Authorial Influence: Alma the Elder and Alma the Younger

Alma and his son Alma the Younger both experienced conversions that changed the course of their lives. Later, as Alma the Younger articulates his conversion, he frames it using some of the same language his father used earlier to recount his own movement away from the court of King Noah. This is a wonderful literary phenomenon, and it is an interesting insight into Alma the Younger's respect for his father. What follows are just a few of the words, themes and phrases that link the conversions of both of these great men.


Bonds of iniquity

Alma the Elder uses the phrase ‘bonds of iniquity’ to describe being in bondage physically to King Noah and then uses it as a spiritual metaphor and a learning point as to why they don’t want a king.

Mosiah 23:13
13 And now as ye have been delivered by the power of God out of these bonds; yea, even out of the hands of king Noah and his people, and also from the bonds of iniquity, even so I desire that ye should stand fast in this liberty wherewith ye have been made free, and that ye trust no man to be a king over you.

Alma the Younger then uses this phrase several times to describe his own spiritual freedom from the bondage from sin, adding the words “gall of bitterness’ to the phrase.

Mosiah 27:29
29 My soul hath been redeemed from the gall of bitterness and bonds of iniquity. I was in the darkest abyss; but now I behold the marvelous light of God. My soul was racked with eternal torment; but I am snatched, and my soul is pained no more.

Alma 41:11
11 And now, my son, all men that are in a state of nature, or I would say, in a carnal state, are in the gall of bitterness and in the bonds of iniquity; they are without God in the world, and they have gone contrary to the nature of God; therefore, they are in a state contrary to the nature of happiness.

Mormon then uses this phrase twice in chapter eight of his book (Mormon 8:14, 31). However, besides the quote by Mormon, it is only used by the father-son combination of Alma the Elder and Alma the Younger. It shows that Alma the Younger absorbed the story of his father’s conversion and internalized some of the principles, applying them to his own conversion experience.


Redeemed of God

Alma the Elder uses the phrase ‘redeemed of God’ during his baptismal address in Mosiah 18.

Mosiah 18:9
9 Yea, and are willing to mourn with those that mourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort, and to stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places that ye may be in, even until death, that ye may be redeemed of God, and be numbered with those of the first resurrection, that ye may have eternal life--

The only other person to use this phrase in the Book of Mormon is his Son, Alma the Younger, who references his own conversion experience:

Mosiah 27:24-25
24 For, said he, I have repented of my sins, and have been redeemed of the Lord; behold I am born of the Spirit.
25 And the Lord said unto me: Marvel not that all mankind, yea, men and women, all nations, kindreds, tongues and people, must be born again; yea, born of God, changed from their carnal and fallen state, to a state of righteousness, being redeemed of God, becoming his sons and daughters;

Much tribulation

Alma the Elder tells us that his conversion experience entailed ‘much tribulation’:

Mosiah 23:10
10 Nevertheless, after much tribulation, the Lord did hear my cries, and did answer my prayers, and has made me an instrument in his hands in bringing so many of you to a knowledge of his truth.

The phrase is used only twice more in the Book of Mormon. In the first, Alma the Younger refers to the trials of his own conversion:

Mosiah 27:28
28 Nevertheless, after wading through much tribulations, repenting nigh unto death, the Lord in mercy hath seen fit to snatch me out of an everlasting burning, and I am born of God.

The only other time it is used is by Mormon in paraphrasing the words of Alma the Younger about trials in his missionary service:

Alma 8:14
14 And it came to pass that while he was journeying thither, being weighed down with sorrow, wading through much tribulation and anguish of soul, because of the wickedness of the people who were in the city of Ammonihah, it came to pass while Alma was thus weighed down with sorrow, behold an angel of the Lord appeared unto him, saying:

Mormon often adopts the words of the persons whose writings he is summarizing. Thus the phrase ‘much tribulation’ probably was used by Alma the Younger in his own text and merely carried over into the abridgment by Mormon.

I also find it interesting that Alma the Younger would use it only in the context of A) his own conversion, and B) his attempts toward the conversion of others. The two seem to be related as well in latter-day scriptures attesting to the fact that as we bring others to repent of their sins we are covering a multitude of our own, just as our own forgiveness is linked to our forgiveness of others.

