Alma 43:14-54
43:14-22 - We left off discussing the different motivations of the Nephites and the Lamanites, good and evil, respectively, now we get to the preparations for war on both sides, and there are some interesting points that I think can be learned here. The first issue is that of the disproportionate numbers, the Lamanites were "so much greater than the Nephites," so the Nephites are outnumbered. But there's also a difference the ways in which they have prepared for battle. The Lamanites show up in the land of Antionum but "behold, the armies of the Nephites were prepared to meet them in the land of Jershon," and that was a strategy devised by CM, being the most logical place for an attack. CM armed his people with offensive weapons such as "swords, and with cimeters, and all manner of weapons of war." But he also "prepared his people with breastplates and with arm-shields, yea, and also shields to defend their heads, and also they were dressed with thick clothing," these being defensive preparations, so he's considered both sides of the equation, not only in taking lives, but in protecting lives as well. One factor that is not explicitly discussed here but I believe is implied, is the extensive training that must have taken place beforehand. For instance, if we think about Central and South America, it's hot and humid in most places, now imagine performing hand to hand combat operations wearing heavy armor and clothing in that weather, it's exhausting, and when I was in the army, at one of the gyms on post, there was a phrase painted on the wall saying, "Fatigue makes cowards of us all," and this is so true especially in combat, so chances are that CM didn't just take all the men of fighting age, give them weapons and advanced armor and say "go get 'em tiger!" He most likely had them training in that armor, with those weapons, so that they would be used to it, so that they would be effective fighters, and they probably trained for quite some time. Advanced weapons and resources are only as good as those who are trained to use them, you can give someone an automatic weapon, and if they don't know how to fire it, clean it, reload it, or fix it when it malfunctions, it's really just a big, heavy stick. So the Nephites were ready with offensive weapons, defensive armor, and adequate training. The Lamanites on the other hand were "not prepared with any such thing; they had only their swords and their cimeters, their bows and their arrows, their stones and their slings; and they were naked, save it were a skin which was girded about their loins." The LDS Citation Index points this concept to a lesson in a manual on Self-Reliance, and cites the Nephites physical and spiritual preparation, and this is something that I hadn't considered, being prepared as a precursor to self-reliance. The preparations of the Nephites gave them a significant advantage over the Lamanites, and as a result, when the Lamanites showed up to battle in Jershon "they were exceedingly afraid of the armies of the Nephites because of their armor, notwithstanding their number being so much greater than the Nephites. Behold, now it came to pass that they durst not come against the Nephites in the borders of Jershon." This is what sets apart a superior fighting force, training and equipment. Speaking of the Protective Armor, the IM teaches “We have the four parts of the body that the Apostle Paul said or saw to be the most vulnerable to the powers of darkness. The loins, typifying virtue, chastity. The heart typifying our conduct. Our feet, our goals or objectives in life and finally our head, out thoughts. We should have our loins girt about with truth. What is truth? Truth the Lord said, was knowledge of things as they are, things as they were and things as they are to come… ‘Our loins shall be girt about with truth,’ the prophet said.” This is a very interesting concept that I have never considered before. How does truth equate with virtue? I’m going to have to think about that for a while. The IM continues, “and the heart, what kind of breastplate shall protect our conduct in life? We shall have over our hearts a breastplate of righteousness. Well, having learned truth we have a measure by which we can judge between right and wrong and so our conduct will always be gauged by that thing which we know to be true. Our breastplate to cover our conduct shall be the breastplate of righteousness. (By) what shall we protect our feet, or by what shall we gauge our objectives or our goals in life?... ‘Your feet should be shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace.’… And then finally the helmet of salvation… What is salvation? Salvation is to be saved. Saved from what? Saved from death and saved from sin.” I had never heard the armor of God described in that manner before and it’s quite interesting.
