What’s the point of Moroni 9?

Moroni 9 is such an unpleasant chapter, giving a peek from Mormon at the horrible things the Nephites were doing, that it is hard to see why Moroni chose to include it in the Book of Mormon. I have usually pointed to the horrible stuff as an index of how bad things can get, and yet I don’t know if that was Moroni’s intent for including it. Did he really mean it to be a bellwether of society’s depravity or decadence? 

            I think the key to its inclusion lies between the awful stuff.

            In between the reports of cannibalism, rape, torture, starvation, disorder, and disobedience, we see that Mormon is still hard at work.

--He’s preaching to the people, trying different approaches—sharpness or gentleness—and noting whether it works or not.

--He’s determined to keep trying to preach, for his own spiritual benefit, even if his listeners don’t accept it.

--He’s determined to conquer Satan in his own life, even if others are not.

--He maintains his faith in God’s justice and anticipates God will judge his people.

--He seems to have wanted to relieve those starving in Sherrizah, even if circumstance and his people were against him doing that.

--He prays for Moroni (actually this was in Moroni 8)

--He trusts in Christ that Moroni will be saved to either witness Nephite repentance or their complete destruction.

--He trusts he will be spared long enough to pass sacred records to Moroni.

--He is still engaged in the work of record-making and record-keeping.

--He exhorts his son to be faithful in Christ and remember the resurrection and Christ’s mercy and long-suffering forever.

--He anticipates the day when all things will be subject to Christ (even if few seem subject at that time)

--He recognizes that the things he’s written could weigh Moroni down, but he exhorts him to be lifted by Christ.

In all of this, we see a righteous man doing his best to use his good influence on those around him, anxiously engaged in good causes, attempting to show charity, expressing faith in Christ, expressing hope for a glorious future (though stuck in a dismal and decadent present), exhibiting long-suffering among the evil around him, keeping a perspective of justice in noting that his people are worse than the Lamanites, and so forth.

He’s a great example of a good person who maintains his integrity in awfully wicked conditions. This is probably what Moroni wanted us to see. His example shows us it is possible.

Personal News Item: I've been working like crazy on a commentary on the Book of Revelation, so that is my next big project to come down the pipe.  This will take some of the blog posts I've done and add to them. My thinking has evolved a lot, so not all the posts I've put up here will be included.  I'm very excited about the things I'm learning and can't wait to share them with you!

The Power and Faith of the Saints in Moroni’s Past

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As Moroni takes over writing on the plates from his father Mormon, he spends some time talking about factors besides the Lord’s purposes that will bring about the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah. One of these that caught my attention was the prayers of the Saints.

23 Search the prophecies of Isaiah. Behold, I cannot write them. Yea, behold I say unto you, that those saints who have gone before me, who have possessed this land, shall cry, yea, even from the dust will they cry unto the Lord; and as the Lord liveth he will remember the covenant which he hath made with them.

24 And he knoweth their prayers, that they were in behalf of their brethren. And he knoweth their faith, for in his name could they remove mountains; and in his name could they cause the earth to shake; and by the power of his word did they cause prisons to tumble to the earth; yea, even the fiery furnace could not harm them, neither wild beasts nor poisonous serpents, because of the power of his word. (Mormon 8:23-24)

When I have read these verses before, I just assumed the saints referred to were the disciples of Christ, because of the reference to the furnaces and beasts that could not harm them and how similar that was the description of how the three Nephites were miraculously preserved. And yet, I now wonder if there is a reason Moroni called them “saints” and not “disciples of Jesus.” It makes me think that this could be describing the faith of the general church membership, not just the highest leaders.

I also notice that when Moroni refers to Isaiah, he repeats enough of an image—“crying from the dust”—that we can identify exactly where Moroni was thinking of: Isaiah 29. But he reworks the meaning a bit for his own purposes. Instead of terrible ones crying from the dust, Moroni has saints crying from the dust, essentially praying during mortality and beyond in behalf of their brethren. In v25 he also says their prayers were for the one who would bring forth the Book of Mormon, so it is a good bet it was also for all those engaged in the Restoration as well, as it continues today.