Lie Down Unto the Lord: Night Visions in Psalms and the Book of Mormon

Que la cama no es sólo para el sueño.
Que la noche no es Dios con los párpados cerrados.
Andrea Cote Botero [1]

[Unless otherwise noted, all English citations to the Hebrew Bible are from the King James Version]

Many of the biblical patriarchs experienced theophanies that took place during the hours of darkness [2]. Later, the Lord reaffirmed to Israel that he would speak to his prophets by dreams and visions (Num 12:6-8), many of which did in fact take place during the night. While this theme is referenced occasionally elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible (cf. 1 Kgs 3:5; Job 4:13, 33:15), it is particularly prominent in the Psalms and the Book of Mormon.

The Psalmist often converses with God about being visited: “Thou hast proved mine heart; thou hast visited me in the night; thou hast tried me” (17:3). (Instead of 'thou has tried me,' the LXX reads ἐπύρωσάς με, or 'you set me on fire.') He also talks of being instructed by God: “Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge” (19:1-2); "I will bless the Lord, who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in the night seasons" (16:7).

There are also frequent conversations with and inquiries of God in a setting that implies a nighttime view of the heavens:

When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? (8:3-4). [3]

In Psalm 18, we are told, “In my distress I called upon the Lord . . . he heard my voice out of his temple” (v. 6). Soon the petitioner is visited: “He bowed the heavens also, and came down: and darkness was under his feet” (v. 9), and this heavenly visitor “made darkness his secret place; his pavilion round about him were dark waters and thick clouds of the skies” (v. 11). (Here the Jewish Publication Society (JPS) version uses ‘hiding place’ instead of ‘secret place,’ which is probably a better translation of the LXX ἀποκρυφὴν αὐτοῦ) During this vision where he sees the Lord (vv. 6–13), there are several times where the darkness is emphasized. Although the vision seems to be happening within or in some relationship to the temple (v. 6), much of the imagery takes place outside, the darkness contrasting with ‘the brightness that was before him’ (v. 12).

One Psalm even speaks of a visitation of God's music to comfort and foster gratitude: “Yet the Lord will command his lovingkindness in the daytime, and in the night his song shall be with me” (42:8). This verse would seem to be related to Elihu's comment to Job: “God my maker, who giveth songs in the night” (Job 35:10). The imagery of God visiting his children at night with the joy of music is rather powerful.

The authors of the Book of Mormon use these images and language frequently as well. Nephi tells us, “Behold, he hath heard my cry by day, and he hath given me knowledge by visions in the nighttime” (2 Ne 4:23). He tells us numerous times of the dreams and visions his father experienced (1 Ne 2:1-2, 3:2, 8:2), several of which are specifically given as happening at night:

And it came to pass that the voice of the Lord spake unto my father by night, and commanded him that on the morrow he should take his journey into the wilderness (1 Ne 16:9).

Others in the family experience the same type of phenomenon. Jacob is given knowledge by an angelic visitor at night: “Wherefore, as I said unto you, it must needs be expedient that Christ--for in the last night the angel spake unto me that this should be his name” (2 Ne 10:3). And a generation later, his son Enos undergoes a day-long supplication that is finally answered at night:

And my soul hungered; and I kneeled down before my Maker, and I cried unto him in mighty prayer and supplication for mine own soul; and all the day long did I cry unto him; yea, and when the night came I did still raise my voice high that it reached the heavens. And there came a voice unto me, saying: Enos, thy sins are forgiven thee, and thou shalt be blessed (Enos 4-5).

The imagery of a visitation of God's music is also referenced in the Book of Mormon. Alma the Younger rehearses to the people of Zarahemla the trials of his father's people after they escape from King Noah and become subject to the Lamanites. God 'changed their hearts' and 'wakened them out of a deep sleep' as 'they were in the midst of darkness' (Alma 5:7). But in the darkness, arising from sleep, their “souls did expand, and they did sing redeeming love” (v. 9). He then adapts the message to his audience, asking them if they have felt the same 'music':

And now behold, I say unto you, my brethren, if ye have experienced a change of heart, and if ye have felt to sing the song of redeeming love, I would ask, can ye feel so now? (Alma 5:26).

Another variation on the theme is a pattern of supplication-visitation while retiring to one's bed. For example, the Psalmist tells us, “commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still” (4:4). (The JPS translation has 'ponder it on your bed.') This is reiterated several times throughout the psalter:

When I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches (63:6).

This idea of pondering spiritual matters in communion with God upon one's bed is contrasted with he who “deviseth mischief upon his bed” (36:4) and he who would dwell on his sorrow: “I am weary with my groaning; all the night make I my bed to swim; I water my couch with my tears” (6:6; see also 22:2).

