35 Ways the Dead Sea Scrolls are Like the Book of Mormon

The brilliant scholar Dr. Hugh Nibley wrote extensively about how the people and ideas represented in the Book of Mormon actually fit much better into an ancient Near Eastern context, as the book claims they should, despite detractors brushing them off as entirely a product of 19th century thought. His reasonings for this cover vast subject matter and literally fill volumes, but especially of interest to me are his comparisons of the Book of Mormon peoples to a pre-Christian community at Qumran whose scriptures comprise the Dead Sea Scrolls, which were unknown until the late 1940s. It is readily apparent that in addition to all the other insights the Dead Sea Scrolls have given scholars, they also serve as a witness to the antiquity of many of the Book of Mormon's themes and religious attitudes. In his work, Since Cumorah, Dr. Nibley concisely listed 35 similarities between the Book of Mormon people and the Dead Sea Scrolls community. The following is quoted from Chapter 10 of that book:

(1) First of all, the Book of Mormon opens with a group of pious separatists from Jerusalem moving into the refuge of the Judaean wilderness in the hopes of making a permanent settlement where they could live their religion in its purity free from the persecution of "the Jews at Jerusalem." This we pointed out in Lehi in the Desert before the publication of any of the Dead Sea Scrolls. The parallel needs no comment. (2) These people, like those at Qumran, have a passion for writing and reading which seems to be a long-standing family tradition; they make records of everything, and (3) they know of an ancient tradition of the sealing up and burying of holy books in time of danger, to come forth "in their purity" at a later time. (4) They themselves engage in the practice, in which they even employ for their most valuable records copper and gold sheets on which they laboriously engrave their message in a cramped and abbreviated script. (5) Both peoples apply all the scriptures to themselves in a special way and never tire of presenting and discussing "proof-texts." (6) Both societies held a peculiarly "open-ended" view of scriptures and revelation and knew of no canon of the Old Testament but accepted some of the "Apocrypha" as inspired writings. This attitude appears commonplace today, but we must remember that it has been quite alien to conventional Christianity and Jewish thinking and has been the one aspect of the Book of Mormon which has been most loudly denounced and ridiculed for over a century.

(7) In both the Book of Mormon and the Dead Sea Scrolls, the peculiar and until now quite unfamiliar concept of a "church of anticipation" [for the Messiah] is very conspicuous. (8) The religious communities in both hemispheres strove to keep the Law of Moses in all its perfection and were cool towards "the Jews in Jerusalem," who they felt had been false to the covenant by their worldliness. (9) They felt themselves in both cases to be the real Elect of God, the true Israel, chosen to prepare the way for the coming of the Messiah. (10) Specifically, they both think of themselves as Israel in the wilderness and consciously preserve the camp life of the desert. (11) Both have suffered persecution and expect to suffer more, being repeatedly required to seek refuge by moving from one place to another. (12) Both societies are under the leadership of inspired men (designated in both traditions as "stars")—prophets and martyrs (13) whose main message is the coming of the Messiah and (14) whose exhortation is to "righteousness" and repentance—Israel must turn away from her sins and return to the covenant. (15) In both cases a sign of the return to the covenant and to purity was baptism with water.
(16) Both societies were headed by twelve chiefs from whom were chosen a special presidency of three, and (17) both were formed into groups of fifty for instructional and administrative purposes, each group being under the direction of a priest (Mosiah 18:18), (18) for in both societies the old priesthood was still respected and the leaders had to be legitimate priests. (19) In both societies the chief priest or leader of the whole church traveled about among the congregations giving instructions and exhortations. (20) Both societies were secret and exclusive but would admit to membership anyone in Israel who sought to live the covenant in righteousness.4 (21) Both societies were strict observers of the Sabbath, but set aside another day of the week for their special meetings. (22) Those who joined either group were required to share their earthly wealth with all their fellow members, and (23) though both groups were hierarchical and strictly authoritarian, a feeling of perfect equality prevailed.5 (24) All devoted their lives to religious activity (study, preaching, discussion, prayer, and the singing and composing of hymns) and to physical labor, even the leaders working for their own support. (25) The headquarters of the societies seem to have looked remarkably alike: both were at special watering places in the desert with sheltering clumps of trees. (26) Since Alma's church shared all things in common, they probably had communal meals, like the Essenes. When Alma says to his followers: "Come unto me and . . . ye shall eat and drink of the bread and the waters of life freely" (Alma 5:34), it was plainly imagery that his hearers understood.