And Moroni wants us to know those prayers will be efficacious because of the great faith of those praying, and he cites the miracles they could do in the name of Jesus and by the power of His word as evidence of their spiritual power.

I don’t know about you, but it gets me thinking about what I might need to do so that my faith as a Latter-day Saint can grow to match those ancient Saints.

I don’t need to move mountains, but what obstacles in my life would I like to remove? I can think of a few, for sure.

I would rather not shake the earth, but it might be nice to use my faith to shake my false complacency.

What psychological prisons that hold me captive could use some destruction? What flame wars and beastly poisonous behavior could I use protection from by the power of Christ’s word?

How might our prayers, acting in Jesus’s name and by the power of His word accomplish?

How Moroni demonstrated charity while alone

Moroni wrote some things about how charity is manifested that are very similar to Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians:

And charity suffereth long, and is kind, and envieth not, and is not puffed up, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, and rejoiceth not in iniquity but rejoiceth in the truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. (Moroni 7:45)

It was fascinating to me to recently think about how Moroni exemplified charity even during his 36 years alone after the Nephite destruction.  Lesson 42 in the Primary 4 manual had a whole list about this. It was so profound, that I had to wonder if any primary teacher would actually get to teach it.  Maybe it was the kind of thing that was more for the teacher’s edification than the students’.

• Suffereth long: Moroni lived alone for over thirty-six years patiently keeping the records. (Mormon 8:5.)
• Kind: Moroni prayed for us, and he loved his brethren. (Ether 12:36, 38.)
• Envieth not: Moroni saw our day and counseled us to not be envious or proud. (Mormon 8:35–37.)
• Not puffed up: Moroni was humble because of his weakness in writing. (Ether 12:23–25.)
• Seeketh not her own: Moroni unselfishly worked and prayed for us that we would have a knowledge of Jesus Christ. (Mormon 9:36; Ether 12:41.)
• Not easily provoked: Moroni forgave his enemies and worked hard to write things that he hoped would be of worth to them. (Moroni 1:4.) [Moroni also avoided those who would want to kill them, and didn’t try to retaliate for hatefulness.]
• Thinketh no evil: Moroni exhorted us to hold to good and touch not evil. (Moroni 10:30.)
• Rejoiceth in truth: Moroni was honest. (Moroni 10:27.)
• Beareth all things: Because Moroni would not deny Jesus Christ, he had to wander alone for his safety. (Moroni 1:2–3.)
• Believeth all things: Moroni encouraged us to believe in Jesus Christ. (Mormon 9:21.) So great was Moroni’s faith that he was able to see Christ face to face. (Ether 12:39.)
• Hopeth all things: Moroni understood the importance of hope. (Ether 12:32.) [He hoped for a better world and for a future day when Israel would be gathered again.]
• Endureth all things: Moroni was faithful to the end. (Moroni 10:34.)

So much of that stuff is future-oriented.  It almost seems as if he lived in a dream of the future as he wrote.

Thinking about Moroni’s years alone

I substitute-taught a primary lesson this last Sunday on Moroni and his writings to the 11-12 year-olds. When I was first asked to do it, I said yes mostly for selfish reasons because I’ve found that somehow the Lord gives me opportunities to substitute-teach when the lesson is something He particularly wants to teach me.  I didn’t know what the lesson was about when I agreed to do it, but when I looked at it, I knew that once again it was for me.

2 And now it came to pass that after the great and tremendous battle at Cumorah, behold, the Nephites who had escaped into the country southward were hunted by the Lamanites, until they were all destroyed.

3 And my father also was killed by them, and I even remain alone to write the sad tale of the destruction of my people. But behold, they are gone, and I fulfil the commandment of my father. And whether they will slay me, I know not.

4 Therefore I will write and hide up the records in the earth; and whither I go it mattereth not.

5 Behold, my father hath made this record, and he hath written the intent thereof. And behold, I would write it also if I had room upon the plates, but I have not; and ore I have none, for I am alone. My father hath been slain in battle, and all my kinsfolk, and I have not friends nor whither to go; and how long the Lord will suffer that I may live I know not.  (Mormon 8:2-5)

Show the picture Mormon Bids Farewell to a Once Great Nation and ask the children who the men in the picture are.