Compare this imagery to Lehi’s experience where he “cast himself upon his bed, being overcome with the Spirit and the things which he had seen” (1 Ne 1:7), after which he was immediately “carried away in a vision, even that he saw the heavens open, and he thought he saw God sitting upon his throne” (1 Ne 1:8). Later, Nephi's sorrow echoes that of the Psalmist: “mine eyes water my pillow by night” (2 Ne 33:3), possibly involving long supplication and tearful pleading. King Lamoni, while unconscious on his bed (Alma 18:43), has a vision of his Redeemer (alma 19:13). And Alma tells us, “Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings . . . yea, when thou liest down at night lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in your sleep (Alma 37:37). The idea of counseling with the Lord and lying down unto the Lord certainly gives the impression of one communing with Him in the bed as they retire, pondering one's spiritual state and well being.


NOTES

[1] From her poem “La noche en ti queda” as published in La Merienda and found at http://festivalinternacionaldepoesiaenpuertorico.com/andreacotebotero.html.

[2] For just a few examples, see Gen 20:3 (Abraham); Gen 28:10-19, 46:2 (Jacob); Gen 37:5-7 (Joseph).

[3] Most commentaries lean toward the interpretation that this is a nighttime view of the firmament, as the sun is not mentioned. In a similar scene in the Pearl of Great Price, Abraham talks with God about the visible elements of the heavens (Abraham 3:1-11). Gee, Hamblin, and Peterson argue that while not a vision per se, God is talking to Abraham at night about what is visible with his own eyes. (“And I Saw the Stars -- The Book of Abraham and Ancient Geocentric Astronomy” from Astronomy, Papyrus, and Covenant found at the Maxwell Institute: http://maxwellinstitute.byu.edu/publications/bookschapter.php?bookid=40&chapid=161.

Authorial Influence: Jacob and Enos

Unfortunately, Enos does not leave much recorded on the Small Plates, making it hard to compare his writing with that of his father or uncle. What he leaves in comparison to Nephi, for example, is about what my poor journal-writing efforts have been in comparison to my wife's. What little Enos did leave, however, does compare remarkably with other themes we've seen before. (I wish I could say the same for my own journal writing.)

Joy of the saints

Enos tells us that the words his father, Jacob, taught him concerning eternal life and ‘joy of the saints’ sunk deep into his soul and caused his hunger to be forgiven of his sins.

Enos 1:3
3 Behold, I went to hunt beasts in the forests; and the words which I had often heard my father speak concerning eternal life, and the joy of the saints, sunk deep into my heart.

The word ‘saints’ is used 28 times in 27 verses in the Book of Mormon. The vast majority of these instances, however, reference tribulation and the Lord’s vengeance for those who spill ‘the blood of the saints’, ‘kill the saints’, or ‘destroy the saints’ (1 Ne 13:5, 9; 2 Ne 26:3, 5; 2 Ne 28:10; 3 Ne 9:5, 7–9, 11; 3 Ne 10:12; Mor 8:27, 41; Eth 8:22). Nephi also speaks of the saints as spreading abroad on the face of the earth (1 Ne 14:12, 14), Jacob tells us that God delivers his saints from death and hell (2 Ne 9:19); others prophesy or testify that graves were opened at the time the Savior was resurrected and the saints appeared to many (Hel 14:25; 3 Ne 23:9, 11). Mormon tells us that the saints shall cry from the dust through the coming forth of the Book of Mormon (Mor 8:23), speaks of the prayers of the saints (Mor 9:36), and tells us that the saints shall dwell with God after tribulation (Mor 8:26).

Of all those who speak of the saints, however, Jacob is the only one to explicitly mention the saints in the context of joy or happiness (2 Ne 9:18, 43):

2 Nephi 9:18
18 But, behold, the righteous, the saints of the Holy One of Israel, they who have believed in the Holy One of Israel, they who have endured the crosses of the world, and despised the shame of it, they shall inherit the kingdom of God, which was prepared for them from the foundation of the world, and their joy shall be full forever.

2 Nephi 9:43
43 But the things of the wise and the prudent shall be hid from them forever--yea, that happiness which is prepared for the saints.

Interestingly, Jacob’s father, Lehi, teaches his children that the fruit of the tree was “desirable to make one happy” (1 Ne 8:10) and filled his soul with “exceedingly great joy” (1 Ne 8:12). Of course, these are the very words that Enos remembers Jacob using in the context of ‘joy of the saints’ and ‘happiness of the saints.’ And Nephi makes the connection from Enos' memory to Lehi's description complete by referring to those in Lehi’s dream that partook of the fruit as 'saints' (1 Ne 15:28).

