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All truths God revealed since the creation of the world, and more, began to fall upon the earth preparing for authority to act in God’s name following the visit of the Father and the Son to Joseph Smith, and Moroni’s visits to introduce The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ.  The message of restoration held such importance that Moroni repeatedly visited the 17-year-old Joseph prior to showing him the location of the gold plates! Above that, once a year, for four years, did he further instruct Joseph before permitting access to the plates, totaling nine reported meetings--including the meeting at the location of the plates! Restoring the gospel in the last days to what it was during the Meridian times constitutes a small portion of what God plans for the final scenes of the mortal earth. Social changes, scientific breakthroughs, medical discoveries, and political firsts changed the world in preparation for the greatest time in human history of knowledge since the days of the City of Enoch or the times of Adam and Eve! The Last Days are greater than these! Moroni demonstrated to Joseph Smith the sacred nature and importance of passing his charge, the record his father created, into mortal hands again. On the sacrosanct night of September 21, 1823, three years following the visit of Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father to the 14-year-old Joseph Smith, Moroni made his way from the eternal realm to deliver his cherished message of the Gospel. The everlasting gospel is that Jesus suffered for the sins of mankind so that they could return to heaven if they accept Jesus's atonement. This message is what Moroni delivered revealing that he is the angel mentioned in Revelations having the everlasting gospel to preach for the last time before Christ gathers His people and destroys the wicked by fire. For centuries, Moroni knew the day would come that he would deliver the message he had been holding sacredly at the command of Jesus Christ--knowing the importance of the message he bore as it was professed by numerous witnesses and prophets. Remembering with pristine detail the lonely years of his mortal life and losing his father Mormon, who protected the plates of gold, his perfected mind connected to the mortality of his new charge and the glory of overcoming the world and receiving a glorious new physical body incapable of death. What were his feelings then as a perfected being--made so through the atonement of Jesus Christ.  Centuries of preparation the Holy Spirit brought to his remembrance easily as a spirit. As a resurrected being, an eternity stands constantly before him preparing for the Second Advent of Jesus! With revelatory power, the mission of Joseph Smith Junior unfolds before him, on that day came he, brightening the room of the lad with eternal glory. Knowledge that Joseph saw the Father and the Son acutely present, Moroni instructed Joseph Smith Junior that night preparing him for what lay ahead. Calling him by name, Moroni told Joseph that God had a great work for him to do and that all nations, kindreds, tongues, and peoples would bless and curse his name.
Moroni provided the first written Apostolic testimony of Jesus Christ for this dispensation! The words he inscribed on the Gold Plates enlist him as a determining force proclaiming, in prophetic function, the last dispensation before the coming of Christ. The precious truths that he scribed in the record preserved the proper ordinances and functions of the priesthood as he details the prayers of baptism and the Lord's supper. Moroni included information about the regularity of church meetings and how the members supported each other before he deposited the record.  Moroni claimed, “I... remain alone to write the sad tale of the destruction of my people…” [Mormon 8:3] No one, as far as he knew with the limited resources and friends he may have had, remained alive who would listen to his testimony of the truths of the Gospel of Jesus Christ except for the future readers of his record! Alone, mourning the death of his country and family, etching on limited gold plates he possessed as the final recourse, he recorded. “After the great and tremendous battle at Cumorah,” Moroni lamented in his etchings, “...the Nephites who escaped into the country southward were hunted by the Lamanites until they were all destroyed. My father also was killed by them... they are gone, and I fulfil the commandment of my father. And whether they will slay me, I know not… I will write and hide up the records in the earth; and whither I go it mattereth not.” [Mormon 8:2-4] It seems almost a shame for Moroni to endure two depraved cultures, his day and the modern times. “I speak unto you as if ye were present, and yet ye are not. But behold, Jesus Christ hath shown you unto me, and I know your doing,” etched he in his precious metal. Limited resources did not shy him away from his estimation of modern society. Among other etchings, Moroni exclaimed of modernity these questions:
Fortunately, he saw the good of the present-day--people helping and honoring the ancient ways and creating and sustaining humanitarian organizations such as United Way and the Red Cross, and the restoration of The Church of Jesus Christ provided hope that the love of Christ still abounds in the earth in the hearts of many people.  From his mortal ministry and depositing of the records to his post-mortal ministry to Joseph Smith, Moroni occupies a key role progressing towards the reign of Messiah. Moroni received a calling faithfully executing his tasks in mortality as the first authorized being of the last days to herald the final time the Lord would proclaim the good news of the atonement before the millennial reign! Joseph Smith, a benefactor of Moroni’s work, stands firmly as the prophet God instructed to restore the Church of Jesus Christ for that Second Coming, even of the Messiah, Jesus.