·      Explain that Mormon gave part of the sacred records to his son, Moroni, to protect them from the Lamanites and to have Moroni complete the account. Have the children read Moroni’s words in Mormon 8:2–5.

·      Help the children determine approximately how long Moroni was alone by finding the year of the final Nephite battle on the bottom of the page in Mormon 6. Then have the children subtract that date from the year listed on the bottom of the last page of Moroni 10. (421 - 385 = 36 years.)

·      Ask the children how long they have ever been alone. Help them imagine what it would be like to be alone for thirty-six years.

·      Explain that Moroni lived through many difficulties to complete the gold plates so they could come to future generations as the Book of Mormon and help us become like Jesus Christ.

·      You might also use enrichment activity 1 as an attention activity.

Enrichment activity:  For this activity you will need a piece of tin and a nail. (A large lid from a can might work for the piece of tin. Cover all sharp edges with tape.) Have the children take turns using the nail to scratch a letter or two of the following words: Now I, Moroni … on the piece of metal or tin. Express your appreciation for the Book of Mormon record keepers, who engraved the words of God on metal plates.

A few reasons why I felt this lesson was for me was because 1) I’ve been going through one of those periodical struggles wherein I feel my writing is not worthwhile or important 2) I’ve been feeling like I’m very much isolated and alone a lot and don’t have much opportunity to be an influence for good, and 3) I’ve been feeling like writing is getting harder for me.

Reading over Moroni’s experience has given me some much-needed perspective about what I face.  I am nowhere near the same class as the prophet Moroni, either in spirituality, or in difficult life experience, and the comparison is instructive to me.

1) Moroni was alone for 36 years. Any civilization he ran across was likely to be dangerous to him. Me, I’m only alone during the day as I write.  (The longest I was ever alone was about a week when my husband was overseas for work, and even though I was going through a sad time in my life, I had other people I could talk to.) My neighbors are not likely to kill me if they find out I believe in Christ.

2) Moroni was an apostle with no one to minister to, since all the Nephites were destroyed and everyone left was determined to destroy believers in Christ. (Talk about feeling unimportant and unable to be an influence for good!) Me, I’m a run-of-the-mill Latter-day Saint who gets to live in a place and time with a relatively high number of faithful Saints of the restored church, and I have people I can serve in my callings. 

3) Moroni had to painstakingly scratch his message on metal and carry that load around with him everywhere. Me, I get to type my little thoughts and scripture insights out on a nice laptop in the comfort of my central-heated home with running water and a pantry of food. When I’m ready, I can instantly post my writing to the internet where anyone in the world can read it. 

I have so much to be thankful for! (I guess that makes this a belated Thanksgiving post.)

And still the few challenges I face are just enough for me to feel great respect and compassion for Moroni.

What prophets and people in the scriptures have you identified with in difficult times?

Have you ever taught lessons seemed to speak directly to your difficulties?

Mormon’s hopes for Moroni in the wicked Nephite society

After Mormon tells Moroni the awful details of the wickedness among the Nephites and Lamanites, he ends his letter by blessing Moroni in an interesting way:

And may the grace of God the Father, whose throne is high in the heavens, and our Lord Jesus Christ, who sitteth on the right hand of his power, until all things shall become subject unto him, be, and abide with you forever. Amen. (Moroni 9:26)

This can be difficult to parse because of a gigantic dependent clause stuck between the subject and the verb in the sentence. What it essentially says is, “may the grace of God the Father… and our Lord Jesus Christ …be, and abide with you forever.”  Be strong in God and Christ.

So what is that middle stuff trying to say?  “God the Father, whose throne is high in the heavens, and our Lord Jesus Christ, who sitteth on the right hand of his power, until all things shall become subject unto him..” 

Again, Mormon has just finished telling Moroni a number of awful ways the Nephites are disobeying his [Mormon’s] authority as preacher, as general, as apostle, as testifier of Christ. The Nephites are without order and don’t listen to authority, so it is comforting to Mormon that God and Christ rule in the heavens, and even if Mormon can’t enforce his commands, God can enforce His. And even if all Mormon’s society and his enemies are determined to defy God, it can’t and won’t last because eventually Christ will subject all things to Him.