This brings Enos’ thirst after the ‘joy of the saints’ into the realm of the Tree of Life vision: He is in the wilderness, desires conversion and the joy and happiness the fruit brings, then desires for the conversion of his loved ones, just as Lehi and Nephi both did in the Tree of Life vision. It's also likely that Jacob experienced the same vision or something similar--consider that Nephi and Lehi both tell us that Jacob saw the Savior (2 Ne 2:4; 2 Ne 11:3) and Lehi tells us that Jacob has beheld "that in the fullness of time he [the Redeemer] cometh to bring salvation unto men" (2 Ne 2:3). This sounds like the extended vision of the Tree of Life vision that explains the Savior's mortal ministry.

Thus, the phrase ‘joy of the saints’ frequently used by Enos' father, Jacob, probably referred to the Tree of Life, whose fruit was seen by Lehi, Nephi, and (probably) Jacob, and brought joy and happiness to the saints. It shows the remarkable literary complexity in the Book of Mormon and argues for a spiritual/literary influence between Jacob and Enos--indeed, Lehi, Nephi, Jacob, and Enos--that becomes evident in the writings these men left behind.

Authorial Influence: Nephi and Jacob

As stated in the introduction (last entry), I wanted to look at specific words, phrases, or ideas unique to individuals that have a literary or spiritual effect on someone closely related. In today's entry, I'll explore the ideas that show Nephi's influence on Jacob. As an aside, I don't think this is a one-way relationship. Jacob must have influenced Nephi substantially, for Nephi includes five chapters of Jacob's words in the middle of his own record (2 Ne 6-10) and calls on him as a fellow witness of the Savior (2 Ne 11:3). But we'll leave that for another day.


Condescension of God

When Nephi asks to be shown the things his father had seen and to know the interpretation thereof, he is shown the birth of the Son of God to a fair virgin and asked, “Knowest thou the condescension of God?” (1 Ne 11:16). Then, about to show Nephi the ministry of the Savior, the angel tells him, “Look and behold the condescension of God!” (1 Ne 11:26). This concept of the condescension of God obviously impresses Nephi, for he then uses it in his own ‘Psalm’:

2 Nephi 4:26
26 O then, if I have seen so great things, if the Lord in his condescension unto the children of men hath visited men in so much mercy, why should my heart weep and my soul linger in the valley of sorrow, and my flesh waste away, and my strength slacken, because of mine afflictions?

The only other time this word shows up again in the Book of Mormon is when it is used twice by Nephi’s brother Jacob:

2 Nephi 9:53
53 And behold how great the covenants of the Lord, and how great his condescensions unto the children of men; and because of his greatness, and his grace and mercy, he has promised unto us that our seed shall not utterly be destroyed, according to the flesh, but that he would preserve them; and in future generations they shall become a righteous branch unto the house of Israel.

Jacob 4:7
7 Nevertheless, the Lord God showeth us our weakness that we may know that it is by his grace, and his great condescensions unto the children of men, that we have power to do these things.

That the word only shows up within the writings of two brothers demonstrates the influence Nephi’s teachings must have had on Jacob.


A whore of all the earth

The angel who is guiding Nephi through his vision refers to the great and abominable church as ‘the whore of all the earth’:

1 Nephi 14:10
10 And he said unto me: Behold there are save two churches only; the one is the church of the Lamb of God, and the other is the church of the devil; wherefore, whoso belongeth not to the church of the Lamb of God belongeth to that great church, which is the mother of abominations; and she is the whore of all the earth.

Nephi then immediately uses it in his narrative in the following verses to describe the activities and characteristics of this church:

1 Nephi 14:11–12
11 And it came to pass that I looked and beheld the whore of all the earth, and she sat upon many waters; and she had dominion over all the earth, among all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people.
12 And it came to pass that I beheld the church of the Lamb of God, and its numbers were few, because of the wickedness and abominations of the whore who sat upon many waters; nevertheless, I beheld that the church of the Lamb, who were the saints of God, were also upon all the face of the earth; and their dominions upon the face of the earth were small, because of the wickedness of the great whore whom I saw.

