Author's Note:
This article was published on KSL.com in June, 2012. I thought readers of this blog would be interested in the relevance to pop culture and its influence on the motion picture industry.

SALT LAKE CITY — It’s official, apparently. The movie “The Avengers” has broken all box office records, making it the all-time, most popular movie. Audiences are blown away by the action-packed battles between good and evil, and between the egomaniacal characters themselves.
So, why all this escalating interest in comic book heroes and primeval gods? How did fantastic tales of superheroes battling aliens and mythic gods warring with one another as well as chaos monsters grow in popularity to eclipse all other movie genera?

The Avengers

 In the waning decades of the last century, comic book superheroes had nearly disappeared from the cultural milieu, and reading of the Greek classics such as Homer’s "Iliad" and the "Odyssey" had long since vanished from education’s curricula. So why all the renewed interest in a species of entertainment that had all but disappeared in the latter part of the last century?
Looking back, perhaps we can see why and what it says about our day and time.

Ancient Superheroes It’s obvious to all who have dabbled in mythology that these crusaders are modern, technological reincarnations of the cosmic gods and monsters of antiquity. Their quarrelsome, contentious natures — "Transformers" being the best modern example — are obviously derived from their counterparts in ancient mythology. Consider Zeus and his band of misfit Titans, incessantly plotting and scheming against one another when they aren’t actually in open, armed conflict.
While such tales of cosmic chaos, where gods and monsters do battle in the heavens, are universal in ancient lore and cultures worldwide, we get our best glimpse of these interplanetary loners, persecutors and tyrants from the Greek tradition.

The Hydra

In fact, the name for the very place where we go today to witness these horrific spectacles derives from the Greek word for goddess, “thea.” The Greeks called the battles of their sky gods “theomachy,” and government by the gods “theocracy.” Thus, “theater” meant a place for witnessing the exploits of the ancient gods. Their adventures were also rehearsed up close and personal in the rites and rituals enacted in sacred precincts such as temples, henges, kivas and pyramids. Each initiate actually participated ritually in the daring acts or missteps of the gods, goddesses and monsters — some few involuntarily, as in the Aztec ritual of human sacrifice.In Greek custom, the traditional clashes of the gods were rehearsed by actors on a stage using the best special effects they could muster. Gods, beasts and monsters entered the stage in elaborate, sometimes grotesque costume. Their special effects included the roaring sound of battle, theomachy, which could be heard as crude mechanical monstrosities such as Hydra, the serpent like monster with multiple heads, appeared as if from out of nowhere to engage the god and demigod actors on stage.
In fact, the very basis for most of our fiction centers on the confrontation of the villain and the hero, a universal theme in ancient lore.
Modern theater employs an upgraded version of Greek theater, with eye-popping special effects, emotive sound effects and dynamic musical orchestrations — all produced at ear-splitting, mind-boggling levels for added psychological effect. The surreal theomachy of these bullies is spectacularly recreated and take theater to a whole new emotional level.
But make no mistake: Though the Greeks’ efforts were crude by our standards, they had no less an effect on ancient audiences than modern technology allows movie creators to inflict on us. The ancients reacted the same way we do: We enjoy it!
While it takes us on an emotional roller coaster and fills us with dread and astonishment, it also fills deep-seated emotional and psychological needs. Any psychologist worth his salt will tell you that they’re a reflection of the uncertain world we see around us and the anxiety we feel as a result.

Modern Heroes

Godzilla

The comic book versions of these gods, goddesses and monsters, those we called “action heroes,” and the crude science fiction movie genre that exploded onto the big screen in the aftermath of the Second World War alleviated the doomsday anxiety of a generation of Americans that had seen genocide in that conflict and lived under the threat of nuclear annihilation. Their common storyline involved an effort to set right a world threatened by everything from petty criminals to maniacal tyrants to malevolent aliens from other worlds and dimensions.When the heroes in comic books or the silver screen defeated the villains, it was reassuring. The world seemed less menacing, less overwhelming. It was escapism, a subconscious effort to assure ourselves that all could be made right in an otherwise uncertain, chaotic and threatening world.
Perhaps looking at it from the perspective of another culture will help clarify.
In the wake of nuclear events that leveled most of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Japanese culture invented Godzilla, a fire-breathing dragon stirred from its tomb by the belligerent behavior of the human race and its abuse of technology. He is the incarnation of the mythic dragons of yesteryear. His more recent silver screen counterparts include the monsters from "Alien," "Predator" and even Hollywood's latest take on the monster from the epic poem "Beowulf."

Future Heroes By extrapolation then, we conclude that the resurgence of this motion picture category in recent years resides in our collective experience, just as it was with the Japanese. So, too, with the ancients, experiencing the problematic nature of the human condition, sought emotional and psychological refuge in ritual sublimation and escapism.
The trigger that spurred the resurgence of heroic and deific cinemas in recent years was the horrific collapse of the World Trade Towers on Sept. 11, 2001, and the struggle to defeat terrorism. Now, our superheroes, gods, monsters, dragons and demigods have emerged once again on the movie screen with a vengeance. And with the impact imparted by computer-enhanced special effects, these hero- based epics are spectacular and action-packed.
This being the case, one may be forgiven for making a couple of predictions.
If world tensions ease, the popularity of this variety of motion pictures will diminish to the same degree. But if world tensions continue or escalate, it will become even more prevalent, popular and graphic. But more than that, the time may come when the pacifying effects of such movies will not be enough. Like our ancestors, if the provocation to re-enact becomes great enough, the urge will be seen in the streets. Modern society will seek ways to inflict this chaos. We will become suffering actors in our own caustic drama.

The Voice of the People

We’ve reached a milestone in American history. Emotions are running high. Liberals are elated; conservatives are disheartened.

This past election was a watershed moment in time. Everyone, on both sides of the political spectrum, is in agreement about that, but for very different reasons. Everything has changed.

Until recent decades, the majority of Americans stood steadfastly for certain core values, whether liberal or conservative. A back-and-forth tug-of-war dominated politics and ensured that neither philosophy could dominate for long. But now, that’s over.

Curiously, the Book of Mormon prophet, Mosiah, had something to say on this subject.

Now it is not common that the voice of the people desireth anything contrary to that which is right; but it is common for the lesser part of the people to desire that which is not right; therefore this shall ye observe and make it your law—to do your business by the voice of the people. (Mosiah 29: 26)

For over 200 years, the self correcting nature of our political system worked just as Mosiah explained. Mosiah referenced what we have called “the moral majority” in our time, those who possess the innate goodness manifest by a free people. This “voice of the people,” according to Mosiah, could be counted on to steady the ship of state with the ballast of common sense and tiller of personal responsibility.

But that may be lost to us now. What most Americans do not comprehend is that the creeping secularism on the left has infiltrated and infected every aspect of our lives, altering and eroding traditional American values. Like a metastatic cancer, it has overwhelmed the body politic, leaving us morally and culturally bankrupt.

