[This is a copy of my application to the 2017 Mormon Theology Seminar. This is always a good chance to explore different ideas. I never did come up with a good title so I hope you don't mind jumping right in.]
The powerful speech of Abinadi explained pivotal Messianic
concepts and elucidated the God head in ways that recalled some of the early Christian
ecumenical councils. The largest theme is the duality of Heaven and Earth
represented in Mosiah 15:4: And they are one God, yea, the very Eternal Father
of heaven and of earth. The study of Abinadi’s words justifiably focuses on his
amazing testimony of Christ and his bold stand for truth. But preaching doesn’t
happen in a vacuum. His talk about the
nature of God and His judgements reveal repeating and important scenes in the Book of Mormon regarding the nature of
prophets, and their possible conflict with both political power and the institutional
church.
The king and prophet are respective representations of heaven
and earth. The prophets are key
explainers of spiritual text which govern the kings, and kings are the divine
conduit that governs temporal affairs. The prophet Micaiah in 1st
Kings 22 does a good job of illustrating the possible scene and interplay
between king and prophet represented in Abinadi’s preaching. In the story the kings
of Israel and Judah sat on their thrones and consulted 400 priests regarding
future military action. The 400 priests give their approval for the joint
attack. Yet one of the kings wasn’t satisfied with the answer. He was reluctant to consult the prophet
Micaiah because he always prophesied evil concerning the king but did so
anyway. When pressed Micaiah gave them grim news concerning the judgements of
God and used Christ like language when he compared their defeat to being a
flock without a shepherd.
Micaiah then testified of a vision that truly revealed the
dual nature of the episode. As Cristiano Grottanelli explains the text, “On
earth we see the thrones of the kings with the ranks of prophets and with the
recalcitrant truth telling prophet. In heaven we see the throne of Yahweh with
the ranks of spirits, and the lying spirit volunteer.”[1]The
encounter ended when Micaiah is then slapped by one of the priests and cast into
prison. The story of Micaiah and Abinadi
are fascinating accounts of a prophet being forced to oppose the king, testify
of destruction, contradict the priests in the court, and then have a
theophonic experience that mirrors the earthly scene. Abinadi is brought before
a king, contradicts the priests, teaches of the duality between Heaven and
Earth, testifies of Christ being born, Christ being brought before a king and killed,
and then Abinadi’s experience ends with his death.
The treatment of Abinadi is not only a possible type scene
with the Bible and representation of duality; it also illustrates key themes in
the Book of Mormon. Abinadi being
brought before an angry king for his preaching recalls prophets such Alma in
the city of Ammonihah (Alma 14:2), and Nephi upon his tower (Helaman 8:5-6) who
faced the people’s wrath over the enunciation of political consequences of
spiritual condemnation. The other theme,
also represented in the Bible, is the conflict between the priests who are part
of the institutional church and the court of the king, and the prophets who are
often charismatic and outside of the organized church. This is most clearly seen in Samuel the
Lamanite, who preached on the walls, was never heard again, and the people whom
he converted had to seek out Nephi, the institutional leader of the church for
baptism (Helaman 16:3-4). The prophet Micaiah also contradicted the larger
number of priests who were special guests and interpreters for the king. Abinadi explicitly threatened both the kings
(secular) life and safety of kingdom while also undermining the position and
prophecies of the priests. Much like the people in Jeremiah’s day, the priests opposing
Abinadi contended that their kingdom is strong (12:14-15).
The spiritual teachings of Abinadi receive a good deal of
attention. But his words about God being the Father of heaven and earth suggest
a connection between the political history of the Nephites and the spiritual
preaching of the prophets that is understudied.
Abinadi represents a possible type scene comparable to Micaiah’s
experience in 1 Kings 22, and it also highlights the experience of many Nephite
prophets in having their spiritual messages ruffle temporal feathers, and
suggests a difference between free-lance prophets and institutional
priests.
[1]
Cristiano Grottanelli, Kings and
Prophets: Monarchic Power, Inspired Leadership & Sacred Tect in Biblical
Narrative (New York, Oxford University Press, 1999), 175.
Statement of Interest:
I’m particularly attracted to the seminar’s intense reading
and focus on new lines of inquiry into the text and believe I could add a great
deal to the seminar. I have extensive
academic experience with over a dozen academic publications and presentations.
My most recent work includes a research grant that allowed me to study the
early insurgency of Mao Zedong, and a contract with Westholme Press to produce
a book on decisive battles in Chinese history.
Regarding the Book of Mormon,
my methodological focus has reexamined assumptions about the narrative in the text.
This has produced a manuscript length volume which discusses a revisionist
history within the Book of Mormon currently
under review for publication. Some of that research was previewed in a
well-received presentation at the 2016 FAIR conference which examined the
social and political factors that might have fueled the Gadianton insurgency. Another focus has been to examine the
relevance of the text in formulating foreign policy. Some of this research has
been published in past monographs and contributions to collected volumes and
conferences. My most recent piece represents ground breaking research into
previously neglected verses that discuss preemptive war. I look forward to bringing these skills to
the 2017 seminar. Thank you.
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