43:23-30 - The Lamanites are afraid and take off, and CM does two different things here, covering the Nephites on all fronts. First he "sent spies into the wilderness to watch their camp," reliable intelligence is crucial, but here is where he diverges from conventional warfare, and what differentiates the Nephites from a superior fighting force, to an elite, divinely protected fighting force. CM "also, knowing of the prophecies of Alma, sent certain men unto him, desiring him that he should inquire of the Lord whither the armies of the Nephites should go to defend themselves against the Lamanites." Modern military policy does not include consulting with religious leaders about their strategies, but CM did, and he consulted the truest spiritual leader of the time, God's own chosen prophet. Now the fact that he even considered this indicates that CM is a highly spiritual man, but the fact that Alma received guidance from the Lord concerning where they should go indicates a couple of different things. First is indicates that CM's inquiry was for righteous purposes, instead of doing it for show or doing it to manipulate the people into doing what he says because "God told them to," he genuinely desired the counsel and then executed it once it was received .History has given countless examples of wars that were perpetuated in God’s name, surely they weren’t actual missions God himself had sanctioned, they weren’t seeking God’s guidance to win the war and preserve their righteous lifestyles. God abhors war and violence so it’s probably pretty unusual for him to get involved and probably only happens when he’s backing his righteous people. CM also demonstrated his humility by asking for divine help. There can be an attitude of arrogance, self-inflation, or superiority in the military, especially among the high ranking officials, there has been many battles which were fought for honor and glory instead of mission achievement, and honestly, that’s what the Lamanite leadership is doing in instigating this war, they were not doing it to achieve anything, just to destroy and for power, and that’s an attitude that can infect even righteous armies. So not only was his humility evident when he asked Alma for help, but his submissiveness also shone through by taking the counsel to heart and going to defend Manti like the Lord had guided, even though it might not have been the most logical thing to do, and his intelligence might have indicated otherwise, he faithfully followed the direction given to him by the prophet. The IM teaches, “Captain Moroni’s desire to seek and follow the prophet’s counsel led to many victories. Life’s battles today will also be won by following the prophet. President Spencer W. Kimball emphasized why we need to follow the prophets: ‘Let us harken to those we sustain as prophets and seers, as well as the other brethren as if our eternal life depended upon it, because it does!’” If the prophet’s counsel was good enough to keep the righteous Nephite armies safe during wartime, then surely it is just as vital to our spiritual survival to follow the prophet’s counsel now. So CM leaves “a part of his army in the land of Jershon, lest by any means a part of the Lamanites should come into that land and take possession of the city, took the remaining part of his army and marched over into the land of Manti.” Did Moroni doubt the words of the prophet by leaving a portion of his army there to guard Jershon? I don’t think so, just because the main Lamanite army went to Manti doesn’t mean that there wouldn’t have been perhaps spies left by the Lamanites because if they truly didn’t expect for the Nephites to know where they went then they would want someone to hold back and keep them informed about their movements. There could also have been rogue Lamanites that might have felt an opportunity to attack if Jershon had been left unattended. So like before, CM covered all his bases, both offensively and defensively, this is no different.
43:31-54 - CM takes the remainder of his army and puts them in strategic places around the land of Manti to be ready for when the Lamanites came, and when they did come, “the work of death commenced on both sides, but it was more dreadful on the part of the Lamanites, for their nakedness was exposed to the heavy blows of the Nephites with their swords and their cimeters, which brought death almost at every strike.” This is when we can see how advantageous the defensive preparations of the Nephites were, where the Lamanites fell “almost at every stroke. While on the other hand, there was now and then a man fell among the Nephites, by their swords and the loss of blood, they being shielded from the more vital parts of the body… and thus the Nephites did carry on the work of death among the Lamanites.” The Lamanites moved back and forth trying to find an escape route, but they were surrounded and fought on all sides, being cornered “the Lamanites did fight exceedingly… in their fierce anger. Never the less, the Nephites were inspired by a better cause, for they were not fighting for monarchy nor power but they were fighting for their homes and their liberties, their wives and their children, and their all, yea, for their rites of worship and their church.” Interestingly, when I cross referenced this verse, there came up an April 2003 general conference address entitled “War and Peace,” by President Gordon B. Hinckley. Why is this interesting? Because this was just a few weeks after the initial invasion on Iraq, which I was a part of. I know how I experienced things on my end, but I never imagined what it must have been like to listen to the prophets speak during this crazy times, at home. In this talk, President Hinckley taught while speaking of the book of Alma, “It is clear from these and other writings that there are times and circumstances when nations are justified, in fact have an obligation, to fight for family, for liberty, and against tyranny, threat, and oppression. When all is said and done, we of this Church are people of peace. But even He said, ‘think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.’ This places us in the position of those who long for peace, who teach peace, who work for peace, but who also are citizens of nations and are subject to the laws of our governments. Furthermore, we are a freedom-loving people, committed to the defense of liberty wherever it is in jeopardy.” I know how I felt then, but looking back 11 years later, I’ve learned quite a few things, and I’m not going to say anything about the legality or effectiveness of the war in which I took part, but I will say that I fully embrace, now, the Lord’s standard of not being “guilty of the first offense, neither the second, ye shall not suffer yourselves to be slain by the hands of your enemies,” even if it comes to the shedding of blood. The IM quotes President Hinckley’s talk from earlier and also taught that “human life is sacred. Taking an innocent life is ‘an abomination in the sight of the Lord.’ One may justifiably take another’s life, however, when defending oneself, family, freedom, religion, or country.” This adherence to the Lord’s standard of when and how to fight was rewarded with divine help, when, completely outnumbered, the Nephites “were about to shrink and flee” from the “fierceness and the anger of the Lamanites.” Being inspired as to the thoughts of his men CM “sent forth and inspired their hearts with these thoughts- yea, the thoughts of their land, their liberty, yea, their freedom from bondage… and they cried with one voice unto the Lord their God, for their liberty and their freedom from bondage… and in that selfsame hour that they cried unto the Lord for their freedom, the Lamanites began to flee before them.” They were strategic in their positioning of their people, to maximize their efficiency while not taking unnecessary risks, they didn’t attack the Lamanites first, the Lamanites were clearly on Nephite land, and they had faith that the Lord would deliver them, and he did. With the Lord’s strength, the Nephites overpowered the Lamanites who found themselves “encircled about by the Nephites, (and) they were struck with terror. Now Moroni, when he saw their terror, commanded his men that they should stop shedding their blood.” It’s interesting that CM had won the military advantage, had his enemy, his ruthless, terrible enemy surrounded, he could have easily slaughtered the rest of his enemy and gone home, but the IM teaches that “Captain Moroni ‘did not delight in bloodshed’ even though he was justified in taking another person’s life while defending his country. He reluctantly fought the Lamanites for many years. When he did fight, he maintained charity for all, including those on the opposing side. The record states that Captain Moroni stopped the battle on more than one occasion in order to spare as many lives as possible… Some readers may wonder how a man concerned with keeping the covenants of the Lord could be so involved in military affairs. This concern may be why Mormon wrote and Moroni ‘did not delight in bloodshed’ and was taught ‘never to raise the sword except it were against an enemy, except it were to preserve their lives.’” Life is a rough business and every generation is effected by war, and the examples of Captain Moroni and the righteous Nephite army show us how we can rely on the Lord and trust Him and still keep our covenants during times of violence, uncertainty and death.
43:23-30 - The Lamanites are afraid and take off, and CM does two different things here, covering the Nephites on all fronts. First he "sent spies into the wilderness to watch their camp," reliable intelligence is crucial, but here is where he diverges from conventional warfare, and what differentiates the Nephites from a superior fighting force, to an elite, divinely protected fighting force. CM "also, knowing of the prophecies of Alma, sent certain men unto him, desiring him that he should inquire of the Lord whither the armies of the Nephites should go to defend themselves against the Lamanites." Modern military policy does not include consulting with religious leaders about their strategies, but CM did, and he consulted the truest spiritual leader of the time, God's own chosen prophet. Now the fact that he even considered this indicates that CM is a highly spiritual man, but the fact that Alma received guidance from the Lord concerning where they should go indicates a couple of different things. First is indicates that CM's inquiry was for righteous purposes, instead of doing it for show or doing it to manipulate the people into doing what he says because "God told them to," he genuinely desired the counsel and then executed it once it was received .History has given countless examples of wars that were perpetuated in God’s name, surely they weren’t actual missions God himself had sanctioned, they weren’t seeking God’s guidance to win the war and preserve their righteous lifestyles. God abhors war and violence so it’s probably pretty unusual for him to get involved and probably only happens when he’s backing his righteous people. CM also demonstrated his humility by asking for divine help. There can be an attitude of arrogance, self-inflation, or superiority in the military, especially among the high ranking officials, there has been many battles which were fought for honor and glory instead of mission achievement, and honestly, that’s what the Lamanite leadership is doing in instigating this war, they were not doing it to achieve anything, just to destroy and for power, and that’s an attitude that can infect even righteous armies. So not only was his humility evident when he asked Alma for help, but his submissiveness also shone through by taking the counsel to heart and going to defend Manti like the Lord had guided, even though it might not have been the most logical thing to do, and his intelligence might have indicated otherwise, he faithfully followed the direction given to him by the prophet. The IM teaches, “Captain Moroni’s desire to seek and follow the prophet’s counsel led to many victories. Life’s battles today will also be won by following the prophet. President Spencer W. Kimball emphasized why we need to follow the prophets: ‘Let us harken to those we sustain as prophets and seers, as well as the other brethren as if our eternal life depended upon it, because it does!’” If the prophet’s counsel was good enough to keep the righteous Nephite armies safe during wartime, then surely it is just as vital to our spiritual survival to follow the prophet’s counsel now. So CM leaves “a part of his army in the land of Jershon, lest by any means a part of the Lamanites should come into that land and take possession of the city, took the remaining part of his army and marched over into the land of Manti.” Did Moroni doubt the words of the prophet by leaving a portion of his army there to guard Jershon? I don’t think so, just because the main Lamanite army went to Manti doesn’t mean that there wouldn’t have been perhaps spies left by the Lamanites because if they truly didn’t expect for the Nephites to know where they went then they would want someone to hold back and keep them informed about their movements. There could also have been rogue Lamanites that might have felt an opportunity to attack if Jershon had been left unattended. So like before, CM covered all his bases, both offensively and defensively, this is no different.