(27) As strict observers of the Law of Moses both groups respected the Temple and anticipated its perfect restoration. One of the first things Nephi's community did when they went out by themselves was to build a replica of the Temple. Such an idea has been thought utterly preposterous by the critics until the discovery in the present century of other Jewish colonies in distant lands building just such duplicates of the Temple. (28) Both groups, unlike the Jews at Jerusalem, regarded the Law of Moses only as a preparation, albeit an indispensable preparation, for more light to come, it "pointing their minds forward" to a fuller revelation of salvation.

(29) Doctrinally, a fundamental teaching of both societies was the idea of a divine plan laid down in the heavens at the foundation of the world, each individual having a claim or "lot" in the knowledge and the fruits of the plan. (30) Historically this plan is unfolded apocalyptically in a series of dispensations, each divine visitation being followed by the apostasy and punishment of the people, necessitating a later restoration of the covenant. (31) This restoration is brought about through the righteous Remnant, the few who remain faithful in Israel and continue to look for the Messiah and the signs of his coming. (32) The series of visitations and "ends" will be consummated with a final destruction of the wicked by fire.

(33) Meanwhile, all men are being tested: both teachings lay great stress on the dualistic nature of this time of probation in which there "must needs be . . . an opposition in all things" (2 Nephi 2:11). (34) In this and other things both bodies of scripture show a peculiar affinity for the writings of John. (35) Both groups persistently designate themselves as "the poor," emphasizing thereby their position as outcasts. This is strikingly illustrated in the Book of Mormon in an episode from the mission of Alma: When a large crowd gathered on a hillside outside a certain city to hear Alma preach, one of their leaders told Alma that these people were largely social outcasts, "for they are despised of all men because of their poverty, yea, and more especially by our priests; for they have cast us out of our synagogues which we have labored abundantly to build with our own hands; and they have cast us out because of our exceeding poverty; and we have no place to worship our God; and behold, what shall we do?" (Alma 32:5). It is among such people that Alma gathers recruits for his society, meeting with total rebuff at the hands of the upper classes and the priests.
The arresting point here is that a number of recent studies reach the conclusion that the mysterious demise of the Mayan civilization was brought about by just such exclusion of the masses from participation in the life of the great religious centers. The Mayan cities were not "cities in our sense of the word," we are told, but "ritual centres, where the people gathered for festivals but where nobody lived. Priests and nobility resided on the outskirts, the people in scattered settlements."6 There came a time when "one by one the great ceremonial centres . . . were deserted. In some the end came so quickly that buildings were left half-finished." And yet "the peasants appear to have remained in their homes." What could have happened? "The most logical explanation," writes J.E.S. Thompson, "is that the old cooperation of peasant and hierarchy broke down, and that the peasant revolted and drove out or massacred the small ruling class of priest-nobles and their immediate followers."7 In the end the poor took their revenge on the haughty priests who excluded them from the ceremonial places which had been built with the labor of their own hands. This would seem to have been an old pattern of things in the New World, by no means limited to the later Mayas. Alma describes it clearly.



The rest of Since Cumorah can be found in its entirety online at:
http://maxwellinstitute.byu.edu/publications/books/?bookid=74

First Time Visiting the Temple

For over a year now I have looked to the temples of the Lord with a sense of reverence and awe.  I feel so fortunate to live in a time when the Lord has commissioned the erection of hundreds of temples all over the world.  And now that I live in Logan, I have the fortune of seeing one of those awe-inspiring structures almost daily.  Seeing its beauty and its spirit never fails to brighten my day.  It is truly a magnificent structure, and when I think of the things that go on inside of it, its magnificence is only further intensified.  Because this temple and many others like it exist, hundreds of thousands of individuals who never knew the gospel have a chance to embrace it and receive their saving ordinances that they would have had they known more about them in life.