Once a marginal movement in American culture, progressive secularism has grown greatly in the last three or four decades, in both political and social influence. With the outcome of this election, the door was thrown open wide to further and radically revise traditional American values. That trend may now be irreversible.

Secularism has won the day. Conservatism is in decline. The so called “moral majority” in America is no longer the guiding hand in American politics. Radical, politically correct and progressive notions and institutions are now dominant, the order of the day.

Those living on the public dole, whatever form that takes, represent nearly half the population, giving rise to a dominant entitlement culture in America, displacing the self sufficient, individualist attitude that has characterized the majority of Americans for generations. These who are dependent upon on one form of public assistance or another will invariably elect a leader who will promise to give them more benefits, more perks.

The reelection of Barak Obama confirms this. It is a sure indication, an overt manifestation of the topsy-turvy state of affairs in America today.

Mosiah also cited what will happen to any nation occupying “this land” when the majority loses its bearings.

And if the time comes that the voice of the people doth choose iniquity, then is the time that the judgments of God will come upon you; yea, then is the time he will visit you with great destruction even as he has hitherto visited this land. (Mosiah 29: 27)

In the simple and straightforward manner typical of Book of Mormon prophets, Mosiah calls poor judgment “iniquity.” With this past election, it’s clear that the voice of the people, the majority, has chosen poorly.

If, in your opinion, that is an overstatement, if you disagree, just give it a little time to see how this all plays out. We will all be made to suffer for this debacle.

 Further, Mosiah emphatically declares that “the judgments of God” will come upon us for acquiescing to such perfidy. Clearly, if we haven’t sensed it before, we will soon be forced to acknowledge that we are all on board a fateful Titanic.

What is also clear is that the righteous will not be exempt from these chastisements. They seldom are, given the historical record. In fact, if there is a truism that can be distilled from the Nephite record, it is that. So those of us living out the “Nephite nightmare” in our day and time cannot expect our righteousness to exempt us from what Mosiah promised.

The message for us in this crucial moment in American history is, What form will these “judgments of God” and “great destruction” take? To answer that question, we must turn again to events in Nephite history, since that would have been Mosiah’s perspective when he cited judgments and destruction.

While there were many wars, contentions, a drought and predations by Gadianton robbers in Nephite history that could be called judgments, there was one destruction that far exceeds the rest, which immediately leaps to mind. You can read about it for yourself in 3 Nephi. I strongly suggest you do, because like all Nephite ills, this woe awaits us who occupy “this land.”

Like Unto the Nephites

Drought grips the country. Over half the counties in the lower 48 have been declared disaster areas. Wildfires erupt intermittently in forests and urban areas. Record temperatures in the heartland ad to the misery index. Water flows in the Mississippi have dropped to record low levels, restricting barge traffic and driving up transportation costs. The price of food and other commodities are on the rise, dramatically in some cases. Perhaps some of this directly affects you and your loved ones.

So, what’s going on?

For the answer, we might turn to the scriptures and the words of modern prophets.

A prophet’s warning

President Gordon B. Hinckley took the occasion in the October General Conference, 1998, to give us a sober warning, one which has profound implications for current events.

He began his advice by citing the Genesis account of Pharaoh’s dream, in which he saw seven fat kine (cattle) followed by seven lean kine. This dream Joseph interpreted as a prediction of a terrible famine in Egypt.

President Hinckley then made plain his intent.

“Now, brethren, I want to make it very clear that I am not prophesying, that I am not predicting years of famine in the future.  But I am suggesting that the time has come to get our houses in or­der.

“. . . I hope with all my heart that we shall never slip into a depression. I am a child of the Great Depression of the thirties.” (Ensign, Vol. 28, No. 11, p. 53.)

The fact that President Hinckley was a child in the depression, which he explicitly refers to, means that he also saw the effects of the drought that added to the misery of that crippling economic debacle. So even though he expressly stated “I am not prophesying,” the concerns he expressed were born of his own personal experience in the famished era of the Great Depression.

He then went on to use a curious weather metaphor to finish his warning:

“. . . There is a portent of stormy weather ahead to which we had better give heed.” (ibid.)

From this analysis, it seems to me that his intent was to subliminally do what he overtly said he wasn’t doing: prophesying. After all, isn’t prophecy invariably a warning as well?

President Hin­ckley clearly warned church members that the economic bubble we then enjoyed might burst, though he was careful to avoid predicting famine or drought in his extended commentary. Yet his remarks focused on the Great De­pression, which was accompanied by a severe drought. This, I believe, was purposeful on his part.

Note as well that he was deeply troubled by the burden of debt we carried in the late 1990s. As an aside this begs the question, what would he say about the debt burden we carry today which is exponentially greater?

Just to emphasize the point before we leave it, does it not seem curious that of all the scriptural examples President Hinckley could have used to make his point, he chose the one that deals with a profound famine, in spite of his denial that he was predicting such?

Next in our analysis, we must go far afield before returning to our central thesis in order to understand the present drought conditions and their connection to Pres. Hinckley’s remarks.

A scriptural warning

As readers of my book Parallel Histories: The Nephites and the Americans know, I see Nephite history as a remarkably accurate predictor of American history. The two histories are that similar.

In that book, I identified 12 overarching points of specific correlation between the two cultures, beginning to end. This puts the Book of Mormon story in a whole new light.

First published in 1989, my book was a modest analysis of the major points of correlation between the two histories, the Nephites and the Americans. The upshot of that analysis was that the Book of Mormon had been carefully edited by Mormon to reflect events that would emerge in our time, the age of the gentiles. After all, as church members universally acknowledge, the book was written specifically for us.

The most relevant segment of the Book of Mormon for our time is that which is recorded in Helaman and 3 Nephi. The events recorded there are astoundingly similar to events in our day and time, as well as predictive of what is yet to come in our time.

Among the more striking parallels cited were the similarities between the battle for the Nephite heartland, recorded in Helaman, and our Second World War. Without citing the many striking similarities between the two wars, let’s focus on the outcomes and their truly remarkable resemblance.

·         The Nephites were able to retake only one-half of their original lands when the war was over. The rest remained in Lamanite hands. *** The Allies in the Second World War had to settle for only about half of Europe. The rest fell into Communist hands.

·         When the dust of war settled, the Nephite capital, Zarahemla, remained in the hands of their arch enemies, the Lamanites. They were unable to liberate it. *** At the end of the Second World War, the capital of Germany, Berlin, remained in the hands of the Allies’ newest enemy, the Soviet Union. We were unable to liberate it.

·         The Nephites and the Lamanites fortified a line between the two opposing armies in the aftermath of the war that divided the land. It was a stalemate. There were no more battles, but both sides maintained a large standing army along the dividing line for years. *** The Allied and the Communist armies fortified a line between them in the aftermath of the war that divided Eastern and Western Europe. It was called the Iron Curtain. There was no war, but there was plenty of “sabre rattling,” part of what we termed the Cold War.

