once, so there might
have been no reason to worry as they constructed the ship because
they expected more instructions to keep on coming until everything
made sense.
Whatever
the sequence of events, the Jaredites did reach what seemed like the
final stage of construction and were faced with unresolved problems:
no light, bad ventilation. Now what?
The
result of Ether 3 is that the Jaredites received miraculous glowing
stones that would provide light for the journey. Were these
radioluminescent materials? We don't know, but the concept of
brightly glowing materials is no longer scientifically ludicrous.
Interestingly, there are ancient Jewish traditions about Noah also
receiving glowing materials for the ark.
The
ventilation issue is one that is especially easy to criticize. The
Lord gave these instructions in Ether 2:
[18] And it came to pass that the brother of Jared cried unto the Lord,
saying: O Lord, I have performed the work which thou hast commanded
me, and I have made the barges according as thou hast directed me.
[19] And behold, O Lord, in them there is no light; whither shall we
steer? And also we shall perish, for in them we cannot breathe, save
it is the air which is in them; therefore we shall perish.
[20] And the Lord said unto the brother of Jared: Behold, thou shalt make
a hole in the top, and also in the bottom; and when thou shalt suffer
for air thou shalt unstop the hole and receive air. And if it be so
that the water come in upon thee, behold, ye shall stop the hole,
that ye may not perish in the flood.
It is commonly assumed that the
hole in the bottom is a hole below the water line. Some have proposed
that it could have been a moon pool, and I personally long assumed it
was an opening below the water line but with impermeable sides rising
above the water line defining a moon pool that did not require
elevated air pressure and that could be used to dump waste or even
catch fish. But how would that help with ventilation?
Perhaps
the Jaredite barges had structurally distinct top and bottoms. Since
they were light and floated like a fowl on the water (Ether 2:16), a
portion of the bottom section could have been above the water line.
If so, the port in the bottom could have assisted in ventilation
while also facilitating waste removal (and maybe fishing?). Here's a
rough sketch (click to enlarge):
Click Image to Magnify
The
barges the Jaredites built for their travels before they crossed the
ocean may have been similar, but without the sealed top portion. The
top may have been assembled and locked into place in a final step
that led to the sudden realization that they still had a serious
problem.
It
is also possible that both the top and bottom were crafted with
sections that made it easy to add the final ports without just
hacking away at the solid hull. But for both ports, when waves were
high, there was the risk of water coming in, so being able to quickly
stop the port was needed. They may have been hinged or completely
removable.
One
issue the Brother of Jared raised when he asked about lighting was
steering. He wanted to see to know how to steer (Ether 2:19). Perhaps
there was some mechanism for steering, such as a rudder, and so he
wanted to be able to see to know how to steer.
The
issue of steering is not addressed after that, but perhaps it was
resolved and not spelled out in the brief description we have. Maybe
the upper port or both ports together provided enough visual access
to guide the boats to keep them together (others have speculated that
they may have been roped together, although that could be a liability
when dealing with big waves and heavy storms).
The
challenges in the Jaredite description of their barges are similar to
the challenges in the description of Noah's ark. How could adequate
ventilation be provided from the one tiny window that appears to be
part of the design?
But
this is where things get interesting. The Hebrew word zohar
translated as the window of the ark has a meaning of light and,
according to some old Jewish sources, might refer to a glowing stone
used as a light source.
Looking
into this more deeply, there are some surprising ancient connections
between the Jaredite barges and Noah's ark suggesting that the
description is rooted in antiquity, whatever may be lacking in
helpful scientific details. Some resources to consider:
Frankly,
though, there are still many aspects of this story that are
unresolved. But my experience with a confusing electric piano reminds
me that many details in instructions as well as written descriptions
might not make sense at first.
What
we are given may not be enough to understand the details and resolve
our confusion, and these simple accounts of complex ancient voyages
are likely to be that way. We can give up in exasperation, or move
forward with faith and patience.
In
the end, that worked for my piano and I think it worked for the
Jaredites.
Jeff Lindsay has been defending the Church on the Internet since 1994, when he launched his
LDSFAQ website under JeffLindsay.com. He has also long been blogging about LDS matters on
the blog Mormanity (mormanity.blogspot.com). Jeff is a longtime resident of Appleton,
Wisconsin, who recently moved to Shanghai, China, with his wife, Kendra.
He works for an Asian corporation as head of intellectual property. Jeff and Kendra are the parents of 4 boys, 3 married and the the youngest on a mission.
He is a former innovation and IP consultant, a former professor, and former Corporate Patent
Strategist and Senior Research Fellow for a multinational corporation.
Jeff Lindsay, Cheryl Perkins and Mukund Karanjikar are authors of the book Conquering
Innovation Fatigue (John Wiley & Sons, 2009).
Jeff has a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Brigham Young University and is a registered US
patent agent. He has more than 100 granted US patents and is author of numerous publications.
Jeff's hobbies include photography, amateur magic, writing, and Mandarin Chinese.