Well, today, after procrastinating far too long, I was able to attend the temple and assist several of these passed-on spirits in receiving their salvation by receiving baptisms and confirmations for them.  It was a beautiful experience.  Because of the restoration of the gospel in this age, and specifically the restoration of saving ordinances for the dead, scores of people anxiously waiting on the other side of the veil for a chance to be baptized into the gospel of Jesus Christ can now receive that and other ordinances.  And, through God's grace, we saints now living can aid them in that process.  It is something that draws several generations of people together in love.  Now, we not only aid the living in gaining their salvation through missionary work, but can aid those who didn't have access to missionaries or who didn't know enough about the gospel.  I love this doctrine.

One of the special moments was, while I was being baptized I noticed several of the people for whom I was baptized had the same last name.  I deduced they were the males of a family.  Along with their names I noticed that they were all from England and lived during the early 19th century.  It was so cool to realize that I assisted an entire family in attaining their salvation, and I imagined them rejoicing together because now they have the potential to be a family for eternity in the resurrection.  I am grateful to participate in this special moment, and hope to go to the temple often now that I have finally been for the first time.

"Approaching Zion"

Last night I attended the Friday night meeting of Stake Conference for Sannah's stake.  I was very touched.  Of course, the entire meeting was fantastic, and the talks by the skate patriarch and two of the members of the skate presidency were exceptional, but one thing in particular touched me.  The members of the Institute choir were singing the closing song, and as I was sitting there, feeling the Spirit as I listened to their voices, I realized I had never lived in a place with so many good people.  Never before have I had the fortune of living in a place where hundreds of college students (there were some four hundred+ students there) would give up their Friday night to come to an hour and a half church meeting.  And then I thought of all the students in the choir who not only gave up their Friday night, but also hours of their time previously in practicing for the beautiful hymns they sang.

I grew up in small town Missouri, where a majority of the students in my high school considered drinking and partying the most enjoyable thing to do.  I mean, sure there were good people there.  There are good people everywhere.  But never have I seen it to the extent that I see it here in Logan, UT.  Back home, there was always one guy in my grade who was consistently well-behaved.  He never swore, he never drank, he didn't participate in crude discussions, he was never ashamed of his love for God and Jesus Christ... and you know what, he was made fun of a lot.  You know why?  He was a Mormon. He was the one active Latter-day Saint in my school, and he was made fun of for it.  How silly to make fun of a man for being a member of a religion that works.  Look what growing up in that religion did for him.  Like I said, he was the most consistently good and admirable man in my grade.  Whether I knew it or not, his behavior had an effect on me.

Then fast forward to when I was going to college in Kansas City.  I had a hard time finding anyone who even believed in God, period, let alone who tried to live their lives according to His will.  And I certainly wasn't perfect myself.

Then, a miracle.  After much study, I found myself with a testimony that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was true.  And you know what happened?  I started attending a family ward in Kansas City and all of a sudden I was surrounded by good, hard-working, intelligent people with a genuine love for God I had never before experienced.  It was wonderful.  I have never felt more inspired by another group of people.

And now I am living in beautiful Logan, and am experiencing a nearly constant state of euphoria as I live among thousands of students who take their Heavenly Father at least seriously enough to go to church weekly and give up Friday nights for stake conferences.  At least.  Most of them are heavily involved in callings, attend the temple, and live their religion as well as they can, in addition to the numerous people I meet daily who have spent two years of their lives on a mission for the Lord.  I have never experienced living in a place where so many people love the Lord, and you can see it in the way they conduct their lives and even in their countenances.  Are there a lot of Latter-day Saints who don't take their religion seriously?  Of course, but that's true of every religion.  For the most part, living among the Latter-day Saints is the closest to experiencing Zion I have ever felt.  As one who has not been a Latter-day Saint for very long, I feel I can brag on my brothers and sisters in this Church.  I am proud to be one of them, and I hope to be as strong as many of the members I see on a daily basis.  It is a constant inspiration and motivation to be a better person when I am surrounded by such good people.  Are we perfect? No.  Do we have a long way to go before we truly reach a state of Zion?  Absolutely.  But nevertheless, as I've said, I have never felt such a genuine love for God in so great numbers among any other group of people.  It is inspiring and beautiful, and I can never be grateful enough to my Heavenly Father for placing me among the ranks of so great a people.  God bless them.