·         Eventually, the two groups were reconciled, and the barrier between them vanished. Nephites were able to travel in Lamanite lands, and Lamanites were welcomed in Nephite territory. *** As our recent history recalls, the Iron Curtain between East and West in the Cold War collapsed, stimulating exchange and travel between two former enemies.

·         Once the standoff between Nephites and Lamanites was over, they enjoyed exceptional prosperity because the time and resources once dedicated by both sides to the stalemate were redirected to prosperous pursuits. *** The end of the Cold War between the East and the West in our time brought about what came to be called the “peace dividend,” a prosperity enjoyed because of the subsequent reduction in defense expenditures.

This brief example of the similarities between Nephite and American history is typical of all the parallels seen between the two, beginning to end. Of course, their “end” will be our future, making large segments of the Nephite narrative predictive of events and conditions in our time.

This is where this analysis and comparison becomes pertinent and invaluable: We can predict events and conditions in our time with a considerable level of confidence by simply looking to the Nephite record to see what happened to them.

This allows us to foresee the direction of events in our time, to see where the flow of history will take us next. It also has the unique feature of making some verses from Helaman read like today’s headlines or lead TV news stories. We are literally seeing ourselves in the Nephite mirror, reading about ourselves in the history of our Nephite doubles.

This makes the Book of Mormon a prophetic book as much as history, a remarkable conclusion unanticipated by most of us who have read the book. Yet, it seems quite clear that this was, at the very least, a significant part of Mormon’s intent in compiling the record.

Further analysis and comparison of the two wars and subsequent key historical events, which was treated in my book, revealed a number of striking similarities between cultures, events and conditions—most prominent among them being the discovery that the terrorists of our time find their counterparts in their Gadianton robbers!

This and other astonishing similarities will be examined in even more detail in planned online classes.

Suffice it to say, the closer one looks at the two histories, the more similarities emerge. And while there are substantive differences, they are far outweighed by the likenesses.

That brings us back to the subject of this analysis: drought.

Prominent parallel today

In Nephite history, our blueprint for American history and futurity, Mormon reported a severe drought in Helaman’s time, which caused a total economic collapse and famine among the Nephites and Lamanites. It began when Helaman prayed, “O Lord, do not suffer that this people shall be destroyed by the sword; but O Lord, rather let there be a famine in the land, to stir them up in remembrance of the Lord their God, and perhaps they will repent and turn unto thee. (Helaman 11:4.)

Since Helaman was, in effect, the president of the church among the Nephites at the time, this brings us back to Pres. Hinkley, who was president of the church when he made the aforementioned statements—yet another parallel. And while he specifically noted that his declaration was not prophecy, there was, he said, “. . . a portent of stormy weather ahead to which we had better give heed.” (op. cit.)

Sounds a bit like prophecy to my ears.

Mormon, the true voice in Helaman, is editing and commenting in the Helaman account, tailoring it, I believe, to more accurately reflect events he had seen in visions of the “Gentiles” . . . us! The Nephite prophets called this practice “likening,” comparing one thing to another, equating the history of one nation to another. In proposing my thesis, I’m using the same rhetorical device.

So, Mormon goes on to comment on the record of Helaman. “And so it was done, according to the words of Nephi. And there was a great famine upon the land, among all the people of Nephi.” (Helaman 11:5.)

And so we come full circle to the central topic of this monograph: the expanding drought in the United States and Europe at this time.

While it’s far too soon to know with any certainty if this is the corollary in our time to the Nephite drought, it certainly has all the significant earmarks.

Let’s look at how it developed in Nephite times.

Like unto us

“And thus in the seventy and fourth year the famine did continue, and the work of destruction did cease by the sword but became sore by famine.

“And this work of destruction did also continue in the seventy and fifth year. For the earth was smitten that it was dry, and did not yield forth grain in the season of grain; . . . .” (Helaman 11:5, 6.)

The above passage makes it clear that it was the third year of the Nephite drought, perhaps allowing the suggestion that our drought may span more than just this one season. Note that the conditions quite closely matche what we see going on in our drought, even though this is only the first year of truly significant or serious drought in our time.

The news media are certainly convinced of the drought’s significance.

“The worst drought in more than half a century has caused serious harm to the U.S. corn crop, reducing yield and export prospects, and is beginning to cut into soybean production prospects. . . .   Nearly two-thirds of the contiguous United States were suffering from some level of drought as of July 31, more than a fifth of it classified as extreme drought or worse, according to the Drought Monitor, a weekly report compiled by U.S. climate experts.” (Reuters, Aug. 6, 2012.)

“The worst drought in 50 years has intensified across the US midwest, not only condemning this year's corn crop but threatening the prospects for next year's too, new figures showed on Thursday. . . . The latest drought map, released on Thursday by the National Drought Mitigation Center, showed the drought intensifying across the grain belt in the midwestern and plains states. . . . The intensifying drought has deepened fears of a global food crisis, with reduced stocks abroad and higher prices for US consumers at home. About 48% of the corn crop is now rated poor or very poor, the US department of agriculture said on Wednesday. About 37% of the soybean crop was rated poor or very poor. The crop failures have already raised fears of price rises later in the year.” (The Guardian, Aug. 2, 2012, italics added.)

The effects of the Nephite drought were certainly devastating.

“. . . and the whole earth was smitten, even among the Lamanites as well as among the Nephites, so that they were smitten that they did perish by thousands in the more wicked parts of the land.” (Helaman 11:6.)

Will this be our fate? Only time will tell. But if the numerous, remarkable similarities between the two histories are any indication, our drought stands to deepen at the very least.

The equivalent of Lamanite lands in our time would be Europe, which coincidentally is also seeing serious drought, especially in Russia where crop losses are already major—yet another remarkable equivalence.

It’s hard to imagine that things could get as bad in our day as they were in Nephite times, though the indication is clear that they could. But even if our drought doesn’t rise to the dimensions or devastation levels of the Nephite famine, it can easily qualify as a parallel event when we recall that the two histories are only similar to one another, not exact equivalents.

That being the case, we can also consider the alternative: Our drought may last longer and be more devastating. If so, it could easily exceed the damage seen in the Nephite account: “They did perish by thousands in the more wicked parts of the land.” (Ibid.)

We are the Nephites

Through comparison with the Nephite famine, this analysis predicts a drought-related economic collapse in the U.S. and Europe for our time.

This author has been looking for such to occur for over a decade, indicating that events in our time do not follow the same time intervals or even sequence as those of Nephite times. That is, the order and dimensions of each condition and event is most certainly going to be a bit different. American history is not a carbon copy of Nephite history, only a reflection.

Yet, given the notion that Mormon, the writer, editor and compiler of the Book of Mormon, sought to convey to us, the gentiles, the remarkable similarities between the two nations by preparing his golden book to obviously reflect what would transpire in our day, we would be wise to prepare for this eventuality simply as a reasonable precaution. What harm is there in being prepared? As they say, hope for the best, prepare for the worst.