As modern people of the last days having the Bible, The Book of Mormon, living prophets, and the Internet, people of faith could do more now than at any other time recorded! Moroni gives a hauntingly solemn beware, “the sword of vengeance hangeth over you; and the time soon cometh that [God] avengeth the blood of the saints upon you, for He will not suffer their cries any longer.” [Mormon 8:41] Isolation from believers brought to mind the letters and teachings of his father Mormon about the blasphemous baptism of little children and faithless cessation of miracles among the masses. Through faith, knowing God has provided a way through Jesus Christ, he mourned his own societies’ temporary loss, and losing souls along the way to the adversary, even if temporarily, during modern times in the name of religious purity or arrogance! Moroni saw the depravity of modern society so that he could know what information he needed to include in the Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ before depositing it in the depths of the earth. Moroni finished the record by instructing modern audiences of many other things of benefit to people of faith, especially followers of Christ I plan to include in other articles providing a witness and perspective that aids others who read and think similarly. Anti-Christs only get the spotlight for a short period because Satan does not share well. Satan did not want to share the glory with God. How could any person imagine him sharing it with one of us? Korihor doomed himself when he allied with Lucifer.  Perpetuate - Anti-Christ Duplication Korihor did not have the chance to perpetuate his view of humanity. The reason, one of them, Mormon put Korihor's story in the scriptures is an example of how much support Korihor’s beliefs helped in the end. Korihor, like all atheists and agnostics, wanted signs from heaven to prove a belief. The scriptures teach by the mouth of Christ that "A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign" Matthew 16:4. Korihor asked Alma, the high priest, to give a sign so that he would believe. Alma told him the sign consisted of him becoming a mute. After it occurred, Korihor wrote to him to have the curse removed, but Alma admitted it was up to the Lord to remove the curse, which did not occur. Mute and a beggar, he wandered among a vicious ethnic group called Zoramites seeking food who stomped until he died at their hands, or in truth, their feet. Dumbstruck or Mute Korihor ?Whose To BlameWrote Korihor before he left Alma following his mutism, The devil hath deceived me; for he appeared unto me in the form of an angel, and said unto me: Go and reclaim this people, for they have all gone astray after an unknown God. And he said unto me: There is no God; yea, and he taught me that which I should say. And I have taught his words; and I taught them because they were pleasing unto the carnal mind; and I taught them, even until I had much success, insomuch that I verily believed that they were true; and for this cause I withstood the truth, even until I have brought this great curse upon me. Alma 30:53 The devil told him to do it! The teachings of Korihor continued well after him, despite his admissions. In the end, all unbelievers had an experience that caused them not to believe anymore--be it a traumatic life experience or a crisis of faith. Not all unbelievers deserve punishment as severe as Korihor. A supernatural being appeared to Korihor and told him what to say and believe. Society in general teaches, today, a default of skepticism and denial of God or any god. Everyone cannot go mute. The teachings are spread. The tables are turned. Now, teaching there is a God becomes anathema. Live Your Faith Korihor types perpetuate the notions of no Christ or God today. They deride those who have faith and disgrace religion. What can we do? Because God is not in the habit of striking all of His children mute who do not believe Him, Gerald N Lund advises in his article, Countering Korihor’s Philosophy, writing,
There is a great lesson in that. We combat false philosophies with revelation and true doctrine, not academic debate.The truth is true no matter who debates it after the fact. God reveals the truth and there is no debate about its truthfulness. People try to debate the truth, but in the end, the truth wins out--truths such as whether it is of God that only men and women should marry and have families.