A More Generous View of Salvation: Why Baptism for the Dead?

 A More Generous View of Salvation
by Daniel C. Peterson, from MormonTimes.com 

The New Testament plainly states that, besides Jesus Christ, "there is none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved" (Acts 4:12). And yet hundreds of millions of souls, probably most who have ever lived, have never heard the name of Jesus Christ. Are they lost forever? If so, can God be considered just, let alone merciful?

During lunch with a conservative Protestant clergyman and his wife years ago, the conversation turned to the salvation of the unevangelized, those who never encountered Christianity. "They're damned," the pastor said. But, I objected, that seems massively unfair. What about ancient Chinese peasants? They never had a chance. "Maybe God hates the Chinese," the pastor's wife replied. I looked for a mischievous twinkle in her eye but saw none. I was stunned.

"God's justice is not like our justice," her husband explained. Which certainly seemed true. They made God's justice seem more like our injustice. Creating people out of nothing, he puts them where they cannot possibly hear the message of salvation and then tortures them eternally for their failure to accept it. (In fairness, many modern Christian thinkers struggle with this issue and would be as appalled as I was by my dining companions' comments.)

The illustrious medieval Italian poet Dante Alighieri, upon entering (fictionally) into the next world, was astonished at what he saw: "I should never have believed," he wrote in his "Inferno," "that death could have unmade so many souls" (3:56-57). Strikingly, despite his admiration for Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Homer, the great Islamic philosophers Avicenna and Averroes, and the chivalrous Muslim military hero Saladin, Dante felt obliged to place them all in hell. Even his guide, companion and "kindly master," the great Roman poet Virgil was barred from heaven. Virgil explains this to Dante as follows:

I'd have you know, before you go ahead,
they did not sin; and yet, though they have merits,
that's not enough, because they lacked baptism,
the portal of the faith that you embrace.
And if they lived before Christianity,
they did not worship God in fitting ways;
and of such spirits I myself am one.
For these defects, and for no other evil,
we now are lost and punished just with this:
we have no hope and yet we live in longing. (4:33-41)

Happily, Joseph Smith proclaimed a more generous view of salvation. He noted that even the New Testament itself suggests a hopeful solution, citing the Apostle Paul's passing reference to baptism for the dead, a practice long since forgotten, condemned or ignored by mainstream Christianity, in 1 Corinthians 15:29.

Though vicarious or "proxy" baptism receives only this brief biblical mention, modern revelation restored ancient Christian practice. An interesting article by David Paulsen and Brock Mason in the latest issue of the "Journal of the Book of Mormon and Other Restoration Scripture" surveys the scattered and fragmentary evidence for "Baptism for the Dead in Early Christianity." It is available online at maxwellinstitute.byu.edu.

In striking contrast to the mass murders recorded in history, vicarious service in Latter-day Saint temples seeks to bring the love of God and the hope of salvation to every human who ever lived.

The power of the Atonement of Christ extends even to those who did not hear: Everybody who has ever lived is to be individually remembered, labored for and valued, thus vindicating the justice of God and illustrating the breadth of his redemptive grace.

"Brethren," wrote Joseph Smith, "shall we not go on in so great a cause? Go forward and not backward. Courage, brethren; and on, on to the victory! Let your hearts rejoice, and be exceedingly glad. Let the earth break forth into singing. Let the dead speak forth anthems of eternal praise to the King Immanuel, who hath ordained, before the world was, that which would enable us to redeem them out of their prison; for the prisoners shall go free."

(Note: Vicarious temple rituals are offerings. They do not force compliance or acceptance and impose no change of identity, heritage or religious belief. Neither is the recipient added to the membership rolls of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.)