A stronger economy might be able to survive effects of a profound drought without too much harm, as has been the case in past droughts. But the current fragility of the American economy, weakened by severe and ongoing recession, political intrigue and legislative gridlock, makes it particularly vulnerable to the catastrophic effects of a drought.

A prophecy of optimism

But there is hope that can be derived from the Nephite account as well. They repented, and their famine abated.

“And it came to pass that the people saw that they were about to perish by famine, and they began to remember the Lord their God; and they began to remember the words of Nephi.” Helaman 11:7.)

We can only hope that the drought we see emerging in our world today triggers that same result. Since we are not immune to the obvious cycles of boom and bust, of wickedness and repentance seen in the Nephite story, there is light at the end of our tunnel, just as there was for them.

“And it came to pass that in the seventy and sixth year the Lord did turn away his anger from the people, and caused that rain should fall upon the earth, insomuch that it did bring forth her fruit in the season of her fruit. And it came to pass that it did bring forth her grain in the season of her grain. (Helaman 11:7, 17.)

Turning once again to Pres. Hinkley’s remarks, we can see that he may have had the same insight into our future that Helaman did into that of his day.

Words of a modern prophet

Taken as isolated remarks, President Hinkley’s observa­tions seem to be simply a casual warning to the Saints that they need to put their financial house in order. However, when his re­marks are considered in light of the parallel histories thesis and the timeline it prescribes for America, it takes on ominous and prophetic implications—President Hinkley’s own assertions to the contrary notwithstanding. He did say, “There is a portent of stormy weather ahead to which we had better give heed.” (op. cit.)

It also prompts one to wonder if our prophet did not seek to intercede on our behalf, as did Nephi for his people, to spare us the immediate destruction by the sword by pleading for an alternate chastisement instead—one that would bring us to repentance without utterly destroying us. Perhaps that is why he felt compelled to overtly warn us (ironically, in the context of the ancient famine in Egypt) to put our economic houses in order.

And it’s worthy of mention that he did so on at least two and possibly three occasions, thus reinforcing the notion that he felt this to be a vital message.

So, the warning for us at this point in our history is clear. The drought we see developing will almost certainly become worse, perhaps even exceeding that of the dust bowl days of the last century.

The question of the hour is: Will we listen to the warning?

The Missing Writings

The statements of the Lord to Nephi in the Book of Mormon present today’s Latter-day Saints with a significant conundrum. Let’s take a close look to see what it’s all about.

We begin by quoting the germane passages from 2nd Nephi, chapter 29, in an order that clarifies and lends weight to the Lord’s vital message:

“Know ye not that . . . I bring forth my word unto the children of men, yea, even upon all the nations of the earth?” (2 Nephi 29:7) Well, that’s good news. And it seems only fair that all the “nations of the earth” should have the word of God. That’s the assignment of the church. That’s why we do missionary work. We go door-to-door with our revealed scriptures and our sacred message of restoration.

“Wherefore . . . neither need ye suppose that I have not caused more to be written.” (2 Nephi 29:10) What? More writings than what came out of the Restoration? Curious. Isn’t what we have enough? Is God telling us that there is much more out there than what we have in our present canon?

“For I command all men . . . that they shall write the words which I speak unto them; . . . (2 Nephi 29:11) Okay. That puts a bit of a different spin on the previous verses. This verse seems to imply that God has revealed his “words” to people everywhere, down through time. Again, that seems only right and fair. So far, so good.

“. . . and I shall also speak unto all nations of the earth and they shall write it.” (2 Nephi 29:12) Repetition . . . just so we don’t misunderstand. Got it. There are writings from “all nations of the earth,” which were given to them by God. So, maybe this isn’t just about missionary work. Maybe it’s about revelation to all nations or cultures down through time.

Of course, we have the Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants and the Pearl of Great Price. But these verses seem to indicate that there is much more out there, given to “all nations of the earth” that qualifies as the word of God.

With the clarity of the previous verses, we could hardly suppose that the few scriptures or “words” that we have is all there is. But if that conclusion is correct, where are these other writings? When we look around for these so called “writings” or texts, we see nothing like the messages we find in our scripture. Therein lies our enigma.

“Wherefore, I speak the same words unto one nation like unto another.” (2 Nephi 29:8) That seems significant. It implies that the message to every nation has been the same. But if that’s the case, why don’t we see a lot of other scripture out there like that which we now have?

This seems to be a contradiction. God told Nephi that there are “writings” the world over that have the same story to tell as our “writings” or scripture. However, when we look around, we see nothing else like our scriptures, seemingly.

“. . . I will judge the world, every man according to their works, according to that which is written.” (2 Nephi 29:11) Just to add weight and immediacy to his proclamation to Nephi, the Lord tells us that everyone will be judged by all that has been written. Since that includes us, we might want to locate these other “writings” in order to study and appreciate their message.

If we are to believe what the Lord says to Nephi, there is much more out there than our present canon that qualifies as scripture. Clearly, we must be missing a lot. Given the many nations or cultures in the world, the promised words should amount to a sizable body of text.

So, where are promised words from “all nations of the earth?” Where is this considerable body of text? Is it truly missing, or are we just unwilling to recognize them as writings inspired by God, as scripture?

The truth is, they’re all around us. They are the sacred records of ancient civilizations, unearthed by archeologists and salvaged by scholars from obscurity. They are a voluminous corpus of writings that all tell the same story. They are classified as creation stories, flood stories, ascension literature, dreams, visions, mythology and tradition. There are texts that relate ancient temple rituals, sacred dramas, the exploits of gods, goddesses, beasts and dragons. They all tell the same story, but each is told from the perspective of its own culture.

And here’s where I lose most Latter-day Saints, sadly. But it's the truth. The story is about the ancient heavens--cosmology.

The Joseph Smith papyri are an excellent example. That’s why he included them in our canon. As Nibley repeatedly and emphatically pointed out, their message is cosmological. We just can’t make any sense of them because we don’t understand the role of cosmology in ancient cultures and in the gospel of Jesus Christ. These ancient texts are written with an eye to cosmology . . . the story of the ancient heavens. And because most Mormons don’t recognize cosmology as a valid part of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, they ignore it.

But the Egyptian papyri carry the same story as that told in modern revelation of the very ancient books of Enoch, Abraham and Moses. It’s “a pearl of great price,” as Joseph valued it and so named it. And it’s all about cosmology – stars, planets, etc.

But that fabulous book is our least read and understood. While we marvel at the scope and magnificence of the cosmic vision given those ancient prophets, we puzzle over their message for us and the meaning of the papyri explanations Joseph included. We wonder at the strange words—Kolob, Hakokaubeam, Oliblish, etc.—but we miss the underlying, cosmic message.

And here’s another revelation: It’s the same story conveyed in our temple symbolism and endowment rituals. But we don’t understand them either, for the very same reason.

