A Message to Judah from Joseph

I believe that President Ezra Taft Benson had a very unique mission among Church presidents. I cannot think of any other prophet of the Church whose mission was so politically motivated as President Benson's. The Lord used him as a tool to help establish the Jewish state and he came to know the Jewish people in a way that most modern saints do not. The article he wrote and published in the Ensign magazine demonstrates his deep love and understanding of the Jews and shows church members how we should view our brothers, the Jews.

The overall theme of President Benson's message was to accentuate similarities.
He spoke of the sufferings which people have experienced. He spoke of our common ancestry. I was impressed by President Benson’s associations with the Jewish people and their mutual respect. It is one thing to believe in the religious relations between our two people and it is another to put those beliefs into action as President Benson did by knowing, helping and being a friend to the Jewish leaders.

The dual nature of the story of Joseph impacted me most. I had never thought that the story of Joseph in Egypt providing for his famine stricken family was dualistic in meaning. The prophecy of Amos is indeed being fulfilled and the world is experiencing “not a famine of bread, nor a thirst of water, but of hearing the words of the Lord” and again Joseph is poised to feed his brethren. We, as members of the Church in the latter-days, believe we are descendants of Joseph whose son Ephraim was promised to effectuate the work in the last days. By preaching the gospel to all the ends of the earth, and to our brothers the Jews, we are fulfilling that promise.

Benson Article