God has revealed this truth and men debate it as if it can be legislated otherwise. There is a reason God set the family up the way He did, and the truth of it will be evident in the way society looks since society legislated it away. Nephi teaches that wicked people take the truth to be hard against them. Alma instructed his son that (Alma 41:10)"wickedness never was happiness"--indulging in bad behavior thinking that it is happiness is an illusion. Korihor was caught in a delusion of his own making! "Korihor is not consistent in his own thinking," writes Lund. "If we truly can know only those things for which we have empirical evidence, then we cannot teach there is no God unless we have evidence for that belief. And Korihor has no evidence." Korihor failed to see his error though he quickly points out the error in the people of God and Alma. The irony in his observations, Korihor’s, is the claim Alma and his people are living a lie when in actuality it is he who lived the lie. Korihor is so emphatic about his beliefs and conning in delivering his teachings but they are incorrect! Anti-Christ's existed for as long as there have existed people who dared believe in Jesus Christ! None of the tricks are new that on employs. The Book of Mormon contains the account of Korihor the most infamous of all the anti-Christs because his doctrine and motivations are capture bed in the amber of Scripture. This segment explores missionary work from the Intellectualist's perspective.  PROPAGATE - ANTI-CHRIST BECOME MISSIONARIESKorihor spread his dogma among the Nephites "telling them that there could be no atonement made for the sins of men, but every man fared in this life according to the management of the creature; therefore every man prospered according to his genius, and that every man conquered according to his strength; and whatsoever a man did was no crime. "And thus he did preach unto them, leading away the hearts of many, causing them to lift up their heads in their wickedness, yea, leading away many women, and also men, to commit whoredoms—telling them that when a man was dead, that was the end thereof." Alma 30:17-18 Intellectualism/Agnosticism Intellectualism or agnosticism, possibly localized among the people of Nephi, flourishes in modern society. A culture of science worship, though the definition of “science” means not to have information or perfect knowledge on everything, pleases society into carnal security. Those who espouse intellectualism can indulge in the human predilection towards selfish personal weakness. Instead of mastering weaknesses and repenting of sins, intellectualists believe no god exists to give commands and punishment. Life is a cosmic accident. ...or the other side. No one knows if life is a cosmic accident and cannot know such things without intrinsic evidence, which cannot be obtained! Korihor spoke the truth about men faring in life based on initiative and genius but perverted it by denying the next life. Agnostics love to avoid the unknown. This mindset is to deny for themselves nor acknowledge that others might know also, the opposite of science! Atheists flat-out deny God or any god. At least agnostics can have faith. Korihor fit with modern agnosticism than atheism in the intellectual milieu. Korihor In a different city, called Jershon, Korihor let forth a fury of words that left the people fluster to the point where the believers would not speak to him. Alma 30:23-28 follows with Korihor teaching his precepts and defending his right to hold his views as a citizen:
And Korihor said unto him: Because I do not teach the foolish traditions of your fathers, and because I do not teach this people to bind themselves down under the foolish ordinances and performances which are laid down by ancient priests, to usurp power and authority over them, to keep them in ignorance, that they may not lift up their heads, but be brought down according to thy words. Ye say that this people is a free people. Behold, I say they are in bondage. Ye say that those ancient prophecies are true. Behold, I say that ye do not know that they are true. Ye say that this people is a guilty and a fallen people, because of the transgression of a parent. Behold, I say that a child is not guilty because of its parents. And ye also say that Christ shall come. But behold, I say that ye do not know that there shall be a Christ. And ye say also that he shall be slain for the sins of the world—And thus ye lead away this people after the foolish traditions of your fathers, and according to your own desires; and ye keep them down, even as