Searching for the Spirit of Elijah

Howard Coray (1817-1908)

The 24^th of July is a holiday celebrating the arrival of the pioneers to the Salt Lake Valley in 1847.[1] My family and I have always observed this holiday, going to parades and participating in community celebrations, but this year I was surprised by an especially meaningful experience to celebrate our fathers’ fathers.

            I received an email from FamilySearch[2] with a list of my pioneer ancestors and their relation to me. Many of the names I recognized, having been told the stories of my pioneer heritage since I was a child. As I browsed through some of their stories, significant dates, and family ties, I realized that several of my ancestors were buried in the Provo City Cemetery near where I attend school.

            When I saw their burial information I thought it was a huge blessing to have them so close to me, and I wanted to go find their graves. I jotted down whatever information I could retrieve from online gravesite records, and the next Sunday evening I went to the Provo Cemetery to search out their headstones; I was especially excited to find the grave of Howard Coray, my third great-grandfather who had a close relationship with the prophet Joseph Smith, serving as his historian for a time. [3]

            It took a bit of looking to find all the headstones I had set out to find, and with each headstone I was filled with an even sweeter spirit of love and appreciation for the sacrifices of my pioneer ancestors. The experience made me reflect upon the choices I make in my life, and how I will influence my posterity, having been influenced greatly by my forbearers. I felt my heart turn to my fathers with a sense of deep gratitude for their righteousness and service.

            I called my parents that evening to tell them what I had been doing, and my dad further emphasized the importance of choices. However grateful we are for those who came before us, it only takes one generation of to dissipate the gains of such spiritual giants if we don’t choose wisely. I hope to always live up to the standard that has been set before me. I have been blessed with great examples to follow.

            The beautiful experience of that day has since led me to seek out other ties to my ancestors. I visited a lecture hall at BYU that is named after Martha Jane Knowlton Coray who assisted Lucy Mack Smith in writing Joseph Smith’s history.[4] Once again, I felt deep reverence for a woman who had been so serviceable and influential to those around her.

The promise of Elijah the prophet to “turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers,”[5] brings real blessings as we try to remember those who have come before us to open the gates to the heavenly blessings of this dispensation. I feel a greater duty to serve as I find out more about those who were so dutiful and faithful before me.

            What I appreciate most about these experiences is not finding more cool stories, but realizing the service I can contribute to building this ever-growing kingdom as I follow the examples of my fathers that I have a renewed love for.

---

[1] See Newsroom article http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/brigham-young

[2] familysearch.org

[3] See “Memoirs and History of Howard Coray”

[4] Billings, Amy Reynolds, "Faith, Femininity, and the Frontier: the Life of Martha Jane Knowlton Coray" (2002). All Theses and Dissertations. Paper 4532.

[5] Malachi 4:5-6