As it turns out, cosmology is the common denominator of all ancient belief systems, restored by our prophets in these latter days. That’s why God told Nephi, “Wherefore, I speak the same words unto one nation like unto another.” (2 Nephi 29:8) But we fail to see what is “plain and precious,” right before our eyes because our gospel training has not included cosmology.

That’s why whole books of our existing scripture, including some revealed through Joseph Smith, are still “sealed books” for us. We have neglected the concept of cosmology in our gospel study. As a result, Latter-day Saints have many scriptural “blind spots” that prevent them from understanding the very gospel they embrace. (For more information, try reading “Why Cosmology?” on this blog.)

Why Cosmology?

I get that question all the time.

"Why study all this cosmology and symbolism stuff when today's prophets and apostles emphasize gospel principles? Isn't that an indication of where we should spend our time and efforts?"

I respond:

Yes. The brethren focus on the basics for the benefit of potential converts and the newest church members because their mission is worldwide conversion and the building of the kingdom. That’s why their message is repetitive. They consistently emphasize the basics. And there is great wisdom and virtue for each of us in revisiting those basics on a regular basis. That's why we consistently hear that same, vital counsel.But once firmly grounded in the faith, the responsibility to move forward is wholly ours. The brethren are not there to do what we can do for ourselves. We are responsible for our own salvation. This has always been true.

Inquirers then ask, "Then, why bother with cosmological imagery? How is this useful? Isn't this information really irrelevant to our salvation, just a curious sideline?"

Here's my response:

The whole purpose of studying the Restored Gospel from a cosmological perspective is to allow us to easily and correctly distinguish what is spiritual (the fundamental truths) from what is temporal (the origins and meaning of symbolism). If we cannot easily and correctly differentiate between what is symbolic and what is literal in the scriptures and the teachings of the prophets, then we run the very real risk of reaching incorrect conclusions about their pronouncements.

For example, this is precisely what has happened to the interpretation of prophecy in recent times: In the apparent absence of a clear methodology for examining prophetic imagery, the whole enterprise has been hijacked by speculation and bad interpretation from those within and without our ranks. Yet surprisingly, we find that Joseph Smith gave us a concise and workable method for interpreting prophecy, based in cosmology, that nearly everyone seems to have overlooked.

That's just one reason why we should have at least a passing acquaintance with cosmology. Another is the incontestable fact that our scriptures, the Pearl of Great Price being the best example, is chock full of cosmological imagery. How, then, can we fully understand our scriptures if we don't understand cosmology?

Perhaps the best reason to study all this is that our temples, inside and out, are replete with that same cosmic imagery. In fact, the whole temple experience is geared to show us the cosmological components of the prophetic experience, beginning with the creation. The visions of Moses and Abraham are, just like our temple icons, filled with the cosmic imagery of planets, stars, suns and moons. Our endowment is a virtual example of the prophetic ascension experience related throughout scripture in the visions of the prophets. This is the core message in our temple ceremonies. Thus within our temples, each of us is afforded the marvelous opportunity to vicariously experience the visionary odyssey of the prophets. In so doing, we share the awe-inspiring, cosmic vision revealed to them. So, how can we fully understand the endowment message if we don’t see its cosmological components? The tragedy is that so few Latter-day Saints recognize that truth and thus miss the vital and mind-expanding message the endowment is meant to convey. Thus, the core message of our restored endowment goes unnoticed and unappreciated by nearly all temple goers.

As faithful, believing church members, we need to return to our cosmological roots. We should revisit the basic principles Joseph gave us in order to fully understand our own religion. He, in fact, wrote: “I also gave some instructions in the mysteries of the kingdom of God; such as the history of the planets [cosmology], Abraham’s writings upon the planetary systems [cosmology], etc.” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 118)

There is yet another reason why we should study cosmology. The cosmological elements once seen in Earth's ancient skies gave rise to a universal, sacred language of myth, tradition and religion the world over. This system of symbols and metaphors became the common denominator of all sacred thought and teachings in whatever ancient culture. Thus, any prophet could capitalize on these commonalities to convince prospective converts that he had the "truth." The Savior taught it that way, as did his apostles. We see Peter, for example, in the New Testament, rehearsing the cosmological history of the world from the Flood forward to both the Jews and the Gentiles about the change in Earth's heavens, a key principle in their pagan belief system that enabled them to accept what Peter subsequently taught about Jesus. We see John, in his marvelous Apocalypse, doing the same by inserting Jesus the Christ into pagan traditions common to the Hellenistic culture of the day, making it easy for Greeks, Romans, Egyptians, Persians and Jews to see the Savior in their own, particular cultural traditions. Once a missionary, prophet or apostle had succeeded by this artifice in convincing the people he had the "truth," he could then go on to teach the higher, spiritual concepts and precepts of the gospel - convert them, in other words.

This made teaching the higher, spiritual truths much easier. The common cosmic traditions of people everywhere became the universal language for conversion. It was a tool employed by every prophet and apostle down through the ages. Even the Savior used it, calling himself “Alpha and Omega,” relating himself to the “I Am” of antiquity, the “Word of God” or claiming to be the cosmic “Messiah” - all titles derived from sacred cosmology of the past.

Joseph Smith did something similar, only in reverse order. Unlike the ancients, our culture knew nothing of the past cosmological history of the heavens. Science had seen to that, and religion had followed suit. So, rather than starting with the ancient cosmological traditions, as his predecessor prophets had done, Joseph turned to repairing the tattered, soiled and misused remnant of Christian doctrine prevalent in his day. Only later, once he had convinced converts of his Christian roots, did he venture to re-institute cosmological tradition in modern temple worship, the universal theme of all temple worship anciently, as a vital and traditional part of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

So, this is the straightforward answer to those common questions I get. Restoring the "fullness of the gospel" required including the cosmological traditions and their respective rituals that were honored and repeated by all the prophets. Again, Joseph wrote: “I also gave some instructions in the mysteries of the kingdom of God; such as the history of the planets, Abraham's writings upon the planetary systems, etc," (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 118, emphasis added.) This was done so that we can understand the arcane allusions and references of the prophets and apostles as they meant them to be understood, not as our emasculated, spiritualized and Christianized versions had them before Joseph Smith. Clarifying these symbolic and metaphorical usages was as much a part of restoring the truth as instituting the correct manner of baptism or the reality that God has a body of flesh and bone.

The next question asked is, "So, is this knowledge vital to our salvation or exaltation?"

I answer with profound conviction:

It most certainly is if we intend to fully understand the prophets, comprehend prophecy itself and inherit the blessings promised in the Endowment. Otherwise, Joseph Smith, under God's tutelage, would not have restored it to us. At some point in our eternal progression, we will have to come to this knowledge and understanding. Sooner or later, in this life or the next, we will be required to include this in our worldview.

So, why not get an early start? Why not follow Joseph Smith's counsel to get as much correct knowledge in this life as possible to our greater benefit in the next?