Nephi then uses it to explain two chapters of Isaiah (1 Ne 20, 21—Isaiah 48, 49) about the scattering and gathering of Israel:

1 Nephi 22:13–14
13 And the blood of that great and abominable church, which is the whore of all the earth, shall turn upon their own heads; for they shall war among themselves, and the sword of their own hands shall fall upon their own heads, and they shall be drunken with their own blood.
14 And every nation which shall war against thee, O house of Israel, shall be turned one against another, and they shall fall into the pit which they digged to ensnare the people of the Lord. And all that fight against Zion shall be destroyed, and that great whore, who hath perverted the right ways of the Lord, yea, that great and abominable church, shall tumble to the dust and great shall be the fall of it.

Nephi then uses it for the last time to describe the activities of the great and abominable church in the last days:

2 Nephi 28:18
18 But behold, that great and abominable church, the whore of all the earth, must tumble to the earth, and great must be the fall thereof.

The only other person in the Book of Mormon to employ this concept like this is Nephi’s brother Jacob, who explains or defines just who this ‘whore of all the earth’ or ‘great and abominable church’ really is:

2 Nephi 10:16
16 Wherefore, he that fighteth against Zion, both Jew and Gentile, both bond and free, both male and female, shall perish; for they are they who are the whore of all the earth; for they who are not for me are against me, saith our God.

The use of the phrase by Jacob shows the influence of his brother’s visions and writings on his own spiritual development and points to the literary richness in the Book of Mormon.


A blessed people

In his vision, Nephi is shown the Gentiles who are brought to the promised land. If these Gentiles will not harden their hearths, they can become a blessed people:

1 Nephi 14:1–2
1 And it shall come to pass, that if the Gentiles shall hearken unto the Lamb of God in that day that he shall manifest himself unto them in word, and also in power, in very deed, unto the taking away of their stumbling blocks--
2 And harden not their hearts against the Lamb of God, they shall be numbered among the seed of thy father; yea, they shall be numbered among the house of Israel; and they shall be a blessed people upon the promised land forever; they shall be no more brought down into captivity; and the house of Israel shall no more be confounded.

The only other person in the Book of Mormon to talk about the concept of a blessed people like this is Nephi’s brother Jacob. While talking about the wickedness of the Lamanites, he tells us that there will come a time when the descendents of the Lamanites will become a blessed people.

Jacob 3:5–6
5 Behold, the Lamanites your brethren, whom ye hate because of their filthiness and the cursing which hath come upon their skins, are more righteous than you; for they have not forgotten the commandment of the Lord, which was given unto our father--that they should have save it were one wife, and concubines they should have none, and there should not be whoredoms committed among them.
6 And now, this commandment they observe to keep; wherefore, because of this observance, in keeping this commandment, the Lord God will not destroy them, but will be merciful unto them; and one day they shall become a blessed people.

Jacob’s use of the same phrase shows the impact his brother’s teachings had upon him.


Persuading men to Christ

Nephi frequently uses the word 'persuade' as he talks about convincing others to believe in Christ.

1 Nephi 19:18
18 And I, Nephi, have written these things unto my people, that perhaps I might persuade them that they would remember the Lord their Redeemer.

1 Nephi 19:23
23 And I did read many things unto them which were written in the books of Moses; but that I might more fully persuade them to believe in the Lord their Redeemer I did read unto them that which was written by the prophet Isaiah; for I did liken all scriptures unto us, that it might be for our profit and learning.

See also 1 Ne 3:21; 1 Ne 6:4; 2 Ne 25:16,23; 2 Ne 26:27; 2 Ne 33:4. Then Jacob uses it in the same context:

Jacob 1:7-8
7 Wherefore we labored diligently among our people, that we might persuade them to come unto Christ, and partake of the goodness of God, that they might enter into his rest, lest by any means he should swear in his wrath they should not enter in, as in the provocation in the days of temptation while the children of Israel were in the wilderness.
8 Wherefore, we would to God that we could persuade all men not to rebel against God, to provoke him to anger, but that all men would believe in Christ, and view his death, and suffer his cross and bear the shame of the world; wherefore, I, Jacob, take it upon me to fulfil the commandment of my brother Nephi.

While this concept is also used by the editors of the Book of Mormon at the end of the record (For Mormon, see Mor 3:22; 5:14; Mor 7:16, 17. For Moroni, see Eth 4:11, 12; 8:26), there are no other non-editors who use this concept of 'persuading to come unto Christ.' The fact that the two authors who use it together are brothers argues for the literary/spiritual influence that they had on each other. You could also argue that the use of it by the two main editors at the end of the record demonstrate an influence on each other as well.


