I began to ponder this evening / early morning, the account of which I have poured my thoughts through over the past few days of my scripture study.
Many of us are adequately familiar with the Moroni, who delivered the Plates Of Brass to the young Prophet Joseph Smith Jr. Rightly so, as this Moroni was, prior to Joseph Smith, the one to place them into the earth which makes up part of what we know as the Hill Cumorah.
This Moroni is one whom was a valiant man of God, but the Moroni I speak of, is the righteous Moroni whom we are introduced to in Chapter 43 of Alma. This is the Moroni that most of the youth, of this, our great church- The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter-Day Saints- are very familiar with. Such integrity and honor rested upon the heart and soul of this man... and it must have been very apparent to all who knew him and all who read of him to this day.
Moroni was a man completely void of any pusillanimous description, and certainly could never be described as anything close to it. Even more unique to his particular story being told in the scriptures, is where he bursts on to the scene with such efficacy in casting asunder all the feeble carnal strategists, and then almost without a real notice of transition, seems to abscond into the night without much mention of his post Nephite Army leading life.
All this being said, there is much mentioned of Moroni that I feel I have overlooked and failed to actually weigh in of its true significance. If you don't have your scriptures now, go get them, and grab a colored pencil.
The first characteristic I wish for you to weigh in on, that Moroni "MUST" of had, was a level of "Trust" previously never seen before. This distinction I make, because of what is mentioned in Alma, Chapter 43: 17.
It simply reads, "And Moroni took all the command, and the government of their wars. And he was only twenty and five years old when he was appointed chief captain over the armies of the Nephites."
Ponder that as you mark it in your scriptures, and somewhere on there, place the word "Trust".
The next characteristic I wish for you to consider, is "Faith." You may even wish to also add his respect for the Lord's admonishment to have all things in order. In the same Chapter of Alma (43), in reading verses 19 through 22, you gain and appreciate Moroni being prepared for all things which certainly he was diligent in trying to be; as his preparedness frustrated and circumvented the vast numbers of Lamanites that stood under the command of Zerahemnah. Even the Zoramites and the Amalekites were frustrated by the smarts of Moroni.
Moroni had "Trust" not just invested in him by the very people he served, but he also had "Trust" and "Faith" that the Lord had the order of things carefully articulated to work perfectly when all his commandments were followed faithfully. Being a great strategist, Moroni certainly could have tried to figure much about the tactics of the Lamanites, and their plans himself. But now look to verse 23 in Alma, chapter 43:\
"...and Moroni, also, knowing of the prophecies of Alma, sent certain men unto him that he should inquire of the Lord whither the armies of the Nephites should go to defend themselves against the Lamanites."
I'd say that was a great measure of Faith, seeing as prior to this, Alma was not so much involved in the matters of temporal welfare as he was the spiritual matters.
"...it came to pass that the sons of Alma did go forth among the people, to declare the word unto them. And Alma, also, himself, could not rest, and he also went forth.
Now, we shall say no more concerning their preaching, except that they preached the word, and the truth, according to the Spirit of prophecy and revelation; and they preached after the Holy Order of God by which they were called." (Alma 43: 1-2)
So, mark Faith by verse 23, as you have now seen that even the great leader and strategist that he was, he was humble enough and had Faith that the Lord would direct him, through his prophet Alma, to do what was best in defending what was at the heart of his later known, and well rehearsed story of the "Title of Liberty".
We get a clear understanding, in verse 30, of Alma chapter 43, of the only reason that the Nephites were fighting the Lamanites, Zoramites and Amalekites. It reads:
"...knowing that it was the only desire of the Nephites to preserve their lands, and their liberty, and their church..."
The next quality we should attribute to Moroni, can be his ability to "Inspire" the people towards the righteous cause of which they should stand for always. And though verse 30 does give us a general idea of what the Nephites fought for, it is described in detail in verse 45, even after the Lamanites were said to have been "...fight[ing] exceedingly; yea, never had the Lamanites been known to fight with such exceedingly great strength and courage, no, not even from the beginning." (Alma 43:43)
Just how well did Moroni's chief opponent inspire his armies?
"And they [The Lamanites] were inspired by the Zoramites and the Amalekites, who were their chief captains and leaders, and by Zerahemnah, who was their chief captain, or their chief leader and commander; yea, they did fight like dragons, and many Nephites were slain by their hands...." (Alma 43:44)
But the Inspiration given by Moroni, and through the Holy Ghost which will accompany any who keep the commandments, was enough to supplant any existing fear, and remind the Nephites again, just what they were doing. The next verse, says it all:
"Nevertheless, 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."
To end the entry of this blog, but certainly not the end of the many great characteristics Moroni had, he exhibited one thing that im sure many other men never could in battle, "Mercy".
"Therefore the armies of Moroni encircled them about, yea, even on both sides of the river, for behold, on the east were the men of Lehi. Therefore when Zerahemnah saw the men of Lehi on the east of the river Sidon, and the armies of Moroni on the west of the river Sidon, that they were encircled about by the Nephites, they were struck with terror. Now Moroni, when he saw their terror, commanded his men that they should stop shedding their blood." (Alma 43: 52-54)
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