Prophecy for Dummies

In my quest to popularize the advancing science of comparative mythology and plasma physics as they relate to the Restored Gospel, it occurred to me that the popular “… for Dummies” series, relating to everything from auto repair to brain surgery, might be helpful. A nuts-and-bolts approach to prophetic interpretation that employed an analogy about learning to read might help others better understand my approach. The following is the result. – A.E.L.

While we’re definitely not dummies, we all previously thought that one needed a prophetic calling or a PhD in order to interpret prophecy.

But I have found that not to be the case. Anyone who has learned to read—dummies like me and you—can also learn to understand prophecy.

This is done by simply following the clues throughout history, like Hansel and Gretel followed the breadcrumb trail through the forest, tracing the images or metaphors of prophecy to their source in Earth’s ancient heavens. Then, moving forward in time from antiquity to the present, one can map out their use as the prophets consistently employed them in various epochs and in a variety of cultures.

So, reading prophecy is not all that difficult. It’s learning how to understand it that’s a bit hard. That’s because we’ve never been properly schooled in prophetic imagery, a skill once known to all the prophets that has been lost to us over the eons.

And even though Joseph Smith clearly learned that skill, properly employed it and sought to reinstate its imagery in the minds of Latter-day Saints as part of the Restoration, the membership failed to grasp his meaning. (See “The Keys To Prophecy, #1-#12" and “What Joseph Knew.”)

Yes, reading the imagery of prophecy is an acquired skill, just like riding a bike or reading. In fact, the best analogy for learning to read prophecy comes from your own experience as you first began to read.

Think back to when you couldn’t read, before you learned your ABCs. Do you recall what the printed letters on a page looked like? I can. It looked like so much meaningless gobbledygook. There was no way you or I could make sense of it no matter how long we stared at it. Flipping the pages was futile. Trying to find meaning in it was pointless.

Well, that pretty much describes the situation where prophecy is concerned. You can understand the words, but the message is strange gibberish. Try as you might to find meaning in it or make sense of it, you cannot. Instead, your head begins to hurt. Reading various prophecies only further complicates the matter. It all seems to deal in that same bizarre imagery. Even reading books on the subject by supposed ‘authorities’ on prophecy leaves you no closer to understanding the stuff. And there are whole chunks of prophecy that the 'experts' all seem to avoid. Soon you despair, thinking that making sense of prophecy is going to be nearly impossible.

To teach you how to read, the teacher first started with the alphabet and letter recognition. Each letter had a name—A was “aee,” B was “bee,” and so on. And you learned to recognize them and identify them by name. Once you mastered the alphabet, you took your first step toward reading. But you still could not read.

The same is true of prophecy. To understand it, your teacher must take you back to the basics—stars, planets and plasmas. Why stars, planets and plasmas? Well, that’s where the language of prophecy came from. Earth’s ancient heavens were once alive with planets (the ancients called them stars, not planets) and electrified, glowing, lifelike plasma phenomenon. These impressive elements riveted the attention of ancient peoples the world over and sparked an explosion of imagination and imagery in all cultures.

Just like the letters of the alphabet, what the ancients saw in those long ago skies became the building blocks of all religious tradition and culture.

As analyzed elsewhere (See "A New Heaven and a New Earth," “The Saturn Myths and the Restored Gospel,” “The Saturn Epic: In The Beginning,” “The Saturn Epic: Mythmaking,” "The Polar Configuration and Joseph Smith," “Prophets and Plasmas” and “The Electric Universe”), with a little effort you’ll discover the reasons for believing that Earth’s ancient skies were vastly different than our own today. You’ll learn of the objects and images our ancestors saw in the astronomical theater, and we’ll give names to those planets and plasmas. This will be the prophetic equivalent of learning your ABCs.

The next thing our reading teacher did was to show us that each letter had one or more sounds. That further complicated things, but we were told that it would all become clear if we just persevered. So, we went down the now familiar alphabet assigning sounds to each of them. We learned, for example, that the letter C could have an “sss” sound as in “see,” or a “kay” sound as in “cat.” This was further complication and confusion for our struggling young minds.

Unlike today, where planets are little more than bright, distant stars in the sky, these planets and plasmas were very close.They were overwhelming and imposing because they were close to the Earth. They actually appeared larger than the moon does today. Brilliantly lit, dynamic and magnificent in ancient skies, these planets and plasmas were reverenced as gods or primeval powers.

And ancient onlookers assigned distinctive characteristics or personalities to these nearby planets and plasmas, based on their appearance, movements and changes. They were considered gods, supernatural powers that ruled the heavens, their sole habitat. The “theater of the gods,” then, was the ancient firmament overhead. In the cultures of antiquity, these planets and plasmas became human-like or animal-like gods who acted out their epoch stories on that grandiose stage.

Their identities included names, though those names varied from culture to culture. Even within a single culture, the same astral object acquired numerous names as it moved and changed over time. To modern eyes, this riotous nomenclature of ancient gods offers only confusion. To the ancients it made perfect sense since each name identified a unique aspect of their planet or plasma gods.

But the identities and attributes of those gods were strikingly similar in every cultural tradition because the look and behavior of those planets and plasmas was consistently interpreted the same way from culture to culture. This was due to the fact that the appearance and actions of these gods or powers suggested the same characteristics, natures or personalities in the minds of the ancients the world over.

For this reason, the ancients wrote and spoke of them as if they were living beings or creatures, and they so illustrated them in their sacred art. For example, Saturn (the largest of the planets seen in earthly skies) was the “father god” or “creator,” Venus came to be seen as the original “queen of heaven” or “mother goddess” and Mars became her “son,” the “hero” and the “warrior,” among many other designations. And the plasmas that were seen stretching between the planets took on a large number of identities: a connecting sky pillar, celestial tree, world mountain, astral river and ladder, stairway or path to heaven. Such commonalities allow us to identify each of the primary actors by their role in Earth’s ancient heavens and the traditions of mankind, no matter what name they went by in the various ancient cultures.

Returning once again to our reading analogy, we recall that our teacher introduced the notion that stringing several letters together produced a readable word. To read it, we used the sounds we had learned for each letter, and we were encouraged to “sound out” the more difficult words phonetically. And so we began to haltingly read our first words. “Look, Jane. See Dick run. Run, Dick, run.”

This was a bit of a tricky process. Sounding out each letter and then stringing those sounds together didn’t always produce a recognizable word. We soon learned that there were more complex rules that governed the way some groups of letters sounded. The u-g-h in “laugh” or “tough” made an “fff” sound, even though when those three stood alone they said “Ugh!” Still more complexity to master.

The corollary in learning to read prophecy is the realization that prophetic interpretation assigned a number of roles or characteristics to each of the congregate powers in the sky. For example, Venus was not only the mother goddess, she later became Mars’ crown of light, the “hand” of god, the wife of Saturn and ultimately a raging, angry goddess. One plasma conduit, stretching between Mars and Venus, was described as a dragon, beast or monster because it writhed, undulated and twisted like a snake.