It’s a comfort for today as well.  Even if the world seems determined to tread Christ and the commandments under their feet, it can’t last because God and Christ do rule in the heavens, and someday every knee shall bow and every tongue confess their authority. The best we can do is subject ourselves to them as soon as possible.

Mormon on the interplay between faith and hope

40 And again, my beloved brethren, I would speak unto you concerning hope. How is it that ye can attain unto faith, save ye shall have hope?

41 And what is it that ye shall hope for? Behold I say unto you that ye shall have hope through the atonement of Christ and the power of his resurrection, to be raised unto life eternal, and this because of your faith in him according to the promise.

42 Wherefore, if a man have faith he must needs have hope; for without faith there cannot be any hope.

 (Moroni 7:40-42)

These verses caught my attention recently.  Looking close, it seems that if we are trying to tell which comes first—faith or hope—it becomes a chicken-or-the-egg problem.  We have to have hope before we have faith, and we need to have faith or we cannot hope.

It is nice that Mormon (as quoted by Moroni) spells out exactly what church members hope for—it is hope of eternal life through the atonement of Christ and the resurrection.  That is one grand hope to center our attention on.  It is the hope that softens grief at the death of loved ones. It is the hope that consoles when new medical problems crop up. It is the hope that can drive us to reach for the Savior in our extremities and sins.  Hopes of worldly successes may be frustrated, but our hope in eternal life through Christ will not, provided it is accompanied by our sincere faith.

So which comes first, faith or hope? 

It seems to me that when I hear the promise of eternal life and its conditions, hope arises that it is attainable.  Then my faith in Christ is exerted to comply with the conditions, and my hope of attainment is strengthened.  And every time we are reminded of the atonement (as we must be over and over), we have opportunities to act in faith and again strengthen that hope.

On the other hand, we have elsewhere the statement that without hope, we’d be in despair, and despair comes because of iniquity.  I would probably add that despair comes of iniquity we are not willing to repent of.

So to get out of that, we have to humble ourselves and repent. Then we gain hope.  We have to be meek to learn what the Lord has to teach us so we can become more like Him.

The way Mormon goes into depth about hope teaches me about why Christ is sometimes called “Hope of Israel.” He’s the reason we can have hope.

Faith and hope are pretty abstract concepts and it is easy to have our eyes just glaze over on the topics.   And too, I don’t think faith and hope are something we really think about as we go through the faith-repentance-obedience process.  Rather, these are things that happen by themselves as we respond spiritually to invitations to act and promises of blessings.  I think Mormon wants to make us aware of these things so that if spiritual problems come up, we can do a little self-evaluation and see if we have these things we’re supposed to have.  It’s sort of like how the mechanic opens the hood of the car and does through engine checks when something has gone wrong. Usually we don’t look at the engine every time we drive somewhere, and the faith-hope interplay is like that. We just have to keep the Savior in our thoughts and trust Him.

Judging and being judged

Here’s a verse that stuck out to me recently:

And now, my brethren, seeing that ye know the light by which ye may judge, which light is the light of Christ, see that ye do not judge wrongfully; for with that same judgment which ye judge ye shall also be judged. (Moroni 7:18)

I don’t know if this judgment Moroni says we’ll be judged with here is a final judgment or not. But I realized that how we judge ourselves tends to impact how we make use of the atonement.

If we judge ourselves too harshly, then we condemn ourselves out of proportion to our offenses and then we can’t feel the mercy of Christ when we repent, or even worse, we can’t reach for it at all because we think we don’t deserve it.

But if we’re too lenient with ourselves, then we fail to recognize the seriousness of our offenses, then our repentance is incomplete or non-existent.

Ultimately, we have to learn to be as fair with ourselves as Christ is.

So, how do we judge ourselves fairly?  What do you think?

Laying hold on every good thing

I’ve been studying Moroni 7 recently (a talk of Mormon's which Moroni recorded) and re-examining my assumptions about what some things meant. It’s been rather instructive.

