Pride

When we think of the concept of pride we often isolate our definition to the idea of lifting ourselves above another individual.  While this is true the scriptural definition of pride takes on a depth that demonstrates just how insidious pride can be.

Mormon 8:36 states, "And I know that ye do walk in the pride of your hearts; and there are none save a few only who do not lift themselves up in the pride of their hearts, unto the wearing of very fine apparel, unto envying, and strifes, and malice, and persecutions, and all manner of iniquities; and YOUR CHURCHES, yea, EVEN EVERY ONE, have BECOME POLLUTED because of the pride of your hearts."

Walking in the Pride of your Hearts is an interesting Hebraic expression. In Hebrew the heart is considered the center of our thoughts and personality. Pride (root gey) means to lift up high like the mountains that surround a valley. The idea is one of creating a place with high places or walls. In Hebraic thought The Torah (God's Instructions) are to be our boundaries or walls, so when we walk in the Pride of our hearts we are walking according to our own self or man made laws putting ourselves not only above others but above God's instructions. This leads to a state of iniquity or lawlessness.

In the above scripture it explains that because we have created our own law or instructions and placed them above God's instructions we begin to be divided and divided based upon apparel, envy, etc. ALL of our churches have become POLLUTED (hebrew: MIXED or UNCLEAN) because we lift ourselves up above God and his commandments. In doing so we walk after the lifted and swelled thoughts or laws we personally create. In other words we become a law unto ourselves.