And the complexity of these cosmic forms only grows and multiplies as we survey the literature and traditions of ancient cultures. These original forms, prototypes or archetypes became the basis for nearly innumerable traditional and religious narratives, and their perceived behaviors became the stuff of sacred rituals in all ancient cultures.

Mastering the use of these archetypes by understanding their astral origins allows any reader to interpret them wherever they are found: in religious ritual, in narratives such as scripture, in hieroglyphics, monumental architecture, petroglyphs or sacred symbols.

In our reading analogy, we eventually discovered that words could be grouped into sentences to complete a thought. And several sentences comprised a paragraph, a tidy group of thoughts that, when grouped together, made a summary or conveyed a concept.

In prophecy, we learn that a few simple symbols can convey whole narratives. In some cases, only one ideogram or hieroglyph invokes whole paragraphs of text.

Conversely, we learn that scriptural or religious metaphors have symbolic equivalents. This was a two-headed coin. On one side we have the symbol, and on the other we have its metaphoric equivalent. This allowed the ancients, most of whom could neither read nor write, to depict, read or relate a whole story with just a few symbols or a single ritual.

In reading, with practice came proficiency. After years of work, we mastered reading sufficient to extract meaning from any text. We were finally readers.

So, too, with deciphering prophecy. With some dedicated time and effort, we can train ourselves to read prophecy as easily as we read the morning paper.

But that was not all there was to reading. We soon learned that there were other languages. Some even used ideograms instead of an alphabet. That is, just when we think we’ve mastered it all, we discover that there are new horizons to explore.

So it is with prophetic language. Once we master the basics—the archetypes—once we learn the imagery those basics gave rise to, we can “read” any prophetic metaphor or arcane symbol as easily as we read the letters on a written page.

Of course when we reach that level, we discover to our amazement that what we have learned is only the tip of the iceberg. We quickly find that the imagery or language of prophecy is also the key to the vision of all the prophets, not just prophecy per se. And that includes the teachings of the prophet Joseph Smith. We realize, too, that it is the key to temple symbolism and ritual, both in ancient cultures and in the modern church.

We should have guessed that learning to interpret prophecy, like learning to read, would ultimately reveal sweeping vistas of knowledge and understanding beyond anything we could have imagined at the outset of our quest.

I guess we’re not dummies after all.

©Anthony E. Larson, 2009

Living the Nephite Nightmare

(An Open Letter to all Latter-day Saints)

The Book of Mormon is a prophecy for our time.

This has been my thesis since the mid-1980s, when I wrote Parallel Histories: The Nephites and The Americans. It was written over 20 years ago in response to then church president Ezra Taft Benson’s call to carefully and diligently re-examine the Book of Mormon. It was my effort to comply with his earnest request.

Following Pres. Benson’s cue when he observed that we are the modern counterparts of the ancient Nephites, I explored the thesis that our two cultures were more than superficially similar. They are remarkably alike, in profound and meaningful ways. Because it was apparent that my fellow saints weren’t seeing the things that seemed obvious to me, I felt a book was needed which outlined and elaborated that thesis.

Several articles followed over the years, updating, authenticating and validating that book and its thesis. (See the four part series A Harbinger For Our Time, on this blog.) This monograph will further that approach by demonstrating that America has now crossed the final threshold in our headlong rush to unknowingly duplicate Nephite history in our time.

When comparing the two cultures, as we will do herein, one caveat must be kept foremost in mind: While the two histories are similar, displaying similar conditions and events, the two cultures, Nephite and American, are fundamentally different from one another. The resemblance or similarities may be profoundly significant, but the way events played out in Nephite times is unlikely to be identical to the way events play out in our time.

These differences are important to keep in mind. Don’t expect an exact fit. Theirs was a simpler, agrarian-based society; ours is far more complex, based in a largely industrialized and technology oriented society. Their theater was restricted to a regional one; ours is national and international in scope, with many factors that were nonexistent in Nephite times. Thus, events in the two histories must be compared carefully—allowing that each will unfold in different ways, yet they will display remarkable and significant similarities.

In this monograph, we move beyond the astonishing similarities identified in the original book’s presentation. We move beyond the resemblance of the last Lamanite/Nephite War to our Second World War. We move beyond the postwar economic boom that enriched both nations in their respective eras. We move beyond the identical moral and political corruption that ensued. We look beyond the ideological battles that characterized the campaign of the corrupt judges against Nephi, the son of Helaman and their similarities to the Clinton presidency. We look beyond the Gadianton wars and equivalencies that allowed the accurate prediction that today’s terrorists would become our counterpart to the Nephite’s Gadianton robbers during the Clinton and Bush presidencies.

Now we come to the crux of this monograph, the next major parallel between our two cultures. It is the failed internal struggle the Nephites fought to retain their representative form of government, complete with its freedoms and justice.

The Nephite culture had been governed for generations by a representative form remarkably similar to our own. Mosiah said it best: “Therefore, choose you by the voice of this people, judges, that ye may be judged according to the laws which have been given you by our fathers, which are correct, and which were given them by the hand of the Lord.

“Now it is not common that the voice of the people desireth anything contrary to that which is right; but it is common for the lesser part of the people to desire that which is not right; therefore this shall ye observe and make it your law—to do your business by the voice of the people.” (Mosiah 29: 25, 26.)

Mosiah’s observation later proved prophetic in the days of Third Nephi: it is nearly always a minority that wants to venture away from correct principles of governance. The time came, as it always does, when wealth led to pride and a division of Nephite society into classes, “… and some were lifted up unto pride and boastings because of their exceedingly great riches, yea, even unto great persecutions.” (3 Nephi 6:10.)

Social equality dissolved. “And the people began to be distinguished by ranks, according to their riches … for there were many merchants in the land, and also many lawyers, and many officers. … thus there became a great inequality in all the land.” (Ibid. 6: 12, 11, 14.)

Immediately, the wealthy, ruling class within the Nephite nation decided that they wanted to set aside government by the voice of the people and replace it with a monarchy, which would be indebted, naturally, to those of their elite status: “And they did set at defiance the law and the rights of their country … and to establish a king over the land, that the land should no more be at liberty but should be subject unto kings.” (Ibid. 6:30.)

Something strikingly similar seems to be happening before our very eyes today, though no one is trying to set up a monarchy. They don’t need to. The governing class has seen to it that our presidents will be “elected” from their ranks simply because a man of the people has no chance in the corrupt system set up by our politicians in the last half-century. A ruling class of elites, who have no desire to relinquish power, has infiltrated our two party system. They have set rules that make it nearly impossible to unseat them.

The will of the people is no longer of any concern to them. Progressivism (the newspeak term coined to replace the pejorative moniker, “Liberal”) has come to dominate Washington, with its doctrine that the “experts” from the elite social strata—such as corporate heads (“merchants” in Nephite times), politicians (“lawyers” and “priests” in Nephite times) and government officials (“officers” in Nephite times)—should make decisions for us.

