The Prophet Moroni

     The Book of Mormon:  Another Testament of Jesus Christ is an excellent place to find the history of people full of faith.  Many of these stories are centered around people willing to lay down their lives for their testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ.  Some examples include the prophet Abinadi, Alma the Younger and Amulek, and the Lamanites converted to the gospel through the testimonies of Ammon and his brothers. 

      I view the history of these people as stories of courage.  They demonstrate that no sacrifice is too great when you truly know who Jesus Christ is.  It’s worth laying down our lives for a testimony of the Holy One of Israel.  But I believe it can take even more faith and courage to live the life God asks of us than it does to be willing to sacrifice life for Him.  An excellent example of this faith and courage can be found in the life of a man named Moroni.

     If you’re familiar with the history found in the pages of The Book of Mormon:  Another Testament of Jesus Christ, you know more than one righteous men who are excellent examples of faith carry the name Moroni.  An excellent example is Captain Moroni, who served as a leader of the Nephite armies and led them to several incredible victories over the Lamanites.  I love the lessons of faith that can be learned through his example.

     But the man I wish to speak of today is the prophet Moroni, who the scriptures record as the last disciple from among the people of the Nephites and as the last of his people.  His history can be found in two sections of The Book of Mormon:  Another Testament of Jesus Christ—The Book of Mormon and The Book of Moroni.  Let me give you a brief account.

     Approximately 400 years after the Resurrected Lord visited the American continents (see 3 Nephi in The Book of Mormon:  Another Testament of Jesus Christ), the Nephites became a very wicked people.  They rejected God and started pursuing riches, power, and glory.  God had warned the Nephites through the prophets that they would be destroyed as a people should this ever be the case.  It was into these circumstances that Mormon had his son, Moroni.  Both men were righteous disciples of Christ.

     Mormon served as the chief leader of the Nephite armies.  Moroni also became one of the leaders.  During their lives the Lamanites came against the Nephites in battle frequently.  So the two men quickly became seasoned warriors.  Unfortunately the Nephites kept rejecting God.  So His divine protection was taken from them, and the Lamanites became a very blood thirsty people.  They were not content with simply defeating the Nephites.  They started slaughtering and murdering the Nephites, particularly any who would not deny their testimonies of Jesus.

     Without the protection of God, the Nephites were overpowered by the Lamanites and their numbers began dwindling quickly.  The disciples of God were also quickly eliminated.  Mormon survived long enough to see the majority of his people killed in battle.  Moroni lived long enough to see all of them except himself slain.  So it was that Moroni witnessed the death of his family and the complete destruction of his people, while he was left alive to preserve the records of his people.

     Think about how devastating that would be!  I love my family and would hate to see them slain in war.  I also love my country and my people.  I can’t bring myself to think of a world where the United States of America doesn’t exist.  Yet Moroni witnessed the death of his entire family and his entire people!  I would think this would devastate him and leave him in a state of depression unable to function.

     Yet Moroni lived for several more years preserving the records entrusted to him.  He wandered across the American continents alone, evading the Lamanites who were now warring among themselves.  And he recorded wonderful pieces of history for us while he was at it.

     I can think of only one possible thing that could give Moroni the strength to do what he did after witnessing the destruction of his people—faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.  If you read the words he recorded, you know this is true as well.  Moroni was a man of faith.  And he fulfilled the mission God gave him to the best of his ability.

     I love the history of Moroni.  It’s an excellent story of a man who had the courage to live the life God asked him to live, even though he undoubtedly felt the bitter pain of the loss of his people and his loved ones.  From the example of Moroni, we should learn faith should be more than being willing to die for our testimonies.  Faith should give us the strength to live difficult lives because of our testimony of Jesus.