19 Wherefore, I beseech of you, brethren, that ye should search diligently in the light of Christ that ye may know good from evil; and if ye will lay hold upon every good thing, and condemn it not, ye certainly will be a child of Christ.

20 And now, my brethren, how is it possible that ye can lay hold upon every good thing? (Moroni 7:19-20)

When I read this, the first thing I noticed was the exhortation to search diligently in the light of Christ to know good from evil. This seemed a little odd to me because I never thought of knowing good and evil as requiring diligent searching.  I have generally been one to make snap judgments. Things seem pretty obvious.

But thinking more deeply, I realize that no, that discernment between good and evil is not always as easy as it looks. I may only get one side of the story, or I may not get enough information about either side. Plus, there is so much of what we call spin and even outright deception in the world that appearances are not always trustworthy.  Evil slings mud at good to try to turn people away from it.  Maybe there is a lot more misinformation out there than truth.  So maybe it does require diligent searching to tell good from evil.

The next part I was drawn to is this phrase Mormon used—“every good thing”—as he encourages the Saints of his day to lay hold on it.  Just what does he mean by laying hold on every good thing?  I think I must have a very materialistic perspective because for the longest time I took it for granted he meant tangible goods or good experiences.  And that sounds rather overwhelming to have to do that.

But what has challenged that interpretation is Elder Oaks’ talk “Good, Better, and Best.” Elder Oaks taught we should focus on the best things, not merely good things. So it first made me wonder if Elder Oaks’ teaching superseded Mormon’s because it is more applicable to our modern circumstances of abundance and glut. But I started to realize that maybe my definition “every good thing” was off somehow, and perhaps there was a way Elder Oaks and Mormon harmonized instead of conflicting.

(By the way, I also noticed that “every good thing” and variations of it were all over this and the next eight verses. It is obviously that is what Mormon wants to emphasize.)

So I went looking for things that Mormon considered fit his definition of “every good thing.” The first two things that stuck out to me were v26 and 33.

“…And as surely as Christ liveth he spake these words unto our fathers, saying: Whatsoever thing ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is good, in faith believing that ye shall receive, behold it shall be done unto you.” (v26, emphasis added)

I started to wonder if this meant it would be done for us or done to us. Having things done for us is God acting to change our circumstances, but having things done to us is God changing us for the better, with our permission. It suggests “every good thing” includes positive changes.

“And Christ had said: If ye will have faith in me ye shall have power to do whatsoever thing is expedient in me.” (v33, emphasis added)

This tells us that another good thing to lay hold on is the power from Christ to do what He tells us to do and to use our agency to do other good acts that we decide on our own need doing.

Then I noticed v22. (It’s kind of funny how I have to jump around to notice bits and fit them together.)

For behold, God knowing all things, being from everlasting to everlasting, behold, he sent angels to minister unto the children of men, to make manifest concerning the coming of Christ; and in Christ there should come every good thing. (v22, emphasis added)

For a long time when I read that, for some reason I would always first associate "every good thing" with inventions and scientific advances because I’ve been taught to see all those things as inspirations from God to push His work along. That’s what “in Christ should come every good thing” made me think of.

But this time I realized that true as it is, that is not the tenor of the verse. The verse is focused on the foreknowledge and revelation of God about Christ. It’s talking about “every good thing” as exemplified by Christ. It’s character traits. Christ gained every good character trait so He could help us gain them too.

And then I noticed other good things we can acquire, which were scattered over the rest of the chapter, so I started making a list of all I found.

Good things men can lay hold on:

--change of character (v26)

--every good character trait (v22)

--power to do good things (v33)

--miracles (v27)

--salvation (v36)

--angelic ministry (v29-30)

--prophetic ministry (v23,25)

--power of the Holy Ghost (v36)

--mercy Christ has the right to bestow (v27)

--faith, hope, and charity (v40-44)

All of these are intangible good things, so they can’t be bought. They have to be prayed for and worked for. They all require faith in Christ.

Odds are everyone could use something on that list today.  Which means we all have opportunities to experiment on the word, exercise our faith in Christ, and pray for what we need.  Let’s take that opportunity today and begin to lay hold on every good thing.