Nursing scattered Israel

Nephi quotes Isaiah 49 to the effect that gentile leaders would later assist scattered Israel:

1 Nephi 21:23
23 And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers; they shall bow down to thee with their face towards the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the Lord; for they shall not be
ashamed that wait for me.

Nephi then uses the word 'nurse' in the same context himself when explaining the Isaiah passages to Laman and Lemuel:

1 Nephi 22:6
6 Nevertheless, after they shall be nursed by the Gentiles, and the Lord has lifted up hIs hand upon the Gentiles and set them up for a standard, and their children have been carried in their arms, and their daughters have been carried upon their shoulders, behold these things of which are spoken are temporal;

It is interesting that Jacob then does the exact same thing. He uses the same quote from Isaiah 49 . . .

2 Nephi 6:7
7 And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers; they shall bow down to thee with their faces towards the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the Lord; for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.

. . . then explains it to his people using the same word in context, just as Nephi did:

2 Nephi 10:9
9 Yea, the kings of the Gentiles shall be nursing fathers unto them, and their queens shall become nursing mothers; wherefore, the promises of the Lord are great unto the Gentiles, for he hath spoken it, and who can dispute?

No one else uses this term at all in the Book of Mormon. The fact that Nephi and Jacob both quote the same passage from Isaiah and then explain it in similar fashion demonstrates the influence Isaiah had on them and that Nephi had on Jacob.

Authorial Influence: Introduction

When my family moved to the US from Egypt and we finally got access to cable TV, my Dad and I became serious sports junkies. We'd be into our third bowl of popcorn watching the German Hammer Throw Championship on ESPN 5 and someone would actually call our house. On the phone. This meant it was probably ringing during a funny beer commercial. Dad started shouting "Go away!" before getting up to answer it. Then we started unplugging it. Since then, I've been known to use the phrase myself a few times. Worse, my kids have picked up on it as well.

The beauty of language is that phrases, words, and concepts are often unique to individuals, demonstrating their creative influence on a particular work. For example, Alma the Younger is the only author in the Book of Mormon to use the word ‘abyss’ (Mosiah 27:29, Alma 26:3). Nephi is the only one to use the construction “plain and precious” — he uses it to refer to the plain and precious things he makes sure to add to his spiritual record (1 Ne 19:3) after seeing in vision the plain and precious things taken out or held back from another spiritual record (1 Ne 13:28, 29 [twice], 34, 35, 40). Also, Moroni is the only author to use the phrases ‘strict to observe’ (Moroni 6:7) and ‘as oft as’ (Moroni 6:8).

Because phrases and concepts can be unique to individuals, you sometimes see how the influence of these individuals and their writings affect others who are close to them. This is true of the Book of Mormon authors and editors as well. On many occasions, the words, phrases, or ideas that are peculiar to an individual are then later used by a son or brother of that individual, reflecting the spiritual and literary influence the authors had on each other. This adds a depth of realism and literary complexity to the Book of Mormon that makes it special, mirroring our own lives where we learn and grow from the words, ideas, and concepts of those who are close to us. ("Go away!")

In future posts, I'll be highlighting a few of the examples I’ve found in the Book of Mormon of this concept—sons, fathers, and brothers all learning from each other. There are probably many more instances to be found, and this is definitely a work in progress. Any comments are welcome.

First Thoughts

I sometimes think of my relationship with the Book of Mormon in terms of Robert Frost's "Devotion," a simple poem published in 1928 in a volume called West Running Brook:

The heart can think of no devotion
Greater than being shore to the ocean--
Holding the curve of one position,
Counting an endless repetition.

I've read the Book of Mormon so many times that it sometimes feels as if I am the shore to its ocean, continuously washed with simple waves that hint at a complexity of life just below the surface. The thoughts and feelings that result leave me as impressionable as the wet sand that sits counting the endless repetition of contact. During some periods of my life, it feels as if I've lived in its pages like I would my home, drawing from them a wonderful power and energy that infuses my life with meaning and draws me closer to the Savior and to my family.

Like most who undertake a life-long journey through this book, I've also come to treasure the Book of Mormon for its literary richness. It is a textbook of conversion and redemption, a powerful insight into human nature and potential. And like the fruit Lehi briefly held in vision, the insights we receive just have to be shared. However unremarkable and ordinary my insights are, they are my own devotion, a result of patterns and themes that have made an impression on me through countless repetition and occasional understanding.