As with the Bible, some people in the Book of Mormon are primarily remembered as doers (think Joshua), while others are better remembered for the counsel they gave which survives for our own use (Paul). Alma the Younger was a doer in life, but is better remembered for his explanations of Christian doctrines to both large congregations and to his own sons. In terms of expounding doctrine, his is one of the best known voices of the Book of Mormon, along with Nephi, Lehi, Jacob and, of course, the resurrected Jesus himself.
His life compares most closely to that of Paul. He was not on God's side of things early in life, but lived more of a sectarian lifestyle along with the sons of King Mosiah. He was a strong critic of the Church, opposing his father, but unknowingly benefiting from his father's prayers made on his behalf. Like Paul, it took direct intervention by a heavenly messenger to convince Alma and the brothers that their lives needed large and immediate change. The brothers dramatically altered their own lives, as they renounced all claims to royal status or privilege in order to take the missionary message to the Lamanites. Alma was at first named as the head of the new government proposed by Mosiah, with the title of Chief Judge, but he later gave up the office in order to concentrate on leading the church among the Nephites, succeeding his father, whose life is described in an earlier entry.
This choice took led him to proclaim the coming of Jesus approximately 150 years and thousands of miles removed from Jesus' actual birth. The message, therefore, was not always gladly received. As with Paul, Alma sometimes suffered from persecution from the people he was attempting to serve. His wish, on at least one occasion, was simply to be able to leave a greater impression of his message ("Oh, that I were an angel, and could have the wish of mine heart.").
Alma's teachings regarding eternal judgement, the resurrection, and the need to serve others are well known to Book of Mormon students. The clarity of his message is a comfort to those who have struggled to understand the teachings of other ancient prophets. HIs teachings given, in particular, to one rebellious son reveal Alma as one who was not afraid to remind someone of lack of an excuse for sin, but that even great evils could be atoned for with sincere repentance. His teachings to poor Zoramite laborers banned from the very temple they had built because of their poverty reminds us of God's scant regard for such things as worldly wealth, and that our devotion should not be confined to a single place.
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Monday, November 19, 2012
Nicodemus, New Testament
The Gospel of John records Jesus' connections to Nicodemus, who, though his name might suggest otherwise, served as a pharisee and member of the Sanhedrin. Nicodemus seeks a better understanding of this man he has heard so much about, but he is not willing to jeopardize his own status by being seen with Jesus in public. Instead, he comes to him at night. All he knows at this point is that no one in his own group is capable of the things Jesus has done, and that therefore Jesus must possess divine authority.
It would have been natural for Jesus to be suspicious of this man who appears in the night, but he must have seen something in Nicodemus which denoted sincerity, if not bravery. He proceeds to explain the necessity of receiving baptism, a concept that does not seem familiar to Nicodemus.
The scriptures do not show a definitive conclusion to this conversation, but subsequent verses have Jesus introducing Nicodemus to the fact that his life would have many changes if he chose to become a disciple.
Nicodemus' name is mentioned twice more in the scriptures. When the problem of Jesus, as seen by the pharisees, is discussed, Nicodemus reminds the group that no action could be legally taken against him without his having the opportunity to speak on his own behalf. Even this modest suggestion is rejected by the pharisees, who point out that the Messiah, according to previous prophecies, would not come from Galilee, and so it wouldn't matter what this Nazarene might say. He simply could not be who he claimed to be.
Following the crucifixion, Nicodemus, perhaps out of personal feelings of guilt that he had not intervened on Jesus' behalf, donates spices intended for use in preparing Jesus' body for burial.
Final judgement of those, like Nicodemus, whose lives touch Jesus at one or two points in life, must be left to Someone with all the facts to make an accurate judgement. Was there a waste of leadership ability here, or a loss of public testimony that the Jews might have heard? Perhaps. But there were no doubt many who were frightened away from becoming believers - men and women who concluded that it would have been "too hard" to fully adopt the teachings of this Galilean whom many would have seen as "doomed".
It would have been natural for Jesus to be suspicious of this man who appears in the night, but he must have seen something in Nicodemus which denoted sincerity, if not bravery. He proceeds to explain the necessity of receiving baptism, a concept that does not seem familiar to Nicodemus.
The scriptures do not show a definitive conclusion to this conversation, but subsequent verses have Jesus introducing Nicodemus to the fact that his life would have many changes if he chose to become a disciple.
