latter day satyagraha

Chapter 4: 1 Nephi 16-18

.

..

they shall come to the knowledge of their Redeemer and the very points of his doctrine

Recovering from his vision of the destruction of the Nephites, Nephi returns to speak to his brothers desiring to know of them the cause of their disputations. There was some form of confusion as to the meaning of the natural branches of the olive tree and also concerning the Gentiles. Nephi explains:

And now, the thing which our father meaneth concerning the grafting in of the natural branches through the fulness of the Gentiles, is, that in the latter days, when our seed shall have dwindled in unbelief, yea, for the space of many years, and many generations after the Messiah shall be manifested in body unto the children of men, then shall the fulness of the gospel of the Messiah come unto the Gentiles, and from the Gentiles unto the remnant of our seed —

And at that day shall the remnant of our seed know that they are of the house of Israel, and that they are the ccovenant people of the Lord; and then shall they know and come to the knowledge of their forefathers, and also to the knowledge of the gospel of their Redeemer, which was ministered unto their fathers by him; wherefore, they shall come to the knowledge of their Redeemer and the very points of his doctrine, that they may know how to come unto him and be saved. (1 Nephi 15:13-14)

It is crucial for the unfolding of history in the latter days that gospel principles, or peace principles, are restored unto the house of Israel (or unto the world) . It is crucial that the House of Israel come to the knowledge of their forefathers and of what befell them as a people: that Christ came after his resurrection to teach them about nonviolence and love and that they departed, as a people, from the way. This ultimately led them to destruction. To avoid this fate, our Savior has provided a way in the latter days by which we may be saved.

What meaneth the rod of iron which our father saw, that led to the tree? And I said unto them that it was the word of God; and whoso would hearken unto the word of God, and would hold fast unto it, they would never perish; neither could the temptations and the fiery darts of the adversary overpower them unto blindness, to lead them away to destruction. (1 Nephi 15: 21-24)

Nephi interprets the dream of Lehi to his brothers, but also in his account underlines the means by which God shows the way to those who are willing to hearken to his word. Father Lehi found an object made of fine brass (of the same material as the prophetic records that Nephi had taken from Laban), that had the potential to show them the way through the wilderness if they followed the two small pointers or indicators (the Bible and the Book of Mormon?).

And it came to pass that as my father arose in the morning, and went forth to the tent door, and to his great astonishment he beheld upon the ground a round ball of curious workmanship; and it was of fine brass. And within the ball were two spindles; and the one pointed the way whither we should go into the wilderness. (1 Nephi 16:10)

.

the first contours of mormon liberation theology: a pedagogy of the powerful

In these chapters we see the first contours of a liberation theology in the Book of Mormon. Nephi, who has been an avid reader of the brass plates – the history of his forefathers and of their escape from Pharaoh’s grip in Egypt – makes often allusion, when teaching his brothers, to the means by which God liberated his covenant people from slavery and captivity. Nephi also has to remind his brothers at every turn that they were also, as a family, led out from Jerusalem through divine intervention before the city was destroyed and before its inhabitants were led into captivity.

And it came to pass that I, Nephi, spake unto them, saying: Do ye believe that our fathers, who were the children of Israel, would have been led away out of the hands of the Egyptians if they had not hearkened unto the words of the Lord? Yea, do ye suppose that they would have been led out of bondage, if the Lord had not commanded Moses that he should lead them out of bondage?

Now ye know that the children of Israel were in bondage; and ye know that they were laden with tasks, which were grievous to be borne; wherefore, ye know that it must needs be a good thing for them, that they should be brought out of bondage. Now ye know that Moses was commanded of the Lord to do that great work; and ye know that by his word the waters of the Red Sea were divided hither and thither, and they passed through on dry ground.

… And notwithstanding they being led, the Lord their God, their Redeemer, going before them, leading them by day and giving light unto them by night, and doing all things for them which were expedient for man to receive, they hardened their hearts and blinded their minds, and reviled against Moses and against the true and living God. (1 Nephi 17:23-30)

Those of us who adhere to Liberation Theology point out that throughout all holy writ God always champions the cause of those who are poor and beaten down as they struggle for dignity, freedom and economic justice. When the children of Israel cry out for help as they suffer the agonies of their enslavement under Pharaoh, God hears their cry and joins them in their fight for freedom. God sides with the Israelites as they seek deliverance from Egyptian domination.

Moses is seen as the leader of the Liberation movement. He is brought up as a child in the court of King Pharaoh and changes from being on the side of the Egyptian king to siding with the poor slaves. That’s one of the most important paradigms for Liberation Theology: the idea of opting for the poor. The Church in Latin America changed sides, just as Moses changed sides, moving from supporting the status quo, supporting the state, to siding with the poor and the marginal.

