"Work goes hand in hand with godliness," reads a panel in an upcoming exhibit at the Museum of Church History and Art.
The new exhibit, "Six Days Shalt Thou Labor: Latter-day Saints and Work," is scheduled to open June 29 and will run until mid-October, according to Glen M. Leonard, the museum's director.Steven Epperson, curator of the exhibit, said the sentiment to be reflected is clearly expressed in a quotation - part of the exhibit - from Elder Parley P. Pratt of the Quorum of the Twelve.
Elder Pratt wrote: "It is an honor to be an agriculturist, for such was our Father in heaven. He performed the first planting on this earth.
"It is good also to be a tailor, for our Father in heaven was the first tailor on this planet. He made coats for Adam and Eve, when they were young and inexperienced, and thus clothed them.
"It is good also to write, for our Father in heaven was a writer. He wrote with His own finger on the tables of stone [the Ten Commandments given to Israel at SinaiT.
"To build ships, temples and houses is also godliness, for God was a master workman in all these branches of industry. He gave the pattern of the first ship to Noah; and He was the architect of the tabernacle of Moses, and of the temple of Solomon.
"A wise man will pattern after this order." (New York Prophet, 1:52, May 24, 1845, p. 2.)
A lofty ideal indeed, yet Elder Pratt's statement and the museum exhibit are composed with childlike plainness and simplicity.
"We decided we wanted to direct the exhibit specifically to a younger audience," Brother Epperson said. "Adults will benefit from it too, but they will be eavesdropping."
Thus, the exhibit is interactive, designed to appeal to youngsters. The opening panel displays the question, "Why do we work?"
The displayed response is: "We work to feed, clothe, shelter and take care of the ones we love. (Even when there is only one person for whom we work!)"
Young visitors are then invited to lift flaps and look at pictures in response to the question "Who takes care of and loves you?"
The flaps cover pictures of parents, brothers and sisters, grandparents, friends - and a mirror. ("You do!")
Part 2 of the exhibit explores the concept: "Why do Mormon people work? We work to build the Kingdom of God." A panel carries this explanation: "Don't Mormons build houses, plant crops and work in offices and at home like everyone else? Sure they do! Just about everybody does that. So what is different? What is different is that we also want to work to create a people and a place where everyone is treated like a member of the family. That's the kingdom of God. It is a place where people love and work for each other the way Heavenly Father loves and works for us."
Another panel in Part 2 explains, "Mormons work to become like Heavenly Father."
In addition to panels, art work, photographs and interactive displays, the exhibit features many antique and modern tools illustrating various types of work. The tools include a broadax, masonry chisels, beet-topping knife, hand-pump vacuum cleaner, typewriter, branding iron, railroad engineer cap, President Spencer W. Kimball's fedora, butter churn, knitting needles and skillet.
In Part 3 of the exhibit, visitors read a panel asking, "Who works to build the Kingdom of God today?"
They are then introduced to several Latter-day Saints from widely varying locations and cultures through the photos of them and the tools and products of their work. Featured are:
- John Bangura, a blacksmith in Sierra Leone, western Africa.
- Mary Beard, an obstetrician/gynecologist and professor at the University of Utah Medical School.
- Scott Abbott, a professor of German literature at BYU.
- Members of the Padada Basket Making Cooperative in Padada, Philippines.
- Terry Rooney, Bradford, England, a member of the House of Commons and of the Labour Party.
- Sharon McCully, a judge in the 3rd District Juvenile Court in Salt Lake City.
- Jarkko Metsatahti, a businessman in Finland who designs and sells educational computer software and hardware.
- John Oroa and other Latter-day Saints in Kuriva, Papua New Guinea, boat builders and farmers.
The Kuriva display features a 14-foot canoe commissioned expressly for the museum display. A video presentation in the first part of the exhibit, titled "The Work We Do," shows the workers as they construct the canoe.
The final panel asks the question, "What kind of work are you going to do?" Youngsters are then invited: "Work on this book: Write down your feelings about work. Tell a story about working."
In an alcove of the gallery - just large enough to accommodate youngsters - will be a station where they can play with "doing" kinds of toys, Brother Epperson said, such as building blocks or dolls.
"When you play, you learn to work," will be the message of that portion of the exhibit, Brother Epperson explained.