Nicodemus' name is mentioned twice more in the scriptures. When the problem of Jesus, as seen by the pharisees, is discussed, Nicodemus reminds the group that no action could be legally taken against him without his having the opportunity to speak on his own behalf. Even this modest suggestion is rejected by the pharisees, who point out that the Messiah, according to previous prophecies, would not come from Galilee, and so it wouldn't matter what this Nazarene might say. He simply could not be who he claimed to be.
Following the crucifixion, Nicodemus, perhaps out of personal feelings of guilt that he had not intervened on Jesus' behalf, donates spices intended for use in preparing Jesus' body for burial.
Final judgement of those, like Nicodemus, whose lives touch Jesus at one or two points in life, must be left to Someone with all the facts to make an accurate judgement. Was there a waste of leadership ability here, or a loss of public testimony that the Jews might have heard? Perhaps. But there were no doubt many who were frightened away from becoming believers - men and women who concluded that it would have been "too hard" to fully adopt the teachings of this Galilean whom many would have seen as "doomed".
Monday, November 12, 2012
Joshua, Old Testament
The Children of Israel were destined, under Moses, to wander in the Wilderness for a full forty years. This was the consequence of their lack of faith in God's ability to deliver them safely into Canaan, where they would reestablish themselves in Abraham's old home as the new national power.
But getting to the Promised Land and actually taking possession of it were two different things. It was true that the Israelites had only to look out on the ground day after day to see that God was on their side. How else could the daily provision of manna ("What is it?") be explained? But the spies sent to check out the Canaanites and their defenses were not helpful. All but two felt that conquering these people might be too great a task. And the people were inclined to agree, because almost no one really wants war.
God's response was to slam the door to the Promised Land on all the remaining Israelites who had begun their lives in Egypt as slaves. They were condemned to live out their days putting one foot in front of another crisscrossing the desert until, one by one, they had all died. Only then could they take up the issue of the conquest of Canaan again.
And one of the two optimistic spies, Joshua, was to succeed Moses, who was also kept from crossing over. Entering the land was more celebratory than military, but it wasn't all good news. One thing that made it clear that things were now to be different was that the daily manna ended.
Another, and much more daunting, was the command to Joshua to clear the land of all the native peoples. It might not be necessary to slaughter them all, but, one way or another, they were to be removed.
It is said that we can receive no command from God that cannot be obeyed, but this one would prove to be a test simply beyond the will of the Israelites to fulfill. The members of the twelve tribes had each staked out territory to occupy, and quickly did so. But each tribe found a way to peacefully deal with the locals in ways that fell well short of God's command.
He had known that, just as living among the Egyptians had a negative effect on His people, appeasing the Canaanites would produce similar results. Sure enough, intermarriage and the partial adoption of the beliefs of idol worshipers did have a negative effect.
Joshua did all he could over a long period of time, but was finally reduced to simply leaving it up to the people to choose for themselves the objects of their worship, making it clear that he intended to serve the Lord, as he always had.
But getting to the Promised Land and actually taking possession of it were two different things. It was true that the Israelites had only to look out on the ground day after day to see that God was on their side. How else could the daily provision of manna ("What is it?") be explained? But the spies sent to check out the Canaanites and their defenses were not helpful. All but two felt that conquering these people might be too great a task. And the people were inclined to agree, because almost no one really wants war.
God's response was to slam the door to the Promised Land on all the remaining Israelites who had begun their lives in Egypt as slaves. They were condemned to live out their days putting one foot in front of another crisscrossing the desert until, one by one, they had all died. Only then could they take up the issue of the conquest of Canaan again.
And one of the two optimistic spies, Joshua, was to succeed Moses, who was also kept from crossing over. Entering the land was more celebratory than military, but it wasn't all good news. One thing that made it clear that things were now to be different was that the daily manna ended.
Another, and much more daunting, was the command to Joshua to clear the land of all the native peoples. It might not be necessary to slaughter them all, but, one way or another, they were to be removed.
It is said that we can receive no command from God that cannot be obeyed, but this one would prove to be a test simply beyond the will of the Israelites to fulfill. The members of the twelve tribes had each staked out territory to occupy, and quickly did so. But each tribe found a way to peacefully deal with the locals in ways that fell well short of God's command.
He had known that, just as living among the Egyptians had a negative effect on His people, appeasing the Canaanites would produce similar results. Sure enough, intermarriage and the partial adoption of the beliefs of idol worshipers did have a negative effect.
