Symbolic Leaven

As part of the Passover meal in the Law of Moses, one of the stipulations was that they were not to have any leaven (yeast) in their bread.  It was so strict that it was not to even be in their house: “Unleavened bread shall be eaten seven days; and there shall no leavened bread be seen with thee, neither shall there be leaven seen with thee in all thy quarters” (Exodus 13:7).  Many verses in the Books of Moses speak about this, and the Lord gave the explanation as to why this was to be part of the Passover ritual:“Thou shalt eat no leavened bread with it; seven days shalt thou eat unleavened bread therewith, even the bread of affliction; for thou camest forth out of the land of Egypt in haste: that thou mayest remember the day when thou camest forth out of the land of Egypt all the days of thy life” (Deuteronomy 16:3).  With unleavened bread you don’t have to wait for it to rise, and so it can be cooked faster than bread using yeast which you must wait for as the yeast expands.  The Lord wanted the people of Israel to remember how quickly they had to depart from Egypt, and, presumably, the hand of the Lord that preserved them in that incredible escape.  

                In the New Testament, leaven is likewise used as a symbol but with two different meanings than what it meant in the Law of Moses.  The Lord told the apostles, “Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.”  When they finally figured out what the Savior meant, they realized that he spoke of the “doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees” (Matt. 16:6, 12).  The Lord was warning them of the power of the false doctrines of the Pharisees and Sadducees.  I think that the use of leaven in His warning meant to convey both how puffed up these Jewish rulers were and how their messages could spread to negatively influence all of their society.  This seems to be the same way that Paul used the term in his teachings.  In his epistle to the Corinthians he warned against those who were committed grievous sins of immorality. His counsel to them seems to have been to excommunicate them telling them to “deliver such an one unto Satan” and he commented saying, “Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?” (1 Corinthians 5:5-6).  Paul knew that if those committing these serious sins were allowed to remain members of the Church, there influence would be like that of leaven in that it would spread quickly to “the whole lump” of the members of the Church.  He continued his commentary this way, “Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us: Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth (1 Corinthians 5:7-8).  In other words, the “old leaven” or old ways of life in sin needed to be set aside so that they could live a new life as followers of Christ in “sincerity and truth.”  So being “unleavened” here seems to symbolize the need for disciples of Christ to keep unspotted from the sins and stains of the world, while the wickedness of our time spreads like leaven across society. 

                The second way that the word leaven is used in the New Testament is in positive way.  The Lord gave this very short parable about the kingdom of heaven: “Another parable spake he unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened” (Matt. 13:33).  Joseph Smith explained that these three measures of meal specifically referred to the Three Witnesses of the Book of Mormon: “It may be understood that the Church of the Latter-day Saints has taken its rise from a little leaven that was put into three witnesses. Behold, how much this is like the parable! It is fast leavening the lump, and will soon leaven the whole” (Teachings: Joseph Smith, 302–3).  Their testimony would have a great power for good as it would aid many in accepting the truths of the Restoration.  Taking a broader view I think we can see this as a symbol for how much good one person can do to influence those around him or her, just as leaven will spread across the whole lump of dough.  A small amount of evil or good both can spread quickly to powerfully impact many in society—Captain Moroni and Amalickiah are both clear witnesses to that truth.