How Ether 12:27 Blesses Us

And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them. (Ether 12:27)

As I ran across this scripture recently and how it invites us to come to Christ in humility about our weaknesses to be made strong , it occurred to me that this may be a doctrine and invitation given nowhere else.  I thought it might be interesting to do a survey of the scriptures to see what we are told elsewhere about weakness and being made strong.

Here’s what I found.

Ether 12:28 -- God will show the Gentiles their weakness and that faith, hope, and charity will bring them to God.

Ether 12:37 -- God tells Moroni he will be made strong because he has seen his weakness. (This tells us noticing our weakness is the first step toward being made strong, but the next steps are not there because they were given in Ether 12:27.)

Alma 58:37 -- Helaman trusts the Lord will deliver his people notwithstanding the weakness of their armies.  (We can see Helaman is applying the principles of faith in Christ and humility in a military context, but we need to know it works in other contexts too.)

D&C 1:24 -- Commandments are given to God’s servants in their weakness so they can come to understanding. (And probably trying to follow commandments shows us our weakness pretty quick..)

Jacob 4:7 – God shows men their weaknesses so they know only by His power and condescension can they do miracles.

D&C 62:1  -- Christ knows the weaknesses of men and how to succor those who are tempted.

Hebrews 4:15-16 -- Christ can be touched with our infirmities, so we can boldly come to Him and obtain grace to help at time of need.  (This gets pretty close to Ether 12:27, but the humility and faith in Christ are implied rather than explicitly stated.)

Hebrews 3:21-- Prophets and great men were made strong out of their weakness.  (This tells us others enjoyed the blessing of being made strong in their weakness, but it doesn’t tell us about how.)

2 Nephi 3:21 -- God will make the weakness of the Nephites’ words to their brethren strong in their faith. (This shows us the principles of faith in Christ and humility can be applied in the context of writing about the gospel for others.  But it isn’t explicit about the humility needed.)

2 Nephi 33:44 -- Nephi has faith that the words he has written in weakness will be made strong to his people.

D&C 38:14 -- The Lord will be merciful to our weakness. 

So it seems that other scriptures have pieces of this doctrine and invitation, Ether 12:27 shares it most clearly.  It gives us confidence that humility in our weaknesses and taking them to the Lord in faith will allow the Lord to strengthen us. 

I also notice, that the other scriptures expand on the doctrine and give examples of different ways prophets have been made strong.  Nephi and Moroni both had their words made strong. Helaman had his armies made strong.  Jacob was able to do miracles.

Today when we notice our weaknesses, let’s take them straight to the Lord for His help. Let’s find out how the Lord can strengthen us.

Meekness in analyzing sacred texts

Recently I noticed Moroni’s worries to the Lord about the efficacy of his writing, and I found the Lord’s response interesting.  Moroni writes:

25 Thou hast also made our words powerful and great, even that we cannot write them; wherefore, when we write we behold our weakness, and stumble because of the placing of our words; and I fear lest the Gentiles shall mock at our words.

26 And when I had said this, the Lord spake unto me, saying: Fools mock, but they shall mourn; and my grace is sufficient for the meek, that they shall take no advantage of your weakness; (Ether 12:25-26)

Moroni was pondering the problem that just about every writer of the sacred has discovered at some point—that words are simply inadequate to capture the power and glories of spiritual experience.   He also had more problems with writing on plates – very little opportunity for editing what was already engraved, except with an added “or rather” or “I would speak in other words.”  (If he was a perfectionist at all, this writing the sacred on gold plates would have been very hard.)  Moroni was very concerned the final product would cut a poor figure in the world, and only be made fun of by Gentile readers.

When the Lord answers, “Fools mock, but they shall mourn,” we see an implicit acknowledgement that some Gentiles would mock what Moroni and his father had written.  But it also contains a reassurance that reader mockery reflects badly on the reader, not the writer.  Fools mock the sacred because they are too foolish to value the sacred as they ought.  If they mock the admonition to repent and come to Christ, then they will remain in their sins, and in the end their judgment will come upon them.  They will mourn for their sins that might have been swept away if they had been more wise to listen and obey.