Joshua did all he could over a long period of time, but was finally reduced to simply leaving it up to the people to choose for themselves the objects of their worship, making it clear that he intended to serve the Lord, as he always had.
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Laman and Lemuel, The Book of Mormon
Laman and Lemuel were two of Nephi's three older brothers. The scriptures almost always link the two, and so lacking other material, we have no way of seeing them separately. We meet them along with the rest of Lehi's family in the earliest chapters of the Book of Mormon. They appear to be around twenty years old, without families of their own at the start.
It should be noted here that the record we have was written by Nephi, whose accounts don't include the good qualities of these brothers, whatever they may have been, but concentrate on their relationship with Nephi, which is often hostile and near violent owing to (according to Nephi) their jealousy of his status as future family leader and a person of spiritual authority.
When it becomes evident that Lehi and family will never return to Jerusalem to live, and that their future is quite uncertain, Lehi's sons are obliged to consider whether all this is necessary and good for them all. Nephi makes the question a matter of prayer, and receives an answer that puts him solidly with his father, wherever the family might go.
Laman and Lemuel are slightly older, and much more worldly. They had counted, no doubt, on joining their father's trading business at some point, and enjoying everything that would go with what passed for the ancient "good life". They not only couldn't see the merit in leaving, they couldn't generate enough faith in their father to believe he had a plan, either.
It was not as though they never had the chance to change their minds. The scripture records that on several occasions the two older brothers saw visions, heard voices, witnessed miracles and were instructed properly in being faithful sons. But some of this instruction came from Nephi, which would have tainted it in the minds of his brothers.
The rift in the family never is healed. The two older brothers and their families are estranged from the others, and, following Lehi's passing, they devolve into a separate people, coming from the same gene pool, but passing on their personal enmity to succeeding generations who treat it as a way of life. It is from the oldest brother, Laman, that the Lamanites get their name. Through much of the Book of Mormon, the conflict overlaying the conflict we all experience between good and evil is that of the Nephites and their lethal sworn enemies, the Lamanites.
LIke Miss Haversham of Dickens "Great Expectations", jilted on what was supposed to be her wedding day many years before and feeling the pain of that day so completely that the wedding banquet is left to rot at the great table where it was to be served, these two brothers just couldn't get past the loss of wht they thought their lives would be like. Unwilling to blame themselves for this all too human tendency, they were ultimately willing to see their entire progeny kept in spiritual darkness, wasting their lives on an incorrect premise.
It should be noted here that the record we have was written by Nephi, whose accounts don't include the good qualities of these brothers, whatever they may have been, but concentrate on their relationship with Nephi, which is often hostile and near violent owing to (according to Nephi) their jealousy of his status as future family leader and a person of spiritual authority.
When it becomes evident that Lehi and family will never return to Jerusalem to live, and that their future is quite uncertain, Lehi's sons are obliged to consider whether all this is necessary and good for them all. Nephi makes the question a matter of prayer, and receives an answer that puts him solidly with his father, wherever the family might go.
Laman and Lemuel are slightly older, and much more worldly. They had counted, no doubt, on joining their father's trading business at some point, and enjoying everything that would go with what passed for the ancient "good life". They not only couldn't see the merit in leaving, they couldn't generate enough faith in their father to believe he had a plan, either.
It was not as though they never had the chance to change their minds. The scripture records that on several occasions the two older brothers saw visions, heard voices, witnessed miracles and were instructed properly in being faithful sons. But some of this instruction came from Nephi, which would have tainted it in the minds of his brothers.
The rift in the family never is healed. The two older brothers and their families are estranged from the others, and, following Lehi's passing, they devolve into a separate people, coming from the same gene pool, but passing on their personal enmity to succeeding generations who treat it as a way of life. It is from the oldest brother, Laman, that the Lamanites get their name. Through much of the Book of Mormon, the conflict overlaying the conflict we all experience between good and evil is that of the Nephites and their lethal sworn enemies, the Lamanites.
LIke Miss Haversham of Dickens "Great Expectations", jilted on what was supposed to be her wedding day many years before and feeling the pain of that day so completely that the wedding banquet is left to rot at the great table where it was to be served, these two brothers just couldn't get past the loss of wht they thought their lives would be like. Unwilling to blame themselves for this all too human tendency, they were ultimately willing to see their entire progeny kept in spiritual darkness, wasting their lives on an incorrect premise.
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