When recent protests, populated by ordinary, mainstream Americans, erupted around this country in order to make their voices heard, those who govern and their media minions angrily derided, denounced and dismissed them as dangerously misguided malcontents. So it was in Nephite times when “those who were angered were chiefly the chief judges, and they who had been high priests and lawyers; yea, all those who were lawyers were angry with those who testified of these things.” (Ibid. 6: 21.)

Third Nephi records how it transpired in his day. “And they [the angry chief judges, high priests and lawyers] did enter into a covenant one with another … to combine against all righteousness.” (Ibid. 6: 28.)

Many in our day have made the same decision. They espouse the philosophy that God should have nothing to do with government, in spite of the fact that the founding fathers made just the opposite affirmation. Today’s ideologues obviously seek to constrain religion in any way possible, insisting that the people not allow it to have any part in the operation of their government, that there should be an impregnable firewall between government and religion so that governance cannot be informed by any religious creed or hegemony.

Religion has become the enemy of the Progressives in our day. They make every effort to marginalize and demean people of faith. In effect, those with this secular bent seek to divorce this nation from its religious or sectarian roots, “… to combine against all righteousness.”

The net effect of this initiative among the Nephite cultural elite was clearly manifest. “And they did set at defiance the law and the rights of their country … that the land should no more be at liberty …” (Ibid. 6: 30.)

Something appallingly similar seems to be afoot in our nation today. While politicians give flowery lip service to individual rights, public service and moral rectitude, their personal behavior is often just the opposite. Presidential associates and appointees, for example, are found to hold opinions that are blatantly contrary to constitutional principals and morality, some even openly condemn America and its traditional values. Hypocrisy seems rampant in both political parties. None seem trustworthy any longer.

The good news for us, perhaps, is that the chief judges, high priests and lawyers in Nephite times failed in their endeavor. No Nephite king was enthroned. This bodes well for the outcome of our similar state of affairs. But the net effect of the struggle utterly demolished their government, and it threatens to do so to ours as well.

Will this be our fate? “And the people were divided one against another; and they did separate one from another into tribes, every man according to his family and his kindred and friends; and thus they did destroy the government of the land.” (3 Nephi 7: 2.)

Yet, there was no warfare: “… there were no wars as yet among them.” (Ibid. 7: 5.) However, what we have certainly feels like a war, a contest of wills for power and supremacy, where the ammunition is words and the casualties are truth and justice.

But “the regulations of the government were destroyed, … and they did cause great contention in the land.” (3 Nephi 7: 7.)

Contention is the order of the day in Washington. Our government seems to be descending into chaos amid an extraordinary level of acrimony and controversy. There is an unprecedented rush to pass questionable legislation, without due deliberation and consideration. No one, including the legislators themselves in some cases, seems to know what provisions legislation contains or what it will cost. Our economy is staggering. Unemployment is rising. Our leaders are sending conflicting messages to us, to our allies and to our enemies.

Our condition bears ominous similarities to that of the Nephites.
“And thus six years had not passed away since the more part of the people had turned from their righteousness, like the dog to his vomit, or like the sow to her wallowing in the mire.” (3 Nephi 7: 8.)

Numerous pundits have commented on how quickly we have turned from our constitutional roots in recent years. We’ve done an about-face almost as quickly as did our Nephite cousins. They united to defeat terrorism, in the form of the Gadianton robbers, in their time. Then, in a handful of years, they tore their nation apart from within.

While the terrorist attack on the World Trade Towers immediately brought us together as a nation, speaking with one voice, subsequent events have moved rapidly to undermine our culture and our government. Like the Nephites, we have gone from united to divided in a few, short years. It seems apparent that if we continue on our present course, our nation will suffer a fate equally grievous to that of the Nephites.

Surely the inclusion of this tragic saga in the Nephite narrative was meant to warn us that we would suffer a similar outcome in our day. Surely, Mormon meant us to clearly see our time in this highly polished Nephite mirror.

Will we, too, live the Nephite nightmare?

This viewpoint, provided by an analysis of Nephite history, allows us to sort out the truth, to see through the subterfuge, confusion and contradiction that dominate our present political discourse. The media, the politicians and the pundits cannot misguide those of us who take the Book of Mormon as our guide. It provides a certain compass we can use to steer a course through the present and coming chaos. It is the “more sure word of prophecy,’ as Peter put it.

Given this perspective, no LDS politician who truly believes the Book of Mormon to be the word of God can, in good conscience, support the present movement away from constitutional principles where “the voice of the people” governs. He or she would have to first dismiss the Book of Mormon as irrelevant to our time. He or she would have to deny the God given rights that Nephite prophets declared were vested in the people. In effect, they would have to ignore the Book of Mormon, the very cornerstone of our religion.

I am well aware that my position will infuriate some Latter-day Saints. So be it. It was so with those who sought to undermine freedom and agency in Nephite times; it will be so now. Those who are so angered thereby betray their perfidy.
At the same time, this discourse will strike a chord of recognition in those who truly embrace the Book of Mormon and the Restored Gospel. They will see the remarkable similarities that mark the two histories, and they will want to do something about it.

So, you may ask, “What can I do?” The answer is both easy and hard.
First, as a believing Mormon, your concept of the sanctity of agency requires that you get involved—“anxiously engaged” is the Lord’s terminology. Of that I am certain.

But what I cannot tell you is ‘what’ you should do. You must make that determination for yourself. All I can add is to suggest you follow the counsel of Pres. Spencer W. Kimball: “Do it … now!”

We Latter-day Saints have not heeded the lessons chiseled in the Nephite record. We failed to take note of a vital part of that sacred witness, meant to warn us of our national folly. The diligence of those ancient prophets, who patiently carved their crucial message on precious plates of gold, the determination of a modern prophet to publish their revelation to the world at all odds and the repeated efforts of recent church leaders counseling us to re-read the Book of Mormon, saying that the church is under condemnation for failure to do so, has been set at naught by our indolence. We have the ignominious misfortune of watching the government of our nation self-destruct before our very eyes, just as did the Nephites, while we scarcely lift a finger to oppose it, let alone rush to save our Constitution. That sacred document has too long hung by a thread while we dally. As a result, the forces of evil and darkness are rapidly moving to grind it under the unforgiving foot of oppression and tyranny.

The time for mincing words is far past. It is time to declare our allegiance—either to God, agency and freedom or to watch our great nation follow those that have preceded us onto the scrapheap of failed nations down through history.

What happens next is too terrible to contemplate. If you care to know the details of what awaits us just around the corner, read 3 Nephi, chapter 8. And don’t think it couldn’t happen to us; every prophet since the beginning of time, including the Savior himself, has predicted our fate. Read it, O Zion, and weep, O Israel. Judgement is now at our doorstep.

© Anthony E. Larson, 2009