The Lord also adds, “my grace is sufficient for the meek, that they shall take no advantage of your weakness,” which is an acknowledgement that at a certain level, the Lord saw that Moroni’s writing did have a certain weakness to it.  (Part of me suspects that Moroni was actually an excellent writer and that the Lord knew that writing style standards don’t translate well, so even Moroni’s skill would sound odd to us.)  Yet, meek people read the book, and the power of God they feel from it makes up for the weakness, just as the Lord promised. 

The Lord’s answer shows us that how sacred texts are received is more a measure of the reader than the writer.

Black Comedy in the Scriptures?

I was just looking through a book called The Anatomy of Story by John Truby and I went to the chapter called “Moral Argument.”  He described different ways that a writer’s moral vision is conveyed in a story.  One of the methods is black comedy.

I was surprised when I read the following:

Black comedy is the comedy of the logic—or more exactly, the illogic—of a system.  This advanced and difficult form of storytelling is designed to show that destruction is the result not so much of individual choice (like tragedy) but of individuals caught in a system that is innately destructive.  The key feature of this moral argument is that you withhold the self-revelation from the hero to give it more strongly to the audience.  This is how the black comedy moral argument works:

·      Many characters exist in an organization.  Someone explains the rules and logic by which the system operates in great detail.

·      Many of these characters, including the hero, go after a negative goal that involves killing someone or destroying something.

·      Each believes strongly in the goal and thinks what he is doing makes complete sense.  In fact, it is totally illogical.

·      The opponents, also within the system, compete for the same goal and also give detailed but insane justifications.

·      One sane person, usually the ally, continually points out that none of this makes any sense and action will lead to disaster.  He functions as a chorus, but no one listens to him.

·      All the characters, including the nominal hero, use extreme, sometimes even murderous, methods to reach the goal.

·      The actions of the characters lead to death and destruction for almost all.

·      The battle is intense and destructive, with everyone still thinking he is right.  The consequences are death and madness.

·      No one, including the hero, has a self-revelation.  But it is so obvious that the hero should have had a self-revelation that the audience has it instead.

·      The remaining characters are horribly maimed by the struggle but immediately resume their efforts to reach the goal.

·      Slightly more positive black comedies end with the sane person watching in horror and either leaving the system or trying to change it.

This tricky form is easy to screw up.  For the moral argument in black comedy to work, you must first make sure your hero is likable. Otherwise the comedy becomes an abstraction, an intellectual essay, as your audience backs away from the characters and feels morally superior to them.  You want the audience to get sucked in so that they suddenly discover that they are these characters in some fundamental way and not above them.

Besides a likable hero, the best way to pull the audience emotionally into a black comedy is to have your hero speak passionately about the logic of his goal.  Writers who want to add some hope to the bleakness of the form give the lone sane person an alternative to the madness, worked out in detail. (pp135-136)

When I was reading those bullet points above, I said to myself, “Oh my gosh!  This is like the Book of Mormon (the one inside the Book of Mormon) and end of the Book of Ether!” 

