THE POWER OF US

 

 

There is a huge lesson we can learn from the reason that Alma left the judgment seat at the beginning of the 9th year of the reign of the judges. It is astounding to me that in the eighth year of the reign of the judges, the Church became a ‘stumbling block’ to people outside the Church (Alma 4:10). By the commencement of the ninth year, the wickedness of the Church was so great that the example of the members began to lead the unbelievers to sin and iniquity (v 11). Imagine if we, collectively as the Church, started to became so corrupt and wicked that we were leading the people of the world astray……I can’t get my head around that.

 How did this strife in Alma’s reign begin? Mormon cites that pride and riches led the members to be scornful one towards another and even to persecute those who did not believe the same as they did (v 8). From there it was downhill: contentions, envy, strife, malice, persecutions, and pride, that even ‘exceeded the pride of those who did not belong to the Church of God’ (v 9). The state of the Church was so bad and heading to such destruction that Alma in his sorrow stepped down from the judgment seat that he might dedicate himself wholly to preaching and calling people to repentance (v 15-18). His strategy was simply to bear pure testimony (v 19)

This is the lesson. What was leading the Church to destruction the most, was the meanness of spirit that took possession of the well-to-do members which caused them to turn their backs on the poor and the needy, ‘and those who were hungry, and those who were athirst, and those who were sick and afflicted (Alma 4:12). Pride had robbed them of any feelings of charity. Contrast this with the city of Enoch who lived in such unity of brotherhood that there was no poor among them and ‘the Lord called his people Zion, because they were of one heart and one mind’ (Moses 7:18).

 Hugh Nibley wrote about ‘the meanness of spirit’ at great length in his book “Approaching Zion” and how incredibly destructive it can be to us latter-day saints who live under the mandate to become a Zion people. He quoted a scripture given to the covenant people back in Moses’ day which promised us that we can look forward to the day when there shall be no poor among us if we ‘carefully hearken and strictly observe the commandments’ (Deuteronomy 28:12-14). This is how far back the mandate to become a Zion people goes. (see Hugh Nibley, Approaching Zion, p 197)

The citizens of Enoch's City of Holiness not only achieved the blessed state of being of one heart and one mind but they maintained this state of righteousness for 365 years before they were translated (Moses 7:18, 68). This was doable, this was possible, this was achievable, only because ‘Enoch and all his people walked with God’ (v 69). Enoch’s city was not only called The City of Holiness but also Zion, The Pure in Heart, the operative word here being ‘pure’. Since the people of this city ‘walked’ with God (Moses 7:69), they were ‘true’ followers of Jesus Christ and they became endowed with the ‘pure love of Christ’ (Moroni 7:48).

I have lived in wonderful wards in my 48 years of Church membership and have been the recipient of much kindness of spirit. From the time I joined the Church, my source of emotional, spiritual and even temporal support has come from the Church members. I cannot imagine a Church environment such as the one that Alma sorrowed over (Alma 4:15). My most favourite ward I have lived in was so good that my fellow member called it ‘Camelot’. Let us all walk with Christ and be endowed with His pure love that we might possess charity one toward another and not only be called Camelot, but Zion.

I knelt before the throne of God
And I asked of Him today:
Lord, when will I become like Thee?
To my feeble self He answered: When you start to walk with me. 

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Walk With Me by Del  Parson)