.

by small means the Lord can bring about great things

Lehi and his family travel through the more fertile parts of the wilderness thanks to the pointers of the Liahona, and also thanks to their faith in the Lord and in his power to deliver them from suffering. Nonetheless, the lesson we learn both from the story of the Israelites in the desert and of the people of Lehi in the wilderness is that as soon as challenges arise on the horizon, the children of God are likely to abandon their faith in the Lord and start complaining of the difficulty of the road. Is it so that we must be nonviolent and kind? Does it not make more sense to do as others do? They seem to be happier than us.

Nephi broke his bow and it resulted in his brothers and their families complaining about Lehi and Nephi, doubting their leadership and disputing the inspiration they had received from the Lord to leave Jerusalem. The Israelites did the same thing with Moses, while in the desert. As anyone normally do when going through hardship, they come to blame the Lord and quickly think back of their hay-days in a violent world and that they would probably still have been happy there if they had stayed.

..

.

But Nephi is of another opinion. In fact, he speaks of God’s love for his children – and especially for those among them who want him as their God. And we see that God remembers the covenants he has made to the fathers, and that, as with the grafting of the branches into the olive tree, God can, if he desires to do so, raise up a righteous nation.

.

democracy does not ensure peace

Elder Dallin H. Oaks once said in a conference address that, “Democracy does not ensure peace. When a nation is governed according to the voice of its people, its actions will mirror the righteousness or wickedness of its people. We cannot have peace among nations without achieving general righteousness among the people who comprise them. Elder John A. Widtsoe said:

“The only way to build a peaceful community is to build men and women who are lovers and makers of peace. Each individual, by that doctrine of Christ and His Church, holds in his own hands the peace of the world. That makes me responsible for the peace of the world, and makes you individually responsible for the peace of the world. The responsibility cannot be shifted to someone else. It cannot be placed upon the shoulders of Congress or Parliament, or any other organization of men with governing authority.” (In Conference Report, Oct. 1943, p. 113.)

If citizens do not have a basic goodness to govern their actions toward one another, we can never achieve peace in the world. One nation’s greed, hatred, or desire for power over another is simply a reflection of the greeds, hatreds, and selfish desires of individuals within that nation.

Simon Pahle further explains that: “[the greatest] obstacles to poverty reduction, dignity and security for the world’s poor and oppressed sit in the Global North; in the way through which Northern governments, corporations and – ultimately citizenries perpetuate wealth inequalities and power asymmetries across borders. The broader recognition of such structural obstacles to development [and to peace] has been accompanied by the rise of a “pedagogy of the powerful” – a momentous emergence of a broad range of transnational advocacy efforts seeking to promote development by way of targeting decisions made in the Global North. And as Moses of old, the modern princes and princesses in Egypt are now telling Pharao: Let my people go!

So Nephi explains that God ”loveth those who will have him to be their God”. (…and blessed are all the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God, see 3 Nephi 12:9) But God also chastens his children and reminds them of their dependence on Him and on each other for salvation – explaining that the interdependence of our existence both as humans and as inhabitants of the the earth make us susceptible to all having to live with the consequences of injustice in the world.

“And he did straiten them in the wilderness with his rod; for they hardened their hearts, even as ye have; and the Lord straitened them because of their iniquity. He sent fiery flying serpents among them; and after they were bitten he prepared a way that they might be healed; and the labor which they had to perform was to look; and because of the simpleness of the way, or the easiness of it, there were many who perished. And they did harden their hearts from time to time, and they did revile against Moses, and also against God; nevertheless, ye know that they were led forth by his matchless power into the land of promise”. (1 Nephi 17: 40-42)

.

because of the simpleness of the way, and the easiness of it, there were many who perished

Notice how Nephi says that the Lord straitened them in the wilderness with his rod. Some people may look at the rod of iron as an instrument the Lord uses to beat his children – as if God was a mean teacher. “And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a ROD of IRON: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.” (Rev. 19:15).

I believe that the Book of Mormon gives the Rod of Iron an additional (and nonviolent) interpretation that is not found in the Bible. For us LDS members, the rod of iron is rather a rod to show us the way through the darkness, both as a measuring rod (the standard works) and as a banister, because it represents the word of God i.e. the teachings of Christ found in the scriptures and uttered by the prophets. One could also say the same about the sword, it also being the word of God.

.

.

As to the fiery serpents, Nephi’s vision and interpretation of Lehi’s dream also lends itself to a better understanding of the symbolism found in the exodus story. A weapon imagery is used here (the fiery darts), probably to remind the reader of the ongoing conflict between the children of God (the peacemakers) and the children of the devil (the warmongers).

The premortal conflict, as LDS believe, had always been about the method by which we could all gain salvation. Jesus believed in our interdependence as God’s children and established therefore through his exemplary life on earth a nonviolent standard by which we must be judged and to which we must be reconciled. While Satan, greedy for power and to usurp God of his eternal authority wanted to force us all to obey God’s commands. The nonviolent and loving method versus the violent and forceful one (see also the war in heaven – mormon conflictology).

.

peaceable followers forum