it were in bondage, that ye may glut yourselves with the labors of their hands, that they durst not look up with boldness, and that they durst not enjoy their rights and privileges. Yea, they durst not make use of that which is their own lest they should offend their priests, who do yoke them according to their desires, and have brought them to believe, by their traditions and their dreams and their whims and their visions and their pretended mysteries, that they should, if they did not do according to their words, offend some unknown being, who they say is God—a being who never has been seen or known, who never was nor ever will be. Alma 30:23-28 Need anyone add more to his words? Gospel of the Natural Man! Korihor passionately spread his views and won men and women of varying levels of faith in the prophecies of prophets, living or dead, to his cause because "the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him." Mosiah 3:19 The quoted scripture above is a sermon on its own simply stated, but purposes here, humanity in its basic natural form fights against higher functions of its nature without guiding principles to give a reason to reach higher--true science, true seeking for knowledge. Following the Age of Enlightenment, many Christians converted to intellectualism and denied the divinity of Christ. God instructed Mormon to include in the record of The Book of Mormon encounters the people of God had with those spouting intellectualism as a replacement for religion. Korihor stepped up to the stage to give that example with a riveting performance. Korihor had a talent for speaking. For whatever reason he decided to interfere with the faith of his fellow countrymen, he knew what to say and how to say it to gain acolytes. Denigrate - Anti-Christs Insult! The first thing Korihor is recorded to do is to insult the religious life of the people--having the effect of casting shame. Because what he said was so pointed, his words seem to have been recorded or paraphrased for future instruction. He delivers an entire sermon based on his intellectualist knowledge. Possibly these are actual words of Korihor, “O ye that are bound down under a foolish and a vain hope, why do ye yoke yourselves with such foolish things? Why do ye look for a Christ? For no man can know of anything which is to come." Alma 30:14 So then, and so now, the first key for an intellectual argument against a belief in Christ, or religion in general is to denigrate the system. Some would say the freedom with which atheists and agnostics persecute religions is retribution for the evil things performed in the name of one god or another. However, what most do not realize is that the freedoms they enjoy exist because God inspired His followers to allow free expression of faith in American and other free societies just like the Nephite societies. Korihor went into a Messianic Judaism-based society, a known Christ-centered society, and began to preach against its cultural beliefs and religious practices--an anthropological nightmare to purists. Even intellectualism has missionaries. Depiction of Korihor
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 | "[T]here came a man into the land of Zarahemla, and he was Anti-Christ, for he began to preach unto the people against the prophecies which had been spoken by the prophets, concerning the coming of Christ." Alma 30:6 Much is not known about Korihor because his story starts in Zarahemla as he boldly goes before the people and begins to teach the insensibly of living the Law of Moses and believing in the coming of Jesus Christ. |
Because of this freedom to believe as they wanted, it opened Nephite society to the influences that would pull people away from Christ, and for them, the proper execution of the ordinances established by God through Moses.
The Intellectual Key of Korihor
**Denigrate**
***Postulate***
****Propagate****
*****Perpetuate*****
Korihor had a talent for speaking. For whatever reason he decided to interfere with the faith of his fellow countrymen, he knew what to say and how to say it to gain acolytes. The following Moroni Saw Me Lately posts will describe specifically each of the listed keys of Korihor.
- The African Roots of The Book of Mormon
The obvious connection to Africa is the language. - How to Dress Modestly to Attend Mormon Church Mormons wear the same type of clothing everyone else does, but they choose modest styles. Here's what to wear if you visit an LDS Church.
Rodric Anthony
Writer of the Book Moroni Saw Me and Father of Seven.
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