Salt of the Earth

 

Jesus said "you are the salt of the earth".  I've heard this over and over throughout my life.  My parents would comment on someone's character by saying, "they are the salt of the earth".  While listening to the General Conference of my church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, there was a talk about being the salt of the earth.  When I first heard it, it stood out to me and prompted me to further research SALT.  For some random reason it made me think of a report I gave in my high school biology class about how salt melts ice.  I have thought of these things for several days since conference.  As I thought of the high school report, I realized that I actually did not remember how salt melted ice.  I had to go look it up again to remind myself.......kind of pathetic, I thought.......after all, I've spent a great deal of my life studying chemistry and biology.  How could I not remember basics of salt?  Salt is a central part of both chemistry and biology.  

I really don't like salt, I do, but I don't.  I'm very sensitive to salt.  My husband does most of the cooking and has realized over time, just how sensitive I am to it.  It's become an annoyance to him at times always having to ask me if something is too salty. He has gotten used to adding salt to his dish after he makes mine.  He likes salt and I don't.  It's funny because when I tell people I don't like salt they laugh and don't believe me until they have to eat a meal with me and listen to my comments or complaints on salt; then they realize how sensitive I am to it.  To others it's simply unbelievable, to me, everyone else is unbelievable! When I grocery shop I check labels to see how much salt is in something, but I still end up with products sometimes that have me guessing what was wrong with their focus groups!  "This level of salty was what most people liked? That's insane!"  Fast food is similar........."What is going on with focus groups?"  I have concluded that most processed foods are far too salty.  It's not just the fast food or processed food, but most things taste overly salty to me.  I love food and am generally not a picky eater, but when it comes to salt, call me picky pants!  

I do think the lack of salt in my diet actually contributes to headaches, muscle aches, dehydration and even low blood pressure at times.  So many times when headaches arise, salt seems to be a good solution.  I've often wondered why Jesus chose to use salt?  Why not "you are the water of the earth", or "bread of the earth", or "the minerals of the earth", or "the honey of the earth"?  Well,  He is the "living water" and the "bread of life", yes He is the creator of life and the savior of life, so that can't be us.  "Minerals of the earth" would be too complicated and not clear enough.  Honey, or anything sweet is often used sparingly or only on special occasions, at least it was in His day and in many countries of the earth.  That would be like saying "only be good when you go to weddings, or church."  Just what does He mean by saying "you are the salt of the earth"?

I haven't really thought about salt that much in the last 15 years, other than my sensitivity to it.  I've just rejuvenated my education on salt and learned that it is not just very useful, no, it's so much more than that.  I found a website that listed 200 interesting facts about salt and claimed over 14,000 uses for salt.  While reading the list of 200 interesting facts about salt I see a lot of words and phrases repeated over and over such as:

"cleanses, cleans, removes stains (including blood), prevent from decay, prevent from yellowing, relieves pains, softens, purifies, prevents aging, preserves, makes easier, deters pests and weeds, prevents inflammation, heals, restore original color, make last longer, tames, keeps safe, soothes, eliminates bad odors and toxins, serves as an anchor, cures, aids, relaxes, helps, gives energy, balances, maintains, enhances, reduces risk, contains healthy minerals, inadequate salt can cause all sorts of problems for humans and animals", and finally, of course, it can melt one of the most dangerous hazards in my neck of the woods, ice.

Salt is essential to human and animal life.  Salt is important for many parts of our body to function properly.  In our bodies salt exchanges are a balancing act crucial to maintaining health.  When salt exchanges in the body don't work, or there is a lack of it, it can lead to blockages in chemical pathways that produce steroids and other vital hormones in the body.  I wish I could put the entire list here, but it's too long, so you'll have to go read it for yourself:

 https://blog.saltsup.com/200-interesting-facts-about-salt/

When salt melts ice it first dissolves, separating the ions into sodium and chloride.  These separated ions disrupt the hydrogen bonds in the water molecules preventing them from forming ice.  This process is called "freezing point depression" because it lowers the freezing point of water by breaking up the hydrogen bonds. So, simple salt can prevent one of the main winter hazards that causes a lot of trouble for people every year.

One of the phrases in the list that stuck out was "serves as an anchor".  How does salt serve as an anchor? I thought this was interesting.  This is direct from the website above:

"Do you ever feel at peace with the planet when walking barefoot on the beach? The scientific term for this is “grounding.” This is because our bodies can accumulate positive electrons in the form of free radicals; luckily, the sand and saltwater both contain negative charges, which help to counteract the positive buildup. Because of this, many of us sense an innate pull toward the ocean and why a day at the beach can make us feel refreshed and rejuvenated."

This reminds me of claims that gardening barefoot or walking outside barefoot can be healing, or calming.  Even just getting your hands in the dirt to garden can have a relaxing effect.  Maybe you've experienced this, I have.  The beach is one of my favorite places on earth!  How do any of the above words or phrases about salt relate to Jesus' phrase? I actually did not know how many uses there were for salt.  I knew that salt could enhance flavors in meat and even fruit.  I do like a little salt for this reason.  I have tasted meat without salt and it's not very good to eat.  I knew that salt could be used to clean things and exfoliate to soften skin.  Salt is widely used to soften water-you might have a water softener in your house.  I know of salt's preserving power as well.  

The word salary comes from the Latin word sal(t).  Salt was a precious commodity during Roman times.  Many workers were paid in salt rather than money.  After reading the list about salt, I realize why people were happy to be paid in salt.  Salt was/is a universal cleanser, preserver, preventer, remover, eliminator, purifier, healer, relaxer, balancer, maintainer, helper and energizer.  

I think I understand now why Jesus used salt: "you are the salt of the earth", he said.  For ourselves and for others we can cleanse our lives, we can make dirty things clean again, we can restore each other to our original glory as children of God.  We can preserve the good things and important things in life.  We can prevent harm and danger from befalling us in many ways.  We can remove, eliminate and deter the devil from our lives. We can be a softener of hearts.  We can be a helper to others.  We can assist in healing others. We can bring peace and goodwill to all men. We can live our lives with balance and encourage others to do the same.  We can maintain health, and happiness.  We can energize and inspire others and ourselves.  We can be an anchor that others can be attracted to.  If we anchor ourselves to Jesus Christ, we can be the salt of the earth.  

This declaration from Jesus is not so simple.  Here He is telling us that we are, or need to be many things, many important things that pertain to proper human functionality.  He is the Life, the Living Water, the Bread of Life, and the Savior of life, and we are to be the preserver, maintainer, helper, cleaner, softener, anchor, and energizer of life.  We are to help our fellow men and women.  Jesus also warns of salt losing its savor.  What happens when the salt has lost its savor?  Hard hearts, contention, imbalance, no preservation, diminishing health and happiness, lethargy, idleness, and the devil rages in the hearts of man.  We can't do it without Jesus.  First we must follow Him.  To be the salt of the earth we must be bonded to the Lord.  Sure, you can be some of these things without Jesus, you could be a pretty good person, and you could help others still.  I can't imagine fulfilling the fullness of the measure of the stature of this calling without being bonded to or anchored to Jesus Christ.

Salt: a simple compound that aids in the complexities of life.  We are all simple people and children of God that are to aid in the complexities of this life.

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2024/10/22teixeira?lang=eng