43:31-54 - CM takes the remainder of his army and puts them in strategic places around the land of Manti to be ready for when the Lamanites came, and when they did come, “the work of death commenced on both sides, but it was more dreadful on the part of the Lamanites, for their nakedness was exposed to the heavy blows of the Nephites with their swords and their cimeters, which brought death almost at every strike.” This is when we can see how advantageous the defensive preparations of the Nephites were, where the Lamanites fell “almost at every stroke. While on the other hand, there was now and then a man fell among the Nephites, by their swords and the loss of blood, they being shielded from the more vital parts of the body… and thus the Nephites did carry on the work of death among the Lamanites.” The Lamanites moved back and forth trying to find an escape route, but they were surrounded and fought on all sides, being cornered “the Lamanites did fight exceedingly… in their fierce anger. Never the less, the Nephites were inspired by a better cause, for they were not fighting for monarchy nor power but they were fighting for their homes and their liberties, their wives and their children, and their all, yea, for their rites of worship and their church.” Interestingly, when I cross referenced this verse, there came up an April 2003 general conference address entitled “War and Peace,” by President Gordon B. Hinckley. Why is this interesting? Because this was just a few weeks after the initial invasion on Iraq, which I was a part of. I know how I experienced things on my end, but I never imagined what it must have been like to listen to the prophets speak during this crazy times, at home. In this talk, President Hinckley taught while speaking of the book of Alma, “It is clear from these and other writings that there are times and circumstances when nations are justified, in fact have an obligation, to fight for family, for liberty, and against tyranny, threat, and oppression. When all is said and done, we of this Church are people of peace. But even He said, ‘think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.’ This places us in the position of those who long for peace, who teach peace, who work for peace, but who also are citizens of nations and are subject to the laws of our governments. Furthermore, we are a freedom-loving people, committed to the defense of liberty wherever it is in jeopardy.” I know how I felt then, but looking back 11 years later, I’ve learned quite a few things, and I’m not going to say anything about the legality or effectiveness of the war in which I took part, but I will say that I fully embrace, now, the Lord’s standard of not being “guilty of the first offense, neither the second, ye shall not suffer yourselves to be slain by the hands of your enemies,” even if it comes to the shedding of blood. The IM quotes President Hinckley’s talk from earlier and also taught that “human life is sacred. Taking an innocent life is ‘an abomination in the sight of the Lord.’ One may justifiably take another’s life, however, when defending oneself, family, freedom, religion, or country.” This adherence to the Lord’s standard of when and how to fight was rewarded with divine help, when, completely outnumbered, the Nephites “were about to shrink and flee” from the “fierceness and the anger of the Lamanites.” Being inspired as to the thoughts of his men CM “sent forth and inspired their hearts with these thoughts- yea, the thoughts of their land, their liberty, yea, their freedom from bondage… and they cried with one voice unto the Lord their God, for their liberty and their freedom from bondage… and in that selfsame hour that they cried unto the Lord for their freedom, the Lamanites began to flee before them.” They were strategic in their positioning of their people, to maximize their efficiency while not taking unnecessary risks, they didn’t attack the Lamanites first, the Lamanites were clearly on Nephite land, and they had faith that the Lord would deliver them, and he did. With the Lord’s strength, the Nephites overpowered the Lamanites who found themselves “encircled about by the Nephites, (and) they were struck with terror. Now Moroni, when he saw their terror, commanded his men that they should stop shedding their blood.” It’s interesting that CM had won the military advantage, had his enemy, his ruthless, terrible enemy surrounded, he could have easily slaughtered the rest of his enemy and gone home, but the IM teaches that “Captain Moroni ‘did not delight in bloodshed’ even though he was justified in taking another person’s life while defending his country. He reluctantly fought the Lamanites for many years. When he did fight, he maintained charity for all, including those on the opposing side. The record states that Captain Moroni stopped the battle on more than one occasion in order to spare as many lives as possible… Some readers may wonder how a man concerned with keeping the covenants of the Lord could be so involved in military affairs. This concern may be why Mormon wrote and Moroni ‘did not delight in bloodshed’ and was taught ‘never to raise the sword except it were against an enemy, except it were to preserve their lives.’” Life is a rough business and every generation is effected by war, and the examples of Captain Moroni and the righteous Nephite army show us how we can rely on the Lord and trust Him and still keep our covenants during times of violence, uncertainty and death.
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