Truby’s description of black comedy	The Book of Mormon at the end of the Book of Mormon	The end of the Book of Ether
Many characters exist in an organization.  Someone explains the rules and logic by which the system operates in great detail.	By this time, readers have a lot of knowledge about Nephite, Lamanite, and Gadianton robbers. Readers have also learned about the characteristics of legitimate “holy war.”	We learn some about Jaredite kingship and lots about the evils of Gadianton robbers.
Many of these characters, including the hero, go after a negative goal that involves killing someone or destroying something.	The Nephite civilization plays the part of the hero (and it has been heroic for most of its history until this time). Their negative goal is to sweep off the Lamanites. The Lamanites want to destroy the Nephites. The Gadiantons want power and gain.	Coriantumr takes the part of the hero (though we debate whether he deserves the label). His negative goal is to prove he can defend his throne and protect his people without repenting. He is opposed by a succession of warlords (Shared, Gilead, Lib, Shiz).
Each believes strongly in the goal and thinks what he is doing makes complete sense.  In fact, it is totally illogical.	The Nephites believe they have to avenge the blood of their brethren and make oaths that they will do so. This is totally illogical because their oaths force them to make revenge the main focus of their lives, driving out all higher considerations.	Coriantumr thinks it makes perfect sense to defend his throne and protect his people, even though Ether knows they are no longer worthy of defense because of wickedness.
The opponents, also within the system, compete for the same goal and also give detailed but insane justifications.	The Lamanites justify destroying the Nephites on the grounds they must reclaim their right to rule. The Gadiantons also want to reclaim their right to rule.	Gilead, Lib, and Shiz want to take Coriantumr’s throne and kill Coriantumr to prove Ether’s prophecy is wrong, avenge relatives’ death, etc.
One sane person, usually the ally, continually points out that none of this makes any sense and action will lead to disaster.  He functions as a chorus, but no one listens to him.	Mormon and Moroni both play the part of the ally of the Nephites, trying to point out the Nephites must repent or be destroyed.  The church dwindles. Mormon’s mouth is shut when he tries to preach as a teen.  He and his son are generals in the Nephite army, but near the end, they can no longer enforce their commands.	Ether plays the part of the ally to Coriantumr and the Jaredites. He calls Coriantumr and his family to repentance, but they don’t listen and try to kill him.
All the characters, including the nominal hero, use extreme, sometimes even murderous, methods to reach the goal.	Constant war as most delight in bloodshed. Nephites rape and cannabalize Lamanite women. Lamanites feed their Nephite prisoners human flesh of their family members and sacrifice prisoners to idol gods.	Sieges and killing drunken armies. Secret combinations. People steal anything not nailed down. Shiz slays women and children and burns cities, forcing civilians to flock together in armies.
The actions of the characters lead to death and destruction for almost all.	All people not killed are gathered for final battle at Cumorah	War is so swift and speedy that no one could stay to bury the dead. Even women and children are armed.
The battle is intense and destructive, with everyone still thinking he is right.  The consequences are death and madness.	Almost all Nephites die at Cumorah, except those that desert to the Lamanites.	2 million Jaredites die in years of back-and-forth fighting.
No one, including the hero, has a self-revelation.  But it is so obvious that the hero should have had a self-revelation that the audience has it instead.	The Nephites persisted in their wickedness. The Spirit ceased to strive with them. They are led about by Satan.	Coriantumr has a self-revelation that Ether’s prophecies had been fulfilled so far and 2 million of his people had died, but it happens too late and others drag him back into the war. The Spirit had ceased striving with them, and Satan has full power over the people. They are drunken with anger.
The remaining characters are horribly maimed by the struggle but immediately resume their efforts to reach the goal.	The Lamanites and Gadianton robbers who are left continue to fight among themselves.	Coriantumr and Shiz battle to the very end.
Slightly more positive black comedies end with the sane person watching in horror and either leaving the system or trying to change it.	Mormon tries to preach repentance, but is ignored. Mormon refuses to lead the armies anymore, but eventually decides to come back and try to help. At the end, he laments,“Oh ye fair ones, how could ye have departed from the ways of the Lord!” (Mormon 6:17)	Ether preaches to the Jaredites until they cast him out. By night he views what is happening to the Jaredites. Ether tries to convince Coriantumr to repent, but Coriantumr refuses and tries to kill him. Ether sees in the end that the Lord’s words were fulfilled.

Personally, I think this kind of story is badly named; I don’t see anything comedic about it.  It is incredibly tragic.  This is the kind of thing that the devil would laugh at, though.  (“Wo, wo, wo unto this people; wo unto the inhabitants of the whole earth except they shall repent; for the devil laugheth, and his angels rejoice, because of the slain of the fair sons and daughters of my people; and it is because of their iniquity and abominations that they are fallen!” [3 Nephi 9:2])

In doing a bit of a survey of how others define black comedy, I suppose that Truby has taken a particularly bleak type of storyline and applied this term to it.  That’s his prerogative, of course.

As I’ve looked at the comparison between Truby’s definition and the events in the Book of Mormon, it seems to me that the warning of the Book of Mormon is all the more powerful because the Book of Mormon isn’t fiction.  This was history.  It really happened.  It shows that without repentance, society descends into black comedy.  If we don’t repent, we will become this.