Review
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Title: Symbols & Shadows, Unlocking a Deeper Understanding of the Atonement
Authors: Donald W. Parry and Jay A. Parry
Publisher: Deseret Book Company
Year Published: 2009
Number of Pages: 378
Binding: Hardback - 6x9
ISBN13: 978-1-60641-129-2
Price: $29.95

Reviewed by: Jay R. McKenzie

WOW! What a book! As a lifelong active member of the Church, I thought I had a good understanding of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. After all, it is pretty basic, and I have always recognized it as fundamental doctrine. But, reading this book was an eye-opener. I felt like the whole company must have felt, in Sophocles play, Oedipus Rex, when the aged, blind prophet Teiresias enters upon the stage. "The whole company goes down on its knees to the prophet, who pronounces Sophocles' burning indictment on the lot of them: 'ALL OF YOU KNOW NOTHING!'" (See, Nibley, The Ancient State, p.345). SYMBOLS & SHADOWS, Unlocking a Deeper Understanding of the Atonement, truly does open up a deeper understanding of the atonement, to that point than one wonders if he really had any significant understanding at all about this fundamental doctrine, before reading this book.

The authors declare that the Atonement of Jesus Christ is the hinge point of all eternity, and is so absolutely central to God's plan, that He has given us a "great ...cloud of witnesses" (Heb.12:1). There are literally thousands of symbols, types, shadows, and witnesses all around us--in the skies, on the earth and in the earth. All of these are to help us REMEMBER Him. Father Adam learned directly from the Savior that "all things are created and made to bear record of me" (Moses 6:63). Our responsibility in mortality is to search out, recognize, and treasure these things. The authors do a great job of making us feel guilty about fulfilling this responsibility. But they also give us the tools and the knowledge, and for me, the zeal to begin to do so.

The book is divided into three parts. Part 1 focuses on types and shadows of the atonement. Chapter 1 demonstrates how all modern ordinances are witnesses and reminders of the atonement. For me, a particularly poignant example is the blessing of infants by loving priesthood members, forming a circle surrounding the infant, symbolizing protection against evil throughout that child's life. The circle symbolizes completeness, sufficiency, and perfection, in which all participants, including the infant, are promised a sufficiency of blessings from the Atonement of Christ.

Subsequent chapters of Part 1 discuss dozens and dozens of types and shadows of the atonement under the following headings: Ancient Ordinances, The Law of Moses, the Law of Sacrifice, Feasts and Festivals, People (from Adam to Jonah), Scriptural Stories, Touch and Testimony as Spiritual Patterns, Parables, Things that Bear Witness of Christ (Angel's Food, Scarlet, and Almonds), Symbolism of Animals, and the Testimony of Earth and Sky (from Stones to Stars).

I came away with a strikingy new awareness of things around me, such as the full moon, the stars on a cold, clear night, the Sacrament, the Sacrament Prayer, and many more, and with a newfound desire to internalize and understand how they truly do testify and remind me of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. And they do! What an amazing epiphany to me. Thank you Donald and Jay Parry.

Part 2 examines witnesses and fulfillment of the atonement in Christ's mortal life and sacrifice. In the six chapters of Part 2, the Parrys, in less than 100 pages, do an admirable job of discussing prophecies, miracles, Christ's life of contradictions, and the procession from Gethsemane to the Resurrection. This is obviously not a comprehensive history of the life and mission of the Savior. But, it does augment and support the spirit and purpose of Part 1, which consists of some 152 pages and obviously forms the heart and soul of this great book. The miracles, for example, say the authors, are literal, marvelous manifestations of Christ's power in heaven and on earth, to bless us, to succor us, to lift us, to change us, and to bring us to life eternal. Each physical miracle is a type of what He will do for us spiritually through the power of the infinite atonement.

Part 3, comprises the last seven chapters of the book, consisting of 67 pages. It is a testimony of the magnitude, power and scope of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. In a beautiful way, the authors present the unique attributes and characteristics of the Savior, and His Love and Sacrifice, and that He did it all for us, for each one of us, as individuals. He is our personal Savior! Not only can we partake of His marvelous Grace in our daily lives, but we can forever shed the calamitous consequences we would each face were it not for His Atonement. Though relatively short, this Part bears a marvelous testimony of the life and mission of Jesus Christ.

The book also includes two great appendixes: From Ransom to Mediator--Atonement Words and Meanings; and Satan's Attempts to Imitate the Atonement. These are wonderful aids. In the second of these two appendixes, for example, the authors compare the "bitter cup that Jesus drank", to Satan's counterfeit, "the golden cup of the whore"; and colors associated with the high priest, to the colors associated with the mother of harlots. The book also contains eleven pages of "Notes," divided by chapters of the book, and 6 pages of "Sources." The index is also quite complete and helpful.

It is obvious why Donald and Jay Parry are best selling authors, and why their BYU Education Week and other classes and lectures are always jam-packed. Believe me, this book is wonderful. I wholeheartedly recommend it as a must read.